How to clean just about anything!

I've had a lot of trouble getting the motivation to actually get my rubber gloves out and scrub, clean, tidy, wash and put away ANYTHING at the moment. I'm so lazy when it comes to tidying/cleaning, but while going through my dad's full wall bookcase (Yep, it's HUGE, that's only half his books!) & I came across this wonderful book on the top shelf.

I had a long flick through it, and i thought to myself.. "there's no need to be lazy... this stuff is easy and quick to do!"

So, i thought I'd share some of my favourite tips from it with you!

Quick Tips:

• Towel off your glass door (if you have one) after every shower to prevent mould & mildew.
• Take off shoes at the door! keep your carpets as clean as possible, renting a carpet cleaner can be expensive.
• Wash dishes immediately after using them. Who wants to be vigorously scraping off hardened food off plates? Not me!
• Spray the whole shower/bath area once a week with soap scum remover to prevent a nasty build up.
• Make sure all dishes, glasses, pots and pans are dried and put away before you go to bed.

Planning for a clean life & Reasons to clean!

• You're in control of your routine; set at least a day a week for a top-to-bottom cleaning day.
• Take pride in cleaning your house, you have made the effort to make it a clean place to live!
• You'll enjoy a safer, healthier home.
• Enjoy spending more time with relatives in your house, make it feel like a home.
• Saving money! furniture & clothes that are properly cleaned last longer.

Where do i start?!:

• If you have kids, reel them in to help! they help make the mess, they can help tidy it! They're never too young!
• Set a date to clean, and a time scale too, just don't exhaust yourself!
• Two of you (or more!) working together (if they know what they're doing!) will have you done in double-quick time!
• Be VERY ruthless. Collecting birthday cards is great and all, but unless you're a crafting diva, do you really need all of them? keep those that are special to you, bin the rest!
• Keep an eye out for extra storage space! 
• Never underestimate your attic, most will have a lot of storage space, but that's only handy for things you don't use very often. Unless you like a workout!
• Get some music on! Dance around to your favourite song whilst cleaning, make yourself feel good!

TEN GOLDEN RULES!

1. Clean a mess up immediately! Spills and stains are easier to clean if caught immediately.
2. Clean from the top, down; from the top of the fridge, to the bottom of the freezer, always work from the top down.
3. Think dry, then wet! if "dry" cleaning something doesn't work, wet the cloth and try again! 
4. Start with the least harmful approach; use gentle cleaning methods & chemicals, don't do damage!
5. Let time do the work! before you clean something, spray other objects too, let the cleaner soften/lift the dirt from it, then work your way around them all.
6. Carry your supplies with you! this is obvious, no-one wants to be running up and down stairs, in and out of cupboards looking for cleaning products. keep dusters&polish in the living room, bathroom cleaners in the bathroom, and kitchen cleaners in the kitchen.  
7. When in doubt, test it out! before using a new product/method on furniture for the first time, test it on a part of the item that you wouldn't notice if anything goes wrong. (the bottom of a leather couch, the side of a cushioned chair)
8. don't soak everything, go easy! literally.. don't soak what you're cleaning (unless necessary) just gently spray a tiny bit onto things the cleaner could potentially be harmful towards.. paintings, photo frames, ornaments, etc.
9. Read the directions!  know what you're working with, and make sure you always..
10. Wear protection! gloves, a face mask (if you have strong odoured chemicals) safety glasses (well, maybe not)  keep the chemicals on the stuff you're cleaning, not on your body!

Tips for de-cluttering your house!

• Accept your loss, if you don't need it, get rid of it! be extremely ruthless, let no clutter survive!
• Get into the place where you keep bank letters, pay slips, and general mail, SHRED what you don't need (do NOT bin it, shred/cut it up. identity fraud, remember!) and organize the rest!
• Ask yourself; does it fit? do i wear it? do i want it?  if the answer to any of those questions is no, then bag it up and drop it off at your local charity shop! (if it's in a good condition and doesn't have stains/repairs)
• If you have kids, get them out of the way. Kick them to the couch, or outside, somewhere they won't get under your feet if you're ready for a long weekend of deep-cleaning your house.

Steps to successful de-cluttering:

• Make three piles;  Keep, Throw, Reuse/Recycle.  Absolutely no "i can't decide!" it gets kept, or it's gone! 
• Instead of coming home from the weekly shop with thousands upon thousands of plastic carrier bags (which take up to 50 years to decompose!) Buy tote/cloth/canvas bags to carry your shopping in, save the plastic!
• Instead of buying things you might only wear once (unless you get it cheap!) Rent it!  Videos & DVD's are a definite.
• Start buying family members birthday and christmas presents that are rapidly consumable. Does your niece really need another cuddly toy?  No, she'd much prefer a cheap day out to the zoo or an activity park!
• Focus more on 'doing' and 'being' instead of 'having' in life!

There is so much more in this book, but i only want to share my favourite bits from it with you! 

The book i've been talking about here is on amazon for £7.50 brand new, or used ones from A PENNY!  go grab a copy, it's excellent! 

Do you have any cleaning tips to share? 

I hope you've enjoyed this post as much as i've enjoyed writing it :-)

Louise x