13 Secrets of People Who Always Have a Clean House
They have a place for everything
“If you have too much stuff without a place to go, the clutter and piles in your home become impossible to actually clean,” says Jennifer Snyder, owner of Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts in Waco, Texas. So if you have a peg in the kitchen for your keys or a shelf for your mail, use them.
They clean as they go
“People whose homes always appear clean don’t wait until it looks like a bomb went off,” wrote Brittany Bergman on HuffPost. Rather, they have routines. “This might mean rearranging throw pillows and folding blankets when they’re done in the family room each night, having kids put toys back in the toy box, hanging up clothes at the end of each day, and folding the laundry right when it comes out of the dryer.”
Here are some genius organizational tips from tidying up expert Marie Kondo.
They find clever ways to store more
People with clean homes use their smarts when it comes to products that help them stay organized. “An over-the-door organizer has a variety of clear pockets where you can store jewelry and make-up, sorting by type—pencils, lipsticks, brushes and eye shadows,” says Paloma Baillie, a DIY expert with the 5mile app. “Everything is laid out, so you have easy access and can see items more clearly.” You can do a similar thing with office supplies if you don’t have room for a desk.
They hire help
Not every household budget has room for a regular professional cleaning service, but those who do tend to keep up with daily maintenance for one very important reason. “It’s a good motivator to get things put away or moved along into the recycling bin when you know tomorrow is cleaning day and your house won’t get as clean if the cleaning service has to clean around all your stuff,” says Mary Gagliardi, Clorox’s in-house cleaning and laundry expert.
They know how to delegate tasks
Unless you live alone, mess and clutter is a group effort; therefore, cleaning should be a group effort as well. “Everyone should have weekly chores (dusting, emptying trash, vacuuming sweeping, etc) that not only build responsible adults out of kids but also makes it easier to keep the home clean—something everyone in the home should care about,” says Gagliardi.
Learn what to declutter based on your Zodiac sign!
They make cleaning feel less like a chore
If it’s not your thing, it’s hard to imagine putting a fun spin on cleaning. But there are ways to complete a task while distracting your mind. “Make cleaning enjoyable by listening to your favorite podcast,” says Tisha Morris, author of Clutter Intervention: How Your Stuff Is Keeping You Stuck. “Get wireless Bluetooth headphones to give you the freedom to move all around the house. You might even get enough steps in on your Fitbit for it to count as a workout.” They believe in working smarter and not harder. When holidays are around the corner, they make sure to follow these holiday cleaning tips.
They make organizing look pretty
If you consider storage and organization as part of your decor, as many with clean homes do, it makes the project a feast for the eyes. “I separate my wardrobe so all my dresses are together, all my jeans are together, sweaters, tops, coats, skirts, etc. Then I color code each category,” says Rachel Parcell, style and design expert behind Pink Peonies. “I love the way it looks and it’s easy to find things.”
They use everyday items to keep things clean
Don’t put off cleaning because you don’t have supplies. “You can clean windows without leaving streaks behind with the help of a coffee filter,” says Larry Patterson franchisee of the Glass Doctor in Dallas. “Coffee filters and old cotton t-shirts also work well to remove remaining lint left behind from dry cloths.” Another pro tip? If you wiped vertically outside, make sure to wipe horizontally inside. Then, you’ll know whether the missed spot is inside or outside. Smart!
