*Photo from Martha Stewart.com
Time to cover cleaning techniques. Not sure if technique is the right word, but it is French and I’m feeling a bit French today, so I’ll use it.
Most of us have our own little habits and ways of going about housekeeping. For example, when I clean a bathroom, I always start by scrubbing out the toilet and then letting the cleaner sit for 5-10 minutes to disinfect. I always end by cleaning the floor because I can’t clean anything else with a wet floor. And after the floor is dry, I make sure I am the first one to use the clean toilet and shower. Really!
When I was in college, my roommate taught me the proper order for hand washing dishes: silverware and glasses first because your mouth touches them and the dishwater is the most clean at the beginning. Then bowls, because sometimes you have to drink the leftover milk when the cereal is all gone. After that, plates, cooking items and pots and pans. I don’t hand wash dishes very often anymore, but when I do, I always follow this order.
Many personal cleaning techniques are handed down from generation to generation. My mom taught me to always vacuum a room and then dust because the vacuum stirs up the dust and it is right back on the furniture. I wonder if her mom taught her that…mom? I wonder if I taught my girls that…girls?
Think about your cleaning techniques…do you have some? Are you ready for some new ones? Sometimes, a change in method is all I need to get remotivated in the clean-my-house department. Here are a few ideas and resources I like…
Cleaning Your Fridge from Martha Stewart (of course)…
Martha also provides other cleaning tips like Dishwasher Dos and Don'ts, Cleaning Small Appliances, and Caring for Your Porch and Grill. She also includes printable checklists in each section.
As I mentioned yesterday, Jordan Ferney at Oh Happy Day is working with Method on their People Against Dirty campaign. Here is a picture of Jordan’s kitchen (I think my kitchen would be this clean if I lived in France like Jordan)…
*photo by Jordan Ferney
…and here are her kitchen cleaning tips.
I just discovered the Curbly website that will answer almost any homekeeping question you might have. I really like the post Clean Like a Maid by Bad Bad Ivy (I wonder why she is so bad). She uses her experiences as a former housecleaner to give tips like “top to bottom, left to right” and cleaning “wet rooms” or “dry rooms.”
There are lots of great websites, books, moms, and friends out there full of cleaning advice. Lets share. What are some of your favorite cleaning techniques?
Happy Homekeeping.
Hi there, just found your blog.
ReplyDeleteI am no expert cleaner, but I can't go to sleep at night without cleaning the kitchen and putting (the rest of) the toys away. If I don't do that, I feel like I can't catch up.