January 11, 2016

Come Clean Challenge – Week 2 – Living Spaces

This month I’m doing a Come Clean Challenge to jump start the 2016 cleaning calendar theme – Come Clean in 2016. Each week this month I’ll have simple daily tasks to work on – don’t worry about getting everything done, work on a little something every day and your living spaces will be cleaner than it was at the beginning of the week. For instance, when you’re vacuuming on Wednesday (vacuuming day), you’ll see that vacuum edges and under furniture is the task for the day. Make the challenge work for you and your schedule but don’t get discouraged by what you can’t accomplish, concentrate on what you can get done in short chunks of time.

Not sure how to incorporate cleaning your living spaces AND keeping up with other household tasks? Here’s what I do….

Start with the daily tasks and make sure those get completed – wipe counters, check floors, one load of laundry, clutter THEN when those are completed or started, I do the weekly tasks – Monday is bathrooms day, Tuesday is dusting day, etc. I work QUICKLY and get the task finished up in about 15 minutes. This week I’ll be working on living spaces as I can and with the weekly tasks incorporated as much as possible. Think of ways to maximize your time and effort by adding another task or two to what you’re already working on.

On the checklist for this week and a little bit of direction:

• CLEAR ALL FLAT SURFACES – Make a quick run through your living spaces and clear all flat surfaces – remove any clutter, unnecessary items, and things that just don’t belong. Take 15-30 minutes to evaluate what you love and want to keep and what you don’t need to keep around any longer. Keeping surfaces clutter-free will give your home room to breathe and it makes dusting a breeze.
• DUST CORNERS, VENTS, AND LIGHT FIXTURES  – While dusting (dusting day) incorporate dusting any edges, corners, and light fixtures. Use a dusting wand, a duster, and/or your vacuum cleaner to make this simple and easy. If you have glass light fixtures and they are really dusty (and you have time) you can remove them and wash in your kitchen sink with warm soapy water.
• DEEP VACUUM – VACUUM EDGES + UNDER FURNITURE – While vacuuming (vacuuming day) take the time to use the hose attachment on your vacuum cleaner to get the edges, corners, and baseboards. Pull out furniture if you’re able and if needed and vacuum underneath it.
• DECLUTTER AND CLEAN STORAGE AREAS + TOYS – If you have storage in your living spaces, declutter it today. Clear it out, clean it and only put back what you love and use. If you have toys stored in living spaces, clear, clean and declutter it!
• CLEAN WINDOWS AND MIRRORS – Notice smudges, fingerprints and/or dusty mirrors? Us a microfiber cloth and give them a little spritz and keep moving.
• CATCH UP ON ANY UNCOMPLETED TASKS – Did you run out of time or energy to complete tasks during the week? Catch up on this day!
• CLEAR SURFACES AND QUICK CLEAN – Get ready for the week ahead by making sure surfaces remain cleaned off and everything is tidied up. Living spaces take a beating – have them ready for the week and chances are they’ll stay that way as the next week moves in.

 Some blog posts to inspire and give you some guidance:

Use an ‘On Your Way Up Basket’ to keep clutter away
Tips for Organizing Toys in a Family Room
How to Clean Your Vacuum Cleaner
Kid-Friendly Cleaning Caddy + DIY Cleaning Spray
Carpet Cleaning (2 Ways to DIY)
The Best Way to Wash Windows
The Right Way to Vacuum – 5 Steps You Might Be Missing

Get your FREE Come Clean Challenge worksheet here and the cleaning calendar for January 2016 here!

Catch up on the posts here:

Come Clean Challenge – Free Printable 
Come Clean Challenge Quick Start
Week 1 – Kitchen
Week 2 – Living Spaces
Week 3 – Bathrooms
Week 4 – Bedrooms
Come Clean – Wrap Up

The excitement over Clean Mama HOME has blown me away! Pictured below are my aqua and white bar mop towels (in stock). I’ve sold out of a couple products but rest assured everything will be fully stocked in the next couple weeks.