Getting the House Holiday Ready
Start With a Pre-Holiday Clean
The holiday season is a season for hosting friends and family. With holiday meals, family get-togethers, and holiday parties, the house will definitely need a little work to avoid a big mess after the holiday season. The nice thing about a pre-holiday clean is that it gives you the ability to really enjoy the holidays in your home. Here are a few areas to clean as well as a few tips to conquer them:
- Clean walls and doors - Germs, dust, and other messes can be found on the walls and doors in your home. Giving these a quick quality clean before the holidays can make a world of difference. Use the Holiday Hearth Spray with the CleanWalls tool for a quick clean-up that will leave your home smelling holiday ready!
- Conquer the laundry - As the weather changes, clothing will get rotated through and warm blankets will be laid out for a holiday movie night. Prepare your warm winter clothes and blankets for the holiday season and protect them from pilling with our Zero Waste Laundry Packs.
- Get rid of the clutter - The holiday season brings company and gifts as well. Living in a cluttered area can make it harder to fit everyone into the home comfortably. It can also create a feeling of overwhelm when new gifts come. Take some time to remove items that no longer serve you to make room for guests and gifts this holiday season. It can help to donate items to a local charity if they are in good condition.
- Deep clean the common areas - Areas such as kitchens, bathrooms, and living spaces will get cleaned throughout the year. Before heading into the holidays take some time to do a deep clean on these areas. Use an all-purpose cleaner to wipe down counters, clean the inside of cabinets, and dust the common areas. Then all your surfaces will be clean and ready to decorate!
- Give floors a fresh start! - Before decorating for the holidays, take some time to give your floors a fresh deep clean. For carpets, an odor eliminator and stain remover would be a good start. This will help to freshen up the smell of your home while getting carpets a deep clean. It can also help to use a hard floor cleaner to give non-carpet floors a good clean.
- Get the bathroom shining - With people visiting and potentially staying overnight for the holidays, it’s a great time to give the bathroom a deep clean. Invest some time into getting the bathroom clean. Don’t forget about the shower. Use the shower rejuvenation bundle to get rid of hard water stains and prepare your shower for company.
Preparation Can Avoid Bigger Messes Later
While doing a deep clean is important, there are also some preliminary steps you can take to prepare for a busy holiday season. As the old saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” There are some simple ways to make your home holiday-ready. These steps can help you have a tidy holiday home. They’re also miracle workers when it comes time to clean everything up. Here are a few ways to prepare for the holiday season:
- Create a place for shoes and jackets - Shoes and clothing can quickly become clutter items and track dirt, germs, and mud into the home. Not only is it beneficial to remove these items at the door, but it’s also helpful to have a place for them to go. Whether you set up a shoe bucket, rack, or cleaning station will depend on your home and the space you have to work with. Taking a few minutes to set up a place for these things to go will save you from bigger messes later on.
- Replace storage containers and have superglue on hand - When decorating for the holidays, you might find that the containers you used to store items have been damaged. Use the time while the decorations are being put out to put together a list of storage supplies you will need at the end of the season. Shop for these in the coming weeks. Items that hold deep sentimental meaning can also get damaged. Have the supplies on hand to fix these items so they don’t become cluttered as a project that needs to get done.
- Create a place for gifts/leftovers - This ties in with decreasing clutter in the previous section but it is worth mentioning again. Take some time to find space for new gifts that will come in. Putting them where they belong or replacing items with the new ones will help to avoid clutter. It can also help to make sure there is room in the refrigerator or freezer for leftovers after meals.
- Prepare common areas for guests - Have items such as a plunger in the bathroom, bathroom towels, garbage cans for personal items in the restroom, personal products accessible in the restroom, throw blankets for those who get cold, and other comfort items on hand. Having these items on hand will help guests to feel more comfortable in your home. However, they will also help them to properly dispose of personal items or avoid embarrassment if the toilet chooses the holidays to be difficult.
- Have a clean as you go plan - During the holidays it can get tempting to let dishes pile up or put messes off for later. This can leave you with a big mess at the end of the season and take some of the joy out of the season. Setting up a plan for cleaning as you go, and getting everyone involved can help to avoid holiday frustration or larger messes later.
The holiday season is all about spending time with loved ones at home and nothing is more important during this time than a happy, healthy home, so take some time to prepare and enjoy all that the season brings. Wishing you and your family a very happy and healthy holiday season!