Spring is a time for rebirth and rejuvenation; for homeowners, that often means a fair amount of spring cleaning. After all, how should you feel refreshed with boxes of “stuff” piled up in the closet and winter grime caked onto the windows?
Spring cleaning and decluttering your home may feel like a monumental chore worth putting off until Memorial Day, but it’s really not that bad. All you need is some strategy to implement a tidying-up game plan.
Declutter Before You Clean
Work on decluttering before you bust out the mop and Windex. This allows you to see what needs deep cleaning and avoid creating more work for yourself by dirtying up the area you just cleaned.
Break it down room by room and start with the room you’re in the most before working your way to rooms you don’t spend as much time in, like the attic or a guest bedroom.
Donate, Keep, and Discard
Work room by room, and go through those items you know take up space and set them aside into one of three categories: donate, keep, and discard. Be honest with yourself about what’s really worth keeping and what needs to go. If you haven’t worn those old boots since Austin City Limits 2019, get rid of them!
Be sure you’re actually putting things in the donation pile that other people would also want. So no coffee mugs with chipped handles, jeans with zippers that don’t zip, or shoes with holes in the soles. If you wouldn’t allow a friend or family member to use it, don’t pass it off to a stranger; into the discard, it goes.
Area Donation Centers
There are several non-profits in the Dripping Springs area that will take gently used clothing and household items.
Food Donation Centers
Clearing out your kitchen pantry should also be part of your decluttering process. You can drop off non-expired food at these area locations.
Meals on Wheels of Central Texas
Clean Neglected Areas First
Okay, so you’ve decluttered and donated – it’s finally time to clean. But wait! First, take inventory of your cleaning products. This cuts down running back and forth to the store because you forgot something like furniture polish or realized you need a new mop head.
Alright, now it’s time to clean. Start with the areas of your home that have probably been neglected for the past few months, and work on cleaning those first. Such as:
- Wash outside windows
- Clean the baseboards
- Dust ceiling fans and blinds
- Clean inside the refrigerator
- Sweep the garage and deck
- Polish and dust furniture
- Vacuum upholstery
- Change air filters
- Wash linens
Be sure to pace yourself, and before you know it, your home will be spic and span.
If part of your spring checklist is shopping for a new home, contact the team at Caliterra to learn more about the beautiful move-in-ready homes in this master-planned community.
