Spring clean in style
- Go back
- 23rd Mar 20
Nothing beats the feeling of a freshly cleaned home. If you want to embark on a spring clean blitz, get some inspiration before rolling up your sleeves to get stuck in.
Insta Clean
With more than 3million follows, Mrs Hinch is the queen of the cleaning accounts on Instagram. Her #HinchArmy love her top cleaning hacks and videos from her Essex home as well as her #HinchHauls where she shows her audience what cleaning products she is buying and loving. Practical advice with lots of humour and touches of cuteness with her dog Henry and son Ronnie.
Other accounts to follow if you need some tips, advice or just a bit of motivation to get the mope out are lynsey_queenofclean, This Morning's cleaning guru and one of the starts of Channel 4's series Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners. She is known for her natural cleaning hacks and one of her most popular posts was showing how to clean your oven and microwave without the need for chemicals, instead using a bowl full of lemons in water to help life sticky grease stains.
If you need to get your head around decluttering, the @stylesisters are on hand to offer you a whole host of hacks and tricks. The friends, Gemma Lilly and Charlotte Reddington, made their name by decluttering numerous celebrities’ homes so you get to nosy around other people’s closets and watch how they transform chaos into calm. One of their top tips for wardrobe organisation is to invest in velvet slimline hangars, that stops clothes slipping and allows for maximise space in the wardrobe.
Clean and green
Over the last few years, more people have questioned the use of chemicals in our cleaning solutions, which are often incredibly harsh and dangerous if ingested, touched or breathed in. These chemicals can also end up in the water becoming damaging to the environment. Not to mention that many of the products we use to clean are made and packaged in non-recyclable material. One of the most popular products on the market is Method, combining sleek design with non-toxic cleaning fluids. It kills 99.9% of all bacteria and can be used everywhere and comes in a range of lovely scents. You might be more used to them in the bathroom but a loofah can be used for washing up to replace non-biodegradable plastic sponges. LoofCo harvests this naturally grown vine and manufactures the product in Egypt under fair labour conditions. It will start off scratchy but gets soft when wet and cleans the dishes just as well as any other soft cloth. Just ensure it gets hung up to dry between use so it doesn’t get mouldy. There are plenty of products on the market that work efficiently and look stylish while ditching the chemicals.
In with the old, out with the new
Our grandparents may have loved to tell us ‘waste not want not’ but it is only in recent years that we have really got our heads around upcycling. Breathing new life into old items can be achieved by anyone on any budget. You don’t need to be particularly creative to get something that is unique and lessen the burden on the planet. There are lots of places online to go to get inspiration for your project but before you start, make sure that you are fully prepared and have all the equipment you need. If you are new to upcycling, check out your local car boot sale and junk shops for pieces that you can practice on. Don’t be scared to mix fabrics, textures, colours and materials, there are no rules you have to follow, just have fun. Top tip: before painting, always lightly sand wood furniture down to create the perfect finish. Once you are a little more confident, check out the #ikeahack hashtag for clever ideas to turn basic pieces of furniture into enviable décor pieces with very little effort.
Tidy tips
If you are one of those people that like to shove stuff in a cupboard or drawer until it can barely close, then Marie Kondo might be the woman you need. Bestselling author, star of Netflix’s hit show Tidying Up With Marie Kondo and founder of KonMari Media, Inc. Marie has taken tidying to a whole new level. Transforming cluttered homes into spaces of serenity and inspiration, Marie has created a method that will teach you to simplify and organise your home so you will never have to be in a mess again. Her method is unique in that she encourages you to tidy by category, not by location. Start with clothes, then move on to books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items) and lastly, sentimental items. Keep only the things that spark joy and discard all other items.
Her six basic rules are:
- Commit yourself to tidying up.
- Imagine your ideal lifestyle.
- Finish discarding first.
- Tidy by category, not by location.
- Follow the right order.
- Ask yourself if it sparks joy.
Cleaning hacks
Whether you have an hour or a whole weekend set aside for a deep clean, there are a few tips and tricks you can apply to clean up your home’s trouble spots.
- Chopping boards – a slice of lemon on a board will remove food stains and smells.
- Fridge – wash door shelves and bins in warm soapy water to get rid of food bacteria and spillage.
- Pots and pans – get rid of burned on residue by adding water and washing liquid to your pots and letting it simmer on the stove. Brillo pads will remove any remaining stuck on bits.
- Junk drawers – empty it out and suck up dust with your vacuum’s nozzle.
- Shower curtain – a plastic or vinyl curtain can be washed in the machine on a gentle cycle.
- Make up – check the expiry date and get rid of anything that is past it.
- Ceilings – an extendable duster will help you clear out ceiling fans and recessed lights and moldings.
- Toys – plastic toys such as Lego can be put in the dishwasher on a quick cycle but skip the heated dry.
- Electronic items – phones, TV remotes and any tech will be constantly in use and will harbor lots of germs. Give them a once over with an alcohol wipe.