What is it about Springtime that as soon as I hear the birds start tweeting again and the days lengthen, I notice just how dirty the house has become over winter? Of course, I’ve been cleaning and tidying as I go (Marie Kondo’s star pupil here) but there is something about Spring that sheds new light on our home and it just makes me need to blitz the place!
Aside from the usual taking all the furniture out and cleaning behind it and giving the windows a good clean, here are a few useful tips I’ve come across recently you might like...
1. How to freshen your mattress
First hoover the mattress both sides. In a bowl, mix a few drops of lavender oil with one cup of baking soda. Put the lavender and baking soda mixture in a sieve or shaker and dust entire mattress. Do this in the morning and hoover off again before bed.
Tip: You can use this mixture on rugs and mats too and leave them out the air before hoovering it off.
2. Give the fridge a deep clean
Take out all the contents and shelves. Check the dates of everything, what needs to go? This cleaner recipe works well on windows and in place of a multi-surface type cleaner and is good for this job too:
In a 500ml squirty bottle mix 375ml water, 60ml vodka, 60ml White Vinegar,
20 drops Lemon essential oil, 10 drops Rosemary essential Oil.
Repeat for your freezer.
3. Care for your Houseplants
If you have indoor plants, spring is the best time to prune, repot and fertilize them. Soil loses nutrients over time so remember to give them a bit more feeding from now on. Keep your leftover teabags and coffee grounds and mix into the soil and spray down the leaves to remove dust. I put 1tbsp of Epsom Salt into the spray bottle to give the plants some extra nourishment. Remember to move your plants’ positions to get the most from the extra sunlight.
“The objective of cleaning is not just to clean,
but to feel Happiness within your environment”
Marie Kondo