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It is tough to think about having people in your house. It is that time of the year again when family, friends, and acquaintances will be dropping by. Some will come for the holidays while others will be showing up day by day. You may feel that your home isn’t ready for the steady stream of people coming to see you.

We feel like helping our local neighbors with some friendly cleaning strategies to keep the house presentable this season. We are Judite General Services, located in Simsbury, Connecticut.

Now, I know most of our lives are busy. The holiday season just adds to our responsibilities and anxiety. Some of us even have tons of holiday shopping and prepping left to do. We’re going to share a few helpful tips to clean your home and some strategies to keep it clean, especially in the areas guests tend to spend a lot of time during the holidays.

Make a checklist & focus zones

It is a good idea to make a list and check it twice. With everything else in mind, you don’t want to forget what you’re working on, particularly for those of us who don’t have all the time in the world to clean because of time constraints. Write down the areas of your home that you know will be the most visible and mark them for cleaning.

Now that you know where your cleaning will be focused, let’s put the list to good use. Focus zones will be the areas in the home where you will pay particular attention because of the area’s activities and visibility. Don’t worry, we’ll cover the reasoning behind this soon.

Activities

The hard part will be getting started without losing your marbles. If you have kids this will be tough, but you can do it. Get lots of coffee if they’re active kids. Start with your most visible area. For most that is the living & dining areas.

Declutter first attack next

Moving the things that have piled up during the year is a great idea. If you have younger children, this may be a challenge but it can be done. We can also employ most children because children tend to want to be helpful, and it is good for character building. On the list of things will be toys and unnecessary furniture or storage containers, or other items sitting in the living and dining areas.

Move these items into the basement, closet, garage or other areas that will get less traffic during the holiday season. This will ensure that you are able to clean all the space and see what your visitors will see when it’s cleaned. You will have this area empty except for the things you will need during the season. You may also be inspired to add specific products or furniture as décor or space holders. Decluttering may open up a whole new world inside your home.

Now you can get a good look around to see if a regular cleaning will do or if you need to deep clean the space. Typically, places that have been kept clean all year round will only need regular cleaning. A quick observation will let you know what you need to do.

The battle begins

It is a good idea to start with the dusting. Dust the blinds and above the windows, lighting chandeliers and fans, especially above fans. The door and window sills top to bottom. Any cabinets and, of course finally under the sinks and the fridge insides and out. Give them all a good cleaning and plan on washing the pans and holders inside the refrigerator. This is your primary clean.

The next step is to run a vacuum cleaner in areas with rugs and then sweep the kitchen and areas with bare flooring before running a mop. The living and dining rooms should get a more thorough cleaning to include wiping sills and chairs and tables and focusing in the nooks and crannies to get the year out of there. This is the holiday season after all.

Finally, before the main cleaning course, polish your furniture and clean your mirrors. One of the cheapest most effective, and environmentally clean solutions to use is water. Yes, you can use water to clean just about any furniture, and glass surfaces, just about any surface can be cleaned with water. It costs nothing more than running your sink catching water in a bucket and using a soft cloth to wipe. The magic of water is invaluable if you’re not into cleaning solvents.

The Bathrooms

The bathroom is an important spade to focus your cleaning because almost everyone, if not everyone will use your bathroom. If you want to make an impression with your cleaning, make sure you don’t miss anything inside the bathrooms.

Most of us will miss the mildew buildup on the outside of the toilets, toilet tank, and outside sinks. It is easy to remember to clean the insides of everything but the outside we tend to miss because we may be in a hurry to get to something else. Clean inside the tubs and toilets, and make a note to do so. A well-cleaned bathroom will set you and your guests at ease.

The Kitchen

Kitchens tend to need deep cleaning for obvious reasons. Most of us don’t see the buildup of oil and other contents from cooking and frying and everything else that goes on in a well-used kitchen. If we look close enough we will see grease and other particles, cobwebs, and pet dander among the things that hang on the furniture and awnings in our kitchens. CT is known for its pet-friendly homes. Pets add to the cleaning necessities in any home.

The windows

Most windows suffer. Oil, dust, other stuff, the unmentionables build on windows throughout the year. To be honest, we may see the windows while cleaning but only remember them after the fact. The windows need attention because this is the entry point for a lot of the dirt we see floating around the house. With the windows cleaned you may notice that the light in the house gets a little brighter with sunshine or even the moon. With the film removed more light and sun gets in. Good for your visitors in any room where the light is shining.

Strategic daily or weekly refresh

Leading up to the flood of holiday visitors, you may want to stay on top of cleaning. While we can’t get in the cleaning mood every day, we can give attention room by room or in specific areas during the time leading up to the Christmas and New Year season, when we have the most visitors. This is where your checklist can come in handy. It can be used as a reminder posted on your refrigerator that certain areas in the home need to be kept fresh up to the holidays. With this information, we can be empowered to move room by room over the coming weeks with our cleaning buckets and dusters in hand. This can ensure that we keep rooms decluttered or defeat baked-in scents from pets or other activities that linger.

Cleaning helps us put our best foot forward when we have visitors. During the holidays we can keep our best foot forward by strategically cleaning high-traffic areas in our homes if we’re expecting visitors. You may even do it for the mental boost if you’re not hosting any dinners or friends.

If you’re in CT or Western MA and can’t handle the holiday cleaning by yourself, we will be happy to help. We are currently offering a referral for a free cleaning. If you refer a regular customer to Judite General Services. If you do refer anyone let us know by calling us and letting us know, or contact us via email and give us some information about the home and family you’re referring to us. Happy holiday cleaning and season greetings from your neighbors at Judite General Services.