Spring Cleaning Reminders-Places We Forget

It is officially the month of March and daffodils are starting to bloom all over Virginia. Only seventeen more days until the First Day of Spring! This also means that spring cleaning is upon us. We recommend taking some time to make a plan before you begin your spring cleaning and organizing. As organizers you know that every place you clean, we think should also be organized. Are you ready? While you are making that plan, here is a list of spring cleaning reminders-places we forget to clean and organize that are often left in need of some tender loving care: 

Under the Kitchen Sink

The cabinet under the kitchen sink can often feel like a big black hole. It does not need to stay that way! Here is a great blog post with these tips and more for organizing under the kitchen sink:

• Only store items you use everyday – not all your cleaning supplies.
• Use command hooks on cabinet doors to make items more accessible.
• Use bins with lids or these stackable drawers to contain items and consolidate space. 

Guest Room

Is the guest room a little neglected and in need of some attention before any summer guests come for a visit?  Especially if you are working from home and your guest room has turned into your office, no better time than the present to do some spring cleaning and organizing. Here is a great checklist to prepare the guest room on our blog. Not only is it a great time to clean every square inch of this room, but use the checklist to make your guests more comfortable. We want to see pictures – so don’t forget to share your transformations in our Abundance Declutter Group on Facebook.

Purse 

Your purse is one of your most important storage items. Keeping it clean and organized will make every day go a little smoother. Before you begin, make sure you have a surface with plenty of space, a trash bag for anything that needs to go, and something to clean and sterilize your purse. Empty the purse of all its contents onto a clean surface. Sort all the items by category and make piles. For example, put all pens in one pile, all paper in another, all the lip gloss in another pile, and so forth. Once you have every item out of your purse and in a category, start going through your piles…read the rest in our blog Pro Tips on How to Organize Your Purse or Handbag.

Mystery Kitchen Cabinets

Do you have any cabinets in your kitchen that are mystery cabinets? Maybe you forgot what is actually in them? It has probably been a bit since you cleaned out those cabinets. Believe it or not there are probably more items than you think that you can actually let go. Here is a great blog post with some suggestions from professional organizers for items you should get rid of right now. Here are a couple suggestions:  

• Reusable water bottles: Although we love reusable water bottles because they are environmentally friendly, you only need one. Get rid of all the extras!
• Tupperware: Try to let all the mismatched Tupperware go and replace it with glass storage containers.
• Miscellaneous gadgets: Let any gadget go that you do not regularly use. If it is taking up space and it is not being used, don’t keep it!

A Closet… 

Is there a closet that immediately comes to mind in your home that is a little scary? A space completely beyond your control? You are reminded each time you crack open the door to retrieve anything. Whether you are consciously aware of it or not, chances are good that the unaddressed clutter is causing anxiety and using up important mental energy. This is the perfect time to tackle that closet. Here are a few simple strategies to help you transform this scary closet into a space that is spectacular! The process involves taking everything out of the closet, cleaning the closet, sorting through all the items, tossing and donating, and then putting everything back in appropriate places. We also have some of our favorite organizing products to help you do this as well. Goodbye scary closets and hello spring!

The Laundry Room

When is the last time you cleaned behind the washer and dryer or took a magic eraser to the baseboards in this room? This is a high traffic area in the home. It is very difficult to not just keep the laundry room going but easy for the laundry room to become out of control. Below are some tips for cleaning and organizing your laundry room. Read this blog post for more tips on how to organize your laundry room.

• Go through your cabinets and drawers, take every item out and evaluate what can stay and what needs to go. 
• Clean, clean, clean – wipe down behind the washer and dryer, all the baseboards, and inside all the cabinets and drawers. 
• Use this opportunity to not only declutter and clean, but to also organize your laundry. Think about the whole laundry process from beginning to end. Do you need to put the detergent in another location that is easier to reach? Do you need to add any hooks, baskets, or shelves? Read the blog for more tips.

If you can’t find that sock, getting out the door can be difficult…bring that laundry room back to order this spring. You will be so happy you did this! 

The Junk Drawer

Everyone needs a good junk drawer – but it can still be an organized junk drawer. In fact, we challenge you to make that elusive junk drawer in your home a very purposeful and functioning drawer. We like to think of a junk drawer as a well-curated selection of necessities, each in their own clean compartment, smiling helpfully up at you when you open the drawer to look for them. To get you there, here are 6 steps to organize a junk drawer. 

Bathroom Cabinets 

The cabinets in a bathroom can be left…so forgotten. Whether it is in the kids’ bathroom or the main bathroom, check in with those cabinets! Pull all the items out. With all the items out of the cabinets and drawers, here is your opportunity to really clean. It can be quite surprising how dirty not just the inside of the cabinets get but also the items they store. Clean away! Once you have everything clean, purge and toss any items that are expired or no longer needed. Before you put the items back, check out our four most used bathroom organizing products to see if one would help you to contain your items and keep your cabinets organized. This is also a great time to think through your morning and evening routines. Do you need to put your toiletries in another location that is more accessible? Does your makeup need organized? Our bathrooms are such functional and important parts of not just our homes but our lives. Show them some love this spring!

The Pantry 

Don’t forget about the pantry during your spring cleaning and organizing! Here are a couple tips for cleaning and organizing the pantry:

1. Pull everything out of the pantry and put all items onto a clean surface in piles sorted according to their type.
2. Take this chance to really clean each empty shelf and container.
3. Go through the sorted piles and throw out all expired food.
4. Also go through the piles and pull any item you do not want. Here is a great blog post on the surprising dos and don’ts of food donations to help you with putting together donations from your pantry.
5. Once you have all items tossed or in a pile for donation, put all the remaining items back into the pantry. Here is a great blog post with organizing solutions and products for your pantry. The right organizing product makes all the difference.

The Launch Pad 

Don’t forget about cleaning and organizing your launch pad this spring! If you store cold gear in your launch pad, then it may be time to swap hats and gloves out for bug spray and sunblock. Your launch pad is the in-between place meant to house anything you will be reaching for constantly in your comings and goings and which helps to keep items that enter and leave your home organized. It is also usually the first place you see when you walk into your home and the last place you see when you leave. Here are some more tips to read about for organizing your launch pad.

We are so excited to see and hear about your spring cleaning! Here are a couple resources to help you finish your projects. Read this blog for recycling, hauling, and shredding resources, and this blog to find donation centers and consignment stores in central Virginia. These resources will help you know what to do with the stuff that doesn’t find a way back into your freshly cleaned and organized spaces. Don’t forget to share about your spring cleaning in our Abundance Declutter Group on Facebook.