Cleaning Tips

Do a 5-minute sweep through each room, taking a laundry basket with you. Place in it anything that doesn’t belong in that room, then put away the stuff that does belong there.

Label the bottom of each electronic game controller (Xbox, for example), and then Velcro it to the console. You’ll never search for them again.

When you’re vacuuming, begin in the farthest corner and work toward the door, using slow, repetitive front-to-back motions in an overlapping sequence. As you look over the freshly vacuumed floor, you shouldn’t see any footprints.

Papers, odd toys and other things usually pile up on the dining room table or kitchen counter. Once you’ve got your table cleaned off, file papers or toss them. “One piece of paper multiplies like rabbits.”

Sarah Aguirre makes tasks go faster by doing two things at once. While on the phone, she folds laundry, fluffs pillows, picks up stray magazines and books, does dishes, sweeps or dusts.

If you actually time how long it takes to do certain chores, you won’t mind them as much. Believe it or not, most chores only take 10 minutes.

Most everything can be washed in cold water (better for your bills and the environment). But use the hottest water possible for sheets, towels and underwear. Take special care with undergarments, putting them in the dryer as soon as possible to stop bacteria growth while they sit damp in the Read more

Since fabric softener and dryer sheets can strip towels of their absorbency, add ¼ cup white vinegar to the rinse cycle or throw two (new, clean) tennis balls in your dryer to get rid of static electricity, soften fabrics and eliminate the need for dryer sheets.

Have a “pamper basket” next to your bed with a book, some moisturizer, your knitting or something else you like to do in bed. Then keep your clock, a lamp and a box of tissues on your nightstand. That’s it.

Most women have drawers full of clothes they don’t wear, and their dresser tops then become repositories for things they can’t store. Get rid of things you haven’t worn in a year and vow to put away your clean laundry each week.