Cleaning Tips and Tricks

Its SPRING! Don't let the snow on the ground the last few days fool you, the official first day of spring has come and gone. And to many people that means cleaning is in full swing. One of the best things about this time of year is throwing open those windows and letting the fresh spring air flush out all the stale winter air you'v been breathing inside your home. And of course it also means nicer weather, and if your like me, you may want a clean home but don't really want to spend those beautiful spring days cooped up inside cleaning.  Lately Iv been seeing tons of tips for cleaning that I thought I would share with you today. If you have any of your own handy tips please feel free to comment below.

Living room-

• Pet hair on the couch or car seat? Instead of vacuuming it simply get a rubber dish washing glove and a bucket or bowl of warm water. Dunk your gloved hand in the water, remove and gently shake off excess. Then wipe your hand across the couch/chair/car seat.  The pet hair will collect on the glove and off your furniture. Ya! To remove the pet hair from the glove just dunk it in the water again and gently swish around. When done just dump your water outside or down the toilet (I do the toilet because it wont clog like a sink drain due to the hair)
• Clean your baseboards with dryer sheets. This will help repel dust and hair, so you can crawl around less often cleaning them.
• Remove candle wax that has melted onto a wall by pressing tissue against it with an iron set on low. The wax will melt and adhere to the kleenex.

Kitchen-

• Want to make your stove all shiny and new again? Bust out the car wax. After giving your stove a through cleaning apply some car wax. Not only will it make it shine, it will also make messy spills easier to clean up.- just a note, I have a gas range and this works great. I do not recommend for an electric range. 
• Also great for making your gas range look new again. Take the dirty grates off, put in a large ziplock bag (you can probably only fit 1-2 grates per bag) add a few tablespoons ammonia and seal. Resist the urge to add more ammonia. Its not needed, its the fumes off the ammonia, not the liquid its self that holds the power. Set them in a garage or outside overnight. In the morning pull them from the bag and scrub with warm water and scrubbing sponge. Arn't they purdy?! 
• Coffee Pots need a good cleaning every now and then, but lets face it when was the last time you remember'd to put the cleaner for them on your list? Have no fear! All powerful vinegar to the rescue! Pour a solution of vinegar and water ( I use 1/3 vinegar to 2/3 water) into your machine and brew up a pot. When Its done, Dump out the pot, pour another one in of just water and turn on again to filter out any remaining vinegar. 
• Polish your silver using a mixture of 1/4 cup baking soda, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 quart boiling water. Just soak silver and dry. 
• Remove streaks from Stainless steel with olive oil. Wipe on with a towel and buff to a shine with paper towels or newspaper. 

Laundry room-

• Make your dryer work better and last longer. We all know to empty our lint traps regularly but do many of us vacuum it out as well? Give it a try, you might be surprised by how much lint slips past the screen. Speaking of the screen, a few times a year its also a good idea to remove it and scrub it gently with hot soapy water. Dryer sheets tend to leave a waxy buildup that clogs the screen. Its also said that doing both these things on a regular basis could lower gas bills. Who doesnt love that?!
• Washing machines also benefit from a good cleaning every now and then, and it couldnt be easier! Dump in about 1/2 cup vinegar into your machine and turn on the hottest setting. You can either run it empty or add in a load of towels. It wont hurt your towels, in fact its good for them. It can remove odors and buildup in your machine.  It also removes odors from towels or anything you may have left in the washing machine for too long after running it.

Bathroom-

• Polish the chrome on your sinks after you clean them with baby oil. makes them shiny and new! 
• Want your bathroom to smell fresh without spraying air fresheners or lighting candles? Buy some essential oil ( I like lemon, coconut or sweet almond personally but there are tons of great choices). Whenever you put a new roll of toilet paper out put a drop or two of oil on the inside of the cardboard tube. Everytime someone uses the bathroom the scent will fill the room....the good scent not bad.
• Remove soap scum from a shower door by scrubbing with a damp dryer sheet. 
• Toilet stains can be removed with Coke or vinegar. Just pour into the bowl, let sit for an hour, scrub then flush.

One crazy concept to me that Iv read online is to get completely dressed (shoes and all) to clean your home. Why? Its said this will help motivate you to get moving.  If this works for you great. Go ahead, put on your heels and makeup and act like a good retro house wife and get to cleaning!  Or you could be like me, I like to clean in the mornings. I roll out of bed in my PJ's and no makeup, and clean the house first thing. I can get sweaty and dirty and having cleaning solution on my hands. Then I go upstairs, take a shower and start my day. That way, I emerge from the shower fresh and clean to a fresh and clean home as well. Its one of life's little pleasures.  Besides how many of you cant help but look at your hands all day after cleaning and wonder  if THEY are clean.  Maybe it is just me but even if my hand never touches the toilet bowl, and I wash my hands after cleaning everything, I still feel... well, dirty.