Does the thought of the last minute guest make your heart start to pound? If so, it’s safe to assume your house might be in some state of mess; anywhere from slightly cluttered to downright dirty. That doesn’t mean that you have to try and stammer your way out of the pop-in from the in-laws, your coworker, your best friend or that special someone you’ve been seeing. Whether it’s just you at home or you have a whole family under your roof, you can get your home cleaned in a hurry if you just gather these materials and stick to this schedule:
What You Need:
Plastic bag with handles
2 empty laundry baskets
Bleach
Bathroom cleaner spray
Dish-washing detergent or dish soap
Sponge or dishcloth
Broom
Toilet brush
Glass cleaner
Paper towels
Bathroom — Part One!
Grab a plastic bag, put your cleaning supplies in the nested baskets and hurry to the bathroom. Stick that plastic bag on the handle and throw any garbage you find lurking around into it quickly. Pour some bleach into the toilet bowl and spray your tub, shower, sink and the rim under the toilet seat with your bathroom cleaner. Let it rest while you complete the remaining steps. Pick up any dirty clothes from the floor and stick them in one of your laundry baskets. Toss any clutter that you can’t slip into the medicine cabinet or drawer into the other basket. Now, head to the bedroom with your baskets and your garbage bag!
Bedroom
Put the plastic bag on the door handle and deal with any garbage first. Make your bed. Corral any dirty clothes into the laundry basket with the rest, and put any clutter that you can’t deal with quickly into your clutter basket. Repeat this in the kids’ rooms, if possible. If their rooms are true disasters, just close the door and hope for the best! You don’t have time for that! Once you’ve done as much damage control as you can in the bedroom grab your baskets and bag and go to the living room.
Top Time-Saver to Invest in: A rolling laundry hamper can take the place of one of your laundry baskets and make it easier to gather dirty clothes that are lurking here, there and everywhere.
Living Room
Use your garbage bag to collect anything that needs to be thrown away and then banish any clutter to the basket. Straighten up any magazines on the coffee table and take any empty glasses and dishes into the kitchen, where you’re headed next!
Top Time-Saver to Invest in: A storage ottoman can be the perfect place to squirrel away clutter quickly when you’re expecting a guest, and it gives you a place to kick your feet up when you’ve tired yourself out from all the cleaning!
Kitchen
Deal with any trash as you did in the other rooms and then put your trash bag into the kitchen garbage can or the one in your garage or outside. Load up the dishwasher or roll up your sleeves to deal with any dishes in the sink. Put the dishes in the drying rack and let them air dry. Spray down your kitchen counters with your cleaner and wipe them clean. Wipe the stove off quickly, too, and the front of the fridge if you have stainless steel appliances. Head to the area around your front door with your clutter and laundry baskets.
Top Time-Saver to Invest in: Automatic vacuum cleaner. You might not have time to deal with crumbs on the kitchen floor if guests are on their way, so why not have a robot do the job for you.
Entryway
Deal with clutter or clothes as you have throughout the rest of the house. Straighten any shoes, coats or other items that you store in plain sight by the door. Take your clutter basket and hide it in a closet and transfer the contents of your dirty laundry basket to your hamper. Head back to the bathroom to finish up the speed cleaning!
Bathroom — Part Two!
Quickly sweep up any hairs and junk from the floor in the bathroom. Then, take the broom and rub down your tub or shower. The bristles will work like a scrub brush and make it easy for you to clean without having to bend down. Rinse well and then grab one of your bathroom body towels to dry everything out. Head over to the sink and use another bathroom towel or a washcloth to wipe out the bathroom cleaner. Rinse with water and then dry with a towel.
Use the toilet brush to give the bowl a quick scrub and then wipe the rim under the seat clean. Lower the seat, give it a spray and clean it, too. With the help of the glass cleaner, clean off the mirrors, the faucet and the handles of the sink and dry quickly with a towel. Hang up some clean hand towels and do a quick scan to make sure no embarrassing bathroom items are in plain sight.
If you still have time to spare, you can run the vacuum in the bathroom, kitchen and living room. If not, make sure you look straightened and put together. Clean up your cleaning supplies and get ready to greet your guests with a (mostly) clean home!