Fran Castellanos has been a cleaning expert for more than 65 years. After decades of decluttering, wiping, mopping, vacuuming and conquering every cleaning challenge thrown at her, you'd think the energetic soon-to-be octogenarian would retire.
"But it just comes naturally to me," Castellanos says. "Sometimes I don't even know I'm doing it."
Madelyn Rodriguez, a 30-something working mom with three children, ages 5, 7 and 12, says she'd give anything to have cleaning come naturally to her.
"Some days I get so overwhelmed. I feel like I'm just another piece of clutter in my house," she says.
According to Cynthia Ewer of
OrganizedHome.com, clutter lies at the heart of most domestic chaos.
You may spend hours cleaning and polishing your home until it emits a high-pitched squeaky-clean sound that only dogs can hear. But if there's a lot of visual clutter, it can look as if Mr. Clean hasn't paid you a visit for a while.
So, if you want to keep a clean house, you must first conquer the clutter monster.
Put it away, give it away, or throw it away, experts say. It's that simple.
But clutter is only a symptom. Unless you change the habits that caused it to grow, it will come back with a vengeance.
Cleaning: A Family ProjectEwer suggests that waiting until total chaos engulfs your house makes cleaning it a miserable job. Doing simple things on a daily basis, however, prevents the job from building up into "the danger zone."
"Do one room at a time," Castellanos advises. "And don't feel as if you have to clean the entire house in one day. It's OK to walk away and do something else, then come back to it."
You should also establish family routines that integrate cleaning up into each day. Hold family members accountable for keeping their spaces clean and clutter-free.
Before going to bed, each member of the household should spend five minutes reclaiming scattered possessions.
"It makes a lot more sense than having yet another shouting match about socks on the floor," Ewer says.
Castellanos also suggests cleaning your house from the outside in.
"If you haven't swept your walkway in weeks and the neighbors across the street are digging up their yard to build a new pool, all that dust is going to come into your house like an unwanted guest," she says. Cleaning at least the outside entryway goes a long way toward keeping the dust out.
Slobby Partners"My husband is worse than my kids," Rodriguez says. "No matter how much I point out ways he can help me, he does things even my 5-year-old thinks are gross."
"Strive for cooperation," Ewer advises. Instead of blaming, look at the problem from your partner's point of view.
"You might think leaving a used glass on the kitchen counter for five minutes is a filthy habit. But if your partner likes to relax for an hour after dinner before putting his dirty ice-cream dish in the dishwasher, relax and cut him some slack," says Castellanos.
Despite your best efforts, trying to keep a perfectly clean house all the time is often impossible.
"Develop a tolerance for good enough," Ewer says. "Cleaning is a repetitive process, not something you do once and get it over with. Aim to hit the high points and close the job at a reasonable point."
Good Habits Start Young"Teach your children to pick up after themselves when they are young," Castellanos says. "Something as simple as making sure their bed is made in the morning pays tremendous dividends in your quest to keep your house clean."
Almost 40 years ago, Castellanos asked her young daughter if she'd like to make cleaning the bathroom part of her Saturday morning ritual -- after cartoons and before going out to play.
The girl thought that ritual sounded like a very grownup thing to do and embraced the idea wholeheartedly.
"From that day until the day she moved out, I never had to clean the bathrooms again," Castellanos says.
Take it from her 40-something daughter, the author of this story. My bathrooms are always clean and my bed is always made.
Quick-Clean Links:
Clean Quickly | Clutter Busters | Decorate For Dirt
