Spring Cleaning: Some Ideas to Reduce Some of the Madness

Spring is just about a week away and I've gone a bit mad spending the whole day yesterday starting my spring cleaning with still more to go. Currently I don't have a "real" job (going to have to get one soon) so I have time to spend all day cleaning,  but how do you get your spring cleaning done if you are trying to balance kids, work and care giving? Here are some ideas (some cheap, some not) that can help you get organized and get that cleaning done.

1. Hire a Professional Organizer. This is a bit pricey (I spent about $1000 for 2 people for 8 hours plus some supplies) but it's worth it. They will help you get rid of stuff and set up organizational systems that will help keep the clutter under control. Depending on the organizer, you may not have to be there to direct them on what needs to be done after the initial consultation and they'll take anything that is any good away for donations. They cover everything from closet makeovers and offices to moving. Some organizers even do "virtual" organizing if you live in a rural area. Check out Professional Organizers in Canada to find one in your area.
2. Delegate. Even small children can roll clean socks and sort their laundry. I've even had friends help me clean my house and fold my laundry when they come over (a bit embarrassing when my ratty undies go by).
3. Start with one small thing like a drawer or a table top. It reminds me of part of an old joke "step by step, inch by inch, ever so slowly" - doing it this way it will eventually get done but the trick is not to let the area that you just tidied not to get cluttered again.
4. Hire a Personal Concierge/Assistant. If you think of your life this way - that you are the CEO of your household, then a personal concierge/assistant kind of makes sense. What they can do are things like house cleaning, running errands like picking up dry cleaning, grocery shopping, research, trip planning, gift shopping, phone calls, schedule home maintenance, and more depending on the company. This one can be a bit pricey if you choose hourly but some companies have programs where you get a bit of a break for monthly services and for seniors. The Canadian Concierge Directory can help you find one in your area.
5. Use a laundromat's wash and fold service. They usually charge about $1 per pound and a green garbage bag holds about 10-15 pounds of clothes or bedding. You drop off your laundry in the morning and you can pick it up either that night or a day or so later depending on how busy they are. This is obviously not for clothes or other things that require special care like wool or silk.
6. Keep all your cleaning supplies in a tote or bucket. This makes it easier to carry from room to room and saves you from running back and forth for stuff.
7. Make Lists of chores that need to be done and break them down into smaller bits then pick one to three things to do in a day. By only doing one to three things it helps you from feeling overwhelmed from all that needs to be done. This is the idea of KISS -Keep It Simple Silly and don't get worried if you don't get every thing done that's on the list- you'll get to it eventually.
8. Toss, Toss, Toss. You can't clean clutter. Get yourself three containers, such as the dollar store folding laundry hampers or bankers boxes, and call them things like toss, donate, and keep. Once a container is full, put the keep stuff away neatly immediately, the donate stuff in the car and the toss in the recycling bin or garbage. Doing this in 15 minute spurts, you'll be amazed at how much you can get done but don't pull out more than you can do in an hour.
9. Sort Like with Like. Keeping things that are similar together makes them easier to find at a later date.
10. Keep a Basket with you so you can dump stuff into it that belongs in another area of the house thereby saving you trips either up and down stairs or from room to room.
11. Have the drapes, bedding and rugs dry cleaned. Some dry cleaners will pick up and drop off items for free. Having these things dry cleaned also makes them last longer and removes allergens and here in Toronto, Parker's Cleaners will return your quilts and other bedding in a breathable storage bag.
12. And finally, try to set up a maintenance schedule. This will help keep you from having to run about once or twice a year trying to get everything done all at once. You can divide things into categories such as yearly (such as cleaning the gutters), twice a year or seasonally (closets), monthly (furnace filters, vacuum under the furniture), weekly (mopping, dusting) and daily (dishes, counters) or whatever schedule fits your life.

What are some of your favorite ways to make your spring cleaning easier?