It’s probably unwise for a woman living south of the
Mason-Dixon Line to admit it, but I’m not religious when it comes to cleaning
my home. On the spectrum from Clean Jean
to Messy Jessie, I prefer to be Sane Jane -- Jean’s artistic, active, and somewhat
less-kept sister. Because I’m not a fan
of clutter or filth, I do the basic once over on a fairly regular basis. But suffice it to say my home has a love-hate
relationship with the white glove test. I've
observed that most creative homesteads accept a certain level of disarray in
order to focus on living their convictions while maintaining sanity. This notion has always provided me with calming
validation. As with so much in life,
it’s all about balance. Most people who
know me recognize that I’m not a stickler for domestic customs. Despite this truth, I can’t ignore that our
home needs a proper scrubbing after both winter’s hibernation and summer’s
flurry of activity. As much as I like to
clean to the beat of my own drum, I generally follow suit when it comes to Spring
and Fall Cleaning. On a recent Saturday
Weldon and I put Cinderella to shame with our zealous energy to get our house back
to spic ‘n span. As a shout-out to my thoroughly modern husband, he was neither bribed nor threatened into participating in this event. We turned on some peppy
tunes and each chose a weapon of choice (rag, bucket, vacuum, spray
bottle). We moved furniture, washed
baseboards, vacuumed every stitch, wiped every surface, and even did the little
To Do’s that have hovered in limbo for months.
I don’t mean to brag or rub it in, but it gives me great satisfaction to
know that not only is my house clean (for now), but we did the work without
using toxic chemicals.
It’s neither as difficult nor as pricey as it may sound. I’m sure there are plenty of Clean Jean’s
posting their whiz-bang tips for a perpetually spotless abode, but below I've
offered my personal nitty gritty on Sane Jane house cleaning.
Tools of the Trade:
I prefer to keep things simple with a handful of basic products that are
listed below along with their function. Microfiber rags, t-shirt rags, newspaper, a
stiff broom with a dust pan, and the vacuum round out my list of
necessities.
You will notice that three of my favorite products come from
a company named Shaklee: Basic H2 All-Purpose Concentrated Cleaner, Basic G Concentrated
Disinfectant, and Scour Off. Shaklee
brand is not sold in stores but can be purchased online through local/regional
distributors. I was drawn to the
company’s products because they are natural, they actually work, and I’ve found
them to be extremely economical. Upon
first sight, the products are expensive per bottle BUT in actuality, the liquids
are concentrated and will be diluted before use. I’ve had ONE large bottle of Basic H2 last for over
a year because it multiplies into dozens of 16 oz. spray bottles of cleaner! There’s a handy booklet that explains exactly how to dilute one simple
product to accomplish a myriad of essential tasks. When they say a little goes a long way, they
really mean it.
Bathroom:
For Mirrors and Faucets – Vinegar & Newspaper or a
tshirt rag.
For Showers and Sinks – Scour Off (by Shaklee) and a wash
rag.
For Shower Curtains with residue – Vinegar & Basic H2
(by Shaklee) with water
For Toilets and Disinfecting -- Basic G Natural Disinfectant
(By Shaklee), Vinegar, toilet brush, and a wash rag.
Kitchen:
For Countertops, Sink, and Refrigerator – Vinegar
For Ovens and Stubborn Dirt – Scour Off (by Shaklee) and/or
Baking Soda
For General Washing – Basic H2 (by Shaklee) & water
solution
Other:
For Furniture – Natural Wood Polish like Method brand’s Wood
for Good (available at most big box stores including Lowe’s and Target)
For our Concrete Floors – Basic H2 (by Shaklee), Vinegar, water,
and a classic cotton mop.
For Wood Floors – Dry -- microfiber cloth with a Swiffer;
Wet -- dampened cloth with Basic H2 & Water with a Swiffer.
For Dusting Knick-Knacks & Frames – a feather duster
Tricks of the Trade:
Clear Clutter First – it’s best to tidy things up on a
regular basis so that when cleaning day comes only the stalwart piles are left
to deal with. A lived-in home will
always have items out here and there, but keeping it to a minimum will be more
relaxing and efficient in the long-run.
While it’s tempting to finish one room at a time while
cleaning, I've read that it’s actually more efficient to complete one task at a time throughout
the house (or per floor). I've had good success sticking to this practice.
Vacuum or Sweep before dusting. This practice allows any flyaway dust on your
floor or carpet to be air-borne before settling on surfaces that you are soon
to dust anyway.
Window washing is an entirely different animal. I reserve this task for a separate day
because it takes extra time and effort to move furniture and/or work a ladder
outdoors. Vinegar, a drop of Basic H2, & water
in a bucket with rags work wonders for a sparkling shine. Stubborn spots on vinyl casements will
usually rub off with baking soda or Shaklee’s Scour Off and a toothbrush.
You might have noticed that a few common supplies are not a
part of my regimen. I don’t use bleach,
ammonia, or other chemical cleaning detergents.
Mountains of research show that chemical cleaners have devastating
health effects including respiratory illness, endocrine disruption, allergies,
and cancer. The methods of manufacture,
use, and disposal of these products are also extremely harmful to the
environment. Either of these factors
would be enough for me to shy away from them, but BOTH in one place makes them
a NO THANK YOU in the strictest sense.
As for paper towels, I find it rather wasteful to use
disposable items for tasks I can accomplish just as easily with a reusable one. A microfiber cloth works wonderfully with a
Swiffer. Black & white newspaper (salvaged for the wood stove anyway) does an awesome job on mirrors. A
dishrag will do the trick for almost all other surfaces. Unless I’m dealing with blood, excrement, or
something else that’s pretty nasty, I rarely use paper towels for cleaning.
I'll wrap up the post with a story about my childhood expertise with the subject. When I was a young girl I taught my mom a valuable
lesson. Like any good mother, she would often
tell me to go clean my room. Amidst the
family hubbub the time would fly by until my mom would realize over an hour
(or two) later that I was still missing. At this point someone was typically sent to “check
on me.” They’d usually find my room in a
state of national emergency. FEMA could
have been called in on numerous occasions.
Funny little thing that I was I took my mother’s bidding to clean my
room as a charge to dump every drawer, clear every shelf, pull everything from
under the bed, and empty the closet into the middle of the room. Then, dwarfed by the surrounding wreckage I
would nimbly sit and re-organize every bit of my worldly possessions. The room itself often underwent a juvenile
version of a designer’s makeover – furniture would play musical chairs until my
artistic eye and desire for “something new” was satisfied. This also became the perfect opportunity to
shake things up in my dresser drawers. The
pants drawer might suddenly be promoted to second from the top while the t-shirts were demoted to the bottom. Single socks
that had been imprisoned behind furniture or exiled in the toy bin were given
joyous reunions with long-lost sole mates. Markers were scrupulously tested with the infallible
scribble test: faded ink = trash, dark
and lovely = desk drawer. Craft and
school supplies were re-grouped and stacked impeccably in the roll-top desk. Books were re-shelved as sentinels in
height-descending order. Favorite toys
and stuffed animals were assigned new perches.
Once everything was in order behind closed doors/drawers, I would put
the finishing touches on every surface. I
envisioned the cover of Better Homes & Gardens. It never dawned on me that seashells, stale
potpourri, giant pencils from Barnum & Bailey’s Circus, and a half-finished
paint-by-number of a horse probably wouldn't make the front cover of the same
issue. As far as I was concerned it would be my latest masterpiece! Usually somewhere after the Wreck of the Hesperus but long before award-winning interior design was the moment
that my creative rhythm was abruptly interrupted by, “What’s taking you so lo-- OH Wow! What have you been doing in here?” While my
mother appreciated my enthusiasm, she learned that if she didn't intend to
spare me for at least half the day
then she could no longer tell me to clean my room. Actually…she started tacking on the end, “I
don’t mean spend hours taking everything apart -- just clean it up!” I think I've finally gotten the hang of it.
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