Tips to Get Organized This Spring

kitchen

This year’s icy Seattle winter will soon begin to thaw, which means locals will soon emerge from their indoor sanctuaries and into the sun. As you gear up for another summer rotation of entertaining guests who are vacationing in town, hosting backyard dinner parties, and clearing room in your schedule for event season, this is the perfect time to get everything in order at home. After all, the spring cleaning phenomenon exists for a reason; not only does the spring bloom inspire motivation, it’s also a chance to brace for even busier times ahead.

Though it’s easy to let household tasks pile up, everyone benefits from a clean and organized environment. Whether you’re currently living with a season’s worth of clutter that is begging to be sorted or are itching to deep-clean your digs, here are some basic cleaning and organization tips to get you started.

Focus on Cleaning Products

You can often get good (and environmentally safe) results using products you probably already have in your pantry. For example, try scrubbing the inside of your refrigerator with a mixture of soda water and salt. The bubbling soda water combined with salt granules can make an efficient appliance cleaner.

If you notice hard water stains accumulating by your faucets, soak some paper towels in white vinegar and lay them over the stains for 60 minutes. This softens the deposits and allows for easy removal.

End the Paper Chase

Paperwork is a major source of clutter at home. Eliminate piles by creating a filing system for the important documents you must keep. Label manila folders and file them immediately in a designated cabinet, bin, drawer, or box where they are easily accessible. If you run a home office or have a large number of paper documents that need to be organized, you might even want to invest in a small business document scanner to help make your office paperless. 

Just say no to junk mail! Before stepping into the house, re-route your junk mail, magazine inserts and reply envelopes to the recycle bin. Keep a mini trash can inside of the car and dump it daily. It can pull double-duty as a container for items that need to go back into the car from the house.

Enlist Some Help

A personal assistant can help you tidy up this season, even as your own schedule starts to fill up! Your PA can be your partner in spring cleaning and organization in the following ways (and many more!):

    • Organize those pesky papers and files mentioned above.
    • Do some light cleaning (such as dusting, dishes, laundry, and more) to maintain your freshly clean spaces all season long.
    • Water your plants and keep them healthy as they bloom, further brightening your home.
    • Prep in-season veggies and fruits for healthy meals that are ready-to-go when you get home from work.
  • Set up service appointments to take care of seasonal concerns such as landscaping, car maintenance, or roof repairs.

Don’t Stop There

Spring cleaning applies outside the home as well as inside! A well-organized shed can help you keep your lawn and garden supplies at the ready for seasonal planting and pruning.

Finally, once your winter clutter has been eliminated, relax and enjoy your clean and organized surroundings. Invite friends over and enjoy!

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Brian T.

Proactive, Reliable, Caring Support

“Sarah has been such a reliable support—always proactive, spotting things that need to be done before I even ask, and taking care of them. She has such a positive attitude and is constantly looking for ways to add value and make things easier. And I love how much happier and more spoiled my dogs are thanks to her care. I barely have to think about her day-to-day, and I mean that in the best way possible!”

K.W.

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J.H.

Exceeding Expectations Every Day

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W.W.

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K.H.

Support That Makes a Difference

“Having Missa as a PA has taken me from daily treading water to swimming to the shore. I’ve gone from never quite keeping up with things to actually having extra energy to do more. She has been a tremendous help, reducing my stress and allowing me to rest and recover. The support I receive is perfect; Missa is a 5 out of 5 in meeting all my needs. I’ve already recommended Pepper’s to a few friends because having extra help makes all the difference.”

Kathy M.

Back-to-School Unmatched Support

“Having Jay as my personal assistant has been fantastic. She helps me tackle projects that were just looming over my head and has built a great rapport with my teenage son. She’s helped my son pick out his back-to-school wardrobe and coached him through decisions — I couldn’t ask for better support. I sometimes think about when I could handle everything on my own, but now I can’t imagine doing it without Jay’s help.”

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A.S.

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Libby

Thoughtful and Detail-Oriented

“My PA is a thoughtful and discerning assistant. She pays attention to details in our home and makes great suggestions for how to improve and optimize our lives. We trust her judgment, and she communicates proactively and frequently. She is always on-site on time and patient with my unpredictable schedule. We communicate frequently, but she’s also very efficient in how we communicate. Great work!”

Client

Super Happy!

“[I] really do think Kandis is setting the bar! Having a new person come into your house can go either way. [I’m] very grateful for the time and energy and people that Pepper’s has. It’s a big step; no suggestions around onboarding. [I’m] really happy that we were able to board Kandis quickly; super happy for the West Seattle support.”

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Organizing Superhero

“My PA is really good at organizing; it’s one of her superpowers. Some of the simple reorganizing things that she has done have made a big impact. She organized all the cat stuff in the garage and took the initiative on her own. She’s bright and cheery—no moaning, whining. Very great.”

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Libby

10/10 for Sure!

“Missa is a 10/10 for sure! She has been wonderful, and we check in regularly. I’m comfortable communicating with her about questions or requests, and she’s always been very responsive and also seems comfortable checking in if she has any questions for me. [The] biggest help remains pet care and household chores support, plus the help with one-off projects that come up. Missa has all kinds of skills she brings, (e.g., she’s currently putting together a ‘cat highway’ for the living room rafters).”

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“I used to spend every weekend and every evening doing chores and running errands. Now, I’m able to spend the time that I need to on my business, and then I get to enjoy my home and my life and the precious unstructured time that I have. The truth is, my quality of life has improved by having a Pepper’s household assistant here.”

Libby

Takes Initiative

“I want to mention what a fantastic personal assistant Billie is to me. We were on vacation last week, and she managed my household and vendors flawlessly. I even had her redecorate my office, and I gave her very little direction other than just to make it nice and functional, and, my goodness, did she ever! She takes initiative in my house in so many other ways but does not overstep or overspend. To strike that balance is really something unique and special. I feel really lucky to have her.”

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I’m Blown Away

“[I’m] blown away by how much better the house looks already :)”

Graham

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Goes Above and Beyond

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