Tips to Get Organized This Spring

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!