Spring is here
It’s time to put your winter items away to make room for the change of season. Open the windows, strip the heavy doonas from your bed and get organised for the warmer months ahead.
You don’t need to go full Marie Kondo on your home but a good chunk of time spent sorting things out now will put you in good stead for the rest of your spring clean. There are two ways to do this. Start by walking from room to room and collecting items which don’t belong there (place them in a laundry basket or box). For instance, you might find a water glass or lunchbox in your child’s bedroom which needs to go to the kitchen, a pair of shoes in the bathroom which live in the garage or some freshly folded towels on the dining table which need to be put away in the linen closet. At the end of your walk-through, re-sort the items you’ve collected and put them in their rightful place. If you have children, this is a great way to get them involved! Leave their pile of ‘stuff’ to put away on their beds to find a home for. Alternatively, work from room to room using some large boxes or laundry baskets to sort items into three piles: keep and put away, donate or throw out. Fairly self-explanatory.
Keep in mind that items to be donated should be clean, tidy and in working order. If it’s got a hole in it or doesn’t work as it should, throw it out.
If one of your bugbears is trying to sort out clean washing from dirty washing, whites from colours and your kids’ assorted socks, try upgrading your laundry situation with multiple hampers. Pillow Talk has a great range of hampers including cost-effective collapsible ones through to sturdy and on-trend Hamptons-style baskets.
Moving to the bedroom, as you strip the beds take the opportunity to change your winter flannelette sheets out to lighter cotton, cotton/polyester or washed linen sheets. Give quilt covers and decorative pillowcases a spin through the washing machine and before packing away any additional layers of blankets, hang them on the line in the sun for a good few hours to air them out. Same goes for your quilt and pillows; pop them outside on the line to air out which also helps them maintain their freshness. Dry cleaning is also recommended every three to five years, depending on how much perspiration has penetrated the quilt, so if your quilt is looking a little discoloured, best to visit your local dry cleaner. While the beds are stripped, it’s also a great opportunity to run your vacuum cleaner over the mattress to suck up any nasties or dust bunnies which may be lurking around.
In terms of storage, whether that’s bulky winter coats and jackets, linen or blankets, make sure items are laundered or dry cleaned and completely dry before folding and packing away. Store in handy reusable space saving vacuum bags, available from Woolworths or Bargain Mania, to safeguard against insects, dirt, mildew and odours. They can also save up to 75% of storage space!
To store boots, again make sure they are clean and dry, and pack with scrunched up newspaper to help keep their shape or use a pool noodle to keep them upright. Hot tip!
Bargain Mania also have some handy plastic tubs and boxes which are great for storing shoes, scarves and accessories.
If you’re still lacking hanging space in your wardrobe even after storing some winter clothing, consider swapping out your coat hangers for flat flocked hangers. Available at TK Maxx, these flat flocked coat hangers will keep your clothes in great shape while providing you with much more free hanging space.
Once your spring clean is nearly done, take the chance to wipe down flat surfaces with a blend of essential oils. Direct Chemist Outlet and Woolworths stock a range of oils which not only have natural cleaning and disinfecting properties, such as cinnamon, tea tree, peppermint and orange or lemon oils, but they also purify the air leaving your home smelling of spring!
Just be careful to spot check any oils on a discreet area first in case of staining or discolouration.
For more spring cleaning tips, pop into Skygate Home & Life and Skygate Centre. Plus, sign up to our newsletter for more great tips from the team at Skygate.