30 Day Spring Cleaning Challenge – Week 3

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30 Day Spring Cleaning Challenge – Week 3: Bathroom and Entryway

The tasks for week three:

• Scrub toilets, tubs & shower
• Clean out linen closet
• Clean cabinets & drawers
• Clean & organize entryways/mudroom
• Clean & organize entry closets (wash winter wear)

Here are the first 3 days of the week:

Day One: Scrub toilets, tubs & shower

I do not stay on top of cleaning our shower, and so this rare chore always includes lots of scrubbing for me. I looked around for new ideas to try. One worked and One did not.

The DIY Showerhead Cleaner worked so well! I love when the product (vinegar!) does most of the work for you. You basically pour vinegar into a plastic bag and attach it around your showerhead with a rubberband. Let the showerhead sit in the vinegar for 6-12 hours (6 was fine for me). I scrubbed it a little with an old toothbrush prior to removing the bag and it was spotless and grime-free.

Just don’t accidentally turn the shower on when the bag is still tied up. Not like I did that…

Using vinegar and dishsoap did not clean my tub like I hoped. She clearly had great results…mine were not the same. I may try again someday as it looked slick and easy!

While I like to using homemade recipes including variations of vinegar, baking soda, castile soap and tea tree oil for cleaning around the house, the bathroom is one room that I often use purchased cleaners instead. I haven’t researched in depth to find a homemade cleaner for the tub, as I’m sure there must be something out there. I just haven’t come across anything good just yet. I had more luck using Method Tub & Tile Cleaner*.

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Day Two: Clean out linen closet

I removed all the towels and sheets from my linen closet and set them on the kitchen table while I cleaned out the shelves. Hours later, I still had towels and sheets on my kitchen table. We ate dinner here surrounded by the linen closet contents:

And THAT is trying to follow a cleaning schedule with a 3.5 and 1.5 year old. The task doesn’t always get completed as planned. It was a beautiful day and we decided to head to the park instead. Then after dinner, we played instead of cleaned.

It feels nice to do a deep clean at home, but I am all about being flexible. My sweeties are more important than a spotless home. :)

Once I got back to it, I realized that I need to learn how to fold a fitted sheet. (We joke that my grandma could put a sheet set into a manila envelope…not so with me.) I tried a new way to fold a fitted sheet. I was able to figure out maneuvering the sheet corners from the tutorial, but wasn’t sure what to do with the part of the sheet that was just hanging there. The fitted sheet got flatter, but there is still much room for improvement. Any tips for me??

Day Three: Clean cabinets and drawers

As I stated when organizing my pantry, I am trying to clean out and organize without purchasing additional organizational supplies. {My desire is to simplify and get rid of stuff. I don’t want to add. I am finding out that the more stuff I own, the more stuff I have to clean. The more stuff I own, the more stuff I have to organize. So more stuff = more time cleaning and organizing. I just would rather spend my time doing something else…}

So my steps for cleaning my linen closet, cabinets and drawers were simple.

• Clear it ALL out. Once you see an empty linen closet, drawer or cabinet, you will not want to stuff it to the max. You may find a few forgotten items as you do this.
• Reconsider if you need it. Toss items that are expired or items that you have not used in over a year. This will probably give you more room to work with in your space, and give you less reason to purchase organizational tools.
• Use it up or combine. If you find products with little in them (bottles with just a few squirts of lotion?), it’s a good time to just use them up. This will also give you extra space.
• Clean the surfaces and the items. I use a vinegar/water cleaner combo (recipe here) for the shelves.

In case you missed the entire 30 Day Challenge schedule, you can grab the Spring Cleaning Challenge printable here!