The 8 Best Spring Cleaning Tips We've Heard

Spring cleaning is synonymous with giving your space a refresh. It’s the perfect time to take a step back and regroup based on your habits from the first quarter of the year. You can decide which ones you like, which ones you want to ditch, and which habits you might want to introduce into your routine.

Aside from establishing good habits to streamline your routine, there are some things that you’ll probably inevitably only do at this time of year. That’s the beauty of spring cleaning, right? Having to do those one-and-done chores, deep cleaning those hard to reach areas, and tackling the more monotonous household tasks is reserved on the calendar for once a year for a reason. There are some pretty creative spring cleaning hacks out there, and we’re all for making this one time clean last through the year, so we’ve tested out the best tips we’ve heard and rounded them up for you:

Wash reusable grocery bags

This is probably something that rarely or never crosses your mind. But lugging your grocery bags to and from your home to the store and filling them with food and drink can make for bacteria build up over time. So, be sure to wash these guys while you spring clean! If yours are fabric or cloth, pop them into the wash on laundry day. If they’re not washable, use all-purpose wipes to clean them, outside and in!

Clean your cutting boards

Once you’ve used them for a while, your cutting boards inevitably start to look dirty. It makes sense, because your knives often leave little indentations in them, which allows dirt and debris to make a home for themselves. To clean your cutting boards, sprinkle some baking soda onto them, then scrub with a half of a lemon. The combination of these two will leave them sparking!

Declutter your junk drawer

Maybe it’s because we’re professional organizers, but if you ask us, there’s no better time to turn your junk drawer into your joy drawer than now! To start, pull everything out, categorizing like items together as you go. Once you see everything you own, including duplicates, you can pare down your inventory more efficiently. Turning this disheveled drawer into a true resource in your home is possible with the right tools. Need some guidance to get yours organized? We have a whole blog post dedicated to how you can organize your junk drawer in 15 minutes. Check it out here!

Check expiration dates

This is something that we recommend making a habit of more than once annually, especially in the pantry, but for other items like toiletries, checking expirations can easily be forgotten. Toiletries and makeup can collect bacteria over time as you use them on your skin, and sometimes the buildup can result in breakouts, rashes, and other unpleasantries. To avoid this, make a yearly habit of going through all of your toiletries, especially your makeup and skincare products, and checking expirations. If you can’t find an expiration, try to remember when you purchased the item and decide it it’s been long enough that the product could have gone bad.

Rearrange your bookshelves

Here’s a more fun, less obligatory spring cleaning task! In the spirit of refreshing, why not rearrange your bookshelves a little? Whether you use yours solely to store books, you decorate yours with trinkets, or it’s a combination of both, take everything off of your shelves and start anew. You can color coordinate your books and items, categorize by genre or author, or create your very own interior decor moment with newly styled shelves.

Use vodka to clean your jewelry

Something a bit more unconventional, yet extremely effective, is using vodka to clean! Vodka is actually a great cleaner for gold and silver jewelry. All you have to do is soak it! Once your jewelry has been soaking for about 30 minutes, you should be able to take a toothbrush (or something similar) and gently brush off any loose debris that your jewelry has collected. Note: vodka should not be used on gems or pearls.

Use old t-shirts as rags to clean with

If you’re using spring cleaning as an opportunity to declutter your closet, why not kill two birds with one stone? Any old t-shirts that you’re parting with can be used to clean other parts of your house instead of using single-use paper towels. You can even rip them to create multiple smaller rags, so you can tackle the whole house with just a few shirts!

Deep clean your garbage disposal

Now’s the time to refresh those areas in the home that you frequent but never think to clean. The garbage disposal is used multiple times throughout the day, yet it’s likely not cleaned much throughout the year. So take this time to give it a deep clean! To start, run some ice cubes down the drain to sharpen the blades. Then, run some baking soda and lemon peels down to remove any germs and odors. Done!

If you’re looking for more spring cleaning help, be sure to grab our freebie, The Ultimate Spring Cleaning Checklist! It’s a free room-by-room guide to take at your own pace and help you to make sure you don’t miss a thing. For more on ringing in the new season, check out the spring section of our blog. Happy cleaning!