It’s a horrible feeling when you have friends or family coming over in an hour and your house is a disaster. You know you can’t scour and clean everything from top to bottom, so you need to use some shortcuts to get your home clean — or at least presentable.
Concentrate on the heavy traffic areas
Of course you aren’t going to clean every room in your house, so start with the high traffic areas that get the most dirt. Then also vacuum or mop your living area or dining room — wherever your guests are going to hang out.
Hide the clutter
In our house, we have hidden storage everywhere — ottomans, benches, trunks and other places to stuff everything from toys to magazines. If you don’t have enough hidden storage, grab a cardboard box, throw your clutter in there, and hide it in your closet for the night.
Scrub your bathroom
The one room that you should get really clean for your guests is the bathroom. Pour some gel cleanser in the toilet, spray your shower with a foaming cleanser, then go do something else for 15 minutes. When you come back, you won’t have to scrub as hard because the products will have done most of the work.
Get rid of odors
Even if your house isn’t spick and span, it should smell clean and fresh. Don’t use an air freshener scent that is overpowering — a light breezy fragrance is the best. You can also open your windows while you are cleaning to let fresh air in and get odors out. If you have time, buy a bouquet of fresh flowers — they look good and add a wonderful fragrance to your home. And if you have any odors that just won’t leave — start baking cookies. The aroma of fresh baked cookies will overpower anything.
