7 Ways to Speed Clean the House for the Holidays

These 7 ways to speed-clean the house for the holidays will help you have your home sparkling for friends and family.

Even if you don’t have a houseful coming to celebrate, there is nothing like a clean house.

footed cake plate next to the kitchen sink with Mrs. Meyers Dishwashing Soap, Caldera Spray, plant food and a small vase with flowers.

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I generally do a thorough deep cleaning in the weeks leading up to the holidays and then right before I do a speed clean to spruce things up before we relax and celebrate Christmas.

Crank up the Christmas music and get going…….

1. Clear the Clutter

Before you can clean you need to get rid of the clutter. If there are others in the family, get them involved. Make a game/race to get everything quickly picked up and put away. REMEMBER: If you don’t use it or love it – Throw it, Donate it or Recycle it.

  • Throw away junk mail and put things that you need to keep in their proper place.
    • If you need to have a better organization system, you will want to sign-up to be part of our Organizing Challenge. You will also have access to my 30-Day Organizing Challenge Worksheets!
  • Pick up any toys, clothes, shoes, and coats that are lying around and put them away
    • I love baskets for toys, throws, pillows, and more.
  • Make sure everything that is out of place finds a home
picture of plastic caddy with various cleaning supplies, gloves and rags

2. Gather all your Cleaning Supplies in a Caddy

I keep all of my cleaning supplies in a caddy that I can carry around the house while I clean. Here is what I have inside.

  • Glass Cleaner
  • All-Purpose Spray Cleaner
  • Counter Top Spray
  • Toilet Bowl Cleaner
  • Tub & Tile Cleaner
  • Cleaning Rags & Rubber Gloves

You can read about some of my homemade cleaning recipes HERE

3. Dust Main Pieces of Furniture

I dust everything that is near where people may sit or walk near. I use a microfiber cloth and either glass cleaner or all-purpose spray for all my furniture and glass.

picture of my hand cleaning the bathroom counter tops with a microfiber cloth

4. Wipe Down all Countertops in Kitchen & Baths

The kitchen takes the most time because it’s where you prepare food. Move everything and clean under it. Use hot soapy water on your countertops, the ones where you prepare food. On the other surfaces, use a countertop spray because you’ll love the smell. It actually makes the whole downstairs smell lovely. My favorite is Caldrea “Ginger Pomelo.

photo of the corner of the bathroom sink and clean mirror with a small blue bud vase in the corner. The vase has red and pink roses, white daisies and olive branches in it.

4. Clean all Mirrors and Dirty Windows

Clean the mirrors in the bathrooms and then I head to the kitchen door and French doors in the great room. We have a small dog and she barks at anything that she sees out the glass doors. They are typically a mess.

View into my small bathroom with white countertop, cherry wood cabinets and white toilet

6. Clean Sinks and Toilets

I clean my bathroom sinks and my kitchen sink with Barkeeper’s Friend. Then with rubber gloves on, I clean the toilets. I’m a big fan of using environmentally friendly cleaning products but when it comes to the toilet, I use Zep Toilet Bowl Cleaner because our water is so bad and I don’t want a yellow ring in my bowl.

A few months back I wrote a post about keeping my bathrooms clean. I re-read it and honestly, it’s a really good post with some great tips. You can find it HERE

7. Finally the Floors

Once everything has been dusted and wiped down, I vacuum everything. Then I pull out my mop and mop all my floors. If you have carpet, you can skip this step (lucky you)!

My idea of Superwomen is someone who scrubs her own floors!

Bette Midler

This week can be challenging if you have a lot planned. You can read about my ideas for handling a stressful week HERE. What ever you are celebrating, I hope you have the best holiday season!

Peace and Love,

Meet Me

My name is Lynn. I live in the suburbs of Chicago in a 1,300 sq. ft. home with my Handy husband, Keith.

I’m an open book about my life on my blog. You can find out more about me by visiting my About page.

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2 Comments

  1. I love Mrs. Meyer’s products! I’ll be doing some of this type of cleaning before the 26th when our peeps will be here! Thanks, Lynn! Pinned ????

    1. I love their products too! I use there all-purpose cleaner for most things. It makes my house smell so nice after I mop the floors.