Christmas is a mere weeks away but once the flurry of festivities are over, all you are left with are leftover sweets and some annoying stains on the carpet. January is the perfect time to pull out the duster and mop and spruce up the house, so it is fresh for the year ahead. Rug Doctor, the carpet care experts have put together some handy tips to help you clean and transform your home for the year ahead.
Start from the top and work your way down
With each room start at the ceiling and get rid of the cobwebs before working your way down walls and finishing with the carpet or hard floor.
Care for your curtains
Are your curtains looking drab? Well take them down, remove the hooks and give them a quick warm cycle with a wet towel in the tumble dryer to get rid of the dust. Remove them immediately to prevent creasing and, after inserting the hooks, re-hang them.
Take it one room at a time
Planning is crucial so make sure you plan ahead and choose where to begin; make a list of the areas you want to target and tackle them one step at a time. Do little and often and if you add a couple of extra jobs to your regular housework routine, it’ll be a doddle.
Prepare the spare rooms for the next time
Spare rooms often double-up as a junk room throughout the year. If you’re had friend or relatives to stay with you during the Christmas holiday, give it a spritz. Free up some hanging and storage space and and freshen up the room for the next guest who comes to stay by opening the windows. A carpet deep clean can refresh any musty smelling carpet, making all spare rooms look and smell inviting again
Add a splash of vinegar and a twist of lemon to make those windows shine
A top tip for making those windows squeaky clean is to mix 25% vinegar to 75% water in a bowl, adding a squirt of lemon juice for an extra fresh clean smell. Then, using an old piece of cotton towel, wipe the solution onto the glass, then simply wipe clean with a dust free cloth.
Deep clean those carpets
Did you know the average family of four sheds up to 3lbs of skin per year? Most of this ends up trapped in the carpet fibres along with food debris, pollen, dust mite droppings and all the other nasties that vacuuming alone can never remove. Surprisingly, despite these shocking facts, over 80 per cent of homeowners have never washed their carpets!
Nothing refreshes a room more than a deep cleaned carpet, and renting a wet extraction carpet cleaner can have your carpets looking, feeling and smelling as good as new in no time and at a fraction of the price of hiring a professional.
Shower Solution
Limescale around the bath taps and shower head are often something we live with, but can be easily cleaned with hot white vinegar. But don’t use it on plated taps – you will ruin the plating! However, if your shower head is not removable don’t worry. Simply take a plastic bowl, fill it with hot white vinegar (heated in a saucepan) and immerse the shower head in the bowl.
Take an old tooth brush and scrub the shower head. Don’t forget to run the shower to remove excess vinegar. Wipe the outside of the shower head with a wet cloth and buff up using a dry cloth.
Say “oh là là ” to your laundry.
Boys in the house? Line their laundry baskets with a couple of sheets of paper towel sprinkled with tea tree oil to keep nasty smells at bay.
Give your walls a fresh new look
The New Year is for new beginnings and change, so why not change the walls and jazz them up with a splash of colourful paint or be on trend this year with some retro inspired floral wallpaper. Or go for a combination of classic blue and white to create an illusion of more light, which looks great in a flat or apartment.
Don’t forget the bed sheets!
Fresh bed sheets give you the peaceful, comforting night’s sleep you have been longing for. Spray some delicate fragrances like lavender or camomile to help you relax after the hectic festive period. There’s nothing like the moment when you slip into your comfy nightie or pyjamas and sink into your fluffy warm fresh clean duvet.
Disclaimer : We received no financial compensation for this post but thought that they were some good handy hints to share!
