Get Fresh for Spring
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT SHERI GAMMON DEWLING >>
April 2007 – Spring has sprung – the smell of grass, new buds of life – a perfect time to ‘shed the old’ and give your home a fresh start. Along with spring comes garage sale season – the ideal way to dispose of items you don’t use enough to store and make a little money while you’re at it.
To accomplish your spring ‘to do list’, make it prominent (fridge), prioritize, and involve the whole family.
Hint: If you have difficulty getting the kids motivated, create a reward system – like offering a family picnic outing once everything is completed. Rewards don’t have to be expensive to motivate – just relevant so make sure you pick something your kids would value.
 makes it easier to access items you will use regularly. Go through all closets and dressers, including your front and back hall closets. Be brutal – if it hasn’t been worn this season – you won’t likely wear it next year so get rid of it. Sell items at your garage sale, donate to a clothing bank or shelter or sell through a consignment shop.
For items you are keeping, label bins or storage bags by person and store in your basement or other storage area.
Hint: Don’t store clothing in the garage unless you are confident that your packaging is so secure that the smallest critter could not penetrate. Mice can squeeze through spaces slightly larger than 6 millimeters (¼ inch) in diameter.
will not only give you more space to help you stay organized but it will also give you a feeling of lightness which is a lovely way to enter the spring season. As you clean through each room, take this opportunity to remove room accessories and unused furniture, cds, toys, books, and other items for your garage sale.
Hint: If you have gently used children’s books, your can help your local community by donating to Thirst-For-Books.
, but if you’re anything like me – once the cleaning is done, the fresh & clean look and smell are reward enough for my hard work and I’m always glad I made the effort. Spring is the perfect time to accomplish more infrequent chores, such as:
Flip mattresses so the wear gets spread out;
Wash baseboards;
Wash windows inside and out so you can look out over your colourful gardens;
Change the batteries in your smoke alarms and doors thermostat (if applicable); and
Clean and reorganize cupboards and drawers.
may be done in co-ordination with room cleaning. Especially if you are going to freshen up your baseboards and doors with a new coat of paint. After you have washed them and given them a chance to dry, add a coat of paint. If you’re pressed for time… do one room each week and be happy if you’re done by summer's end.
As you are walking through each room, especially in high traffic areas like hallways and corners, look for chips and scuffs that you can wash and touch up the paint if necessary. It makes it look almost as good as when it was first painted.
Hint: I have found the “Magic Eraser” to be very effective in removing scuffs from walls; available at most grocery and home supply stores.
can be done in stages but be careful to note the date of your first yard waste pick-up to ensure you take advantage of that opportunity to get rid of the worst of your spring clean up. This would include dead branches and leaves, dead plants from baskets or urns that were not discarded in fall and any winter decorations that were made of live plants or tree branches.
In the beginning of June we’ll talk about preparing for your summer garage sale. The proceeds could be used to sponsor the family reward for spring clean up! In fact, that motivation just might help your family become excellent sales people!
Article by Sheri Gammon Dewling
Markham Organizing Maven
©2007 All Rights Reserved. |
