A few weeks ago I shared Spring Cleaning tips on my weekly WCCO MidMorning segment. When trees start sprouting new leaves, and bright color start popping up everywhere – that is when you know it is finally Spring! It seems like Spring into Summer is a pretty quick transition, and for me, I want to be ready to take on the world when Summer comes! There’s no time like the present to clean, organize and get a fresh perspective this spring.
{Click the picture to watch the segment}
Did you know that donations of clothing or household goods to Goodwill help create jobs directly in your community? In fact, those items get a second act in another person’s life. That’s spring cleaning with a purpose!
There’s no time like the present to clean and organize. Here are eight cleaning and organizing tips to make the transition to warmer temps easier!
1. Have your carpets professionally cleaned. (TIP: Summer months are slow seasons for professional cleaners, and there are LOTS of carpet cleaning deals can be found online).
2. Deep clean the kitchen by cleaning under and behind appliances; thoroughly clean out the refrigerator and manually cleaning out the oven
3. Clean out your pantry. Throw away expired food items, any opened packages that may be stale and donate food items you aren’t going to use.
4. Wipe down ceiling fans and clean light fixtures.
5. Clean bathroom cabinets, drawers and don’t forget the medicine cabinet. Make sure you through away expired medicine and flush expired prescriptions or medicine you aren’t taking.
6. Wash pillows (TIP: If you are going away for a vacation or long weekend wash the pillows before you leave so they can air dry while you are away).
7. Clean out your closets, pantry, and cabinets…donate items you aren’t wearing or using to Goodwill. You can even calculate how much your donation helps your local community by using Goodwill’s Donation Impact Calculator, a feature available within the Goodwill Locator App. Click “Explore Our Map” on the homepage and input the items you’re donating to calculate the number of hours of career counseling, on-the-job training, résumé preparation, financial planning classes, and other services you’ve helped provide people facing challenges finding employment.
8. Clean and repaint baseboards. Baseboards often get this least amount of attention. Show them a little extra TLC with a deep clean this summer (and paint touch-up, if needed).
Need even more help? Check out these Spring Cleaning Tips from Goodwill visit http://www.goodwill.org/spring-cleaning/. Thanks to the programs and support services made possible by donations of clothes and household items, Goodwill helped place more than 312,000 people in jobs in the United States and Canada in 2015 – that’s one person finding a job every 23 seconds of every business day.
Through its 162 local, independent headquarters, Goodwill collectively provided job placement services, onsite and virtual skills training, and other community-based services (such as English-language training, financial education, youth mentoring and access to transportation and child care) in 2015. Last year, nearly 2 million people engaged in face-to-face Goodwill services to advance in their careers. More than 35 million people accessed education, training, mentoring and online learning tools offered by Goodwill virtually to strengthen their skills and gain industry-recognized credentials.
I feel better when my house is clean and organized and the fact that I am helping my community at the same time makes it all the better! Here’s to taking the time to clean and organize our homes this spring and summer!
