What is Spring Cleaning: Ideas to Decluttering Your Home
Spring is here, and people are starting to get the itch for spring cleaning their homes. As much as we enjoy spring and the new life that comes with the season, fitting in all your chores can put a bit of a damper on the fun. However, spring cleaning doesn't have to be burdensome with our great tips to declutter your home.
What is Spring Cleaning, and Why Do We Do It?
Before we dig into spring cleaning ideas, let's discuss where the idea of spring cleaning originated. To start, we have to dig back into history.
Spring Cleaning as a Spiritual Ritual
The Jewish people were the first humans on record to spring clean. Spring cleaning in the Jewish community means you go through the house before Passover week and remove all leavened bread. For the home to be completely kosher, all leaven must be removed, even to the point of dusting out the crumbs. This provides the perfect opportunity for spring cleaning.
Spring cleaning is also featured in the Christian religion. Greek Orthodox churches typically begin the season of Lent by cleaning out the house on the first day. In Catholic churches, it’s common to spend the Thursday before Good Friday dusting and cleaning the altar.
New Year’s Ritual
“What is spring cleaning for New Year's supposed to accomplish," you ask? If you are Scottish, Chinese, or Iranian, there are many good tips to declutter your home for New Year’s.
The Iranians celebrate their New Year on the first day of spring. They believe in 'shaking the house' and starting the new year with a fresh, clean home.
The Chinese clean their home at New Year so old, negative energy and spirits do not cross over into the year ahead.
The Scottish people don’t care how cold it is outside; they always start the New Year with a clean house. This tradition has traveled to other countries as Scottish people move overseas, bringing their tidy habit with them.
What is the Purpose of Spring Cleaning in America?
You can thank the frontiersmen and women of Texas for bringing spring cleaning ideas to North America. Before winter, they put mud in the log cabin holes to shield the cold winds. The following spring, they removed the mud to allow fresh air into their homes. They also removed all the soot collected in the winter months.
Tips to Declutter Your Home
Now that you know what spring cleaning is and where it came from, you can start getting energized for your own decluttering. Whether you are young or older, have kids or not, you can jump into the task of decluttering in fun ways.
Spring Cleaning Ideas
Take time to decide if you need all your items. You should only store belongings that you will use again.
Set a certain number of possessions you will get rid of when cleaning. For example, go through your closet and choose four things you no longer wear. This is a great counting game for kids, too!
Tackle your projects one room at a time. It always takes longer than you expect, so spread out your spring cleaning days to keep it enjoyable and avoid getting overwhelmed.
Get rid of stacks of paper, extra clothes, books, and toys.
What is spring cleaning if not a family affair? Give everyone in the family age-appropriate cleaning tasks and get the job done together.
Each person in the family can decide which items they love and which items they can move on without.
Spring Cleaning Ideas for Retired People
For those who are older and need to reduce the clutter that has accumulated over years, here are some tips for decluttering your home:
Go through your cleaning list over a few days; don’t try to get it all done in one day.
Pick a room and start creating a list of items you love and want to keep. Dispose of those that no longer have the same emotional value as they once did.
What spring cleaning is complete without your adult children? It’s an excellent opportunity for them to visit and declutter your house of their long-lost belongings.
If you have belongings that should be placed in storage, pack them up, label them, and store them in a local facility.
Spring Cleaning Tips for Younger People
For younger people who may not have decades’ worth of belongings to filter through, here are some spring cleaning tips:
Decide what you will definitely use in the future.
If you are moving into a house rather than a dorm or apartment, update your furniture and declutter the items that don't fit the style or size of the new home.
A new relationship means compromising on what goes and stays. Work together to decide what items you want to keep and how to downsize.
Fashion trends come and go. Get rid of clothes that no longer appeal to you.
Go electronic wherever you can; that can include books, papers, etc. Save space just by using cloud services.
Camelot Spring Cleaning Storage
Now that you know what spring cleaning is and have our best tips to declutter your home, it is time to get down to business. Great spring cleaning ideas always start with a good storage plan. Let Camelot help open space in your home by storing some of your belongings. We have storage vaults of various sizes located in a temperature-controlled warehouse facility. Call Camelot today at (661) 255-3112 for your free storage quote!