Your home should be the safest place for you & your family. Every day, no matter what is going on around us. By implementing these simple & consistent habits you will maintain a clean home environment that will create a safer & healthier home throughout the year.

As young homeowners & mothers, our generation (the Baby Boomers) took great pride in cleaning our homes. It was different from our Mothers. Many of them were strictly homemakers. But many of us also worked outside the home in addition to maintaining our homes. When we were home, we juggled cleaning, laundry & taking care of our kids. We counted on our own mothers to help when they could but other than that we didn’t hire nannies.

The Baby Boomer generation of mothers was rather competitive. I remember feeling this way about my sister-in-laws who were meticulous. We silently wished to outshine each other.

My point in sharing this is that we got really good at being efficient with maintaining a clean home environment. We had too! Remember our generation of women were considered the SUPER MOMS. We wanted to prove that we could do it all & have our own careers. Free to spend our own money on whatever we wanted to.

By no means, am I suggesting YOU want or need to do this. Actually, it was LUDICROUS. But I am suggesting that you can learn a few things from our cleaning frenzy generation.

here are the 3 most important areas when it comes to maintaining a clean home environment.

1.powder room & Bathroom

Have you ever walked into a bathroom or powder room at someones home and decided you could hold out? That’s happened to me. One look at the toilet and no way. I’ll hold it until I can stop at the next Starbucks.

Even the most simple, basic bathroom looks a million times better when it’s clean. I’m not here to tell you how to clean your toilet, (but that might be another post ; ) For now, I’ll stick to the basic essentials you need to do, to keep everything you & your guests touch clean & safe from spreading germs.

Store a container of Clorox or Lysol Wipes under your vanity or in a discreet place. You could also use a more natural version like Seventh Generation. Use them to wipe down anything that is touched by skin.

Light Switch

Door Hardware

Toilet Trip Lever

Faucet Handles

Toilet Seat & Lid

Shower Door Handle

How often you wipe them down depends on the activity going on in your home. Once a week is minimal but more often as appropriate.

Another thing that is easy to overlook is the towel you use to dry your hands. It should be changed at least once a week. If you’re entertaining & you have guests frequenting a powder room, change the towel at least once during the day. I suggest storing a bag under the vanity or in a discreet place to stash the dirty towel until you can take it to the laundry room.

Quick question….have you ever used someones powder room & debated whether to dry your hands off on your clothes instead? Yuk. Those pretty guest towels aren’t so pretty unless they’re clean. Seriously, I have often opted to use my hair instead. It’s an opportunity to fluff it up. There are some benefits to having curly hair ;)

When it comes to your everyday Bathroom Towels & Terry Mats be sure you are changing them out at least once a week. I prefer twice a week. Bacteria grows quickly. If you use a washcloth, use a fresh one everyday. That might sound overkill but washcloths are breeding magnets. Who wants that? Especially now.

Rubber Bathmats are another place for breeding mold & bacteria. When you’re done bathing, pull it up & put it face down over the side of the tub or anywhere it can fully dry in between bathing’s. Replace bathmats as needed.

Rugs should also be washed on a consistent basis. I suggest Bi-Weekly if you have a lot of activity and Monthly for smaller families.

Use a disinfectant like Lysol Bathroom Cleaner to spray down your Shower & Tub every week. Whether it has a bleach base or hydrogen peroxide base is up to you. This helps to reduce mold & mildew from growing. Be sure to spray in grout & caulk lines, those are especially vulnerable.

For Powder Room & Bathroom Design be sure to check out my earlier posts A Powder Room that Wows & Creating a Spa Bathroom.

2. Kitchen

Just like the bathroom, every surface you touch is a place for germs to breed. So the same set of rules apply for cleaning surfaces. I’ll just add a couple more to wipe down to your list.

Appliance handles & controls

Cabinet Hardware

Since the kitchen is where you prepare food to ingest, you need to make sure all Horizontal Surfaces are thoroughly wiped down or washed on an ongoing basis. This includes counters, cutting boards, butcher block surfaces & stoves. My theory is after you cook, you eat, then you clean all surfaces. I know it might be tempting to leave it until the morning. But look at it this way, while you’re sleeping germs are breeding. Gross. Just disgusting.

I guarantee if you cook, eat, then clean you’ll have a lot more energy to do whatever you want afterward. You’ll also go to bed & wake up knowing your kitchen is fresh.

When it comes to Kitchen Linens my theory is use them once, then wash them. This includes kitchen towels, wash rags, micro fiber towels, napkins. I know you might hate me at the moment, but I promise you, if maintaining a clean home environment is your goal, this is how you do it.

For Kitchen Decorating Ideas be sure to check out my earlier posts How to Update Your Outdated Kitchen & What to Put on Kitchen Countertops for Decoration .

3. bedroom

By now, you’re getting the idea. Clean the surfaces you touch on a regular basis. The same applies for the bedrooms. A couple of additional items might apply in the bedroom.

Remote Controls

Electronics including phones, tablets & television controls

Basically, you touch it, you clean it on a regular basis. This might be one good thing that the general public has learned this year.

Bed Linens are a pain to change, I know. But depending on your sleep habits once a week should be the norm. Especially if you sleep in the buff. Your body is shedding dead skin cells as you sleep. Washing your sheets on a consistent basis helps to keep them free of dead skin, sweat & other bodily fluids I’ll choose not to expand upon. Let’s keep it clean ; )

Folding sheets is half the battle so instead just pull them off, wash them & get your partner to help you put them back on. Make sure you have your step tracker on, cause you’ll get a lot. You owe it to yourself to sleep on fresh, clean sheets, every week.

For Healthy Bedroom Decorating & Design ideas check out my earlier post The 5 C’s to Decorating a Bedroom for a Good Night’s Sleep.

Once you get into the routine of maintaining a clean home environment you’ll be happy you did. I urge you to make this a habit & not just something you do out of fear. Choose to make this your norm & your home & health will both benefit.

If you need more direction on getting started consider my Local or Online Design Services! I’m here to guide you!