Essential Cleaning Tips from Moms

There are two types of people in the world: Those who hate to clean with a passion so fierce they simply hire out, and those who use cleaning as a way of releasing energy and taking control of their own lives. Regardless of which type of cleaner you are, there are always ways you can make the job faster – if not slightly more enjoyable – by implementing a few tips and tricks you learn from others. Your mom, as often as she loves to dispense advice, is actually one of the most useful tools when it comes to cleaning. Here are a few things women learned from their moms about cleaning their own houses.

Socks

Slip an old sock on your hand and dust your furniture. It’s fast, easy and one of the best ways to clean.

Essential Oils

When you make your own cleaning detergent out of baking soda, water, and vinegar – or any mixture of the three – you can make the foul smell a little sweeter by adding a few drops of essential oils to the mix. Not only will you refrain from gagging every time you spray cleanser on anything, your house will smell lovely as well.

Dusting

Vacuum first. The vacuum, as great as it is, will stir up dust in the air and cause your freshly polished furniture to become dusty all over again. By vacuuming first and dusting later you can prevent yourself from having to dust a second time.

Dish Soap is Awesome

Dish soap will do anything, and I can attest to this firsthand. When I was a teenager I let one of the girls on my cheerleading squad give me little cornrow French braids. I am white, she is black and neither one of us had a clue that her hair products were not so great for my hair. After a couple days of having cute, half-cornrow French braids I took them out and washed my hair. My first clue that my friend’s hair product wouldn’t come out of my hair should have come every morning when I washed my hair with the braids still in. They looked perfect after each wash.

After taking them out and washing my hair –repeatedly – I realized that I couldn’t get the product out of my hair. It was greasy and slick and looked like it was staying in forever. Fortunately, my friend’s mom had my back and she called my mom and told her to have me use dish soap in my hair. It took the greasy substance right out (though she lectured me and her daughter about sharing hair products the next time I was at her house!).  To this day I still use dish soap whenever I have a greasy issue. It takes grease out of clothes and towels (and hair!) as well as carpet should you accidentally drop a piece of bacon or other greasy food on it.