Spring Cleaning

I love Spring. When you live in Chicago, Spring is the beginning of many things. Fresh air, open windows, long walks, days in the park, birds chirping, and my favorite– and my favorite, Spring Cleaning.

After being stuck inside for months, you begin to notice the many issues your home has. For instance, the drab paint color that hasn’t been updated in, oh I don’t know, 2 years. Or the cracks on the ceiling, or the broken porch screens, or the dusty ceiling light fixtures., or….the list is endless.

Well, at least for me the list is endless. I know many homeowners, like me, wait for warmer temps to begin home projects. We wait because we simply want to be able to open the windows, or maybe you need to do the projects outside because of paint fumes, regardless, my local Benjamin Moore store gets excited when Chicago temps hit forty one degrees because that means their shop gets busy again. It was no different this morning when I headed in and saw a line of contractors ready to check out, a handful of soon to be mommy’s staring at color chips at the other end, and some DIY’ers picking out new brushes.

Ah, that is the look of Spring in Chicago!

Anyhoo, it is no different for me. Every Spring I have a MASSIVE list of home projects to be accomplished. As I was looking over the list, I realized that there are some items every homeowner, or at least, every Chicagoen should consider this and/or every Spring.

So here is my Spring Cleaning List:

1. PAINT
Paint is the best way to freshen up any space. Whether it is an accent wall or entire room, open up some windows and take on a paint project. Every Spring I also do “touch-up” paint throughout the house. Patch and paint corners, holes on walls, and baseboards.

2. CAULK
Caulk is a homeowners best friend. After those long winters there is cracking or separating between crown mouldings, make sure you look up and simply caulk those areas. Caulking around door frames and built-ins. Since you have the caulk out, go ahead and head into the bathroom, caulk around toilets, showers, sinks.

3. WALLS/CEILING
Since you might be on a ladder caulking, grab a Swiffer and Swiffer up those ceilings. No joke, every Spring I grab a Swiffer and wipe up the walls and ceilings. You would be amazed how dusty the walls/ceilings actually get. Try it out and you will see.

4. RESTORE A FINISH
This is my go to for anything wood. Grab a bottle in your stain of choice and an old rag. Then, shine up those wood pieces. From dining tables to chairs, give your furniture some good old love.

5. LEMON OIL
Your wood pieces need a little juice after a long winter. Grab some all natural wood lemon oil and restore some juice into their lives. They will soak it up and thank you later.

6. WD-40
This is something my Papi Leo taught me via my mom. Nothing like WD-40. Spray in all the squeaking doors. From a front door to your bedroom door. I spray a little on all the windows as well, so that they slide easier after a winter of being closed up. ALSO, if you have a dining table that has extensions, spray some into the springs, everything needs a little juice so that it will continue to function properly.

7. BASEBOARDS
If you are not painting your baseboards this Spring (I try to paint my baseboards every 3 years). Then grab a wet rag and wipe them all down. These also collects dirt and dust. If needed, do some touch ups along the way.

8. GLASSWARE
We all have them throughout the home. From vases to knick knacks and decor accessories. Grab every piece of glassware or ceramic ware throughout your house and take them into the kitchen.  Go ahead, place them in the dishwasher. Give them a good old wash down. We all wipe them down when cleaning our home, but you will be happily amazed to see how much they actually shine after a good old washing.

9. KITCHEN CABINETS
If you have wood cabinets use a some lemon oil to give them a happy face. Take everything out and wipe down the insides as well. And don’t forget to spray a little WD-40 on hinges.

9. FLOOR TILES
We Swiffer, we mop, but do we really scrub. I mean down on our knees with a toothbrush. Grab a bucket and floor brush and give your tiles some attention.

10. UPHOLSTERY
Do you have slipcover furniture, or even throw pillows. Remove the slipcovers, remove the pillows covers and throw them in the wash. If you cannot remove the pillow covers take them to a local Dry Cleaners, have them washed for you. Trust me, you will be thankful later.

Well, those are my top 10, what are yours?