Have you ever been on a first date and were considering taking your new love interest back to your place, but then remembered all of the molding dishes in the kitchen, your unswept or unvacuumed floors, your couch and furniture that are covered in dog hair, your clothes in giant piles on the floor, and your toilet that looks like a Death Eater?
If your date plays off your messy home like it’s no problem, don’t fall for it. No one actually feels comfortable meeting someone new in a disaster home full of junk.
You need to keep this from happening again. How? By making that sure your house is always… presentable. Keep on reading for our strategies for cleaning up enough to be comfortable with having a date at your house if a girl or guy comes over to your house.
Get Excited to Start Cleaning Up For Love
Whenever you’re down on motivation to clean up, remember how poorly a messy home makes for sprouting new love. It makes it hard to find a comfortable place to sit, or just feel comfortable in general. Plus, the smelly socks really ruin your mojo and they say worse things about you than you are probably going to say about yourself.
Don’t feel overwhelmed about cleaning up your messy home before going out on a date. Rather than letting it get out of control, adopt a few principles that will help your home always look its best without ever having to marathon clean and you leave good impression.
Why is it important to have a clean house?
If a date doesn’t motivate you, here are other reasons to regularly clean your home:
- Saves time. No lost keys in pockets buried under last weeks’ outfits.
- Less stress. Cluttered spaces look like stressful to-do lists to your brain.
- Reduces junk. Don’t let random papers, mail and junk needlessly pile up.
- Lessens allergies. Avoid breathing problems or sneezing simply by dusting.
- Keeps the bugs away. From ants to webs, kick them all except the love-bug.
- Cuts sick days. Vaccuming, cleaning spills and bathrooms helps you avoid illness.
Let us take all your junk now! Book a Pickup ❯
3 Cleaning Strategies for Tidying Up Your Home
Waiting until every single thing in your house needs to be cleaned is a sure-fire way to HATE cleaning. Who would want to clean for an entire day? The answer is: no one.
Figuring out a game plan that works for you keeps your place locked and loaded so that when it comes time for that after-dinner drink suggestion, you’ll be feeling nothing other than ‘Hakuna Matata‘. (AKA No worries, for the rest of your days!)
1. The 20/10 Cleaning Home Strategy
Clean for 20 minutes, rest for 10. Then, pick it back up until you have what you need to be cleared out. For this plan to work best, it helps to have a little caddy of cleaning supplies to carry around with you for extra speed cleaning.
We know it feels like college bringing out those caddies, but you can fit cleaning products like all-purpose cleaners, dish soap for oily messes, a microfiber cloth, white vinegar, paper towels and more. This isn’t everyone’s favorite plan because they have a hard time getting back to cleaning after a break, but, try it out. If you find you’re wasting time then it’s not for you.
Does your nappin’ couch need TLC? Check out this guide on how to deep clean your couch!
2. The Daily Chore
Cleaning on a daily basis is often easier for people to maintain their homes clean. You have to clean every day, but it’s nice because over the course of a week everything is cleaned, but you rarely spend more than 20 to 30 minutes each day.
For example, you can water your plants on Monday and Thursdays. Vacuum and dust on Sundays. Do clothes laundry on Tuesdays. Wash towels and sheets on Wednesdays.
The two places where there is regularly a bit to do are the kitchen and bathroom. You can leave the weekend dishes to Mondays so that way you can enjoy your weekend not caring about dishes, but take care of them on Monday before they get gross.
However, during the week the dishes and wiping the counters down are tasks that should be done for a few minutes each day. It’s also a good idea to get an after shower spray for your shower so it won’t get as gross in between the scrub-downs.
Need help cleaning up your junk? Book a Pickup ❯
3. Hire a Junk Removal Company
Sometimes it’s dirty and other times it’s junky. If you have so much junk that no matter how much you lint roll or wipe down, your date will always feel like they’ve entered the set of hoarders, then it’s time to call a junk removal company to come to get all your household stuff.
They’ll come to you, haul all of the things you don’t want or need, and take them away for recycling or other forms of responsible disposal. While they do that, you can spend the rest of the day doing last-minute straightening up and getting yourself ready for a successful date.
Remember, You’re Cleaning for Love
Don’t get all down and out about cleaning. You should be doing it just to be a hygienic human being, but if you need an extra reason to clean then know that a clean home is attractive and adds to your appeal. Keep your cleaning strategy simple and consistent and it won’t be the worst thing in the world. You might even have fun with it like this guy:
Related Articles from the Trash Talk blog:
