And so it is Christmas

Well it will be very soon. Probably, like me you are having guests over and now panicking about how you will find the time to clean up. Believe me this happens to us all, but there are ways of keeping the cleaning down to the minimum.

Firstly always remember your visitors come to see you, not to find out how dirty your home is, but a tidy room where you will be entertaining is definitely preferable. If you make a point of tidying up the rooms the visitors will see you will have solved all the problems in one.

As it is summer here in Australia and the weather is warm, we make a point of setting up the entertaining area outside. Even if you only have a tiny verandah you can still make it look inviting. The idea is to set aside a small area for the food and drinks, and some chairs outside, if there is room, and as soon as the visitors arrive whisk them through to the outside.

Because the kitchen will be used one has to make that look neat, clean and tidy. My advice is to prepare all the food, crockery, glasses and cutlery before the visitors arrive, then clear all the bench tops leaving lots of space. This way you can spread out what will be used and there will be space for extra things that could be brought by the visitors.

The only other rooms you will need to make look clean are the rooms your visitors will walk through such as the kitchen, and the powder room or bathroom. The hallway and living areas can be quickly tidied up by picking up any object on the floor and be in a cupboard or box. If you use a box, hide it behind a sofa. You will need to vacuum the floor and if the dust is thick dust the horizontal surfaces, but as long as the room is tidy, once vacuumed, it will give a clean prepared look.

A thorough clean of the toilet and sink in the powder room and the vacuuming of the floor will make it presentable, and if you only have one bathroom try to close off the shower recess so that doesn’t need cleaning. Should there be a bath make sure there is no dust, just rub over it with a damp cloth before cleaning the sink and toilet.

By making these two visited areas clean it won’t take as long as you expect and there will be more time to prepare the food. Remember areas where visitors won’t go, won’t be seen if you keep the doors closed.

Have a great Christmas, and relax.

Julie Finch-Scally

20th December 2021