Surprise! You invited friends from a play date at the park over for dinner tonight, or your significant other called and is bringing home dinner guests. You look around and realize your house looks like a scene from Hoarders (well maybe not that bad). How are you going to possibly clean the house and make a meal in a matter of a few hours?
Take a deep breath and relax. See my post from earlier this month on roasts or consider something in the slow cooker so you have more time to clean, but don't worry. I'll give you a few points on faking a clean house in less than an hour.
Before you start anything considering serving your guests outside. If you have a nice, clean, patio and the weather is nice consider having a bbq. Guests won't mind helping wipe down a table and chairs for dinner and the less time they are in the house, the less time they have to notice dirt.
Before you start cleaning crack a few windows. Fresh air will make your house smell less stale and get rid of whatever odors your house normally smells like. The fresh air will also help take away the vinegar smell or whatever products you use to clean your house.
Clean up the clutter first. Make sure you remove the clutter from surfaces like counters, tables maybe even the floor depending on your house. We keep a mail tub with all of the random papers we collect and when guests come over we just move it to the desk in the office. Honestly, you just have to move the clutter to a bedroom or office, a room the guests won't be seeing. You can easily close the door to a messy room. Clutter makes the house look smaller than it is, it also makes the house look messier than it actually is. Cleaning off the clutter is the fastest way to make a house look cleaner.
After the clutter is put away clean off the surfaces of everything. I run a quick duster over bookshelves and the tv. I also use vinegar and a rag and clean off the table and counter tops. The counters may get dirty again from dinner, but that's explainable and crusty dinner from last night is not. While I'm doing this I also take a quick check of the walls and knock down any new cobwebs and scrub any big marks on the walls.
Peek into your guest bathroom. Make sure there is tp, soap and a clean hand towel. Sweep the floor or wipe down the toilet or sink if they look dirty. You can basically clean an entire bathroom in less than 15 minutes so it shouldn't take very much time at all to check and clean anything that needs to be fixed.
Lastly, I clean the floors. I usually vacuum them and if I have extra time I'll steam mop or use a little mop and glow to make them extra clean. I might also vacuum off my couches if they are full of dog hair and I have extra time.
Your house is ready! At least it looks clean even if the bedrooms are a disaster area. Remember you are the harshest critic of your own house. Guests just want to spend time with you, they don't care about your house. As long as you make them feel welcome, have fun and maybe go the extra mile to serve something yummy, your guests will have a wonderful time.
Take a deep breath and relax. See my post from earlier this month on roasts or consider something in the slow cooker so you have more time to clean, but don't worry. I'll give you a few points on faking a clean house in less than an hour.
Before you start anything considering serving your guests outside. If you have a nice, clean, patio and the weather is nice consider having a bbq. Guests won't mind helping wipe down a table and chairs for dinner and the less time they are in the house, the less time they have to notice dirt.
Before you start cleaning crack a few windows. Fresh air will make your house smell less stale and get rid of whatever odors your house normally smells like. The fresh air will also help take away the vinegar smell or whatever products you use to clean your house.
Clean up the clutter first. Make sure you remove the clutter from surfaces like counters, tables maybe even the floor depending on your house. We keep a mail tub with all of the random papers we collect and when guests come over we just move it to the desk in the office. Honestly, you just have to move the clutter to a bedroom or office, a room the guests won't be seeing. You can easily close the door to a messy room. Clutter makes the house look smaller than it is, it also makes the house look messier than it actually is. Cleaning off the clutter is the fastest way to make a house look cleaner.
After the clutter is put away clean off the surfaces of everything. I run a quick duster over bookshelves and the tv. I also use vinegar and a rag and clean off the table and counter tops. The counters may get dirty again from dinner, but that's explainable and crusty dinner from last night is not. While I'm doing this I also take a quick check of the walls and knock down any new cobwebs and scrub any big marks on the walls.
Peek into your guest bathroom. Make sure there is tp, soap and a clean hand towel. Sweep the floor or wipe down the toilet or sink if they look dirty. You can basically clean an entire bathroom in less than 15 minutes so it shouldn't take very much time at all to check and clean anything that needs to be fixed.
Lastly, I clean the floors. I usually vacuum them and if I have extra time I'll steam mop or use a little mop and glow to make them extra clean. I might also vacuum off my couches if they are full of dog hair and I have extra time.
Your house is ready! At least it looks clean even if the bedrooms are a disaster area. Remember you are the harshest critic of your own house. Guests just want to spend time with you, they don't care about your house. As long as you make them feel welcome, have fun and maybe go the extra mile to serve something yummy, your guests will have a wonderful time.
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