No one wants to wake up on the morning of any holiday with a giant list of chores to do. That’s what makes these 12 days of cleaning before Christmas such a great choice for the modern homemaker. Regardless of what your plans are, you’ll be able to find this list to help you get to the end of your cleaning well before the big day.
Tips to Make Your Christmas Merry, Sparkling & Bright
Day 1
Spot any imperfections. Focus on areas that guests are most likely to see (like your entryway, dining room, and bathroom). No need to declutter every drawer, focus on where the guests will be.
Day 2
Add storage areas to your entryway. For purses, hats, and more, you’ll want to have lots of storage available for guests to use. It’s perfect for when you’re looking to clear up the clutter at the same time, too! Plus, this could be a neat way to store your items that you enter/leave with – keys, wallet, purse, etc.
Day 3
Clean all of your to-be-used appliances. From the coffee maker to the oven to the drink cart, clean everything so that you know it’s all in its best form before the event. I mean, this is a good idea to do regularly anyways, but not a bad idea to give it another once over before and after.
Day 4
Decorate! From the entryway to the bathroom and beyond, you’ll want to really decorate to your heart’s content so that you can bring your festive spirit to the forefront! You know you probably already have that tree in the house, but give it an extra day to settle before adding the lights and decorations.
Day 5
Add themed scents to your air purifier. Not only will this help purify your actual air and clean it of allergens and illness particles, but it will give your home a festive scent! The fun of Christmas can also be the favorite scents we only smell at the end of the year, like the Christmas tree smell, vanilla, cinnamon or other baking cookie smells, pumpkin spice, apple pie and more! What’s your favorite?
Day 6
Plan out your appetizers. Since you don’t want to be washing dishes every 5 minutes, plan out appetizers so that they’re on different dishes. Might also be a great idea to have a to-do list for your food, what needs to be cooked/prepared ahead and what needs to be done the day of to alleviate so much work on one day. Don’t forget to clean out the fridge so you have room to store all that extra food.
Day 7
Vacuum and mop. Starting with the most used areas first, vacuum and mop for some squeaky clean floors! Don’t forget to do this after as well, as we are more likely to spill/drip more when we are doing more.
Day 8
Dust and rearrange decorations. Dust everything in the main area of your home and look at rearranging your decorations (like photos) if they need a revamp. One cool tip might be to pack up all of your “regular” decorations during the holidays to allow for the Christmas joy. Sometimes this feels like a new and fresh house each time!
Day 9
Set up and lay out your linens. Since it can always be stressful to find table linens for your perfectly dressed table, you’ll want to do it in advance and have them accessible so you can just grab and go. Heck, even have them laundered and folded, so you don’t have to!
Day 10
Be ready for the trash. Be it from wrapping paper or food scraps; you’ll want to have a set place to throw away garbage and more since it’ll be busier than your normal household’s pace. Be sure you stay on top of your trash days and keep those outside cans empty and ready to receive the new and plentiful paper and food trash coming with the holiday and extra guests and family.
Day 11
Tidy up visual clutter. From TV remotes to earphones to phone chargers, it all should go tucked away into a bin, drawer or cabinet that you can access when you actually need those items! Or for items that you don’t use, consider donating them to someone who may need and use them.
Day 12
Store extra needs in the rooms that you need them in. Whether it’s more toilet paper and towels in the guest bathroom or extra blankets and pillows in your guest bedroom, it all matters! You will have extra people with extra needs. Don’t forget those extra toiletries for overnight guests.
Bring in the reinforcements
If you still need a little bit of extra help — and we don’t blame you — consider allotting certain chores to different family members to help you out with the cleaning. If you’d like to have even more help, you can consider . It’ll be nice to give yourself a break, too, after all. While we can’t prepare the food for you, we can surely take a load off your hands with the deep and fine cleaning, to help ready your home for the food and guests.
Don’t forget that at the end of this, your house will be sparkling clean! That’s a gift in and of itself, right? Get a quote with DK’s Dustbusters or contact us at (281) 286-3878 for all of your home cleaning needs. Don’t forget, we can help with your office cleaning needs as well.
