How to Keep Your Home Clean During the Holidays

Learn how to keep your home clean during the holidays with these simple tips. There’s even a free printable cleaning essentials checklist so you won’t forget anything!

Holiday season is almost upon us!  As much as I LOVE the holidays, I must admit that they also bring a little stress and anxiety. Between holiday parties, fun holiday activities with the kids, Christmas shopping, and all of the regular day to day “life stuff” that still has to happen, things can get a bit crazy!

Holiday Cleaning

Keeping up with the household cleaning during the busy holiday rush can sometimes feel overwhelming. No one wants to be cleaning when there are so many other fun things to do! In order to hopefully save you some time and energy this holidays season, I’ve partnered with The Home Depot Canada to put together some easy tips on how to keep your home clean during the holidays. Just a few simple changes and a little planning can really make a big difference! The Home Depot is stocked with all of the top cleaning brands and products that you love, so you can grab everything that you need while doing some Christmas shopping, grabbing your tree, or checking out some items for your next DIY!

How to Keep Your Home Clean During the Holidays

Stock up on cleaning supplies ahead of time.

There’s nothing worse than running out of cleaning supplies right before hosting a holiday event, so be sure to stock up on everything prior to the holiday craziness. Plan ahead and purchase enough supplies to last you through to January.  To save money {and plastic!}, I try to buy bulk-sized items and then divide the product up into smaller glass spray bottles to use in various rooms. Just be sure to label them!

Before you head out to the store, take some time to organize all of your current cleaning supplies to see what you already have and what you need to stock up on. To make things even easier for you, I’ve created a printable cleaning essentials checklist for you to use. Just print it out and go through all of your cleaning supplies, checking off what you have. I even left a couple of blank spots for you to add in your own favorite supplies. Then just bring the checklist in to your local Home Depot and gather the rest of your items!

DOWNLOAD THE CLEANING ESSENTIALS HOLIDAY CHECKLIST HERE

Get the whole family involved.

Have a designated time each day that the whole family contributes to tidying and cleaning the house. It’s amazing what you can accomplish in a solid 20-30 minutes when everyone is helping out! Designate specific tasks to each family member that you know they can do well. Try to stick to the same time each day so it becomes more of a habit. Remind everyone that the more they help out, the more time you’ll have to enjoy all of the holiday activities together.

Deep clean as your decorate.

I try to do a deep clean of each room as I’m putting up our Christmas decorations.  This includes washing down any marks on the walls, cleaning the baseboards, deep cleaning the carpets if needed, washing the windows, dusting the light fixtures, and any other little tasks that don’t need to be done on a weekly basis.  This will usually get me through the holiday season and then I’ll deep clean again when I take everything down in January.  It’s not perfect but good enough!

Focus on the main traffic areas.

Keeping the high traffic areas clean on a daily basis, can really help to prevent the spread of dirt and dust throughout the rest of the house.  Make sure you have a dedicated spot for shoes at the entrances to your house to remind everyone to take off their shoes and to keep all of the shoe dirt contained in one spot.  Small area rugs at doors can also help to trap a lot of the incoming dirt.

For furry friends that come in and out, have a an old towel by the door to quickly wipe down paws as they come in {you can see other ideas for keeping your house clean with pets here}.  I use a Swiffer Wet Jet for spot cleaning muddy paws and other quick clean ups.  For bigger areas, I usually use the Method floor cleaner  and microfiber cloths – I love the almond scent!

Prep the Bathroom

The bathroom can be one of the busiest rooms at holiday parties so keep it well stocked!  I like to keep basic cleaning supplies on hand under our cabinets for quick clean-ups and add a seasonal soap for a festive touch. I also make sure I buy the double roll toilet paper so the rolls don’t have to be changed as often {because for some reason I seem to be the only person in the house that knows how to do this!}.  Keep a roll or two out so guests can always find extra if needed!

Have a “Put Away” basket.

If you’re totally strapped for time and your house is looking less than tidy, use a large bin or laundry basket to stash items away.  Quickly go around the house and gather everything into your basket that’s on the floor or needs to be put away somewhere else. You might not get everything put away before your company arrives, but at least it’s contained and can be put out of sight.

Tidy as you go.

I try to do this at all times throughout the year, but I think it’s extra important during the holidays. It’s always much easier to clean as you go than to go back and deal with a huge mess later.  Get in the habit of putting those little items {like your coat or drinking glasses} away as soon as you are done with them. And get the rest of your family to do the same!  Really make an effort to do all of those little tasks right away that only take one or two minutes. You’ll save yourself a lot of time and energy in the end!

Put the dishwasher on at the end of the day.

Never go to bed with a messy sink!  Be sure to collect all of your dishes from around the house and put them into the dishwasher at the end of the day. Coming down to a clean kitchen in the morning is definitely a much more calming way to start your day.  Plus, running your dishwasher at night will help save on your hot water bills!  I love using the dishwasher pods as they’re super quick to just pop in and have a built in rinse aid for cleaner dishes and glasses.

Enjoy the season.

At the end of the day, remember what the holidays are all about. No one is coming to see your clean house – they’re coming to see you. Spending time with your friends and family is what makes the holidays special so enjoy it. You can always clean in January! 🙂

More Cleaning Hacks

Keep these cleaning hacks on hand over the holidays for all of those holiday clean-ups!!

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The Best Way to Clean Stainless Steel