I. B. Caruso - Just Clean Enough: Home Organization in an Imperfect World

JUST
CLEAN
ENOUGH

Make Peace with
Sort-of-Spotless and
Find More Time for You

EASY
TIDYING
TIPS

I. B. Caruso and Jenny Schroedel

Copyright 2011 by F+W Media, Inc.
All rights reserved.
This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

Published by Adams Media,
a division of F+W Media, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street,
Avon, MA 02322. U.S.A.
www.adamsmedia.com

Contains material adapted and abridged from The Everything Home Storage Solutions Book by Iyna Bort Caruso, copyright 2007 by F+W Media, Inc., ISBN 10: 1-59337-6626, ISBN 13: 978-1-59337-662-8; The Everything Organize Your Home Book, 2nd Edition by Jenny Schroedel, copyright 2008, 2002 by F+W Media, Inc., ISBN 10: 1-59869-393-X, ISBN 13: 978-1-59869-393-5.

ISBN 10: 1-4405-0656-6
ISBN 13: 978-1-4405-0656-7
eISBN 10: 1-4405-1065-2
eISBN 13: 978-1-4405-1065-6

Printed in the United States of America.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Caruso, I. B.
Just clean enough / I. B. Caruso and Jenny Schroedel.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-4405-0656-7
ISBN-10: 1-4405-0656-6
ISBN-13: 978-1-4405-1065-6 (ebk)
ISBN-10: 1-4405-1065-2 (ebk)
1. House cleaning. 2. Orderliness. 3. Housekeeping. I. Schroedel, Jenny.
II. Title.
TX324.C377 2010
648.5 dc22
2010038808

Readers are urged to take all appropriate precautions before undertaking any how-to task. Always read and follow instructions and safety warnings for all tools and materials, and call in a professional if the task stretches your abilities too far. Although every effort has been made to provide the best possible information in this book, neither the publisher nor the author are responsible for accidents, injuries, or damage incurred as a result of tasks undertaken by readers. This book is not a substitute for professional services.

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their product are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Adams Media was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

Woman Ian Mitchell
All other images 123RF.com

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Afterword

Appendix

Introduction

KICK PERFECTION TO THE CURB

Your home is a mess, but youre probably not a candidate for Hoarders, so no worries! Forget perfection or shame or guilt. The title of this book isnt Everything Must Be Perfect or Youre a Horrible, Lazy Human Being. You have a life, and while it runs more smoothly when you know where things are, you dont have extra time or the inclination to spend the time you do have cleaning and organizing. And the good news is you dont have to. Inside are hundreds of quick, easy emphasis on easy ways to keep your home feeling fresh without wasting too much valuable time or energy.

After all, this is home organization, not boot camp! The desk in your home office doesnt have to be clean enough to eat off of. Your kids rooms dont have to be spotless, and frankly, no matter what you do, they never will be. Since youre not competing for a Most Perfect Home award, it makes sense to focus less on organizing and sanitizing and more on keeping your sanity. Youll be glad you did.

Toss It, Already!

Clutter is Public Enemy #1 in the quest for creating a sane sanctuary, so youll have to get into the habit of taking inventory of your stuff. You know the drill: Toss, Keep, and Donate. Of course, youre trying to clear off your kitchen table, not fill a dump truck with the contents of your living room, but deciding what you actually need vs. what you can let go of may still feel like a daunting task. Fortunately, its simpler than you may think. Use the following guidelines to clear out whatevers lurking and youll feel lighter in an instant.

1. If you cant remember the last time you used, wore, or played with something, get rid of it. That someday I might need this philosophy is a throwback to your grandmas era, so let it go.

2. When debating about something that holds sentimental value, separate the object from the memory. If the memory is strong, do you really need the object?

3. If its broken, toss it.

4. If you uncover duplicates, donate the extra.

Dont revert to your packrat ways once youve started sorting. A painless investment of ten or fifteen minutes of daily touchups is all it takes to keep you from burning cookies while you search for an oven mitt amidst kitchen rubble, or preventing your preschooler from being late to school as you try to track down a lone shoe in a swamped closet.

Almost Perfect

Want to donate to a charity but cant find time to get to the Salvation Army? Many charities will come to you. Set up a pickup date, leave your donations outside your door, and youre good to go. Check out www.thethriftshopper.com for charities in your area.

Forget the White Glove Test...

... but consider the cleaning part of this equation. Because being organized is important, but its not everything. Like it or not, to get that Theres no place like home feeling, some cleaning is involved. Again, were not pushing perfection. Dirt is a part of life, and you dont have to spend every night scrubbing floors and corralling dust. But you are going to have to wash your dishes, keep up with laundry, and get rid of the ring around your toilet. Otherwise, you risk staring at a dirty floor in a panic ten minutes before your in-laws show up and no one wants that! Dont fret: the tips inside will have you sitting pretty while the dust settles.

ThisBooksBreakdown

Youre a smart person and chances are you already know what you need to do to get your home in order. Well show you how to take all that info and work it into your lifestyle. You know the expression Take it one day at a time? Here the expression is more like, Take it five minutes at a time. This will be your motto as you work your way through this book. Each task has a completion time; that way, you can decide what to do depending on how much time you have available. Say you have twenty minutes to get some organizing done. Flip through the book and find a twenty-minute task. Theres also a chapter for every room in your home, and each chapter is broken down into the days of the week, with a different task and tip for each day. If you want to start your cleanup in your bathroom, jump to Chapter 1 and follow the week-by-week plan for that room.

Go Forth and Conquer

No matter how you use this book, remember you wont get the results you want by trying to be perfect. Instead, clean the way you want, when you want, and make your house the home it was meant to be one thats comfortable and makes you feel good about how you live... even if it means you sometimes coexist with the dust bunnies under the couch.

WHOS AFRAID OF THE BIG, BAD BATHROOM?

The bathroom: everyones least favorite room to clean. Honestly, theyre not that bad. Bathrooms are among the smaller rooms in the house, and they generally dont attract much clutter that doesnt belong there. But with all the toiletries, linens, and cleaning products that can accumulate, its a space that can easily get out of control and fast! Its also the place where you begin and end your day, so it deserves a little of your time and attention. Who wants to wake up to messes, mold, and mildew, right?