Sorry, not trying to be rude, but your apartment is looking a little sad. It’s totally understandable. We’ve all spent the last few months of winter tracking in snow and putting off hauling laundry to the laundromat as long as possible.
But now it’s March. Sun is streaming through the windows again and highlighting all the dust you managed to ignore in favor of another Netflix binge. It’s the perfect time to spring clean your apartment. Here’s where to start.
Get rid of the excess
You don’t need to go full Marie Kondo, but gather up the sweaters, boots, and jeans that you lived in all winter and determine if they’ve seen better days. If you know in your heart you’ve worn them so often you never want to see them again, let them go.
Then round up your coats and assess the situation. Any that have been worn to death and you can’t repair should go. Take the rest to the dry cleaner and then marvel at how much closet space you just freed up.
Clean your sofa
Your sofa probably got a lot of love these past few months and now it’s time to erase all traces of a sedentary winter lifestyle. If your couch is from Ikea or has a slipcover, take that off and wash it. If not, go at it with a lint roller, a vacuum, and some DIY fabric cleaner. If your couch is especially gross from roommates or kids, it might be worth it to rent a steamer right about now.
Once you’ve let the couch air out, toss any throw pillows in the washer or spot clean them if they’re more delicate. Tip: Throw a few clean tennis balls in the dryer with your pillow inserts so they stay fluffy.
Focus on your floors
If you have hardwood floors, it’s not that practical to keep a vacuum handy for cleaning any rugs you might have. Storage is a precious commodity in most apartments. Every so often, though, you are going to want to clean them. This is one of those times. If you can’t swipe a vacuum from your parent’s or friend’s house, Home Depot and Lowe’s both rent carpet cleaners that work on high pile rugs.
Small rugs can usually go in the economy size washer at the laundromat. However, if you have large woven rugs your best bet is to enlist a friend to help you take it outside and shake it out. After that do a little spot cleaning if necessary.
If your place is mostly carpet, sprinkle carpet refresher all over to get rid of any moldy odors caused by winter moisture and then vacuum it up. If you have access to a carpet steamer, use this deep cleaning method from Apartment Therapy.
If you have any cleaning tips that you like to bust out each year, please share. Everyone and their sparkling clean apartments will thank you.
