Make Your House Look Clean: Day 1

Here's a secret about making your house look clean:

It's really not about being CLEAN as much as it about looking tidy.

Sure, you should be cleaning the toilets and vacuuming floors at least somewhat regularly but I've found that keeping my house tidy is much more important for my sanity than keeping it clean.  As long as it's a base level clean, I can look past dust on the shelves and fingerprints on the door.

And when people say "Your house is so clean!" what I think they usually mean is "Your house is tidy!"  Nobody is doing a white-glove test on surfaces.  But they do notice when things are generally picked up.  

Also, I function a lot better when there isn't stuff everywhere.

So this week, 5 little tips for keeping your house tidy (I already wrote a post about how I keep it clean).  These are all things I do daily and it helps keep the stuff at bay.  Once you get in the habits, it's pretty easy to keep it going, most of the time.

First up:

Make your bed.  Every day.  No matter what.

DIY signs | 30 Minute Pillow Covers

It takes me less than a minute if I am making it on my own.  Less than 30 seconds if Matt and I get up at the same time and do it together.  I keep 7 pillows on the bed and it's still really quick.

I've started the day making the bed when we both worked full-time.  When we had a newborn.  Even when I was on crutches (it took longer than a minute then).  No excuses, make your bed, every day (the only exception being when you are washing the sheets, if you only have one set).

Why does it matter when you'll be getting back in ~16 hours?  And unlikely anyone outside your immediate family will see it?

Because it's starting the day off with a good habit.  It's making it more welcoming to go back to after a long day.  A made bed is less likely to attract things like laundry piles and rejected clothes and kid toys.

You know that thing, where once you fix up one part of your house, whatever is next to it starts to look worse?

Well that's what making the bed can do.  Making your bed will be encouragement to make your whole bedroom that much more tidy which will slowly start to trickle to the rest of the room and then the whole house.

It's not magic, but almost.

So take 60 seconds and make the bed.  It's as good of a place to start as any.

(And, also, teach your kids to make their bed.  Luke now does it most mornings without being asked or reminded!  Which makes me feel like I've aced this parenting thing, at least for a minute or two.)

 DIY signs | 30 Minute Pillow Covers

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This week I'm sharing 5 little tips to keep your house looking clean, little things that can make a big difference in how you and others see your living space!  Day 1