Take your home from messy to immaculate in no time with these quick and easy tips – there might even be time for a cocktail!

Remember when a weekend meant cocktails with friends, days at the beach, and time to relax after the stress of the working week? It might all feel like a distant memory as you look around the disaster zone that is your home following a week of school runs, meal prep, and washing. By the time the weekend is over, it can feel like you’ve taken on a part-time cleaning job! If you’re sick of looking at a messy home but can’t face a weekend cleaning marathon, then these five quick and easy tips are for you.

Do The Prep Work

We’re all guilty of this mistake, but when you think about, there is no point going to the effort of mopping your floors, vacuuming your carpets, or washing your windows if there is a layer of dust just waiting to cling to them. Before you start tackling bigger jobs, grab your Oates Microfibre Cleaning Cloths and in one handy pack you will have a specially designed cloth for your kitchen surfaces, mirrors, stainless steel, and general dusting – no other products required. Why not make it a family activity and let each person take responsibility for a different surface? A problem shared is a problem halved (or quartered) after all!

Work Left To Right

When a space is messy, it can be difficult to know where to start, but simply jumping in wherever you can see a problem can lead to the same areas being missed time and time again. It may seem obvious, but working from left to right across a room can save you time and prevent the mess from getting out of control. This technique can also be super helpful if you have to abandon your cleaning before you’re finished and come back later (which is pretty much guaranteed!) as you will know where to restart the process. Once you can finally see the floor again, a quick once over with your Oates Space Saver Dustpan and Oates Triple Action Flat Mop will ensure every corner looks fresh and clean.

Break It Down

Time is precious so it’s always a good idea to know how long particular jobs take before you get started. Once you have a rough idea of how much time to set aside, you will be able to easily work cleaning tasks into your day, rather than being forced to plan your day around them! This strategy also makes it easier to share the load, and give your kids cleaning tasks that are quick, age-appropriate, and allow them to contribute. We also love the idea of breaking up your house into zones and combining more time-consuming cleaning tasks with less demanding jobs so you don’t find yourself always leaving the tedious jobs until Sunday night (scrubbing the shower comes to mind!). Whatever way you choose to divide it, taking a ‘little and often’ approach to cleaning will minimise mess and leave you with time to enjoy the weekend properly.

Clean As You Go

Have you ever spilled something, had every intention to clean it up immediately, been distracted by a grumpy toddler, and suddenly realised it’s still on your stove a week later? While this can happen to even the self-proclaimed neat freaks among us, ignoring the beginnings of mess can lead to a full-blown kitchen disaster. It might get to a point where you think it’s all too hard and the stains have become a permanent fixture, but it is never too late to have a fresh start. The Oates Anti-Bacterial Sponge Scourer is your best friend when it comes to erasing food stains and tough grime, as well as any lingering bacteria, leaving you with a pristine stove in a matter of minutes. We recommend that you leave one in an easy to reach spot in your kitchen so it’s close to hand whenever you might need it.

Choose The Right Tools

They say a worker is only as good as their tools and we think that truer words have never been spoken when it comes to cutting down on cleaning time. Buying a range of specific cleaning products for different surfaces can cost you a small fortune and actually increase the time it takes to complete even the simplest of jobs. Putting together a cleaning kit that includes a range of multi-purpose products will not only save you time and money, but make the whole process more sustainable and maybe even enjoyable! With the Oates Microfibre Cleaning Kit, Spacesaver Dustpan Set, Triple Action Flat Mop, and Anti Bacterial Sponge Scourer,  your home will be transformed from messy to immaculate in no time.

Have you got a time-saving cleaning hack? SHARE it in the comments.

We are proud to be working closely with the Oates team to bring you this article. We love that Oates is Proudly Australian with quality products and prices that mean all of us can make light work of every mess. Whatever mess you’ve got – big or small – clean up is easy with Oates.