The big new year clean-up

> Here are some tips to make spring cleaning for the festive season less of a strenuous chore

CHINESE NEW YEAR is around the corner. For those who celebrate the festival, this means it’s time for spring cleaning.

With the exception of Japanese organising consultant Marie Kondo, I can’t think of anyone who’d jump for joy at the prospect of cleaning their house from top to bottom.

But the upcoming festival is a great reason to toss procrastination out the window, and hunker down to the massive task at hand.

Here are some tips to help you along:

All in a day’s work If you can devote one full day to do the spring cleaning, that will be good. You can get it over and done with quickly.

Plan out your work. List down the tasks and the amount of time it would take to complete them.

Get a timer to keep you on track. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted.

For instance, when tidying up the photo albums on your shelves, you may be tempted to flip through the pages.

Before you know it, your walk down memory lane would have swallowed an hour of your precious time!

Start early in the day, so that you have more hours for your chores.

Also, plan out your meals in advance. You probably don’t want to waste time cooking, so you might want to prepare a casserole in advance which you can just heat up.

Another option is to arrange for food delivery.

Spread out the work If you can’t manage to squeeze in one whole day for cleaning, spread it out over a few days. Tackle the clean-up on a piecemeal basis.

Prepare a list of the tasks to be done, such as washing the curtains, clearing the cobwebs, and wiping down the grilles.

After each task is completed, strike it from the list. You will get an immense sense of satisfaction from that little gesture.

Before you start, gather all the necessary cleaning supplies. If you have to go buy a detergent or an extra sponge midway through the cleaning, it will disrupt the flow of work.

Playing some loud music can put you into an energising mood. It helps to make the work seem lighter and more fun, as you scrub to the beat, or mop to the rhythm of the music.

Get help from the rest of the family: spouse, children, and even the pets.

Each human family gets assigned to an age-appropriate chore, while the pets are locked up so that they don’t get in the way.

No shortcuts You may not have the luxury of time to complete all the chores.

In this case, you should tackle only the tasks which are absolutely necessary to offer a clean façade to visitors.

For example, by hook or by crook, you have to vacuum the cobwebs and wash the grimy curtains.

You don’t want visitors to be mesmerised by the dangling cobwebs, or daddy longlegs scampering across the ceiling.

But you can afford to be a little lax about clearing up clutter. If the mess is hidden in kitchen cabinets or wardrobe, ignore them till the next cleanup.

Clear the stuff which is in plain sight, such as the mountainous pile of toys in the living room, and household items, such as clothes still left hanging from an old exercise machine.

You could also employ parttime cleaners ... if you can find some who aren’t fully-booked already.

Lydia Teh is a mother of four and author of ten books, including the latest, How I Wrote Ten Books. Send comments to lifestyle.lydia@ thesundaily.com.