The food is in the oven, the table’s set, and your kids are in their most adorable outfits. But you’re T-minus one hour from company arriving, and you still haven’t tidied up. Of course, now isn’t the time to deep clean—hopefully you did that last week!—but instead, now’s the time to get all your ducks in a row with a final sweep. Ahead, the ten-minute cleaning routine I rely on when company is on their way.
Bathroom
Again, the time for a deep clean has come and gone, so use this time to make sure your hand towels are in place, the sink and toilet are clean, and that there aren’t any weird smells to attend to. The bathroom is a high-traffic area when you have friends and family over, so be sure to give it a once-over every hour or so to swap out towels, refill the soap, or wipe the suds that your five-year-old niece left all over the sink when she washed her hands.
Kitchen
Company generally expects the kitchen to be a bit of a work-in-progress, but save your own sanity by making sure you work through the dishes in the sink and cleaning up any major spills or spatters.
Dining Room
This is likely the room that’ll get the most play when you have company over. For starters, make sure there’s no clutter on the dining table where place settings should be. Similarly, give the cabinet a quick dusting—especially if you’ll be serving apps there.
Living Room
Apart from the dining room, this is likely where you’ll spend a lot of time, especially if you plan to retire here after the meal is done. Give a last-minute look at the room and tie up loose ends: fold the blankets, fluff the pillows, and wipe any surface dust from high-traffic areas. Run a vacuum through the space too—you’ll be glad you did if any of your company decides to sit on your floor instead of the couch—then turn the diffuser sticks upside-down to be sure the scent lingers in the air.
Bedroom
Honestly, I recommend you just shut the bedroom door and call it a day. But if you absolutely need to keep it tidy for your sanity just in case anyone peeks in, make your bed, clear off any miscellaneous items from your nightstand, and move any clothing from The Chair to your closet or dresser drawers.
Give each room a quick spritz of Room & Linen spray, et voila—you’re done! If you can delegate things like vacuuming or dishwashing, be sure you let the person know the day before; that way you’re not nagging your 14-year-old to help tidy up when they’re still figuring out what to wear.
Happy holidays!
xx L
