Jul 22, 2014

Storms + Spotify = Summer Cleaning

Sophi Cleaning and Organization cleaning, organization, spotify, thunderstorm 2 Comments

Hey y’all! Unfortunately, I don’t have a fancy post today.

I had meant to finally do a recap of our trip to Gatlinburg over 4th of July, but by the time I sat down to work on this post yesterday, it was already 9pm and I had spent my entire day cleaning, so I was EXHAUSTED.

Seriously, I cleaned and organized for over eight hours straight. That might be a new record for me. I really hate cleaning. I wish I was more like my sister— she loves to clean!

Thank goodness for Florence + the Machine playlists on Spotify and an awesome thunderstorm!

Not exactly why, but it made me extremely motivated and productive. I guess knowing that it was so yucky outside meant I didn’t feel like I wasted my day inside cleaning. Plus having some great music to belt out to makes you feel a little like Cinderella. Now if only I could get my dog to sing along with me like the mice do in that movie…

Anyway, here’s a peak at one of the projects I accomplished: redoing the built-in shelves area in our master bedroom.

It’s not super convenient to have books up there as I actually have to get the step-stool then climb on the part where the TV is, but I was tired of that area feeling like “wasted space.” Plus most of the books I put on the shelves I have already read, so I probably won’t be reading them again too soon.

I really love how it turned out. With all the books, it gives it a lot more color. Other than the Bibles. My husband has quite the collection of black Bibles apparently.

I do miss my wedding things, but maybe I’ll figure out another place to display them.

How was your Monday? Hope your week started off great!

Jul 20, 2013

Spring… well, Summer… Cleaning

Sophi Cleaning and Organization cleaning, Cleanliness, Do it yourself, pinterest, Spring cleaning 0 Comments

Today my hubby and I spent most of the day cleaning our house. We have a small townhome, so you’d think it wouldn’t take too long to clean, but we have been so busy the last few weeks it was way overdue. I REALLY hate cleaning so it took some time to get motivated but I am glad we started early so we could get it done and chill tonight. We had to clean and organize our spare bedroom as my sister is giving us some furniture, and the downstairs really needed a deep cleaning (including pulling the entire couch apart and vacuuming each cushion thanks to my dog’s shedding). That took almost an hour right there. But as much as I hate cleaning, I sure do enjoy the feeling of accomplishment afterwards and enjoying the benefits… kind of like exercising for me too lol! I really need to try one of these challenges: http://pinterest.com/pin/202873158186607231/ or http://pinterest.com/pin/202873158186032760/

I did discover today that you can put your plastic (clear) shower curtain liner in the washing machine with about a half-cup of bleach, and it gets rid of any mildew build-up. Seriously, it looks brand new! I might be way behind on this, but I am glad I gave it a try because I would just go out and buy a new one rather than spend the time trying to clean it by hand. Yes, I’m that lazy… don’t judge…

Also, have you seen this on Pinterest? We started using it a few months ago and it is an absolute life saver! It cuts through caked-on hairspray on my bathroom counter like nothing else. I also keep one of these in my shower: http://pinterest.com/pin/202873158186473925/.

Anyway, what have you been up to this weekend? Hopefully something way more exciting than cleaning! But if you have been cleaning like me, what are some of your favorite tips/tricks?

Jun 4, 2013

Mission: Kitchen Organization

Sophi Cleaning and Organization cleaning, Health, Kitchen, organization 2 Comments

I’ve probably mentioned this before, but I am not the most organized person when it comes to my house. My sister is definitely the neat freak in our family and I so wish I was like her. Instead, I am a self-diagnosed closet hoarder. I like the living areas to be neat and tidy, but if you open my closets, you will find where I hide all the junk (kind of metaphorical when you think about it— I look put together on the outside but on the inside it’s a mess! More on that another day).

So with that said, my kitchen cabinets were a disaster. I knew I needed to clean them out, but it was a matter of making myself do it. The boost for me actually came from Jillian Michael’s of all people! I started reading her Master Your Metabolism book which talks about dealing with hormone and thyroid issues which really prevent weight loss (I have Hashimoto’s disease— more on that another time as well). One of the things she say to not do is use plastic containers to store your food in because of the chemicals in plastic and also to use as little canned food items for the same reason. So I thought that would be a good starting point to get me going on cleaning out the kitchen. Little did I know that it would turn into the clean out that it did, but it needed it!

I started cleaning out the canned food with the intention of donating anything I didn’t want that was still good. I was a little upset to find that majority of the canned items had expired, but it also meant it was definitely time to clean out. I did donate the items that were good to Nourish NC which provides meals for low income students (our church partners with them to get needy kids at an elementary school we “adopted” the meals they need).

I also cleaned out a lot of the plastic storage containers that we had, and got new glass storage (Costco has a great set!). Here are some of the before and after pics!