December 20, 2023

Holiday Cleaning Tips: Your Ultimate To-do List for Making Your Home Holiday-ready

Ready or not, holidays will arrive right on time and maybe even bring some guests… Is your home ready for the challenge? Hosting guests (even if they are just relatives) is exciting yet stressful. You want everybody to feel like a VIP in your home or maybe even impress (why not?) your guests with some special holiday treatment.

However, if you anticipate a relaxing and joyful time with family and friends, you need to plan everything right now from A to Z. You don’t want to let the smallest mess ruin your holiday bliss. Check out our holiday cleaning checklist and get ready to deal with everything this holiday time throws at you.

Your Ultimate A-to-Z Holiday Cleaning Checklist

The best tip about holiday home cleaning is to make your living space welcoming and not lose the merry spirit in the process. Do not make it about elbow grease and do not try to reach every nook and cranny in your house. Your guests won’t inspect them. Focus on the most crucial and visible objects like appliances, windows, tiles, counters, cabinets, carpets, and floors. We will break down the whole process into easy, feasible steps. 

Declutter

Clearing space of unnecessary stuff should be the first stage of every seasonal cleaning. Focus on decluttering the main spaces your guests and family will spend most of the time (like the entryway, kitchen, bathrooms, guest room, and living room).

Fix what should be fixed

Make a list of tasks to tackle before the holidays (and guests) arrive. Consider small appliance repair, buying new bedding and towels for guests, shopping for trendy Christmas decorations, remodeling your guest room, or maybe a carpet cleaning… Write down what you need to get everything done and make the necessary appointments. There’s no time left to put it off.

Stock up on the right cleaning products

Even if you have never had allergies in your family and never bothered with green cleaning, you never know how your guests may react to different cleaning supplies. So using high-quality and eco-friendly cleaning products is always the safest option for those looking to create a smooth guesting experience.

Spruce up your dining room

Cleaning the dining room is crucial for large family gatherings, ensuring a welcoming and hygienic space where everyone can enjoy the festivities comfortably.

• Dust light fixtures and ceiling fan blades.
• Wash the windows and dust the windowsills.
• Inspect your walls and spot-clean them.
• Dust doors, furniture, baseboards, and frames.
• Disinfect the door knobs.
• Check chairs for stains and spot-clean them.  
• Vacuum the floors including under the cupboards and couches.
• Mop the floors.  

Create a Cozy Living Room Ambiance

The cleaning procedure is similar to that of a dining room, but here are a few more things to think about:

• Dust furniture and make sure to clean sofas from pet hair. Dusting can be much faster if you use white cotton gloves. They help cut cleaning time nearly in half.
• Dust electronics (and wires) and disinfect the remotes.
• Hide irrelevant decor to make room for the special holiday stuff.
• Vacuum the carpets and address any spills and pet (and human) hair messes.
• Wash cushion cases and throws.  
• Get your fireplace ready for the cozy duty.

Sitting next to the crackling fire, wrapped in a fuzzy blanket and drinking comforting cocktails… What could be better? Prep everything needed for the cozy time by the fire. Dust the fireplace shelf and clean the fireplace inside, removing soot and ashes. Clean the glass fireplace door from dark soot residue using a soot remover or a degreasing cleaning product.  

Don’t have a fireplace? Then let your home soak in warm and quivering candy lights. The more candles, the better.

Get your kitchen ready for the culinary marathon

Are you going to test new delicious recipes to treat your guests with something special? Your kitchen needs a cleaning reboot to be up for all of your gourmet challenges.

• Take care of light switches, which are often overlooked in the kitchen.
• Clean the oven and your baking dishware, removing all burnt-on food messes.
• Spruce up the microwave, remove mineral deposits in your kettle, and clean the coffee machine.
• Remove grease splatters on the tiles and clean your stovetop.
• Revise your fridge, emptying it of all expired food and making room for the holiday groceries.
• Wipe down all kitchen surfaces (including appliances) with an all-purpose cleaner.
• Mop the floors, adding some mild soap to the water.    

Refresh your bathrooms

Whether your guests will use their own separate bathroom or share a bathroom with you, make sure your bathroom is immaculately clean and safe to use.

• Address mold (if any) with a specialized cleaning product (regular bleach helps too).
• Remove water stains and soap scum from shower doors.
• Clean and disinfect the bathtub, toilet bowls, and sinks.
• Replace the shower curtain or at least wash your old one.
• Make your mirrors shine.
• Clean faucets, removing hard water stains and grime.
• Wash the tiles and tile floors, paying extra attention to the grout.    

Entryway cleanup for a grand first impression

This is the first place your guests will see upon arrival, so why not make it irresistibly clean and welcoming to create a fantastic first impression?

• Clean your front door and spruce up your porch.
• Replace the doormat if it looks worn out.
• Prepare a place for storing your guests’ shoes, outerwear, and accessories. If it is too tight in your coat closet, free up some space and prepare hangers.  
• Mop and polish the floors.
• Dust the stairs and polish them according to the material.
• Prepare the throw rug for inclement weather.  

Have some decoration fun

It’s high time to unpack your newly-bought decor items or those dear to your heart old decorations you stored in the attic and set your fantasy free. Beautify your entryway, fireplace, and dining table. Put some candle decor on the window sills. Set a table in colors that match each other well and add seasonal blooms and scented candles.

Make sure your decorations are not only beautiful but also safe and comfortable for your family and guests. If you or your guests have young children, pets, or both, it’s better to limit yourself to modest, safe, and cheap decorations.

Spruce up the guest room

If you want to leave a pleasant impression from staying in your home for the holidays, tidy up the guest room and bathroom, but don’t stop there:

• Supply the guest room(s) with everything your visitors may need, such as extra blankets, pillows, towels, spare toothbrushes, and toiletries.
• Decorate the room with holiday attributes. This will make your guests feel special and welcome.

Get ready for a baby-guest

If your guests arrive with a baby, ensure you baby-proof your home by preparing a safe and clean space for the little one. Look at your house with the baby’s eyes and hide every object that can be dangerous for the baby or simply too precious to you. This will prevent many unpleasant situations that can spoil the holidays.

With a little crawling guest, be sure your adult guest will find out how clean your floors are. So if you worry that this part of holiday home cleaning is bigger than you, don’t be shy to get help from professional cleaning services in NYC that will not only make your floors sparkling clean and disinfected but also equip you with some valuable holiday cleaning tips.

Think about nightlights

Your guests cannot navigate your home like a ninja in complete darkness as you do, so make sure you add night lights where your guests will need them.

The holiday season is rich in events and activities you don’t want to miss. For this reason, a thorough holiday home cleaning may be too overwhelming. We understand.

Your guests are worth the best treatment, and you are worth being hailed as the best holiday host ever. If you want to have an elbow-grease-free, relaxing time with friends and family, you can always rely on White Glove Cleaner. We are ready to take care of the cleaning part, and we’ll keep it a secret ).