Next week is the BrocanteHome Seasonal Scrub and love it or loathe it, it has to be done if you want a house sprinkled with the joy of Spring…
As most of you know de-cluttering is banned during scrub week: scrubbing is about proper elbow grease with no time to waste on trips down memory lane. I know. It’s enough to put you off your dinner, but heck who knows, with the right spirit (gin, housekeepers?) we might even begin to enjoy it…
And so lets get the kitchen ready for a thorough scrub, remembering that this is your only chance to bin all that is neither useful, nor beautiful…
1.) Go through every cupboard, fridge, freezer, pantry, basket and drawer and throw away anything you know is junk.
2.) Put things that don't belong in the kitchen in another basket ready to be returned to their rightful homes...
3.) Start shaking half used jars, and bottles: look at herbs and spices, dried ingredients, bits of saved this and that and decide if they are past their best; if so chuck em! If not, decant as much as possible into more attractive containers and make it your mission in life to do away with as much manufacturers packaging as possible: unless of course Persil is paying you to flash their ugly packaging around your kitchen...
4) Now cast a critical eye over your counters, around your sink, by the bread-bin, on the open shelves: what’s there that is never used? What’s gathering grease and dust? We vintage girls are prone too gathering junk and the kitchen isn't the healthiest place for it to fester: if it's an ornament you never even notice anymore, move it somewhere where it will be appreciated. If it's a small appliance used once in a blue moon, hide it where the rest of the family will forget about it and you can eventually make the daring decision to find it a more worthy home.
5.)Don't have anything out you don't use on a regular basis: this doesn't mean you've got to clear the decks (minimalism isn't for me!), but it does mean asking yourself whether some utensils, appliances or bits and bobs are taking up the space you could do with to display all those things you have to go rooting for...
6.) Now let's look at cleaning equipment: if there is anything toxic hiding under the sink, you know it's got to go!!! Dispose of it safely and make room for the Brocante cleaning recipes we will be whipping up for the scrub...
7.) Pull out the drawers: in our house the knife and fork drawers collect all kinds of stuff and nonsense. Get shut. Let the forks reclaim their rightful home and move on to the linen drawer: anything tatty is outta here! Now to that junk drawer we've all got: identify anything important, then tip everything else into a carrier bag and tell the rest of the family it's on its way to the tip in five days. Be strict.
8.)Down on your knees and into the cupboards. Let’s face it something's just shouldn't be offered house room amongst your vintage tableware so ask them politely to find a new home. Chuck out anything chipped or cracked. No dithering. You will find another one just like it, if you are brave enough to set it free. I promise. So bin it! Now!!
9.)And finally onto the work surfaces: it is essential when it comes to the scrub that we can see what we are doing and that there is room to temporarily put things we are cleaning; so your job here is to move as much stuff as possible (temporarily or otherwise), so we can think straight. Ok?
And that's it! I'm sure you will whizz around that little lot in a jiffy. Just remember not to bother cleaning or straightening things, as you will only have to do it all over again next week...
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No wonder you're feeling tired. I need to go for lie-down after READING that little lot…
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No wonder you're feeling tired. I need to go for lie-down after READING that little lot…
I plan to do each step above with my right hand, my left hand will be holding a glass of wine to help me through it.
Oh how I wish I had cupboards to clean!Boxes don't really count do they?
I'm ready for the scrub!!