Spring Refresh: Simple Ways to Brighten and Clean Your Home

Give your home a little attention this season and get inspired with these ideas for a spring refresh!

Looking for ways to brighten up your home and add style this spring without remodeling? Look at the ideas down below!

Our homes receive so much wear every day, especially with kids and pets around. It’s easy to let things go amidst the busyness of life, but once the holiday season is over and winter comes to a close, the house is often dirty and a bit neglected. That’s why I love setting aside some time each Spring to do some cleaning and a refresh.

Firstly, start by doing a deep clean. “Spring cleaning” exists for a reason! Spring is the perfect time to get rid of cobwebs, mop the floors, and prepare everything for the new season ahead. As the weather gets warmer, cleaning becomes easier since you’re not worried about muddy tracks and cold drafts.

As you start your Spring cleaning, think about the things that don’t get cleaned often. There’s a ton of them! Sure, you probably clean regularly, but what about the curtains, blinds, light fixtures, and hidden floor under the furniture? Between everything we do every day, those things are not the priority. But they sure could use some attention!

If you hear “Spring cleaning” and feel overwhelmed, I get it! I often feel the same way. But the key is to take it one step at a time. Next time you do the laundry, do one extra load of curtains. Next time you clean the bathroom, dust off the light fixture and wipe down one wall. Do a different wall next time. It will only be as overwhelming as you make it.

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Here are some of the basic things you can do during your Spring cleaning:

• Wash curtains
• Wipe down blinds with a damp washcloth
• Vacuum out crevices in the couch and the floors underneath furniture
• Wash mats
• Clean windows and tracks
• Dust baseboards
• Wipe down walls (magic erasers are truly “magical” when it comes to scuff marks and food splatters on the walls, just as long as you’re not too harsh on the paint)
• Clean out hidden areas like the pantry
• Clean the kitchen- scrub the stovetop, clean the splash, wipe out the microwave, etc.

These are just a few things you can do. If you walk around the house and look carefully, you’ll see a lot more!

Clearing the clutter while you’re cleaning is important for your refresh too. A cluttered house can feel just as bad as a dirty house.

After you do your deep cleaning, you may want to create a routine to keep things tidy and clean. If like me, you struggle with staying consistent, check out my post “How to Create a Routine to Keep Your Home Neat”. It has tips on how to tackle the regular chores and cleaning that can be the toughest to stay on top of!

After you’ve cleaned and decluttered is a great time to add light touches of decor and even do some small home projects if you want. Below are some ways you can elevate your look without putting in a ton of extra effort. Let’s agree: house remodels are fun and great, but there’s a time for them. You may be in a stage where you can’t invest that much time and money into a remodel, or maybe you’re saving up for a new house.

Take a look at these ideas:

House plants.

Do you have a green thumb? Even if you don’t, try getting some house plants or grow an indoor herb garden. I used to believe I couldn’t keep plants alive, but I got a couple low-maintenance house plants and they are thriving!

Cute curtains.

Go out and thrift some cute fabric and make curtains to elevate your look! Curtains are a lot classier than blinds (and easier to clean… thinking ahead about these things is helpful).

Rearrange or restore furniture.

A quick shuffle of furniture can make a room feel like a totally different space. Plus, it’s fun to turn your house into something new as you discover ways to rearrange it. Restoring old furniture is another budget-friendly way to furnish your house.

Swap out decor.

Be sure to take the winter decor down and put out your favorite Spring decor. Remember, think light and minimal!

Gardening and landscaping.

Don’t forget about the outside of the house. If you enjoy having guests over, the outside is the first thing they see (and also the first thing your family sees when they arrive home). You could plant a garden, or even just keep the lawn mowed and plant some nice shrubs out front.

Paint a room or accent wall.

If you’re handy and up for a project, you could even paint a room or an accent wall in your house. Then you could add shelves or an art gallery to finish it off.

Small home improvements.

Small home improvements could include things like installing shelves, putting up wallpaper, adding window boxes, and updating kitchen and bathroom hardware.

Add scents.

Play with some refreshing scents this Spring… You could diffuse essential oils or put out candles and scented soaps.

Swap out linens and sheets.

Swapping out linens and sheets is such a simple thing to do, and it doesn’t have to be expensive… You can find inexpensive linens by shopping sales, or you could choose to invest in nicer ones that will last longer (this is especially worth it with sheets). Having extra linens and sheets is so nice when you have to do the laundry!

Swap out artwork.

Swap out artwork for fresh art that compliments your spaces and furniture. Art can have a huge effect on how a space looks! For example, if you hang lighter-colored paintings, it will feel much brighter and bigger than if you hang a large, dark painting. Think about what you want your space to feel like.

Flowers.

Add a pitcher of fresh flowers to your table or counter for a last touch!