Looking ahead to days and weeks of being at home during spring
It is a reminder that it is the season for cleaning after all, and there’s nothing like time on our hands to get out the brooms and mops and buckets! Last year, I was really productive and called a Carpet Cleaner Mesa, donated a bunch of stuff to charity, and managed to get my home sparkling! I find doing a big clean really satisfying but if you think that kind of work is better left to those who actually know how to operate brooms and mops, like someone from an Austin maid service perhaps? Well that’s okay too. Once the floors are swept and mopped, the windows washed and every surface has been dusted and wiped down, there are still the closets to tackle. There’s really no better time to do that than now.
Just a quick reminder to all those that are deep cleaning this spring, you may not be aware if you have an infestation in your home, so make sure to check your floorboards and your doors, as well as your porch, etc. because these bugs love this weather and will do what they can to get in! So keep websites like https://www.pestcontrolexperts.com/termite-control/ on hand and grab those cleaning supplies. Now let’s get onto the post in motion – clothing.
In Taos when one is just as likely to need boots in May as well as November, it’s difficult to maintain a streamlined capsule wardrobe, but that said, on the whole, most of us could divide our wardrobes into spring/summer and autumn/winter.
The clothes we wear in spring and summer may at times be ridiculously optimistic, but we persist in sporting flimsy garments even in the most fickle climate. These items can crease with frustrating ease and just as easily become lost and forgotten when buried beneath clothes we would normally wear in the traditionally colder months, but find ourselves reaching for year-round because the hoody you swore you saw yesterday cannot be found.
The answer to an overcrowded and ill-used wardrobe is, of course, to store our spring/summer clothes apart from our autumn/winter clothes. Storing clothes properly takes a little preparation, but having a wardrobe in which you can find just the item you are looking for on any given day, is well worth the effort. Here are a few tips for storing clothing that you are not likely to wear for a season or two.
Before you put them into storage, you need to clean your clothes properly. That may mean simply running them through the washing machine, or it may mean a trip to the dry cleaners depending on the item of clothing to be stored.
If you need persuading that an item needs cleaning before you store it, remember that deodorant and perfume can stain over time, and creepy crawlies love dust and dirt. Moths in particular feast on the salt crystals left behind by perspiration, turning fine cashmere and wool into a holey mess by autumn.
Shoes and boots should be cleaned and polished and stuffed with clean tissue paper to help them to keep their shape.
If you haven’t worn something for a year, you probably won’t wear it again, so be ruthless and sort your items into three piles: keep (store), give to charity (or friends) and trash.
Anything that you intend to keep should be checked for damage and repaired before you store them. Your future self will thank you for sewing on missing buttons and stitching up small holes now.
Keeping items made from natural fibers including wool and silk in plastic bags can damage them and make them lose shape over time. Choose boxes that have an airtight lid so that creatures do not find their way in, and so that your clothes will remain dry and free from mold and mildew as well.
Pack your clothes with care. Heavier items should be placed at the bottom with the more delicate items at the top. Don’t over-stuff your container as your items may lose their shape and will be a real pain to iron once you have retrieved them. If you have items that should be hung rather than rolled/folded, consider investing in garment bags to cover them with. Clean Taos have great garment bags as well as reusable laundry bags for sale.
As long as you find somewhere to keep your clothes that is dry, cool, clean and dark they should look as fresh coming out of storage as they did going in. Don’t forget to sort through your coat cupboard or wherever else it is that you keep your hats, gloves and scarves in winter. They can go safely into storage as well and free up some space during the warmer months.
Once you have stored your autumn/winter clothes, you can more easily arrange and access your spring/summer clothes and then when the seasons change you can retrieve your autumn/winter clothes from storage and swap them with your spring/summer clothes, following the advice set out above again.
Clean Taos are open and are offering a special on wash and fold right now, right on time for your seasonal switch over. Let their expert staff assist you in choosing the best methods for cleaning your seasonal items.
They also have a great assortment of cleaning products and soaps for purchase at their location and online.
For more information, please visit their site linked below.
Post by Lydia Martinez
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