How I Trick Myself Into Cleaning

Dear friend,

I’ve been decorating my home piece by piece, and as it slowly starts becoming the kind of space I’ve always dreamed about, I’ve found myself running into a bit of a personal crisis:

I am, by nature, a messy person. An ADHD-brained, type B, leave-the-cabinet-open, “I’ll deal with it later” kind of person.

And yet at the exact same time, I deeply crave beauty, calm, order, good smells, soft lighting, clean counters, all of it. In fact I need that kind of environment to feel productive, and tbh…mentally stable. I so badly want to be one of those women whose house looks effortlessly put together and smells of expensive candles at all times.

The issue is that I kind of hate cleaning.

Sure, every once in a while I’ll enter some miraculous cleaning flow state. But those days feel increasingly rare. And if I don’t maintain some kind of baseline in between, the mess eventually grows into this enormous overwhelming beast that feels impossible to face, even in a perfect flow state.

So over time, I started trying to:
1. Stick to certain routines/rules
2. Do what I can to make the process somewhat more pleasurable.

I began replacing harsh chemical-filled cleaning products with ones that smell delicious. I upgraded the random ugly tools and plastic bottles I’d accumulated over the years with things that feel substantial and satisfying to use. And you know what? It’s helped a lot.

At this point, when I smell traditional cleaning products, they almost smell poisonous to me. My body instantly recoils.

So today I thought I’d share some of the processes and products that have genuinely made cleaning feel a little more pleasant, as someone who will probably never really love it.

1. A house basket - I’m constantly leaving things in the other room (my glasses, my to do notebook, my laptop, the little handheld jaw massage thing I’ve been a little bit addicted to) and it was driving me crazy until I found out about the concept of a house basket!

   Hear me out: a (preferably cute) little basket with a handle that you can tote from room to room and put all of your essentials in. Also a great solution for the things I always need, but don’t really have a formal home for.

2. Cleaning products that actually smell good - Using a eucalyptus cleaning spray in your bathroom versus some fluorescent blue chemical sludge is the difference between feeling like you’re in a spa versus a medical facility. Also, whoever finally decided laundry detergent should smell expensive instead of “generic cleanliness” deserves a frggin’ medal.

   My recs: I’ve have genuinely loved everything I’ve tried from Koala Eco (especially this and this!) They also have a really nice starter kit.

   I’m also a huge fan of Laundry Sauce detergent pods. My favorite scent is Himalayan Cashmere, which was sold out last time I checked (rude). Your laundry ends up smelling less like generic detergent and more like an expensive hotel robe. One tip: the scent is a little more subtle than a lot of detergents, so definitely follow the instructions. The dryer sheets make a big difference too. I also asked them for a code and they actually gave me one, VIOLET-15 gets you 15% off.

   

3. A mini dust pan for counter crumbs - I feel like I am perpetually wiping down my kitchen counters, so a lil’ countertop dustpan has been pretty life changing. Instead of doing the gross little “wipe crumbs into your hand” maneuver fifty times a day, I can just quickly sweep everything away without any hand-on-crumb contact.

   Honestly, I’ve been using a flimsy plastic one I got at Homegoods a while ago, but I just ordered this because I already know that if something feels substantial in my hand and is made from natural materials, I’ll enjoy using it that much more.
   

4. Steam cleaner - When it’s time for a deep clean, I break out the steam cleaner. It blasted years-old dried gunk out of the fridge when I first moved into this house and only uses water, which is kind of cool in our chemical-maxxing culture. (If you want to witness the fridge horror show, I documented the whole thing in an IG highlight.)

   This is my trusty steam cleaner that I love to bits. We’ve been through thick + thin (layers of mysterious gunk) together.

5. Organic cotton kitchen towels - I used to buy the cheapest kitchen towels imaginable because I figured they were just going to get destroyed anyway. Then someone gifted me a really nice organic cotton one and now I fear I can never go back. Drying your hands with a soft fancy towel instead of something that feels like a motel rag is one of those tiny quality of life upgrades that does make a difference.

   I really like these!

6. Making sure everything has a place - I’ve realized a huge percentage of my stress comes from objects that don’t technically belong anywhere. Those are the things that start collecting on your countertops and dining table and making shit look messy and cluttered. So now whenever I bring something into the house I try to ask myself: where does this actually live? And then I assign it an address and try my best to make sure it doesn’t try to set up camp anywhere else.
   

7. Power hour - Okay so I will admit more often than not this ends up being power 20 minutes, but putting aside designated time at the end of the day to do a little tidying makes a big ol’ difference!

   Okay, that’s what I’ve got for now! Do you have anything you’d add to the list?

   xoVC

   P.S. Some of the links above are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through them, at no extra cost to you. I only share products I genuinely use, love, or think are genuinely worth recommending. Supporting through these links helps support both this newsletter and the free content I put out online, which I really appreciate ❤️