Clean Your Bathroom in 5 Easy Steps with Donna Smallin’s Bathroom Blitz

Start clean in 2015!

Clear the Clutter, Find Happiness is available wherever books are sold.

What is it about hosting a gathering at home that illuminates every speck of dirt, fingerprint-marred window, and layer of dust? Surely you know this phenomenon: you think your home is in decent shape for an upcoming brunch or dinner party until, in the light of day, panic sets in.

My least favorite room to clean and the one that causes me the most anguish before guests arrive has to be the bathroom. But in the weeks since I acquired a copy of Donna Smallin’s Clear the Clutter, Find Happiness, the horrifying realization that I’ve failed to maintain a spotless house and can’t possibly clean ALL THE THINGS has faded. What’s so revolutionary about this little volume is that it isn’t revolutionary at all. It doesn’t come with the burden of unattainable perfection or broad, sweeping lifestyle changes that are only realistic in the first week of January. Donna Smallin’s tips feel entirely reasonable and manageable on a tight timeline and her voice of calm urges me to let go of perfection while reminding me that when I stop obsessing and just start doing, a perfectly acceptable level of cleanliness and order is possible in a few quick minutes.

I’ve been incorporating some of these Bathroom Blitz tips into my daily routine (following another one of Donna’s suggestions to capitalize on those “down” moments while waiting for water to boil or while brushing my teeth). Suddenly, the idea of cleaning the bathroom doesn’t feel so overwhelming any more.

Give the Bathroom Blitz a try, and see the results yourself! — Emily Spiegelman, Digital Features Editor

Bathroom Blitz

• Spray your bathtub/shower with a foaming cleaner that does the “scrubbing” for you.
• While that does its work, pour toilet-bowl cleaner in the toilet.
• Clean mirrors, countertops, sinks, and then the toilet lid and outside of bowl. Go back and rinse the bathtub/shower.
• Brush and flush the toilet.
• Vacuum or sweep the floor and mop if needed.

Done and done! Happy cleaning in the new year!

Bathroom Blitz text excerpted from Clear the Clutter, Find Happiness © 2014 by Donna Smallin. All rights reserved.