The Quick Way I Cleaned Our Kitchen Blinds
Can we talk about cleaning for a moment? Cleaning is hard. Like, really hard for me. But you know what’s even harder? The way my mind spins and overthinks it all.
One of the hardest parts of any cleaning or decluttering project is simply getting started. Try setting a countdown timer, stop hesitating or overthinking, and count “3-2-1 Go”. Then, everything changes.
You’ll move faster and want to do as much as you can during that time frame. Suddenly, it doesn’t feel as hard as you thought and becomes more doable.
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I’ve to admit: I don’t like cleaning or doing chores. But I absolutely love how I feel when my home is clean and tidy. I need that peace of mind. The feeling of relaxation and calmness. Such a feeling is worth the effort.
That’s why you can see that I stick to my minimalist cleaning schedule with a regular cleaning routine that helps me clean less but more effectively.
Even though we have our routines and systems set in place, there are still some stubborn tasks on the to-do list we keep putting off. Some cleaning tasks that we know we need to tackle but keep procrastinating.
Most times, we push tasks to the next day, using the excuse that they seem like they’ll take forever or be too tough to finish.
In our home, that task was cleaning the kitchen blinds above the sink. This one had been collecting dust, grease, and grime for ages. It’s big and high up, and even when I use a step stool, it’s difficult for me to reach the top slate.
This faux wood kitchen blinds is right above the kitchen sink, so you can already imagine the sticky layer buildup there. Obviously, it’s not something that I could just wipe clean with a duster.
Honestly, whenever I do dishes, I’d see that dust and grime on that blinds and think, “It’s going to be a project that costs me time and energy. I’ll have to take the whole blinds down and soak it in the bathtub. I’ll probably have to spend the whole morning on the weekend doing this…”
It looked like such a pain to clean. That’s why I kept putting it off.
But one morning, I decided I’d had enough. Summer is coming, and I really didn’t want the dust flying around when windows are opened or the air conditioner is on.
I told myself that it was time to clean it. Even if the outcome of the cleaning project is only 70% effective, it’s definitely better than having a house that is 100% dirty.
I’d give myself a little pep talk to get ready to tackle my tasks within an hour. Whatever gets done in that time is enough.
I gave myself permission to be imperfect and to just go ahead and clean as much as I could. Even if it wasn’t completely clean, I would be okay with it, and I could always come back to clean it again whenever I wanted.
So, the next day after breakfast, I grabbed my cleaning supplies: an old sock, a microfiber cloth, and Dawn dish soap. I turned on one of my favorite podcast episodes, set a timer for 45 minutes, and got started.
Do you know how long it took?
Exactly 30 minutes! I literally could not believe how much I got done in just that amount of time. That task had been spinning in my head for so long, and I walked past it on a daily basis, convincing myself it was going to be difficult to clean. But finally, it was done in just half an hour.
And to be honest, it wasn’t as unpleasant as I thought. Cleaning the kitchen blinds just took me 30 minutes. Why did I wait so long to do this?
Of course, I needed to take another 15 minutes to wipe the window screen, clean up any dust that fell, and clean the sink as well.
I know, it wasn’t 100% perfect. But for me, I felt that it was good enough. You can see the before and after photos of my project.
Now, every time I’m near the kitchen sink and I look up to see those clean slats, I feel so satisfied. It’s amazing how one completed cleaning task can bring me joy.
Related Cleaning posts:
My Minimalist Cleaning Schedule
How to Clean Your House Fast and Efficiently
How I cleaned our kitchen blinds:
I dusted it first. I slipped an old sock right over my hand and gently swept away all the dust and dirt.
I prepared the soapy water. I used a damp microfiber cloth that was lathered with soapy water (warm water with blue Dawn) to wipe down each slat from top to bottom, left to right.
Using dish soap can help cut through the greasy buildup.
Pro Tip: An extendable Swiffer Duster is a must-have for dusting in our home. The extendable handle helps to remove dust from hard-to-reach places and saves time. I didn’t have it on hand on that day, so I used an old sock.
I also cleaned the window screen. After cleaning up the blinds, I immediately used the damp microfiber cloth to wipe the window screen.
I didn’t take out the window screen, but I gently wiped it to make it look cleaner and better.
I didn’t have time to clean the window, but I cleaned the area below. A lot of dust and debris fell below the blinds, so I needed to give the sink area a quick clean-up.
Tip: Setting a timer helps to stay focused and create a sense of urgency. It trains our brains to do things faster and complete them before deadlines.
Putting on an upbeat playlist or a podcast. This really helps to keep my energy up and makes the unpleasant cleaning task more enjoyable.
Mindset shift: If you’ve got something you’ve been putting off or don’t feel like doing, but that needs to be done, set a timer and just begin. Don’t aim for perfection, aim for the job to be done. Give yourself permission to do it imperfectly.
You would be amazed how quickly the task actually gets done and the sense of satisfaction is worth every minute.
That’s why I always remind myself: The goal is not perfection, just to get it done. Progress over perfection!
You’ve got this!
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