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Make Room for Holiday Fun
Tips to maximize space for holiday get-togethers

The holidays are a time for friends and family to come together, but where are you going to put them when they come knocking on your door? Space for seating, pets, presents and food can quickly become scarce when holiday entertaining. The experts at Merry Maids offer these easy cleaning tips for a sparkling clean and welcoming holiday home.

Tackle the shared living space first.

• Remove clutter on and around chairs, couches and end tables. This will create more seating to watch the big game or It's a Wonderful Life.
• To clear floor space temporarily move any pet beds or floor pillows to another less public room. Make sure to use a damp clean sponge or the bottom of a clean sneaker to remove pet hair from the floor and upholstery.
• Be sure to clean any folding chairs that may be used before bringing them into your home. An all-purpose cleaner or mild soap and water should do the trick.

Make way for the feast. Keep your kitchen spacious and spotless for holiday meals.

• Countertops - remove items you do not plan to use, such as the toaster, toaster-oven or cookie jar, and store them in cabinets. This will give you more space to work with when preparing that holiday dinner.
• Sink - keep the sink clear of dishes. For stainless steel or ceramic sinks, rinse the sink after each use and wipe with a clean dry cloth. Drying the sink will prevent mineral deposits from building up on the surface.
• Microwave - If you have dried-on food in the microwave, fill a two-cup glass measuring cup with a cup of water and the juice from one lemon. Microwave for about 30 seconds or until the water boils. This should create steam in the microwave that will loosen dried-on foods, so you can wipe the microwave clean. The lemon juice will provide a fresh scent.
• Holiday Silverware - Restore the shine to your silverware by giving it a quick gentle scrub with lemon juice or toothpaste. Then rinse it and buff it with a soft cloth.

Use lighting to set the holiday mood.

• If you don't have time to dust and polish, the right lighting can help set the mood while taking attention away from unfinished tasks. Candlelight casts flattering shadows and helps create a warm, relaxing setting.

Give yourself a gift.  After you have made more space, hire a professional home cleaning service such as Merry Maids to help you refresh your home for the Holidays. Consider it a gift to yourself.

For more holiday cleaning tips from the experts at Merry Maids, contact Sheron Bates at 901-260-4215 or sbates@archermalmo.com.

©2008 Merry Maids Limited Partnership. All rights reserved.
Founded in 1979, Merry Maids is the largest home cleaning provider in the nation, providing customized residential cleaning services through more than 900 franchises and branches in the United States and 1,400 franchises worldwide. Merry Maids is a part of the ServiceMaster^® Family of Brands, which serves more than 10.5 million customers in the United States and in 39 countries around the world and includes seven market-leading companies that provide a wide range of related home services. For more information on residential cleaning, visit the Merry Maids Web site at www.merrymaids.com or call 1-800-MERRYMAIDS.

 

 

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