Spring Cleaning of the Past
An Ode to Spring Cleaning
The Sun is out, it’s full and bright.
Oh but our homes! In broad daylight!
The dust swirls about, the windows tell a tale.
There’s work to done, our chore list won’t fail.
Get the family involved, sing a song or two.
Spring Cleaning time is here and there is much to do.
~K Quinn
Did you know that women (and their families) used to spend up to 2 weeks each fall and spring readying their homes for the coming season? This would involve any number of things up to and sometimes including putting in new lineoleum on the floor! Much of this was due in large part to the use of coal as a heating source. The black coal would leave everything in the home covered in a nice fine dust!
Each year women tore apart the their homes in preparation for spring. The scrubbed everything from top to bottom in efforts to remove the layer of coal dust that had collected during the cold winter months.
And of course spring itself meant the coming of bright sunny days and who wouldn’t want a bright home to go a long with it.
Products with names such as Larvex were sold to housewives to aid in moth elimination when putting away woolen blankets and clothing for the summer.
The advent of the vacuum cleaner and the elimination of coal as a heating source did away with most of the drudge of Spring Cleaning but to this day people love the idea of giving their home a new clean look to usher in the warmer days.
It’s still a good idea to give your home a thorough going over once or twice a year. Few people have the time to devote weeks to this type of thorough cleaning but doing a little each week or even each day year round can produce excellent results.
General Spring Cleaning
“The spring is the usual period set apart for house-cleaning, and removing all the dust and dirt,
Winter curtains should be taken down, and replaced by the summer white ones; and furs and woollen cloths also carefully laid by.
Included, under the general description of house-cleaning, must be understood, turning out all the nooks and corners of drawers, cupboards, lumber-rooms, lofts, &c., with a view of getting rid of all unnecessary articles, which only create dirt and attract vermin; sweeping of chimneys, taking up carpets, painting and whitewashing the kitchen and offices, papering rooms, when needed, and, generally speaking, the house putting on, with the approaching summer, a bright appearance, and a new face, in unison with nature.” ~ Book of Household Management
“This is often a time of dread to those who have an inveterate hatred of the sound of a broom and scrubbing-brush. Much discomfort may be avoided by remembering the following points:—
1. Time may be saved by preparation.
2. The workpeople should be engaged beforehand, to prevent delay and prolonged upset.
3. It is a mistake to disarrange too many rooms at once ; always leave some comfortable refuge.
4. Never overtax mental and physical strength by attempting too much; so plan that each day has only what can be accomplished without undue effort.
5. If the head of the house has a sanctum, it is better to clean it in his absence, if possible, in order that he may not see it in a state of upheaval.
6. It is a good plan to take advantage of the absence of some of the members of a large family.
7. Make arrangements for comfortable meals to be served punctually.”,
~ Manual of household work and management
Spring Cleaning Details
Of Books – “Bookcases should be entirely emptied, all corners well brushed, and the polished parts cleaned in the usual way. While empty, they should be moved out from the wall (if not fixtures) to allow of cleaning behind and beneath. If there are leather flaps to the shelves, they should be wiped with a soft rag dipped in white of egg, then polished with another soft cloth. The books should be carried to some unfurnished room, or preferably out-of-doors ; each one should be brushed with a feather brush, then knocked to get the dust out, and, lastly, very lightly dusted with a clean duster.”, ~Manual of household work and management
Method of Cleaning: “The principle in all cleaning is to dust each thing before removing it from the room to be cleaned, then burn all the loose dust. Commence at the top of the house and work downwards, finishing with the kitchen and offices.
- 1. Take the carpet up and fold by seams ready for shaking ; have it brushed, beaten, and shaken, and ready to re-lay when required.
- 2. Have chimneys swept.
- 3. If necessary, have the ceilings papered or white-washed ; if not, brush with a ceiling-brush or Turk’s-head mop. If the wall-papers are very soiled, and it is not convenient to have them newly papered, they should be brushed with a soft hair broom covered with a clean duster, changing it when soiled ; or they may be cleaned by rubbing downwards very lightly with a dough made of flour and water, or by some crumbs of bread.
- 4. Take down the blinds, if Venetian, wash each lath, following the directions for washing paint. Fancy glazed blinds may be laid on a table, dusted, and cleaned with crumbs. Holland blinds, if very dirty, should be taken off the rollers, washed (after dusting) by gently squeezing in lukewarm soap lather, starched in stiff hot-water starch, and ironed.
- 5. The furniture must be washed with vinegar and water, and dried, first moving the smaller pieces into another room, and covering those which must remain with dust-sheets.
- 6. After the floor has been swept, the paint should be washed, the mantelpiece washed and polished, and the windows cleaned. 7. Scrub the floor, leaving door and window open to make it dry quickly.
- 8. When quite dry, re-lay the clean carpet, treating it with oxgall if necessary.
- 9. Bring back and polish furniture, replace pictures and ornaments, and put up clean curtains.”
~Manual of household work and management
“Devote a week, at least, to preparations. See that all needed repairs are made about the house, and have all necessary tools on hand and in good order. Provide lime for whitewashing, carpet-tacks, good soap, sawdust, carbolic acid, copperas, and spirits of ammonia. Have closets, bureau drawers, etc., all thoroughly renovated. Reorganize sewing table, arrange bags for the odds and ends that have accumulated during the winter, having different ones for each article, and marking the outside in some way; for instance, for the button-bag, sew one on the outside, and so on. Put pieces of ribbon, velvet, lace, flowers, etc., in a box, and have it in readiness for the spring ” fixing up.” While this renovating is being done, have ” the boys ” cleaning the yard of the winter rubbish”, “and debris, as this is far more important in a sanitary point of view than inside house-cleaning. When you begin, do not upset all the house at once, driving your husband to distraction, and the children to the neighbors. By cleaning one or two rooms at a time, and using a little womanly tact, the whole house may be renovated with little inconvenience.”
~Practical housekeeping
