Spring is an annual rite of passage, a time of transition and regrowth. Some spend it gardening. Others reconnect with friends. And a few of us, like Vermont Edition's Mikaela Lefrak, derive actual joy from spring cleaning.
Two professional home organizers joined Mikaela to share their best spring cleaning tips: Sarah Thompson of St. George and Amie Davis of Georgia, Vermont.
One in, one out... or two or three out
When Davis buys a new item of clothing, she holds herself to this rule: when something new goes in her closet, she has to remove at least one item.
She also emphasized the importance of defining your storage space. For example, If you have one drawer for workout clothes, don't let yourself expand to a second drawer. When the workout clothes drawer is full, that means you need to sort through it.
Create a schedule
One massive purge or cleaning spree can be effective, but it's also important to create routine.
Thompson tries to help her clients develop a daily or weekly rhythm to their cleaning. Instead of doing multiple loads of laundry once every few weeks, set aside a day of the week to do one load, start to finish. "I try to help people find the places that they can get these rhythms that only take a few minutes a day, so that they can easily maintain their systems," she advised.
As you purge, watch out for artifacts
Elizabeth, a caller from Hardwick, reminded her fellow listeners to be careful when throwing stuff out. If you're cleaning out a family home that's been in the same home for a long time, get in touch with a local historical society to see if the things you're ready to pass on are of interest to the community.
Davis also suggested contacting local museums if you find a trove of old letters, maps or other documents.
Create a 'treasure chest' for your kid
Got a kid who comes home from school with dozens of drawing a week, or collects "special" rocks, beads and sticks?
Both Thompson and Davis suggest creating a special box for your child. They get to choose what goes in the box and, eventually, what comes out when it's full. "Have conversations with them about, okay, not every single drawing needs to go in," Thompson said. "Over several years with the process of putting things in and removing things, they just naturally learn that it's okay to feel emotionally attached to something, and then those feelings can go away and that's okay too."
Davis said her children each have a special folder for their artwork. "When the folder gets full, we sit together with it and they choose what they're ready to let go of so they can have room for more things," she said. "I think having them involved makes a really big difference."
Pump up the jam
If you need an extra dose of motivation, you could hire a DJ like Burlington-based Taraleigh Weathers, also known as DJ Cheetahtah. She'll come to your house to DJ while you clean. She's also working launching her own YouTube channel that you can watch and listen to as you tidy up as well.
Weathers said people with ADHD like her often find that "body doubling" increases their focus and productivity. That's when you invite a person to work alongside you or provide accountability as you do a task like folding laundry.
Find a meaningful place to donate goods
Many towns have their own thrift shops or creative reuse stores where you can donate or buy used home goods. A caller named Julie in Vergennes highlighted the shop Sweet Charity, which accepts donations of furniture, linens, artwork, and home goods.
Thompson runs a program called the Wraparound Families Project. She collects donated furniture and household goods for women exiting the Lund residential program.
Davis often tells her clients about Replays in South Burlington, a local nonprofit resale store that benefits the UVM Medical Center.
Weathers often hosts clothing swaps with her friends as a way to both clean out her closet and freshen up her look.
Broadcast live on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.
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