Spring Cleaning and Curing

I had been going to wait for the Biannual Apartment Therapy Cure but there's been nothing said about one starting up this Spring. Given the butchered version of the Cure Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan (M G-R) offered last fall, I have a sneaking suspicion that there won't be a full-on 8 week AT Spring Cure in 2011.

What I really want to do is Spring Clean, anyway. But, I'm afraid I will get bogged down and discouraged if I simply focus on cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning.

Cleaning the shelves that used to be above the stove. It was a Ver Unpleasant Job. Fall Cure, 2006

There is a deliberate plan of action in the Eight Week Cure--a sort of built-in magic which keeps one going. As I've always done it as part of an on-line group, I've always attributed the magic to the group dynamic. But, perhaps I am wrong. Perhaps it is in the Cure itself.

One of those things which Just Happens during a Cure--the Spice rack project, Spring Cure 2009

Nonetheless, I do not simply want to do the Eight Week Cure--and certainly not on my own. I have done it many, many times and it's not exactly what I need at the moment. (Though, frankly, if an on-line group Cure is announced tomorrow, I would sign right up.) I want to put together a hybrid plan for the next two months--Spring Cleaning plus parts of the Cure.

Planning a gallery wall in the upstairs hallway, Spring Cure 2008

Spring cleaning is really about four action steps. M G-R incorporates these into three Cure tasks. The first two (below) are part of what Maxwell calls the breath of the home. The third relates to keeping the bones of the home strong. The fourth pertains to its heart.

1) Decluttering
2) Cleaning everything in sight, from top to bottom.
3) Making repairs
4) Freshening--or decorating--depending upon the extent of the changes you want to make.

M G-R has his own fourth category of Cure tasks, the head. This refers to the purpose of each space and the home as a whole contributing to the life you want to live. That's not something generally addressed in cleaning check lists. Addressing these issues is the difference between doing a "cure" and just doing a whole bunch of cleaning.

Re-doing the dining room/home office, Fall Cure, 2007

So, my spring cleaning list will include some of the activities that MG-R encourages, like balancing colour and hardness/softness and other tasks like continuing to purchase flowers.

Here's how I see it shaping up:

1) I will take eight weeks to do this. I'd rather take four, but I do not want to rush myself.

2) I will do the Deep Treatment, room by room, organized as MG-R outlines in the book.

3) Each room will have an extensive cleaning checklist drawn from these resources:

From About. com, a gateway page with all kinds of links to other pages and links with information.
Spring Cleaning Guide

and from Martha Stewart: Spring Cleaning Checklist

4) I will pick a 15 minute decluttering activity every week day and post about it.

Donations pile, Spring Cure, 2008

To stay accountable, at the start of each week, Sunday or Monday, I'll post the cleaning checklist and the decluttering zones. I'll post about my progress as I go and by the end of the week we'll see how well I've managed to get everything done. I really want to do this thoroughly, so I'm hoping that it won't take more than a couple of hours each day. But I am an all or nothing person and I can easily absorb myself in a project 24/7. So, I'm not making any promises!

Week One: Diagnosis, Vision and Planning, begins tomorrow.I would love some company!