Last month, I was invited to an event hosted by the makers of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda featuring the entertaining expert, Katie Lee. Unfortunately, due to work conflicts, I couldn’t attend the event. But, the sweet and knowedgeable team at Arm & Hammer promised that they’d have Katie answer any questions I may have via email. I quickly jumped at this opportunity as if there’s one thing I’ve learned thus far in New York City is that it’s very hard to keep a 700 square foot apartment clean.

Sounds weird right? A smaller space should be easier to keep clean. Nope! It’s far easier to clutter the space with less things. I sent Katie a list of questions hoping that she’d not only answer them but also become my fairy home princess. Well, I’ll let you guess which one didn’t happen. This week’s Tuesday tips are some easy and inexpensive tips and tricks you can use to keep your space, whether 500 or 2,500 square feet, fresh and clean.

–Know when to throw things away. If you’re not careful, your apartment ends up like a purse with odds and ends everywhere. Set aside a time each week, whether 10 minutes daily or during your favorite show to tidy up. The neater your apartment, the bigger it seems. Trust me on this one, decluttering your apartment will make all the difference in the world! Our interior designer forced Bo and I to pick and choose a few important vases and frames we wanted to feature versus the 15-20 frames we had on our hutch and multiple vases.

-Consider hidden storage – under the bed, putting magazines in a basket, purchasing a coffee table or ottoman with storage sections.

 -When entertaining, move furniture into another room to make it appear more spacious.

 -Keep the space smelling fresh with a great, inexpensive solution like Arm & Hammer Baking Soda. Sprinkle some on the couch and carpets, let sit for 15 minutes and then vacuum.

She also shared some of her favorite ways to use good ol’ fashioned Arm & Hammer baking soda which most people have sitting in their pantry or fridge.  Who knew that baking soda can be used to clean stainless steel sinks without scratching? How about cleaning your carpets after a dirty or wet pet has had too much fun on them? What about mixing it in your cleanser to create a facial exfoliant?

This evening, before my friend Camille came over I tried this trick and was amazed! Just a few sprinkles of baking soda across my carpet, five minutes of absorption time and they looked like new after vacuuming. I swear the baking soda absorbed dirt along with any smells because they seemed cleaner than they have in ages!

 

*I was not compensated for this post but Arm & Hammer did provided me with a free box of baking soda.