Hosting this Christmas but don’t want to miss out on the festivities? Interval cleaning will help you work smarter and not harder to keep your home clean

There’s nothing worse than hearing the clink of glasses and laughter from the living room while standing in front of a messy kitchen and a giant pile of washing up. And while everyone else is having fun, you're thinking about the red wine stain on your sofa and the guest bedroom sheets that still need to be stripped. If that sounds like you, thankfully, interval cleaning could transform how you host this year.

Whether you choose to host Christmas or everyone invites themselves over, you probably don’t need us to tell you that hosting over the festive period is equal parts enjoyable and stressful. And while you can research Christmas hosting tips from professionals to keep your guests as happy as possible, the reality is that hosts rarely get to enjoy the celebrations themselves - especially when there’s so much cleaning required to keep your house guest-ready at all times.

Interval cleaning may be the answer to your Christmas hosting prayers, though. By cleaning at regular periods and only when completely necessary, you can create a system that will get the job done as quickly as possible without impacting your own enjoyment. And if you follow this Christmas interval cleaning guide, you can take the hassle out of hosting this Christmas.

1. Clean the kitchen little and often

When the festivities are in full swing, you might not even have time to clean a kitchen in 15 minutes. But instead of tearing yourself away from the King’s Speech or a family game of Charades and forcing yourself to keep your cooking area as clean as possible, you can simply clean the kitchen little and often instead.

Laura Marsden, cleaning expert at Marigold, explains, ‘The best approach to avoid the job of cleaning becoming overwhelming is little and often, with short “interval cleans” that prevent big buildups. Use your free moments wisely – when food is simmering or roasting, wipe down surfaces, mop floors or get ahead on the washing up.’

She adds, ‘Always keep a microfibre cloth to hand to wipe up any spills or messes as you go along to prevent it building up into a bigger job. That way, once you’ve finished cooking, you don’t have to spend too much time cleaning up and can enjoy the celebrations.’

2. Get ahead of heavy footfall

Even if you have one of the best vacuum cleaners at your disposal, nobody wants to spend the entirety of their Christmas break vacuuming after their guests. And you don't have to. Kirsty Barton, Marketing Manager at Alternative Flooring, has the best interval cleaning hack, so you won’t need to vacuum regularly during the festive period.

She says, ‘To control the amount of dirt tracked into your home during Christmas, use doormats at entrances.’ These doormats will then capture a large majority of the dirt and debris from your guests’ shoes before they enter your home - and you could even offer them slippers (like these kuou 12 Pairs of Disposable Slippers from Amazon) to eliminate this heavy footfall entirely.

Then, you can vacuum at the start and end of each festive day rather than every time someone leaves the house or goes into the garden.

3. Wash up little and often, too

Christmas dinner is meant to be a feast, and a big feast requires multiple plates, serving dishes, gravy bowls, and side plates - not to mention wine glasses, champagne glasses, and some water glasses for good measure. This results in a lot of washing up, which can take you out of the festive game for hours.

But instead of washing all of your dishes at the same time, Laura Harnett, Founder of Seep, suggests cleaning in intervals and opting for the little-and-often-technique instead. She says, ‘On the day itself, keep ahead of your washing up by doing it little and often.’

‘I like to take my washing-up bowl out of the sink and use that as a pre-wash with hot soapy water to soak greasy trays or messy plates. Then, use fresh water in the sink itself for a final wipe-down. If you’re using a dishwasher, then wash glasses by hand so they don’t end up smeared from the bigger items, as they will need rewashing anyway, and it saves room in the dishwasher for other items.’

So, do a little washing up between courses to keep on top of things, and if you really want to enjoy the day, you could even leave a bowl of hot, soapy water on the sink in your kitchen and ask your guests to clean their plate after demolishing their twelfth mince pie.

4. Put things away as soon as possible

If you want to avoid a major post-Christmas cleaning session, decluttering and putting things away as soon as possible can also aid your Christmas interval cleaning sessions. This is especially true if you plan on creating the ultimate Christmas tablescapes.

Becca Stern, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Mustard Made, explains, ‘Decluttering and putting things away while hosting is a great way to keep up with the Christmas chaos that can ensue in your home over the festive period. While you will want to use your best dinner plates and champagne flutes for hosting family and friends, try and ensure these are swiftly cleaned and returned to their cabinets when not in use to keep surfaces in the kitchen and dining room as clear as possible.’

Just make sure you know the correct way to store glasses in a cupboard and make the most of kitchen cabinet organisation so you don’t have to re-jig them when the craziness of Christmas is over and done with. Or, alternatively, you could pop them on a bar cart or drinks trolley so they’re ready and available for your guests to pour their own drinks.

5. Create dedicated cleaning supply stations

If you like to blitz your bathroom just before your guests arrive or want to tackle the smudged windows you spotted out of the corner of your eye during Christmas dinner, you could spend considerable time running up and down to your cleaning cupboard. To ensure you have time to have fun, too, Sam Tamlyn, Managing Director of Shutterly Fabulous urges you to create cleaning supply stations around the house.

He says, ‘Having specific stations of cleaning supplies strategically placed throughout your home - such as disinfectants and microfibre clothes stored in your living room or dining room - allows you to quickly address any spills or accidents as they happen.’

Natalie Mudd, Co-Founder & Creative Director, Knot & Grain, adds that this is particularly important when you want to clean your wooden floors. She explains, ‘Keeping an emergency cleaning kit on hand is a smart way to handle accidents quickly; this will save you from rummaging for the correct cleaning product and missing out on spending time with your guests.’

‘When it comes to cleaning up spills on engineered wood flooring, it’s best to act quickly. Wipe them up immediately to prevent any moisture from seeping into the wood and causing damage. Use a soft cloth or paper towel to soak up the spill, and then clean the area with a damp cloth,’ she adds.

6. Quickly clear away sleeping spaces

There are so many extra seating tricks for hosting at Christmas, but you may also need to deck out your guest bedroom or invest in one of the best air beds to give them a place to sleep, too. And if you’re not careful, you could spend hours cleaning these areas while your guests have all the fun.

So, you must streamline your cleaning regime and opt to clean in intervals instead. And Ayan Abdi, Brand and home expert from Zinus, says it might be worth investing in one of the best sofa beds to do just that.

‘A sofa bed is a great investment for Christmas as it can quickly be stored away between days of hosting. For those who are accommodating friends or family in living rooms or communal spaces which are needed on Christmas day, ensure your sofa bed and bedding are packed away as efficiently and neatly as possible so the space can be re-used as a place to relax.’

Opting for a sofa bed with hidden storage is ideal for these interval cleans, as you can strip the bedding, hide it in the storage compartment within the sofa bed, and quickly get on with the rest of your festive day.

FAQs

How do you clean quickly for unexpected guests?

It’s not uncommon for guests to invite themselves over - especially during the festive period. If you only have a small window of time to clean quickly for unexpected guests, it’s best to prioritise the higher-traffic areas of your home and the places that you know your guests will use. For example, the hallway, living room, bathroom, and the guest bedroom if they plan on staying overnight.

During this quick clean, remove any clutter from the room, dust the visible surfaces, vacuum or mop the floor, and give your toilets a quick clean and spray with your bathroom cleaning products. If you don’t have time to clean the rest of your house and you know your guests won’t use them, simply close the door and keep the clutter out of sight.

When should I start cleaning for Christmas?

If you want to clean your home for Christmas properly, most experts would suggest starting at least two weeks before the big day. This will give you time to do deeper, more intense cleaning of areas and items like your oven, fridge, guest bedroom, and other areas that don’t always get the same amount of attention.

Then, a few days before Christmas, you should be able to wind down the cleaning and focus on small bursts of interval cleaning while the festivities are underway. This way, you can still enjoy hosting without the added stress of cleaning.