Summer is here and your spring cleaning and organizing list is a distant memory you’ve repressed likethe neon yellow spandex you were wearing in 1985. Why not make a summer list and freshen upyour home this season. It’s simple. It’s inexpensive. And, we have the best tips for you in this articleso you won’t have to do the footwork. Where’s that “easy” button when you need it?

• Get your home ready to entertain (even if you’re not entertaining) HGTV.com suggestsgetting your house ready for entertaining so you’re always ready to spend more time with familyand friends. “You don’t have go for broke here and invest in a new kitchen remodel. All it takes toget a fresh new look is a little bit of rearranging and a few updates,” says designer McCormick. Add plants to your home to make it feel more finished and help clean the air. Pull a new accentcolor from your current décor and add more of it in the form of pillows, throw blankets, or a newrug. Take some time to rearrange your furniture so it is more inviting and conversation oriented(i.e., not facing the TV directly).
• Small changes make a big difference Pamela Cole Harris suggests choosing small changes toyour home so it’s not overwhelming. Choose one room to repaint, if even just one wall andrearrange or add some family photos or artwork to refresh the space. If you’re trying to go greenin your home, but cannot afford to do the major renovations such as replacing all old appliances,try replacing one appliance this year with an energy efficient one. (Plus, there are usually taxcredits available so you’ll save money!)
• Make visible storage beautiful Briar Cliff Village suggests that if you have storage space inyour home that is visible, make it look its best. Utilize storage containers from the ContainerStore or IKEA, or add fun baskets to clean up the clutter and give the shelves some style.Organize books by type or size and add book ends next to them.
• Keep your mess under control, daily & weekly Jeff Campbell, author of the book SpeedCleaning and owner of the Clean Team housekeeping service in San Francisco suggests someof these easy tips to keep your house in order in 2012 to create a stress-free living space.
• Make sure you put the dishes in the dishwasher every night, dirty clothes go in the hamper,and clean clothes go in the closet or dresser. Everything should go to its assigned placedaily.
• Focus on one type of cleaning at a time – Wipe down fingerprints on all of the cabinets, forinstance, before moving on to spraying and wiping counters. Then move on to windowsand mirrors and appliances. Once that’s done move on to sweeping and then moppingfloors.
• Divide and conquer – enlist the help of your family or roommates whenever possible. Onecan do the vacuuming while the other does the bathroom, etc. You can easily clean anentire house in an hour leaving more time on the weekends for movies, the park, or afamily game night.