Quick Cleaning: Erasing The Evidence

We came back from an errand this afternoon, and I realized some main areas of our home had become quite cluttered. There were quite a few things that I needed to deal with. The mail had come in, we had eaten in our kitchen for breakfast and lunch, the laundry was ready to be put away and more.

I decided I need to erase the evidence, known at ETE for some. This simply means picking up after yourself and making the area seem as though you weren't even there. I think a simple five minutes of erasing evidence can make a huge difference in a home and how it feels. I don't usually set a timer, but if it motivates you, then DO IT!

Here's what a few areas looked liked before I decided to do a quick clean up:

Laundry and junk on the coffee table

Kitchen table 

Kitchen counter...I see trash and recyceables

Clean laundry to hang...and I need to tidy the litter box

I began my quick tidy at 1:38 pm. I was hoping for less than 15 minutes. I started with the laundry room, and hung up the wet shirts to dry in the bedroom. I also got the litter box freshened up. I moved to the kitchen where I wiped down counters, threw away trash, recycled papers and a box, I made a pile of mail to be dealt with later. I had my daughter put away one of those drawing tablets since we cannot seem to get it to work yet.

After I did the kitchen counters, I moved on to the kitchen table. I shook out place mats, threw out more trash, and wiped the table down. I did notice I need to sweep in the kitchen, but I decided that could wait. 

Next was to move into the living room. I picked up the items on the coffee table, drank the water, put away a dish and other various items. I folded two blankets and then began folding laundry. I sent my daughter's folded laundry to her room and took ours to put away. I hung the hanging items first and then put everything else that belongs in drawers. No evidence of laundry, except that everything is clean and can easily be found where we expect to find it. 

My quick cleaning and erasing evidence took longer than 15 minutes, since I completed my tasks at 2:09pm. A mere 21 minutes and my house looks much, much better! Want to see?

The counters are pretty clear!

A little hard to tell but the table is clear except for my daughter and her project

Nearly clear coffee table and laundry is put away!

I have to admit I worked up a little sweat getting that all done in 20 minutes. I worked as fast as I could. I tried not to get bogged down in looking at each paper in my pile,  but some items were clearly ready for recycling. Those are easy. I can deal with the pile another time. 

Do you take time to do a quick decluttering, or erasing the evidence? Do you  do this every day, or just when it suddenly seems really bad or overwhelming?

I have linked this post to A Bowl Full of Lemons. Thanks for stopping by! I love comments, don't be shy. :)