How to Fake a Clean House

Unexpected company can be a wonderful surprise, but what do you do if guests are coming and the house is a mess? Fake it. There's no need to worry about a deep cleaning; if you pay attention to a few key areas, you can spot clean your house in no time. Most people associate certain visual cues with messiness, and once you know what to focus on, you can fake a clean house by eliminating the most offensive areas. Assign one of these house-cleaning tips to each member of the family, and you'll be cool, calm and able to enjoy your guests when they arrive.

Pick Up Clutter
Nothing says "messy" more than cluttered surfaces. If you have piles of paper, mail, books, or other things on your counters and tables, or toys all over the floor, get rid of them. Take a laundry basket or other large receptacle and quickly go through the main rooms of the house, picking up all clutter and placing it in the basket. You can sort it later; for now, just store the basket in a bedroom, laundry room or other out-of-the-way spot where guests won't see it.

I use this trick constantly when friends decide to pop by for a visit. With four young children, I always have some form of clutter in my living areas. But by just clearing away stacks of papers from my table and sideboard and toys from the floor, my house gets an instant facelift, and everything looks neat and orderly.

Vacuum Dark Floors
If you have neutral rugs or light-to-medium wood floors, it's not necessary to worry about vacuuming, since the color will hide the dirt. But if you have dark carpet, rugs, or wood floors, they tend to show every piece of lint and fuzz that gets tracked in. When you run the vacuum over these areas, your floors look pristine and make the whole house look cleaner. We have one rug in our living room with deep reds, greens and purples, and when I just vacuum the rug, the whole room looks clean. If you don't have the time to drag out the vacuum, spot clean the house with a handheld vacuum instead, getting rid of large crumbs and other noticeable debris.

Wipe Bathroom Surfaces
The bathroom is probably the hardest room in the house to keep clean, since it's constantly littered with toothpaste and liquid soap drips, water spots and stray hairs. But disposable cleaning wipes can take care of all of your bathroom surfaces in less than five minutes and leave behind a scent that says "clean." Fake a clean home by going over the sink, toilet and any parts of the tub or shower not hidden by a curtain or door with the wipes. You can even take a wipe or two across the floor to remove stray dirt and hairs. Finish with a disposable glass wipe on the mirror, and your bathroom will look and smell fresh and sparkling.

Banish Dirty Dishes
Stacks of dirty dishes in the sink and on countertops ruin the look of a clean kitchen. Quickly straighten up your kitchen area by loading all dishes into the dishwasher. If some of them don't fit, or your dishwasher is full, gently stack the dishes into a roasting pan or large pot and put it in the oven or a cabinet. If you need to cook or are tight on space, you can even stash them in a bathtub behind a closed curtain for later. Finish off the kitchen by quickly wiping down countertops and the table to get rid of any crumbs or food spills.

Provide a Pleasing Scent
Even though people mostly rely on visual cues to tell if an area is clean, you can also fake a clean house through scent. When a home smells good, most people assume that it's clean. There are many ways to accomplish this, depending on what you have on hand. Scented candles are an easy way to fill your home with a pleasing aroma, especially in a kitchen or bathroom. Just make sure you don't mix scents unless they compliment each other well, like vanilla and cinnamon. Another great way to fake that "just cleaned" smell is to spray some lemon-scented dusting spray in the room and swish some bleach in the sink, since the smell of cleaners makes people think you've been scrubbing away. You can also brew a pot of coffee or throw some slice-and-bake cookies in the oven to fill the house with a delicious scent, which is a trick realtors use to make open houses feel more inviting.

If you use these quick and easy house-cleaning tips, you'll never be caught off-guard by unexpected company again. And everyone will be impressed that you can keep your home so neat and orderly no matter the situation.