We have teamed up with Anne Marie Boyhan, sleep expert at The Sleep Care Co. to give us some tips on how spring cleaning your home can help you sleep better.
My thing is sleep. I love helping people curate a sleep sanctuary; a bedroom space that helps you find calm and comfort in your sleep and self-care rituals. This includes keeping your bed and mattress healthy, as well as cleaning your room.
There is no better time to do a deep clean of your home than spring, whether you’re cleaning your bed, scrubbing your mattress, or decluttering your entire bedroom. Read on for my tips on spring cleaning for easy sleeping!
How to Clean Your Bedroom to Aid Sleep
First things first, tidy and clean your bedroom. This seems obvious but many of us leave clothing in piles or have bedside tables overflowing with ‘stuff’. A cluttered or messy room can lead to feelings of stress. Research shows that those who sleep in cluttered rooms are more likely to have sleep problems, including difficulty falling asleep and waking during the night.
Start with clearing all surfaces such as bedside tables. When you’ve cleared and decluttered, organise everything into three categories:
1. Keep
2. Throw or give away
3. Sell or swap
Decluttering can make us feel that we have a fresh start, offering a sense of calm to help us sleep well. It can also prevent pests and reduce dust, mould, and mildew, which may trigger asthma and allergies. Decluttering also gives us the headspace to practise mindfulness and the physical space to create a bedtime routine, which all help with getting quality sleep.
How to Reduce Allergens to Improve Sleep
One way to reduce allergens to improve sleep is to hoover your bed and mattress with a UV mattress hoover. This removes dust mites, allergens and other nasties. The UV lights on the handheld hoover kill bacteria.
Another way to reduce allergens to improve sleep is to wash your sheets at a high temperature, at 60°C. This is the best temperature for getting rid of any germs that may be lingering on the fabric. A third way is to choose anti-allergy bed linen such as mattress and pillow protectors.
What to Use When Cleaning Your Bedroom
Dust down your bedside table, lamp shades, or bedside lights with a cloth and a dust repellent. To keep dust away for longer, use the following DIY mixture when you clean:
½-1 teaspoon olive oil (this helps to repel dust)
1 teaspoon of vinegar (to kill dust mites)
½ cup of water
2 drops of washing-up liquid
10 drops of essential oil (or lemon juice if you’ve no essential oil)
Add the mixture to a spray bottle and shake all the ingredients together. Spray onto a microfibre cloth and dust.
When cleaning, I like to air my bed as often as I can. This clears it from any moisture that may have built up the night before. To do this, open your bedroom windows and pull the sheets and duvet to expose the mattress. Do this for twenty minutes to an hour.
How to Clean Your Mattress
Regular cleaning can help your mattress last longer, keeping it fresh all the time.
If the mattress has a cover, wash it regularly in the washing machine and always at a high temperature. For the mattress itself, you can remove stains with a textile cleaner or detergent. Be careful not to use too much water when cleaning as it can contribute to mould.
Once cleaned, it’s a good idea to air dry the mattress well. For larger, more stubborn stains, use a steam cleaner. For a deep clean, have a mattress cleaning specialist clean your mattress - you’ll find one in your local area.
For spring cleaning, I like to spray the room, mattress and sheets with an essential oil and water spray. This is not only antibacterial but the scent helps relax you for sleep and the mixture de-wrinkles the duvet cover as a bonus too!
To make it, add 10 drops of lavender essential oil to water in a spray bottle. Spritz the mixture over your bed and your room. Antibacterial and antifungal, lavender essential oil is great for relaxing at the end of a long day, as well as preparing for sleep. If you don’t like the smell of lavender, try Bergamot essential oil, which is also great for sleep and spring cleaning, due to its anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties.
You also need to ensure that your mattress is still supportive. For mattress longevity, rotate (turn it around on the bed) every six months. It’s recommended that you change your mattress every 10 years.
We spend approximately one-third of our lives sleeping or trying to sleep, so having a clean bed, mattress, and bedroom is important not only for our overall health but for the quality of our sleep, too. I know that these spring cleaning hacks will help keep your bedroom free from bacteria, dust, mould and allergens, creating a calming environment for easy sleeping.
Are you looking for a new bed to completely refresh your sleep sanctuary? Check out our range of beds and mattresses at DFS. Pictured in this article is the DFS Dayna lamp table and French Connection Zinc bed in Forrest Green velvet.
