- Looking for a new way to approach spring cleaning? The FlyLady cleaning method has gone viral on TikTok.
- The FlyLady method was created years ago but has gained recent attention on the video-sharing app for its systematic “zone” divisions and time limits.
- Continue reading to learn how to incorporate FlyLady cleaning tips into your routine.
TikTok is embracing a new way to tidy our homes, just in time for spring cleaning: The FlyLady cleaning method.
Though the method was created by Marla Cilley in the 1990s, according to the FlyLady website, it has reached new audiences on the video-sharing app, with the hashtag #flyladymethod amassing more than 64 million views.
Rosa Picosa (@rosapicosa) is one of the users who has helped spring the FlyLady method into the 21st century with her cleaning TikToks.
in one of her videosthe mother of two describes the method as “pure magic.”
Picosa is not alone in giving the method a try.
In a video that’s gained more than 32,000 likes, user @bridgettehartt says the method has given her “so much hope to not be overwhelmed with cleaning my home.”
How does the FlyLady method work?
Though Cilley shares many tips on her website for maintaining a clean home, the method has gained recent attention specifically for its systematic division of the house (called “zones”) and cleaning time limits.
“All I ask is 15 minutes a day. Set a timer and just do a little every day,” Cilley writes on the FlyLady website. “You will see a difference in a week’s time… It didn’t get dirty in a day and it is not going to get clean overnight.”
The zones are as follows:
- Zone 1: Clean entrance, front porch and dining room during the first week of the month, which may only be a few days.
- Zone 2: Clean kitchen during the first full week of the month.
- Zone 3: Main bathroom and one other room in the house (such as a child’s room, extra room, office, craft room or utility room) during the second full week of the month.
- Zone 4: Master bedroom (including closets and bathroom) during the third full week of the month.
- Zone 5: Living room is the fifth week of the month and usually lasts only a few days/rolls into zone 1 time frame.
The goal is to spend only 15 minutes a day working on your zone for that week.
“I don’t want you to burn out,” Cilley adds. “15 minutes a day, consistency is the key here.”
If 15 minutes a day doesn’t seem like much to keep a whole house in order, don’t worry. There are other steps Cilley advises to help keep up with things, including:
- Establish a morning routine that includes freshening up your bathroom while you get ready for the day.
- Incorporate a daily load of laundry into your routine so it doesn’t pile up.
- Once a week, do a 60-minute home refresh (what Cilley calls her “weekly home blessing”) for any additional cleaning that may be needed.
And if not all the FlyLady steps work for you, that’s OK.
In one video, user @mellystarzangelbaby explains Cilley’s tip for putting your dish drying rack away, not on your counter, wasn’t working for her because she had no room to put it out of sight.
Fellow FlyLady follower Picosa chimed in to reassure her that it’s no biggie.
“You are completely FINE!” she wrote in the comment section. “Don’t be afraid to modify anything that doesn’t make sense or work for you. FlyLady has some interesting suggestions, you don’t have to take them all.”
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism