Your strategy

• Put away clothes and straighten dresser.
  
• Strip bed of sheets and blankets to be laundered.
  
• Dust as you move clockwise around the room.
  
• Polish wood furniture.
  
• Clean mirrors and mini blinds.
  
• Vacuum drapes, then floor.
  
• Change sheets.

Trouble Spots

Drapes: Using the upholstery attachment on your vacuum, begin at the top and work your way down heavy drapes, outside and inside, gently reaching into the folds of the fabric.

Sheers: Toss sheers in the dryer with a fabric-softener sheet on the air-dry ycle for 10 minutes to freshen them and remove dust, suggests Donna Smallin, author of Cleaning Plain & Simple.

Pull-down shades: Vacuum shades with a brush attachment, lowering the shade completely, working top to bottom.

Mini blinds: Use a barely damp rag on wooden mini blinds, and a mild cleaning solution on metal blinds (avoid microfiber cloths, as they will scratch).

What’s Easy to Overlook

Under your bed: Vacuum regularly — just be sure to reach all the way under the bed! Move your bed at least twice a year to clean thoroughly underneath.

Your Secret Weapons

Ostrich feather duster: Buy one at a housewares or hardware store, or online at ostrich.com. Avoid conventional dusters with colorful feathers — the plastic spines can scratch surfaces.

Febreze Allergen Reducer: Spray on your mattress and bedding to reduce up to 75 percent of allergens from cats, dogs and dust mites.