I am a slattern. I have 2 days to get my house ready for sale. Help!

[LidlMermaid]

Firstly, I am the worlds biggest procrastinatorI have been meaning to write this post for about 2 weeks

Secondly, my grave stone will definitely not say Here Lies a Domestic Goddess.

Thirdly, my CV does not include organisational skills as a strong point.

We are putting our house on the market and the estate agents photos will be taken next week. I now have two days (tomorrow and Saturday) to get it market ready. It needs a bit of decluttering and a lot of cleaning. I hate cleaning so it seems like a mountain to climb right now. So, I need your top tips to make this as easy and painless as possible.

The things that I am most daunted by are:
Blinds how the feckity feck do you properly clean wooden venetian blinds? I have 7 sets of the bastards and enormous windows I usually just flick a duster in their general direction and dont look too closely at the actual state of them and when I say usually I mean maybe twice a year

Windows its only a 3 bed semi but there are an extraordinary number of windows. And, as previously mentioned, they are enormous! DP has borrowed ladders to do the exterior of the upstairs windows but Ill be doing the rest. How to I make the spotless and streak-free?

Stainless steel my kitchen has a lot of stainless steel. My fault as I designed itIll never make that mistake again! I usually just wipe it down and ignore the smears. How do I make it all sleek and shiny for photos/viewings?

The cooker hood. Oh god, the cooker hood. Stainless steel and glass and grease . Yikes.

My utility room feels more like a futility room. Its tiny and cluttered although not terribly untidy as such. I dont even know where to start with it to be honest.

Help!?

Strikeout fail

I have white bedding already. Just need to iron it. I also have super king sized duvets on king sized beds so they hang far enough over the edges to hide the stuff stored underneath ;)

Hang a pretty tea towel over the oven handle so they can't see the glass front if yours has one

Loving the clutter hiding tips from fellow slatterns

You know, it is probably worthwhile to call an agency and see if you can get someone in on an emergency one time basis to do the kitchen, while you declutter and clean the rest of the house. If they finish, let them at the bathrooms, or utility room. Maybe they will do windows? The one-off cost may be worthwhile as a selling expense.

If your mum or MIL has been tut-tutting and itching to get their hands on your hoover, the swallow your pride and call them.

Conversely, us there anyone besides one of them you could SOS for help?

What about outside? Any decluttering and tidying to be done there?

Keep in mind, once the pictures go up, you need to keep this up until the house sells. All those tasks you let pile up can not pile up when viewings might happen any day. You have to do the dishes niw, make your bed now, tidy up every night, laundry must be washed and put away ASAP.

Desperately, the vendors of the house we are hoping to buy have done something similar. It's a decent sized house but feels small as they have so much stuff in it. Wardrobes absolutely everywhere, even in hallways. Their car was crammed with black bags when we went to view and that was only a drop in the ocean compared with what was in the house. As a result, it's been on the market for several years so we're hoping to put in a cheeky offer soon.

Cleaning is more for the viewings than the photos, a good photographer will let you move stuff out of sight.

A top tip for clearing stuff off work tops/sills/bedside tables...always put it in the nearest cupboard or drawer, or you might not find it. We have just sold our house.

What I found most off putting when viewing other properties was damp towels hanging about (they don't smell fresh when used a few times) and lots of personal items on dressing tables etc. yes I know we all use deodorant and various creams/ointments etc, but they are not really ornamental!