About

I Have Cleaned the Kitchen Floor More Times Than I Have Cooked

That sounds like a complaint. It is not. It is the truest sentence I can write about myself, and it explains the whole shape of this site. My name is Ruby Hale, I write every post on Elora Home Styling, and I started publishing in late 2025 because the kitchen is where I spend my time and the floor is where I keep making the same discoveries.

Most home sites are organized by how a house is drawn. This one is organized by where I actually stand, which is almost always in the kitchen, looking down at the floor or up at the cabinets, with something spilled between the two.

Looking down: the floor

I have gotten water, paint, red stains and chocolate milk out of flooring, and each one taught me something the label did not. This is the biggest reason the Living Room category exists, and why it is mostly about what is underfoot rather than what is on the walls. It covers staining hardwood, painting vinyl, cleaning cork, getting water and paint off floors, removing red and chocolate milk stains from carpet, how long floor leveler takes to dry, whether you need a rug pad, and how high a chair rail should sit. If it lives at ankle height, it is probably here.

The Bathroom category is the same instinct in a smaller, wetter room: cleaning a pebble shower floor, unclogging a stopped-up sink, and what actually happens when you put the wrong soap in a carpet cleaner.

Looking up: the cabinets

The kitchen is where I cook, and it is the deepest category on the site. Kitchen covers the decisions I researched before I committed to any of them: cabinet colors for the year ahead, wall colors for grey cabinets, where the pulls go on shaker doors, how many circuits a kitchen needs, farmhouse backsplashes, sink and marble ideas, pendant lights over an island, and small kitchen tables that fit a real room.

Storage & Organization grew straight out of the kitchen too, which is why nearly every post in it is a kitchen post: small pantries, open and wooden shelving, pantry doors, sink organizers, microwave placement and appliance storage. I split it off because organizing is a different question from decorating, even when it happens in the same three feet of counter.

Stepping outside: the rest

Outdoor is where I go when the kitchen is finally clean. It mixes the same practical how-tos, like cleaning metal furniture and deciding whether to paint garage walls, with idea galleries for porches, balconies, planters, front porch tile and patios that hold up to weather.

Bedroom is my smallest category, and an honest one. Right now it is a short shelf of window posts, on how wide to hang curtains, what short curtains are called, and how cordless blinds work. I would rather have three posts I have tested than thirty I have not.

What I know and what I do not

I am not a contractor, an electrician, a plumber or an interior designer. What I have is years of cooking, cleaning and slowly renovating my own kitchen and the rooms around it, and a habit of writing down the fix the first time I need it. Some of my posts touch on things I would never do myself, like kitchen wiring. When that happens I say so and send you to a licensed professional, because a floor stain is a project and a circuit is not.

If a fact or a measurement in one of my posts is wrong, please write to me. I will check it and fix the post.

Off the clock

I own four kinds of floor cleaner and trust exactly one of them. I have a drawer of cabinet hardware I bought, held up to the light, and never installed, and I am told this is a personality trait.

Before you scrub, paint or wire

Everything on this site is general information from my own experience. It is not professional advice, and I am not a builder, electrician, plumber or structural engineer. Please treat these points as the minimum.

Cleaners and stain removers: test any product on a hidden spot first and follow the label. Never mix cleaning products, especially bleach with ammonia or acids, since some combinations release dangerous fumes. Ventilate the room, wear gloves, and use the cleaner and machine your carpet or floor manufacturer recommends. Laundry soap is not made for every carpet cleaner, so check your machine’s guidance first.
Paint, stain and older floors: stripping, sanding and painting floors, vinyl and cabinets creates dust and fumes, so ventilate and wear a respirator. In a home built before 1978, assume paint may contain lead until a test says otherwise, and old vinyl or tile and their adhesives may contain asbestos, so have them tested before you sand, cut or pull them up.
Kitchen electrical work: circuits, outlets, ranges and island wiring must meet local electrical code and be installed by a licensed electrician. Kitchens need GFCI protection and the right number of dedicated circuits, so do not guess.
Plumbing: for a stopped-up sink, start with mechanical methods like a plunger or drain snake, avoid mixing chemical drain cleaners, and call a plumber for a clog that keeps coming back, since it can signal a bigger problem.
Floor leveler and adhesives: follow the product’s cure times and ventilation instructions, and wear gloves and eye protection.
Outdoor and garage: use fixtures and paint rated for the surface and the weather, ventilate a garage well when painting, and hire a professional for anything structural or electrical. Check permits and homeowner association rules before bigger outdoor projects, and call 811 before digging.
Window cords: blind and curtain cords are a strangulation risk for young children. Keep them out of reach and follow current child safety guidance.

Affiliate disclosure. Elora Home Styling is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy through one of my links I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change what I write or what I tell you to skip.

About Ruby Hale:

Full name: Ruby Hale
Role: Founder and writer, Elora Home Styling
Email: [email protected]
Pinterest: pinterest.com/elorastyling
Contact page: elorastyling.com/contact
Based in: Madison, Wisconsin
Background: Years of cooking, cleaning and renovating her own kitchen and the rooms around it. No formal design or trade credentials.
Focus: Kitchens and kitchen storage, floors and floor cleaning, bathrooms, outdoor spaces and windows
Writing since: 2025