New Homes & Lifestyles
At Home With 'The Queen of Clean' Linda Cobb
By Kimberly Hundley
Photography by Mark Susan
Just three years ago, Cobb found her dream home in a bedroom community near the Adobe Mountain Preserve, an area tucked between north Phoenix and Anthem. “I looked at 35 houses before I found this one,” she admits. “I had specifics—I wanted an office in the house, and two wings so the guestrooms and the master bedroom areas would be separate. But I didn’t want to get into a big five-bedroom because I was alone at the time.” She also wanted minimal yard work due to a hectic schedule and severe allergies.
Her exasperated Realtor had just one property left to show—and Cobb would soon know that magic moment for which every home shopper longs. “We walked through the front door and I literally turned to him and said, ‘This is the house.’ I know that man must have walked outside and dropped to his knees in thanks.”
BLACK INVASION
Before Cobb moved in, she painted the entire interior in the popular neutral “Swiss Coffee,” and installed five solar tubes to invite more light into the rooms. “I have a fairly perky personality, so I like things that are bright and perky around me, and this house is very open, airy and light,” she says.
Yet Cobb also has a wild passion for animal prints (even her shoes bore leopard spots), and her house began a surprise transformation last summer. To match her leopard-inspired bedspread, she painted the adjacent wall black. A week later, she envisioned black accented archways and alcoves, then a bold black entryway and so on, until ebony became the effervescent Queen of Clean’s unlikely patron color for the home.
“I don’t know what the black says about me—maybe that I’m willing to explore my darker side,” she says, laughing. “I tell you, black is the new white!”
Matching a warm wall color to the midnight hues proved tricky, however, and after several false attempts that nearly drove her painter to tears, she settled upon a warm “maple bonbon” brown to complement most areas and an “African plains” light green for the den.
CLEAN AS A WHISTLE
Just how clean is the Queen of Clean’s home? It is clean. Very, very clean, with no visible or sensory evidence of her three cats. But she has help. “I have to be totally upfront,” Cobb confesses. “I travel so much—seven days a week—that I have someone coming in to help with the cleaning.”
On her personal list of “least favorite” chores is ironing, though she loves doing laundry for its instant gratification qualities. “I’m a big multitasker,” Cobb says. “I like to do as much cleaning myself as I can, and I like to clean the bathroom because that’s the room that shows you did something the most.”
Cobb’s home is her testing ground for products up for the Queen’s official seal of approval. “That’s how I found my Clean & Shield, which I love and use all the time in my own home,” Cobb says, with sincere enthusiasm (even though you can tell she’s memorized the pitch). “It cleans and puts a protective barrier down on counters and hard surfaces. And they’re an Arizona-based company!”
A born hostess, Cobb enjoys the layout of her kitchen, which allows her to hobnob with guests at an hors d’oeuvres-laden island while transforming the stretch of countertop beneath a separate set of cabinets into a serving bar. Like her mother (the Queen Mum), she also loves to cook, particularly her famous “Queen’s Casserole” of beef, mushrooms and wild rice. “I fix dinner pretty much every single night for us,” she says, referring to her significant other, Duane. “I also fix his lunch and pack it for him every day.”
One thing you won’t find in Cobb’s kitchen is stainless steel appliances because she says they’re too hard to maintain, even for the Queen.
NEW HOME TIPS
Cobb’s cleaning tips are renowned for incorporating environmentally friendly household items such as baking soda, lemon juice and vinegar. “Cleaning is really chemistry, and I wanted to be a chemical engineer when I was growing up,” she says. “But even I would rather talk about it than actually do it!”
To test her mettle, we asked for cleaning advice specific to those moving into a new home. Cobb didn’t hesitate.
“Even when you move into a new house, you need to clean it to make it feel like your own,” she says. “I suggest you clean the bathroom: Put Clean & Shield on it, and you won’t have to worry about soap and mineral deposits because it puts up a protective barrier so nothing sticks to it. Protect all your surfaces so you clean smarter, not harder.”
ANYTHING ELSE?
“Don’t start putting cleaning products down on your floor. Use nothing but water and you’ll never have residue on your floors, and everything will stay new longer.”
Cobb also recommends giving mirrors, windows, countertops and shower floors the Clean & Shield treatment before (and after) move-in, and investing in microfiber cloths and adjustable-length mop handles (product information available at queenofclean.com).
As for the Queen, she won’t be moving anytime soon. The Michigan native has adopted dusty Arizona as home base. After all, this is where she sold her first 100,000 books, discovered her knack for TV appearances, and shed a ton of pounds.
“I’ve always loved Southwestern design and style. I don’t even mind the heat—now that I’ve lost the weight,” she says, and laughs. “But this is my favorite time of year. I love it.”
Need a Queen of Clean fix? You can see Linda Cobb every Wednesday morning on
NewsChannel 3’s “Good Morning Arizona.” Or you can talk dirty with her on the airwaves with Beth and Bill on KEZ 99.9, every third Thursday of the month. She’ll also be signingcopies of her books at the AZ Family Women’s Expo, April 14-15. Visit www.azfamily.com for information.
