Not only have I been testing cleaning products for years, but I’m also one of those people who actually enjoy cleaning.
That said, there are plenty of times I don’t want to be anywhere near a microfiber cloth. I hate scrubbing my bathroom, for example, but I love that faint scent of bleach during the first few showers after cleaning that signals a squeaky-clean environment. Admittedly, I tend to enjoy the frenzy that I whip myself into when I’m cleaning before a guest arrives, and I revel in that smug sense of accomplishment when I finally plop down on the couch.
One way to find joy in cleaning, in my experience, is to treat yourself to things that make it a less odious task. Like, why would I go back to a regular sponge when I can use a ghoulish, perpetually happy Scrub Daddy? And why would I use the neon version of said Daddy, when I can spend more on the gray and white ones to better match my kitchen?
That’s where my mini dustpan and broom come in. I ended up ordering this set about a year ago because I had some leftover site credit for Grove Collaborative. When it arrived, my fiancé, Jeffery, was bewildered. What could I possibly use such a tiny cleaning tool for? Well, let me count the ways.
Staff pick
This itty-bitty duo makes quick (and adorable) work of sweeping up an abundance of small household messes.
The Full Circle Tiny Team Mini Brush & Dustpan Set is the perfect thing for quickly sweeping dry messes up off counters. When groggy-morning routines give way to a countertop dusting of matcha and coffee grounds, I can quickly sweep around and under the espresso machine, without wasting a precious kitchen commodity (a paper towel). The same goes for spilled chia seeds (which become more annoying to clean up if they’re exposed to moisture), everything-bagel crumbs plaguing the underside of the toaster, and papery bits of onion and garlic skin.
I also reach for this little wonder when I don’t feel like dragging the vacuum out, which is often. Since we share a home with a furry freeloader (our dog, Oswald), the corners and crevices of the apartment often end up accumulating a cursed combo of dust, dander, and fur. These are the spots our robot vacuum can’t reach, try as it might, and my Dyson V11 is too unwieldy to tackle.
Not to worry: My mini dustpan and broom swiftly remove clusters of debris from baseboards, the entryway shoe rack, and annoying nooks and crannies on the garbage can. It comes in handy, too, if we break anything glass and don’t want to subject the vacuum to sharp torture.
It’s also great for cleaning up after DIY projects, whether they involve mounting shelves to my walls or learning how to do my own gel manicures. These kinds of things tend to produce a good amount of dust, and since most vacuum manufacturers advise against sucking up super-fine particles, I use my handy-dandy dustpan and brush. The set also excels at sweeping stray threads off the table after a sewing project and collecting loose beads that have fallen on the floor.
What this mini dustpan and broom set is not great at is replacing its full-size counterpart. It would be laughable for me to try cleaning any floor this way, even my tiny, 24-square-foot kitchen.
It’s also a bit frustrating that the broom doesn’t fit especially snugly into the dustpan, so there’s no satisfying click, and the set has a tendency to come apart while in storage unless I hang it from a hook or nail somewhere readily accessible. I don’t find that to be a dealbreaker, though, because anything that motivates me to sweep under the dog’s bowls is a win in my book.
Through time and experience, I’ve convinced my fiancé to appreciate the ways of the mini dustpan, but I didn’t need to do much to convert some of my co-workers. Both senior staff writer Liam McCabe and associate projects editor Phillip Zminda have a Muji version that’s similar to my beloved mini dustpan set, and they’re just as loyal to cleaning up small messes with a small tool.
“I use it as you’d expect,” Liam says, “to occasionally brush off my desk when it gets dusty or covered in crumbs.” Phillip also keeps this set on hand for desktop cleaning, and though he has recently downsized his desk, he has “such a fondness for this little guy because it’s just so cute, and it makes me want to keep my desk tidy and banish dust and crumbs!”
So no, you don’t need this exact Full Circle mini dustpan to get the same thrill that we’ve all been seeking—but for sweeping up quick messes and injecting a bit of joy into your everyday, I highly recommend adding a delightfully tiny cleaning tool to your arsenal.
This article was edited by Megan Beauchamp and Maxine Builder.
