Is clutter taking over your home? Are you worried that someone might stop by and see what a disaster your house is? Perhaps it is time for a little home organization. Here are five steps to regain control of your home.
1. Assess the situation
Is your entire home in need of home organization or are just a few key areas overrun with clutter? Decide what the most pressing needs are and start there. It may be that only storage areas and junk drawers need organizing. You can start that right away. However, if it is your entire house that is in need of home organization, go ahead and move on to the next step.
2. Break your house down into small areas
As you begin your home organization project, your house may be so cluttered that you do not even know where to start. It can be overwhelming to try to tackle the entire house at once. Instead, think of your house in smaller areas. For example, the entry way and any formal areas can be area one. Your kitchen and breakfast room can be area two. The family room can be area three. Divide your house into areas that make sense to you based on your floor plan. Now you can de-clutter one area per day or even per week. You can complete your home organization venture in your own time frame.
3. Store, donate, throw away
When it comes to home organization, the next step is to evaluate what you have. Again, don’t try to do the whole house at once. Instead, tackle one area at a time. Divide everything into three groups: store, donate and throw away. Make the hard choices –- if it is a shirt that you have not worn in three years, either donate it or throw it away. As you proceed with your home organization, you may even find some things that you forgot you even had. That’s a sure sign that you should either donate or toss them.
4. Get the tools you need for storage
Now that you have thrown out or donated what you no longer need, the next step is to properly store what you are keeping. For items that are keepsakes or things that only come out for holidays, buy big plastic bins, clearly label them, and store them in the attic or basement. Buy an organizer for the junk drawer; you can even use a plastic cutlery tray. If you have a spot that collects things like keys and mail, go ahead and make it the official key/mail/etc. spot. But, buy some sort of tray or organizer that will not only organize it, but also make it look nice.
5. Keep it up
Now that you have achieved a respectable level of home organization, don’t let the clutter back into your life. You must stay vigilant in keeping it at bay. Pick two times a day and spend fifteen minutes de-cluttering. If you get into the habit of picking things up, it probably won’t even take the full fifteen minutes. Once a week, go around your house with a garbage bag and a donation box. Throw away or donate what you can. If you keep up your home organization with some minor maintenance, you can keep clutter from taking over your home again.
Related Articles