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Entries Tagged 'Decluttering' ↓
Bedroom Home Organization Project
Decluttering “fun” you may ask? How so? Well, if you’re a professional organizer, then this is our idea of fun-jump in! But chances are, you aren’t a professional organizer. So, what oh what can you do to make a chore that you are dreading more fun? Decide what your goals are for your space, then roll up your sleeves and get to work. Here are 3 decluttering tips to make it more fun:
1) Enter music. I love working to music and I love it when my clients do too. This is a great time to take advantage of iTunes, Pandora or your favorite CD. Whether you need soothing music for your nerves or fast and furious to keep you moving, be sure to turn it up.
2) Get yourself some company. Decluttering is often overwhelming and nothing beats having some support by your side. Having someone next to you will keep you on track and most likely keep you laughing along the way as you come across buried treasures.
3) Reward yourself. Whether it be at the halfway point or at the end of your project, be sure to give yourself a treat for a job well done! It could be your favorite meal, it could be an evening out on the town, it could be a bubble bath, whatever will give you the motivation to keep on keepin’ on!
You too can make decluttering fun, you don’t even have to be a professional organizer!
Your Home Organization Expert-Monika
Tags: Decluttering, decluttering tips, iTunes, Pandora, professional organizer
Clean and Organized Kitchen
Home organization isn’t just about clearing clutter, it’s also about keeping surfaces clean so you can find what you need and feel calm in your surroundings. I am an organized person (ahem), but I just happen to be a messy cook! Cupboards and drawers fly open creating booby traps, crumbs fall on the floor, lids get separated from the spices…After I finally sit down to enjoy my meal, I have a lot of work ahead of me to get everything back in order. Oh, did I mention cooking is one of my least favorite tasks? Baking goodies-good, eating-great, cooking-not so much.
Of course I feel great when I take the time to put things away and wipe down counters as I go. This is a habit I need to work on so I can enjoy my meal in peace. This is an easy way to stay on top of organization as there aren’t any decisions to be made as there when you are decluttering your home. I’ll keep working on it and that may mean a few less head bumps along the way too-bonus!
Tags: cleaining tip, clearing clutter, cooking, Decluttering, home, Home Organization, Home Organization Blog, kitchen, organized person
Recently I’ve been working with clients who need help to declutter and organize their homes before they move-which is exactly when you want to do it!
This is a ‘before’ shot (used with permission) of a very typical “spare room” that became a catch-all room.
Cluttered Spare Room
In just three short hours we had the room almost completely emptied, we emptied the dresser and we purged and reorganized the closet.
Decluttered Spare Room
This client would like to downsize to a smaller place which will save him money. I pointed out that right now, the clutter is costing him money to store as he is paying for a larger place. Now when he is ready to move, he can part with the dresser and he knows that the chair and items in the closet are the only items that have to be packed for the move.
Five great reasons to declutter your home before you move:
1) You have less to pack.
2) When you get to your next home, it will be an easier job to unpack.
3) When you get to your next home, you only have to find storage for things you already know you want to keep.
4) It will save you money when you need fewer boxes, a smaller moving truck and less help from a moving company.
5) It will reduce your stress level when it is time to pack, you will have already gone through the decision making process on what to keep and what to let go.
Taking time to declutter your home will lighten your load, save you money and decrease your stress level-win, win, win!
Tags: boxes, closet, declutter, home, Home Organization, Home Organization Blog, move, organize, room
Cluttered Chair
I’ve found that it’s common for people to be embarrassed to have friends and family into their home when there is just too much clutter. It builds up on the counters, piles up on the chairs, creeps out of closets and heaps up on the floor. When you have to duck and weave just to follow a clear path, scoop papers off of tables and into bins & paper bags and quickly shut doors, then it’s more work than pleasure to have someone come for a visit or allow our kids to have a sleepover. Most of us are already so busy and caught up in our own lives, that it’s a shame to isolate ourselves further in our own homes.
Make it your mission today to start the decluttering process so you can feel good in your own home as well as feel free to invite people into it. Remember, it’s not about being perfect, it’s about having a comfortable balance with the belongings in your home so they aren’t taking over and you don’t feel overwhelmed. Follow these decluttering tips to get you started and company-ready today:
- Start in an area of your home that your company would most likely see. You don’t have to give them a tour of your whole house.
- Start with visible clutter first such as table tops, couches and floors before delving into cupboards and drawers.
- Bring bags for garbage and donation into the area you are decluttering.
- Bring in one bag or box labeled “Another Room” for items you find that just need to be moved to another room.
- Set a timer for the amount of time you feel you can work. Even 15 minutes of decluttering will make a difference!
- Use that time to really make decisions on what you are ready to part with and what you truly need to keep. Watch spaces open in front of your eyes!
Delutter today so you don’t have to hide in your own home. Whose the boss, clutter or you? YOU ARE! Please, do sit down.
Decluttered Chair
Tags: bag, box, clutter, cluttered chair, company, declutter, decluttering tips, donation, garbage, home, house
When I come onto the scene to work with a client, they’re usually at a point where they are frustrated, overwhelmed and not sure where to start on their decluttering and organizing project. The project might be to clear a table, to reorganize an office or to tackle many rooms of their home. What I like to share with people off the bat is: “This isn’t TV, we need to take this an area at a time and we need to take into account energy levels.” It usually takes quite a while for a home to get to a point of disorder and it takes a while to get it back in order. Athough it is amazing how much can be done in just a few hours, which is always very exciting! The decluttering process can use up our energy in several ways:
- Decluttering may be an emotional process for some people. Everyone is different, but letting go of belongings can be harder for some people than for others.
- Decluttering takes physical energy as we may be moving & opening boxes, rearranging furniture and hefting heavy bins & bags. I’ve even been known to move a piano when I’m really determined (don’t worry-I work out!).
- Decluttering also takes mental energy as clients have to think about, process and make decisions on each item we come across.
It’s important not to get burned out, stressed out or overwhelmed throughout the process. Here are a few decluttering break tips:
- Stop to have a snack & a drink as you need it. Don’t skip a meal if you are working through the day-you need your energy!
- Stop, take a break and rest for a while.
- C hange your scenery-step outside and sit on th porch to get some fresh air.
- Use music to either sooth yourself or pump yourself up while you work.
- Work during the time of day that you have the most energy. Are you a morning person or a night person?
- Change activities for a little while: read a book, take a walk, take a nap.
Remember that decluttering and organizing is a process not an event. Make the process as painless as possible so you can avoid feeling burned out and so you can reach those important goals that you have!
Tags: burned out, Decluttering, energy, goals, organizing, stressed out
When it comes to home organization and the decluttering process, you have to ask yourself, “How much is enough?” It’s easy for things to keep coming into our homes and for us to continueadding to the current inventory without really thinking about whether or not we already have enough. For example, I was making space by decluttering in my office recently and I realized that the top shelf in my storage closet was loaded with boxes. Every time a new box came along, I just added it to the collection since it was maybe a little different size from the other boxes. Then we started doing some early school clothing shopping which had me adding even more boxes to the collection from shoe shopping.
So, I got all the boxes down and started making decisions. How many boxes did I really need? I really don’t even do that much shipping to need very many boxes. I made sure to consolidate by placing packing material inside of boxes as well as placing small boxes inside of bigger boxes. I feel like I have enough on hand to handle small to medium shipping needs now. And, what’s the worst thing that could happen? If I need a size other than what I already have, I can always go get another box. It’s great to be prepared, but we can’t be prepared at all times for all situations or our houses will become over run for “just in case” items.
Be sure to declutter by:
- Choosing the best
- Being ok with having just enough
- Letting go so you can open space for something else
Tags: boxes, collection, Decluttering, Home Organization, homes, inventory, storage closet
Home organization can give us the benefit of calmer surroundings and less stress, and it can also help us with our bottom line. And who doesn’t want a better bottom line? When we have too much stuff that turns into clutter is can cost us in a variety of ways:
- Emotionally it can be stressful and draining to be surrounded by clutter
- Financially we may be purchasing duplicate items which cost us money plus add to the clutter problem
- Relationship stress-clutter can cause friction between family members under the same roof
I’ve been reading a book called, “Making Peace with the Things in Your Life” by Cindy Glovinsky. She had a very interesting example of the price of our clutter and I am going to quote word for word:
“Translate the space your Things take up into monetary terms: divide your monthly mortgage payment or rent by the number of square feet in your dwelling to calculate the cost per square foot; estimate the square footage occupied by a particular type of Thing-newspapers, for example-then multiply the cost per square foot by the square footage occupied to calculate the cost of housing the Things. If your mortgage payment is $1000 per month for a dwelling of 1500 square feet, the cost per square foot is $.67. If your newspapers take up nine square feet, you’re paying about $6 per month to house them. If they take up a whole 10 x 14 foot basement, you’re paying $93 per month for them.”
OK-WOW; now that’s a good way to look at it and an eye opener! So, is it worth it to keep holding on to so much stuff or is it time to free up some space and money with a good decluttering session? Go for it!
Tags: bottom line, calmer surrounding, Cindy Glovinsky, clutter, cost, Home Organization, Making Peace with the Things in Your Life, money, stress
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“Money, money, money, MONEY!”
Declutter my budget, what budget? Where do you fall in the spectrum of knowing how much money you have coming in vs. how much money you have going out? Often times when people are disorganized they have a few different things going on:
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They are spending a lot of money on ‘stuff’ that ends up causing clutter
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They don’t realize just how much money they are spending
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They may actually lose/misplace money such as checks & gift cards
It may be hard to set up a budget for yourself because it forces you to face reality. And it might not be a reality you want to face because when you have to put limits on yourself that’s not so fun. But it’s part of being real and it’s part of being a grown-up, sometimes we have to tell ourselves ‘no’ for the greater good. Sometimes we have to tell our family members ‘no’ for the greater good.
I encourage you to set up a budget with any program, piece of paper, ledger or system that is easy for you to keep up with. Be honest about how much money you are bringing in every month. It will take a while of keeping track of expenses to really realize how much is going out every month. Write down everything! Make categories, big or small. Here are a few examples:
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Hair cuts
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Auto gas
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Auto insurance
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Gifts
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Entertainment
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Allowance for kids
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Groceries
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Meals eaten out
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Charity
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Cell phone
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Doctor co-pays/bills
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Credit card payments
There are many options that you may for your own categories. The bottom line is, the incoming income needs to exceed or at least equal the outgoing expenses. If that’s not the case, you’ve got some work to do to declutter your budget and see where you can eliminate or reduce your current expenses. Some ideas:
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Reduce cable package
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Reduce meals eaten out
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Call around for new insurance quotes: auto and home
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Reduce cell phone plan if you aren’t using your monthly minutes
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Cancel subscriptions you don’t use
Feel more in control of your finances and your life by decluttering your budget and being honest about where you are now. All you can do is go up from here!
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Tags: budget, categories, cell phone, charity, credit card payments, declutter, family, finances, gifts, groceries, meals, money
What’s THE best way to declutter? What’s a surefire way to keep clutter from making you crazy? Shut it down before it ever enters your home. Bolt the door! Don’t even peek. Just be very, very quiet and back away slowly….Really, stay on top of the game by blocking clutter in the following five ways:
- Don’t be a storage facility for others. If they don’t live there, neither should their stuff. When someone moves out, make sure they take everything with them. If it’s really that important to them, they shouldn’t be leaving it behind anyway.
- Pass by that “awesome” sale, that super “good deal.” We often get sucked into bringing home something that we didn’t need just because the price is low. Remember, the price on your sanity is high if clutter is causing you stress.
- When birthdays and holidays roll around, ask people not to give you gifts of stuff. Instead, ask for gifts of time and entertainment. Go to coffee together, go out for lunch, go to a movie, ask for season tickets to the zoo.
- Curb garage sale shopping. Don’t spend your Saturday going through other people’s stuff and bringing home things that you didn’t need in the first place. If you really must hit the garage sales, then make a list of things that you truly need and make it a scavenger hunt to find what you need.
- Online/TV Shopping: If you are sitting down ordering items that you don’t need as a past time because you are bored and unhappy, then it’s time to find an interest or hobby that will keep you busy, get you out of the house or help others. You don’t need that stuff to make you happy.
Bar the door. Lock it and throw away the key. Just keep clutter out so you don’t even have to declutter and you’ll be A-OK!
Tags: birthdays, clutter, declutter, garage sale, gifts, holidays, shopping, storage facility, stress
What a great mom moment I got to enjoy the other day. And when you are a mom, you really do have to appreciate those moments! They are often fleeting. I had a good reminder that kids really can learn how to declutter and organize too. It’s not going to happen overnight. It’s going to take a lot of patience. It’s going to take being a good example. It’s going to take making it as easy as possible for them to succeed.
I have a folding table from Costco in my office for projects that I am working on and for items that are on their way to leaving our house. Under that table I keep a big bin available at all times for donation items. The other day, I was in my office and I noticed a couple of shirts had been placed in the bag from one of my kids. Granted, not actually in the bag, but hey, I’ll take what I can get. What was great about it was that I realized my daughter had come across a couple of things that weren’t working for her anymore and automatically placed them in/on the bag to part with them. She was decluttering on her own! No lecture from mom; woo hoo!
If you make it easy and you stay consistent, you can teach your kids how to let go of items to make room for new items and to create space. Does this mean my kids have perfect rooms? OH HECK NO! But they are learning lessons that they can take with them into adulthood and use in their own homes at their comfort level. Don’t give up, kids can learn to organize too!
Tags: clothing, consistent, declutter, Decluttering, mom, organize, patience, space
