So I said in my previous post we all budget these three things. Today we are going to look at space. And I don't mean the outer kind. Although it would be fun to lay on the beach and stare at the stars wouldn't it? But no dice, today we're going to talk about space, as in your space. Or more particularly storage space. So while we dream of the beach and outer space let's talk about storage space and organizing it.
We all know these people. The ones with "too much stuff and not enough space!" We also know the ones whose whole life can fit in one suitcase. I think the sweet spot is somewhere in the middle. But how do we accomplish that? I think I've got a few ideas to get us there.
#1. Declutter. Ya I know, it's hard, it takes too much time, blah blah blah-did you read my last blog post? You should. In fact go do that now. I'll wait. Back? Good! Let's jump in! My family's declutter schedule is pretty good(although I always appreciate suggestions! We're here to learn from each other remember?). We do a huge "purge" twice a year. January and June-why those 2 months? Because it's 1 and 6, easy to remember, but the actual months don't matter. Or even the # of them. Can be 2 or 3 or even 4 times a year. Just as long as it's more than once and you stick to it. Don't try to get everything your first purge either, trust me I've been doing this for years and I still find crap I should have thrown in the trash years ago. A purge is exactly that. Get rid of anything you don't need or want-we'll talk more about that in a second. Clutter stresses you out. And in case you didn't know stress will kill you. Our purge takes 1 whole week. We spend a few minutes to a few hours everyday going through every closet cabinet and drawer in the whole house.
#2. Organize the Purge- Trash, Donate, Keep. The trash pile is obvious. Old newspaper and magazines, broken stuff that's not useable, you know, trash. Get it in a trash bag or recycling bin and get it out of the house. As soon as the bag or bin is full. Don't pile it up somewhere to take out later. As soon as it's full get it out of the house. Donate is also easy. Those clothes your mom bought you that are either not your size or style? Donate. Toys, shoes, household items you don't use or need? Donate. This second step is also a get it in a bag or bin. Everything you are going to donate, put it in a box, bag or bin and put it in your car. Get it out of the house as soon as your container is full. Once you no longer have room for any passengers take it to goodwill or the salvation army. Somewhere that takes donations. Anywhere! Just get it all out of the house! The keep pile can be a little tricky. Are you keeping it because you "might" need it? Our rule is if we haven't seen it, used it or wondered where it was in the last 6 months it goes in donate. Sentimental items don't fall in this category. I'm talking about that melon baller you bought at walmart for a dollar but your whole family is allergic to melons. Or that t-shirt that's 2 sizes to big. That's all donate. If it's something completely useless to you in other words. Donate it. Someone else might really need a 3x t-shirt to Melon ball in. You never know. Obviously you need clothes, shoes and household stuff. But do you have too much? I can't answer that, only you can. Read over the excuses portion of my last post and give it a good think. Sentimental items are also tricky. Are you keeping 10,000 seashells from that awesome beach trip where we all stared at the stars? Awww that's cute! But you don't need 10k. Pick your favorites and find a new home for the rest. There's too many different kinds of sentimental items to cover here but you get my idea right? Be kind to yourself and think it over. What's truly sentimental and what are you keeping just because you've always kept it? That brings us to our last part
#3. Organize your "keep". I'm a pretty good organizer. My daughter is great though. I know people who are terrible. Be honest. Which one are you? First 2 categories? You got this! #3 you might need some help. Family member or friend whose pantry or fridge looks like it belongs on Cribs? Ya you better bribe or beg them. If you don't know anyone you could always hire someone. Thumbtack is a good free site to find someone to help you. There's also a social media post if you aren't averse. If you can't find anyone to help you, well it's time to put on our big girl pants and get to work! No excuses remember? Our 1st step in organizing is- don't go buy more stuff, not at 1st. I know the container store is huge with all these awesome displays of what your closet or pantry can look like, but we're not there-yet. Our second step is-Get everything in the general area it's going to go in. 3rd step- start actually putting it away. You will quickly realize what needs a container, basket or bin. If everything doesn't fit where you think it should go, it maybe you need to purge a little more or you might just need to reorganize the space. This is where containers, baskets and space savers come in. I've got my eye on some awesome spice racks and over the door cabinet organizers that could be great. They also could suck and be useless. Think it through and use your imagination. But really think it through. You don't want that awesome spice rack to end up in your next donate pile. Keep at it! You will get through it and be so much happier and less stressed with an organized less cluttered home!
A few thoughts on keeping your home or space neater or better organized.
#1. Do it every day. 15-20 minutes every day to pick up things and put them where they belong is sooo much easier than a marathon clean up on the weekends. Schedule it in if you have to!
#2. Never leave a room empty handed. Water glass on your nightstand? When you leave the room take it to the sink. There's always something in the wrong place. When you leave that room take it with you and put it where it belongs. This becomes a habit a lot faster than you think it will!
#3. Make a spot for everything. We have a combo bench/coatrack in the entryway of our home. Shoes, jackets, backpacks and purses go there as soon as we walk through the door. Keys hang by the door. Towels have a spot to hang in the back of the bathroom door. Everything has a spot. You get the idea....
#4. Use your imagination. Or Google. There's a million pictures, videos and tutorials on cool ways to use stuff to organize your space. Steal all of them and put them to good use.
Here's to an organized, less cluttered space! The amount of time and stress it saves is amazing! And with all that extra time we should go lie on the beach and stare at the stars.
-C-
