the closet divas tips:
It’s that time of year we begin to daydream about – SPRING! What are we going to do with all this extra daylight? One thing I know for sure – dust more! All that glorious light comes through our windows to expose the hidden layers of dust and piles of belongings that has accumulated over the dark, winter months.
When I think of spring, I think of fresh and new. This is a great time of year to de-clutter and reorganize the “buildup of belongings” that built-up over fall and winter. It is perfect, because the weather is fluctuating; it’s not quite sure what it wants to do. And, fishing hasn’t started. You can have your projects completed in time to enjoy, guilt fee, our great Alaska summer.
To help you get started, use the following five steps to guide you through a de-cluttering and organization process. I believe in keeping things real simple. Pick one room or area of your home or office you can complete in a limited amount of time. This could be a linen closet in the hallway, craft area in the family room or a child’s closet, the process is always the same. Whatever the area or the size of the project, plan your time to stay with it until the project is complete. Dragging projects out can lead to discouragement. Keeping it simple will set you up for success and give you motivation for the next looming project.
These five steps can be applied to any project you take on, whether you do-it-yourself or hire a professional organizer
It’s that time of year we begin to daydream about – SPRING! What are we going to do with all this extra daylight? One thing I know for sure – dust more! All that glorious light comes through our windows to expose the hidden layers of dust and piles of belongings that has accumulated over the dark, winter months.
When I think of spring, I think of fresh and new. This is a great time of year to de-clutter and reorganize the “buildup of belongings” that built-up over fall and winter. It is perfect, because the weather is fluctuating; it’s not quite sure what it wants to do. And, fishing hasn’t started. You can have your projects completed in time to enjoy, guilt fee, our great Alaska summer.
To help you get started, use the following five steps to guide you through a de-cluttering and organization process. I believe in keeping things real simple. Pick one room or area of your home or office you can complete in a limited amount of time. This could be a linen closet in the hallway, craft area in the family room or a child’s closet, the process is always the same. Whatever the area or the size of the project, plan your time to stay with it until the project is complete. Dragging projects out can lead to discouragement. Keeping it simple will set you up for success and give you motivation for the next looming project.
These five steps can be applied to any project you take on, whether you do-it-yourself or hire a professional organizer
1. Select one space or area for your de-clutter project. Take some time before you begin and define or re-define the use for this space. Then imagine how you want it to look when you are finished.
a. Consider what storage containers, baskets or other solution you may need and have them on hand. This will save you time and keep you on track.
2. Start by removing and sorting all the items from this area.
a. Take the opportunity to clean while everything is off shelves or out of the area.
3. Keep, donate/give away, and sell. Create three piles and as you remove and sort, place things into one of these piles. If you are not the person who can sell items online, at a consignment store, or a garage sale, then you just have two piles.
a. Think about whether you “love it”, “hate it, “like it” to help guide you through this process.
b. For clothes, remember the 80/20 rule. We wear 20% of what we own, 80% percent the time. So, if it doesn’t fit or hasn’t been worn in a year, let it go!
4. Group all like items together (this can begin during the sorting process), i.e. blankets, sheets, and towels or pencils/pens/crayons, notebooks, and paper. The plan is to have items ready to place back into your space, together in one place.
a. Prepare to place your belongings back into their designated space so fold, stack, organize
b. Place small items into bins, baskets, containers. This keeps them confined so they are not floating around. This also allows you to pull out just the containers you need and then, put them back when you are done.
5. Take action on the keep, donate/give away, or sell. Place all the items you decided to keep back onto the storage areas.
a. This could be on shelves, into drawers, baskets, or containers.
b. Hang or store clothes according to a system that works for you. Long to short, short to long, color coded. There is no right way to do this, but keeping like items together is the standard.
On-going Organization Tips:
· Put things back in their designated spot, immediately, after you are finished with them.
· If you haven’t used something for a while (one year for clothes), ask yourself “Will I ever use this again?” “Do I really need this?” If you answer, “No”, then let it go.
· Identify areas of your home that attract clutter and set aside time once a week to just keep up with every day “clutter-ups”.
