Garage Organization Tips from ‘The Closet Divas’
In a survey by National Association of Professional Organizers, 96% of respondents claim they could gain more time at home if they were better organized. I am here to help you through an organization process to gain a bit of time that you can spend on family, friends, and fun.
If you are living in an environment where clutter is taking over your living spaces… “You have too much stuff”. Belongings, collectibles, mementoes, call it what you will, can take over your life and occupy your thoughts, time, and money. Maybe you’ve heard Jeff Foxworthy‘s comedy routine, “You Might be a Red Neck If”, followed by a long list of funny analogies. Well, I have come up with my own analogies for a clutter bug – someone who has too much stuff…
• If you are paying for a storage unit just to contain the overflow – you have too much stuff…
• If you are purchasing an abundance of plastic totes or containers – you have too much stuff…
• If you purchase duplicates for items you know you own but cannot find – you have too much stuff…
• If you cannot park your vehicle in your garage – YOU HAVE TOO MUCH STUFF… the list goes on.
Where is this leading? Into the garage! For many households the garage is an extension of the home. It often double duties as the pantry, garden shed, wood shop, playroom, dog grooming salon, man cave, you name it. But all too often the garage becomes the dumping zone for things we don’t have a place in the house for, or we just don’t know where to put. Those clean work benches look so inviting for the boxes of toys you found time to clear out of the kids’ room, and what about the fish tank where James , the fancy gold fish used to reside. Don’t ignore the exercise equipment in the middle of the garage, collecting dust sitting where the car should be, not to mention the over abundant stacks of plastic totes filled with college notes and papers you have been holding on to. Really, do you need all that stuff? Wouldn’t it be great to jump into a warm car on very cold, snowy, winter day? Or stay dry when the rain is pouring down?
There is no time like spring to take back your garage and repurpose it for its original intent – PARKING YOUR VEHICLE! Now you ask, “How do I get started”? When I start a project for a client, I have them tell me what their vision for the space is. Create a vision and then a plan based on your family and their requirements. Determine what is really necessary. This is where the task may get a bit difficult. With your vision in mind proceed to de-clutter and reorganize your entire garage. Plan to keep only the things that add value to your life!
Apply the following tips or ideas to help you to accomplish a well organized garage project. This is a macro approach, but will get you started. If your garage is overflowing and you don’t know where to begin, break the project into tasks, zone by zone. Don’t allow too much time between tasks or you will find stuff piling back up.
A. Define zones or areas within your garage to store like items, i.e.
• Gardening
• Workshop for power or hand tools
• Pet
• Sports
• Mud room, etc…
B. Then begin by removing and sorting like items into piles of keep, donate, or sell.
a. Deliver or arrange for pick-up of your donated items as soon as possible. They are out of the way, out of your home, and out of mind.
C. Start in one corner and work your way around the garage. As you come across items that belong in a different zone or area, place in that space – they can be organized as your move to that area.
a. For example: You have started in the gardening zone and you come across tools or sports equipment. Decide at that point if you really need the item. If not, then donate or sell. If you are keeping items, place them in designate zone of your garage. I recommend reevaluating whether you need to keep all the sports equipment you have moved into the sports zone.
b. Maybe you have come across those boxes of toys? You were getting rid of them anyway, now is the perfect time to donate them.
D. Now that everything is sorted, you may need to decide how to store what will remain. Here is your opportunity to repurpose some of the plastic totes that once contained your college papers. Don’t be afraid to get rid of the totes you don’t need, especially if you are inclined to fill them up again.
a. Designate a place for every, and keep everything in its place.
b. Utilize appropriate sized containers to for storage. The goal is to keep things from migrating into zones they don’t belong.
E. Go Vertical by using the walls and ceiling space to get your belongings off of the floor, this is valuable real estate.
• Install wall and loft shelving units like the ones HyLoft offers
• Install storeWALL products that allow for a wide variety of easy access storage options.
• Hang your bikes and other items from the ceiling
Have a garage sale or post items to online sites. Send that clutter home with someone else; make some extra money at the same time. You may even cover the cost of the new storage solutions you installed to keep the things you really need under control. Always remember to keep it simple.
If your job is too overwhelming, hire a professional organizer who can assist you in the process. Maybe just to get you started. Getting started is often the hardest to take.
