Does the thought of tackling an unorganised home make you exhausted before you’ve even started? Often, it’s not knowing where to begin and the feeling of overwhelm stops you from even starting. By using my simple 5 step guide you’ll be climbing that organising mountain at a pace that doesn’t leave you curled up in the foetal position! Then before you know it you’ve reached the summit where you have a clutter free, organised home that you can be proud of.
STEP 1: Break it down into manageable chunks
This part is really hard for me once I start a cupboard, I want to do the whole room, once I start a whole room, I want to do the whole house and so on. However, with the reality of our busy lives with kids, jobs, life admin and so on, delving head-first into a whole house declutter is just not possible.
You may be the complete opposite and gag at the thought of starting a job like this. Whichever side of the fence you’re on starting with small, targeted areas will allow you to realistically dedicate time each day to get the job done. Not only will you feel great by ticking off an area each day before you know it, but you’ll also have numerous decluttered and functional spaces which will spur you on to keep climbing that mountain.
Here’s some examples of key areas you might like to tackle:
- Medicine cabinet
- Under the sink
- Pantry
- Fridge
- Closet (if you have multiple closets do one at a time)
- Clothes drawers (same principle as above, do one at a time)
- Junk drawer
- Kitchen drawers
- Linen cupboard
- Bedside table
- Paperwork
STEP 2: Take everything out of the area and sort
Use three categories when sorting:
- Keep
I get really ruthless and tend to want to throw a lot of items out because a cluttered space makes me downright anxious. However, I realise it can be very hard for people to let things go. So, before you put that rusted salad server that your Mum gave it to you as your first housewarming present, in the keep pile, ask yourself this; “Have I used it in the last six months?”, “Does it work?” And “Can I live without this?” Sentimentality can be a major reason for clutter in your home and hopefully asking yourself these questions will help you let go to unnecessary material possessions.
- Sell/charity
It’s amazing how much stuff you can sell these days. Facebook is a fantastic tool for this with Facebook Marketplace as well as a huge array of free sites around your local community for buying and selling. Gumtree and e-bay can also be useful for larger items. I always get a kick when I can make a buck from something I no longer need and knowing it’s going to be reused and not in landfill is a plus for the environment.
Don’t forget about local charities too the big ones like The Salvation Army do regular furniture pick-ups. Also keep in mind community organisations such as a local playgroup, senior citizens club, PCYC’s the list goes on. Even your local cafe with the run-down kids’ corner may take some toys and books off your hands.
Note: keep two storage boxes one for selling, one for charity. If I have an item that doesn’t sell quickly, I move it to the charity box. Set a timeline for selling stuff e.g. One month if it hasn’t sold give it to charity and remove the clutter!
- Throw
Easy-peasy get that bag out and get chucking! Of course, reserve your bigger items for local council clean ups. Also remember to dispose of items such as cleaning products and medications responsibly.
STEP 3: Clean the area
It’s surprising the amount of dirt and dust that can build up overtime so arm yourself with your fave products and give that bad boy a good cleaning. Now you have a beautifully clean blank canvas to start reorganising the space.
STEP 4: Time to re-organise
Now the fun part (for me anyway!) let’s break it down:
- Access the area
What wasn’t working before? Did you have way too many items cluttering the area? Did you not have the right organising products to make the space look tidy and to compartmentalise different items?
Think about practicality as well I’m a shorty so having things up high just doesn’t work for me, so I prefer to store everyday items lower and have the items I rarely use up higher.
- Does the area need some organisation products?
Depending on your area it might mean picking up some drawer compartments, storage cubes, baskets, and the like. These are always cheap and plentiful at your local IKEA, Kmart, Target, BigW or $2 shop.
Note: It’s very important to map out your space and measure up, there’s no use going out and buying five storage boxes when you could only fit two. Sure, you may find use for them down the track but in the meantime that’s just extra clutter you don’t need!
Also, look around your own home and see what you can use. Old gift boxes are a favourite of mine to put keepsakes or stationery in. It’s always important to try and reuse if you can both for your budget and for the environment.
- Group items together before you put them away
Zone your area, group things into different categories and think about keeping items you use frequently within easy reach. It sounds simple enough, but you may need to give it a few goes before you get the space in optimal working order.
STEP 5: Don’t forget to ‘check-in’ with your new space
Like visiting an old friend, nah scratch that, like visiting your gynaecologist your new space will need you to check-in every now and then even if you don’t want to! What I mean by check-in is monitor how the space is looking. Now let’s be honest, your space will never look as good as the day you first organise it nor is it meant to, I mean we are talking about real life here aren’t we? However, you do need to see if the space is working for you.
‘Checking-in’ also entails monitoring how much new stuff comes into the space or if items have expired. There’s no point in doing a good clean-out to then go out and buy unnecessary items try living with less you may be surprised about how little you really need. So, there’s my 5-step guide re-organising I hope you’ve found some good tips and may even have some inspiration to tackle your own re-organising project however big or small it may be!
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