For Peace of Mind
Some tips to get you started...
Consider the items you have in your life. When did plenty spill over into just too much? Some real examples working with clients:
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96 pairs of yoga pants
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44 pairs of scissors
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32 pairs of sneakers
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23 Vera Bradley bags
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6 sets of china
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extra luggage, lamps and chairs, etc.
You get the picture. All that we possess requires our attention, care, time, and money. Why hold onto more than enough?
You can choose to spend your life buying, collecting and tending to stuff.
Or, you can live life collecting memories - share a sandwich and a long afternoon with a friend, chat over a jigsaw puzzle with mom, hike with the dogs, sit on the lawn at a local music festival, take an afternoon swim in the Sound, enjoy an evening bonfire and marshmallows listening to the crickets.
Your Life! Your Choices!
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Keep a bin labeled "ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD" so everyone knows where to put items they are ready to let go.
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Assign specific 'zones' to all areas of your home. Zones for sporting equipment, games and puzzles, office supplies, archive paper records, seasonal decor, batteries, etc. Label them for a week or two until everyone gets used to the new locations.
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Prioritize storage areas by placing often-used items in the most convenient locations. Infrequently used items go in less accessible spots - top shelves, rear corners of closets, attic or basement.
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Group your like items together, i.e. all holiday and seasonal items are on shelves in the basement, all sports equipment is in one corner of the garage, and all tools on the workbench.
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Hold a family 'clear out' day twice a year where you declutter, reorganize, and sell, giveaway or donate no longer used items.
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Identify and label storage boxes and bins for ease in locating.
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Anticipate future storage needs (for files, photographs, books, etc.) by allowing empty spaces.
Clothing strewn across the floor in the bedroom, bathroom, closet; across the sofa or kitchen table. Piles of clothes and overflowing baskets from the basement to the bedrooms. With many of my clients, I have had to broach the dirty problem of laundry issues.
Time to stop and really think about whether you have laundry problems. What are the road blocks? A few of the many solutions that I have implemented:
• Purchased laundry hampers for every bedroom
• Relocated the washer and dryer to the same floor as the bedrooms
• Purged dressers and closets so it is easier to put clean clothing away
• Moved clothing that cannot currently be worn to another space or donated
• Removed all the empty hangers taking up space in the closet
• Placed a box in every bedroom closet. Clearly mark it ‘Donations”
• Assigned each roommate a specific day to complete their own laundry
• Replaced dressers with cubbies for individuals that are more visual
• etc. etc. etc.
You are getting ready for work, grab a blouse and realize it is the one missing a button. You hang it back up or throw it on the floor where it gets swept into the laundry only to return to your closet a week later.
Sorting through all the footwear inside the front door and you discover a pair of cleats that do not belong to anyone living in this house.
You ask your kids to clean up the toy room. They do their best, but there is not enough room for every toy they have ever owned, plus the new ones that come in every year on birthdays and holidays.
Every household needs a station - “a stop on route”.
One bin is marked ‘action’. This is where the blouse goes until you have time to sew on a new button. The cleats that don't belong to your child go here until the rightful owner calls to ask if they were left behind.
One bin is marked ‘donate’. This is for the toys that Johnny no longer plays with, the baseball mitt Sarah used one season, the clothes that no longer fit Henry and the seasonal décor that is no longer loved and used.
All household members need to know where the station is and how to use it.
#1 Client: I haven't used that (worn it) in years, BUT I might now.
Response: Put no longer used items in a box, label it with a date several months out and put it in the garage. If you haven't pulled anything out by the deadline, donate the whole box.
#2 Client: BUT, it is a memory.
Response: Create a treasures box and keep a few items. Or display treasures with books on a bookshelf so you see them. Repurpose vintage concert t-shirts into a quilt. Convert an older armoire into a potting shed.
#3 Client: BUT, I will fix it someday.
Response: Do you have the ability/time to fix it? Can you afford to have someone else fix it? If so, who? Is it worth it? If you are still determined to fix it, call the professional or set aside time on your calendar and gather what you will need to get it done!
#4 Client: BUT, it was a gift.
Response: If you don't use it or don't necessarily like it then let it go. Donate it and someone else will treasure it. If these 'gifts' are hand-me-down offerings from family or friends, next time be more straightforward; "Thank you, I already have plenty of my own stuff."
#5 Client: BUT, I haven't read it yet.
Response: No one has time to read everything. Sorry! Decide what is worthy of your limited precious time! Junk mail can go straight from the mailbox into the recycle bin or shredder. When a new magazine, catalog or newspaper arrives, recycle the old one whether you have looked through it or not. Consider stopping some catalogs and magazines completely by going on www.catalogchoice.org. Most information is available online today.