I find that my problem with this is that I just don't "see" the clutter. I have to turn on a light bulb in my head and then I see it and it is much easier to separate "clutter" from necessity. First just discard obvious junk, wrappers, paper items etc. Dispose of them. Then mentally group items in each room, books, pictures, decorative items, pillows, rugs, every thing. again mentally separate those things you cherish from those you just tolerate. We have a very full house, in fact have zero wall space to hang another picture, bookshelves are also full. It possible to have a great number of things, but they must be in some order. Good luck!
Remember that each item you keep is a decision or a series of decisions: do I want this, where does it live, how will I find it when I need it, when will I use it, etc. Ask yourself if you want to invest that kind of mental energy into the item or if you're better off letting it go. If you're not sure, create three piles to keep, think about, and get rid of. You can always come back to the "think about" items and reassess them later.
When I am doing a new clients home I start with all the visable surfaces. I like to have 4 boxes: keep, recycle, donate, trash. All items go into these 4 boxes, and at the end of each day - I take out the trash and recycle boxes, and put the donate box in the car trunk and go through the thrift store drive thru. Clean all the surfaces you've removed all the items from cause they will be dusty and maybe even have pet hair and spider webs.
The keep items will need to find a home, this is the second step, cleaning out the drawers and closets for the items you want to keep. This will require quite a bit of "letting go" and this is where I usually encounter client resistance, so I make my clients read this..... https://fengshuiforreallife.com/Detailed/252.html and I like them to envision how they want the space to look, redecorate, colors etc. and we begin to work towards their vision.
If you have Netflix, I suggest watching Marie Kondo... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvyeapVBLWY does it spark joy in your life is a great question to ask yourself when you are resisting letting something go.
Hi Gail - This is one of my favorite articles on cleaning, organizing and decluttering. It really breaks down the steps of the process, and even includes an interview with TV show Hoarders star Matt Paxton. Hope this helps! Hugs, Holly
1. Things you must keep. 2. Things that can go. 3. Things I'm not sure about.
Move out the things you don't want or need anymore and make 3 piles:
1 To charity, 2. To Bin 3. A.N. Other - All gone!!
Put away the things you must keep! That's clearer!! Feeling a bit better already!!!
Things you are not sure off. Make 3 piles:
A. I think I'll keep it after all for a bit longer.... B. I'll let that go to charity or dump it, anywhere but here!
Well, when you find the first room is done and tidy again, give yourself a reward, even if it is just a Tea or Coffee and take the time to congratulate your
self on a job well done. Proceed in this manner until the whole house is done, Then
take a well earned rest until the next time..........Best wishes...
I would begin by removing everything from a closet or room. Make 3 piles, DONATE, TRASH, and KEEP. Only put back what you really want. Use clear bins with labels and hangers that are all the same. The secret to decluttering is to only keep what you love.
I usually make 3 piles: Keep, donate, and trash. I ask myself if I am going to miss it...is there sentimental value. If so, I keep it. If not, I ask myself if it is useful...will someone else use it. If so, donate. If not, I throw it away. I hope this is helpful!
Hi Gail, one super way to tidy loose objects is to put in a cube shelf. If you use the cloth cubes you can hide a lot of the cluttery small items, label the cubes so you know where to find stuff. The cubes come in several sizes, the 3x3 is a nice size!
You need 3 bins, 1 for donate, 1 for keep, and 1 for trash. Start by deciding if you love it or not, if you do you keep it, if you can do without it then donate it. Clutter weighs you down. You won't believe how good you feel when you get rid of half of the clutter.
Hello. Go through your rooms one by one handle all items with speculation....donate- keep- pack/ store away and trash might be a technique to consider.
Focus on one area at a time.
Get rid of items you have no connection with. This trendy the KonMari method can be life-changing. It focuses on what you want items to keep (what brings you joy) instead of what you have to get rid of. This principle makes elimination relevant and a sucessful tool to achieve your goal.
Sometimes its not always that we have things to throw away but we don't have convenient homes for the things that we use every day. If your clutter consists of pens and pencils, scissors etc. It may be because where those things belong is in a different room entirely. Sometimes our "clutter" is telling us they belong somewhere far from where we usually store them so its time to find a much more convenient place to store them near where we often leave them.
First of all you don't need to hold on to everything! I take photos of things that mean things to me but I have no room for. Memories are in your heart, not in your stuff. The first thing to do is to get rid of the junk you don't need or want. Buy plastic bins and organize the things you want to save. Keep things organized and you will be able to live more comfortably.
Go through one room or drawer or closet, or whatever at a time. Throw away or donate or sell whatever you have not used for one year. This is a good way to begin.
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start with one room - declutter the closet by having a bag or box for donate items, save, trash
and just go through each closet, drawer, cabinet etc until you have purged the things you want to get rid of
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWHvtaG1pxc
This may help https://familyfocusblog.com/get-organized-home/
3 piles: trash, donate, & keep.
Address each item with the question: would I buy it today? When was the last time I used it? Would this benefit someone else more than keeping?
I find that my problem with this is that I just don't "see" the clutter. I have to turn on a light bulb in my head and then I see it and it is much easier to separate "clutter" from necessity. First just discard obvious junk, wrappers, paper items etc. Dispose of them. Then mentally group items in each room, books, pictures, decorative items, pillows, rugs, every thing. again mentally separate those things you cherish from those you just tolerate. We have a very full house, in fact have zero wall space to hang another picture, bookshelves are also full. It possible to have a great number of things, but they must be in some order. Good luck!
I would make piles of things you're keeping, donating, and tossing. Take it room by room or space by space so it's not overwhelming.
Remember that each item you keep is a decision or a series of decisions: do I want this, where does it live, how will I find it when I need it, when will I use it, etc. Ask yourself if you want to invest that kind of mental energy into the item or if you're better off letting it go. If you're not sure, create three piles to keep, think about, and get rid of. You can always come back to the "think about" items and reassess them later.
When I am doing a new clients home I start with all the visable surfaces. I like to have 4 boxes: keep, recycle, donate, trash. All items go into these 4 boxes, and at the end of each day - I take out the trash and recycle boxes, and put the donate box in the car trunk and go through the thrift store drive thru. Clean all the surfaces you've removed all the items from cause they will be dusty and maybe even have pet hair and spider webs.
The keep items will need to find a home, this is the second step, cleaning out the drawers and closets for the items you want to keep. This will require quite a bit of "letting go" and this is where I usually encounter client resistance, so I make my clients read this..... https://fengshuiforreallife.com/Detailed/252.html and I like them to envision how they want the space to look, redecorate, colors etc. and we begin to work towards their vision.
If you have Netflix, I suggest watching Marie Kondo... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvyeapVBLWY does it spark joy in your life is a great question to ask yourself when you are resisting letting something go.
Hi Gail - This is one of my favorite articles on cleaning, organizing and decluttering. It really breaks down the steps of the process, and even includes an interview with TV show Hoarders star Matt Paxton. Hope this helps! Hugs, Holly
https://pinkfortitude.com/hoarder/
PS - We have a FREE eBook with recipes for all of my homemade and all-natural cleaners. You can download it here --> https://pinkfortitude.com/thank#GreenClean
One thing that I like to think about when decluttering is "have I used this in the last 2 years? or the last year?" If I haven't do I really need it?
Hello Gail,
Go through each room and make three piles:
1. Things you must keep. 2. Things that can go. 3. Things I'm not sure about.
Move out the things you don't want or need anymore and make 3 piles:
1 To charity, 2. To Bin 3. A.N. Other - All gone!!
Put away the things you must keep! That's clearer!! Feeling a bit better already!!!
Things you are not sure off. Make 3 piles:
A. I think I'll keep it after all for a bit longer.... B. I'll let that go to charity or dump it, anywhere but here!
Well, when you find the first room is done and tidy again, give yourself a reward, even if it is just a Tea or Coffee and take the time to congratulate your
self on a job well done. Proceed in this manner until the whole house is done, Then
take a well earned rest until the next time..........Best wishes...
I would begin by removing everything from a closet or room. Make 3 piles, DONATE, TRASH, and KEEP. Only put back what you really want. Use clear bins with labels and hangers that are all the same. The secret to decluttering is to only keep what you love.
I usually make 3 piles: Keep, donate, and trash. I ask myself if I am going to miss it...is there sentimental value. If so, I keep it. If not, I ask myself if it is useful...will someone else use it. If so, donate. If not, I throw it away. I hope this is helpful!
Hi Gail, one super way to tidy loose objects is to put in a cube shelf. If you use the cloth cubes you can hide a lot of the cluttery small items, label the cubes so you know where to find stuff. The cubes come in several sizes, the 3x3 is a nice size!
You need 3 bins, 1 for donate, 1 for keep, and 1 for trash. Start by deciding if you love it or not, if you do you keep it, if you can do without it then donate it. Clutter weighs you down. You won't believe how good you feel when you get rid of half of the clutter.
Hello. Go through your rooms one by one handle all items with speculation....donate- keep- pack/ store away and trash might be a technique to consider.
Focus on one area at a time.
Get rid of items you have no connection with. This trendy the KonMari method can be life-changing. It focuses on what you want items to keep (what brings you joy) instead of what you have to get rid of. This principle makes elimination relevant and a sucessful tool to achieve your goal.
https://konmari.com/
Here is a good post I wrote about it, It will really help you out. https://bushraslifestyle.com/declutter-organize-home/
Hope it helps, otherwise, let me know If I can assist you with anything else, please
I love these tips! https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=CYF8pybcVYOC0LIr6gga2-KjQA7TCob1fxvzs1qUM-86vmt0ICAMQASC5VCgCYMmG_4fwo-wSoAHK4NiBA8gBAcgD2CCqBERP0H2UnJBbxHbqxoxmhIR42o_TQe4HOwA8EVZMXZi3soTqAghQ3gK4Dfdys8e4Kw6VaYD-_wx8XZSYfLXewzllTWVPN8AE8OTtybMDgAWQTqAGZoAHnp-nfogHAZAHAagHpr4bqAfw2RuoB_LZG6gH89EbqAfu0huoB8rcG7AIAdIIBRACIIQBmglGaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZGhvdXNla2VlcGluZy5jb20vaG9tZS90aXBzL2cyNjEwL2Jlc3Qtb3JnYW5pemluZy10aXBzL7EJX_6EyZBmAju5CV_-hMmQZgI7-AkBmAsBqgwCCAG4DAGIFALIFOWuw5HGgZ3KGdAVAYAXAQ&ae=2&ved=2ahUKEwjIqP-ctsTuAhVIb60KHXnjCuoQ0Qx6BAgOEAE&dct=1&dblrd=1&sival=AF15MEDOYgxR9WlKT_yA09eTiIFd7cWzRRZyJANT5-EwMLCr91eH9BrT-NRobXEKO2s7MZPHsvTWYwhQKY4J_zga6D84GX7bOxSnOsIpw5-YzDpfhSc0ehsK-JkocSeeD-Uh0wzwKCtHfPGngec6CVWB6NNEW9TtTG5c0HiQYKGah_4_B9Uqon8&sig=AOD64_0kP8YhbWY9O47lqhIl9G8zm-jieA&adurl=https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/tips/g2610/best-organizing-tips/%3Futm_source%3Dgoogle%26utm_medium%3Dcpc%26utm_campaign%3Darb_ga_ghk_d_bm_g2610
Sometimes its not always that we have things to throw away but we don't have convenient homes for the things that we use every day. If your clutter consists of pens and pencils, scissors etc. It may be because where those things belong is in a different room entirely. Sometimes our "clutter" is telling us they belong somewhere far from where we usually store them so its time to find a much more convenient place to store them near where we often leave them.
First of all you don't need to hold on to everything! I take photos of things that mean things to me but I have no room for. Memories are in your heart, not in your stuff. The first thing to do is to get rid of the junk you don't need or want. Buy plastic bins and organize the things you want to save. Keep things organized and you will be able to live more comfortably.
Go through one room or drawer or closet, or whatever at a time. Throw away or donate or sell whatever you have not used for one year. This is a good way to begin.
I watch the Marie Kondo series on decluttering on Netflix. She gives you all kinds of great ideas. She also has a book you can find at the library.