If you are finding navigating the rooms in your home increasingly difficult because of clutter, charting new routes around furniture, then it may be time to take action. Hoarding may make for popular TV fodder but none of us wants to star in that show.
Decluttering room by room and then organizing them efficiently will keep your home functional, clean, and harmonious. After all, tyou don’t want to look like a warehouse or someone’s garage. A surprising number of items you have laying around your home can be disposed of (if never used) or stored away so that they can open the way for more free space.
Your most attractive possessions, like lamps, vases, and other items which are primarily decorative can stay where they are if it suits you, but other objects should be considered for disposal in order to reserve your space for more useful items.
Eliminating clutter poses its own challenges, depending on each room and the quantity of the clutter located within. With this in mind consider that when you work be emotionally prepared to ditch items that you’ve owned for years.
It’s an unavoidable situation, but eventually you’ll find that you never needed them to begin with. How liberating is that! Follow these guidelines while in the decluttering mode:
Designate four large areas in each room, each with a box in it. Each box has a different purpose—sell, keep, charity, or trash.
A large plastic bag can also work for trash, depending on the size or weight of things you are throwing away. If you find that you have a bunch of clothes that you don’ wear anymore, segregate them now. Why not organize a clothes swap?
Pace yourself to prevent getting tired; an hour between breaks is a good suggestion. This kind of work necessitates emotional decisions, so taking these periodic breaks to think about certain things is beneficial.
Allow yourself the time to work on only one room at a time, finishing it completely. This allows you to focus and deal with your items at a comfortable pace.
Once all the clutter is sorted, move it out and vacuum, steam clean, or mop the floor as needed. You’ll be surprised at the home you haven’t seen in months if not years.
As a bonus, reclaiming all that space will give your home a sense of comfort that you may have been missing.
Look over the box of possessions that you intend to keep. Consider if you can donate or sell any of the items. One indicator to which items you can get rid of is to ask yourself this question: Have I not used these items for at least a year?
Now it’s time to consider the charity items.
Move the charity box to your car. Drop it off at a charity organization such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army. Some communities host large outdoor containers in parking lots so you can do a drive-by drop off. Check out any items you want to organize for and consider how you want to handle this.
As far as the items in your "put" box go, one good option is to sell them online. A couple of the most popular sites for this are eBay and Craig’s List.
To dispose of these items locally, consider a garage or yard sale. More expensive items are usually better handled by a consignment shop.
Your most attractive possessions, like lamps, vases, and other items which are primarily decorative can stay where they are if it suits you, but other objects should be considered for disposal in order to reserve your space for more useful items.
