Americans haven’t always had so much clutter in their lives. Did it begin after the Depression, when people wanted to hang on to everything ‘just in case?’ Did it begin with the invention of the Dollar store? Did it start because our homes and cars are now bigger than ever before; or did the homes and cars become bigger to hold all the clutter? The world may never know. But the bottom line is, we do have a problem with clutter. Our children collect it, we often wonder where it came from and what to do with it; it even shows up in our mailbox and in the form of email on our computers! There may not be a solution to the problem of clutter in America as a whole, but with a little ingenuity and a bit of organization, we can control clutter and force it to stop controlling us.
The best part about deciding to purge and organize your household clutter is that there are immediate results. This is just what we like, in our fast-food, instant gratification world. Following are some helpful tips that will get even the most offending pack rat on the road to freedom from clutter.
First, evaluate. Go into each room in your home and ask yourself several questions. Take a notebook and write it down if it helps. Ask yourself, what is the purpose of this room? Is it for sleeping, relaxing, working, exercising, eating, entertainment? Some rooms end up facilitating all of these activities, and unless you live in a one-room efficiency apartment, it just won’t work. The bedroom should be a haven for sleeping, relaxing, and having private moments. The kitchen is for cooking, eating, even entertaining. The living room may be used for relaxing and working. Either way, decide on the primary purpose of each room.
Next, go back to each room, individually, and ask the same questions. Look at each closet, cabinet, shelf, drawer, piece of furniture, article of clothing, and anything else you might find, and ask yourself if it belongs there? If not, where does it belong, and what, if anything, belongs in its place? Do this one room at a time.
After the evaluation phase, move on to purging. One room at a time, get everything out of the closet, the drawers, out from under the beds, anywhere you might have stashed something. Have it all out where it can be seen and take stock of what is there. When was the last time that dress was worn? When was the last time that orange juicer was used? If you need it and use it, don’t put it down – put it away. If you aren’t sure, ask yourself if you’ve used it at all in the past year. What about the past two years? Chances are if it wasn’t touched in the past year, it won’t ever be touched again. If you still aren’t sure, think about how you would advise a friend with the same item. If you don’t want it or need it, get rid of it.
Which brings us to the next step: getting rid of things. For this step you’ll need at least three large garbage bags or boxes for each room. Label the three bags as follows: “sell,” “give away,” and “trash.” It is important to label them because when you end up with multiple bags at the end of the day or week, you don’t want to have to sort back through them, trying to remember what goes where. Then go through all the things you’ve decided to get rid of. Garage sales can bring in extra cash, but there’s no guarantee your things will sell. Consignment shops are helpful for selling finer items. If you don’t want to deal with the hassle of either of these, give all the “sell” and “give away” items to the charity of your choice. Many charities such as Salvation Army, Good Will and Purple Hearts will send a truck right to your door to pick up the items for you. And if you want to write off the items on your tax return, be sure to list all items with the price at which you think you could sell them, and get a receipt from the charity, showing the items listed.
The last step is to put everything else away. Now that all the unnecessary stuff is out of your home, everything else should have a place.
A few things to remember: Rome wasn’t built in a day. Depending on the seriousness of your pack rat tendencies, this process may need to be carried out more than once. Often it is difficult to clearly see how much clutter you have until some of it is already gone. Also, do not expect to finish an entire room, much less the whole house, in one day. Allow yourself 10-15 minute increments a few times a day, or however you can fit it into your schedule. Do one drawer in one room at one sitting. Next time, move up to the next drawer and before you know it, the whole room will be done.
Once your home is clutter-free, you’ll want to maintain this newfound freedom. Do a 15-minute “clean up” a couple of times each day, depending on how much time you spend at home. In the mornings before you leave for work or after the children leave for school, set the oven timer for 15 minutes, and race around putting everything away. It’s amazing how much can be accomplished in so little time. Do the same thing in the evenings after dinner. If you spend your days in your home with children, this should probably be done a few more times. Once a week you should do a quick evaluation and purge of each room. Enlist the help of your spouse and children. In the end, you’ll revel in your clutter-free house and in the satisfaction of knowing that you, not your possessions, are in control of your life!
