When you flick through home and lifestyle magazines, you are confronted with a page of neatly organized homes. You have probably thought at least once, “this just isn’t realistic, a lived-in home never looks like that.” Where are the kids’ toys littered across the floor of the child’s bedroom? Where are the shoes kicked off in the hallway?
But your home can look like this too. These aren’t unrealistic aspirations. Getting organized and getting your home in order will reveal how much floor space you actually have. By committing to these basic home-organization principles, you can live in a neat, clutter-free home.
The Size of the Home Should Dictate the Amount of Stuff You Have
Too many people think that they need all of the things in their home. They couldn’t possibly downsize. Where would they put the breadmaker? Where would the rice maker sit? What about the fryer?
The truth is, the size of your home should dictate the belongings you have, not the other way around. Living within your means doesn’t just apply to finances, it applies to special capabilities as well.
Maximize Your Loft Space
Loft storage is the low-hanging fruit of living a clutter-free lifestyle. It is a valuable storage space that sits totally out of sight. Therefore, you should fill it with as much as you can to keep your living spaces clutter-free. Visit this page for loft storage ideas and techniques.
Put a Stop to Impulse Buying
Stopping the clutter at its source is the easiest way to get a handle on keeping your home tidy. Reduce impulse buying, taking in free items you don’t need, free gifts from corporations, and any other avenues that funnel unnecessary items and furniture into your home.
Purge Every Six Months
Purging should be a bi-annual activity at the very least. As a general rule, anything you haven’t used or worn in a year should be gone. A year gives you the opportunity to use it in both summer and winter, at formal and informal events. If it hasn’t been touched in over a year it begs the question, do you really need it?
Observe a One in One Out Rule
When procuring furniture and buying new items, observe a one in one out rule. This will keep the rough number of possessions you own at a relatively stable number. It will also help you cut down on unnecessary purchases.
Everything Should Have a Place
The coffee table is not a place where something lives. Nor is the hallway floor. Everything should have its own place where it sits. If you don’t have enough storage spaces for everything to have its own place, think about investing in another chest of draws, more shelving, a coffee table which doubles as a trunk, or some under-seat storage.
Have a Junk Drawer
If you absolutely need a space to clutter up, try and keep it to just one drawer. We all have them. The draw where you could open it and pull out anything from an old AA battery, keys to a Ford you haven’t owned since 1997, or the missing piece of a jigsaw puzzle. There is nothing wrong with having limited space for clutter in a small, out of the way drawer.
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