By MAD21
We all have one... A space in the house that is like a dumping ground. For some it's the garage, some it's the attic, others it's the 'spare room.' You know the kind, it's the space full of clutter where there is a mix of items that are used and unused, and things that need to either be given away, sold, or thrown away.
I am, by nature, a neat-freak. I am one of those people who can't stand the sight of clutter everywhere. It was much easier to live a life clutter-free before being married and having kids. Though, it wasn't too bad until the kids came along. Now it's a daily struggle to keep my house from looking like a giant toy box. I am happy to find out that as they get older, their toys seem to get smaller, so I do have some hope for the future...
Admittedly, sometimes being a neat-freak has it's draw backs. When life (time) gets away from me, I find that I just start piles, or stick things someplace out of site. This is not a bad thing until you find that a few weeks later, there is no longer counter space to make breakfast, and your 'spare room' looks like a bomb went off. So how do I remedy this?
Let's just say, I've started to notice that when my kids can't find something, they ask me if I've sold it. Seriously, I went through a major clean-out phase at one point (a YEAR ago), and went through almost everything in the house. Even though my kids were part of the process of going through toys and such, they are still traumatized affected by us going through all of our things. Don't be fooled, though. We had a lot of fun doing it (and need to do it again!).
I have found that the best way to clean things out, is to actually remove everything from the room. Clean the room so it looks and feels nice. And then as you go through everything you took out of the room, put your things in the following piles:
1. Keep (and put away... remember, touch it once).
2. Throw away (Have a yard trash bag or a big box. Also remember recycling for paper, etc.)
3. Give away.
4. Sell (I was shocked at what stuff sold at our yard sales. Don't underestimate the junk things people will buy!)
This actually works really well for small spaces like desks and closets, too. It seems to be much more effecient to just go through everything at once, than to try and organize it in it's current space.
A fellow-blogger Steph Calahan tweeted a great article she found this week on organizing a garage called, "Seven Steps to Conquer Clutter in Your Garage." Seems I'm not the only one who thinks organizing this way is a great way to clean things out.
Every Wednesday, fellow blogger Kristen at We are THAT Family posts clever ideas for getting things done. She calls it, "Works For Me Wednesday" or WFMW. Be sure to go visit her blog to read her post along with links to other blogs who are participating.