This week Fall softly came to our city with the sound of rain drops on my window. I was happy with the thought that cooler weather was here with the hope it was here to stay. Then I watched the weather forecast and she said we would be back to summer temperatures by the end of the week. Softly summer is creeping back to keep us hot for awhile longer.
Isn't this just how it is with clutter in our homes? It softly creeps up on us until one day we say "Where on earth did all of this clutter come from"? I think we all have the idea or illusion that someday we will be organized and we will just stay organized. It doesn't work that way; we have to constantly put forth some effort into being organized. Here are some tips on how to do just that:
Clutter control in the kitchen:
Keep the dishwasher unloaded. This way when something needs to be loaded it can be.
After using a utensil, bowl, or pan load it in the dishwasher right then. This saves you time later on having to come back and loading. It also keeps the kitchen cleaner looking as dishes don't pile up in the sink.
When you use a spice from the spice rack put it back where you got it, don't just place it on the shelf anywhere. Alphabetize the spices, this saves time.
When fixing a meal that can be frozen, make two and freeze one. This will save time on those busy or tired days when you just don't want to cook.
Make a landing place for mail other than on the kitchen counter.
Clutter control in the master bedroom:
Hang up clothes as soon as you take them off, or put them in the laundry.
Make your bed every morning.
Avoid making your bed the landing place for clean laundry to stay.
Keep only clothes you can wear in your closet, this way clothes won't be clutter and they won't be cluttering your closet.
Clutter control in the bathroom:
Toss (recycle) bottles when they are empty, don't hold on to them to clutter your space.
Get rid of worn towels. Thin or holey towels are probably avoided yet when allowed to live in your cupboard just become clutter.
Get rid of soap slivers. Decorative soaps can also be clutter if they are never used and just take up space and become dusty.
Clutter control in the office:
Get rid of pens you don't like or don't use. You do not have to keep every pen that comes into your life. Keep all pencils sharp so when you need them you can use them.
Create a working filing system so paper doesn't scatter all over your desk.
Do not keep junk mail, get off junk mail lists. Google the word junk mail and you will have a plethora of options of how to do this. I use Proquo. It is free and they stop only the mail you want to stop from getting into your mail box.
In order to stay organized and control clutter it is something that has to be done on a constant basis. It is the little things that add up to the big things to make our homes unorganized. Doing the little things in every room one at the time will help us to be organized and to stay organized.
Marilyn's bio: Marilyn is a creative organizer who helps women, seniors and their families create space and end clutter in their homes and offices by setting up custom made systems.
Marilyn invites you to visit her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find solutions to your organizing needs. She offers free tips in her blogs, articles and videos for your home and office organizing solutions. |
