So many customers ask me how to maintain organization in their homes. Start organizing your home! In my blog today, I will share three tricks to keep your home organized – 3 D’s game plan!
I am not an extreme designer whose home always looks staged like a page from a magazine. I am a minimalist designer. This makes my family’s life more visually pleasing, more functional, cleaner and easier. This idea goes back to my core design principles; Simple is chic and less is more. People seem to realize that it is not easy for them to change their life styles and behavior at home. However, by doing so, here are major five things that you gain:
- Less mess to clean up
- A clutter-free home de-clutters your mind
- An organized home helps find your stuff easier
- Maximizes your home square footage for potential functional usage
- Saves time and money not to buy stuff you do not need
How can you achieve creating an organized home? Here is the game plan – The 3 D’s!
- De-clutter
- Divide and conquer
- Do it immediately
Step 1: De-Clutter
We are consumers, buying stuff and more stuff. We accumulate so much stuff in our homes over time that we do not have enough space in our homes to hold it all. The only way to clean this mess is to de-clutter. Sell, donate, and haul away stuff you do not need or use. I am talking about physical stuff, not important paper records. My rule of thumb is if you have not used an item for the last 2 years, that item must go. We do not need to keep all duplicates of similar items. Keep items only if you like them and they have obvious homes. We keep on de-cluttering for the rest of our lives because we are creatures of a habit. Sounds hard, right? That’s what it takes.
Step 2: Divide and Conquer
Prioritize and decide which space to de-clutter completely. You cannot stop in the middle. You need to continue de-cluttering until you conquer that space. You also repeat this process semi-annually or annually because we will keep accumulating stuff even after conquering the space once. Having a designated spot for everything helps with this process when you “divide and conquer” your space. You also need to establish your own organization system where stuff you use often is easily accessible in a space efficient way. It is not easy when your kids are small, but they can be trained this way when they are small. Plant good seeds in your kids! Every person will need to deal with this sooner or later.
I usually de-clutter my space in spring and fall. Surprisingly, clutter takes over very quickly but it gets easier and easier as you maintain organization regularly. I suggest tackling your kitchen or master closet first. You spend time in those spaces more frequently, and good organization really helps improve the feel of the space and your clutter free-mind.
Step 3: Do It Immediately
I clean things up immediately if I can do it in less than three minutes. Certain things take much longer, which you cannot do at that specific moment. You would need to designate some time for that. However, generally, putting things away in their original positions, wiping stuff off a surface, and making a space in a presentable state takes only a few minutes once your space is organized. You need to be firm about this with yourself. I do not delay cleaning up because we tend to mess up a space faster than we clean it.
Hope this article helps organizing your home. Have a happy de-cluttering day!
*Featured image via Elfa
