Some of the Many Decluttering Benefits Include:
- Saving time - How much time do you waste looking for items?
- Saving space - Decluttering frees up room to make movement easier in your home or office
- Hygiene - Decluttering and tidying makes cleaning easier
- Discovery - Decluttering can uncover many forgotten items that you haven't seen for a long time
- Energy - It takes physical and mental energy looking through clutter, plus stress when you cant find things
- Satisfaction - When you experience the satisfaction of seeing your decluttered, tidy and streamlined wardrobe or room you will understand how rewarding decluttering is.
Today is the best time to start.
Just like creating a healthy lifestyle can start immediately you can also create a beautiful clear and tidy life right now.
Decluttering is a progressive and constant process. Some areas which can be decluttered are:
Bathroom cupboards
Ensure medicines are current. Carefully and safely dispose of expired medications. Go through makeup to get rid of any old products which could be contaminated with bacteria so charts with makeup expiration times are good to check out. Bathroom cupboards can be organised tidily to get all your cleansing, self care and makeup routines done leaving a clean and orderly bathroom so here are some bathroom organisation ideas
Wardrobe
Go through each item of clothing, shoes and accessories to decide whether they “earn a place” in your wardrobe. A good tip is to think to yourself “Would I choose/buy this item if I didn’t already own it?” However if you do have trouble deciding which items to keep download my Wardrobe Organizing Workbook . The average woman spends 90 minutes a week deciding what to wear. This time can be shortened by decluttering.The goal is to be able to reach into your wardrobe and select an outfit to wear within five minutes. You know you will look and feel fabulous because it is the right colour, right style and right fit.
Home or Work Office Desk
Can you see the top of your desk? Are you able to locate a piece of paper or receipt that you need straight away? The goal with decluttering is to be able to locate something within a few minutes. As well as a beautiful, clear space you want your desk to be functional as this makes you more efficient and eliminates stress. You will provide better service for your clients and you will make your life and the life of your family a lot easier. This article contains some great Marie Kondo tips for tidying your desk or office space as well as decluttering your computer.
Toy Cupboard or Toybox
Decluttering the toybox or cupboard where toys are stored is a good idea to ensure the toys are not broken, are appropriate for the age and are not just taking up valuable space. It is also a good example to set for your children to keep this area clean and tidy. My daughter has had a conversation with her children about toys and donating to others less fortunate if they are not using them anymore. She said "kids are natural hoarders" so sometimes decluttering these areas can be done when they aren't around. Many mums have written great articles on this topic. Remember though that our partners and children cant be expected to declutter their "stuff" if we haven't gone through our own decluttering.
Refrigerator and Freezer
Once a week decluttering the refrigerator and freezer is a good habit to get into checking for food that is past its use by date. This applies especially to fresh fruit and vegetables. If you can make vegetables into stock or soups do this before they lose their vitamins and minerals. Here is a useful table of how long fresh food will last in your refrigerator and even at room temperature as some fruit and vegetables are actually better kept at room temperature.
Motor Vehicle
When my children were young it was easy for the car to get more and more cluttered especially if they are involved in a lot of different activities. A good habit to get into is to clear out the car at the end of each day. Encourage children to take their own bags, hats and other belongings with them when they get out of the car. A basket or container in the back of the car with essentials that you use from day to day is a good idea. Standard items that are good to keep in a car are tissues, wet wipes, sanitiser, umbrellas, spray water bottle, pen and notepad, phone charger and first aid kit. Here are the top 10 tips for cleaning your car out.
Books
Recipe and reading books can tend to accumulate. If you love reading like me it may be something you enjoy having around. I was interested to see some information on the Japanese word Tsundoku. The term means collecting books to read at a later date. As I have met so many other authors lately and have bought their books I appreciate having them when I get time to read.
My Best Tip - A "Clear the Deck Basket"
The best tool I used for decluttering was when I had a young family. It was a basket that I used for “clearing the deck”. If anyone was looking for something and couldn’t find it this basket had the most recent items in that didn’t get put into their proper place. It was sorted and emptied once a week to rightful homes or the contents trashed.
I now have a similar item under my home desk (pictured) and find that even with two of us at home there are times I need to "clear the decks" and it comes in handy.
Happy decluttering! Hope this is useful.
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