6 tips to help you contain the chaos!
I don’t know about you, I can just turn my back for a moment and my spotless kitchen can suddenly turn into a bomb site! But I suppose that is part of the contract when you sign up for kids isn’t it?
I am sure you know how it feels, you look around and your space is overcome by clutter and mess and you feel like you spend your day cleaning up after your family. Feel familiar?
FEAR NOT
It is possible for you to reclaim your home back and save yourself from the chaos. Here are some very simple ways for you to start decluttering and get the ‘natural’ chaos under control:
1. Fix It Immediately
Have you ever had a bulb go out and you have left it for weeks before you change it?
Yeah, me too.
Believe it or not, all these little jobs that need doing around the house such as a leaky tap, loose doorknob or a blown fuse can add up and just get you down.
Don’t wait – when it breaks fix it. Even keep a small tool kit handy so there is no excuse!
2. Store and stow away
Is your space covered in ornaments, crafts, books or out of season clothes?
Firstly, ask yourself “Do I still need this? Does it still serve a purpose in my life?” If the answer is no, then either donate it, throw it away or recycle it. Get it out of your house!
Anything else can be stored in stackable containers, kept out of your daily space, and brought out when needed.
WATCHOUT: Do not mistake storing for decluttering. Only store things you need and will use. We will dive into this topic in detail later!
3. Conquer Toy Mountain
Are you tripping over toys and teddies constantly?
Every night get the kids involved in a ‘tidying up’ game. Set a timer so they can get as much stuff back where it belongs, or put on a party song on with the expectation the room will be spotless by the last note.
Try to organise children’s bedrooms or playrooms with them in mind. Keep storage boxes down at their level so they can reach to find things and pack them away.
Also label the boxes with a word and a picture – this not only helps with tidy up time but also is educational!
4. A home for everything
Every object in your home should have a designated area and this should be communicated to the rest of the family, so they know where to return things. Even get the family involved in deciding locations for key items. This should stop you having to pull the whole house to pieces to find your scissors and Sellotape when you need to wrap a present!
5. Junk baskets
I love my junk baskets! I have one that lives at the bottom of the stairs and one that lives at the top.
Throughout the day as I am going about my normal activities, if I notice something out of place that should be in a different room I throw it in the basket. At the end of the day I take the baskets and place the items back where they should be. This only takes me 5 mins max, as each item has a home and I know exactly where they need to go.
Super easy way to keep the clutter at bay – plus you get to choose some pretty baskets to have on display!
6. Conquer Paperwork Mountain!
Now I don’t know about you, but paperwork has been the biggest issue in my house for sometime. It seems to multiply and end up in every room of the house before you know it.
NO LONGER!
Reason being is that I tackle it as soon as it enters the house and sort them into 3 piles:
a. Junk
b. Action
c. File
The junk items go immediately into the recycle bin, the action items go into my paper tray to follow up on (I nominate an evening a week to do house admin) and the file items go straight into the filling cabinet. I even have folders for coupons and event tickets to store things I will need to future events.
So there you go! Just pick one to get you started and give it a shot! Let me know how it goes or tell me any tips or tricks you have up your sleeve.
All of these tips have made a huge difference in my daily routine and I feel less like I am constantly tidying up after everyone. Even when I do need need to tidy, it takes me a fraction of the time.
Freedom is calling!
Not sure how to get started decluttering?
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I am going to help you move forward knowing how to get the motivation to get started on your decluttering journey and most importantly keep going. Follow these tips and watch your home become clutter free!