Month: May 2020

Hello and welcome back to our organizing series!

We have been taking time to organize different rooms in your house in our “Organize Your Entire Home in 20 Days” series.

So far, we have only focused on rooms and spaces, but today, we are going to focus on things; children’s toys!

We’re going to get your children’s toys from looking like the picture on the left to the picture on the right!

On Day 8, we worked through the kids dressers and closets so today we are going to engage the kids again and sort through their toys.

Gather up the kids and get ready, today is a fun one!

As always, the first step in the organization process is to gather all of the toys together. Find all of the toys in the entire house and gather them all into one room.

This includes small toys, big toys, electronic devices and games, board games, art supplies, DVDs, books, bathtub toys, outdoor toys, and all of the in between!

By gathering all of the toys and putting them into one area, you will be able to see how many toys your children have and will set you up for the next step.

Next, categorize the toys into groups based on what kind of toy it is.

Put all of the dolls together, stuffed animals together, cars together, cooking ware together, books together, coloring supplies together, DVDs together, and so on until all of the toys are grouped together.

Once you have categorized everything into broad groups, start making even more detailed and smaller groups within all of the larger ones.

The more specific you can make the groups, the better your organization foundation will be. This ensures your children’s toys will continue to be organized long after today’s process is over.

For example, start categorizing your doll group into smaller groups based off of what kind of doll it is.

An easy way to do this is sort everything in the group by each brand! Do this for all of the broad groups.

Look at the picture below to see the benefits (look and function!) of categorizing the toys into detailed groups.

By grouping together all of the toys, you and your children will be able to easily see the toys that are played with frequently, the toys that are no longer played with, the toys that there is an unnecessary excessive amount of and the toys that are broken.

After all the toys have been categorized, it’s time to decide what you are keeping, donating or trashing.

Toys that your family wants to keep should be the ones that your children still play with and they definitely will be using in the future.

Toys that need to be donated are ones that are still in good condition but your children no longer play with, have outgrown or have too many of.

Toys that are trash are ones that are broke, you can’t find all of the pieces to, or have been drawn on.

It’s important during this process that toys are sorted through and these decisions are made. If you continue to keep all of the toys without departing with some, they will continue to get cluttered and create messes within your home.

Remember, you can’t organize clutter!

If you and your children are having difficulty deciding on what toys should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my played with this toy? Does this toy still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one toy do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this toy than I would?

By asking your and your children these questions about toys you aren’t sure of, you are allowing you children to be honest with themselves about which toys they still enjoy. Any toys your children keep but don’t need will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

By giving away these toys, you are not only clearing the mess from your house, you are also allowing someone else to use them that may need them more than you.

Once you have made decisions on the toys, its time to clean the toy room.

Wipe clean any shelves and large toys. Spray disinfectant spray on the commonly touched surfaces like doorknobs and light switches in the room. Finish up by vacuuming or sweeping the floor.

After you have cleaned the room where the toys are kept, its time to contain and put away the toys.

Do you children have storage units to keep their toys in?

If yes, perfect! Start putting the toys back into bins based off the groups you previously categorized them in.

If no, then now is a good time to invest in some storage units for your kids. When your children don’t have a spot to store their toys when not being used then that’s when the mess starts to form.

Check out the picture below to see the difference a storage organizer can make.

Cubed bins with baskets and storage racks are great for toys because they have multiple dividers so your children’s toys can be stored in the categories that you previously sorted them by. These storage units are from Target and are definitely some of my favorite to use in toy rooms!

For each group of toys that you categorized, assign a certain bin for that group. Giving each group an assigned bin, you are giving “homes” to those toys which will help keep them organized going forward.

Put all of the toys in their designated bins, boxes, or on shelves.

Don’t forget to label the bins so your children can easily and quickly see where to put their toys back!

To keep your house looking tidy and toy free passed today, it’s best to have rules where toys are allowed and where toys are not allowed.

Toys can be stored in rooms that your children spend most of their time in and where toys won’t be in the way (children’s bedrooms, family room, or a toy room).

Toys shouldn’t be allowed in rooms that the children don’t spend time in or rooms that toys would clutter the area (your bedroom, your office, the kitchen, and dining room).

By setting boundaries where toys can be kept, it will help keep your house organized and prevent toys from creating more clutter.

Your children’s toys don’t have to be kept in a mess!

By clearing out old toys and creating designated spots for the remaining ones, the toys can easily stay tidy.

If you are still feeling overwhelmed with the toys or would like extra help, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Hi, friends! Welcome back to our Organize Your Entire Home in 20 Days series!

You have done such a good job cleaning out and tidying up so far! We’ve worked through the entryway, coat closet, your kitchen cabinets and counters, the pantry, living room and the dining room!

Now that we have tidied up the common areas of the house, we’re going to start going into different bedrooms.

First bedroom up, your kids! Today we will be focusing on the kids dressers and closets.

Today would be a great day to get your children involved in the decluttering process so they can help you make decisions and they can start to build good habits on keeping their spaces tidy.

Start them out young!!

Keep in mind their age at this point. Younger kids will have a harder time getting rid of things, even if they don’t really care about these items. This applies to clothes and toys.

For example, we had a client who’s daughter loved an old t shirt. It no longer fit her, so in order for her to keep this shirt and continue to enjoy it, we framed it! Now she can look at it and remember it versus it taking up space and gathering dust on the shelf.

The first step in the organizing process is to start pulling everything out of the dresser and closet.

Pull out clothes, shoes, hangers, toys (only if the toys were in the dresser or closet though, don’t worry about ALL of their toys today, we will dive into all their toys on Day 9!), memorable keepsakes, and anything else that may be hiding in those areas.

By pulling everything out of the closet and drawers, you will be able to see what items really belong there and what items were just taking up space and need to go somewhere else.

After you have brought everything out of the dresser and closet, the next thing to do is start grouping all of the items together in similar categories.

If two of your kids share a dresser and closet, sort each of their items in their own separate groups.

Put all of the shirts together, all of the jackets together, all of the shorts together, all of the toys together, and so on until all of the items that were pulled from the spaces are grouped together.

By grouping together all of the like items you will easily be able to see what clothing and toy items that you have and may have too many of.

After you have categorized all of the clothing, its time to decide if you’ll be keeping, donating or trashing them.

If you haven’t done so already, enlist the help of your children while making these decisions, there is no point to holding onto clothing they don’t even like to wear!

Items that you want to keep should be things that serve your family a purpose and you definitely will be using in the future.

These are going to be things like memorable keepsakes, clothes and shoes the child still wears/fits into, and toys that the child plays with regularly.

Items that need to be donated are things that are still in good condition but no longer serve a purpose for your family.

These are going to be things like clothing and shoes that no longer fit your child and can’t be used as hand-me-downs in the future, toys that none of the children in the house currently play with, and any item there is an excess of.

Items that are trash are things that don’t serve your family any further purpose and wouldn’t serve anyone else purpose either.

These are going to be things like clothes or shoes that have stains or are torn, toys that are broken, or that art project your child made but doesn’t care about any longer.

If you are having difficulty deciding on what items should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my family used/wore this item? Does this item still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one item do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this item than I would?

By asking yourself these questions about items you aren’t sure of, you are opening your mind and being honest with yourself about the needs of your family. Any items that you keep but you don’t need will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

By giving away these items, you are not only clearing the mess from your house, you are also allowing someone else to use these items that may need them more than you.

Also keep in mind that if your younger children or future children can wear these clothes, you can store them in bins, labeled for the age groups they fit! That way, they are out of sight in a storage room until you need them.

Once you and your children have made decisions on all of the items, step away from the piles because now we are going to take some time to clean the dresser and closet.

Since there is nothing left in the dresser or closet, now is the best time to clean in those hard to reach areas.

Start by dusting the highest to reach surfaces and work your way down, wiping any flat surfaces along the way. Don’t forget to wipe inside the drawers and the outside of the dresser.

After all of the flat surfaces have been wiped down, vacuum/sweep the floor inside the closet and underneath the dresser (have someone help you move the dresser if needed!).

Once the dresser and closet have been cleaned, its time to contain and put away the items.

For best results, hang all of the nice and formal clothing in the closet and fold the casual clothes to be put away in the dresser.

When putting clothing back into the closet, hang the clothing items back up in the categories that you previously sorted them in (shirts, jackets, jeans. etc.).

In addition, hanging items up in a color coded system will also make finding clothes easier and makes the closet look more tidy. Check out this blog post on 10 Closet Hacks You Must Use for additional tips on getting a closet looking clutter free.

Once all of the clothing that needs to be hung up is in the closet, focus on the clothing that you want to keep in the dresser.

Since casual clothing is worn more frequently, it needs to be easily accessible to the child to reach on his/her own.

In the same way that you hung up the clothing by categories and color, do the same for the clothes that will be folded.

Dedicate each drawer of the dresser to a certain category of clothing (underwear, T-shirts, shorts, bathing suits, etc.). Watch this video on tips to fold the clothing so that the clothes are easy to see and are kept organized while in the drawers.

After you have all of the clothing items put away, the next step is to put the shoes away.

Do you have a shoe organizer? If yes, then perfect, start putting the shoes in that. If no, you should consider investing in one.

Having shoes stored away in an organizer really helps with keeping the floor clear and the room looking tidy. Target has some great options for shoe storage that are cute, functional, and inexpensive.

Finish up by gathering the remaining items and sorting them into their own separate bin for each category. Label any bins you use and place them on a shelf of the closet or in a cube organizer.

By having a home for all of these miscellaneous items, the room will continue to look neat and your children will know where items belong when they are finished using them.

For any of the items that were in your children’s dressers and closets at the beginning of the process but don’t actually belong there, now is the time to deal with those leftover items. Have your children help you place the items where they actually belong within your house.

Many people believe kids rooms are just destined to be messy, but that doesn’t have to be the case!

By using these tips, you will be able to clear out the clutter that was in your children’s dressers and closets so their rooms will be a clean space as well.

It’s also smart to start your kids off cleaning and organizing young — that’s the best time to form these habits for later in life!

If you are feeling overwhelmed with the organizing or would like extra help, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Hello, friends! Welcome to Day 7 of Organizing Your Entire Home in 20 Days!

We are going to keep moving forward with the different areas in your house and today we are going to focus on your dining room!

This space is not often present in newer homes. The need for a formal dining area isn’t what it used to be. If you don’t have a dining room, you may have some of the elements we discuss in this blog in other areas of the home.

Make sure to check out the hutch in your kitchen or the table everyone sits at near the living room. You can check out our posts from earlier in the series!

The dining room is a place to gather and relax with your family, if you don’t feel that way when in your dining room, this one is for you. Let’s get started!

The first step in the organizing process is to gather all of the items that are in the dining room and place them on the table.

Bring out all of the items that are in dining room server or hutch, from within drawers, and leave anything that was on the table at the beginning. This includes any papers, dishes, decorations, seasonal items and any other miscellaneous items.

Gathering all of the items together will help you see what items truly belong there and what items need to find a spot elsewhere in your house.

After you have gathered together all of the items in the dining room, its time to categorize everything into groups.

Place all of the similar items together; plates with plates, mugs with mugs, decorations with decorations, and so on. Keep going until all of the items that you brought out are in a group with other like items.

By categorizing all of the items together, you will easily be able to see what items you no longer want, items that you have too many of, or items that you no longer use.

As you’re putting everything into groups, throw away any trash that you see as you.

Once everything is categorized into groups and trash is thrown away, its time to make the decision on whether you’re going to keep, donate, or trash the items.

Items that you want to keep should be things that serve your family a purpose and you definitely will be using in the future.

These are going to be things like everyday dishes, memorabilia dishes, current decorations and seasonal items that you still enjoy using during their respective seasons.

Items that need to be donated are things that are still in good condition but no longer serve a purpose for your family.

These are things like old decorations, dishes that your family no longer uses and any items that there is an excess of.

Items that are trash are things that don’t serve your family any further purpose and wouldn’t serve anyone else purpose either.

These are going to be items like broken dishes or decorations, paperwork that has no use or any other item that you were holding onto but don’t have a use for.

If you are having difficulty deciding on what items should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my family used/wore this item? Does this item still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one item do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this item than I would?

By asking yourself these questions about items you aren’t sure of, you are opening your mind and being honest with yourself about the needs of your family. Any items that you keep but you don’t need will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

By giving away these items, you are not only clearing the mess from your house, you are also allowing someone else to use these items that may need them more than you.

With nothing occupying the space, now is the best time to clean it!

Dust all of the high flat surfaces, wipe inside (and out!) of any drawers or cabinets and sweep/vacuum the floor. Take a moment and wipe clean any fine dish sets that are usually just gathering dust in the dining room hutch.

Finish up the cleaning by wiping down the legs of the table and chairs.

Once the dining room is clean, it’s time to start putting everything back. When organizing your dining room, you want your goal to be to have the dining room table clear besides decorations.

Look how pretty this one is! So nice and clear!

To make that possible, you want to utilize any furniture (dining room server, hutch, console table) to store away items that would normally, and unnecessarily, just take up space on your table.

When putting the items back into their spaces, make sure you keep them grouped together in the categories that you previously sorted them in and contain with bins whenever possible.

This will keep your dining room from looking like a cluttered mess again.

Use a dining room hutch (or any furniture that you use in your dining room) to display your finer dishes and seasonal dishes that aren’t used as often.

You can also use a dining room hutch for storing small items like decorations, candles, and kitchen utensils that are only used for special occasions.

Bins and baskets are perfect for holding these small items so they stay organized while inside the hutch.

Finish up putting the items away by labeling any bins you use!

Labeling bins helps you create “homes” for everything. By creating a designated spot for all of the different items, it will be easier to keep it all tidy when you are going about your day.

Now is the time to deal with all of the leftover items on your dining room table.

What are those items? Is it paperwork that belongs in the office? Your children’s backpack that needs to be returned to their bedroom? Or is it dirty dishes and food that need to be taken back to the kitchen?

Whatever the items may be, now is the time to put them where they belong. Take note of who these items mainly come and have a conversation with that person on the importance of keeping a clean dining room.

The last step in organizing your dining room is to wipe the dining room table top clean once there are no more items on it.

Another great way in helping keep clutter from accumulating on the cleared dining room table, place decorations in the center of table (candles, vases, plants or any cute thing you see while walking through Target!).

By having items already set on your table, you will be less likely to leave items like old mail or lunchboxes sitting on the table since that space is already being taken up.

If your dining room is a only used for formal affairs, have place settings already set up around the table to also prevent unwanted clutter from gathering.

Don’t forget that we also offer Home Event Prep services! We are happy to help you get ready for a family get-together, holiday party or special event!

If you still feel like you may need help with tackling your dining room (or any spaces in your home!), please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team for help.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Hello!

Welcome to Day 6 of Organizing Your Entire Home in 20 days! For Day 6 we are going to be focusing on the living room!

The living room is the gathering place for the family and many memories are made here. On the downside of that though, it’s where a lot of messes happen and clutter’s favorite place to take up residence.

Many people try to procrastinate cleaning this area because they feel that it will just go back to being cluttered, but if you establish an “organizational foundation“, you’ll be much better equipped to keep the space tidy!

Since a living room has a lot of different areas in them, we’re going to focus on four main zones.

The four zones we’re going to focus on is the sitting areas (couches, recliners), flat surfaces (coffee tables, side tables), entertainment area (entertainment center, collection of DVDs/movies, gaming devices and disks, board games), and study space (bookshelf, desk, computer surface).

By focusing on 4 main areas, it will help today’s process be less overwhelming. If your living room has more than those spaces, include those areas while you are decluttering today but still continue to think of the spaces as different zones so it doesn’t become too much.

The first step in the organizing process is to pull everything out of the space. This may seem like an overwhelming thing to do, but no worries, trust the process and you will love the end result!

Focusing on one of the main zones at a time, put all of the items that you are pulling out into the center of the living room.

Starting with the sitting areas, pull everything out that is on or around those surfaces.

Then move on to the flat surfaces, taking any items that are on or around them and placing them into the center of the room as well.

Keep going with the entertainment area, bring out every single item that is in that space (even the big items!) and add those items into your collection in the center of the room.

Lastly, do the same with the study area, pulling all of the items in or around that space and place them in the center of the room with all of the other items.

By pulling out all of the items that occupy the space, you will be able to see what items truly belong there and what items need to find a spot elsewhere in your house.

**If you don’t have these four areas, you can also start in one corner of the living room and work your way around the edges and through the entire space!

Once you have pulled everything out of the four main areas in the living room, categorize all of the items into groups together and throw away any trash that you see along the way.

Group all of the movies together, the books together, remotes together, decorations together, and so on until everything is in a group with other like items.

Grouping together like items will help you make decisions about what you want to keep, donate, or trash.

Once you have categorized everything, its time to make the decisions on whether you want to keep, donate or trash the items.

Items you want to keep should be things that serve your family a purpose and you definitely will be using in the future.

These are things like memorable keepsakes, current decorations, up to date electronic items, office supplies that your family is using, and any books that your family will still read.

Items that need to be donated are things that are still in good condition but no longer serve a purpose for your family.

These are things like old decorations, items that you have an excess of, and outdated items like movies, books, or gaming devices that your family no longer uses.

Items that are trash are things that don’t serve your family any further purpose and wouldn’t serve anyone else purpose either.

These are going to be things like remotes that don’t have a host, a broken toy, a stack of old newspapers, burned out candles, or any other item that you were holding onto that wouldn’t serve anyone a purpose.

If you are having difficulty deciding on what items should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my family used this item? Does this item still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one item do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this item than I would?

By asking yourself these questions about items you aren’t sure of, you are opening your mind and being honest with yourself about the needs of your family. Any items that you keep but you don’t need will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

When you give away these items, you are not only clearing the mess from your house, you are also allowing someone else to use the items that may need them more than you.

After you have made decisions about all of the items, its time to clean the living room!

Start by dusting the highest surfaces in the room, wipe/dust down all other flat surfaces, and sweep/vacuum the floor. Wipe inside any cabinets or drawers as well. Then, wash any rugs and throw blankets that are in the room.

Use disinfectant spray or wipes to sanitize commonly touched surfaces like remotes, light switches, toys and sitting surfaces. Finish up by spraying the room with a fresh air spray or lighting a candle so the room smells as fresh as it looks!

Once the living room is clean, it’s time to start putting the items that you are keeping back into their places.

Again, we’re going to focus on one of the main zones at a time.

Starting with the sitting areas, let’s set those spaces back up. Plump any decorative pillows, fold and display any throw blankets, and gather up small items (remotes, drink coaster, candle, etc.) and place them in a cute decorative tray.

By having any decorations or items that you use frequently contained in a decorative tray, you are still able to easily access the items but they also look tidy and clutter-free. Check out these cute trays from Target to get this effortlessly cute look.

Finish putting together the sitting area by gathering any excess throw blankets and pillows and place them in a decorative basket like these from Target.

Then move on to the flat surfaces. Place the items that need to be on any coffee table or side tables in the same fashion that you displayed items in the sitting space. Containment is your best friend!

Once you are satisfied with the flat surfaces, move onto the entertainment section in your living room. In the same way that you contained the items in the other areas of your living room, the same applies for this area as well.

Separate all of the miscellaneous items that belong in this area (cords, gaming remotes, other small items that you would have laying around in the living room) and put them in corresponding bins. I love using Y bins for this specific purpose!

Finish up by straightening up the study area. Put any books, magazines or office supplies back in their spots in bins like you did for the entertainment area.

Remember, you’re not just putting things back “in a neat way,” you’re building a lasting organizational system so take some time to find what works best for you!

Using bins or small organizers will continue to keep this space clutter free and easy to put things back into their “homes” after use.

Don’t forget to label any bin that you use!

For any items that were in your living room at the start of the process and were not put back away in the last step, now is the time to put those leftover items away.

This could be any item that doesn’t belong in your living room like kids toys, clothing, or any other item that had just got thrown down and left there.

Just like you did on Day 4, pinpoint where most of the clutter is coming from and take actions to prevent it from continuing to happen over and over again.

If you want to keep your living room from looking like the children’s play area, the best thing to do it not allow for toys to be in there to begin with. If that’s not possible, then set rules on how many toys each child can have in the living room at a time.

Make it a priority every night to spend a few minutes to pickup any toys that are still in there. And the same goes for you! Set rules for yourself on how long your stuff can sit in the living room before you have to take care of it.

Your living room should be a place to sit down and relax with your family.

If you don’t feel that way when you sit with your family, try these tips and if you’re still feeling overwhelmed, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team for help.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Hello, friends! Welcome to Day 5 of Organizing Your Entire Home in 20 Days!

We are going to keep working in your kitchen and organize your pantry today!

Just like the other areas in your kitchen (Day’s 3 & 4 can be read here), the pantry is visited often throughout the day by many different people. Therefore, the functionality and design of your pantry is so important to ensure your kitchen stays organized. Let’s get started!

The first step in today’s process is to bring out all of the items in the pantry. Bring out all of the food, paper ware, utensils, reusable shopping bags, beverages and anything else that you keep in your pantry.

Keep pulling out all of the items until there is nothing left there. By pulling out all of the items from the pantry, you will be able to clearly see what items you are working with.

After you have brought all of the items out from the pantry, categorize everything into groups based on the different types of food groups.

Group together the pastas, sauces, grains, chips, baking ingredients, back stock items, breakfast items, breads, beverages, and cooking utensils, until all of the items in the pantry are in a group with similar items.

Grouping together all of the items based on categories will help find the right “homes” for all of the different food you keep in your pantry.

Check out the picture below if you need some extra help figuring out how to categorize your food.

While you are grouping together the items, check expiration dates on all of the food and throw anything away that has expired. Also be on the lookout for empty boxes or old food containers to throw away.

The next step to organizing the pantry is making decisions on whether you will be keeping, donating, or trashing the items.

The decisions for items from the pantry aren’t as intense but still be honest with yourself about the needs of your family and which items you could part ways with.

Things you want to keep are food items that is still within the expiration date, food that your family will be eating, and utensils that your family will be using.

Items that you want to donate are going to be nonperishable items that your family will not eat and kitchen utensils your family no longer uses. For example, the last time I decluttered my pantry, I donated my snow cone maker that I bought impulsively and only ever used once.

Items that you should trash are food items that have expired and any kitchen utensils that are broken.

Once you have categorized all of the items from your pantry and made decisions on what you’ll be keeping, it’s time to clean it!

Wipe down all of the shelves, clean the inside any baskets or bins, wipe any bottles or glasses that are stored in the pantry and vacuum/sweep the floor.

Once the pantry is cleaned, its time to put all the items in containers based on the categories that you previously grouped them together in.

You may be asking yourself “Do I have to use containers and bins?”

To ensure your pantry stays organized, the best strategy is to contain the item so everything doesn’t get scattered around. Containment gives “homes” to all of the food items so everything is easy to find and easy to put away.

So the answer to that question is solely dependent on you. I do highly recommend it for the best long term results, however, build an organization system that is best for you and your family.

My favorite product to use in pantries (and refrigerators!) to contain items are these acrylic bins from Target.

They come in an assortment of sizes for all of the different food items, they are clear so you can see what items are being stored in them, and they look uniform so your pantry not only functions well, but also looks great.

When placing the items back into your pantry, make sure items your children grab on their own (snacks, breakfast foods, beverages), are on the lower shelves so they are easy to reach for your kids.

Place any larger kitchen utensils that are not commonly used (air fryer, snow cone maker) and back stock items (extra ketchup’s, salad dressings, oils) on higher shelves since you will not be reaching for those frequently.

Then, place the rest of the food items in between those shelves.

For hard to reach corners, use Lazy Susan’s to keep all of your cooking items easily accessible.

Another easy way to tidy up your pantry is to hang hooks along the inside of the pantry door to keep your reusable shopping bags and lunch bags organized.

Here are a few of our favorite pantry projects!

Don’t forget to label any bins you used so your family will know where to place things in the newly organized pantry!

For any items that are leftover (because they didn’t actually belong in the pantry), now is the time to take those items back to where they really belong.

To ensure your pantry doesn’t become messy again, talk with your family about the new organization system so everyone is aware of the new changes you made.

You want your family’s pantry to be a well organized space so gathering ingredients and making meals isn’t a chore.

With these tips, your pantry will become an easy to use area. If you’re still feeling overwhelmed with the process, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Hi guys! Welcome to Day 4 of Organizing Your Entire Home in 20 Days!

I hope you guys have learned a lot of tricks for keeping your home clutter-free in the past 3 days and I hope Day 4 brings you just as much satisfaction as the previous day’s projects.

Let’s get started!

Today we’re going to keep working through your kitchen and tackle another project in this room. Day 4 will be focused on decluttering your kitchen counter tops.

Although the main focus will be the counters, the process from today can (and should be!) applied to any flat surfaces in your home.

Kitchen counters are an easy spot in your home to become cluttered because, just like your kitchen cabinets and drawers, there are many people passing by them and using them throughout the day.

No worries though, after we finish today’s project, we’re going to be talking about some additional tips to ensure the flat surfaces in your home stay clutter-free.

Since all of the items we will be working with today are already on the counter tops, we can skip the process of pulling them all out. Let’s move along to the next step which is categorizing everything into groups.

What are the items that are currently on your counters? Is it stuff leftover from a kids art project? Is it bags of groceries that need to be put away? Is it a lot of small kitchen appliances?

Whatever it may be, start putting all of the items into like item groups. By grouping together similar items, you will be able to easily see which of these items really belong in your kitchen and which ones do not.

As you’re grouping together items, throw away any trash you come across.

Once you have everything grouped together, start making decisions on which items you should keep, donate or trash.

Items you want to keep are items that your family still uses on a regular basis and still add value to your families lives. These are going to be things like small appliances (toaster, blender, coffee machine), kitchen tools (knife block, fruit basket, paper towel holder), and food that is still in expiration (fruit, vegetables, butter).

Items that need to be donated are going to be items that no longer serve a purpose for your family or items that you have too many of. This could be something like a coffee maker if you have two but only use one or if you have a toasted but never use it.

Items that are trash are going to be things your family nor anybody else’s family could benefit from. These are going to be any items that are broken, expired, or any old paperwork.

If you have any tools or appliances in your kitchen that are broken, go ahead and throw them away. If there are any expired food items that were on your counter at the beginning of this process, go ahead and trash those as well.

As for any paperwork, sort through it, and decide what can be thrown away and what is worth keeping (we will be digging deeper into paperwork clutter on Day 15: The Office!).

If you are having difficulty deciding on what items should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my family used this item? A good rule of thumb on donating an item is, if you haven’t used it in the last six months, you don’t need it. Does this item still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one item do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this item than I would?

By asking yourself these questions about items you aren’t sure of, you are opening your mind and being honest with yourself about the needs of your family. Any items that you keep but you don’t need will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

When you give away these items, you are not only clearing the mess from your house, you are also allowing someone else to use the items that may need them more than you.

Once you have made decisions on all of the items, it’s time to clean the counter tops!

Start by wiping all of the counters down. Now is the perfect time to be able to scrub in those hard-to-reach corners and wipe underneath where the small kitchen appliances usually sit.

It’s also a good time to make decisions about what stays on the counter and what can go in the cabinets.

You can get cabinet drawers to use some of the appliances without keeping them on the counter.

It’s also a good time to wipe down all of the builtin appliances, these things are usually skipped on a day-to-day cleaning so let’s go ahead and clean them while we can.

To continue on with our cleaning, sweep and mop the kitchen floor and wash any rugs that may be on the kitchen floor (if you skipped this part yesterday!).

Once the kitchen is cleaned, its time to start putting the remaining items back in their places.

Ideally, the only items that are on your kitchen counters are items that are used daily like your coffee maker, utensil jar, fruit basket and decorations.

By having only commonly used items on your counter tops, it will prevent them from getting cluttered with too much stuff.

For any items that you do leave on your counters, contain them if possible. Using cute trays to place you stuff in keeps them looking neat and tidy. Check out the picture below and note how all of the utensils on the counter are kept in a serving tray.

If you’re anything like me, you want your kitchen to be equal parts functional and cute to look at. If you also feel like your counter tops look too empty, add decorations like cute vases, candles or plants to fill the space so you will feel less inclined to let clutter fill the spot.

After you have put away the items you want to remain on your kitchen counters, let’s look at all of the items that are still there from when we started this process.

These items don’t belong in your kitchen and need to find homes somewhere else in your house. This could be things like homework that your kids left out, backpacks that need to be put away, or laundry baskets of clothes that need to be folded, whatever it may be let’s put it where it goes now.

All done! Now doesn’t that feel good? Now that you have completed decluttering another area of your home, let’s talk about a few habits to start building to prevent surfaces like your kitchen counters from getting messy again.

The first habit to embrace is preventing it from happening to begin with. Similar to a junk drawer, it’s easy to put something down on the counter and think to yourself “I’ll come back for this later.”

In reality though, with how busy life can get, you’re not going to come back to it later and it’s just going to become clutter in your house. It’s best just to deal with things now instead of having them build up, and build up, and build up to where it starts to feel too overwhelming.

The next habit to get into is to start building themes or patterns of where the stuff is coming from or who this stuff is coming from.

If all the items on your kitchen counters seem to be coming from the same person in your household, have a conversation with that person about how leaving their stuff out in common areas affects the family’s well being in the home. Help that person start to build better habits about decluttering as well.

The last habit that you should be building is having a rule for yourself and your family about how long clutter can stay on the flat surfaces in your house.

For example, this can mean items on your kitchen counter have to be dealt with and put away by the end of the day. For other surfaces that aren’t used as much, like a coffee table, items need to be put away and dealt with by the end of the week.

Find a system that works best for you and your family and hold everyone accountable for these rules.

Again, it’s easy to set things aside and think you’ll put them away later but the truth is, it’s better to just do it now.

The longer you wait to clean it up, the worse the clutter will become.

If you are still feeling overwhelmed with the organizing or would like extra help, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Congratulations, you made it to Day 2 of our Organize Your Entire Home in 20 Days series!

I hope you are just as excited as we are to continue working through your home and clearing out all of the clutter!

For Day 2, we are going to be focusing on the coat closet. Like the entryway, the coat closet serves an important role for your family as they enter and leave your house.

Coat closets are easy to get cluttered because they are frequently visited throughout the day but only for a few moments at a time so you never actually have to look at the damage inside.

No worries though, organizing coat closets is one of our favorites!

Check out more of our favorite before and after pictures here!

Start by pulling everything out. Pull out all of the coats, the boots, the umbrellas; absolutely nothing stays in the space during the organization process.

When you pull out of the items from the space, it makes it easier for you to see what items really belong in the closet and what items are just adding to the clutter.

After all of the items are out of the coat closet, categorize everything into groups with similar items, throwing away any trash as you go. Make groups of coats, shoes, backpacks, mittens, beanies and anything else that’s in the closet.

Grouping together like items will help you make decisions about what you want to keep, donate, or trash because you will easily be able to see what items your family still regularly uses and what items your family no longer needs.

Items you want to keep should be things that serve your family a purpose and you definitely will be using in the future. These are going to be items that are still being used like coats that still fit, gloves that have a match, umbrellas or scarves.

Items that need to be donated are things that are still in good condition but no longer serve a purpose for your family. These are going to be items like coats that won’t fit anyone in your family, boots you no longer wear or scarves that are out of style.

Items that are trash are things that don’t serve your family any further purpose and wouldn’t serve anyone else purpose either. This could be a glove that doesn’t have a match, a backpack that won’t zip up or a coat that has a stain or tear.

If you are having difficulty deciding on what items should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my family used/wore this item? Does this item still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one item do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this item than I would?

Asking yourself these questions about items you aren’t sure if you should get rid of, you are opening your mind and being honest with yourself about the needs of your family. Any items that you keep but you don’t need, will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

By giving away these items you’re clearing the mess from your house and allowing someone else to use them, someone who may need them more than you.

Once everything has been categorized and you’ve made decisions on all of the items, take a step back from all of the items and focus on just the space. Now is the perfect time to clean this area!

Since there is nothing in the coat closet, cleaning will be super easy. Wipe and dust off any top shelves, wipe down the door handles (those can get pretty dirty!), and sweep or vacuum the floor.

Once the closet it cleaned, it’s time to put the categorized items into containers and label them.

For your coat closet, you want to make sure the items are easy to access for you and your family. It’s important everything stored in the coat closet has a “home” — any item that doesn’t have a home needs to find a new place to reside in your house.

Start by giving each family member their own basket for all of their small items like hats, scarves and mittens. Or you can give each item its own bin if your family shares all of the items. Remember its all about finding a system that works best for you!

Target has a wide variety of baskets ranging from different sizes and colors so you are guaranteed to find some you like!

If space is limited in the closet, take advantage of vertical spaces. Any wall space and on the backside of the door is great for additional storage.

Doors are perfect for hanging baskets to keep your smaller items organized. You can also use the door for hanging hooks for bags and purses.

If you have children, over the door organizers are a great solution for your kids to store items. These offer low spaces so kids can easily reach for and put away items on their own.

Finish up by hanging the coats by who it belongs to.

Place the kids’ coats on a bottom rack and the adults’ coats on the top rack. If there is only one rack, put the kids’ coats in the easiest accessible part of the closet and the rest behind them.

Store only heavy boots and “mailbox” shoes in the coat closet, any other shoe needs to go in the room of who it belongs to.

By only keeping a few pairs of shoes in the closet and the rest in bedrooms, you are keeping unnecessary clutter out of the closet.

Only keep items you’ll need when you are away from your house in the coat closet. You want to keep this space clear so your family can move through it easily and quickly.

Finish up by dealing with the leftover items. These are the items that were in the closet at the start of today’s process but don’t actually belong there.

If you are still feeling overwhelmed with the organizing or would like extra help, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Welcome to Day 1 of our Organize Your Entire Home in 20 Days series!

During these 20 days, we are going to dive deep into spaces around your house so no room in your home is left unorganized. This will be an amazing experience for you, leaving you feeling so much better at the end of the process.

This series is going to be an exciting adventure for your home, your family, and yourself, so… let’s get started!

Our 20 day organizing extravaganza begins with the entryway of your house.

At first glance, the entryway may seem like an insignificant area to spend time organizing because it’s such a small space, however, the function of the entryway is so important to your family daily routine and the guests who come into your home.

Like we said before, the entryway is your first impression to your house, so you want to make it count!

Pull everything (yes everything!) out of the space.

Open any drawers or cabinets and pull out keys, phone chargers, decorations, lint rollers, candles, or anything else that hides in the entryway.

Take all the coats, shoes, sports equipment and other clutter that often finds it’s home here and put them in piles for the specific family members they belong to! (You can use your kids to help you with this step. They can take all of their belongings to their rooms where we will be heading in a few days!)

By pulling out all of the items that occupy the space, you will be able to see what items truly belong there and what items are just adding to the clutter.

Next you’ll want to categorize these items (we usually categorize AS we pull things out of the space to keep things efficient). Jackets with jackets, keys with keys, umbrellas with umbrellas, decorations with decorations and so forth.

Grouping together like items will help you decide which items you want to keep and what items you’re ready to let go of.

Now let’s get back to all of that stuff. There are only 3 options to all of these items: keep, donate, or trash.

Items that are trash are things that don’t serve your family any further purpose and wouldn’t serve anyone else purpose either. This could be old receipts from food delivery, junk mail, or bags of trash that you haven’t taken to your dumpster yet. By getting rid of the obvious trash first, you are quickly and effortlessly getting rid of some of the clutter.

As you dig deeper through the stuff you’ll find more items you can throw away. These are going to be things like expired batteries, a broken toy, a stack of old newspapers or a ripped coat.

Items that you want to keep should be things that serve your family a purpose and you definitely will be using in the future. These are things like keys, umbrellas and current decorations.

Items that need to be donated are things that are still in good condition but no longer serve a purpose for your family. These are out of date items, items that you have an excess of and items that no longer fit anyone in your family.

If you are having difficulty deciding on what items should be kept or donated, ask yourself questions such as, when was the last time someone in my family used/wore this item? Does this item still serve its original purpose for me? How many of this one item do I have and is more than one really necessary? Would someone else better benefit from having this item than I would?

By asking yourself these questions about items you aren’t sure of, you are opening your mind and being honest with yourself about the needs of your family. Any items that you keep but you don’t need will continue to add to the clutter around your house for no reason.

By giving away these items, you are not only clearing the mess from your house, you are also allowing someone else to use these items that may need them more than you.

Once everything is grouped together, put a pause on the items and focus back on the space. It’s important that you have baskets and containers that fit the space and work well with your different categories.

Before you put things back, now is a great time to clean this area since there are nothing occupying it. Dust high to reach spaces, wipe down (and inside) all the drawers and cabinets, wipe all the other flat surfaces and then sweep or vacuum the floor. Don’t forget about your entryway mat, give that guy a wash too!

Finish up by spraying disinfectant spray on commonly touched surfaces like doorknobs and light switches.

Once you have your area cleaned and ready, you want to put your categorized items into your containers and label them.

This will be different depending on which space of the house you’re working in.

For the entryway, you can use baskets for each family member — this can create a smaller space for each family member which can help keep the clutter down.

We do suggest using matching baskets and bins if possible. The aesthetic will not only look nice, but it will also trigger your brain to keep the space tidier.

It’s time to start putting the remaining items back into their places. The entryway is the first room you walk into when you come home, the last stop you make before leaving your house and the first impression a guest will have of your home. Therefore, you want it to be equal parts functional and appealing to the eye.

To ensure it’s a functional space, create spots for all of the items that will be coming through this area. By having specific “homes” for everything, you will easily be able to find items when you need them and quickly put them away when you’re done using them.

Items like mail, keys, backpacks and items that need to be returned to the store, are all things that need to be left in the entryway.

Have a dedicated spot for mail that was just delivered and mail that you need to send out.

Check out these cute options from Target (bonus if the mail organizer also doubles as key hooks, you should have a spot to store those as well!).

If you don’t have one already, create a spot for purses and backpacks to be stored while they’re not being used. This could either be hooks to hang them up or an entryway table to set them on, whichever works best for you and your family!

Add a decorative bowl or tray for small items like wallets, lint rollers and sunglasses to be kept while they aren’t in use.

Use a bin to store items that need to be returned to the store so they don’t accidentally find a permanent place in your house. After that, the only other items that should be kept in the entryway are the decorations that you are currently using. Minimalism is key in this small space!

Any other items that you would want close by the front door (coats, hats or umbrellas) should be kept in your coat closet which we will be talking about on Day 2 in our “Organizing Your Entire Home in 20 Days” series.

If your entryway doubles as your coat closet, check back for Day 2 on how to declutter and store those items.

If your entryway originally just consisted of clutter and had no spaces for your items, check out these organizers that will give you additional storage space for the items that you want kept here. Remember, having homes for everything in the space will ensure it stays clutter free and looking good (plus it’ll make it easier on everyone in the house to put things back!).

Don’t forget guests use your entryway too! Leave extra space for items they will have while they are visiting your home. This can mean extra hooks or table space for any bags they have, as well as easy access to your coat closet (or coat rack!) for their jackets.

For any of the items that were in your entryway at the start of the process but don’t actually belong there (an array of shoes, coats that were left on the floor, random kids toys, books that need to be taken back to the library, a bag of clothes that need to be taken to the donation center, whatever it may have been), now is the time to deal with those.

Put those shoes in the room they belong in (use your kids and their limitless energy to help you here!), hang up those coats in the coat closet, take those phone chargers back to their home base, and put those bags that are for donation in your car (Good Will is still allowing donations at their in-store donation stores). If you don’t want to deal with donations, we would love to help you take care of that!

Again, you want to keep this space clear so your family can move through it easily and your guests don’t feel overwhelmed when they walk into your house.

If you are still feeling overwhelmed with organizing or would like extra help, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team.

Talk soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions

Ever look around your house and know it could be better? Like you really want to spruce up the rooms in your home and organize all the chaos?

Maybe you’ve tried to declutter your pantry or your closet and stopped halfway through because it started to get too overwhelming and it was time to start dinner anyway.

If we’re being honest, cleaning up clutter is the last thing most people want to be doing when we have a day off and are trying to recharge from the week.

But then when you’re sitting in your living room trying to finish up your favorite series, you can’t help but notice how your children’s toys always end up scattered around and why is there a never ending stack of papers on your kitchen table?

You ask yourself… where would you even begin or what’s even the point when it’s just going to get messy again?

For the next few weeks, we’re going to work our way through your home, organizing every single room in your house.

No worries though, follow along with us and we will give you step-by-step instructions on decluttering the entire mess away!

During this entire process, no matter what space you’re working in, there are 7 main steps you will always follow. You can read about the steps in detail in our Blog, How to Organize any Area of your Home (The Ultimate Guide)!

These 7 steps will not only help you tidy up the space, but also build a lasting organization system that you will easily be able to follow moving forward.

Building an organization system is important because it ensures that you don’t have to keep cleaning up the same mess over and over — it helps you and your family be able to easily and quickly put things away as you use them. We talk about the importance of our “Organizational Foundation” here.

The 7 steps are: take everything out of your area, categorize your items and get rid of trash, purge and declutter unused items, gather containers for your kept items, utilizing your bins/baskets and labeling them, storing like baskets in groups, and making adjustments for your own personal system. Follow these 7 steps for 20 days and your entire house will get organized!

A few tips to remember along the way:

* The most important thing to remember is to start with one space at a time. This is why we will only be focusing on one room a day. Organizing can be overwhelming, so starting small is the best thing to do!

* Every home and person is different, so think of this plan as a road map. You can do one day at a time or combine the days together. If one of the days has a room that isn’t in your house, use that day as a resting period. Go at a pace you feel comfortable!

* We want to be clear: decluttering is NOT moving items from one room to another. If you do this, you will continue to have clutter. Use these steps to find real “homes” for items and get rid of items that you don’t ever use.

* Remember that organization is about efficiency first! It’s great to have a Pinterest worthy pantry, but all that matters at the end of the day is you can find what you’re looking for when you need it. Build an organization system that values functionality over looking good and it will work better (and last longer!) for you and your family in the long run.

* You cannot organize clutter. You can tidy it up, but then you will do that a hundred more times in your life over and over again. Let’s build a lasting organizing system, not just clean up a mess.

Here’s the overview of what each day will look like, check back here in the next few weeks to go in detail for each room, lets get started!

Day 1: Entryway

This is the first place people see when they enter your home, and it’s usually the zone where everything gets dumped (purses, shoes, sports gear, backpacks!).

On the first day, we will go through your entryway (or mudroom!) and organize the first mess you see when you walk inside.

Items like mail, keys, backpacks and items that need to be returned to the store, are all things that need to be left in the entryway. Have a dedicated spot for mail that was just delivered and mail that you need to send out.

Try to keep this space as minimalistic as possible — your entryway is like the first impression to the rest of your house, so make a good first impression!

One thing we stress to our clients is to make sure you’re only keeping things you and your family use daily in this space. It’s not the dumping ground for every pair of shoes you own!

Having a space and a system for every area of your home will not only help you stay organized, but it will also help your family help YOU (because we know it’s mostly them already, right?)

Day 2: Coat Closet

The coat closet can become cluttered strictly because there are SO MANY different kinds of coats. Rain coats, parkas, event coats, pea coats, light jackets, hoodies, and more!

Then there’s boots, scarves, hats, mittens, backpacks and everything else that gets shoved to the back of this space! On this day, we will go sort through this dreaded closet so it stays looking tidy.

We like to keep our gloves, scarves and hats in baskets, and keep our different types of coats categorized to make it easier to navigate this space — we will go more into this area in Day 2!

*The kitchen is a big project so we will split it up into the next three days so you won’t feel overwhelmed while working through it.

Day 3: Kitchen Drawers and Cabinets

Drawers and cabinets can easily become messy when the entire family is moving through them at all times during the day. Drawer organizers are going to be your best friend here. Get ready because we’ll have even more tips and tools for you to check out on this post!

Day 4: Kitchen Counter Tops

The counter tops in your house can sometimes be the worst clutter dump zones.

Just like your kitchen drawer and cabinets, counter tops bear the brunt of the chaos that ensues from your families regular use.

One way to combat the clutter here is to designate a space in your cabinets for as many appliances as possible.

We also like to put decor, something like a basket of apples on the counter (this is good for healthy eating habits as well — it’s been proven that people with healthy snacks in plain view are overall healthier!)

On day 4, we will work through this space so you can actually see your counter tops during the day!

Day 5: Kitchen Pantry

The most dreaded room in the house (in my opinion!) to look into is the pantry. This little space can cause so much stress.

Pantry’s are constantly getting messy because of constant trips to the grocery store and it’s oh so easy to shut the door and pretend like everything is fine. Everything is not fine!

The satisfying thing about a pantry is that it can look and feel so much better after it’s been organized.

One way to keep things organized in the pantry is to categorize the foods you have. For example, I like to separate salty snacks and sweet snacks, a section for baking supplies, and a section for grains like pasta and rice. We will go into this in more detail in our blog post on organizing the pantry!

Day 5 dives deep into your pantry so you can open the door and not have boxes and cans falling on you.

Day 6: Living Room

Your living room is the main gathering place in the house for your family. This is where your family spends most of their time together hence, where a lot of clutter accumulation occurs.

It’s important to make it a priority every night to spend a few minutes to pickup this space. The living room is one the place where everyone congregates at the end of the day, and it’s easy to leave it messy.

On Day 6 we spend time here, focusing on four main zones so it’s easy to work through and easy to keep organized your organizing overhaul.

Day 7: Dining Room

Day 7 will focus on your dining room! Like your living room, a lot of family activity happens here which can bring a lot of mess.

On this day, we will focus on going through old dishes, seasonal items and clearing off your dining room table.

It’s easy to hold onto these kinds of things (china and other plates and dishes in your dining room hutch) because they often sit unused.

Similar to the kitchen counters, having items already set on your table, you will be less likely to leave items like old mail or lunch boxes sitting on the table since that space is already being taken up.

We will have more tips and tricks for you during this day, so get ready!

Day 8: Kids Dresser and Closet

On this day we will be going through your children’s dresser and closet. Enlist them for help and start building their organizing skills along with yours.

If you have more than one child, do all of their clothing today or split up each child for a separate day, whichever works best for you as long as it all gets done!

If you plan on re-using your kid’s clothes, you can store the hand me downs in bins by size to keep them easily accessible.

Bonus Tip:* When making the final decisions about clothing, remember that you can use old beloved clothes as decor like framing their favorite T-Shirt or you can cut them up to make a blanket.

Day 9: Kids Toys

Day 9 will be focused on your children’s toys, so definitely make sure they are there to help you!

In order for your children’s toys to stay organized after this day, you’ll have to purge old toys they no longer use, so make sure you prepare your children for this going in.

Remember also that your kids may want to keep everything. This is the best time to figure out what toys are most important to them, because anything they’re not playing with should be donated or consigned so another child can enjoy it!

The most important thing to remember is that kids are great at organizing, because they are still building good habits! If you come up with a system that’s easy for them to follow, and hold them to cleaning up their toys, they’ll do the job for you!

Day 10: Kids Bathroom

Another day for the kids! After you have gone through their clothing and toys, we’re going to finish up the children’s segment by organizing their bathroom.

This space can get messy because (at least for little girls!) there can be a lot of fun hair-ties and small accessories to keep in order.

Small drawer organizers work well for these small items!

Day 11: Guest Room and Bathroom

Whoa two rooms in one day? You read that right!

On Day 11 we will tackle both the guest bedroom and bathroom.

If you’re anything like me, this room is mainly used for storage so get ready to go through some old boxes!

Always remember to ask yourself: Are these items being used? Do I have multiple pairs of guest sheets or towels? Do you have another space to store memorabilia that doesn’t take up space in your guest room?

Day 12: Master Dresser and Closet

This one’s going to be a fun one!

Get ready to sort through all of your clothing, shoes and accessories! We will spend time purging old items and creating an organizational system that works best for you.

Contrary to the Marie Kondo method, we don’t suggest you put all your clothes in a pile on the bed. The best thing we’ve found is to put together all like items to decide what to purge in each category. If you see all the blue dresses you have in one spot, you’re more likely to know which ones you really want to keep.

Day 13: Bathroom

Get ready for a fun day of work! We’re going to spend time going through hygiene products, makeup, hair products, face care and paper supplies.

We’re going to dive deep into those bathroom drawers and cabinets to leave your bathroom looking amazing.

This space can house a ton of unused products (can we say impulse buy?). It’s best to keep your daily products on the counter (keep this as minimalistic as possible!), and store the back-up or larger products in the closet or under the sink in labeled bins or drawers.

Day 14: Your Bedroom

After we have worked through your clothing and bathroom, we’re going to focus on your bedroom. We’re going to sort through the drawers, bins and cabinets to declutter your room.

Once again we remember that using up your counters and open space with decor instead of clutter can make it easier to keep this space looking clear.

An important thing to remember on this day is you can’t organize clutter so get ready to part ways with some old things!

If your bedroom doubles as your office, skip this day and complete day 14 and 15 together (or continue with this guide and split your bedroom into two days, remember this is all about doing it in the best way for you!).

Day 15: Office

Day 15 we’re going to organize your entire office! We will work through all areas but focus on going through old papers.

Lots of people have multiple filing drawers for all the paper clutter they’ve accumulated over the years.

A few rules to live by when purging your paper: keep your taxes for 7 years, bills for 6 months and bank statements for a year!

If you really want to go crazy, make sure to test all your pens and trash all your pencils without working erasers.

This day will have plenty of tips to ensure your office stays looking nice.

Day 16: Laundry Room

Oh the dreaded laundry room! Growing up, cleaning the laundry room was always my least favorite chore but today we will make it a fun one!

We’re going to spend time deep cleaning this room and organizing the miscellaneous items that find their way here.

This is often the space that houses overflow houses supplies in the extra cabinets, so make sure to keep these things categorized so they’re easy to access when a lightbulb goes out or your need to replace a smoke detector battery.

If your laundry room doubles as your linen closet, skip this day and complete day 16 and 17 together (or continue with this guide and split it into two days, remember this is all about doing it in the best way for you!).

Day 17: Linen Closet

For this day, we’re going to purge through old sheets and blankets so get ready to part ways with some things!

After we purge a few items, we will focus on how to fold linens so they stay looking neat while they’re not in use. (Here is a video on folding some common items in your home for a more in-depth look at what we mean and how to fold!)

One way we like to keep this space looking nice is to keep what we call the “fat fold” facing out. This means that you want the largest fold of the sheet or towel facing out in order to create an aesthetic appeal in the closet. You can see it in the closet below!

Day 18: Cleaning Supplies

For Day 18 we’re going to get your cleaning supplies ready for spring cleaning season.

One easy way to cut down on the space cleaning supplies is to consolidate bottles of same cleaning supplies into one!

We’re going to sort through cleaning supplies, check expiration dates and organize them. Get ready!

Day 19: Garage

The garage day will be a great time for a little family bonding over a fun project!

This is a space that holds a lot of stuff so make sure to get help from others in your household.

We highly suggest getting some sturdy shelving units and plastic bins or baskets to keep your garage items organized!

Get ready to sort through all the items in your garage and make decisions on what you want to keep and donate.

Day 20: Car

Ah finally the last day! We’re going to wrap up our series by organizing your car!

It’s not a room in your home but it’s a place that you spend a lot of time in and you should feel comfortable in!

You can also take this time to clean, vacuum and fully sanitize your car!

Most people spend up to an hour in their cars every day, so it’s important that it’s kept tidy.

And that will be a wrap, friends! After following along with this guide for the last 20 days, your house should be looking ahhhmazing!

Thank you in advance for joining us in this series, we hope you have fun and that you have a peaceful house to come home to everyday at the end of this.

Regardless if you finish the series, only make it halfway, or this is the only post you read, please reach out to the Clutterless Home Solutions Team if you have any questions or would like extra assistance!

Talk Soon,

Clutterless Home Solutions