My husband, Matt, and I are super compatible. We aren't an example of opposites attracting. We are more like an example of the male and female version of the same person. There are a few areas where we differ tho. Perhaps the most obvious would be our views on "stuff"...
I think of myself as a minimalist.
Matt gets weekly offers to be on the next episode of Hoarders.
Ok. Not really. But if he weren't married to me, it would definitely be a regular on the show.
Most people have a hard time getting rid of stuff. I have a hard time keeping stuff. I started using this quote as I guide for how I view the items in our home and I gotta say I love the direction it's taking us.
We have lived in our home for almost six years now so the amount of stuff we've accumulated is shocking to me. Add two kids to the mix and this minimalist started feeling like the walls were closing in.
So to start the year off right, I committed to clean out and reorganize each area of our home.
I do have rules I follow and I wanted to share them with you. Maybe you have a hard time deciding what to do with all your stuff. Maybe one of your goals this year is to simplify your life. If so, hopefully these ideas will get you off to a good start!
1. Take one room at a time: If you try to tackle your whole house during one afternoon, chances are, you're going to feel overwhelmed. Most of us don't make the best judgement calls when we feel like we're drowning. Just bite off a little at a time. It will all got done eventually but doing a little at a time will give you a feeling of accomplishment as you see complete each room.
2. Give yourself guidelines: The William Morris quote is my mantra this year. Do I think it's beautiful? Keep it. Do I think it's useful? Keep it. If I can't say YES to one or both of those questions, it's gone.
3. Organize: I have four "piles" when I'm cleaning out a space in my home. What's gonna go. What's gonna stay. What's gonna sell. What's gonna throw away. Make a pile of items you want to donate to your local thrift store. Make a pile of items you know you wanna keep. Make a pile of items you think you could actually get some money for. The facebook garage sale sites are awesome for this. Just join your local group, take pictures, post them, and get MONEY. If you know it's too yuck to donate or sell and you know you definitely don't want to keep it, just throw it away. Each time you tackle a new room, take a big ol` black trash bag and fill the sucker up.
4. Commit to the Clean: Once you get each area cleaned up, commit to keep it that way. Figure out what you need to do to make the area function for you. I don't have a junk drawer because I think the whole idea of one is crazy. We have a drawer in our kitchen that has things we need access to on a daily basis. It's got a pen, marker, chalk, chip clips, tape, scissor, paper, batteries, bandaids... that's pretty much it. It's more like an organization station (please make fun of me for this).
Hope this helps you keep your home a happy one!