We all have it… in corner's, in hallways, on the stairs. Clutter is everywhere it seems. How do you tackle it. One room at a time! First, learn to love storage containers. You can store everyday items in them, stack same sized containers then cover them when not in use, wherever you have useable clutter and need it out of the way when not using, stack and cover they blend right in with the surroundings, and they can double as a small table. Here are a few ideas' to get you going.
Bathroom
Most bathrooms have a little shelf/closet thing for towels and washcloths'…use it for towels and washcloths', throw in a couple unopened bars of soap or bottles of body-wash on the side. Why here? You're more likely to see the extra there, than under the sink in a bathroom, and in turn…get used. If you're a stocker-upper, and have room in the bathroom…. Stock a few bottles of shampoo/conditioner on a shelf too. The Dollar Store has these items for about $1 to $1.50 for one bottle. Depending on how much you wash your hair, 4 bottles can last about a month before you need more. If you can, place a small trash can either under the sink, or beside it.
Kitchen
Most of us should know that the best place for cooking spoons, dippers and such, go in a drawer nearest to the stove. Cupboards need organized too. Spaghetti, bags of noodles, and rice can go into these plastic storage containers… check Wal-Mart or somewhere for some that fit in cupboards. Most of these are airtight when the lid is on them. (like Rubbermaid or Tupperware.) Cans can be in order too. Most of us use more than 1 cupboard door for the canned and boxed food.
Line up the cans; make 2 rows, back to front of each veg, fruits and assorted cans. If you have more, it's considered extra, and put somewhere else for now. (if there's not the room for 2 rows, make 1 row and think of the others as extra.) Some cupboards have enough room to put 1 row of cans, with 2 cans stacked on each other…. That is the same as 2 rows.
Boxed foods get a black marker and mark on the side facing the door as to what it is. Most of us just throw the box in, without looking to see which side is facing the door. If you write on the side with a marker, and put that side to the door, you can see at a glance what it is when you open the door. It don't matter how you put or lay the boxes in… you will always have a side to the door.
Living Room/Family Room
Let's start with the Entertainment Center here. This should include the TV, if it's small enough to fit, the TV listing book, any VCR/DVD movies, and any remote controls. All of these have something to do with the TV, so why not put them around the TV to begin with. When you're done with the remote, put it back on or in the entertainment center for the next time…not in the chair, not in the couch. If you are a collector of movies, think of getting a cd tower or making one for the movies. (if there's not enough room in the entertainment center.)
If you use afghans or blanket's on cold winters evenings to get comfortable, get a square tub or basket for a corner of the room, we keep our's next to the couch in the corner. Put the blankets/afghans in that, folded up when not in use. You can also use 1 favorite afghan or blanket on the back of the couch if you want. It will look nice and neatly in the corner. If you can, get stackable tubs or containers for other small stuff in the room.
Bedrooms
Beds are not a "catch-all" until bedtime. Granted, you'll not have every guest checking out the bedrooms at each visit, but you don't want it so messy you can't get to the bed at night. When it's time for bed, you want to be able to just pull back the covers and snuggle in for a good night's sleep, without having to clean it off first. Hang up and put away the clothes. Music things go around the stereo.
Thanks,
Darlene