Declutter in an Hour or less

Okay guys, its officially a few days into 2014 and time for me to be intentional about organization and cleanup. Most people like to hold off until spring and have an annual Spring Cleaning, but I find it so refreshing to start the year off in a positive place. This year has flown by for us and had its share of both ups and downs, but Christmas break is over, we are back at work, and most of us are probably still dreading taking down the tree, lights, ornaments, etc. around the house.

I sucked it up and took down most of our inside decor before the New Year, even though I much preferred to be lazy and continue my holiday relaxing…But I still have a lot of organizing, and straitening up to do around the house to get my “problem areas” in check. Mainly because we moved into our new home this year and have been so busy that I have neglected organizing a couple areas. So when I stumbled across this amazing article on Better Homes and Gardens a few weeks ago, I knew I had to store it away for after the new year, because it’s pretty genius. I love how something that normally seems intimidating is made so simple by putting a 5-15 minute time limit on it. I know that not all of these tasks can be accomplished in that time frame, some will take less and some more, but it gives me a goal to visualize and some very practical ways to “start conquering clutter.”

Here are my favorites from the post that I’m sure to focus on this weekend:

Declutter the bathroom:
If you have 5 minutes: put away anything on the counter tops, and pull the shower curtain closed to conceal any bathtub clutter.

Declutter the pantry:
If you have 15 minutes: regroup food by item type. Toss anything that is expired. Wipe away any spills or dirt on shelves.

Declutter the closet:
If you have 5 minutes: Hang up clothes that are draped over your designated drop spot, such as on a chair. (This may take me 10 minutes… oops.)

Declutter the Refrigerator or Freezer:
If you have 15 minutes: Take a few minutes to assign spots using your fridge’s current contents to establish specific spots for foods you typically stock.

Declutter under the sink:
If you have 15 minutes: Keep the area neat by storing only one paper towel roll and tidy up each time you replace it. Old media caddies are the perfect size for movable kits filled with cleaners and scrubbing tools. Stash one beneath your sink so you’re ready for a quick clean. –I will need to completely take everything out of this area and restock with purpose. Right now things are sort of thrown about with no rhyme or reason making it very difficult to find the supply when needed.

A few of the items I have already knocked off my to-do list include taking down all of this years Christmas cards and filing them away in a 2013 folder. I love looking back at them each year, and this keeps them easily organized by year. We also packed away the Christmas decor in bins for weather proofing and easy storage. I got some at Target for $6 this year, they are red and green so I can easily spot them next year when its time to haul them out again. I hate having to play the holiday guessing game each year by opening and closing boxes to see what’s inside, so it was important for me to have them clearly labeled. We did the same thing with the halloween/fall decor also by putting them in black and orange bins.

So, I hope you join me in a little home cleanup, because it is more obtainable than you think. Happy New Year!

Categories Home, Intention