example, clean out the fruit drawer of the fridge every Monday.
When evaluating items while decluttering:
For each item, decide whether to trash it, recycle it, fix it, donate it, save it, or sell it.
If you haven’t used it in a long time, don’t use it frequently, don’t like it anymore, or don’t need it—get rid of it!
When in doubt, throw it out!
Find a Place for Everything
Once you’ve busted all of the clutter in your home, it’s time to get things organized!
Make sure everything has a place, designating certain rooms or drawers or storage bins for certain objects. It makes it much easier to put things away when you’ve already decided where they go!
10-Minute Decluttering Project Ideas
Clean under a sink.
Clean out a junk drawer.
Get rid of all single socks or socks with holes.
Clean off one shelf in the pantry, checking for expired items to toss.
Clean off one shelf in the refrigerator.
Go through one section of your closet looking to throw away, give away, or donate.
Gather and start a single load of laundry.
Wash or put away dishes.
Throw away old, expired, or unwanted toiletries and makeup.
Make the beds.
Gather all your knickknacks on a table and get rid of what you don’t want anymore.
Check for any kids’ toys you can throw away, give away, or donate.
Label, label, label. Label storage bins and other containers. Label cords and chargers with what they belong to. Labeling things will help you find what you need, when you need it, more easily.
Get creative! Find new purposes for old or throwaway items, such as rolling up panty hose into cardboard toilet paper rolls and labeling with a Sharpie. (As a bonus, this also keeps panty hose from snagging in drawers!)
TIPS FOR TACKLING A FEW COMMON TROUBLE SPOTS
Warranty Booklets, Appliance Manuals, and Service Receipts
Buy a file box and file folders.
Group manuals into file folders by room or other category (kitchen appliances, toys, warranties, service records from household maintenance, etc.).
Label and alphabetize.
Periodically, perhaps once a year, review the box contents and throw away any warranties that have expired and manuals for appliances you no longer have.
Kitchen Pantry
After taking everything out and wiping down shelves and surfaces:
Check expiration dates and throw away expired food items.
Group like items together. Put beans with other beans in a canned vegetable section; put pasta with other pasta, cereals with other cereals, snacks with other snacks, etc.
Buy containers for bulk items (cereal, pasta, nuts, seeds, etc.) and label them. Transfer foods from original packaging into the new bulk containers.
Buy can stackers for canned food items.
Keep labels—of bulk containers or canned foods—facing forward so you can find everything quickly and easily.
Holiday and Gift-Wrap Storage
Buy big bins and label each one by holiday. Fill the bin with its corresponding holiday items. Be sure to also label the specific contents in each bin (holiday stuffed animals, Christmas lights, Christmas ornaments, Halloween costumes, Easter baskets and plastic eggs, winter clothes, etc.).
Buy a wrapping-paper bin. Along with wrapping paper, it can hold scissors, tape, and gift labels and tags for easy access come present-wrapping time.
CREATE HOUSEHOLD KITS
Create household kits to group together related items. Keep the kits in labeled stackable plastic bins, decorated cardboard boxes, or shoeboxes. Get creative! Besides the obvious sewing and first-aid kits, here are just a few ideas of kit types and what they might contain:
Manicure/pedicure kit: supplies needed for manis/pedis, such as foot soak, foot scrub, lotion, cuticle oil, callus remover, cuticle pusher, nail file, nail clippers, baby power, foot spray, etc.
Cords and chargers kit: labeled cords and chargers to phones, computers, cameras, etc.
Bill-pay kit: envelopes, stamps, pens, checkbook, list of monthly bills and debt, etc. You can even put each item in a file folder and put these in a filing box with your bills.
Eyebrow grooming kit: eyebrow brushes, stencils, pencils, powder, gel, tweezers, baby tooth-numbing gel, small scissors, waxing kit, etc.
Tooth fairy kit: tooth holder, labeled baby teeth in baggies, tooth fairy diary, etc.
Once everything in your house is organized, cleaning should be much easier because everything now has a place. If you’re still overwhelmed with where to start, however, try these steps for a quick tidy that makes a big difference!
1. Throw away all the trash you can find in your house.
2. Collect dirty laundry, sort it, and start a load.
