Tag: decluttering your home

Buy Only What You Need During Cyber Week

Posted on by Jordank

The holiday season is in full swing, and retailers eager to end the year on a profitable note are publicizing deals by the boatload for Cyber Week — the busiest online shopping days of the year.

The deals are tantalizing. How could you not buy that toy/game/gadget when the price is so low? But if you let yourself get carried away with the perceived savings, you may just run out of money altogether — and the space to put those things.

As a busy consumer shopping for gifts and other goods, you should make every attempt to spend only what you need to spend during the holidays. Some of the deals online and in stores this week are truly once-in-a-lifetime, but you and your giftees may not really need whatever it is.

There are things to consider buying during Cyber Week, of course. First, Buzzfeed says, you should look for great deals on household items you already use, appliances you’ve held off on buying, electronics, shoes and more.

But approach your shopping with a focus on what you (and the people you buy for) can really use and appreciate. “Ask yourself whether you would buy it if it weren’t on sale,” Apartment Therapy advises. “Is it on your list? Do you need it? What makes it a ‘good deal’?”

Buy or receive too many things, and you may not have enough space for all of the junk (er, merchandise) changing hands during the holidays. If you’re a longtime reader of the Organizing Blog, you may have some room for new stuff, but keeping your life clear of clutter is an ongoing process.

Try the “one in, two out” rule as you accumulate things this season: For every new item you allow into your home, donate or trash two to make room. Even if you try to cheat the rule by balancing large items with small ones, you will eventually slash your levels of stuff.

Alternatively, try to buy yourself and others only “uncluttered gifts” that get used up fast, such as candy, wine or dinners out. Also good are gift certificates and event tickets; they show you care while creating memories instead of clutter.

Finally, today is Giving Tuesday — the annual event that encourages donations of money and time to nonprofit organizations and causes. Participate in it, and not only will you keep unnecessary stuff out of your life, you’ll get a warm feeling that lasts all season long.

Declutter Before Your Thanksgiving Feast

Posted on by Jordank

Hosting Thanksgiving can be a huge responsibility. The major menu items — turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and so on — aren’t incredibly hard to prepare, but can often be messy and time-consuming. Add to that the need to make your home inviting and presentable for the feast, and the holiday can quickly get to be an unwieldy chore.

If you declutter your home ahead of the feast, however, you will likely find all of the tasks on your list will suddenly become more manageable. When you don’t have to trip over stacks of stuff you don’t need before your guests arrive, your stress will dissipate fast.

The kitchen will see heavy use during the Thanksgiving feast, so make sure it offers the chef a streamlined workspace. Apartment Therapy recommends eliminating clutter by paring down the numbers of duplicate utensils in your drawers. Keep a maximum of three spatulas, three whisks, one can opener and one corkscrew, it says, and donate the rest.

Now, throw away junk that’s collected in the kitchen such as condiment packets, takeout menus, orphaned Tupperware lids and extra glass jars. Toss old rags and sponges, used candles, and expired canned goods and spices. Finally, get rid of anything chipped or less-than-perfect, and file away that refrigerator artwork to make space for a new selection of masterpieces.

The second phase of the kitchen streamlining project should store occasional-use items such as party platters, pie tins, apple peelers, melon ballers, cake stands and pastry bags somewhere other than the kitchen. You may need some of these things for Thanksgiving, the story notes, but taking inventory ahead of time will help you find them exactly when they’re needed.

To keep the home clutter-free for the big day, The Spruce suggests creating a complete “game plan” for the feast and keeping the decorations minimal. Arrangements of mums, fresh fruit, shell nuts and fall gourds make for a simple, seasonal scheme. If you already have lots of Thanksgiving-themed decorations, consider which may be starting to look a bit shabby and get rid of them.

As you streamline your kitchen and decorate your space ahead of the holiday, set aside those kitchen utensils, appliances and other goods you no longer need and contact ClothingDonations.org for a pickup. Before you know it, your house will be free of some of that clutter and full of family and friends — and that’s what makes lasting memories.

Things You Can Trash Immediately

Posted on by Jordank

The decision to trash things carries with it a blissful immediacy. There’s lots of stuff people shove into a drawer and keep that’s of little use to anyone. So, throw out or recycle the old magazines, orphaned socks, takeout menus, plastic cutlery, mystery keys, half-used cosmetics and other items that are only cluttering up your home immediately. If something is unopened, in good shape and could be useful to a new owner, however, donate it to ClothingDonations.org, and you will help fund valuable veterans’ programs.

Set Aside the ‘Maybes’ When Decluttering

Posted on by Jordank

When considering what to keep, donate or trash, you will come across stuff that isn’t useful right now, but you think you might need or use one day. These in-between items can slow down the decision-making in your decluttering process, or derail it altogether. The solution? Create a “Maybe” box, the Zen Habits blog suggests, put the questionable items inside and store it in an out-of-the-way place for six months. Then, revisit the box. Most people find a box full of stuff they never needed, and can donate immediately.

Go Beyond Decluttering by De-Owning

Posted on by Jordank

The Becoming Minimalist blog says it isn’t enough to declutter; for a lasting effect, you must “de-own” the things you don’t use. Why? Because only improving organization won’t encourage you to make tough decisions or decrease your desire for new things; often, it will just sort them into a place where they are temporarily out of sight. “Carry a trash bag from room-to-room,” the blog says. “See how big of a donation pile you can make. It doesn’t matter so much how you remove [these items], as long as you do.”