(“modern interior”; courtesy of maxschleiffer)
“Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” — Antoine de Saint Exupéry
Your home and workplace can either be a source of stress and discomfort, or they can be a source of harmony and help nurture your soul. As is promulgated by the followers of the “home as sanctuary” movement, you can eliminate the stress that is attached to your personal environment by decluttering and organizing. Clutter and disorganization waste time, energy, and space. Decluttering means examining your life, going through all of your possessions, deciding what is important to you, and discarding the rest. Organizing means that everything has a home so that it can be easily found, accessed, used, and put back.
According to the art of Feng Shui, as well as the art of Vaastu Shastra, clutter and disorganizaton interfere with the proper flow of chi, or energy, from entering and flowing through the home. Clutter represents stagnant energy. In order to allow more, new. and better things to flow into your life you need to let go of those things that no longer serve a purpose in your life.
Setting Time Aside To Declutter and Organize
You can declutter and organize in micro-movements—a term coined by the author SARK which consists of taking tiny baby steps forward and can consist of one to five minute sessions–, in sessions that last anywhere from fifteen minutes to a couple of hours, or you can have an organization marathon lasting three or four days. It depends on what works best for your personality and your schedule. Simply decide how much time you’ll spend organizing per session, and pencil it into your agenda. Scheduling your decluttering time is key!
Designate a Purpose for Each Area of Your Home
Walk through your home and decide what activities you would like to carry out in each area, as well as the mood you would like each area to convey.
For example, the den might be a place for the family to gather and watch television, play ping pong, play boardgames, bond, and have fun. You might want to create a spa-like environment in your bathroom so that it serves as a luxurious retreat. The purpose of the laundry room could be to wash, dry, fold, iron, and hang clothes and linens with minimal pileup.
You can define the kitchen as a place to prepare fresh, healthy food and snacks, and where each meal is a celebration. It can also serve as a gallery for you children’s artwork. Maybe you want the master bedroom to be a romantic retreat. Your living room could be a place to entertain guests in an ambiance that is simple yet elegant, as well as serene and functional. You’re going to organize according to the function you want each room to serve, and how you want each room to “feel”.
Identify Specific Zones Within Rooms
A room can have several different purposes. In order to decide what should stay and where, you need to identify the different activities that take place within each room and divide them into zones. These zones will become the center for specific items related to the designated activity. Then, it becomes immediately clear where things belong, where to find things, and where to return them. Everything is given an area; that is, everything is given a home. Set up your space so that everything you need to accomplish a particular task is close at hand.
For example, you can create a library area and place most of the books in your home in this area. Add a comfortable chair, make sure there’s adequate lighting, and maybe add a side table to place coffee mugs and reading snacks. You can also place a basket next to the chair where you can keep magazines and newspapers you want to read but haven’t gotten around to.
Where Should You Start?
It’s a good idea to begin your decluttering/organizing efforts by organizing your closet. A decluttered, organized closet will allow you to begin reaping the benefits of order right away. In addition, the euphoric feeling of success that you’ll get from having accomplished this feat will hopefully motivate you to continue with your decluttering and organizing efforts. When you’re done with the closet you can begin on the rest of the house.
Many people are tempted to begin their organizational efforts by starting with drawers, the cabinet underneath the bathroom sink, the hallway-closet, and so on. However, you’ll be much more effective if you begin with things that are visible. Choose a room and start clearing off the visible clutter, such as anything on desktops, tabletops, and countertops that doesn’t belong there, and anything that’s on the floor. In addition, think of what furniture you can eliminate without sacrificing comfort and livability.
After you’ve cleared off the visible clutter, you’re ready to move on to drawers, shelves, cupboards, cabinets, the linen closet, and so on. Basically, you should do one room at a time starting at the door and working clockwise around the room. Start with the room you use most often, then the next room, and then the next.
The Process of Decluttering and Organizing
Keep in mind the following quote by William Morris: “Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful and believe to be beautiful.” You’re going to go through all of your possessions and for each item you’re going to ask yourself the following questions:
- Does the item serve a key function in your daily life?
- Does it bring you joy?
- Do you have another one that is better?
- Have you used this item in the past six months?
- Does it have sentimental value?
Have six categories and assign a box, basket, or other container for each category. The categories are as follows:
a. This belongs in another room.
b. This needs to be fixed or cleaned.
c. This will be given away, sold, or donated.
d. This will be thrown out.
e. This is not mine and needs to be returned.
f. This is a “maybe”. If you can’t bear to toss something because you might need it later, put it in the “maybe” box, then close the box, label it, and store it out of sight. Pull it out three months later and if you haven’t missed any of the items in the box throw them out or give them away.
If you’re decluttering a drawer, cabinet, or shelf, take everything out and put it in front of you where you can see everything. Sort through the pile and put related items together. Don’t get bogged down in specific, precise categories, just create simple groups so that it’s easier to get everything organized. Once you have everything in a group go through each group and decide what to do with each item. Here are some groups of items you can consider:
- Declutter receipts.
- Declutter bills.
- Declutter magazines (scan magazine articles that you want to keep and create a digital file).
- Declutter bathroom products.
- Declutter hair products.
- Declutter books.
- Declutter bulletin boards (as well as the outside of the refrigerator).
- Declutter medicines, vitamins, and the first aid kit.
- Declutter office supplies.
- Declutter your desktop.
- Declutter DVD’s and CD’s.
- Declutter your pantry.
- Declutter the inside of your refrigerator or freezer.
- Declutter your cooking supplies.
- Declutter your dishes, cups, and glasses.
- Declutter papers you’ve filed (you don’t need that electricity bill from 1994).
As you go through each category decide whether it’s something that will be put back or if it’s going into one of the boxes. Now put back the things you’ve decided to keep in an orderly manner. Remember that items that you use frequently should be easily accessible. If putting something away requires too much effort, most people will simply put if off for later. Also remember that you need to store items where they are used. If you frequently use a pair of scissors in your family room, keep it in a drawer nearby, not in the kitchen or in your office on the other side of the house.
While you’re decluttering it’s very important that you do not start completing undone projects. Two examples are the following: if you come across a book you haven’t finished reading, don’t sit down to read it; and if you come across a craft project that needs a few more stitches, now is not the time to finish it. In addition, keep a notebook with you so you can jot down any repairs that need to be made or add incomplete projects to your to-do list.
Live by the following mantras:
- “When in doubt, throw it out.”
- “Not quantity, but quality.”
Go Shopping for Containers
Once you’ve decided what items you’re going to keep, go shopping for containers so that everything remains organized. Make sure they’re containers you love and that they’re a proper fit for the number of items you will be storing without overcrowding. In addition, measure the space where each container will be stored and take this information to the store with you to make sure that the containers will fit in the space. You can consider getting towel baskets, filing cabinets, drawer dividers, and so on.
Take Action with the Boxes
Once you’re done with your organizational efforts, take action with the boxes. Put the “give away/donate” box in the trunk of your car and drop it off the next time you go out to run errands. Throw away the garbage. Go around the house and put all of the things in the “this belongs in another room” box away. Give back anything that doesn’t belong to you. Repair or clean everything in the “this needs to be fixed or cleaned” box. If you haven’t had these things cleaned or repaired within three months, throw them out. You have to take action with the boxes right away or these things will simply become clutter again.
Ongoing Effort and Maintenance
Once you’ve established a base-level of organization you can begin incorporating tips you read or hear about into your organization scheme. For example, you can do as Martha Stewart suggests and purchase little sake cups arranged on a nice tray to organize your earrings; you can visit the declutter.com website and read about organizing cables in your workstation with Velcro cable ties; you can visit the lifehack.com website and find organizing tips, and so on.
Commit to spending time each evening picking up and straightening each room in the house; 5 minutes per room should do it. In addition, you should consider decluttering every six months or so to make sure clutter doesn’t creep back into your home. Follow these four rules to keep your house in order:
1. If you take it out, put it back.
2. If you open it, close it.
3. If you throw it down, pick it up.
4. If you take it off, hang it up.
Feel Gratitude for Everything You Own
While decluttering, be kind to yourself. Remember that most of the items you’re disposing of were useful to you at one point, they’re simply no longer a reflection of who you are. At the same time, take advantage of the fact that you’ll be going through everything that you own to feel intense gratitude for everything you have.
Create a Wish List
As you go through your home decluttering and organizing, create a wish list. By getting rid of things that no longer serve you, you’re creating a vacuum into which good things can flow. Would you like a kitchen that blends with the dining area, making it possible to share and entertain while cooking? How about large windows to let in fresh air? If you’re expecting a new addition to the family, what would the ideal nursery look like? Would you like to decorate it with a Beatrix Potter motif? Would you like a fireplace in your living room?
How about a new showerhead with multifunctional features, multiple showerheads, towel warmers, or a vintage bathtub? Or an air-jetted tub that gives off gentle, champagne-like bubbles? Would you like to add chromatherapy–using colors as a holistic healer–to your bathroom for mood stimulation? How about having a garden filled with blue, white, pink and purple hydrangea hedges?
“I am convinced that a calm, quiet and harmonious interior can be as beneficial to health as a sensible diet and regular exercise.”
– Kelly Hoppen
Related Posts:
Recommended Reading:
- The Power of Vastu Living: Welcoming Your Soul into Your Home and Workplace
- Feng Shui Your Life
- Clear Your Clutter With Feng Shui
- Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House
- Organizing from the Inside Out, second edition: The Foolproof System For Organizing Your Home, Your Office and Your Life
- It’s All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff
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