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Reading time – 5 minutes
The quick declutter challenge is on week 6. The other challenges were to declutter cosmetics, bedrooms, livingroom dining room and office quickly.
It is said that we use 20% of things we own 80% of the time. This leaves 80% of our stuff that we seldom use. For example, do you have a certain style of pens you like and don’t use the rest of the ones in your drawer? You receive lots of newsletters and only read 2 or 3 of them. Do eat the same thing for breakfast most days leaving cereals to go stale or fruit to rot?
Look at your closet, are there clothes you wear a lot? Outfits you love? Items that never seem to get selected? This time of year is good for decluttering your clothes. The types of clothing you wear will be changing with temperature changes. As you reorganize your closet look at the 80% of your clothing you seldom wear and donate them.
Start with a quick declutter of your clothing.
Most times when you are decluttering clothes you find a lot of items in your closet that are not related to your wardrobe. If you have time and energy you can continue with your project organizing your closet so you can quickly find what you need.
If you need help with the quick declutter challenges book a virtual organizing session with me.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Reading Time – 5 minutes
The bathroom is a high traffic area used by many people in a home. Use the storage spaces well. Think about wall space and if a cabinet or over the toilet stand can be added. Is there space beside the toilet to add a slender cabinet for towels or toilet paper and Kleenex? There are over the cabinet door products to hold blower dryers and flat irons. Before organizing your bathroom you might want to do a quick declutter to remove unneeded and unwanted items. Next, use these 5 tips to make your bathroom function better and safely.
1. Have a drawer for each person who uses the bathroom to store his or her toiletries and cosmetics. If you don’t have the space to store items in the bathroom, give each person a basket to transport their things to and from his or her bedroom, where the basket is stored.
2. Purchase under-sink storage shelves or baskets to make good use of this under-utilized area. It can be a difficult area to organize because of the pipes under the sink and it is a very deep cabinet.
3. If medications are stored in the bathroom, safely store them where small children and pets can’t gain access. If you have expired medications take them to your pharmacy to be recycled. Most pharmacies want the pills removed from the packaging and placed in a plastic bag. All the medication can go in one bag.
4. Store cleaning supplies safely, out of the reach of children and nearby so you can do quick clean-ups.
5. Add hooks or towel bars to the walls or over-the-door racks/hooks to hang and dry towels after use. Not enough room in the bathroom? Install hooks or bars in the bedrooms. This will keep towels off the floor, neat and clean. This Ikea towel bar has 3 bars that swing out from the wall. It gives lots of space for towels and doesn’t need much wall space.
What is the biggest storage problem in your bathroom?
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Decluttering is an important process to help free up space and gain a feeling of control in your life reducing stress, anxiety and overwhelm. Having only what you use, need and enjoy in your life gives you more time, energy and finances to create a life full of meaning, joy and new relationships. Let’s get started.
As you move through your office looking for the 9 things on the list to declutter remember to make decisions quickly and move quickly around the room. You might get distracted by clutter that is not on the list. Make a note of other things you would like to organize. Making a list to do later will help you refocus your mind on the task at hand. Offices usually have a lot of paperwork to sort, file, shred or recycle. Complete that another day.
If you don’t have a designated office space look around your home for the items on the list. Consider collecting them all together and creating a portable office. Have a bin, basket, caddy, or rolling cart where you can store all your office supplies and then move it to where you are working and then store it away.
Here is the list of challenges 1-4. Join in at any time and do them in any order.
Quick challenge 3 – Dining room
Quick challenge 4 – Livingroom
Tell me what unexpected items you found in your office.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
It is important to handle paperwork promptly. Missing deadlines for paying bills cost you money. Late responses to family and colleagues’ inquiries create concern or hostility. Losing important papers costs you time recreating or searching for them. Here are some tips to help you build a system to deal with your paperwork as soon as it arrives.
1. Make the area a showcase
A lovely colleague sent me this first tip. Marie Mushing runs a networking group called People in Connection. See what working with a professional organizer can do for you? Professional Organizers rub out junk. Where there was once chaos and huge piles of paper, is now a showcase. Thank you Julie! Replace the junk pile with something pretty as I did, then you won’t want to pile junk on that again. Great motivation to keep the filing done!
2. Prevent drop zones from forming
If you have an empty flat surface it sometimes calls to people, “to fill me with stuff.” To prevent that area from becoming cluttered, put a large object or two in that spot. It will make the area feel full and then you won’t drop things there. With only 2 larger objects, it is easy to pick them up dust and clean. If you use a number of smaller items it may make the area harder to clean and look cluttered.
3. Designate a paper collection spot
Assign a place to put papers that need to be read, filed, signed etc. Place a tray, lovely baskets, eye catching red container etc in a convenient location. Why red? Red is a high energy colour, it increases your heartrate, and your eye is drawn to red items. By using a red basket it can help to make dealing with paperwork a high priority activity. Keeping paperwork consolidated in one spot makes it easier to find and work with. When paper is all over the office or house it becomes visual clutter, causing anxiety, releasing cortisol and you feel stress. Cut the visual clutter, collect the paper in one spot, and complete the tasks.
4. Avoid the L word – later
Piles of paper will continue to build up if you leave them for later. Later will never come. Schedule time to deal with paperwork: schedule time to read, file, and reply to paperwork that generates more work. Schedule these activities according to your level of energy at different times of the day. Scheduling reading after lunch at a low energy time of the day may not be productive but scheduling filing after lunch may be perfect because it gets you up and active. Scheduling time at the beginning of each day to concentrate on work generated by email, letters, and documents might work well when you are able to focus on single tasks. Remember not to multi-task.
If you’re interested in learning how colour can affect your productivity, this guide is free and you can find it here.
What tricks do you use to help you complete paperwork?
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
The challenge started with cosmetics, continued with bedrooms, and then the dining room. You can join the challenge anytime and do it in any order. Remember to work quickly for 10 – 30 minutes going around the space and collecting items you no longer need, use or love. Use music to motivate you and a timer to help you stay on task.
Donating and recycling
Many items can be recycled, batteries, pens and markers, and printer cartridges at Staples. Habitat for Humanity takes building supplies and old electronics for recycling. Check with thrift stores in your area. They take household goods, clothing, toys and furniture. Books can be donated at Value Village.
Selling
You may want to sell some items, look at Facebook Marketplace, consignment stores, Kijiji and Craigslist. When selling items to strangers, meet them in a public place and have someone with you. It is the time of year when you can do yard sales.
The Challenge
This challenge can be applied to your family room, living room and recreation room. Get everyone involved and make the quick declutter challenge go faster.
In the comments let me know what interesting things you discovered.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
I hope you found the tips for decluttering quickly in Quick Declutter Challenge 2 helpful.
Don’t skip this challenge because you don’t have a dining room. Many dining spaces have been turned into offices. You probably have a table that collects clutter or a cupboard that collects too many candles, napkins and unused dishes. It might be in the kitchen, a hallway or a dining room. When clutter is continually visible in a common space area people can start to feel anxious.
In a book I am reading Limitless by Jim Kwik he says, “A Princeton study found that physical clutter competes for your attention ( frontal cortex of your brain) and decreases performance and increases anxiety and stress. Divest yourself of things that attract your attention and distract you.” In the common areas of your home, you want to reduce anxiety, stress and overwhelm. Join the quick declutter challenge 3 and bring happiness to your home.
If you have missed Quick Declutter Challenge 1 – cosmetics or Quick Declutter Challenge 2 – bedrooms you can join the challenge now. Complete the challenges in any order.
In the comment let me know what you found when you decluttered this area.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
My guest blogger today is Emily Mitchell. She is a passionate mother, blogger, and interior design enthusiast. With a keen eye for creating stylish yet family-friendly spaces, she shares her insights and inspirations to help other parents make their homes beautiful and functional.
The journey of family life is a beautiful and rewarding one. However, as your family grows, so do the challenges and the need to adapt your living spaces. From welcoming a new baby into your home to watching your children grow into school-age individuals, the dynamics of your family spaces will continuously evolve. Let’s explore the art of organizing for a growing family, offering insights, tips, and creative solutions to ensure your home remains a comfortable and functional haven for everyone.
The Evolution of Family Spaces
From a Couple to a Family
One of the most significant changes in a couple’s life is the arrival of a baby. This transition often involves converting a spare room into a nursery. To make the best use your nursery space, consider multi-functional furniture like cribs with built-in storage or changing tables that double as dressers. Safety is paramount, so baby-proofing measures such as outlet covers, cabinet locks, and corner guards should be installed.
The Toddler and Preschooler Years
As your child grows, so does their need for space to explore and play. Designating a playroom can help contain the toys and mess while creating an environment for learning and imagination. Organize toys by type and use storage solutions like bins and shelves to keep them accessible yet tidy. Creating educational spaces within the home, like a reading nook or art corner, encourages cognitive development and creativity. Consider storing away some toys and changing the toys that are out on a regular basis. This makes cleaning up much easier.
School-Age Children
Once your child enters school, the home’s organization shifts again. Homework and study areas become essential. Provide a quiet, well-lit study space, and consider ergonomic furniture to promote good posture. Develop your child’s responsibility by involving them in organizing their study materials and belongings. Additionally, storage solutions should evolve to accommodate changing interests, hobbies and the child’s growth.
Maximizing Space Efficiency
Decluttering and Organizing
The key to efficient space utilization is decluttering regularly. Start by purging items your family no longer needs – organize belongings by category and invest in storage containers and systems that make it easy to maintain order. Implementing daily and weekly cleaning routines can help keep spaces clutter-free.
Multi-Functional Furniture and Design
In smaller homes or rooms with limited space, multi-functional furniture is a game-changer. Consider items like sofa beds, fold-down desks, or ottomans with hidden storage. These pieces save space and also add versatility to your rooms. Get creative with room layouts to maximize functionality while maintaining aesthetics.
Vertical Storage Solutions
Don’t neglect the vertical space in your home. Install shelves, hooks, or pegboards on walls to keep frequently used items accessible. Vertical storage can be very helpful in kitchens, home offices, and bathrooms. It reduces clutter and also adds an element of design to your spaces.
Creating Personalized Spaces
Designing Rooms for Individual Preferences
As your children grow, their personalities and interests evolve. Allow them to express themselves by personalizing their bedrooms. Incorporate their favourite colours, themes, and hobbies into the room’s design. This personal touch fosters a sense of ownership and comfort.
Encouraging Family Involvement
Family spaces should reflect the collective identity of your household. Encourage family members to participate in decorating projects. Collaborative efforts, such as creating a family photo wall or painting a mural together, strengthen the sense of togetherness in your home.
Adapting space in a family home after moving
After a move, reshaping the family home involves a mix of excitement and challenges. As you settle in, it’s a chance to re-envision your living spaces to suit your family’s needs and preferences better. Explore versatile furniture arrangements, declutter for a well-organized environment, and personalize rooms to reflect your family’s unique identity.
Another important step when moving with family is hiring assistance, so you might want to trust the process to specialists who will ensure a smooth transition. As you focus on envisioning your new living space, professionals can do all the planning and hard lifting. With the right moving professionals by your side, you can transform your new house into a warm and welcoming home.
Budget-Friendly Approaches
DIY Projects and Upcycling
Organizing for a growing family doesn’t have to break the bank. Consider do-it-yourself (DIY) projects and upcycling. Repurpose existing furniture or give it a fresh coat of paint to match your evolving decor. Creative and cost-effective ideas can be both fun and budget-friendly.
Smart Shopping Strategies
When you do need to purchase new furniture or decor, adopt smart shopping strategies. Look for budget-friendly options that still meet your quality and style preferences. Keep an eye out for seasonal sales, discounts, and online deals to make the most of your budget. Declutter and organize first. You may be surprised how few things you need to purchase.
Future-Proofing Your Home
Planning for the Future
Your family’s needs will continue to change over time. Plan for the future by creating adaptable spaces and space-saving solutions. Consider how rooms can evolve to accommodate different life stages, from toddlers to teenagers. Think about accessibility as family members age, ensuring that your home remains safe and functional.
Maintenance and Durability
Invest in durable materials and design choices that can withstand the wear and tear of family life. Easy-to-maintain surfaces, stain-resistant fabrics, and furniture with removable, washable covers can make your life easier as your family grows.
Conclusion
Organizing for a growing family is a dynamic process that requires flexibility and creativity. As your family evolves, so too must your living spaces. From welcoming a new baby to supporting school-age children, organizing and adapting your home is a rewarding endeavour. Remember, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution; your family’s unique needs and preferences should guide your choices. Maximizing space efficiency and creating personalized spaces can ensure that your family’s living spaces remain functional and welcoming for years to come. Embrace the journey of family life, and let your home evolve with you.
Share a way you adapted your home to suit your growing family.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
How did the quick declutter challenge 1 – cosmetics go? Did you find it difficult to do it quickly? Did you spend a lot of time making decisions about what to keep and what to let go?
Let’s start with question 1.
Set a timer. A timer can help you
- to focus on the task because there is a deadline for you to stop.
- to start because you know you only have to do the task for a short time and then it is over.
- if you can see or hear the time clicking by, it builds a sense of urgency and importance
Play Music
- Music can help people to focus by blocking out thoughts of other things on their minds.
- Make a playlist of songs that will help to make the decluttering enjoyable.
- Some people will like uptempo music to energize themselves.
- Make your playlist for a set amount of time so when the music is done so is your time for decluttering.
Now for question 2
It can be difficult to make decisions when you are worried you will make the wrong decision. Trust yourself. You make decisions all the time, what to eat, what to wear, where to live and when to exercise. Develop some questions that help you to make decisions. Here are a few examples.
- Do I need this?
- Do I have space for it?
- If I keep it will it help me to meet my goals?
- What is the worst thing that will happen if I don’t have it?
Quick declutter challenge 2 – bedroom
Let me know what else was hiding in your bedroom that you decluttered.
If you need help, let’s work together virtually to declutter your bedroom quickly, julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
When you begin to organize your kitchen, think of dividing it into centers. Here are some suggestions.
The area with the most counter space
Use the cupboards above and below the counter as the meal preparation centre. It is the home of items needed to prepare and cook food – cutting boards, knives, bowls, graters, pots, pans, casserole dishes, strainers, etc.
The area with the smaller amount of counter space near the fridge.
The drink centre contains coffee, tea, hot chocolate, drink mixes, cups, glasses, sugar/sweetener, coffee maker, kettle, teapot, etc. Try storing your glasses and mugs in this area instead of with your plates and bowls.
Area near the dishwasher or sink
The dish centre contains dishes and cutlery and should be near the dishwasher for fast and easy unloading. Aim to store items at an age-appropriate height so children can participate without needing assistance. If you like thinking outside the box, store your dishes in the base cabinets until your children are tall enough to reach the cabinets above the counter. Some homes have a pantry. Instead of storing food try storing your plates and bowls in it. Everyone will be able to reach them and it may help to have less traffic near the food preparation and cooking areas.
Area with counter space
The baking centre contains food items and utensils specifically for baking – spices, flour, nuts, chocolate chips, spatulas, cookie sheets, casserole dishes, pie plates, cake pans, etc.
Recycling Area
Establish a recycling/garbage centre for easy collection. There are great products that fit under the kitchen sink and hold 2 or 3 containers to make recycling easy.
Paperwork area
The desk/paperwork center can be located near the telephone charging station or computer, and holds recipes, notepaper, a whiteboard or bulletin board, and pens and markers.
Miscellaneous drawer
The miscellaneous drawer contains small tools and items which you need quick access to in the kitchen – screwdriver, tape, twist ties, scissors, pen, marker, etc. Don’t let the one miscellaneous drawer turn into 2 or 3 drawers.
Determine what centers you need in your kitchen and plan your space to hold everything so it is easy to reach and use. Buy the Create an Organized Home download
In the comments let me know
How do you store your plastic food containers?
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
For the next couple of months, I am going to challenge you to declutter quickly. Too often you can get stuck in the decluttering step and give up. I want you to declutter quickly so you see progress immediately. Decluttering and organizing is not something you do once and it is over. Sorry to break the bad news to you. It is an ongoing process. Learning how to declutter quickly makes light work staying organized. You do a little bit every day and soon it is much better. Don’t get stuck in the perfection wheel. That is where you keep working on one area making it better and better after it is decluttered and functional, while other areas that need help get worse.
Here is the first challenge for you. If you need help, book a series of mini sessions with me to help you declutter quickly.
Here is some information about the expiry dates for cosmetics.
In the comments let me know what was hiding in your cosmetics area that surprised you.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
