In today’s fast-paced world and everyone living a busy life, its easy for your home to become/seem neglected as clutter builds up. Most people struggle to keep their homes organized, with many postponing the chore to a later date – hence a disorganized house. You, however, don’t need an entire day to ensure your home is clean and well-organized. All you need is to make a habit of putting/keeping everything where it belongs and cleaning as you go on with your chores, e.g., cooking. Discussed below are a few easy ways to controlling clutter at home.
1. Keep Everything In Its ‘Home’
As cliché as it may sound, everything in the house should have its designated spot or place. Don’t just toss items wherever and however, you feel like. Learn to sort and group items based on their use. For instance, learn to keep dishes in the dish rack, spoons and cutlery in their specific spot too. Pencils, rubbers, files and such should have a designated place or drawer as well. The same applies to towels, clothes, sheets, shoes, and socks. When done using an item, make it a habit of returning it to its specific spot. This applies to dirty clothes as well.
2. Follow The 4-Box Rule
More often than not, you will have items that you use regularly, those you rarely use, and lots of items you no longer need. Avoid the habit of hanging on to something even after its purpose is done. One way to control clutter in your house is by following the 4-box rule. Have a box for keeping everything you need and regularly use, another for items that you wish to donate, one for items you want to preserve, and a trash box. Sort everything by the need and urgency, and don’t forget to get rid of things in the trash box. This should leave you with less clutter and enough space to move around the house.
Your house should dictate what lifestyle you lead. The first step to controlling clutter at home is by letting the size of your house dictate how much stuff to keep. If your house seems too small for the ‘many’ items you have, don’t start shopping for a bigger home, but instead consider getting rid of excess items that you don’t exactly need. An excellent example of this is the couch you inherited from your grandparents. While they may come in handy in a large house, they aren’t practical in your one-bedroomed apartment. If your closet is bursting with clothes you rarely wear, why not pair it down to those that you need.
4. Consider A Junk Drawer
Although everything should be kept in its place, there are those little things that you use a lot, but can’t really find a spot to keep them. Don’t struggle to find a place for all these. A small junk drawer can help sort the mess. Whether it is the twist ties, duct tape, pens, pieces of wire, or clips you use often, these will fit perfectly well in a junk drawer. Just don’t let the drawer overflow with junk you don’t need.