We all know that the Modere range of Household Care products are the perfect way to keep your home – and everything in it – clean. However, for many of us, the first step towards having a clean home is the process of decluttering first.
Much like achieving anything worthwhile, the first step is to set a goal. Make a plan, if you’re aiming to declutter a single room or your entire home.
Start with a list.
Write down, or make a map, of all the spaces and clutter hot spots (such as cupboards and storage areas) you want to tackle.
Tackle one room or hot spot at a time.
Set deadlines for each phase of your clean up, test yourself and turn the chore into a challenge.
There is a very simple system that can help you in your battle against clutter. Start by arranging three boxes or storage bins. Now label them ‘Keep’, ‘Get rid of it’ and ‘Storage’. As you encounter each new object, make a decision, which box does it go in?
If it’s ‘keep’, find a new home for it as soon as you complete a space or hot spot. If it’s ‘Get rid of it’, recycle it, sell it, give it to charity or dispose of it – it’s gone! If an object makes it to the ‘Storage’ box, pack it away (remembering to label the boxes and/or include an inventory sheet) and get it out of your living space into your storage space; being wary of creating another clutter zone in the process of course.
Doesn’t that make your home look and feel better?
Now we realise there will be things that you’re not quite sure what to do with. There are no doubt certain things you may be holding on to for sentimental reasons or because of the memories attached to them. These feelings are real and shouldn’t be discounted, however, you may need to be a little hard on yourself.
If it is something you truly treasure, store it. If it’s a family heirloom or memento, consider passing it on to the next generation. Local historical societies and community museums are likely to welcome unique items.
However, it’s a good time to remember the 80/20 rule. For things like clothes, accessories, toys, entertainment media and other consumer goods, we tend to use 20% of the objects 80% of the time. Work out which category it fits into. Try turning your clothes hangers so they all face in the same direction, as you wear and put an item back into your wardrobe, turn the hanger the other way around. At the end of the season, any items still facing in the original direction are good candidates for clearing out.
You can try the 80/20 trick with other items too such as books, DVDs or CDs.
It may sound obvious, but does what you’re holding on to work? If not, fix it if you wish, but don’t let it sit there gathering dust if it doesn’t.
Think of the last time you used something. If you pull out an object and your first reaction is ‘I wondered where that was!’, or ‘I forgot I had that!, odds are you haven’t missed it enough to keep it. Similarly, if you’re not sure, sleep on it. If you wake up in the morning and think it’s something you can – or cannot – live without, store it or give it the heave-ho!
Start small. Perhaps the dreaded Tupperware cupboard with all the mismatched lids! A wardrobe or even a desk. Big journeys start with first steps, and the journey to ‘Living Clean’ is one worth taking.
