Week 2 of a clean and organized house

It is the age old question, what do I keep and what do I get rid of!?

And many of us suck at answering it. I have been guilty of keeping stuff for years just because or hey at some point it will come back in fashion. However….sometimes we must really ask ourselves “self, am I really going to turn that dust pan into a lamp, or wear that leather jacket from 1999 or put some ones present in that ugly bag?” And more often than not I would like to think the logical side of your brain will say “NO”. And when that happens we don’t justify it we just get rid of it.

Recently I have been guilty of breaking my biggest pet peeve and that is Don’t put crap in the closets just because it doesn’t have a home, so I inspired myself to clean out my crap ridden closets and organize. As I was doing this here is a list of some things I came across and I really hope it helps you, as I have seen it so eloquently put before…decrapify your stuff!

Purge #1: master bedroom closet.

If you’re like me there is too much clothing and shoes and scarves and purses and well, everything else that it just takes over and makes what can be such a nice place….well not so nice. I love my closet, I love it so much I sit in it and talk on the phone, and so while I’m doing that I want it to be clean and pretty. In order for it to be in order I have a rule, 1 thing in 1 thing out (except for scarves) if you buy a new shirt it’s probably because another one is getting old so get rid of it. You have a new one, how often will you wear the old one???? This logic can be applied to anything in your master closet except for shoes and scarves and jewelry.  So for those I have another rule, shoes…only keep them if you wear them at least once a month. If you don’t chances are you won’t even miss em.

For the scarves and jewelry my rule is:

DON’T TOUCH MY SCARVES and JEWELRY!!!

Purge #2: hall closet/jacket closet.

When I went through my hall closet I realized I had a jacket for almost every outfit and that is just not necessary when you don’t work. I asked myself “self, when did you buy this jacket? And how often do you wear it?” If the jacket is more than 3-5 years old…GET A NEW JACKET and donate this one to someone else. There are some that are meant to be kept longer but really after 3-5 your just looking kinda goofy and out of style. I apply this to all hubbies jackets too and make the decision for him. And for my kids, well they cycle through jackets so fast it’s never really a problem. If you are keeping the kids jackets for a reason and they don’t fit any more, get rid of them and take them to a second hand store such as Kid to Kid and make some money off them puppies!

Purge 3: Kitchen cabinets.

 I hate clutter in my cabinets, so this is usually easy for me. I cook often and if I don’t use it at least once a month…good bye! Chances are I have a friend who may need that what ever it may be. This however does not apply for the big ticket items like bread makers. They are expensive and you may only use them once or twice a year, so as long as you have a place for it, keep it in its place. I do not keep an excess of pans and pots and all that stuff, I have just what I need to cook for my family, I don’t know why a family of 4 needs 6 pans of any kind. That why they make soap right…so really ask yourself during this purging of kitchen items, do I use it and how many do I have, can I get by with only 1 or 2 of this item?’ if so find a friend or charity to donate it to.

Purge 4: craft stuff.

I know I know I think I just lost all my friends and shocked myself! But yes you do need to purge your craft stuff. There is just no sense in keeping fabric you will never use or paper in such an ugly color you will never attach it to any project with your name on it. Craft stuff is a lot like cloths. It goes out of style and may not come back. If it’s been a year and you still haven’t repurposed it get rid of it.

Purge 5: the dreaded wrapping bags and wrapping paper.

I can assure you that like me, you have to many of them. This is how I deal with this; I don’t keep every bag to recycle for someone else. If I don’t love the bag the garbage does. There is no law that says we must keep the bag someone gives us. And as for wrapping paper, I use different paper every year so I only buy what I need to wrap whatever it is I have, CVS and even Wal-Mart sell the small tubes and squares of paper that is really cute. For the bags you are keeping put them in a larger bag and keep them on a shelf or something. I have mine in a Coach bag so they are hidden and my laundry room looks chic!

Purge 6: kid’s toys.

 Because I stay at home I am able to go through my boys stuff often and purge what is broken or what they don’t play with. My first rule is, throw the happy meal toys away quickly. My kids don’t get them often and when they do they usually leave them on the counter or in my car and that is all she wrote ladies. In the garbage they go! Anything that is chewed up or gross looking with missing limbs or parts goes in the garbage. For the cool toys I just cycle them out. They don’t keep everything out all at once that way they don’t get bored. I also keep a bare minimum of toys in my house. My kids play outside and color a lot so we really don’t have a need for any more than a small basket of army men and what not’s. Toys are another item that you shouldn’t keep for siblings unless they are really close in age. How often will they actually use the hand me down toy? And by the time the next kid is big enough to play with it there will be cooler stuff that the family will want to buy so then you wind up with a surplus of riding, noise making, blinky, army men that you just don’t need.

Well friends, I hope it helped to define the what to keeps and what to get rid of’s and remember you can’t feel bad, someone else could always use it instead!!!