De-Cluttering Your Home

Simple and Easy ways to De-Clutter your Home:

1. Start with the easy junk. Go room by room and throw out trash, coupons, menus, flyers, outdated calendars, old newspapers, magazines, catalogs, and toys that have fallen apart.

2. Set small goals. Try to bang out a mini de-cluttering session every day. You can accomplish more than you think in just 15 minutes. For instance, delve into the junk drawer while you're talking on the phone.

3. Give everything a home. A big reason why clutter accumulates is because things don't have homes. A good home for a frequently used item is one that makes it easy to get to and to put the item back into.

4. Let go. If you had only ten minutes to evacuate your home, what would you grab? Make a decision to surround yourself with only beloved and useful things and give the rest away or throw them out.

5. Identify clutter hot spots. You can't hide all your clutter, but you can contain it. Look at where it builds up, and find something to put it in. For instance, try a large bowl on the kitchen counter for keys, or a big basket by the door for shoes.

6. De-clutter daily. It's easier to keep up than to catch up, so establish a daily routine. Grab a laundry basket and make the rounds, tossing in anything to be put away. Dont let messes build up and overpower you.

7. Be a good gatekeeper. Think twice before you bring home something new. Ask yourself if you really need it and where you will put it. Becoming a more conscious shopper goes a long way toward cutting clutter.