While there is a serious global health pandemic going on around us, having all this extra time to spend at home during South Africa’s nationwide lockdown can also be seen as a blessing in disguise. Spending extra time at home not only gives us more valuable time to spend with family, housemates, pets, or even ourselves but it also offers the opportunity to de-clutter and organise those areas of your home that you just haven’t had time to concentrate on in the past.
There’s not a huge amount we can control with regards to the coronavirus or the shutdown, but one thing we can do to make our lives comfortable is to keep our home clean and tidy. If you’re feeling up to it, tidying up and organising your home may help you feel better and give your mind something else to focus on during this uncertain time. Plus, it will help you stay active too! Here are our top tips for organising and sorting through the clutter in your home:
Don’t create new clutter:
If you need to have a space to work during the day and aren’t fortunate enough to have a separate home office space then you’ll no doubt want to find somewhere to work that is free from clutter. For many people, the most obvious place is the dining room table or the kitchen counter. But, be careful not to create more clutter in these areas with your workspace. Create a ‘hot desk’ for yourself by clearing out a cardboard box or cupboard shelf so that at mealtimes and in the evenings your work paraphernalia can be packed away and put in a designated spot.
During this time, try to keep up with a good tidying routine at home as well. It’s so much better for your mental well-being to wake up to an organised environment, so make time to tidy up each night before bed. Before heading to bed, take 20 minutes to tidy your things away, get the kids to pick up their toys, and unpack the dishwasher. You’ll wake up ready to tackle the day.
You don’t need to get rid of anything right now
For obvious reasons, now isn’t the right time to be taking items to the recycling centre or charity shop, but you can still de-clutter and store items you don’t want to keep in a safe place, ready to be removed from your home at a later date. While you organise and de-clutter, make sure you designate a small area in your home for things that will eventually go to be thrown out, recycled or donated. Make sure the items are stacked neatly and don’t worry too much about buying lots of new storage solutions at this time. However, it can be handy to have a few simple boxes ready to keep things tidy. Once you’re able to buy a few home storage and organisation items, you can finish the project and store items even more neatly.
This is also a great opportunity to clear out drawers in your home. Most of the time, there’s so much spread out within drawers that could be organised in a better way. Pull the contents out and categorise items before putting them back more neatly, you will probably find a drawer’s worth more space just by organising things neatly.
Create a priority list:
Before you start, create a priority list for your organising. There may be a few key areas in your home that are causing you the most chaos and those should be at the top of your to-do list. This will help you stay focused and tackle one project at a time.
Do a little bit every day:
Rather than overwhelm yourself with a huge task, do a little bit of tidying and organising every day. Whether you tackle one side of your wardrobe, a single drawer, or one shelf, that’s more than enough. It’s important to start small. Choose a kitchen drawer, bedroom drawers, or a linen cupboard and start organising. Once you’ve seen the progress and results the momentum from the positive progress will help carry you to the next area to tackle.
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