It can be a daunting task to maintain your home clutter-free, but reaching this ultimate goal is so worthwhile. The areas that are in perpetual need of declutter upkeep are the shared spaces such as, the living room and kitchen, and equally as challenging are the bedrooms and bath areas.

Here are proven tips to achieve clutter-free spaces, apply these methods to organize essentials and ingenious ideas for storage.

Organization

If you have never done this before, it may be a grueling task to take on the first time around, but once implemented it will be easier to maintain the next time, and the next time.

Start in one room and create sections labeled with the following:

  • Keep- in the room
  • Move- to another room, list the room.
  • Store- away in an area such as attic, garage, or basement.
  • Donate- to a charity, or sell
  • Discard- throw away, if items are too big, coordinate a pick up from a junk collection service.

The first task is to go through each item cluttering the area and determine if it has a function in that particular room or not and then put into the appropriate labeled pile or section. Determine which specific décor you plan to keep for that particular space. Methodically remove anything that is unneeded to the purpose of the room. De-clutter one drawer at a time, as opposed to tackling all drawers at one once, you won’t feel as overwhelmed.

Assess books, toys, and video games to save and assign to designated shelving, drawer space, or storage container. In the kitchen, keep your countertops clear, allocating space for only necessary pieces, such as small appliances, utensils, and simple décor items. Extra dishes that you do not use, either store for later use, donate, or properly dispose of them. And in the bedroom, make the bed every day, it gives you the chance to display those fabulous accent pillows as a reward for a job well done. Get your jewelry and clothing in order by first purging and then arranging them in a way to make them easy to see and find things. Sort through and properly discard of old lotions and makeup.

Do this decluttering annually as part of your maintenance routine.

Storage

Attractive storage solutions abound in this day and age, for example, large decorative baskets, fun molded plastic bins, even vintage items like trunks, glass jars, or wash tubs, the list is endless. It can be fun to find clever storage solutions for items like remote controls, magazines, electronics, or any other article that need a space to be stashed away.

Get total use of storage furniture with their shelving and drawers in living and dining rooms. Take advantage of all the kitchen storage areas, like under the sink, and the pantry to store small appliances and additional gadgets. In the bedroom use storage boxes under the bed for out of season clothing and shoes.

Conclusion

Keeping the interior storage simple approach is key to effectively tackling the clutter issue. Applying this strategy proposes that systems work best if they are kept simple. A home that’s clutter-free and easy to maintain is an important objective for a time-crunched, busy family. A practical rule of thumb, is to get in the habit of putting items in their right place after every use, giving you more time to spend with the people in your life than doing chores.