Home
Log in / Sign Up
    Private Messages   Advanced Search   Rules   New User Guide   FAQ   Advertise   Contact Us  
Forum -> Household Management -> Organizing
Help me get organized!



Post new topic   Reply to topic View latest: 24h 48h 72h

boots




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 12:45 pm
I will preface this post by saying that I hope to hire a professional organizer at some point but right now it is not feasible.

Every room in my house is full of things that don't have a home. How do I start to tackle the clutter?
Back to top

ShineBright!




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 12:57 pm
I would suggest starting by taking one room at a time (slowly, so you don't get overwhelmed) and throwing out as much as possible.
Back to top

boots




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 1:13 pm
I actually have a monthly purge where I go through the house and toss as much as I can but things pile up quickly. Even after everything that can be tossed has been I still have lots of stuff with no home.

For example - I am sitting now at the dining room table. On the table is a camera that we used last night to take pictures of a birthday party. There is no place for the camera. There are also some books that I need for work tomorrow. There is no place in the bookshelf for them. There are two mail boxes, one for me, one for DH. There is no place to store them. They used to sit on a little table in the front hall but my baby thought that they were placed there for his entertainment so we had to move them. There are some art supplies for my bigger kids. There is no other place to keep them. When we have to use the dining room table all the stuff gets dumped on top of a bookshelf and then gets taken down as needed.

It is like this in every room of the house! At wits end
Back to top

ra_mom




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 1:57 pm
boots wrote:
I will preface this post by saying that I hope to hire a professional organizer at some point but right now it is not feasible.

Every room in my house is full of things that don't have a home. How do I start to tackle the clutter?

You can call the Hakol B'seder hotline each day. She breaks things down in small 15 minute cleaning / purging segments each day and within a few months everything will have been gone through methodically. Then you keep it with every day segments so it doesn't become overwhelming.
She also does a real spring cleaning in time pesach in just a bit each day, starting from chanukah so it's not a big overwhelming project.
(347) 772-1188
Back to top

Miri7




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 2:01 pm
It sounds like you need to give things homes. Maybe sit and make a list room by room of the homeless items. Then make categories of things and make a storage plan. Maybe you need a cabinet or shelves, or something. Identify where you can fit more storage. Look online at storage ideas, how to create more. I have friends in the tiniest apartment and it’s amazing how tidy it is - they’ve created a lot of storage solutions and they put things where they belong. Everything has a place.
Back to top

jewishmom6




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 2:10 pm
ra_mom wrote:
You can call the Hakol B'seder hotline each day. She breaks things down in small 15 minute cleaning / purging segments each day and within a few months everything will have been gone through methodically. Then you keep it with every day segments so it doesn't become overwhelming.
She also does a real spring cleaning in time pesach in just a bit each day, starting from chanukah so it's not a big overwhelming project.
(347) 772-1188


thats cute! good to know!
Back to top

hopeafterloss




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 2:21 pm
some good books: Sink Reflections by the FLY Lady - she also has a good website (For people who are naturally messy), Julie Morgenstern: Organizing from Inside out (A Drop more intellectual/theory, but really brilliant- ), Marie Kondo (a little extreme, but inspires you to only keep what 'brings you joy').

I would probably start with FLY LADY's method first: Each week is a zone in your house (I.e. kitchen, bedroom etc) . Every day you spend 15 minutes on your zone, decluttering and deep cleaning. If you are not done at the end of the week, you move on to the next zone, but after 5 weeks you revisit the first zone again. This is together with building up a morning and evening routine (slowly ..) that helps maintain the house... If you really follow her plans then in 6 months you will notice a HUGE difference....
Back to top

boots




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 2:41 pm
ra_mom wrote:
You can call the Hakol B'seder hotline each day. She breaks things down in small 15 minute cleaning / purging segments each day and within a few months everything will have been gone through methodically.

I just checked out the website - looks like a great resource, thanks for posting!

Miri7 wrote:
It sounds like you need to give things homes. Maybe sit and make a list room by room of the homeless items. Then make categories of things and make a storage plan. Maybe you need a cabinet or shelves, or something. Identify where you can fit more storage. Look online at storage ideas, how to create more. I have friends in the tiniest apartment and it’s amazing how tidy it is - they’ve created a lot of storage solutions and they put things where they belong. Everything has a place.

Love this homeless list idea. Thanks!

hopeafterloss wrote:
some good books: Sink Reflections by the FLY Lady - she also has a good website (For people who are naturally messy), Julie Morgenstern: Organizing from Inside out (A Drop more intellectual/theory, but really brilliant- ), Marie Kondo (a little extreme, but inspires you to only keep what 'brings you joy').

I would love to keep only what brings me joy. My house would be clean and mostly empty. I don't think DH or kids would appreciate it though.

(edited to consolidate multiple posts)
Back to top

zaq




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 3:25 pm
Purge first; organize second.
The first thing to purge is the URGE—to acquire and possess.

1. Stop acquiring more stuff. Even or maybe especially if it’s free.
2. If you must acquire something new, get rid of an equivalent something old. A fat book for a fat book or several thin ones, not an encyclopedia in and an index card out.
3. Purge ruthlessly. This is where a neutral third party, with no sentimental attachment to your stuff, can help.
4. Expect the project to take a long time and do it in chunks, not all at once.
5. Once you decide to purge something, get rid of it at once. Do NOT let it hang around till you “get around to” bringing it to Goodwill or the town dump. Your neutral third party can help with this too.

After you have purged, decide where you want to store whatever is left. Store like with like and try to have just one place where you keep each type of possession so you have a handle on how much of each thing you have. Then, and only then, start measuring, dividing, building, installing and if necessary buying storage supplies.
Back to top

hopeafterloss




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 5:23 pm
boots wrote:
I would love to keep only what brings me joy. My house would be clean and mostly empty. I don't think DH or kids would appreciate it though.

(edited to consolidate multiple posts)


Thats why the book is a drop unrealistic, b/c she doesnt have kids. But I found that when I started purging and keeping my spaces neat, it rubbed off on my family. B'h DH is not such a hoarder, but I give him boxes/areas for him to put his stuff and then I dont think about it. For my kids I teach them early on about the concept of decluttering. We take out all their stuff and have boxes: Keep, Decide at the End, Donate, Thow away. I tell them about the poor kids that dont have any toys or clothes, and they feel so good about helping someone else. I never pressure them about any decisions, I just ask them questions, Do you love it, Do you need it etc...but you will be surprised how easily they get the hang of it.... Its also personality, so some kids will have more stuff than others... When they get older I stop doing it with them, but each kid has their own place for stuff and they cant exceed it, so they are periodically decluttering by themselves...
Back to top

teachkids




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Nov 08 2018, 6:00 pm
I'm like this too. Step one was to make sure everything does have a home. Not always are they convenient places, but they're somewhere. Step 2 is that I make sure everything gets put away before Shabbos. This way even if it sits out, it never sits out more than a week.
Back to top

boots




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Nov 09 2018, 11:30 am
teachkids wrote:
I'm like this too. Step one was to make sure everything does have a home. Not always are they convenient places, but they're somewhere. Step 2 is that I make sure everything gets put away before Shabbos. This way even if it sits out, it never sits out more than a week.


does stacked on top of the bookcase count as a home?
Back to top
Page 1 of 1 Recent Topics




Post new topic   Reply to topic    Forum -> Household Management -> Organizing

Related Topics Replies Last Post
Helping daughter get organized
by amother
8 Sat, Jan 13 2024, 11:51 pm View last post
How to keep big freezer organized???
by amother
3 Mon, Jul 17 2023, 3:33 pm View last post