Clutter Busting Coach

…clearing clutter from your mind, body and space

Clutter Busting

The Journey Into Clutter Busting: Your Holiday Plan

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Planning is important in reducing stress. Holiday time is no exception. There seems like there is so much to do in preparation for the holidays.

You can enjoy the holiday this year by implementing a great eight-week holiday plan:

8 weeks: Review last year’s plan, develop one for this year, mark your calendar, prepare your gift list and set up gift-wrapping center

7 weeks: shop/wrap 1/3 of gift list, determine card list/update addresses, buy stamps/print return labels

6 weeks: shop/wrap another 1/3 of gift list, address envelopes/create holiday letter/copy/write holiday cards

5 weeks: finish gift shopping/wrapping, finalize baking/menu list

4 weeks: decorate outdoors, buy baking supplies

3 weeks: decorate indoors, mail gifts/cards

2 weeks: attend/host parties, buy grocery staples, bake/cook ahead, begin cleaning, finalize holiday menu

1 week: finish baking/cleaning, buy perishable groceries

 Most people implement their holiday to do list around Thanksgiving. Now is the time to implement it…November 1  which will give you eight weeks to stress less this holiday season. November 1 is  just a few days away. Why don’t you give it a try this year? You may be amazed at how much this simple plan can increase your enjoyment of the holidays.

If you would like a detailed planning checklist for this eight week plan contact me.

The Journey Into Clutter Busting: What Questions for the Basement

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I needed to step back this week as I tackled my basement journey to relook at the “what’s”. What is working in the basement? What isn’t working in the basement? What is causing the problems?

What is working is that I have zones for storage categories. What isn’t working is that I have boxes stacked on one another so if I need to get to the bottom one I take the top ones off and they don’t always get set back in place. What’s causing the problem is that I still have two much stuff and that yearly tune ups will not work for me.

So this week’s goal during my basement workout is for everything I keep I will get rid of two things. I am up for the challenge.

And as I move forward I will really take a look at how much space I am willing to give to certain storage zones and start setting limits. In addition, I will be scheduling basement time on a quarterly basis to catch messes or piles before they become out-of-hand and overwhelming.

Do you have basement, attic or garage clutter? Ask yourself the “what” questions as your tackle those areas.

The Journey Into Clutter Busting: When Containers Become Clutter

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Have you ever started a clutter clearing project by buying containers? You are at the store and there is a great deal on storage containers. So you are inspired to de-clutter and buy several. And then they sit and become part of the clutter.

“Containerizing” is really one of the last steps in conquering clutter or else the containers become clutter. When you are clearing clutter the best plan is to purge and sort what is left. Once you know what you need to store and where you will be storing the items that is when you should purchase your containers.

There are so many sizes of containers. There are clear ones and colored ones for the season. There are ones with hinged lids and those with removable lids. How do you decide? Maybe a container is not the right storage option for what you have.

Here are some tips for storage containers:
• When possible use the same containers for like items. For example use all green bins for your holiday decorations or all bins with blue tops for your son’s memories.
• Buy clear bins when possible. They help you easily locate storage items.
• Label, label and label. Two-sides are preferable. Label even if you use clear bins.
• Look for unusual uses for storage items. Such as using a hanging shoe holder’s pockets to store scarfs and hair pieces.
• Usual seasonal or occasional items for storage such as using luggage to store out-of-season clothing.

So I am off to evaluate what storage containers I have uncovered or freed up during my basement cleaning project that are usable and if I need to purchase any other types of storage. My goal is to use what I have.

I would love to hear from you about your storage container ideas.

The Journey Into Clutter Busting: Stay Calm and Carry On

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The basement journey continues now into its seventh month. Why do I feel like I haven’t made any progress? It’s because there was a lot of progress that needed to be made.

I was feeling overwhelmed today when I looked at my “to do” list and saw “work in basement” on the list. Of course, it usually is on the list each weekend as I continue my journey. But for some reason today it felt especially overwhelming. Probably the reason for this is that visually I am still not seeing a difference in the number of boxes…they are organized and labeled but there doesn’t seem to be less of them and more floor space.

What I realized in journaling today was that I needed to “stay calm and carry on”. Nothing is impossible if you do what needs to be done one step at a time. It reminded of what I have realized in the past and that is I can do anything for five minutes. I got excited because I decided at that moment to make the impossible possible. How energizing it is to have a vision of what is possible.

With that in mind…baby steps…I am headed down stairs. I will pick one area to focus on today for the two hours that I have in my schedule to work on the basement and I will stay calm and carry on.

What one de-cluttering project are you stuck on and can begin again with just one baby step?

The Journey Into Clutter Busting- Turning Collections Into Displays

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Are you a collector? Do you have boxes of childhood or college memories? Or are you the keeper of family treasures?

If so, are they stored in the basement or attic? Do you ever look at them? What good are your collections or memories if they are packed away to have but not be seen?

Here are some ideas to use to corral your collections or treasures as well as enjoy them. [Read more…] about The Journey Into Clutter Busting- Turning Collections Into Displays