How to Come Clean in 2019 by "Tidying Up"!

In January, I hosted a series called “Come Clean in 2019” in my private FB group where I hosted three speakers who talked about coming clean in all areas of your life. I asked each speaker to share a post on their topic and I am re-sharing the live interview below too.

First up - Amy Kay of De-cluttered.

It’s 2019, and unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you know the latest trend is “Tidying Up” with Marie Kondo. For those of you who are not familiar, Marie Kondo is a famous author who has written the book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up where she teaches her readers to go through their homes, item by item, deciding which items to keep, and which to discard, by determining if they spark joy, or, not. I personally love the KonMari method, but it does take time and dedication, which many of us do not have (which is how we got to a cluttered home in the first place, amirite?!).

So, for those of you who would like to start de-cluttering your home, but aren’t quite ready to go as deep as Marie Kondo advises, I have 5 tips that you can do on a daily basis to make your home feel a little less cluttered:

Make Your Bed

This is such an easy way to pull your room together. Making your bed is like giving your bedroom a facelift. You can have clutter everywhere in your room, but if your room is made, there’s an instant sense of order. It only takes a couple of minutes to make your bed, and it’s so worth it!

Clear Your Counters

Walking into a space full of clutter instantly causing a sense of stress, whether you realize it or not. Keep your countertops clear of anything that isn’t something you constantly use, and you will instantly feel the difference of cluttered space vs. not. A clear space will feel so fresh and oh so clean!

Clear Your Floors

Clearing counters? Go ahead & clear your floors, too. This means everything under your bed, the bottom of your closets, etc. Keeping the floor clear of clutter is always pleasing to the eye & instantly makes your space feel open & spacious.

Put Your Clothes Away

You know that chair in the corner of your room? That’s for sitting, not for your clothes that are either “too dirty” to hang back up or “too clean” to put in the hamper. I like to allow 1 hook in your room for that in-between stage; however, you should aim to put allof your clothing away at the end of the day. Who wants to walk into a closet full of piles? That will only make getting ready in the morning more stressful. Pick hamper - OR - hang. This will really only take an extra minute or two if you do it daily, and it will make getting ready in the morning much easier and happier, too!

Wait To Buy

de-clutter first. Live in your space. See what works. THEN go buy baskets or other organizational tools to help you stay organized. You mustde-clutter or you are just clumping together chaos. If baskets and bins will help your process, buy once you’ve measured and you’re confident it will help you. If you rush this, you’ll just be adding more clutter…

Bonus! I know I said 5, but I really wanted to share this one with you, too. If you have kids at home, you know how quickly they outgrow their clothing. Keeping a good rotation of clothing will help keep the clutter under control. My solution? Keep two bins in each kid’s room (you can have this in your closet too…).

One bin labeled: Keep.

One bin labeled: Donate.

These bins can be old diaper boxes - they don’t have to be fancy, they just need to be functional.

As you are putting clean clothes away, sort them. if you notice an outfit is too small and you don’t need to keep it, put it in the donate bin. If it is a super special shirt, but still too small, place in the keep bin. When these bins are full, take the donation box to your favorite organization, or put the keep items in the labeled bin in the attic. Keep this up and you won’t have to deal with your kids trying to wear clothing that’s too small and your space will remain clutter-free!

There you have it! Tackle these 5 tips on a daily basis, and your home will feel much cleaner and organized (because it will be!). I know that it may take time to actually find homes for the items that are currently on your countertops or your floors - BUT - once you de-clutter those spaces, they will be much easier to maintain. After awhile, keeping up with these 5 habits will be easy peasy, and then you’ll be able to tackle the other clutter that’s been bothering you. Get excited, you are on your way to a fully de-cluttered home!