DIY Organizing Solutions

Do you feel like your home is like a holding ground for everything you’ve ever owned? Does it seem like the junk just seems to grow and grow? You’re not alone! Most people have a hard time keeping things organized. It can be even more of a challenge if you’re dealing with limited space or a limited budget. Use these tips and ideas to come up with organizing solutions that work for your home.

1) First, you need to tackle one area at a time. Trying to take on the whole house in one day can be a real nightmare. Getting frustrated generally leads to giving up. Letting things stay disorganized can lead to a lot of stress, anxiety and even depression. Try to set yourself up for success instead of failure. Decide on one area or one pile that you will tackle. Give yourself a time limit so that you don’t wear yourself out. For example, if your computer desk is littered with old mail, magazines, receipts, notes to yourself, dishes and junk, take on that one area first. Don’t worry about getting the whole room clean in one fail swoop. The smaller the task, the better your chances are of finishing it.

2) Concentrate on the areas that affect you most. If you work at your computer at home, then that should be where you begin. If you wake up to get ready in the morning and have to face a disorganized messy bathroom, it’s time to get it in order. You don’t want to wake up to disarray, or go to bed at night staring at it. Clean your bathrooms, your night stand, your coffee table, your computer desk, and your kitchen counters as often as possible, because these are the areas that are typically hot spots. Getting one or two areas completely clean and organized will give you a positive outlook, reduce stress, and motivate you to do more.

3) Don’t backslide. Once you get an area clean, focus on maintaining it. Do this before you tackle new areas that need cleaning. You can create new habits for yourself that help you to keep things organized once you get them that way. For example, if you’re bad about leaving the cap off the toothpaste and leaving it on the counter, concentrate on keeping that area clean. Make a special place for your toothpaste to go that is really easy to access. If you have to go half-way across the room or open an organizer, you aren’t very likely to use it.

4) When you get more and more areas organized, it’ll get easier and easier. Those first few piles are the hardest because you have to come up with places to put things. But after you get to your fourth or fifth area, you’ll be a pro. You will find yourself going faster and doing a better job.

5) Use your closet. Closet space is great for storage because it keeps things out of sight. Waking up to an organized closet is a great way to get your day started. Use special hangers to get everything where it should be. A wood hanger or coat hanger is best for heavy items, while specialty clothes hangers can help you to coordinate outfits or hang things like ties. Get your home organized and your life will get that way, too.

About the Author: Joe Granville is on the staff of Only Hangers, a leading online resource for wood hangers, coat hangers and all types of clothes hangers which is recognized for the excellent quality and value of its wood hanger and coat hanger offerings. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyhangers.com.

Lifestyle Changes for an Organized Home

Keeping your home organized can seem like an insurmountable task. Most people acquire junk piles all over the house, all while feeling like they didn’t do anything to make it happen. There are a few ways to get your home organized, but keeping it that way is the trick. Use these simple organization tips and hints on how to keep the home organized to get control of your life.

Create drawer organization systems that work for what you need. Do you have a junk drawer in your dresser or kitchen? Most people do. Quick clean-up jobs can quickly turn your pot holder and dish towel drawer into a place for anything and everything. Reclaim it by using small boxes or drawer organizer that only allows you to put what goes in the drawer in there. Try to get rid of the junk that ends up in the junk drawer. If you notice that some things really do need a place to go, then make sure that they have a place. Otherwise, they’ll constantly end up being raked into a drawer last minute.

Use wall space to organize your computer desk. Desks are notoriously messy, holding everything from your lunch dishes to your cough lozenges. Utilize the wall space around you and make a place for all of these little things. There’s more to working at a desk than pencils, books and paper. You will probably notice that certain things always end up on your desk. Make spaces for the things that you use while you’re working. You may need space for toothpicks, lip balm, your cell phone, or your fingernail file.

Getting the kids’ rooms organized is another big problem. You can spend hours in there rearranging and organizing toys, only to see it destroyed again an hour later. You may have to put this one in your children’s hands. It can be nearly impossible to keep things straight, so you need a plan. Offer rewards for cleaning. Add five minutes of picking things up and putting them away to your child’s bedtime routine. Tell them that five minutes can earn them fifteen minutes of video game time. If you notice that they did a really good job, give them a double reward, like thirty minutes of extra time. This can be extremely motivating, much more so than threatening to take away privileges if they don’t clean up.

Getting your laundry under control can save you from many days of battling the laundry mountain. Most families can make a load of laundry every day, even if it might be a small load. Make it part of your daily routine to spend a few minutes loading and unloading the wash. Getting your closets in order can help you to keep up with the laundry without wearing yourself out.

It may help to install a hanging bar near the washer and dryer. You can take clothes straight from the dryer and put them directly on hangers. You can use a wood hanger, like a coat hanger, for hanging heavier objects, or clothing that needs to be hang dried. Take the clothes hangers to the closets in one trip every day or two.

Getting your home in order and adjusting your lifestyle can help you stay organized forever!

About the Author: Joe Granville is on the staff of Only Hangers, a leading online resource for wood hangers, coat hangers and all types of clothes hangers which is recognized for the excellent quality and value of its wood hanger and coat hanger offerings. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyhangers.com.

Home Organization Closets

Anytime you’re looking to organize your home, the closet is a great place to start. There are a lot of options when it comes to closet organization. Depending on the space that you have and your budget, you could make great use of hooks, shelves, drawers, additional hanging bars, and cabinets. Additionally, you can create extra space or spruce up the look of your closet by investing a little in high quality hangers.

You may be surprised about what all you can do with your space, even if it is small. Closets can get crammed full and make you feel like the space is inadequate. However, if you take a few steps towards getting the junk cleared and installing some helpful additions, your closet could become a space that you are thankful to have.

Closet organization specialists strive to make the most of the available space. Vertical space is often ignored or wasted in traditional closets. You will need to empty your closet to assess the area and decide which closet arrangement will work best for you.

First you need to remove clutter and go through storage boxes. We usually need our closets to store our out of season clothing, but end up using them to store everything from tax paperwork to extra light bulbs. By clearing everything out, you’ll be able to determine just what you want to keep in the closet and what you can afford to get rid of. Finding new spaces for these extra items can be challenging, but don’t worry.

You can store out of season clothing elsewhere if you really don’t have anywhere else to keep your extra household supplies. Most people utilize the space underneath the bed to store their extra clothes. You can buy shallow, yet large, containers that fit this space perfectly. You can use bed risers to make even more hidden space in your bedroom. Other options include rolling garment racks or armoires to store extra clothing.

To utilize wasted space, consider adding another shelf up high in the closet for rarely used items. If you move your shelves upward, you might make room for an extra hanging bar. Extra bars or shelves can be installed on either side of the closet as well. Moving the bars back closer to the back wall can reveal hidden space at the front of the closet.

When you get the arrangement that you want, be selective about what you put back in. Give as much as possible to charity. If you still need to save space, invest in hangers that help you to do so. Slim or flat hangers work great. Other specialty hangers will give you special places to keep ties, belts, skirts, and lingerie. Your clothes hangers may be your greatest closet investment. A nice wood hanger makes your closet look sophisticated while adding style and longevity to your investment. Remember to use a coat hanger for your coats and suits so that they don’t get misshapen at the shoulders.

When your closet is updated to accommodate the things that you use most, you’ll be on your way to a more organized and efficient home.

About the Author: Joe Granville is on the staff of Only Hangers, a leading online resource for wood hangers, coat hangers and all types of clothes hangers which is recognized for the excellent quality and value of its wood hanger and coat hanger offerings. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyhangers.com.