2 Simple Ways to Organize Your Home
Dealing with an unorganized mess? Try these 2 simple ways to organize your home!
Struggling with organization in your home? I have good news for you: it doesn’t have to be difficult.
For years, I thought that proper organization meant investing in matchy-matchy bins and baskets so everything could look so lovely for a Pinterest-perfect home.
But you don’t need to save up just to buy pretty but pricey organizational tools. In fact, those tools are not even a necessity.
Changing your organization mindset
Instead of thinking that containers are the answer to your organizational problems, I’d like you to change your mindset.
First off, realize that your home and your belongings are unique to you. As you begin to organize your home, remember that each room has its own unique challenges and solutions. And every home is different.
For instance, in my current home, I only have cupboards and pull out drawers in my kitchen. And in my bathroom, I only have a built-in three-shelved cupboard. Yet in my family’s last home, we had a huge kitchen pantry and a linen closet in our hallway.
And if my family ever moves, my organizational challenges and opportunities will be a lot different. My current organizational challenges and opportunities are completely different than YOUR challenges and opportunities.
2 simple ways to organize any home
Even though each room is very distinctly its own space, I use the same sort of organizational approach in all of my rooms. In any home.
And I gravitate toward 2 simple ways to organize my home:
- Keep belongings near where you’ll use them.
- Group like things together.
Keep belongings near where you’ll use them.
When I keep belongings near where I’ll use them, it makes my life easier. Of course I keep the pots and pans I frequently use in my kitchen, near the stove. And I keep extra bottles of shampoo in my bathroom.
But this also might mean that I keep certain things in unconventional places:
- I keep my microfiber cleaning cloths where I use them – my bathroom cloths are kept in my bathroom.
- Umbrellas are stored in my car, instead of my coat closet, because I’m typically in my car when I need an umbrella – not in my home.
- Scissors are kept in several rooms, where I know I’ll use them most.
As you’re deciding where to keep things, I love Dana White’s advice on A Slob Comes Clean: “If I needed this item, where would I look for it?” Once you’ve answered your question, then take it there.
Group like things together.
Unless you’ve ruthlessly KonMaried your home, you probably own multiples of certain things. Like combs. Or paperclips.
Instead of having these multiples scattered around your home, gather each thing in its own separate place. Gather all of your combs into one container in your bathroom. Collect all the paperclips you own and put store them together.
Now that everything’s in one place – and as long as it’s kept near where you’ll use it – you won’t have to wonder where a note pad is the next time you need one. Or a marker. Or an elastic ponytail holder.
One more hugely important secret
Now that I’ve shared my simple organizational tips, the important thing is actually organize in this way – and then to keep them organized in this way.
When you’re finished using something, put it back where you found it. There’s nothing that will undermine an organized house quicker than not taking the time to put things away in their proper places. (Just ask me. I know all too well.)
Living out the familiar phrase, “a place for everything and everything in its place” really is very helpful.
By using these simple organizational tips, you can begin to bring some order into your home, one room (or space of a room) at a time.
In your experience, what have been some simple ways to organize your home?
Disclosure: This post originally was published on Aug. 31, 2016. Links in this post may be affiliate links. This means that, at no added cost to you, I may make a commission on products purchased through these links. Thank you for supporting this website!
All images courtesy of Unsplash.
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Great ideas!! When we moved to our new house four years ago, it took me a while before I realized that the organization for this house had to be different from the old one. What a game changer! We now have things in completely different places, but it’s where we use them and it makes complete sense.