Modern homes have become places where life is often a series of searches for things that have gone missing, and it is generally due to an overabundance that it becomes an issue. People buy things when they are in a hurry that they do not necessarily need, and they tend to keep them because they do not have the time to clean out all that clutter.
Controlling clutter can feel like trying to dig a hole in a sandy beach, and the harder a person works at cleaning it out, the more clutter falls into the house. Getting rid of it throughout the house can be too big for anyone to tackle, but doing only one small space on a weekend could be the start of a better life.
Many people recommend doing it with just three bins and labeling them for donation, trash and keep. It might work for most people, but it can be difficult to make the decision of where something should go. Below is a guide to help make those decisions a bit easier for anyone who has tried to eliminate the clutter in their home.
First select one small area to clean out like a bedroom closet, or choose a few drawers or cabinets in the kitchen. If choosing to work in the kitchen, do not try to do it all in one weekend. The job will probably not get done because it is an area with plenty of places for clutter to build up, and the goal here is to succeed.
Making choices can be difficult in many ways when decide what needs to go, but guidelines are always helpful. Anything that does not fit into the categories of donation or trash will go back into the area they came from, and the rest will be history.
Keeping things just because they were a gift from a friend or family member is one of the ways clutter accumulates. Unless it is being used on a regular basis or something another family member loves, it should be gone.
Speaking of useful brings up another area where items should be gotten out of the house, and there are probably a good number of them in any closet. Any clothing items not work for more than a year should be donated if they are in good shape, but they should be tossed in the trash if there are rips or bad staining. Keeping them for rags might be a good idea, but only if they are immediately made into rags and fit in the bin.
Clothes are not the only item that might be taking up valuable closet room, and they are called shoes. Footwear is always nice to have for different outfits, but shoes that are uncomfortable need to walk away to a new home. If they are gently used they can go to the local donation center, but worn out shoes should be tossed.
Items that are chipped, broken or even unloved should make their way to the trash or the local donation center, because the space they take up can be better used for keeping those things that are really needed for a better life.