It turns out credit card debt isn’t the only thing that can follow people around months after Christmas. Clutter also has a tendency to stick around long after the holidays are over. The New Year is the perfect excuse to get organized. Here are some simple home organization tips that will help you cut the clutter and get your home back from the chaos of Christmas.
1. Use Your Doors
The door is possibly the most overlooked home organization tool and there is barely a room that cannot benefit from some hooks placed on a door. In the bathroom, you can make the door a towel rack with some simple hooks. Organize some of your packaged foods on the pantry door to make finding what you need easier. Even a door near the entryway can double as a hat rack!
2. Keep Your Glass Jars
Many of us end up with mason jars that then end up in the basement collecting dust. Yet these jars make the perfect containers for almost anything. Cut out unnecessary packaging and turn a few mason jars into containers for salt, sugar and flour. Put one in your bedroom or kitchen for collecting loose change. You can even use them in the bathroom for holding all of your smaller cleaning or cosmetic products.
3. Use a Narrow Table
A narrow table next to a washing machine, especially one with a shelf underneath, makes for a perfect folding station that can also store your detergents and dryer sheets. One in the hallway, especially one with drawers, can hold keys, cards and other things you need that don’t have to be out in the open. One near the front door can be perfect for all the things you need as you head out of the house.
4. Become a Basket Case
Wicker baskets lined with some linen make for beautiful and helpful organizational tools that can help you stay organized almost anywhere. A common favourite place for baskets is the bathroom, where you can keep extra towels and cloths at the ready while not taking up space. They are also perfect for the linen closet, where you can store folded sheets and even some of those Christmas decorations.
5. Get More Shelves
Today’s shelves are easy to install, come in almost any size, and are surprisingly inexpensive. But the organizational good they can bring is probably the best bet for your dollar. You can put them up high to store things you don’t often need, or need to be kept away from children. Or you can put them lower for things you need all the time. Shelves can fit almost anywhere and they can make organizing so much easier.
6. Get Some Zip Ties
Zip ties. Zap straps. Whatever you want to call them, they are great for corralling all the wires all over your home. Rather than making a rat’s nest in the space between your entertainment center and the nearest plug, bundle those cords together and wrap them loosely together (never too tight!).