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Clutter Busting Tips

Here at Hollywood Storage Center of Thousand Oaks, we don’t like clutter!  That’s why we always appreciate Dion’s expert advice.

So, you know by now that I’m the clean one in my house. But, it’s still a constant battle to keep things from piling up and messing up our rather limited living space. Sometimes the stuff seems like it’s living there more than we are!

So, I did some research and tested out some ways to de-clutter, free up space in the house, and feel a lot better. Even my girlfriend and roommates got on board with it.

Here are the top seven clutter busting tips I use, and I hope you can put them into action too:

  1. Find a place for every item – One reason things pile up on counters, tables, and floors is that they have no “home”.  Make sure everything lives somewhere.  Do you have a lot of important files you need to keep, but don’t have room? Then, you might want to consider a safe off-site location.
  2. Play Clutter Cop – Scan your home for clutter hot spots and spend some time figuring out why stuff accumulates there.  The better you are about keeping things out of these hot spots, the less likely things will pile up.  (Hint: If you’re a collector and are running out of room to keep or display your stuff, you might want to consider storing some of it in a climate controlled storage facility and rotating the items you want to show).

Messy closet in bedroom overstuffed with clothes, hats, woman's apperal.

  1. Hold off on container shopping – Clutter victims often think the first thing they need is organizing products. STOP and do some de-cluttering first. Get rid of the things you absolutely hate or will never use. Then get some good storage containers for sentimental items you want to keep but don’t have a lot of room for and things you only use periodically. These are perfect to keep in a Newbury Park storage unit.
  2. Dump duplicates – Why have two power saws when one is enough?  Why have six flashlights or 17 coffee mugs?  Throwing out or donating duplicates is one of the easiest ways to get rid of clutter.

Cropped shot of an exhausted young couple resting on a couch in their living room

  1. Look for simple clutter control solutions – Do you run a home business and keep a lot of samples, supplies, equipment, or inventory?  Storing these items outside of your home will be a lot easier and make your business more manageable.

 Family helping to clear a garage

  1. Weed out your wardrobe – Odds are your closet is filled with stuff you rarely wear. Sort through your clothes, decide what you want to keep and donate the rest.  If you have seasonal clothes or things you’ll fit into again soon, you might want to use wardrobe boxes and other types of specialty storage boxes to hold onto them.

 Woman looking through closet

  1. Stick to a schedule – Some spaces need daily de-cluttering (refer to Tip 2). But, others can be tackled weekly or monthly. Put your periodic de-cluttering tasks on your calendar just like other appointments.

Remember, it’s all about the attitude. It’s OK to be the “Clutter Cop” around your house. Everyone will be happier-really. See you soon!

Dion-Coleman-Hollywood Storage CenterThis was a guest post from Dion, a member of The Clean Team™ here at Hollywood Storage Center.  Dion is an expert on “all things storage” and he prides himself on learning the best home cleaning tips.  Thanks, Dion!  Readers: Post you own favorite de-cluttering tips below, or on Facebook!