Ever feel like you’re the ONLY one in your whole household that cares about cleanliness? Does it feel like you’re the maid, cleaning up after everyone else? Are you tired of fighting the battle alone? Let’s talk about what YOU can do to get recruits … Continue reading One Man Army?
Making cupboards feel organized can be tricky. With oddly shaped dishes, pots, pans and appliances our cupboards can look like a disarray. So here’s a quick, simple cupboard hack! Find cute, inexpensive shoe racks to organize for you. This shoe rack was found at the … Continue reading Getting crafty in the cupboards
More nuggs of gold comin’ in hot!
Let’s talk about SURFACES!
Bookshelves, entertainment centers, side tables, TV stands, window sills, countertops and so on!
All of these places can harbor clutter if you aren’t careful! AND! Even too much decor can make it seem cluttered rather than decorated.
A design course taught me that a room needs to have equal positive and negative space to have harmony. Meaning occupied space and vacant space should be equal.
When it comes to surfaces, there should be an equal amount of the surface left vacant. Is this making sense? 🙏
As a general rule, try to keep knick knacks to a minimum if you must have them at all. Little “doodads” as my dad would call ‘em, have a way of making a space feel busy!
We want our homes to feel peaceful! Not busy! When you go into a busy grocery store don’t ya just wanna run right back out the doors?! I DO!
Don’t give your home that vibe! I beg of you!
Another rule of thumb is to keep an ODD number of items/decor on each surface. Generally speaking 1,3 or max, 5 items.
Why???
Odd numbers are more visually appealing and they force the eye to move around the grouping and by result the entire room. This is what gives “flow” to a room.
Remember, when in doubt, simplify!
So you’re hungry…you go to the fridge for a little snackity-snack. You open said fridge, to be blasted by the demonic fridge odor! The smell of mixed leftovers, spilled sauces, moldy veggies and souring fruits latches to the insides of your nostrils.
You quickly close the door to escape the attack! Only to realize the smell has escaped the refrigerator and is permeating through your whole house! 🤢🤮
Anyone else been under attack from their very own fridge like me?! 🙋🏼♀️
Here are a few tips I use to tame the fridge monster. It’s a total monster amiright?! You’ll thank me later! 😘
1. Put an OPEN box of baking soda in the back of your fridge! It will absorb any random smells floating around!
2. Every time you go shopping, organize that fridge! Don’t just shove the new groceries in to let the old ones get moldy in the back.
3. Weekly leftover dump and fresh food check. If leftovers have been in the fridge for more than a week, time to throw them out. Make sure your vegetables and fruits aren’t molding.
4. Categorize food. Put veggies by veggies, drinks by drinks and so on. This keeps them fresh and avoids cross contamination.
5. Use GLASS containers. Plastic is porous and smells escape and reside inside it, even after washing. I 10/10 recommend Pyrex to store food in.
I pinky promise, that if you’ll do these things, that smelly odor monster will find someone else’s fridge to haunt!
To get rid of bulky items and store them in cute jars or containers, cut out the instructions and tape them to the inside lid of the jar! This way you won’t forget what it is and how to make it! We did this with rice, pancake mix and these noodles! 😘 If you use this hack send me pics!!!
Check out this amazing hack a follower sent me!! A toddler snack station hanging on the back of the pantry door, for quick grab n go! She made it using a shoe organizer! And also check out her adorable boy!! 😍😍 if you guys have any genius hacks you want to share and get featured, PLEASE send them my way! 😘 Thanks @mckellmarie 💕
Hey guys! I will occasionally spout off my organizing opinions! Little nuggets of gold if you will! 😉
Cube storage!!
Okay, cube storage is becoming more and more popular! They are a nice way to store away items and have the storage double as decor! If you have a small space, they are SO nice!
BUT!
Cube storage can make or really break a space! Instead of coyly disguising storage for decor you could be making the HUGE mistake of showcasing your clutter!
Remember to keep it simple sister! Don’t over crowd the cube storage! Yes! It’s exciting to get a new surface to put stuff on! Just make sure to not over crowd!
It’s like being stuck in a traffic jam! You can feel the anxiety build just thinking about it, can’t you!? You know, the after work rush that makes you white knuckle the steering wheel! Your overcrowded cube storage can inadvertently give the same vibe of a bumper to bumper pile up.
If you put baskets in the cubbyholes, make sure to leave some empty. Tastefully decorate with items you love or that bring you joy. For example a few books, figurines or a plant would look really nice and break up the repetitive baskets. Staggering the cubbies with baskets is appealing to the eye as well.
This is THE hardest part of any cleaning project! It takes discipline and self-control to declutter a space. I’ve broken down the sifting process to make it easier and quicker to dejunk!
When clearing out a space, take everything and I mean EVERYTHING out of the space, so you can start from scratch. Most times the space will need a good cleaning if you’re anything like me, I can be neglectful at times and the dust shows!
Decide what you want the space to feel like. Don’t just consider how you want it to look! A clean, organized space will feel more peaceful, relaxed and soothing.
Now here comes the decision making.
HOW DO I KNOW WHAT I SHOULD KEEP AND WHAT TO THROW AWAY??
Start by asking yourself these three questions about each item:
1. Has it been used in the past year?
If not, the chances are it will NOT be used this year or even the next! So what’s the point in having it clutter up your living space? Throw it out!
2. Is this item in the correct location?
If the answer is no, simply relocate it to it’s proper place. DON’T just relocate it to the junk drawer! Gotcha there! *wink wink* Believe me…it’s a vicious cycle of that item being passed from junk drawer to storage closet to wherever else. Odds are, if it belongs in a junk drawer it doesn’t have a “home” in your house, and you should do away with it.
That is clutter my friends! Clutter are things that have no proper location or place in your home, so you throw it somewhere to get it out of the way.
Now, on to the third and final question.
3. Do I really need it to live comfortably?
The goal with this question is to have a simple yes or no answer. If you find yourself doing any sort of justification, that means you don’t need it!
For our intents and purposes keep this in mind: Justification is the lubrication on the slippery slide to hoarding! What’s that you might ask? Commercial break time! Go check out an episode of Hoarders on Netflix. If that doesn’t get your booty in a declutter, cleaning mood, I don’t know what will!!
Once you’ve sorted out what you’re keeping and what you’re chucking, it’s time to start organizing!
*Consider donating the items you’re discarding that are in good condition to your local thrift store.
Cleaning can be addictive, TRUST ME, like eating a warm, chocolate chip cookie, fresh from the oven. Once you start with “just one”, relapse is SO much easier! Actually cleaning will breed motivation to clean more!
So start with your junk drawer-you know the iconic, throw-all-save face-or time-drawer. Follow the tips and hacks in my post “Declutter”, for the ultimate drawer makeover. Once you have tasted sweet victory over your junk drawer, you’ll be hungry for more!
My name is Jamie Hulet! I’m here to give you hacks on cleaning and organizing even the scariest of places in your home!