Oh, you are
going to want to do this after you read this post! I can’t tell you how much my
ANXIETY has DECREASED in just one day! Oh, my!
This week
school is out of session. That means all 3 kids are home which I am SO excited
for! But, what I wasn’t excited for were two things: 1.) More people = more
messes to be made in the house and 2.) I spend WAY too much time cleaning the
house when everyone is in it because of the extra mess. This vacation, that was
NOT happening! I decided this past weekend that I would get the living area clutter-free
and ready to enjoy with the kids. This
room is open to the kitchen and is where we spend most of our time playing
games, reading and playing with the baby.
It is also where I feed the baby and give her nebulizer treatments every
3 hours. I spend A LOT of time here.
But, I just couldn’t stand looking at all of the knickknacks and “stuff”
any more. It made me crazy!
It was time
to say, “See ya!” to the chaos.
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| Shelves in chaos...glad I have cupboards! |
I admit that
being inside cleaning was one of the last things I wanted to do on this
beautiful weekend. But, to me, it was worth it.
The older two kiddos spent the day outside with daddy cleaning up the
yard…and they actually got a bit of sunburn on the nose and cheeks! They had a
great time and it gave me a chance to go to town on the living room…only
stopping when baby needed me. Overall,
it took about 4 hours not counting the stops. But OH, it is HEAVENLY now! J
This morning, we went for a 2 ½ mile walk and when we came home, we got
to plop in the living room with our fruit smoothies and just relax in our
clutter-free room!
So, if the
thought of spring cleaning the living area makes you cringe, just follow these
steps. I am certain it will make things seem easier and less chaotic for you!
1.
FUNCTION
– You first need to think about what your living space must function as. To do
this, just think about the activities you do in the room. Do you use it as a place to read, watch TV,
play with kids, craft, etc? Living areas
can be used in many different ways. Just
make a mental list or write down what you do in the room.
2.
AREAS
– For each activity or function the room has, you will need to designate and
“area” to do them in. For instance, if
you knit, you will want to have a space designated for that with proper
lighting and your tools easily accessible.
They should not be scattered all over the room. Keep them in a bin or basket for you to stay
organized and to put them away easily when you are finished. The same rule applies for toys, games, books,
etc. Have one space for all “like”
things related to your activities.
3.
TRASH
– When you have done the above, take a plastic shopping bag or something
similar and collect all of the “trash” you find in your living space. This could be old juice box packets (just
sayin’!), magazines, newspapers, leftover Cheerios, whatever! Trash the trash.
4. OTHER
ROOMS - Now, take a box or laundry basket and collect all items that don’t
belong in that room. Maybe your daughter
loves to take off her socks when she gets home from school and you find a few
under the couch. Or maybe you have random hockey pucks in the cushions of your
couch. Take everything that belongs in
other rooms and just put it in one box. Don’t put the items away in the other
rooms yet, this will distract you from the task at hand.
5.
DONATE/SELL
– Now, remember in my post about XXXXXXXXXXXX, we talked about letting go of
items? This is your time to shine! Check that post if you need a refresher, but
if you don’t need it, GET RID OF IT! You
will feel SOOOOO much better! I got rid of over half of the stuff on my
built-in shelves! Aaaaahhhhh!
6.
REASSESS
– Now that you have cleared out lots of items, take a look around and see if
the items left serve a purpose for the functions we talked about. Now, decorations are OK even if they don’t
have an “active” purpose. But, make sure
you LOVE them and that they bring you joy when you see them. After all, you will be dusting them and
rearranging them for another year to come!
7.
GROUPING
– Now, we are going to remove all of the leftover items from their homes into a
designated place nearby. It is time to
group them together by purpose. For
instance, all of the toys go together, books together, decorations, crafting,
remotes, etc. Clean off all of the ones
that are dusty before replacing them.
8.
SURFACES
– Make sure that all of your surfaces are cleared off. This includes the
mantle, shelving, end tables, window sills, etc. Wipe each surface down with
appropriate solution to clean them.
9.
FLOW
– Is it easy for you to see the television from each piece of furniture? Are
your pieces easy to maneuver around? With the room empty, play with the layout
of your furniture if you feel there is room for improvement.
10. WALLS/FLOORS – Now we get to clean
off the walls and floors. Make sure you get in those areas that have been
neglected! Look for those whispy cobwebs in the corners of the ceiling and for
the dust bunnies under that heavy furniture! Clean everything thouroughly,
don’t skimp out!
11. REPLACE – Now we get to place the
items back into the room! Keep your groups
together and in places that make sense for the corresponding activities.
12. CELEBRATE AND ENJOY your new space! J
 |
| Aaaaahhhhh..... |
Now, if you
want to do a deeper clean, wash those drapes and clean the furniture. I will say that I did not have time to do
this on that particular day. But I am SO going to do it when I get a
chance. I didn’t want to take any time
away from the task at hand!
Here are
also a few tips that may help with spring cleaning your living area:
- - Do
not leave more than one or two decorations on your end tables or coffee
tables. You will not have room for your
activities that you may need the space for if they are cluttered. AND, it will
drive you crazy when you can’t find a place to set your morning coffee!
- -Keep
your remote controls together. We have 3 that we use regularly. I got a
crafty-organizer-box-thingy that I wasn’t using and put them inside. I was also
able to put my hand sanitizer and room spray here…did I mention I also change
her diapers in the living room?!
- -For
most people, the TV is the focal point of the room. Make sure your focal point
is clear of clutter…that’s the most important clutter-free part of the room,
the one you stare at all of the time. Or
maybe it’s the mantel of a fireplace. Keep it clear!
- -Check
out your walls. Are there picture frames everywhere? Artwork scattered about?
Consider hanging them all on one wall to showcase them. Filling up each space on your wall will
distract the eye and make it float around the room, not really focusing on
anything. This leads to instant
anxiety. If you can’t group them all
together, consider removing some or putting them in another room.
- -Make
sure you clean out your hidden storage places as well! This includes ottomans,
cupboards, drawers in the end tables. It all has to be sorted!
- -Make
sure your furniture is functional. I started out with a black end table that
had no storage. I switched it for a
white one I had in my bedroom upstairs that served no purpose other than to
collect dust. Now, it holds the remotes,
diapers, wipes and baby butt cream!
- -Notice
I got some self-adhesive cord clips to control the ugly black wires to the TV
from the cable box and DVD/Blue Ray players. Yeah, they are still ugly, but at
least they are running together instead of “hanging out” all over!
Well, do you
want everyone out of the house so you can get organized? Oh, I can’t even tell
you what a difference it makes. It’s crazy! I never really thought about how
clutter made me anxious until this past year. I am SO glad you are all holding
me accountable to doing the whole house!
Oh, by the way, you all need to hold me accountable to doing the whole
house! J
OK, get
started and let me know how you are doing! Post photos on our Facebook page as
well!
***Check out my
other posts about spring cleaning and organizing if you haven’t already!
