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Cleaning made easy - Declutter

Life is too short to spend it cleaning all the time, but I find that a clean and tidy house means a clean and settled mind in my case.  Now I am not some OCD cleaner, who insists on a perfectly clean house all the time.  Nope Mess is good especially when in the middle of crafting or cooking, but I try to have a routine which makes it all easier.



When the boys were small I followed Fly Lady religiously and once you get past the freaky get dressed to your shoes and love yourself, it really is a great way of creating a routine that fits around your life nad means that you never had to have a messy house.

However, there is no point in cleaning a house that is filled with clutter, so in January I am taking a step back and my challenge is to clear the clutter in a month.  I would love for you to join me.

So my plan is over the next three weeks take each room and start sorting.  I am going to start at the door and work my way round the room in a clockwise direction using the following steps.
  1. 15 minutes.  Set the timer and work in 15 minute chunks.
  2. Have 3 boxes, one for donate, one for recycle and one for sell.  I also have a box for pout away when I am working downstairs and things need to move upstairs ( give away, throw away, put away or sell).  
  3. Be realistic of you are planning to sell it get it listed that day, otherwise, giveaway! 
  4. Have a place for everything.  By having a place for things you can put them where they are supposed to be straight away.
  5. If in doubt remember you only really need one of something.
I also work on the philosophy that if we haven't used something in a year, then it is clutter.

So the plan is to start with the upstairs including the bedrooms (mine and the boys), bathroom (remembering to throw away any opened toiletries that are a year old), the airing cupboard and then move downstairs,

Downstairs we have the entrance way, sitting room, dining room, kitchen, conservatory (playroom), kitchen and garage (which I will leave till both MadDad and I can do together,


So who is with me?

I will come back each week and share with you my progress.  For me the bedroom will be the hardest as I have so many clothes from before the mastectomy that I have kept in the hop of suiting me if and when I get a reconstruction and five years down the line I am just not read to go back in to hospital, so the time has come to let go and pass them on to the charity shop and admit, that this is my shape.

Comments

  1. I like the idea of 15 minute chunks of decluttering. Often I'm put off because I just don't know where to start but 15 minutes makes is seem manageable (and will fit around kids). good luck x

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am definitely with you. I've dedicated a week to "Spring cleaning" each room in the house, which as well as decluttering, also means taking down and washing curtains etc as well... eeeeK!

    ReplyDelete
  3. That's an amazing system, I reckon you could charge people to do that for them. I love de-cluttering but don't do it enough. 15 minute chunks could be the answer!

    ReplyDelete

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