Less Clutter: Part Two

Ok, that wasn’t so bad! Beth from Fake Plastic Fish challenged me to find ways to de-clutter without buying any plastic bins/drawers and I’m happy to say I only made two small (non plastic) purchases – more on that later.

As I mentioned, this is a two part series. Part One listed my main clutter issues and I actually addressed them all. I told you in Part One that Bob’s on board with the de-clutter idea. I think that if you live with other people, it’s a huge help when you’re on the same page. So, he definitely did his part to help.

CHALLENGE ONE: Bob’s “stuff” – keys, wallet, eye drops, sunglasses, loose change. Here’s purchase #1:

BUT it’s made of bamboo and canvas (I got it at Target)! Not plastic  It’s the simplest thing but so useful – AND I can keep current bills in it. OH and new rule… when mail comes in, we immediately decide whether it’s junk for recycling or a bill that needs to be paid. If it’s recycling, it immediately goes into the bin, so we don’t have piles accumulating. So it’s great to have something like this in place, but again… everyone needs to be on the same page. It took Bob some getting used to – remembering where to put his “stuff” but it’s totally working!

CHALLENGE TWO: Bob’s work stuff

Remember the drop zone idea I mentioned in Part One? I created my own. Ha! My intention in the beginning was actually to spend money. I wanted to get a tall table and some canvas bins. BUT… and here’s the best part: I didn’t have to spend anything for this project. It’s all about repurposing baby! We took a desk we weren’t using from another room and moved it into the dining room (where he used to “dump” everything). Then… I was in my storage closet at work one day and saw all these boxes that we no longer have a use for at the office. I asked my boss if I could take two home. He said yes and… voila! We have a new drop zone!! The point is… look around your house. I bet there’s some stuff you could find a new use for.

CHALLENGE THREE: My Laundry Folding Issues

I just dislike dealing with laundry. But I also know that I feel less stressed when the bedroom is nice and clutter free. So I simply have to suck it up and put my clothes away when they’re done. I’m finding it easier to do it each time I do laundry, rather than letting it pile up. Also, it’s helpful to periodically go through your drawers and closets to see what can be donated. This way there’s no struggling to get your stuff into drawers (which is sort of my problem). What’s that rule? If you haven’t worn it in a year… get rid of it?

CHALLENGE FOUR: Random items: receipts, magazines, product manuals, coupons, pay stubs.

You gotta just put in some time each week – come on, I know you have 30 minutes. Here’s what I’m doing now… about once a week, I go through the "random stuff" pile and do the following:

Have a scanning party. Grab a glass of wine or a cup of coffee and cozy up to your scanner. Lots of printers (like mine) come with scanners now and if yours doesn’t have one – you can pick one up for under $100. Try Amazon, Craigslist or Ebay. It’s a great way to catalog old non-digital photos, too. So… spend 20 minutes a week and scan any receipts you need to keep. Also, why not scan your product manuals and then recycle them?

File anything you need to keep that you don’t want to or have the ability to scan (pay stubs, etc.) Accordion files are pretty inexpensive, and don’t take up a ton of space.

I’ve never been much of a coupon girl. But recently, I’ve been paying more attention and started clipping a little bit. But I was just throwing them in the junk drawer and forgetting about them. It was time for a coupon organizer…so I headed to Etsy.com to find one that was interesting, hand made, and would support an artist! Cute, right?

Random Every Day Tip: I read this one years ago - When you leave a room, look around to see what you can take with you. Say you’re in the family room watching a movie and you have to take a bathroom break or grab a glass of water. Look around… can you take a couple of magazines to the recycle bin? If you’re going upstairs, is there anything that needs to go with you? We tend to accumulate shoes downstairs, and our bedroom is upstairs. Sometimes, I’ll even put things on the steps to remind myself when I go up. Maybe teach the kids to do the same? (I can hear you moms laughing already).

Random Tip for Less Paper: Sign up for paperless billing whenever possible. No paper bill will come to your house. You’ll get an email from the company that your bill is ready for viewing online. I do this with my mobile phone and utilities.

So we've made some changes that seem to be making a difference in our house. What are some of your favorite "less clutter" tips?