Wardrobe organizing

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  1. Firstly I suggest you get 3 or 4 boxes, they don’t have to be huge but big enough to separate your clothing etc into Charity, Rubbish, Storage, Friends.
  2. Start by removing everything from your wardrobe. So shoe’s, clothes, baskets, everything.
  3. Put all your clothing on the bed to start with and if you can have a few towels on the floor to help when you are sorting through the clothes later.
  4. Give the wardrobe a good clean out, removing cobwebs, dust all edges and shelves, and finally give the floor a good vacumm.  Leave the doors of the wardrobe open, so that it can air whilst you sort through your clothes.
  5. I strongly suggest you invest in a set of good coat hangers, they don’t have to be the most expensive, but try to stick away from the wire ones as they can damage your clothing.
  6. Now, the clothing…..start by sorting your clothing into piles ie work, home, evening, special, not been worn in more than a year.
  7. So lets start with the work clothes, go through and make sure they fit, are clean, don’t need mending and either put them on a coat hanger or fold them up neatly so that you can put them straight on next time you need them.
  8. Continue as with the work clothes but going through your home, evening and special clothing piles.
  9. Remember as you are going through, if you come across clothes that you don’t like anymore, or that are torn and can’t be mended, or are to small or big……divide them up between the boxes. Its also a good idea to put aside anything that needs Drycleaning, so that once you are finished you can take them to get drycleaned.
  10. The last pile you should have left is the not been worn for over a year.  If it doesn’t fit, you haven’t looked at it for a long time, is out of date, is to tight, to big etc then its time for it to move on from your wardrobe. So sort it into your boxes. Some of these items may hold some significance for you, and I suggest that you pack these away in a suitcase or canvas clothing storage bag for 6 months, if at the end of this period you haven’t looked at them or thought of them, then its time to either give them away or sell them.
  11. Now that you have all your clothes sorted, go through your shoes.  Once again, check that they are clean and not in need of repairs at all.
  12. Right, its time to put everything back in the wardrobe.  Try hanging like with like, (you can do this a few ways ie work, home, special, evening) or you can hang all your skirts, trousers, blouses, shirts, dresses etc together. I tend to do the later, because I at time mix things up a little ie a casual tee shirt under a dressy jersey over black trousers for work, but I know that what I want is there and if it’s not, then its in the wash or on the clothes rack drying.
  13. If you find you are running out of space, then you can look at getting a hanging shelf unit(these don’t have to be expensive) and also canvas hanging shoes stores.  These options work brilliantly and keep things off the floor.
  14. Last but not least, try to hang a few lavender bags or scented sachets in the wardrobe to freshen the air and also leave the wardrobe door open from time to time to let it breathe……

I hope this has helped you sort through you wardrobe and its many contents…..

More to follow….

Bathroom Organizing Part 2

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Now you will need to go through what you have taken out of you cupboard and work out what belongs and doesn’t.
Make up wise, if its been in there for more than a year and you haven’t used it, throw it out. This also goes for body washes, lotions and creams. It is also a good idea to go through all Medicine and check the expiry dates. Just remember when getting rid of Medicine’s, if they were prescribed, then take them back to the Pharmacist for them to discard of.
Now have a think about what you really want and need in your bathroom. What room you have in your cupboard and if you think you may need some extra storage in the bathroom.
To make more room in the cupboard, you can put toilet paper (at least a couple of rolls) in a basket next to the Toilet or at the back or the toilet. These days there are some great basket options, they now make very attractive baskets in resin, that are easy to clean. You may still end up having to store the bulk of your toilet paper in the linen closet, but at least you have some to hand in the bathroom.
If you don’t have a lot of room in the bathroom cupboard, why not keep one or two spare hand towels in the cupboard and the rest can go in the Linen cupboard, as well as the face cloth’s….This will free up a lot of space!
If you have a cupboard in the bathroom with draws, work out what you use most often and pop those things in the draws ie Makeup, Nail care items, Hair ties, and face creams and cleansers. Then put all the bulk things in the back of the cupboard, but remember not to put them that far back that its a nightmare to get them out. Organize the rest as best suits you and your families needs.
One things I have to suggest, whether you do or do not have children….Keep medicines up high! Even though those of that don’t have kids don’t really have to worry, it’s still a lot easier to put them in a high cupboard. Means if your friends that do have children turn up, you won’t have to worry if they go in the bathroom! You never can be to careful! If you don’t have a high wall cupboard in the bathroom, you could put them in a plastic container and up in the wardrobe or in the Linen cupboard. What ever works well for you.
There are some great plastic containers out there these days, expensive through to cheap and everything in between and they can be great as won’t go moldy or be damaged by the mildew that bathrooms can grow.
Make sure that you open the window every day, even if its just for an hour. It will dry the bathroom out and keep it fresh.

Bathroom organizing part 1

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Is your bathroom cluttered and irritating you? Do you find yourselves frustrated daily because you know you brought a new packet of soap or toothpaste and for the life of you, you can’t find it! Do you have your toilet in the bathroom, reach for a new roll of toilet paper and remember that its in the linen closet, because you don’t have the room? This is something you hear time and time again. Bathrooms in general (unless you are one of the lucky ones) are a smaller space in your home. However there are things you can do to help alleviate this.
If you have a smallish bathroom and toilet you can make it look more spacious.
Lets start with some simple cleaning, if you have a glass shower or shower door and its covered in soap scum there are a few options. For those of you like me out there that are getting into the healthy and environment friendly way of cleaning a spray bottle filled with straight white Vinegar works a treat, spray it on glass and tiles and leave it for 10Min’s. Come back and wipe it off and you will have a sparkling shower. The other option is using a laundry stain remover (sounds a little odd I know) but it works, spray it on the glass surface and leave it for 15Min’s. Come back and wash it off and bingo, you have a new shower. Some of you will be thinking, why by cleaning my shower am I making space in the bathroom? Its easy and by being able to see through the clean glass, give the impression of more space.
If you have a shower over a bath or have a shower that doesn’t have a door, but does have a shower curtain, try to get a clear curtain and as above, once a month give it a wipe down with Straight White Vinegar. It will keep it looking clear and clean. Now the base of the shower and bath are also easy, you can use your usual bathroom cleaners (which all work fine) or you can use Baking Soda, sprinkle it in the bath or on the shower base and with a warm wet cloth give it a good wipe, it should sparkle when you are done. Cheap and easy!
Right, next thing to attack…….the bathroom cupboard….as with the other cupboards we have done so far, take everything out and put in on the floor or take it out to a table so you can sort through everything. Make sure you have a rubbish bag ready and a small box ready for the things that are in there and don’t belong.
So lets start by separating out the items we all have in our bathroom cupboard
* Towels
* Body Lotion
* Face creams and cleansers
* Medicine (more on this one)
* Soap (spare)
* Toilet paper
* Tooth paste and toothbrushes (spare)
* Nail care items (clippers, scissors, files)
* Make up
* Hair ties/ brushes
I may have left a few things out, we all have our special things.

Laundry Organizing

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Do you cringe every time you look in your laundry?
The following tips will help you take your laundry from Oh No to Oh Yes
1. Try and get a load of washing done once a day: I tend to do mine at night, but this is mainly due to the fact that I work during the day and leave home early. If you don’t work or leave home a little later you could easily do this load in the morning. The aim is that you do the daily load and hang it out or pop it in the drier straight after it is finished.
2. Buy a laundry sorter (if you can afford it) : The other option is to make laundry bags and have hooks on the back of the laundry doors. checking pockets for tissues or change, and putting them in the correct bag in our laundry sorter. When it’s time to wash, I just toss the entire laundry bag in the washer.
3. Keep your laundry supplies together. I keep my soap, stain remover, dryer sheets, etc. on a shelf in my laundry room, right near the machines. In addition, we have a small garbage container nearby for dryer lint. Make it easy on yourself, by making things as convenient as possible.
4. Remove and fold. As soon as the dryer cycle is done, remove the clothes–before wrinkles have a chance to set in.
You’ll have less ironing. Even if you do have to iron something, the wrinkles will be minimal.
5. Think twice. Before laundering, determine if that item truly needs to be washed. Very often, I can wear a pair of jeans or a shirt two or three times before running them through a wash cycle. If you do this, your laundry pile won’t be quite as big each day.

Pantry Organizing

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Lets start with the Pantry. How often do you go into the Pantry to get something whilst cooking, making a sandwich or baking and can’t find what you need but know that its there somewhere. You end up going to the supermarket and getting another can of tomato’s or bag of sugar. Get home and a few hours, a day or a week later you find what you were looking for. Lets look at this.
In the Pantry what different groups do you have
* Baking goods
* Tinned veges, savories
* Tinned fruits
* Spices
* Pasta and rice
* Snack foods
* Items brought in bulk
* Onions, Potato’s, Pumpkin etc
* Drinks
Now we know that we have these different items in our Pantry, lets get organizing.
Start by clearing your bench and getting everything out of the Pantry. Give the shelves a good wash, and then dry them off with a dry cloth. Go through all the the food items that you have removed and check them firstly for their expiry dates, throw anything that is over the expiry date, and put to one side all items that are within a week or month of their expiry date.
Now along your bench and if you have a table in your kitchen start organizing things into groups. As per the list above. You may find at this point you have a kitchen that looks like a tip, and that’s ok. Your almost there, it will all slowly go back into the Pantry soon. Just a few more things to look at and then you will have a Pantry that you will be proud to open and show your family and friends and also and most importantly a Pantry that you can find what you are looking for in!
Right, the last few things that will help before putting everything back.
Do you have any plastic containers, plastic trays, even lids from cardboard boxes. You do not have to use the most expensive of items, but having items like Flour, Sugar, baking powder etc in containers will not only look tidier and neater, but will also prolong the life of your products. There are many different brands around out there, some of the better ones being Tupperware and Rubbermaid, the latter not as expensive, but as far as I’m concerned just as good. Trays are fantastic for keeping things together in your pantry ie breakfast items jam, preserves, honey, margarine and butter. This means in the morning all you need to do is pick it up and put it one the table or bench and everything is there. Lids from cardboard boxes are a great way of keeping all your spices and herbs together and tidy.
Right now that you have everything ready and the shelves clean and dry. Its time to put everything back in.
Start with the things that you use least often. So think about your bulk items….large jars of gherkin’s, extra bags of flour and sugar, spare baking mixes etc the top shelf is a great place for these.
Then start working out what items you want where, ie don’t put the heaviest things on the higher shelves. This will just cause issues and possibly lead to pulled muscles. (no one wants that) If you bake often, make sure you put the baking items in an easy to reach place. If you don’t have a lot of shelving and cupboards, and have to have them in the pantry then having them on the middle shelves means they are easy to access by everyone in the family. If you have small children them I suggest putting the plastic bowls and cups near the front so that they don’t knock your glasses and plates as they reach for their things.
Last but not least, a plastic bin in the bottom of the pantry for snacks (keeps all those snack bags of chips(crisps), fruit bars etc and one for Potato’s, onions and pumpkin etc is a great way of keeping things together so they aren’t dancing around the cupboard.

About me….

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Hi there , I’m Natasha Easton and I’ve been a keen home organizer and declutterer for years now….think it has something to do with my mother and possibly the gene’s that came from her side of the family.  I have helped a lot of family and friends with organizing their homes for moving, when they have changed rooms around and others just because they wanted to be able to enjoy their down time and not have to be moving papers and other in-sundry around the house to clear space to do something or find something.

My aim here is to share with you my tips and idea’s on home organizing and decluttering.

How many of you out there (and yes that includes me from time to time) have got a room, a drawer, a cupboard in the house that is a “I really must sort this out” trap?  I’m here to tell you that even in the most organized home there will still be a draw in one room that ends up in a clutter….don’t ask me why, its just does!  I remember years ago, at mums I was looking for something (now my mum has always been a very tidy and clean person) and I opened a draw in the kitchen to look for something, and sure enough It was her Clutter draw…..I remember asking her if she ever really used anything in that draw and interestingly her answer was “not really, I don’t even know what is in there half the time”   This made me laugh….we went through the draw and found all sorts of interesting items, from a comb, to old newspaper clippings….pens that no longer worked… you name it, it was in there.
I’m looking forward to helping and giving advice to those of you out there that are ready and willing to get rid of  the clutter in your homes and in doing so, create an Organized home!