Working long hours means that there is less time to devote to keeping things in order at home. Over time, things can begin to pile up in each of the rooms. The result is that the place feels cramped and cluttered. Here are some of the more common situations that lead to making the home feel out of order and less than welcoming.
Unopened Mail Everywhere
There never seems to be enough time to deal with the mail. It gets dropped on just about any surface that is convenient. That has led to stacks of mail on the table in the foyer, the coffee table in the living room, and lots of mail on the dining room table. The only way things will change is to tackle the mail. Gather up all the catalogs and other pieces of mail and set aside an hour to go through it all. Junk mail of any type immediately goes into a trash bag. Anything that looks important is checked and either prepared for filing, answered, or discarded since it turned out to not be important after all. You’ll be surprised how much of a difference this one change will make.
Piles of Dirty Clothes
Dirty clothes are piled in the laundry room awaiting attention. Unfortunately, they have to compete with the clothes that are currently gracing the bedroom floor. If you are at the point of picking up shirts and sniffing them to see if they can be worn one more time, it is way past time to do the laundry. Start in on Saturday morning and don’t stop until everything is washed, dried, folded, and put away.
Old Magazines Are Piling Up
You love to read, but rarely go back through magazines a second time. They end up on the coffee table or on the floor by the bed or a favorite chair. When the stacks begin to rival the size of the end tables, it is time to take action. Gather up the magazines and donate them to a recycling center or at least drop them off at a free clinic. They’ll be out of the house and out of the way.
All That Bric-a-Brac
You love souvenirs and have things you’ve collected on business trips on just about every tabletop. While you love them, they take up space and make the room look cluttered. Think about adding shelves over the windows or even along the length of one wall and making a place to display those treasures. You’ll free up the tabletops and everything will look more organized.
Dirty Dishes
You are not at your best when it comes to doing the dishes. You have cereal bowls setting on end tables in the living room, empty glasses in several places, and a pile of dishes by the sink. Since there are only a couple of clean dishes left, get busy. Load the dishwasher, and do some of the dishes by hand at the same time. As the dishes are washed and dried, put them away.
You Need More Space
Perhaps you do a good job of picking up the house, but everything still feels cramped and cluttered. The fact may be that you have too much stuff for the house or apartment. With a growing family, this is a sign that it is time to move to a bigger place. Find something with larger rooms so your furniture will be more to scale. Open floor plans like the ones found in these homes for sale in Herriman, UT can make rooms feel bigger and more organized. Once you move, there will be plenty of room to display your treasures without everything looking cramped and cluttered.
There is no need to be overwhelmed with clutter. Start with one issue and resolve it, then move on to another factor contributing to the clutter. With some time and effort, everything will have a place and the house will look warm and welcoming instead of cold and cluttered.
Anita is a freelance writer from Denver.
