With all our travel I’ve felt like I haven’t been home long enough to get into a good routine and find some time to tackle the parts of the house that are devolving slowly into chaos. Here’s what needs tackling:
- My en-suite drawers
- Pantry
- Study
- My wardrobe
- My bedside table
- The dining cabinet
- The garden, where decluttering takes the form of weeding and pruning and organising becomes moving plants, filling gaps and fertilising
I did manage to get the freezer sorted out before we went up to Sydney for the marathon so that was a win. I will not be tackling our linen drawer in the kitchen which horrifies my sister every time she opens it. I do not need neatly folded and stacked tea towels, dish clothes and table napkins because as it is I can easily find what I need and it is not overflowing. I only ever plan to do something about a messy spot if it’s not working for us … or if there is visual clutter that is not behind a closed door.
Do you have some of these spots that you know you need to do something about? Can you live with functional mess or would you need the tea towels stacked and folded?
Comments
16 responses to “List #33: Places I Need to Declutter and Organise”
Haha, your linen drawer made me laugh! If it works, why waste energy folding tea towels? That’s efficiency!
I lean more towards minimalism which makes things a lot easier, but it’s a never-ending battle. Somehow stuff still piles up. I’ve got clothes that really need to go, and our cellar is definitely due for a proper clear-out. Uff, thanks for the reminder!
I’m a minimalist too, but I have a few things that I still need to address since we moved. I will get there.
I’m a functional mess with underwear and bras. I do not fold them, but just have little baskets in my drawers where I can stuff them right from the laundry.
I love having things neat and orderly, but there there are a few places where I don’t really care and it feels good to have that mix of “liberation” and order.
I’m with Catrina; I am a minimalist at heart, but it does feel like a never-ending battle. I am constantly decluttering, reorganizing and tidying. Some of that comes from having kids at home and some of it comes from…things just seem to accumulate!
I don’t fold my underwear either. I have containers in my drawer, they go in. That is a good way to put it—”liberation and order”, I feel exactly like that, although there is currently a bit too much liberation. The study has never been right for me since we moved in, and so it seems to quickly get out of control. It is terrible at the moment.
I BEG OF YOU, WRITE POSTS WITH BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS.
Why are these projects so interesting to me? I don’t know but it’s like porn for me. I mean, not really. I’m not looking at organizational posts and then going nudely to find my husband or anything. Wow why am I still typing this comment? I should probably sign off before things get weirder.
I’ll see if I’m brave enough to share before photos. The bathroom drawers are particularly bad. One of them is not very deep, and if my moisturiser gets on top of something else, I can’t shut the drawer. I’ll do my best to provide some organizational porn for you though.
I love a good decluttering post!!! I am so nosy!
I am also leaning toward minimalism as others mentioned, and my tea towels are not folded. And I think we have too many- still.
Spaces to organize…. We have some stuff piled on the radiator in the living room- but that is just waiting for dining room to be finished. Once I have space to put it away, I will put it away.
My underwater is not folded.
It’s hard in the middle of renovations. I’m sure you’ll be quick to get rid of the pile once it’s done.
Our kitchen towels are stacked and folded appropriately. (There is a way. If I deviate from it, my husband will refold them. It’s best just to do it right the first time.)
I have had the top of my dresser, the top of my nightstand, and the guest room on my list as things to organize. Someone is staying in the guest room TOMORROW night, so I better get on it. The rest of those things will have to wait.
Haha, I suggest not showing the photo of my drawer to your husband, he may not handle that. Or hold it in reserve for if he complains about your tea towel folding—at least they don’t look like this! Good look with the tidying.
I’m laughing at the drawer of dish towels. My dining room table and well – the entire dining room is in a state. I shove high chairs in there when I’m not babysitting, and it has become a general catch all. We only eat in there for Christmas or when we host something. I’m hosting a pasta party in a few weeks for Curly’s volleyball team. Need to manage that space. I have several spaces that are in total disarray. The college kids leaving. Reg moving home from an apt before leaving for college. Tank moving out of a house at college, and then moving to an apartment. It’s been a revolving door of kids dropping stuff in and out of bins and then leaving with different stuff. What I’m saying is they’ve left a trail, and I don’t have the energy – well, I have other things I would rather do with my time. I did organize my master bedroom recently and that was life-giving. Our bedroom is where all the clothes the kids don’t want anymore get dumped and then I sort it for cousin hand me downs or Amvets, etc.
In summary – Yes, I can survive with a functional mess. Good thing, I guess.
I can imagine with all the comings and goings at your house, it’s difficult to keep on top of all of that stuff.
I’m currently on a 6 month personal challenge, where I have to get rid of one thing a day. I started on July 1st. This translates into decluttering and organizing, and I am LOVING IT. The biggest thing, which I was dreading, was my clothes closet. Then a few weeks ago I decided to just go through a bit, and ended up doing a huge cleanout and I am so much happier with it. I’m waiting for it to get colder here, then I will give away some sweaters, and I think I’ll be done with that part of my project. I am not a minimalist and don’t mind a bit of cozy clutter, but sometimes enough is enough.
Our towel drawer looks a lot like yours. Occasionally I will go through and fold and separate everything, but it never stays that way and it doesn’t bother me.
I find I sometimes put things off, and then when I actually do the job, it is so much easier than I expected. G had last Friday and today off work, and we got the garden completely weeded, pruned and mulched, which was amazing and surprised me. I have to get some plants to fill in the gaps and plant out an empty veggie bed, but everything feels so much more manageable now that the bulk of it is done.
I totally get that you can handle a linen cabinet like that. I wouldn’t have a space to dedicate a whole drawer so I have to fit them in a small space and for that the need folding. But my underwear is not folded – or it wasn’t folded until the husband took over laundry. Now I have folded underwear. I keep telling him to not waste time on it but he likes it neat. Well it’s his time so whatever.
Yes, it does depend on space as well. We are lucky to have the whole drawer. Isn’t it funny how different people have different tolerances for neatness.