With some good planning and a bit of smart organization, you can have your home summer-ready in no time. Whether you’re looking to move or not, there’s a powerful benefit to living in an organized and clean space. Take a look through these seven tips to help you declutter your home in time for a summer full of sunshine and fun.
7 Tips to Declutter Your Home
1. Make a List of Tasks
If the springtime makes your head spin with all of the little tasks you want to get done before the end of the summer, consider taking a walk around your home and listing down everything you would like to get through. Prioritize the tasks that are more important to you and work your way through the list over the summer months. Consider enlisting the rest of the family so that everything doesn’t fall onto you.
2. Prioritize Highly-used Rooms
When you start to declutter your home, prioritize the rooms that you use most. The rooms you spend the most time in, such as the kitchen, should be the highest priority and then you can work backward. A clean and organized living space is important and will help motivate you to keep decluttering throughout the year.
3. Donate and Refresh
Now that the days are getting longer and brighter, it is time to refresh your interior. Donate and recycle anything you don’t use, and consider replacing heavy winter curtains with lightweight blinds or curtains to maintain privacy without keeping as much heat in.
4. Clear Out Your Clothes
When you’re packing away all those cozy jumpers and winter clothing in exchange for your summer wardrobe, why not take the chance to clear out your wardrobe and get rid of anything you haven’t worn in a while? This is a great way to get through two tasks at once by only holding onto clothes you’re certain you’ll wear again.
5. Get Summer Ready
Organize everything your family will use over the summer months such as sunhats, suncream, light jackets, sunglasses, and anything else you might need, and store them in the hallway or near the back door if you have one. Keep everything nearby and accessible so that the whole family remembers to grab them on their way in and out.
6. Store Away Your Winter Things
The primary reason you want to declutter your home is to open up space. Most of the time it’s storing things you don’t need during a particular season. So obviously, you don’t need winter items during the summer so put away your boots, gloves, scarves, and big winter coats. Clean and repair any old items and store them away neatly for the summer. If you are low on storage space, consider hiring a Safestore storage unit to keep your things secure and out of the way over the warmer months.
7. Organize Your Entryway
Now that the sun is shining, we’ll all be spending more time outside. This is the perfect time to sort out your entranceway and reduce clutter. Put in storage systems for shoes, jackets, hats, and bags as well as any outdoor toys so that everything can be accessed easily, encouraging everyone to get outside more.
Consider putting items in baskets to contain the clutter – one to hold dirty outdoor shoes and one for cozy indoor shoes to try to prevent mud and grass from being walked all through your home. Alternatively, you could include a basket or coat peg for each family member to encourage everyone to look after their own things and keep your home tidy and organized.
Just a bit of planning and some simple storage solutions is all it takes to get your home ready for a summer spent on the important things: spending time with the kids, with friends, and enjoying the sunshine.
