Your Organized Life

You want a tidy, organized home. Who doesn’t? But you’re busy — really, really busy — and you can’t drop everything to launch some complicated plan for turning your home into a picture in a magazine. I’ll bet some of you are too overwhelmed at this point to even want to think about any kind of plan. It’s okay. Here are some really simple and painless organizing concepts to get your started. If you can manage to work these into your routine, they will more than repay you for your effort.

A. ALWAYS put things away

Everything should have a proper place, and it should be in it. Things get used and that means they get moved. If you make it a habit of returning things to their “homes” when they are not in use, not only will your home look tidier, but later you’ll save time you’d have spent looking for things and even money you’d have spent replacing the things you can’t find.

So put things away after you use them.

B. BRING in only what you need

You can’t organize clutter, and while there are many ways clutter gets into your house, one way is that you bring it in. I’m sorry, but it’s true. You may not think you’re doing it, but how did the junk mail get on the dining room table? You brought it in. You could have thrown it away at the door, but. . . And why are there shoes all over the bedroom floor? Is it because your closet is already full of shoes you never wear anyway, but you’re still buying more? What are all those knickknacks getting dusty on the bookshelves? Well, you thought they were cute in the store.

Keep what you love and need, but think long and hard about bringing things you don’t need — and will soon stop loving — into your home. They’re just going to become clutter.

C. Decorate with solid COLORS

Multiple colors in your décor and especially busy patterns on fabrics and wallpaper can make even a tidy room look chaotic. Solid, coordinating colors in your furnishings contribute to a peaceful feeling; there is less distraction for the eye and things look like they are where they belong. And, since they’ll stand out, you’ll be able to spot the things that don’t belong!

Needless to say, there’s a whole alphabet of organizing ideas out there, but if you don’t have the time for A to Z, try to make these A, B, Cs a habit. You’ll be well on the way to that organized home you want.