This picture...it makes me physically ill!!!

   

I sincerely believe, with all of my heart, that an organized home is a happier one.  No, seriously!  It doesn't matter if your home is large or small, organization is an important element of harmony, peace and pleasant aesthetics.

If your home is small, organization will serve you well because in a small space, it only takes 5 seconds (OK, maybe 5 minutes!) to go from neat and tidy to disaster.  Just pull a few items out of the closet, throw them on the sofa or bed, and it can only go downhill from there.

Those with larger homes know that it may take longer for a mess to become apparent, however, once it gets so messy that you notice it, that mess is a big intimidating project!  And sometimes, the way we deal with scary tasks is to avoid them, which only makes it worse.

Organization can help you in every room of the house.  Imagine:  when you cook, you open a drawer to find the right tool-and surprise-there it is!  Having the confidence to know that what you need is living in a place that's easy to find might inspire you to cook more often or even more creatively!  How about your kids?  Would there be more peace between you and them, and between brother and sister, if toys were put away where they belonged?  In the bathroom, wouldn't it be nice to find a clean, dry towel right where you need it, instead of dripping all over the place while you search for one?

I also mentioned pleasant aesthetics.  Having stuff everywhere simply distracts from serenity in your home.  Your mind sees these things, and registers "mess" (consciously or subconsciously).  You will feel more antsy and unsettled, as though there's "something you need to do" all the time.

The declutter/organization movement has really picked up lately and you can find experts everywhere who offer great tips for getting organized.  My personal favorite is Peter Walsh, author and organizer on TLC's Clean Sweep.  Here are some of my favorite tips for getting organized:

1.  First, declutter.  It's really hard to fit 20 things into a box designed to hold 10 things.  You must accept the reality that you have "X" amount of space, and you need to keep the amount of things proportionate to the amount space that you have.  Once you have your stuff down to a reasonable size, you can then move on to step 2.  Sorry, that was tough love, but you needed to hear it!

2.  Start small, and put like things together.  Starting small will keep you from pulling everything out, making a mess, getting overwhelmed, and leaving...well...a mess.  I think a good place to start is the silverware drawer-for some that's an elementary task but for others, it's a safe place to start.  First, empty that silverware drawer completely.  Put everything on a surface that won't scratch, or on a towel.  Next, wipe out the drawer.  If you have a silverware organizer, wipe it out too, then put it back in the drawer.  If you don't have one, buy one.  I know Walmart sells them for under $10 and you can probably find one at the dollar store too.  Now, take your silverware (I'm assuming it's clean by the way, if not, wash it first!) and put like items together in the drawer.  Usually the longest slot in the organizer is for knives.  So put all of the knives in there.  Separate the salad forks from the dinner forks and give each its own slot.  Same goes for the different spoons.  Serving utensils can go in the little place in the front or back of the organizer (there's usually a large square or rectangle slot for these items) or, if you've run out of places, put them in the space between the side of the organizer and the side of the drawer.  Here's a pic for reference:

3. Help the homeless (in this case, your mess ):   Everything you own should have a home, just like you.  Pens?  They go in a pen holder or cup.  Socks?  Sock drawer.  Shoes?  Closet or bench (not on top of the coffee table!!).  As you start grouping like things together, make a home for them, if they don't already have one.  Then you can move on to the next step:

4.  Go Large, and put like things together.  I know, I know!  I'm repeating myself, but really, this is all organization is.  Now, instead of a silverware drawer, why don't we try your clothes closet?  You get to get a little creative here, because there's more than one way to organize your clothes.  You could try by season (this is good if you have more clothes than closet space because you can archive the out-of-season clothes by moving them into the attic), by color, by article (i.e., pants, shirts, etc.) and if you want to get really fancy, you could try a combination of a few.  I used to have my closet set up by season, but I have enough closet space for my clothes and some of them can span more than one season, so I now have it set up by article (and subarticle.  Yes, go ahead and laugh now, I can take it!).  I have sweatshirts and teeshirts (those are my "play clothes") on the left, then skirts (by length), short sleeve shirts, long sleeve shirts, cardigans, dresses and pants. 

I strongly suggest that you get rid of any wire hangers as they don't hold the shape of your clothes that well.  I like wooden hangers or the plastic triangles with hangy slots in the top.  (I'm sure they have a real name, sorry!)  They look like this:

    

Now I'm assuming that you've followed the rules and already decluttered, right?  Now, I want you to pull everything out of your closet again and hang like things together on your nice new hangers.  You pick the system, (colors, article or season). 

If you keep your shoes in your closet, consider a door shoe holder instead of the floor.  Keeping the floor clear gives you a feeling of spaciousness and fans of feng shui would suggest that it allows chi movement.  I would also add that it gives your Roomba room to clean which means less work for you! (more on that in a later post). 



I could go through every nook and cranny in your house helping you with this, but really, all you have to remember is declutter, put like things together and find a home for it.  If you remember those three teensy little steps, you can organize anything in your home!  So click your heels together three times, Dorothy and repeat after me:

Declutter, put like things together, and find a home for it!