How to organise your home in five easy steps
It’s no secret to many that I love to organise – anything. I have done for as long as I can remember. I even spent the morning of my tenth birthday organising a neighbour’s bookshelves. It was heavenly – and I nearly missed my own birthday party. I am, naturally, an organised person, but that does not mean my life, home and career are all perfectly organised all of the time. But, because they are all organised, when they do get off track and look a complete state, it doesn’t take long to put them back together. To help you achieve the same, I’m going to share with you five [not so] simple ways to keep your home organised.
Edit your home
As a writer, the irony of what I’m about to say is not lost on me. But a good decluttering is the only type of edit I like [read: thoroughly enjoy]. It’s the best way to keep your home organised, essentially having less stuff. The amount is entirely up to you; but ultimately everything you keep should have a function or purpose. That might be that it does a job, provides a solution, or its function is as simple as its presence makes you happy. (And if it does all three; like my robot hoover GusGus does, then it’s an absolute winner).
If you’re looking for a guide as to how much stuff you should have, there really isn’t one in my book. It all depends on your needs and stage in life. But, a good rule of thumb for the upper limit is the 80:20 rule. Eighty percent of your available storage/ shelving etc. is the maximum you should fill. Leaving twenty percent ‘free’.
Ultimately, the goal is to edit out of your home all the things you don’t need or use or that are broken. If you’re struggling with some items, a top tip is: if it costs less than €20 and you can buy it in 20 minutes and are on the fence about keeping it; get rid of it. If it’s easily replaced and you’re not using it or never have, don’t keep it.
Everything should have a home
As you complete your edit, by room, or product, or category, or space (each person will find it easier to use a different method of doing the edit) give everything a home.
This should be a logical, easily accessible, and easily memorable spot that it lives in or at. Group like things together. For example, in the kitchen, store all your delph, glasses, cups and cutlery in the presses/shelves/drawers that are nearest to your dishwasher or sink. Keep your pantry presses or cupboards nearest where you prep food and your cooking condiments, herbs and spices close to the hob.
Approach your home, thinking logically about what makes sense to you and the people you live with for the location and the grouping of the things you’ve chosen to keep.
Every home should have a label maker
OK, ok – it’s not an actual requirement – but it does make things a lot easier; especially if organising is new to you or the people you live with, or you’re trying to get multiple people to keep your newly organised home in check.
I love labels, but I prefer discreet labels. I use labels a lot in my home, but they’re mostly hidden, and mostly to prompt my husband as to where something goes. You won’t openly see many labels, apart from decorative ones, if you were to walk about my home, but open a press, or drawer, and you’re bound to find a few.
Labels don’t have to be fancy, but they should always be clear, informative and useful. Use a readable font in a size that can be easily seen by those looking at them and placement is important too. It goes without saying, not everything has to be a word; images and pictures are as effective (especially for younger people).
Regularly reset your home; tidy it!
An important distinction to know is that tidying differs from organising. A person can have a tidy home that is disorganised. And an organised home is kept so, by regularly tidying it. When you have organised your home, and given everything a place, tidying is quick and easy (when done regularly). I suggest a daily reset of the main areas of your home.
It might come as a shock to some, but I allow my son to make as big a mess as he needs to or wants to during play time. Regularly, he will empty all the toy baskets and up-end all the jigsaw boxes in one sitting. It’s carnage. But he knows that if he makes that mess, he has to tidy it up. (And this should be your rule, for everyone in your home).
The golden lesson here is, that every one of my three old son’s toys has a home; a basket, shelf or box that he knows they go into. (This he has learnt as he has grown because it’s always been the case). While it takes him some minutes to tidy up, I know I can have the whole room back in order within five minutes if I have to. The same goes for any space in my home. Everything and anything can be quickly tidied away and the place looks marvelous in mere minutes.
A reset is something I regularly do or encourage my family members to do throughout the day. (They’re now so used to it that it’s almost natural for them now too).
Because everything has a home, everyone knows where it goes and so it’s easy to return it to that location. I just have to reset most things, so that they reach my standards. So, I pick up and straighten certain things every afternoon/evening.
Organisation in the home is a continuous process that needs to be reviewed
In an ideal world, many think that if you organise once, that’s it, it’s done. The idea is nice; the premise, unrealistic. That would probably only work if our lives, tastes and circumstances never changed or evolved and we simply remained static. Because we, as people, change, as do our circumstances, so will the organisational needs of our home. Our families grow or expand or we move or change careers or buy more stuff – there will be a constant evolution as to how we view and use the space(s) we call home and so organisation also needs to grow and evolve with us – hence the need to review it.
Some locations, or areas of your home, might not need updating for years. They might work perfectly well for long periods of time. Others might need to be reviewed regularly; for example, anything to do with children’s belongings. You might need to review the storage, function, and accessibility of certain things like toys, clothes, toothbrushes etc. for them as they mature and become more independent.
So, if an area that worked for you previously simply isn’t doing its ‘organised job’ any more, change it.
It’s fair to say that not everyone is a naturally organised person – my husband definitely isn’t. But everyone can appreciate the benefits of an organised space, once it works for them. And that’s really important to remember – that the space or items need to be organised to suit the people who will use or access it the most. My level or standard of organising does not work for my husband. My OCD level of neat, colour-coded rows of perfectly folded socks are not something he needs, or can, maintain (alone) in his underwear drawer, and so I have learnt to accept that he is wrong and is also never allowed to put away my socks. I jest, of course. When you live with or are organising for others, that you need to take them into consideration as well. Not every space will function and look Pinterest perfect. The goal should be that it’s organised and functions well for those that use it.
So remember, a perfectly organised home is only five (not so) simple steps away;
- A quick edit
- Give everything a home
- Bang a label on it
- Regularly tidy up
- Continuously review it all works
Happy organising 🙂
Written by Bláithín O’Reilly Murphy