Downsize without Losing Your Mind

You say your kids have grown up and moved out of the house? Now that you’re an empty nester, you may be thinking about downsizing. Even if you’ve relocated many times, moving from larger quarters to smaller ones is never easy. And when the place you’re moving out of has been your family’s home for decades, downsizing can be a very stressful experience. But don’t let it get you down. Instead, consider it a golden opportunity to weed out all the extraneous clutter in your life and focus on things that really matter.

Even if your move to smaller quarters is a year or so off, it’s never too soon to start getting organized. Here’s why:

• The sooner you start getting rid of things you don’t really need or want — or at least deciding what you’ll do with them when the time comes — the less you’ll have to deal with as moving day approaches. The result: a big reduction in your stress level.
• The less stuff you have to pack up and transport, the simpler — and less expensive — your move will be.
• It’s a whole lot easier on your physical and mental health. Just the thought of clearing out an entire house on a tight deadline can make your whole body ache and your stress hormones hit the stratosphere.

The best place to start your weeding-out campaign is the attic or the basement because that’s generally where most clutter piles up. And much of it is probably useless junk that you can easily toss. The instant results should spur you on to tackle the rest of your house. If you don’t have a basement or an attic, or you’re simply not ready to face those areas yet, start in whatever other space meets these two criteria:

1. It contains a lot of items that are being stored rather than displayed or used on a regular basis.

2. For the most part, the contents have little sentimental value. 

Spring Cleaning Tips for Canning Bathroom Clutter!

Are you ready to tackle this year’s spring cleaning? Why not start in your bathroom? It’s a small area, so you’ll finish in a snap. Plus, it’s a room you spend a lot of time in, and seeing it spiffed up and organized will motivate you to take on a more daunting area, like (yikes!) the basement.

The first step is to sort your stuff. Figure out what to keep and what to toss. Next, analyze your available space, then organize the keepers in such a way that clutter-free living becomes a no-brainer. The final step is to store everything so that it’s out of the way when you’re not using them and easy to grab when you need them.

Make sure you don’t hang on to any toiletries that you haven’t used in several months, even if they’re still fresh. After all, if they’ve just sat around all that time, they can’t be very important to you. But don’t toss ‘em—give them new careers in other parts of your house or around the yard. Consider these nifty examples:

1.   Aerosol hair spray. It kills flying insects on contact—indoors or out. It’s also perfect for keeping wooden tool handles smooth and splinter-free. (Just spray a thin coat onto the wood, and let it dry.)

2.   Antiseptic mouthwash. Maybe you don’t care for the taste of the stuff, but cut flowers love it! To make their glorious show last longer, simply add ½ teaspoon of the tangy germ fighter to each quart of water in the vase.

3.   Hair conditioner. This stuff is one of the best lubricants you can find. It can keep drawers, windows, and sliding doors from sticking; make refrigerator racks glide smoothly; or silence squeaky hinges and screeching faucets.

4.   Perfumed bath powders and soaps. These are classic deer-chasing weapons. Just put the powder or soap into pouches made from old panty hose feet, and hang them from the branches of trees and shrubs that the deer are gunnin’ for.

For more terrific tips and tricks for clearing out clutter in every room in your house, check out my Can the Clutter! Book—FREE for 21 days! It’s filled with step-by-step S.O.S. secrets that’ll help you dig in and dig out.