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I secretly dream of a clutter free home

clutter control at home : canadian house and home march 2008

The March 2008 issue of Canadian House & Home magazine is about clutter control. What I like about that issue is that it does not claim that it is the only way to live.

The decoration magazines are in part responsible for this trend because we all inspire to live in the beautiful styled rooms that we see in the magazines. If you entertain a lot, living in an uncluttered house definitely makes your life simpler since it cuts down the cleaning time.

What is the appeal?

There is something wonderfully charming about living well with less stuff. Even the garage looks chic when all the tools are beautiful displayed on painted green slatwall units. You have more time for yourself once it is done because you do not waste time searching for things. Let’s be frank, the average house is large enough that we do not have to let go of comfort and luxury.

I am proud of my cupboards. My kitchen is neatly organized. If I could transfer this habit to the rest of the house, it would be marvelous. It is not that I am attached to my old stuff. It is just that I lack the time. And after living more than a decade in the same house, I have accumulated too much stuff. I purged once in a while but I never done my entire house in a single spree.

Why it is not as easy as it seems on TV?

First, you need to shop for these pretty organizing boxes, coordinating baskets, upscale files and color paper tags. You need to figure out how much you need of everything. You need to rethink your furniture and the room design. Nobody knocks at your door with all the storage accessories you need pre-calculated for your space.

One difficulty is to have all the family members participate in the purging at the same time. But maybe we can only schedule a time frame and all do it at one time. Since we can rarely dedicate a few full days to the task, we should allocate a longer period to do it. As long as we see the end, any method will do.

What is next?

The big purging and organizing thing is just the tips of the iceberg. You need to follow through afterwards. The advice that each time you buy something new, you should get rid of something you own is a good habit. That is my latest habit on the kitchen. Something I cheat and I find a way to store things better. Spring is coming, so I start with the big purging this year. I want to live in a clutter free house like in the magazine.

Sourcing:
Photo credits: Canadian House & Home – march 2008 issue

  • Stephanie LH Calahan
    February 10, 2008 at 11:47

    What a great goal! I agree that we live in a world where accumulation is SO easy. Yet, in these pictures and many more, they show rooms with very few things. Bins and containers only hold stuff. You truly get a more magazine styled view when you eliminate some things from your space. Now, don’t get me wrong, this is not an easy thing to do. Here are the questions I use to help me think through the backlog in my house:

    Does it require any action by me/us?
    Is it recent enough to be useful?
    Is it difficult to obtain again?
    Are there tax or legal implications?
    Can I identify specific use?
    Is it beautiful, useful or loved?
    Does it reflect the person I was or the person I am now?
    What is the worst possible scenario if I toss this?

    If you want to read more on this you can visit: http://www.productiveandorganized.net/2007/12/paper-control-6.html
    Good luck!

  • Kim Calakoutis
    February 16, 2008 at 12:47

    I secretly dream of a clutter free home!
    I dream of it, that is for sure.
    Everyone else around me has this as part of there make-up, my mother, my husband, my sister in-law. This unfortunatly skipped over me! I do try, but I need all the help that I can get!

  • Jonathan
    November 16, 2008 at 00:07

    I was looking for ideas and products to help solve some of my garage organizing problems. Then I stumbled on a website http://www.1stchoicegarage.com and was happy to see they have lots of solutions for your garage. Car lifts, overhead storage, wall organizing products, and the list goes on, and on. I recommend you take a look at this site, and see how they can help you.

    Jonathan