This is a guest post from Karen, a friend of mine, whose cynical views on things always make me laugh. I hope you enjoy it!
Closet … Bathroom … Kitchen
We’ve all been there. We want to organize our home but we have no storage space. Or do we?
If you get rid of clutter and ensure closets and cabinets only contain items relevant to their location, you will find you have more storage space than you thought.
10 Things that should NOT be in your closet
Closets can be scary places. If you don’t think so, just ask Boo from Disney’s “Monster’s Inc.”. OK, so there’s not really going to be any monsters coming out of there, but there might be plenty of things that might fall on you if you don’t open the door just right.
Make more space and stop the avalanche by removing the things that just don’t belong, such as:
- Dirty clothes. Wash them, already!
- Clothes that don’t fit. Come on, do you really think you’ll fit into them again? And even if you do, you know you’re going to reward yourself with new clothes anyway.
- Anything you don’t love or need such as the tacky sweater Aunt Gussie sent for Christmas. Either give it to someone who won’t think it’s tacky (say someone in the local old-folks home) or keep it in the garage and use it to wax the car. Ok, that’s a bit harsh, but at least you’d be putting the gift to good use.
- Things you’ve got more than one of. Do you really need 10 grey sweaters or 10 white t-shirts?
- Items that aren’t yours. It’s really time to give that great blouse back to your friend before she never lends you anything again. Or do you have your kids clothes in your closet? If so, get them their own closet organizer. Rubbermaid closet systems start at only $50.
- Clothes that no longer fit your lifestyle. Did you used to work in an office but now don’t? Move those work clothes out to create more space.
- Mismatched items. Did you buy a great skirt but have no blouse to go with it? Either buy one or ditch the skirt.
- Worn out shoes. Trash them. Hey, what better excuse to get new shoes? Now there’s something that does belong in the closet, along with a shoe rack.
- Sheets and blankets. They belong in a linen chest or an under the bed storage box.
- Anything you can’t wear.
- Sports equipment – get a tub and put it in the garage or the basement. You surely won’t need a goalie mask for, um, whatever happens in the bedroom will you????
- Christmas presents you bought last year and then couldn’t remember where you put them or even that you had them. Come on, you’ve done it, too. But when you do find them, put them somewhere you won’t forget about them.
- Kitchen appliances you don’t have cabinet space for. “Yes, I’d be happy to whip up a batch of smoothies if you’ll go get the blender out of my closet. It’s behind my Vera Bradley tote bag.” Paahhhlllleeeeeesssss.
10 Things that DON’T belong in the bathroom
The old nursery rhyme goes, ‘Rub-a-dub-dub three men in a tub’. Awkward! Three men do not belong in one tub – or even in the bathroom for that matter (unless it’s a public restroom, of course). And here are a few other things that don’t belong in the bathroom either.
- Your library. Reading material in the bathroom – not a big fan. Just do your business and get out.
- Dirty laundry. Take it off, drop it in the hamper and shower.
- Six bottles of shampoo, four of conditioner and four or five different body washes. Nobody gets that dirty and nobody’s hair can be that dirty. If you buy it, try it and don’t like it – get rid of it. If you buy it, try it and like it – stick with it. Keep any bulk purchases in the garage or basement though.
- Oodles of expired make-up and barely useable tubes of lipstick. Toss what you don’t use. If you wore it to prom or your office Christmas party two years ago, throw it out!
- Jewelry. It will either get dropped and lost down the sink or will get damp and tarnished. Either way get it out into your bedroom.
- Hair. Hair belongs on your head. After doing your hair wipe it up off the floor, sink and counter tops and put it in the trash. Nobody enjoys sharing a bathroom with a shedding wooly mammoth.
- Plugged in hair dryers, curling irons or straightening irons; be safe and move them to your bedroom.
- Pictures or other cutesy décor – all it does is gather moisture from the shower and collect dust. But on the other hand, all that dust sure will make your allergies happy as a clam.
- Floral scented bathroom deodorizers. Well, really any of those spray deodorizers. The scent of roses or lilacs mixed with you-know-what is enough to make anyone toss their cookies.
- Your kids. When you’re in there trying to catch a break, lock the door, plug your ears and let somebody else be in charge for a little while. You deserve it!
There’s WHAT in the Kitchen? 10 things that shouldn’t be
The kitchen is often the hub for the family’s comings and goings. It’s where permission slips are signed, where the dog seems to think her squeaky toys belong, where everything that needs a button sewn back on waits hopefully, where science experiments are grown and maybe, just maybe, you prepare meals for your family (if there’s room for you to cook, that is).
Room for cooking wouldn’t be a problem, you know, if you’d get rid of the things that don’t belong in your kitchen.
- Dirty dishes. That thing called a ‘dishwasher’ really does wash and clean the dishes. All you have to do is push the button.
- Leftovers – from last Thanksgiving or more than two or three days ago, unless they’re labelled and in the freezer.
- Coupons. But, you ask, where else should they be? They should be in the register drawer at the grocery store because you used them! That’s where they should be! If you’re not going to use them don’t clip them and leave them to clutter up your countertops and drawers.
- Family paperwork, like those permission slips. The only exception to this is if you hang a ‘family central’ bulletin board in the kitchen for such items.
- The mail. Sort it, toss the junk and put bills and other important documents in a designated desk drawer or other home office area. It’s neither professional nor appropriate to send your utility bill in with a fruit snack stuck to the back of it.
- Dust balls the size of basketballs on top of and behind your refrigerator. It doesn’t take long to swipe through these places a couple of times a month or so.
- The toys your kids just couldn’t put down long enough to eat breakfast. Funny though, they sure don’t exhibit any separation anxiety issues when you ask them to take them off the table.
- Hair bows, hair clips, pony tail holders, combs, brushes – really?
- Pet beds and/or litter boxes. If you need an explanation on this one, well, let’s just say I’m sure my dinner invitation will get lost in the mail.
- In short, if you aren’t going to eat it or with it or use it to prepare something to eat, it doesn’t belong in the kitchen.
Ok, so quit reading about how to organize your home and get rid of those things in your closet/bathroom/kitchen that don’t belong.
Chloe says: I had a quick scout round my closet/bathroom/kitchen and came up with the following out of place items. Suncream in the kitchen, a sleeping bag in the bedroom closet (taking up a whole shelf!) and a Gameboy in the bathroom cabinet (I wondered where that had gone!). Please let me know what you find.
Photo credits: H.A.M. Phtgrphy, Elizabeth/Table4Five and Lomo-Cam.