It’s that time of year again – time to break old bad habits, get healthy, and get organized. A new year brings new beginnings, so it’s time to design a home that reflects the new you. By cleaning and decluttering, you can create bright, open spaces to start anew, so here are 5 resolutions to get you started.
ORDER YOUR STORAGE SPACES
If you’re opening your closet and find it’s crammed full, it’s time to take everything out and see what’s in there. Once everything is removed, wipe down the closet with a nice-smelling disinfectant. If you need to deodorize or reduce humidity, buy fresh, new products to accomplish this.
Now, take everything you have taken out of the closet and classify it into three piles:
1. Always use.
2. Sometimes I use.
3. Never use it.
Check off items in the ‘never use’ pile. If any of these are damaged or unusable, discard them. The other items can be recycled at your local charity shop.
Its ‘use sometimes’ stack is probably the biggest. You’re going to have to be really critical here and split this stack in two. A stack contains damaged, outdated, or duplicate items. This pile will go for recycling.
Pack all the remaining items carefully in your wardrobe. You may want to purchase some storage containers for this.
‘SPRING CLEANING
A “spring” cleaning should be done more often than once a year, and ringing in the new year is a great time to give your home a deep clean.
To start, have a bucket of hot, soapy water and a container with your cleaning products and cloths. Start in one room and clean everything you can see; blinds, windows and rails, walls and furniture. Move furniture away from the wall and clean behind it. Open the drawers and cabinets and clean the interior by going through the cleaning process if necessary.
In the kitchen, remove food from cabinets and place on the bench and wipe down cabinet doors and shelves. Check foods for expiration dates and throw them away if they are old. Give your oven and refrigerator a good clean, too.
REVIEW OLD DOCUMENTS
If you have filing cabinets or storage bins full of old paperwork, now is a good time to go through this and see what you don’t need. For example, in Australia you only need to keep tax receipts for seven years, so if you find anything from before then you can throw it away. You may also want to file receipts older than a year in a storage container so only the most recent documentation is accessible.
Organize your paperwork in labeled folders or filing cabinets under headings like ‘electricity’, ‘telephone’ and ‘tariffs’, etc. or whatever header works for you.
HOUSE KEEPING
It’s time to do all those little home maintenance items you’ve been ignoring for months. If there is any damage to the house, such as broken appliances, blown light bulbs or paint touch-ups, now is the time to fix it.
Marks and holes can be repaired by taking a sample to your local paint retailer to match colors. Fixing small problems in your home will make you feel much better in your environment and will help you focus on other aspects of your life.
GARDEN MAINTENANCE
The exterior of your home also needs attention, particularly since it’s the first thing you see when you get home. Make sure all hedges and plants are neatly trimmed and the grass is cut. It’s time to get out there and remove all the weeds from your yard and maybe add some extra plants where needed. Add your favorite plant varieties to your garden as a reward for all the hard work you’re putting in.
Get a ladder and check the gutters for dead leaves. Remove all yard waste directly to the local landfill once you have completed your work. Compost yard waste that can be recycled into mulch.