Tidying Up ~ Day 1

I read a few short books {like under 50 pages} over the weekend on de-cluttering {de-collectioning}. One of the books did not make any sense to me at all, it talked more about organizing rather than de-collectioning, and how to hide stuff. The second book pertained much more to de-collectioning and organizing, still not exactly what I was looking for, but a much better help.

I started off in the hall bathroom cabinet. This is the bathroom that the hubs, my 16 year old and any guests typically use {I hope our guests never looked under the cabinet…YIKES, it was very scary}. There were cleaning products, dog shampoo, raw vinegar, Epsom salt, pedicure stuff and a ton of random bottles of empty shampoo, just sort of thrown in there. I already had a plastic shelf unit in there so it was relatively easy to get organized. I turned the shelf around and was able to make it look more orderly. I threw out what was empty, old or no longer needed. I also went through the draws and was able to completely empty one of the drawers and organize the drawer with stuff in it. To organize the drawers I used clear cosmetic bags that I had saved and had an individual bag for: random dental stuff and then another bag for shaving stuff. This really cleaned the drawer out nicely, just hoping that it stays this way.

Hallway/Guest Bathroom

Next it was on to the master bath. It’s not really as grand as a master bath, it has a shower, a toilet and a sink, and it is about 5’ x 6’. The cabinet in there is really extra small and there is also a shelf/stand type thing that we put behind the toilet for more storage. Under the sink again I already had shelves to try to keep the organization in shape, again that failed. I had so many bottles of old lotions, body soaps and make-up. I really purged a lot in this cabinet. I was able to take some stuff that was on the shelf/stand behind the toilet and move it into this cabinet under the sink. The sink in the master bath is also very tiny and easily cluttered so I tried to remove as much as I could from it “appear cleaner”. This really helped by removing stuff from the shelf and counter top. We still have some work to do in this bathroom, but at least a good portion of the eyesore has been “hidden”.

I next moved onto my dresser. I was determined to purge as many clothes as possible and re-design the way I lay out the clothes in them. We have antique dressers so they aren’t the easiest to open and close as it is and I was hoping that re-designing them would help with this. I was only able to purge a few pairs of pajama bottoms and a few shirts, but it still felt great. I folded the clothes and stacked them and then turned the stack sideways so that I could visually see all of my bottoms and tops. It looks so much better and it definitely easier finding and getting clothes this way too, I no longer have to dig through stacks to find the shirt or bottoms I am looking for, I just find the color and bottoms I want and grab. I did this to 4 of my drawers in our room and was able to completely eliminate usage of one drawer {the hubs now has an extra drawer}. I still have to work on the “lingerie” drawer, but I have to decide how I want to lay that one out.

Just one of my drawers, too many to post the all.

I was feeling very accomplished and motivated by the time I was finished with each bathroom and my dresser that I moved onto my portion of the master closet. Again this is maybe 4’ x 6’, the hubs “remolded” it and at least we now have two rows of clothes rods rather than just the one and a shelf like when we first moved in. Of course my clothes take up ¾ of the closet. I was able to find about a foot worth of clothes that I either no longer wear or were to big/small for me. I do try to go through my closet at least once a year and do this. My BFF likes to go through the clothes I am removing and she has friends that she shares them with as well. It’s a win win!

And finally, I went through my nail polish, by this time the sun was going down and I wasn’t as ambitious as I was earlier in the day, so I figured this was a good thing to finish off with for the day. It was time to go through the nail polish; I was going through a craze where I would find these bright funky colors for cheap. Well since then, I’ve started doing my own gel nails and I am trying to match the gel polish to lacquer polish when I buy it, so I was able to taper it down and put my gel polish and matching nail polish along with my LED lamp in there so they now have a more permanent home. I removed about ¾ of a shoe box full of nail polish. My oldest son’s girlfriend said she would like to go through it and she has two sisters, so I am hoping by the time they are finished it all has a new home, she will also go through the hair products that I found that I no longer need. Again, it is a win win!

By the end of the day I felt good about getting stuff organized and de-collectioned. I know that I have A LOT {understatement} more to do, but this was a good start.

All in all it took me about 5 hours to complete. I didn’t say good bye to anything or tell it thank you, I’m more of the personality where I just cut ties…but I feel a bit more at ease and know that I really need to go through my whole house. I also need to get the hubs and the teenager involved in this as well.

M & S

Uptown Grange