Spring is finally here and with that comes the baggage and clutter we’re still holding onto from last winter. It can be difficult to know where to start with a proper spring clean whether you struggle with decluttering your wardrobe, organising your child’s mountains of toys or finding items in your pantry.
Lucky for us there are organisational specialists to help advise us on where to start with this tedious and time-consuming process.
Sarah Reynolds, founder of Organised Chaos, Ireland’s first-ever professional organisational company, has had a lot of experience when it comes to spring cleaning, decluttering and organising people’s homes. Sarah works alongside clients to help them organise their homes to help fit their busy lifestyles.
When asked what advice Sarah would give someone if they are feeling overwhelmed when starting to de-clutter their home she told us “I always say look at your flat surfaces. So for example counters, kitchen islands, dining room tables, coffee tables, and bedside lockers. If you can clear those, you will instantly feel better! They’re also a quick job to do often enough and so you’ll feel good and motivated after them!”
As an organisational specialist Sarah has had a lot of time to test out different products and of course, has some holy grail ones she’ll never stop using “It has to be a turntable or lazy susan for the kitchen. Love these products. They look good, fit things well and bring items in the back of a cupboard easily to the front.”
Makes life so much easier!
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One of the largest challenges when spring cleaning is tackling your wardrobe and figuring out what to keep and what to toss. Sarah told us “When it comes to clothes, go by category. So look at all your jeans together, look at all your t-shirts together.
Break it down that way. Instead of trying to tackle the whole wardrobe, look at items instead. By having all of the same type of clothing together to look at, you get a bird’s eye view of what you own.”
“You can clearly see for example that you have 62 pairs of jeans and 15 of them are black skinny ones! You’re not wondering is there any jeans anywhere else. So this helps make a decision because you can clearly see what you own and then decide what do you really need.”
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With so much false information and tips being spread online, sometimes it’s easy to make organisational mistakes. When asked what’s the most common organisational mistakes Sarah sees throughout her work she told us “They look at the whole house and then get annoyed at themselves for letting it get that way. You have to break the project down. Then the next mistake is not sticking to it regularly. Think of it like going to the gym, to get a certain result, you’ll need to invest time, motivation and discipline but it will be so worth it in the end!”
Organising your home at any time can be a difficult task however, with small kids it’s a whole other kettle of fish. When Sarah was asked if she has any specific organisational tips for parents with small children she told us “Try to do a declutter right before a birthday or Christmas so they associate these events with sorting through their toys. It also clears some space before more stuff comes in.”
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“Always use open bins for toy storage. Kids won’t put a lid back on! Use photos as labels instead of written or typed. Kids of all ages will understand and will think of it as more fun to put stuff away.” Organising can be fun for kids too!
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Entrepreneur and decluttering specialist Niki is the proud founder of Simplify and Sort, an Irish home decluttering, cleaning and organisational business where she helps others find order within their homes and to create a peaceful space.
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When asked how Niki would manage home organisation with young kids she told us: “Be realistic about how much uninterrupted time you will have. It’s best to break the task down into smaller jobs and do little bits when you can. Plan ahead and pick days when the kids might be at school for a few hours or someone might be willing to help with minding them, plan an easy dinner or have something prepped in the freezer so you can make the most of the block of time you do have.”
Once the spring clean is finished it can be easy to fall back into old patterns Niki told us her main tips for maintaining the clean, tidy space.
“The best way to stay on top of things is by creating a daily tidying routine and weekly cleaning schedule. Your daily tidying routine should be quick (15- 20 minutes) and simple and include things like making beds, tidying kitchen counters, wiping them down, loading and unloading the dishwasher, emptying the bin, doing one laundry activity and generally tidying as you go.”
“Remember to get the whole family involved and it will all go much quicker. A weekly cleaning routine should include deeper cleaning activities like cleaning the bathroom, kitchen, changing bedding, vacuuming and mopping. Cleaning activities can be done on one day or broken down over a few days in order to fit them into a busy schedule. Breaking things down so you’re doing a little every day is what helps you stay on top of things”
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With sustainability on everyone’s minds right now, donating unwanted items to charity and second-hand shops is a great way to remove them from your home. Not only is this good for the environment, as you’re avoiding these items going to landfills, but it is also economically friendly for those in need.
As we can see spring cleaning and organising doesn’t have to be a stressful process, just take it one step at a time!