Funny math eh?
The truth is that in order to add more space in your home and life
you’re going to have to subtract some of the items currently occupying space.

Subtracting clothes you don’t wear,
kitchen items you don’t use,
sports equipment you don’t play with,
toys your children have out grown, and
unnecessary files and paper work,
will add up to open spaces.
And give you more storage options for 
the things you really use, need and value.

Editing out things you no longer use,
letting go of duplicates (or triplicates),
and dealing with the pile of mail, are
all ways to subtract the unnecessary
and add some simple order to your space.

A few acts of subtraction will multiply into
results that you can see and build on.

Do the math.
Subtract to add.

Praise.
A smile.
A thank you.
Yourself a break.

Four more:
A book you loved but will never reread.
That pair of shoes that is too small, too big, too not you.
Something of Justin Case’s.
A months old resentment.

And tomorrow you can give another four…….

One:  Remove all the empty hangers.
  That alone should free up inches of space.

Two:  Group like with like.
  All your long sleeve shirts together.
  All your short sleeve shirts.
  All your pants.
  All your dresses.
  All your skirts.
  All your sports jackets.
  All your suits.
  You get the idea.

  Two B.  Within those categories,
  group all the casual items together,
  and all the work clothes together.
  If you want to be really organized,
  put those items into matching color ways.  
  All the black pants side by side.
  All the white shirts next to each other.  Etc.

For bonus points you could consider changing out 
all your mismatched, multi material hangers for 
one color of one kind.
I recommend the thin profile, non slip velvet ones.
They really do take up less space on the rod,
are non-slip, notched to hold straps in place and 
create a far less cluttered look to your closet.

And gosh, as long as you’re taking the time to switch your clothes
off the old hangers on to the nice new ones,
you might as well do a bit of purging at the same time.
Ask yourself, “Does this look fabulous on me? 
“Do I like how I look and feel when I’m wearing it?”
“Does the item still fit?”
“Is it worn, dirty, stained?”
“Out of date?  Out of style?”
“Would you buy it now?”
“Am I keeping this out of guilt or obligation?”
“How many SWAG tee shirts are enough?”

By letting go of the items you haven’t worn,
won’t wear, can believe you still even have,
your closet will have more room.
Getting dressed is easier when you have an organized closet
that only contains things you are willing and able to wear.

Having more options and more choices makes us think we will arrive at the perfect solution
  or we’ll make the ideal choice.
More options equates more time spent choosing,
  and more opportunities to feel we might have made the wrong choice.
Too many options can feel overwhelming, and
  leads us to believe insignificant choices have greater weight and
  importance than they really do.
We use valuable mental band width on decisions that may have
  little long term effect or benefit.

Where are some easy places to limit your options?
When filing papers (most of which you know you’ll never look at again)
  keep the categories general.
Buy the same color towels for all the bathrooms.
Find products you like and consistently use them.
Keep like things together so you only have to look in one place to find them.
Once you choose, move on.
“That decision has been made.”

Don’t let trying to find the perfect solution keep you stuck.
Trust me, imperfection is okay.
In fact it’s quite comfortable.

It’s okay to set limits, make easy choices
  and opt not to exercise every option.

This week’s idea. Verbal clutter.

Gossip.
Sarcasm.
One upping.
Getting in the last word.
Playing the devil’s advocate.
Exaggerating for dramatic effect.
Arguing to prove an unnecessary point.
Chattering on to fill what we perceive to be uncomfortable silences.

Just as we rethink our possessions in order to have less clutter in our lives,
pausing before we speak may prevent us from verbally cluttering our relationships.

As a result, we may experience ourselves as being kinder and
more patient as we communicate with family, friends, and colleagues.
And you will have fewer conversations where your lips engaged before your brain,
or you may have been right, when you could have been kind.

Our thoughts,
our speech,
our buying habits,
what we choose to find space for and honor in our lives.
It is all about making conscious choices.

Choose wisely.

They should.
He always.
She never.
Why do I have to?
Don’t they see?
Isn’t the solution obvious?
I can’t believe he said/did/did’t/can’t/won’t/doesn’t.

Such indignation.
So righteous.
And all the right solutions too.
(Or so you think)

The stories we repeat.
The conversations we replay.
The if only I’d saids.
Repetitive thoughts rushing down those old worn grooves in our minds.
How many of our thoughts are repetitious, circular and don’t move us forward?
How much of what we chew on only keeps us annoyed and hurt?
It’s all Mental Clutter.

We want our physical spaces to hold only the things we love,
value and reflect the life we want to be living.
Our mental space needs to be as clutter free as possible also.

Which thoughts and stores can we let go?
What judgments get in our way?
How might our lives be different if we spent more time in thoughts of gratitude and thanks?

Funny thing about our they should, he always, she never, etc.:
There is always another point of view.

Just for today, try not whining.
Put down your righteous chew toy.
Replace a complaint with a gesture of kindness.
Do some Mental Decluttering.

“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.”
Thomas Merton

Have we stopped seeing the art on our walls, the photos on the shelves, the collection in the display?
(Just like we stop noticing the piles of clutter?)
When we first displayed  these items it was because they had meaning and
we felt connected to them and the memories they evoked.

Is that still true for you?

Thoughtfully consider if your taste is the same,
If now the book shelf is over crowded or
your mementos have just become dust magnets.

Maybe rearranging some items could give new feeling to a room or space.

Or editing a collection down to just a few of the most special items.

Reframing the photos in similar frames would unify the look and draw your attention to the subjects.
(Perhaps it is time for updated photos of the people you love and care about?)

We each get to decide what is art in our lives.

The items we hang on our walls,
display on our shelves and
have homes on our desks should be things that make our hearts happy.

Choose and display items which continue to have meaning,
inspire you,
remind you,
and make you feel at home in your own house and life.

Happy rearranging.

Declutter your medicine cabinet.
(and wherever else you store medications)

Take a few minutes to check through your cabinets and
collect all your unused or expired medications
for safe disposal, Saturday April 30th.

Use this link to find a drop off site near you.
DEA Collection Sites

As an ongoing task of daily living, staying on top of the laundry can be daunting.

Some solutions:
1.  Do one load everyday.
Start the washer as part of the morning routine.
Dry, fold and put the clothes away every evening.

2.  Have fewer clothes.
The more clothes you have the more tempting it is to 
just keep wearing things until you run out.
Flaw in the theory is then you are faced with loads and loads of laundry.
And a somewhat easy task becomes a huge all day chore.

In addition, having fewer clothes also means you need less room to store them.
Getting dressed is faster and easier because your choices are limited.

3.  Use one, three section hamper in the laundry room.
Eliminate the hamper in each bedroom.
Have everyone sort their clothes into the one hamper 
as they finish wearing them.

By doing a little every day, you don’t have to set aside one whole day as laundry day.
It is easier to do something if you do it everyday.
Routines don’t necessarily make life dull, they often make it easier.

If, by chance you do have several loads of laundry that need to get done,
sort it into lights, mediums and darks, put it into bags or hampers, take them to the
laundromat and do multiple loads at the same time.
(You don’t need to worry about having enough quarters; laundromats now use prepaid debit type cards!)
When you get all the clothes clean, folded and back home,
before you put them all away; sort them.
Set aside the things that are too big, too small, too worn, out dated, etc.
Consider how many of any one type of garment is enough.
Remember how much storage you actually have.
The keepers then need to be divided into what gets hung and what gets folded.
Then store like with like, and have the clothes you wear most often, most accessible.

Make the habits of daily living as easy and routine as possible.
Spend less time taking care of things so you have more time to do what you love
and be with the people you care about.

Most rooms have  visible clutter and hidden clutter:
The pile on the chair and the mess in the drawer.
The stacks on the desk and the chaos in the file cabinet.
The accumulation on the counter and the disarray in pantry.
The collection of random on the bookshelf and the mysteries in the cabinet.

First sort, prioritize and organize what you can see. 
Then deal with the items in the unseen spaces.
By starting with what’s out and visible;
with the clutter you see on a daily basis,
you can see change immediately.

The situation then feels less overwhelming,
the distraction level has been greatly reduced
and you can start to concentrate on the next level of clutter.

Some of what you declutter in the visual spaces
will need to find homes in the hidden spaces, so
the opportunity to decide how best to use your storage spaces
becomes more obvious. 

Plus, by starting with what you can see
when you get inside of the other places you will 
be practiced at decision making!

Start with one area of visual clutter.
One shelf, one area of counter top, one table top.
Feel and see (literally) what a difference that can make.