What better way to make the holidays more relaxing than having an organized home? People are already busy during this time of year, though, so don’t try to take on too much all at once. Instead, just focus on a few areas that tend to be especially affected during the holidays: your holiday décor, the kitchen, and that mountain of toys in your kids’ playroom.
Holiday Décor and Supplies
As the holidays near, you’re probably getting ready to decorate your house. Before you get out your holiday decorations, look at what you currently have on your countertops and shelves. As you clear them to make room for your holiday decorations, let go of som
e of the candles, vases, and other knick-knacks you barely ever pay attention to or notice.
As you’re decorating, get rid of items you just don’t like anymore. It can be a lot harder to notice and appreciate special items when there are so many other items cluttering around them. Sometimes fewer is more meaningful, so save the things that you genuinely love and declutter the rest. Just because you loved that lighted snowman at one point doesn’t mean you like it still. Remove it from your house and it’s one less thing to have to pack up and store.
After you’re done decorating, look at what’s left that you didn’t put up. I bet you have some loose bulbs or strings of lights that don’t work, some broken ornaments, or some old Christmas cards. Ask yourself it you’re really going to ever put that up again. If you’re not sure or if the answer is no, then it probably should go. Now you have empty boxes ready to hold the decorations you do use and love.
When the holiday season
is over, go through all your items once more. Set some time aside to get rid of anything you used this holiday season that you don’t plan on using for the next one. You’ll most likely be sick of at least some of the décor, so it’ll be easier to go ahead and toss or donate those unwanted items now! And before putting your regular decorations back in their boxes, make sure you really want to keep them. Now’s the perfect time to take those items to the donation center.
Another item to consider getting rid of is old gift-wrapping supplies. Do you have small pieces of wrapping paper that you saved in case you have a small present to wrap? Or the bows that have been used so much they’re getting a bit crumpled? Get rid of them. You can recycle the wrapping paper; put it in the recycling bin today. Also, before buying more supplies, take stock of what you already have and decide on what you need and only purchase things you will actually use.
Catalogs
During the holidays, our mailboxes seem to fill up to the brim with catalogs. Since you’re getting so many of them right now and they’re in your mind, think about the ones you want to keep and cancel the rest. You can stop these catalogs from coming in by calling the 1-800 number provided in the catalog and asking the operator to remove your name from the mailing list. This generally only takes a couple of minutes. Or you can sign up with CatalogChoice. They will help you cancel the catalogs you no longer want to receive.
The Kitchen
Not only do the holidays fill your home with friends, family, joy, gifts, and decorations, but they also tend to fill your home with food! Declutter and simplify your kitchen before the holiday season so that hosting, cooking, and baking will be much easier and much more enjoyable.
When tackling your kitchen, there are two areas you’ll want to focus on:
First, you’ll want to work on clearing the flat surfaces in your kitchen, such as countertops and your dining table. Not only will your kitchen look better without all the clutter, but clear surfaces will also make cooking, serving, and cleaning so much easier. Once the flat surfaces are clean, go ahead and start working on the drawers and cabinets, one at a time. Figure out what you don’t use and see which items you have duplicates of.
Next, you’ll want to clear out the pantry, refrigerator, and freezer. Throw out anything that has expired and donate the things that are still good but that you know you won’t use. You can donate these food items to the food bank, so someone who needs it can use it for their holiday meals.
Whether you plan on hosting holiday gatherings or not, it’s still so helpful to declutter your kitchen before the holidays. Getting rid of all that extra stuff and organizing your kitchen just makes it so much more enjoyable to prepare food.
Kids’ Toys
Holidays mean gifts, and many gifts for kids end up being toys (whether they’re from you or the grandparents). Before bringing more toys into the house, decluttering the toys they already have is a good idea. Encourage your kids to declutter by telling them to make room for the new toys they’ll be getting as gifts.
Sometimes kids have trouble decluttering and need some extra guidance. You can always encourage them by telling them there won’t be room for anything new if they don’t let go of some of the things they currently have.
Start by going through the playroom and piles of toys with your kids. Since they know they’ll be getting gifts around this time of year, tell them that they need to make room for these new toys. The kids might have to make some tough decisions on what they want to keep and what they want to give away. Get rid of any toys that the children don’t love or play with anymore and toss the ones that are broken or are missing pieces.
As you help your children declutter, take note of what they do and don’t use, and pay attention to the things they easily let go of. This can help you figure out what you may want to buy for them during the holidays, and what you may want to avoid getting them. The process of decluttering will most likely make you more selective in what you’re willing to let back into your house in the future.
On the other hand, while decluttering your kids’ toys, you might realize that additional toys would be a burden. Instead of getting physical objects, you could consider gifting them experiences instead. Many favorite childhood memories come from what they do rather than what they have.
One of the best parts about purging toys, books, and clothes during the holidays is that the ones that are still in decent shape can be donated to someone else so that they can give their child a happy holiday. So decluttering is a win for everyone!
By starting kids on decluttering their toys during the holiday process every year, they are more likely to make this a habit throughout the rest of their lives.
Final Thoughts
When decluttering your home before the holidays, you’ll want to focus on three primary areas: your holiday décor, the kitchen, and your kids’ toys. Not only can decluttering give you more breathing room, but it also gives you the opportunity to donate those wooden spoons, cans of food, and old toys to people who need them. So, what are you waiting for? The holidays are coming up fast, and it’s time to start decluttering!