Day 19. Clean and Organize Closets/Storage

Day 19 of “A 30 Day Guide to Spring Cleaning“.

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Organizing closets and storage can be one of those difficult tasks because there is no “set way” to organize your home. Everything depends on what you have stored, the size of your storage space, and the tools that you have to organize with.

On top of every space being different, every lifestyle is different too. What may work for one person, may not work at all for the next. Organizing is about creating an environment that reflects and coordinates who you and your family are, how you function best in your home, and what your family does.

For example, when I was organizing my basement storage space today, I put my paint supplies in a conveniently located area, while I put my holiday supplies and older electronics in a harder to access area. This is because I access my paint supplies much more frequently than I access practically anything else in that storage room. This works great for me, but it may not work at all for the next person who may not paint for years at a time.

My home has little to no storage available. I live in a bi-level house, so my basement is half of my living space. We have one room for storage in the basement, and this room is NOT EASILY ACCESSIBLE. The furnace is in the doorway, and anything that goes in this room must fit between the furnace and the trim.

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Basic Concepts of Organization

Let’s do a quick overview here of the basic concepts of organization. Although organization may look different for each person, the ideas of getting to where you want to be are roughly the same. Having these basic concepts in mind will be helpful in your venture to organizing your home.

Basic Concepts of Organization:

1. Be ready to let go
   • In order to achieve organization in your focus area, you need to be able to let go of items that are creating clutter. Make sure that you are in the mindset for deciding to part with items you’ve been holding on to.
2. Be realistic about your goals
   • You cannot organize your entire house in 3 hours. Be realistic about the timeframe you have available, and what you will be able to accomplish in that timeframe. Organization takes time, and if you have to stop half way through, or run out of time, you may end up with a larger mess and more overwhelmed than you started with.
3. Declutter your area first
   • Before making organization decisions, you will want to declutter your area first. Remove all the items from your area, and discard or donate items you will be parting with so you can focus only on the things you are keeping.
4. Sort and group items
   • Sort and group your items according to what makes sense to you, and what works for how you live. Group together items that make sense to you, and that you would access at the same time, or will remember they are grouped together.
5. Determine tools that work for your space
   • Everyone’s storage spaces look different. Determine what organization tools will work for your space. There are a lot of different options and sizes available in many different organization tools here: Organization Tools ‘paid link’. Measure your space, and be sure to obtain items that will fit and function.
6. Trust yourself
   • Know that just because your organization area doesn’t look like that picture you found on Pinterest, doesn’t mean that your area isn’t organized. Keep in mind that organization looks different for everyone, and trust that your organization decisions are what will work best for you and your family/household.
7. Kiss your guilt goodbye!!!
   • This is very important when organizing because it can play so many factors. Stop feeling guilty about getting rid of items (just because it was expensive, you meant to use it, or it was a gift). If you don’t like the item, keeping it around can actually add to stress and unhappy feelings. Stop feeling guilty that your storage areas have gotten messy and/or out of hand. Stop feeling guilty that you don’t know where to start, or how to organize it. Let this all go, and then you will be able to begin.

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What to clean and organize:

• Storage closets
• Bedroom closets
• Bathroom closets
• Utility rooms
• Storage rooms

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Supplies needed:

• Organization Tools ‘paid link’ (make sure to get what works for your space)
• Vacuum
• Broom/Dust Pan
• Recommended:
  • 6 Qt Storage Bin
  • 16 Qt Storage Bin
  • Storage Shelving
  • Multi-color Small Bins
  • Label Maker
  • Black Sharpie
  • Envirowand, Envirocloth, Dusting Mitt
• Alternative:
  • Any organization tools that work for your space and lifestyle
  • Cleaning items for dust and possible spider webs

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Cleaning and Organizing Closets/Storage

I am going to use my storage room in my basement as an example for this post, although I will likely be posting many more storage organization ideas to include the rest of the areas in my home, since I have had to be pretty crafty for small storage areas.

As I talked about above, this storage area has a very small entrance, so anything I use to store in this area has to be small enough to get into it. I used small shoe rack storage shelves, as the room is only about 3.5′ high ceilings. I got some very cheap and easy to put together shoe shelves that could be built inside the room. I used 6 Qt and 16 Qt storage containers with my label maker to identify what the contents are, and I also used fabric cubes for some items that didn’t fit well in rigid totes.

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Let’s take a look at the before:

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Step 1: Remove all items from the storage area. This will allow you to start with a “blank slate” and you can better determine what will work for your area. Put them into a space where you can really sit down and sort out your items. I put all mine into my living room which was close to my storage area, but much larger of a space for sorting.

Step 2: Declutter!! Get rid of those things you don’t want or need. Storage can be tricky, because you may have items that you are holding onto for a specific purpose that you will need in the future (or in case of emergencies), but as a general rule: if you haven’t touched it in a year, you don’t need it.

Step 3: Sort your remaining items after you have determined what you are getting rid of. If you are getting rid of it, JUST DO IT. Do it now before you decide you might really need it 5 years down the road if one specific scenario happens. When sorting your items, determine what pairings make sense to you. Put items together that you will access at the same time, or that coordinate with each other. For example, in my paint supplies I also added drywall repair patches, putty knifes for spackle, wood filler, and caulk. All these items would typically be used around the same time as painting for filling holes or dings in surfaces through your home, or refinishing caulk you might have removed when painting (again, do what works for you and your household).

Step 4: Determine what organization tools will work for your space and your items. Once you have sorted and grouped your items it will be easier to see what size and shape storage bins you will need, or if you will need shelving for stacking. Pair your storage bins/tools to the intended groups, and then label them for easy access at a later date. Use your sharpie’s to write on boxes so you can easily know what is inside.

**Note: make your labels specific enough that you will know exactly where to go for the item you need.

Step 5: Clean your storage area. Use your envirowand to take down any cobwebs or dust from the walls and ceilings, or between shelves. Wipe down your shelves with a wet envirocloth to have a clean area to work with. Vacuum the floors or sweep them, and then mop if needed.

Step 6: Take your newly organized bins/totes/organization tools used, and start placing them in areas that make sense. Try to keep like groupings together. Make sure when placing these items that your frequently accessed items are towards the front, or in the easily accessible spots. Make the area something that will function well for you and your family!

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I hope that these steps and this information was helpful to getting your space organized! Now after all that hard work, it’s time to enjoy that feeling of accomplishment!

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If you have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments and I would be happy to get back with you.

Check out Day 18. Clean Under Beds and Furniture here.

Check out Day 19. Clean/Organize Drawers and Cabinets here.

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