5 Disorder Disasters: Organized!

Lean how to confront clutter fearlessly with five strategies for staying organized.

By Liz Gray
Filed under: Decluttering, Organization, Storage, Garages, Storage Containers, Housekeeping

This colorful tween room designed by Lauren Jacobson is also full of functional space. For example, the bright ottomans serve as seats and storage. Photo by Anthony Nex Photography

2. HOLIDAY SWITCHEROO

Holiday gifts have overstuffed your child's already small room. A pile of toys that would overwhelm Santa Claus litters the floor, but you don't own a sleigh to store it all in. Why didn't Grandma give you some extra storage space along with that enormous stuffed bear?

Solution: Holidays and birthdays usually mean an influx of new toys and clothing, so they're good times to get rid of toys that your children have outgrown. Sherrie recommends a "one in, two out" rule.

"You can't constantly add more storage," she says. "For every new toy, try to get rid of one or two old ones." Encourage your kids to banish anything that's not useful or sentimental — it will teach them how to stay organized. Remind them: If it's not useful to them, it could be to one of their peers.

If the pile of keepers still rivals the one in the North Pole, Betsy recommends rotating. Store a few toys in your child's room, then stash the rest in an out-of-the way closet. You'll save your storage system, and your child will feel like he's getting new toys all year.

3. CONTAINER CLEANING

You're having a dinner party for 10, including your mother-in-law, tomorrow. The busy week has taken its toll on your home, and your dining table is barely visible under a pile of mail, homework and school projects. With everything you have left to do, a turkey is not the only thing you plan on stuffing.

Solution: Betsy says the key to staying organized is in the Cs: categorizing and containers. Give each person in the family a container with his or her name on it. You can quickly gather things up, pitch them in the appropriate box and give it to that person to put away. You can also use this concept with mail, toys or laundry. Do this on a daily basis to avoid pile-up, or pick up the baskets in crunch time to curb clutter.

Stuffing everything in one basket takes a comparable amount of time and will leave you frazzled after your guests leave. You'll waste time later, says Betsy, searching for things you chose to cram.

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