As temperatures start rising and the first few buds of green pop up, we all know what time of year is about to begin. Spring cleaning!
You may have binged Marie Kondo on Netflix, or scrolled through Pinterest for some organizational inspiration over the winter months. Now it is time to take action! NAPO Georgia has compiled a list of spring cleaning tips to get you started this year.
Tips for getting kicking off your 2022 spring cleaning
1. Make a list of spring cleaning goals
Write down a list of what you want to tackle this spring. Do you need to free up space, or are you wanting to get crafty with your organization this year? Figure out what it is that you’re wanting to do before you move forward!
2. Pick a room!
Pick one room or space in your home to begin with. Make sure it is not the biggest project on your list. Maybe the mudroom or laundry room to start. Then plan a few hours to tackle the room from start to finish. This not only gets your spring cleaning started, but it will spark some motivation to continue onto the next space in your home.
3. Declutter your space with trash and donation piles
Start by designating a dropping spot or bags for things to trash and things to donate. Go through each room in your house and find these things. The key is to make sure when your trash bag is full you take it outside (or to your garage) to the main trash bin and say goodbye. As your donation pile grows, throw it in your car trunk, and drop it off at the local Goodwill or other charity. Don’t wait until you are done, it is important to start moving that stuff out of your house as soon as possible to avoid the temptation to put it back. Visit our Organizing Resources page to find organizations that accept donations.
“I’ve noticed that a lot of people have trouble letting got of things that they no longer use because it’s still good and they don’t want put it in the trash. Donating the items hadn’t even occurred to them. So it’s great to remind people that just because it’s leaving your space, doesn’t mean it has to be trashed. Donate it an let it be used by someone who wants or needs it.”
- Carolyn Rogers, Neat Nerd Solutions
4. Organize your items in sections
Start off by working on something like your closet, for example. Separate clothes and other items into sections - needs, wants, and unnecessary clutter. This will help you avoid getting any items mixed up or confused.
5. Clean as you go
Try to be as neat and clean as possible. Dust and clean off the spaces you are working with before you start and as you go.
6. Work in one area at a time
Don’t jump around from the kitchen to the bathroom. Work in one place and don’t move on to the next thing until everything is cleaned thoroughly. And don’t forget to give yourself breaks!
“Pick a target area that ‘bugs you the most’ and focus on that,” says veteran organizer and financial coach, Karen Leff of Leff Organizing, LLC.
“When you look at an entire room or garage to declutter, it can be very overwhelming.” Leff coaches her clients to break up large projects into small do-able tasks. “ If you only have 30-minutes to spare, tackle one or two drawers or shelves. Empty them out completely, just getting rid of the items you don’t want or need usually makes more room for the items you use regularly in the space.” Chipping away and decluttering and organizing smaller, targeted areas in your home gives you a sense of progress, says Leff. “For larger jobs, where clients want to see progress quickly, I encourage clients to allow me to bring one or two helpers. In most cases, we can get a large job like a garage or kitchen, completely sorted, decluttered and re-organized in one session.”
Nancy Meck of Meck Organizing says “To avoid the urge to purge in a pinball-like fashion bouncing around the house and getting nowhere fast, if you identify something as "not belonging" in the room you are focusing on, put it outside of the room, but don't walk it all the way to the next room where it is to be stored or processed. Leave time – say 30 minutes to an hour - at the end of your decluttering effort to put things away into their new short-term or long-term spot. If after clearing those items you still have time and energy for decluttering, then use those reserves to focus on a new room."
These six tips for getting started with spring cleaning this year should help you approach the process with a more motivated and organized state of mind. For more ideas and suggestions, check out these posts on organizing your home: “Motivation to Get Organized All Year Long” and “Six Easy Steps to a Perfectly Organized Garage”
