There’s no better motivation to declutter than knowing you are soon hosting a party or family holiday. Part of being a good host is making sure your home feels welcoming, calm and preferably is not overflowing with clutter! Here’s a simple plan for decluttering the common areas in your home so you can focus on family, friends & delicious food and drink instead of stressing about the state of your home. 

1. Start with the kitchen. Clear off the kitchen counters and table. Clutter & paperwork tend to accumulate on flat surfaces unless you have a designated spot for everything. This is where you need to make sure you have a system in place for how you deal with paper when it comes in. See this blog post for more on that!

1. Look at your home with fresh eyes. Our own clutter tends to become invisible to us after a while. Look at every corner of the room and see if there are piles or things that just don’t belong in the space.
2. Enlist your family members to help. Get a donation bag or basket and challenge each family member to part with at least 3 items. This is a great way to prep for the inevitable influx of new things during the holidays.
3. Throw away. Toss anything damaged (that can’t be fixed), anything missing parts or if paperwork, anything that isn’t absolutely essential. For paperwork, I love the Turbo Scan app that turns any document into a PDF so you don’t need to keep the paper original and it’s searchable on your app, phone or computer.
4. Get your bar cart or bar area ready.  Make sure you have an ice bucket & tongs, and toss any expired alcohol or mixers. Make sure you have wine openers handy.
5. Do a quick refresh of your pantry. Toss anything expired. If it’s not expired, consider donating extras to a local food pantry who could really use it during the holiday season.
6. Go through your dishes & glassware and donate any mismatched/unnecessary items. Also go through your bar area and toss anything old and expired.
7. If you’re overwhelmed and want some organization magic, call us! Leave the stress behind, leave the work to us and be free to enjoy the holidays!