Sprucing up your Johns Creek home by decluttering means examining your life, going through all of your possessions, deciding what’s important to you, and discarding the rest. It means letting go of the things that no longer serve a purpose in your life so that you can make room for what’s most important to you. Organizing means that everything has a home so that it can be easily found, accessed, used, and put back.

The time that you invest in decluttering and organizing will be returned to you, with dividends, once you’ve created a space that contains only what you really need or truly brings you joy, and everything can be easily found and accessed.

Schedule It 

The first thing that you need to do is to schedule time for decluttering and organizing your space. There are many different scheduling approaches that you can choose from, such as the following:

• Declutter and organize in mini steps
• Declutter and organize in fifteen minute sessions
• Take one hour per day to declutter
• Schedule your decluttering and organizing throughout the year

Scheduling your decluttering time is key!

Designate a Purpose for Each Room in your Johns Creek Home

Walk around your home and decide what activities you would like to carry out in each room, as well as the mood you would like each room to convey. Here are sexamples:

• The den can be designated as a place for the family to gather and watch tv, play games, bond, and have fun. You want this room to convey comfort and enjoyment.
• The bathroom should be treated as a luxurious retreat.
• The kitchen is a place to prepare food and where you’ll sit to enjoy meals with your family.
• Your living room could be a place to entertain guests in an ambiance that is simple yet elegant, as well as serene and functional.

You’re going to organize according to the function you want each room to serve, and how you want each room to “feel”.

Decide Where to Start

Many people are tempted to begin their decluttering and organizational efforts by starting with drawers, the cabinet underneath the bathroom sink, the hallway-closet, and so on. However, you’ll be much more effective if you begin with things that are visible.

First of all, you should start with the room that you use most often. Begin clearing off the visible clutter, such as putting away anything on desktops, tabletops, and countertops that doesn’t belong there, and anything that’s on the floor.  In addition, think of what furniture you can eliminate without sacrificing comfort and livability.

After you’ve cleared off the visible clutter, you’re ready to move on to drawers, shelves, cupboards, cabinets, the linen closet, and so on.  Start at the door and work clockwise around the room.

Once you’re done with the room that you use most often, go on to the second-most-often-used room, then the third, and so on. Remember to concentrate on one room at a time.

Declutter and Organize

You’re going to go through all of your possessions, one by one. For each item you’re going to ask yourself the following questions:

• Does the item serve a key function in your daily life?
• Have you used this item in the past six months?
• Does it have sentimental value?

Create six categories and assign a cardboard box for each category. The categories are as follows:

1. This belongs in another room.

2. This needs to be fixed or cleaned.

3. This will be given away, sold, or donated.

4. This will be thrown out.

5. This is not mine and needs to be returned to its owner.

6. This is a “maybe”. If you can’t bear to toss something out because you might need it later, put it in the “maybe” box.

If you’re decluttering a drawer, cabinet, or shelf, take everything out and put it in front of you where you can see everything.  Sort through the pile and put related items together.  Don’t get bogged down in specific, precise categories, just create simple groups so that it’s easier to get everything organized.

Once you have everything in a group go through each group and decide what to do with each item.  Here are some groups of items you can consider:

As you go through each category decide whether it’s something that will be put back, or if it’s going into one of the six boxes. Then put back the things that you’ve decided to keep, in an orderly manner.  Remember that items which you use frequently should be easily accessible.

Also remember that you need to store items where they are used.  If you frequently use a pair of scissors in your family room, keep it in a drawer nearby, not in the kitchen or in your office at the other side of the house.

In addition, keep a notebook with you so that you can jot down any repairs that need to be made or add incomplete projects to your to do list. Keeping your Johns Creek home decluttered and organized is essential if/when you decide to put it on the market and sell it.