It's spring cleaning time again and if you need to declutter before you clean here are 6 easy and practical ways to do it.
Garage clean-outs can be exhilarating, even when they are not your own (maybe especially when they are not your own). Some of the most fulfilling organizing sessions I've had over the last 20 years have been transforming jumbles of junk into lean, clean parking spaces, home gyms, teen hangouts and garden tool meccas. And yet. At over 60 years old, I am done with the physical side of helping others clean out what are basically "the storage unit where we should be parking the car." Here's why.
A lot of the time, a garage clean out is not really organizing. Most of the people who call me about their garages can barely walk into them for the wall of stuff that confronts them. What they need is a team of strong people to haul things out and away, not a 5'4", 112-pound woman of a certain age.
They will need to make decisions about whether something is "keep," "trash" or "donate-able" and how to get it where it needs to go. These decisions should be easy, but I understand why they can be paralyzing. I am still willing to coach a client through these decisions, but I'm no longer willing to try to hoist a sofa into the back of a pick-up.
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Once the large, heavy items are off to their final resting places, there's cleaning to be done. Again, this isn't organizing but is a necessary part of the process of making a space like a garage functional. There are usually spider webs to be taken down, dust and debris to be swept out, rodents to be dealt with and other unpleasant chores.
When clean, structural issues need to be addressed; still not organizing, though of course there is an organizing element to making decisions and scheduling workmen. I had my garage sheet-rocked, which gives a garage a respectable, Pinocchio-like, "I'm a real room!" feeling. Fresh paint is, of course, a wonderful thing. If the roof leaks, it needs to be patched. Lighting is paramount for functionality. I even scrubbed and painted the floor in my garage, which helps to keep the cement dust down and looks great.
If you have addressed all of the above, I would be willing to help you organize what's left. Decisions about where to hang racks or hooks, where to place and what type of shelving to buy and how to containerize the items that are left to store IS organizing. But I think you will be so pleased with yourself and motivated after coming this far that you will be confident you can reach the finish line on your own.
By the way, all of the above goes for attics and basements too, which are basically car-less garages with less convenient access and the horror of stairs. My advice is to never store anything in the average attic or basement if you have alternative storage. Stuff in attics tends to become a forgotten fire hazard and stuff in basements tends to become a moldy mess.
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Angela Hoxsey is a professional organizer based in the Napa Valley. For more information on her services, go to www.houseinorder.com.
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