Is this quote in the book, or only the movie? I just re-read P&P not long ago, and I must admit I missed it…
It is a happy thought, though! Shelves — and the occasional well placed nail — are the key to keeping chaos at bay.
A whole bunch of you lovely readers wanted a de-cluttering post from me, and this filled me with dread. Remember I told you I'm not a particularly good housekeeper?
My ideas for you are more along the lines of “your house doesn't have to be trashed just because you have kids” ….
…than “look at me I'm so tidy” — even though I have no excuse at this point, having not one single toddler on the loose.
I was tearing my hair out, trying to think of what pictures I could possibly illustrate such a post with.
I personally have nothing photogenically uncluttered to show you, in my house or otherwise…
I spring-cleaned the blue-bird houses…
Also, it's the liturgical season of St. Patrick's Day, and things are a bit busy in the Irish step-dancing and fiddling world…
The little girls in Bridget's step-dancing school needed capes…
Things are not very un-cluttered here.
The other thing is that anyone who has ever sat in a waiting room with women's magazines already knows the theory of de-cluttering.
You know very well that you need three things:
1. A trash bag — for trash.
2. A box — for give-aways.
3. A laundry basket — for internal relocation.
Now, pick a spot, and keep it limited. Not more than one room, for sure.
Possibly even one dresser, one closet or one shelf in a closet — good lord, woman, I don't know what your home looks like!
People are very different. Some people consider one book on a coffee table clutter. Others are so festooned with fake ivy garlands and nick-knacks from the Christmas Tree Shops that wish you welcome, love, luck o' the Irish, boo, harvest, red-white-and-blue, and everything else, as if somehow every thought in your heart must be memorialized on a plaque and displayed…
And some people have books and kids. (The dreaded Change of Seasons is nigh. Brush up on my clothing advice before you tackle this wretched chore.)
It's up to you how much stuff you want around.
However, you decide by implementing the stern admonitions in my post on the secret to getting things in order.
These directives boil down to this: if you have clutter, don't try to clean it up where it is.
Get it all out into the middle of the room, wipe down, dust, disinfect, and maybe even paint whatever it is you are organizing (do you know how delightful a painted closet is? Paint it white so you can see what's in it), and then put back what you really want there.
If that means fake ivy, so be it — just, for the love of all that is holy, make sure you wipe it before you put it back. If it means underwear and socks, go. But don't shuffle things around or you are wasting your time!
Remember I told you about the things I learned that time I had a cleaning lady for a while?
One thing was that if it happened that I hadn't de-cluttered enough for her before her arrival, she simply put everything in a pile in the middle of the room, moving it slightly to clean under it.
After she left, I had to deal with the stuff, and you know what? It's not that hard when it's all in one spot like that and you know that the room will feel clean if you just put it all away or throw it out.
Now look at what is left. Whatever it is, it goes into one of four places:
1. in another spot in the room — the room you are working in.
2. in the laundry basket if its true place is in another room —
BUT!!! do not leave the room to put it away, or you will become hopelessly sidetracked! You will start cleaning that other room! You will forget that you are in the midst of a hellish nightmare in this room right here!
You will then likely end up in yet another room, and only after supper when everyone is exhausted will you remember, and then it will be too late. Your doom will have been deemed: to live, not in clutter, but in utter chaos.
Getting rid of the clutter is hard work. Right now might not be the ideal time if you just had a baby and the baby needs to be nursed all the time. Maybe you are sick? Maybe there are pressing things that have to get done…
If it is the right time, you'll have to schedule it in and be ready for a hard day. But don't exhaust yourself needlessly. Think.
3. in a box for giving away (depending on what you are working on, you might need a box, a bag, and another box.
4. in the trash bag. Just throw it away if it's not worth anything to anyone. Don't let stuff keep you from living your life.
Now, I have another secret for you.
Things that you “store” on the floor, be they children's toys, books, pots, brooms, or really just anything, are always going to seem messy, and will make vacuuming and wiping down a pain.
This is where the shelves come in. And hooks. And nails.
As you are putting things back, or maybe just a little before, ask yourself if there is any way to get them off the floor? Or the counter? Any way at all?
Do you keep the broom in a corner on the floor?
This is going to sound funny, and you may not believe me. But if you keep it on the floor, besides not being good for the broom (the bottom will deform), you will feel like a bad housekeeper.
But if you put a big nail in the wall and hang the broom on that, you will feel like you have it all under control. Everything. You will be like a goddess of housekeeping.
(Are you not so impressed with that chewed-up piece of molding? Hey, it's painted. You won't mind it the way you would if you left it all dingy. Some people might even consider replacing it…)
Don't wait for the perfect broom holder. (I had one, and then I got a new broom with a handle too large for it. The nail is actually the upgrade! Sweet.)
Don't wait for the perfect container. Pick up some clear cheap plastic bins and put the kids' toys in them for now.
You can always use them for something else later. Put the bins on shelves. Look at thrift stores and yard sales for hutches, bookcases, and old cabinets. You might have something in the garage that could be spray painted. (Remember to peruse the Flickr group called Corners of My Home for inspiration — I love the amazing ideas people have for making the humble look lovely.)
Get some nails and hooks – and buy yourself your very own hammer so that you can pound a nail in a wall when you need to.
This is a recurring problem at our house. The projects (my quilt, my knitting, Bridget's knitting) are neatly stowed in bags, but the bags end up on the floor…
Partial solution:
Large sturdy hooks under the shelf in the craft closet (which is in the den). Just for hanging bags that aren't in immediate use.
Sigh. You are asking for neatening advice from me?
LJ :) says
Ooo! A big day! Not only am I the first comment, but my favorite Lawler made a surprise appearance on the blog! Hello, sweet friend! Nice to see your smiling face NOT working too hard!:)
Barb says
I love the toddlers in the crate! A long, long time ago, before we had kids, maybe even before we were married, my husband and I babysat his nephew. My dh's idea of babysitting was to put said nephew in his car seat in the middle of the floor and leave him there. They never asked us to babysit again.And we've moved on from using carseats. At my house, we have all manner of totlocks and homemade locks, and we leave the chairs on the kitchen table and unplug the toaster oven and well, you can imagine…I'm enjoying the toddler season and I'll be happy when it's over. It's a little frustrating having to put everything single thing away every single moment because it might disappear behind the radiator or be shoved under a seat cushion or end up in the mouth or who knows where else.
Pippajo says
Ooooh how timely! I just cleaned out my pantry and re-binned everything! And I've finally gotten the living room decluttered (for me), dusted and vacuumed. Aaaahhhh, spring cleaning.Next stop: Man-Cub's room, UGH!
Leila says
Well, Barb, for some of us the "toddler season" lasts 18 years…the minimalist look is definitely in. It's that or — the crate!! 😉
Kari says
I reread your clothes post– I have a large 2 year old daughter with another child of an unknown variety on the way and I have all of her clothes boxed up by size (and to a certain extent, season) but the boxes are definitely starting to fill the closets. Tell me I'm doing ok 🙂 I don't want to buy a whole new wardrobe for each child who might come along in the future! And oh dear, my closet, with my fluctuating size of not pregnant, barely post-pregnant, barely pregnant, maternity clothes etc…what to do with all those?On a happier note, we just converted a small space in our garage to a laundry room with 5 lovely, room length shelves. Now I have my sewing machine out there and all my fabric, neatly folded even! and room for boxes of things worth storing (ie: toddler and maternity clothes–lol) Again…tell me it's ok to store these things for future kids (just not past the time when the youngest has outgrown!)I need some "strokes" apparently! :)Kari
Michele says
What a happy visit to your home today. I think I will hop up and neaten something!
Mama Bean says
Thank-you for always reminding the mom with a new baby that nursing is a perfectly valid reason for things-not-getting-done. because it really does feel like one is basically feeding the baby all. the. time.Now I must find a nail to convert me into a goddess of housekeeping.Thanks for another lovely post!
Freckled Hen says
This is more great advice! Well except for the cage for the toddlers. Are you crazy? Toddlers are cute and cuddily…how about a cage for the teenagers?And a note to Kari…I buy clothes year round to store away for up and coming sizes. We move often but I still think the efficiency in doing this outweighs the inconvience of storing it.I'm off to hang the broom! KatePS Thanks for the great book suggestions!
Margo says
ha ha – now I'm going to prowl my house looking at the floor, trying to determine what I can nail to the wall! You are wise, as always. And I love the pics of your girls 🙂 so illustrative, them girls.On a different note, I finished my bricks comforter that was inspired by your quilt (mine was meant to be a quilt, but I used a blanket – too thick to quilt). I hope you have a minute to come look, but I do understand the importance of dancing and capes. Here's the link: http://thriftathome.blogspot.com/2010/03/comforte…
messy bessy says
Auntie Leila, an inspiring post. I actually hang my broom AND my dustpan, on hooks that came with the house and may have been mounted before FDR was elected. Inspired by you, I worked on a room in my house to make it livable, and the photographic evidence is there to see the blog.
Sue says
I love your homey home! I love it when I feel inspired to take what I have and make it better, rather than wishing I had more, or that what I have could be "better". Thank you, dear Leila!Your girls are so sweet and pretty!
Briana says
You have a way with making something mundane like organizing sound exciting. I love the pics of your daughters goofing around. My toddler loves to play in the dog crate although he doesn't stay in there long(joking). You are right about things being on the floor and making the house feel cluttered.
Betsy says
Oh Leila your post has made me smile. I was sick today, rather confined to the couch while the little ones were running wild . . and then company comes over. I then come on here and see the kids in the dog kennel. Boy, that would come in handy some days!! 🙂 Thanks for the great advice about just getting things off the floor. That is another thing I NEED to attend to. We recently remodeled our home and now have all of these great open areas where my hubby is going to build in built-in shelving someday. Well, until that day comes I think that I will get a nail out and hang my broom and attend to a few of the other piles. Thanks for the motivation.
Betsy says
Oh, and love the pics of your daughters as well. Very funny. 🙂
Woman of the House says
Great post! I have all my brooms, mops, etc. hanging. I agree with you that I feel so much better when they are hanging up. Plus, I always know where they are. I bought my own hammer years ago at the dollar store. It's perfect for whacking a nail in the wall when I need to get things off the floor.
Peter and Nancy says
You are so funny! Your sense of humor about cleaning makes it seem almost fun. :o)Nancy
HollyElise says
Thank you for the post, Auntie Leila! My hubby likes to do all his work (with Lego robotics and two laptops and a million cords and extra harddrives) on the floor! But when he's done it all goes into plastic bins and drawers and my OCD side heaves a sigh of relief… Keeping a home tidy, whether it's a house or a tiny studio (like mine), is work – but it sure feels good when you look around a neat room. 🙂
Kimberly says
The post made me laugh, i don't know what season of life i am in, i have children from 22-2, 9 in total. Cats, dogs, bunnies, chickens outside of course, but you get the idea…My husband has had serious health challenges, i have been ill, stressed, just plain nuts, and my daughter is recovering from emergency surgery, and a nasty bout with MRSA. Thank God, for her ongoing recovery, we almost lost her.We are beginning to emerge from the insanity, and i looked around at my home, and went…arghhhhhh!!!!! saints preserve us, i need a plan, and a miracle, nothing short, will solve this problem
Sh. Patty says
OK, I know this is a post from a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, but I just noticed something in one of the photos: cups on coasters or something and possibly a dish of coasters? Is this some kind of "claim your cup" system? Because if it is, it's awesome!
Leila says
Sh. Patty — you like that, huh? Oh yes, that's my system. The alternative is a dishwasher full of just glasses!
Faye B. Whitesides says
I'm so glad to find your blog. I am downsizing in the next year from a 4 bedroom home to a one bedroom apt that's handicap ready- had MS over 25 years. I'm enjoying the planning of quilt supplies- put a bookcase on top of a dresser for fabric. My future energy will not be used looking for things, putting up things, or cleaning things. Yippee. Faye
Jamie says
Loved revisiting this post – I de-cluttered 1 (and only 1) shelf today! Any more than that and I’m sure I would have gone insane!