Stopping Clutter From Taking Over
Stopping Clutter From Taking Over
Dear Readers: Here are some ways to STOP CLUTTER from controlling your home and life! It seems every closet and room is filled with too much stuff!
The following are seven hints for stopping that clutter from taking over:
1. If you can't locate what you are searching for in several minutes, it's time to rethink where things belong. The more often you use it, the closer it should be.
2. Enlist the whole family, not just Mom, to join the decluttering and organizing bandwagon.
3. If one room or area is beginning to look messy and cluttered, tackle it ASAP!
4. Give the living room, den or common area a quick pickup before going to bed.
5. Toss out or put papers in the recycle bin every day, including newspapers and magazines.
6. Keep lists or inventories of what you already have. If you don't need it, don't buy it.
7. If something new comes into your home, many people say something old should go out.
P.S.: "A few minutes or a few things" is my motto.
TRAVEL HINT
Dear Heloise: Recently, I stayed at a new, clean hotel/motel, and I was in a first-floor room overlooking the parking lot. When I closed the curtains to get dressed, I realized that the curtains didn't close completely, and to make matters worse, the air conditioner was causing them to billow.
I took one of the hotel's wooden pants hangers and clipped the curtains together in two places, which secured them closed. The weight of the wooden hanger kept them from billowing out. Problem solved. -- Jude Powell, Rockport, Texas
Jude, smart move! This is a hint that anyone who travels will be able to use. I challenge general managers of hotels/motels to spend a few hours in a "new" or remodeled room! Be a guest in your place and see if everything works and functions as intended.
EMPTY PRESCRIPTION BOTTLES
Dear Heloise: I am always looking for things to do with empty prescription bottles. They come in different sizes, they're see-through, they're free, and the supply is never-ending. One of my favorite things to do with them is after I paint a room, I fill one up with extra paint used in the room, dab some on the outside of the bottle or lid (so I know which color/room it's from) and keep it in the closet of that room. This way, I don't have to get out the paint can when touch-ups are needed, and I always know the extra paint is close at hand. -- June, via e-mail
WORN JERSEY SHEETS
Dear Heloise: When replacing worn jersey-type sheets, I cut the bottom sheet into strips and use them to tie up garden plants. They are soft and "give." The sheet yielded so many strips that I have enough to last for a long time. Best of all, they can be rewashed and used again. -- Erma Ripley, North Little Rock, Ark.
(c)2007 by King Features Syndicate Inc.
44Dear Readers: Here are some ways to STOP CLUTTER from controlling your home and life! It seems every closet and room is filled with too much stuff!
The following are seven hints for stopping that clutter from taking over:
1. If you can't locate what you are searching for in several minutes, it's time to rethink where things belong. The more often you use it, the closer it should be.
2. Enlist the whole family, not just Mom, to join the decluttering and organizing bandwagon.
3. If one room or area is beginning to look messy and cluttered, tackle it ASAP!
4. Give the living room, den or common area a quick pickup before going to bed.
5. Toss out or put papers in the recycle bin every day, including newspapers and magazines.
6. Keep lists or inventories of what you already have. If you don't need it, don't buy it.
7. If something new comes into your home, many people say something old should go out.
P.S.: "A few minutes or a few things" is my motto.
TRAVEL HINT
Dear Heloise: Recently, I stayed at a new, clean hotel/motel, and I was in a first-floor room overlooking the parking lot. When I closed the curtains to get dressed, I realized that the curtains didn't close completely, and to make matters worse, the air conditioner was causing them to billow.
I took one of the hotel's wooden pants hangers and clipped the curtains together in two places, which secured them closed. The weight of the wooden hanger kept them from billowing out. Problem solved. -- Jude Powell, Rockport, Texas
Jude, smart move! This is a hint that anyone who travels will be able to use. I challenge general managers of hotels/motels to spend a few hours in a "new" or remodeled room! Be a guest in your place and see if everything works and functions as intended.
EMPTY PRESCRIPTION BOTTLES
Dear Heloise: I am always looking for things to do with empty prescription bottles. They come in different sizes, they're see-through, they're free, and the supply is never-ending. One of my favorite things to do with them is after I paint a room, I fill one up with extra paint used in the room, dab some on the outside of the bottle or lid (so I know which color/room it's from) and keep it in the closet of that room. This way, I don't have to get out the paint can when touch-ups are needed, and I always know the extra paint is close at hand. -- June, via e-mail
WORN JERSEY SHEETS
Dear Heloise: When replacing worn jersey-type sheets, I cut the bottom sheet into strips and use them to tie up garden plants. They are soft and "give." The sheet yielded so many strips that I have enough to last for a long time. Best of all, they can be rewashed and used again. -- Erma Ripley, North Little Rock, Ark.
(c)2007 by King Features Syndicate Inc.
1 rate 
Add a review
