March 18, 2015 7:02 am
It is all too easy for closet clutter to take over your life. What starts off as a small amount of clutter can quickly escalate as you buy new outfits and create new looks. Before you realize it, you cannot even get into your closet, and finding your favorite outfit seems like an insurmountable tasks.
If you want to clear out the clutter and take back your closet space, you can use these tips to get started.
Organize Your Clothes by Type
Many ready-made closet organization systems employ this method, but you do not have to spend all that money to keep your closet neat and clean. Keeping your skirts in one part of the closet, your jackets in another and dresses in a third makes it easy to find something to wear. This method also makes is easier to create different looks instead of relying on the same old pairings.
Or By Color
If organizing clothes by type is not your thing, consider sorting them by color instead. Arranging your dresses, suits and blazers by color can make choosing the perfect outfit easier and spark your creativity.
Clean Out Your Closet with the Hanger Trick
You probably have lots of clothes you never wear, but determining which outfits to ditch can be difficult. One of the best ways to reduce the clutter and focus on your favorite clothes is the hanger trick. At the beginning of every season, turn all of your hangers around. Turn the hanger around the other way when you pull off a garment. By the end of the season you will be able to see at a glance what you can remove from your wardrobe.
Use Tax Season as Your Inspiration
You can help those in need and help yourself to a tax deduction by donating the unwanted parts of your wardrobe to charity. If you need extra inspiration to clear away the clutter, let tax time be your inspiration. Be sure to get a receipt for your donation so that the amount you report to the IRS is correct.
March 11, 2015 4:06 pm
The coming of spring is a great time of year to spruce up your home and give yourself a change of scene. Now is the time of year to leave the gloom of the winter behind and get ready for the warmer weather. If you are looking for some inspiration this spring, try the following ways to spruce up your home.
Clean Your Apartment
We’ve all heard of spring cleaning, but the truth is, many of us don’t get around to it. Few people actually like cleaning, so it can be difficult to get motivated. Instead, think about the rewards and spend a morning cleaning your house from top to bottom. If possible, make it into a family activity in which everyone in the family gets involved. Put away things like old winter clothes and anything else that you’re not going to be needing for the time being.
Change Some Colors
Spring is a good time to do a bit of redecorating in your home, particularly if a change of scene is long overdue. Painting an average sized room need not take very long, particularly if there is no preparation work to do. Lighter colours are ideal for the warmer times of year and they can make your home feel a lot airier and more cheerful than the warmer, darker colors that make us feel cosier during the winter. Painting a room shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours, though applying a second coat the next day will usually be necessary.
Get Some Plants
As soon the plants start blooming, it is time to bring the outside into your home. Plants can help your home to feel green and cheerful. Think out of the box! You can include larger pot plants and very ornamental plants such as palms and miniature orange trees.
Get Outdoor Furniture Ready
If you have outdoor furniture, spring is the time to get it back out of storage. You should keep wooden furniture in particular under cover through the winter, since it will greatly extend its life. When the first warm days of spring come, however, it is time to take it out of storage and prepare it for the summer. Wooden furniture should ideally be restored every year or two with a new coat of wood stain. Not only will this make it look much better; it will also help to protect it against the elements.
Rearrange Your Apartment Furniture
You’ve cleaned your apartment and given it a bit of a facelift, but how about rearranging some things? Some ideas include getting some new furniture, new decorations or simply rearranging some of your furniture. If you have a home office, for example, then perhaps you should consider relocating it to the sunniest room in your house and the one with the nicest view. If you have thick and heavy curtains on the windows, you may want to consider replacing them with lighter curtains until next winter. The possibilities are endless, but rearranging your home all counts towards giving it a facelift for the spring and beyond
