Many people enter an organization project with trepidation.  They anticipate lots of work, time, energy, and expense.  Yes, it does take time and energy, but we challenge you to do an organization project without spending money on fancy bins, baskets, and color-coded plastic tubs.  It can be done!

We’ve been inspired by lots of advice handed out by blogs like Young House Love and The Home Edit, and so we pass along their advice on the first step ::: clean and edit!  Look at what you have and really go through it with a critical eye.  Why do you have full-size sheet sets when you no longer have full-size beds?  When was the last time you did that puzzle?  Never?  And so on.

Donate what you can, sell it if you want, and throw away items that are broken.  Now you are left with a much smaller amount of stuff! Bonus :: you haven’t spent a dime! Next, your stuff doesn’t need to all go back in the same closet or space.  Sheet sets can be put away in a guest room dresser.  Art supplies can be added to a downstairs closet.  You can rework a kitchen drawer.

I actually emptied out a few bins around my house with items to donate and ended up re-using them for things I’m actually keeping.  You can use shoe boxes and Amazon boxes and old pickle jars.  This is a great way to get creative with STUFF YOU ALREADY HAVE.  Look at things with a critical eye.  You can even create a box of items that you are not sure you can part with.  Label it, put it up in the attic, or other crawl space, and set a calendar alert for 6 months from now.  If you haven’t reached for that particular box, in 6 months, it’s a sign!

So go forth!  Mix up your favorite drink, put on some fun music, and set an alarm for one hour.  You’ll be surprised at what you can do.