Ok, so you may have already read my ‘How to KEEP your home organised’ post but here I will be outlining how to initially get organised. Im always receiving questions on how I go about starting and completing an organisation project wether it’s my pantry, fridge, storage room, kids’ toys, wardrobe, cupboard – Especially when ‘storage solutions’ need to be put in place or new ‘storage containers/accessories’ need to be purchased. A questions I receive often is ‘so, how do I know how many storage tubs to buy, or how many jars to buy etc’… well here is your answer.
Firstly start off by a keeping a handy dandy notepad nearby (lol, you see what I did there😂) – I’m all about using LISTS and I believe they truly keep anxiety at bay. So where was I… YES keep a list nearby & then follow these steps. Your initial list should include all the places in your home you wish to tackle. Let’s pretend your list looks like this:
The reason why I say to begin with a list is because it motivates you to get started! Keep this list on the fridge to keep you reminded! So let’s start checking off this list to help us feel a sense of accomplishment. Starting with the Pantry! Keep in mind, all of the tips I’m about to provide should be applied to all of the projects to wish to tackle, however for the purpose of this post I’ll be using a pantry as the prime example.
Follow these steps:
1. DECLUTTER – this is so so important! Remove the contents from each shelf and one by one go through each item. Make piles including: donate, toss, recycle & keep. Consider the following things:
• expiry dates
• bulky/unnecessary packaging (sometimes you’ll have 4 weetbix left in the box, use ziplock bags to store them and toss the box in the recycle pile)
Once you have done this with every shelf and have your piles go to the next step.
2. CLEAN – wipe down all the shelves (make sure to use an eco friendly spray especially in the pantry where food will be stored)
3. CATEGORISE – you now want to go through your entire ‘keep’ pile and put them into categories. Eg: for the pantry you’ll have categories like ‘snacks, drinks, sauces, rice’ etc..
4. STORAGE – now that you’ve made your piles of categories you will know how many storage tubs/containers/baskets you’ll need. You may choose to get a big basket for all snacks, a bottle rack for your drinks, Jars for your spices, jars for your flour, breadcrumbs & all your dry pantry goods.. look through your categorised piles and see what you’ll need to store each category. Write these things down on a ‘to-buy’ list. Then take a photo of your piles! Now that you have an idea of what you need to buy you won’t go shopping with no clue rather you’ll have a list to work with! You could also refer to your photo to see how big each category is to determine the sizes of the storage items you’ll need. This will help to ensure you don’t over purchase and ultimately end up spending much more money than necessary!
5. ORGANISE – now that you have all of your goods decluttered, cleaned & categorised begin placing your items into allocated tubs/baskets/containers. Place your frequently used items on easily accessible shelves.
6. LABEL – this step is optional however let’s admit, labels make everything look pretty and that extra bit more organised! Once everything has been organised You’ll be able to see which labels you’ll need made up. Again write a list of labels for your jars & storage containers!
I really hope these 6 steps have helped to get an idea of how to go about organising! Feel free to refer to my ‘organisation’ tab on my blog for ideas on organising the pantry, fridge etc & another blogpost on how to KEEP your home organised!
For more tips visit my instagram: @sara_why
Love,
