Organizing Your Home in 2009

The new year is here, and some of us have resolved to be more organized in 2009. Your house is wrecked, especially after Christmas, so where do you start? Here are a few tips and tools to get you started.

If you're someone who likes to save receipts for everything, especially for tax purposes, shoe boxes are a thing of the past. In fact, my husband and I used miniature boxes (like some people use to store recipe cards,) and we found it to be a hassle. So, what can you do to store receipts? Invest in a receipt spike or two. My husband and I are likely to buy just one, because we'll spike a month's worth of receipts, calculate the totals, record it on a spreadsheet, put them away in a safe place, then start all over again for the next month. This will not only get you organized, but it will enable you to keep tabs on your expenses for each month, and in turn, the entire year.

Secondly, get rid of clutter in your rooms. I know this may be a hard concept to grasp for some people, because they are married to their stuff. However, I have a motto for when I am de-cluttering: "If I haven't used it in six months, and don't forsee myself using it within the next six months, it can go." There are some exceptions, such as antiques and collectables, but I especially keep with my motto on clothes, CDs, DVDs, and books. Actually, all my CDs went, because I have all my music on my computer. Anyway, this is a great way to get organized. You don't have to simply throw things away either. You can donate them to a thrift store or shelter, or sell things online. I sold things online last year, and made over $200. This also cuts down on waste, by recycling unwanted items.

Speaking of recycling, some of us have resolved to do more for the planet in 2009. Recycling can be messy, but it doesn't have to be. Instead of being a redneck and keeping a garbage can on the back porch for each recyclable item, invest in tall, slim garbage cans for each item you want to recycle. Find an area in your kitchen that can fit all the cans side-by-side, and put them in their place. Be sure to keep a trash bag in each can, and boldly and clearly label each can, so people in your household will know where things go. Perhaps if there's easy access, more people in your house will be inclined to recycle.

Create some storage space in your closet by investing in space-saving bags, such as Space Bags. These bags enable you to stack clothes upon clothes on each other (great for bulky items,) and then using your household vacuum cleaner, vacuum out the air in the bag, creating a slim, air-tight bag you can hang in your closet. These bags also keep the dirt and dust from getting on your clothes. These are perfect for people who love clothes shopping, because they can double, even triple, the amount of clothes they can fit into their closet.

If you need to store small or stackable items, but have very little space, I have found that milk crates are a perfect fit. You can probably do the same, but all I did is go to my local grocery store (which coincidentally, I used to work at,) and ask for several milk crates. Since there is no room for a dresser in my room, I store mine and my husband's undergarments in one, stacked on top of the crate we store our socks in, stacked on top of the crate that I store spare office supplies in. Since we live with my parents, and kitchen space is limited, we also store assorted snacks and candy in crates in our room, as well. You can stack these as high as you can reach, and fit them in corners, or along walls. They are small and useful. They are perfect for crafters and scrapbookers, looking for places to store their plethora of supplies.

These are just five organizational and space-saving ideas, to unclutter and open up your home in 2009. Check back, because I am likely to do a part two, since I am all about organization, and am a little bit of a neat freak.