Valentine’s Day is this coming Sunday. You would love to experience a romantic evening, but you look around your love nest and notice the piles of shoes by the front door. Then there are the piles of papers and magazines cascading off the coffee table and the CDs and DVDs scattered on the floor. The living room needs to have some serious work done to look romantic. You don’t have a lot of time to make this work. Maybe just scoop it all up into a box that you stash in the spare bedroom and deal with it later.
But what about the dining area where you want to put out that romantic Valentine’s Day meal? It is covered in projects, bills, used plates and cutlery, along with clothes to fold and put away. It is definitely not ready for that special Valentine’s Day meal. Another box or two?
On to the bedroom for a hard look. There are more scattered clothes along with stacks of books and magazines. And look at all those cosmetics on every surface! This room is not ready for that special Valentine’s Day night even if the lights are low and you use candles.
Sigh!
OK, do what you can to salvage the special night, but then go back and look around the common areas in the home. If you want a peaceful romantic feeling in your home more than just once a year what are you going to have to do to inspire that romance?
What is your vision for each zone?
Front door
Start at the front door. Set up a system to deal with the shoes that pile up. What system fits with your romantic uncluttered home? Do you want a basket, a shoe rack, or a tray? Whatever plan you go with, keep the number of shoes to a minimum.
Papers, magazines, cds, and dvds
Pay attention to the buildup of papers and magazines. Are they there just because you finished with them but didn’t get them to the recycle bin? Are you mostly finished but have one more article you want to read? Are you so busy that you just never get around to them? Use this strategy: toss the magazine or tear out articles and put them into a “read” folder, or perhaps just cancel your subscription.
Put away those CDs and DVDs and moving forward at least weekly match them up to their folders and put them away. It is so much easier to manage a few than twenty. These decluttering strategies will help keep your home tidy most days instead of just on special occasions like Valentine’s Day.
Dining area
In the dining room concentrate on finishing projects. When you are done paying bills or working on a project, put all that paperwork where it belongs. Take dirty dishes to the kitchen. Fold clothes from the dryer and put them away. Clear that table every evening. Then you can enjoy having a meal there or inviting someone in for coffee on the spur of the moment.
Bedroom
Work on making your bedroom a place for rest. Keep surfaces clear and decorate with items that make you smile and soothe you. Clutter definitely interferes with sleep.
In Conclusion
In short, remove everything from every zone that does not match your vision. Have specific places for everything that does belong in that room and put those items away. If you are short on space, let some things go or look for another storage area.
Now, clean and polish those newly exposed surfaces. Put out some flowers and candles. Play that special music and get ready for romance on Valentine’s Day.
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Being organized
Is romantic, too.
Enjoy your special day!
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Jonda S. Beattie, Professional Organizer owner of Time Space Organization, and co-owner of Release, Repurpose, Reorganize. She is based in the Metro-Atlanta area. As presenter, award-winning author, as well as a retired special education teacher she uses her listening skills, problem solving skills, knowledge of different learning techniques, ADHD specialty, and paper management skills to help clients tackle the toughest organizational issues. Jonda does hands on organizing and virtual organizing. For more of Jonda’s tips connect with her on Facebook.