Maintaining clutter-free zones

To follow up on Bel's excellent post yesterday on organising yourself, I thought I'd write today about clutter-free zones. How depressing is it to walk into your home and see old mail, books, keys, toys and magazines all over the place. When all that clutter is near the front or back door it's worse because it is usually added to as the days go by and soon you have a real mess.

It’s important to provide homes or places for all the things that come into your home on a regular basis. Just as you have a home for your preserves, soap and clothes, you also need to provide a suitable place for your mail, newspapers, magazines, mobile phones, backpacks, purses, business cards, keys, flyers, school newsletters and reminders. A lot of these things tend to be dumped near the front door, or in the kitchen, but there is a better way. Give each of these items, plus any others that you have in your life, a practical home. For instance, newspapers might be placed on the coffee table for a day and then in a box for recycling, install a key rack or place a tray for keys near the front door and make sure all keys are left there. Hats, umbrellas, backpacks and purses can be hung on racks near the door everyone uses.

If your phone is not in your bag or being recharged, make sure it is in its own place. The same goes for keys, if they're not on a key rack, make sure you always put them in the same spot when you come home. I put my keys in a small bowl near the front door. I also put my name tag from work there and I know, without fail, when I go back to work or go out, my keys and tag are in that bowl. It is very unsimple (I know that's not a word) to go searching for lost keys, a phone or a purse. Searching for anything lost in your home is a complete waste of time. Establish stations - like bowls, folders and racks - for the various things you travel with and get into the habit of using those places every time you come home.

Mail is another big problem. Set up a files or folders to hold newsletters, flyers, letters from school and all those things you can't deal with when you receive them but are important to read when you have time. Have another folder for bills to be paid and go through the folder every week to make sure you pay your bills on time. We've cut down on this type of bill paying because we have internet banking now but I know many who do have bills sent in the mail and post cheques for payment. When you set up your folders, give them a permanent place so that when you want to look through your folders, they're easily accessible.

Get the children in the habit of leaving their school bags or backpacks near the door they come in, or in their bedroom. It's never too early to start your children on the road to an organised life. Give them their own space for their things - a hook for their backpack, coats and hat, near the front door and encourage them everyday to use that space. It's difficult at first, but they'll get the idea of it, then it will become a habit that will fall into place everyday for them.

It's really frustrating when you need something you can't find. If you work out what you need to have a special space for - be that keys, phones, bags, or whatever - and provide a container, hooks or a rack to hold those things that might be lost, you'll eliminate the frustration and stress of searching, and you'll save time. It's just a little thing but if you're constantly losing what you need, it will be a big change in your life and another small step towards your simple life.