Day 25 - Garage

Wouldn’t you like to park your car in your garage? Or at the very least, not be embarrassed to keep your garage door open?

This can be an overwhelming task that may take you a long time but it will be worth it!

 A lot of people keep the inside of their home decluttered by putting EVERYTHING in the garage. That solution is only lasts so long before the clutter completely takes over. Cleaning out the garage will take time but if you put good organizing systems in place you’ll be able to maintain a clutter-free space! You will notice the steps are similar to most every other area that you need to declutter. Take it one step at a time. Recruit help if you need it!

…..OR just schedule a session with me 😉 I’d love to help you regain control of your garage space!

A lot of people keep the inside of their home decluttered by putting EVERYTHING in the garage. That solution is only lasts so long before the clutter completely takes over.Cleaning out the garage will take time but if you put good organizing systems in place you’ll be able to maintain a clutter-free space!

Don’t forget to take some before pictures

1. START!

   • You can take it all out if you want but you may not have an area big enough to do that. I always think it’s the best method, but if you can’t do that just choose a spot & get started!

     1. Touch every single item & sort into piles.

        1. Keep

        2. Relocate

        3. Donate

        4. Trash or Recycle

        5. Sell

     2. Be ruthless as you are purging. 

     3. If you find things in your garage that belong somewhere else, put them where they belong now!

     4. Don’t hang onto items just because you think you MAY need it some day. If you have not ever used it or don’t have plans to use it in the near future, don’t let it take up your space!

     5. Do you struggle with getting rid of things that were expensive? Even if you paid too much money for them, that’s not a practical reason to keep them in your garage. You’re not using them so let someone else and maybe make a little bit of your money back. (Sound familiar? This tip has been in a few blogs. It’s applicable to several areas!)

2. CLEAN

   • Wipe down the shelves, sweep, scrub the floor, whatever you need to do to tidy up!

   • If necessary, clean the items you plan to put back in your garage.

3. Organize & put it back!

   • Create a system to store or display the items that need to remain in your garage.

     • Do you need shelving, hooks on the wall, storage bins?

   • Make sure everything has a place!

   • Sort items by category, function & frequency of use

   • Label boxes so you don’t have to rely on your memory to know where everything is.

   • Call me and set up an appointment if you need help with this step!

4. Deal with the things you aren’t keeping immediately.

   • Arrange a pick up or drop off for your donations this week.

   • Determine prices for the items you want to sell and make that happen this week too.

   • Take care of the trash & recycling. 

5. Maintain it!

   1. Put things back where they belong.

   2. Refrain from putting things on the floor.

   3. Regularly sweep the garage out.

   4. Purge & Declutter once or twice a year to keep it from getting out of control again!

Take an after picture & celebrate the completion of a big task!