I had been ignoring the disaster growing in the boy’s rooms. We have been so busy lately with school and work that things have fallen into a mess. So this week I decided it was time to dive in. I refuse to spend all day buried in the closets but I if I am going to spend the time, I want it done right and completely. So here you go. My 5 steps to get your rooms COMPLETELY clean without drowning under a pile of clutter.

1) Start in the closet- go through and remove anything that doesn’t fit or you haven’t worn in 1 year. Go quickly, you shouldn’t be agonizing over every decision. Put these items into a box to giveaway or take to a re-sale shop.  Do the same for anything else you have in the closet. Be brutally honest with yourself. I f you haven’t touched it in a year, it needs to go. The goal is to get rid of as much as you possibly can. Continue this process for the rest of the room. Don’t forget the tops of dressers, inside drawers, under beds, shelves. Go through everything.

2) Keepsakes- Chances are you are going to come across items that you don’t currently use but have special meaning for you. In our house each person has a large storage bin with their name on it. These items go directly into these bins. But be picky, you don’t want to have 15 storage bins for each person. If you aren’t sure take a picture of the item with the person and then…. get rid of it. I frequently use these pictures to put up around the house. Also the items in the storage bins are great to decorate you home with. What is better than surrounding yourself with wonderful memories.

3) Cleaning- At this point you should have gotten rid of everything you don’t need. The next is to wipe everything down. Using a non-toxic general purpose cleaner, from top to bottom wipe down every surface. Don’t forget to clean any windows in the room as well. Vacuum- pull out all the furniture from the wall and vacuum up all the dust bunnies. Grab your general purpose cleaner and wipe down the baseboards and floor. If you have carpeting, vacuum. Lastly, don’t forget to check your light fixtures. Take a look and remove any little moths that may have found their way into your lights.

4) Linens- Strip the beds and wash all of the linens. Pillows, mattress pads, duvet covers, blankets everything, and remake the beds.

5) Take all of your giveaway items to be donated or to a resale shop.

Tada! a lovely clean room. Now go pick one of your rooms and go for it! Remember the goals is always to simplify. We have all filled out lives with so much STUFF. You will find that the new found space in your home and life is truly liberating.