I absolutely love that week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. The crazy time preparing for the holiday has passed and you just spend time with family and friends relaxing and celebrating life. But you known what else? I also use this week to spend some good quality time focusing on my home. This week in particular, while the attic is empty of decorations, I have made it an annual habit to go through our attic and DECLUTTER! I tell you, the couple of hours I spend doing this each year makes such a difference. Something about clearing out the old and organizing this space gets me motivated, energized and gets my spirit ready for a productive year!
So, you may be thinking, why in the world would I spend my time off organizing my attic? I don’t enjoy doing that kind of stuff. I get it, I am kind of an oddball. But to help convince you to give it a try, here are some benefits of organizing.
Benefits of Organizing Storage Spaces
Saves money. How many times have you purchased an item only to find that you already had 2 or more of them? That is super frustrating, right? Remember that scene from Christmas Vacation when Clark finds the gift in the attic he should have given out years ago? Don’t be a Clark. Taking time to declutter and organize your things makes it easy to know what you have so you don’t go out and buy more. In this way, being organized can save you money!
Saves time and energy. Think for a moment about how much time you have spent today looking for things – your keys, your phone, your wallet or purse. These few minutes a day here and there really start to add up. When you organize a space or your entire home, everything has it’s place. Building habits such as putting things back every day help keep your space organized. You will spend less time “looking for things” because you know where they are!
More likely to get help from family. Now I’ve gotten your attention! Yes, it is true! The best way to get help from family is to make the task EASY. Having a designated place for everything and then teaching the family where things go makes it easy for them to help.
Are you starting to see how just starting to get organized can get you motivated and energized? Great!
Maximizing Space
Let’s get back to topic of decluttering storage spaces before all those Holiday decorations go back. Take a few minutes to examine your storage space. As you do, think about ways to maximize the space to make it more functional in these 3 ways:
The Floor. We’ll start from the ground up! If your storage space is an attic, then you likely have some flooring in your attic, but not a lot. You can add plywood flooring to ceiling to increase floor space for storage. A few quick notes & a disclaimer.
- Don’t skimp on materials to add floor space to attic; your safety comes first! You do not want to fall thru the floor.
- Best to use minimum of 1/2″ plywood assuming floor joists are spaced under 16 inches apart. If wider, then you may need to add support between the joists.
- Consider how you’ll get boards into attic. You may need to cut them down to get them thru the door and between beams.
- Most importantly (and also a disclaimer), if you’re not handy or familiar with carpentry, consult your local hardware store or hire a handyman to install the flooring.
Go Vertical. Instead of just stacking items, consider these two ideas:
- Shelves. Add to the space a stand-alone shelf you can purchase as a kit or invest a little money to create built-in shelves. We are blessed to have an attic space where these built-in shelves were easy to construct. Starting with 2 vertical supports attached to studs then using plywood or 2×4 to create the shelf. There are kits you can purchase online as well.
- Hang on Walls or Studs. Make the most of tight wall space by hanging wreaths, cords or other small lightweight items. Storing wreaths by handing them also protects them from getting crushed. Make sure to use sturdy nails or hooks.
Overhead. Store items that are large, but lightweight overhead. We store our folding tables and some large clothing boxes with clothes overhead. For garage spaces, there are systems that suspend from the ceiling or you can increase height of wall shelves to take advantage of the wall space available. Get creative, but be safe.
Note on lighting. It is worth it to have accessible lighting in storage spaces so you can see well and be safe. Consider adding a light fixture or use brighter bulbs. Also, make sure switch or pull string is close to entrance of space
I hope this post has provided you with some ideas to inpire you to spend a little time to focus on maximizing and organzing your own storage areas. You will reap the benefit of this effort by saving money, energy, and time in the future AND making it easy for your family to help put things away where they belong!
Come back for more ideas on declutting, getting organized and STAYING organized!
