Given that my family and I live in only 1,100 square feet of teeny tiny house, we have to consistently work to keep our home uncluttered. In order to do that, once a quarter, we dedicate a Saturday morning to the “Quarterly Cleanout”.
What is the Quarterly Cleanout?
It’s about one hour, once every 3 months, where every member of the family (our kids are 11 and 15) participates in thinning out and re-organizing his or her space.
How does it work?
- First and foremost, I actually put the dates for these Cleanout Sessions on my calendar.
- A week beforehand, I let my family know that the date is approaching so they can not make plans elsewhere during that time. They must be at home. If it weren’t for these first two steps, this whole process wouldn’t happen. Truth.
- On the day, each of us makes 2 piles in the hall: one for donation, one for trash. We each spend 30 minutes in our rooms grabbing anything we’re not wearing, using or loving anymore. It’s always surprising to me how things pile up in just 3 months. {By the way, notice I said to take just 30 minutes. The time element is key here. Loyal readers, you’ll note this is almost always part of my strategy. You set a timer and move fast. If things take a hugely long time, you’re apt not to do them. So, set the clock and boogie. Don’t get distracted. Don’t answer the phone, don’t talk with each other. Just do it.}
- At the end of the 30 minutes, we gather all items for donation, bag them up and put them immediately into the back of the car. All trash items go immediately outside to the big trash or recycling cans, awaiting collection.
- After we’ve finished, we head out to the nearest Goodwill, donate our items and only then reward ourselves with a lunch at our favorite Greek place.
Why does this work?
- It happens regularly. The calendar tells us when to do it. We do it. Period.
- Every member of the family helps and is responsible for his or her own area.
- Everyone sees the benefits of living in less clutter. (Or, maybe it just jazzes the heck out of me and they do it to put me in a good mood and keep me from being Stabby Mommy. Either way is ok with me.)
- We do the whole thing in one fell swoop. We don’t leave bags of stuff hanging out to be dealt with later. This would prolong the task and make it feel much more arduous and annoying.
What’s the point?
Not only does this keep our house uncluttered, but it creates a habit of “thin living” for our children that we hope they’ll carry into their adult lives. (Fingers crossed!) And, I gotta say, it’s kinda fun, working together as a team.
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Great idea to put this on the calendar….. An idea to adopt for us as a family. Thank you.
love this idea, but how does it play out for common areas such as the kitchen, family room, etc? do you and your husband tackle those as well, or do you do them as a family, or does this not apply there?
Oh I love everything about this Meredith.
I do this regularly for myself of course, but I think I’m going to book out once a month time with my hubby and then we can reward ourselves with a lunch out.
Great ideas and tips! I think the universe is trying to tell me something! In the past few days I discovered the 100 things challenge (and blogged about it yesterday)…then this post from you! I think I need to start decluttering
@Robyn: Good question. Since I don’t always need to work on my bedroom/closet stuff, I alternate my work on those days by working in the kitchen, linen closet or bookshelves around the house.
I love this tip. I “clean out” my belongings on a regular basis. Not only does it feel really good to give items to charity, but a cleaned out living space makes my mind feel less cluttered as well! I think the state of my apartment directly correlates to my state of mind. You know I’m in a good place when my apartment is spotless. When it’s a mess, chances are, I’m a mess too!
I don’t have kids and my hubby and I have 1800 sq. ft for just the two of us, but this just sounds like a Saturday morning full of fun for me.
In your words, organizational porn! Great idea!
One thing we like to do is to save any t-shirts that may have stains or holes and use them for cleaning stuff in the garage. No use throwing them out if you can get another use out of them as “shop rags”.
Oh, this idea makes me all sunshiny inside! We have myself, my husband, our toddler, and our infant in 800 square feet, and I have our little attic space and laundry room stacked to the brim. It’s really quite impressive (disturbing?) how good I’ve become at random stuff tetris. I do know where every little thing is though!
Great idea. I do that, but not on a consist basis like you do. I think I might have to add that to the schedule. I’m with you on the “thin living”. I think it makes everyone happier to have less to keep up with.
This seems like a much better alternative than my family’s strategy- We do a good job with the sorting, but then we have bags and boxes sitting around all over the place waiting to be taken to Goodwill.
Brilliant idea. So obvious and yet….
I love it! My kids are 3 1/2, 7, and 41 (LOL – Dear Hubby!) I love the idea of getting it on the calendar and making it into a lunch date!
Gotta love a good plan…and this seems like an excellent one.
I love this idea! The time-frame is perfect. And a tasty lunch is a great treat.
Thanks for sharing!
you’re totally right! if it doesn’t go on the calendar, it will never get done. love that you include the whole family.