MAINSTREETER STAFF
“…the problem is rarely
about the amount of
storage space, and more
about the amount of
stuff.”
Unopened boxes filled with memorabilia stacked in the back of your basement. Mystery bins in the pantry. A coat closet with a black hole that swallows mitts, gloves and the occasional boot. A guest room that doubles as the family dumping zone for all-things-with-no-home. A garage that is more of an additional storage shed than a place to park your car. And kitchen cupboards that repeatedly defy your organizational attempts.
If all of the foregoing sounds familiar to you take heart – you are not alone, according to Martha Tobin, a resident of the Glebe who has established her own company – Room to Breathe – in order to help people come to grips with conquering their household clutter.
“Many people think the issue is that they don’t have enough storage space. Interestingly enough, the problem is rarely about the amount of storage space, and more about the amount of stuff,” says Tobin. “Whether you live in an apartment, a condo or a three-storey home, the problem of clutter is the same – people think about it, worry about it, move it around and repeatedly try to organize it. In short, clutter causes stress.”
Stressful, and costly, Tobin says: “ Think about all the storage bins, containers and shelving you’ve bought over time. What about the duplicates you’ve had to purchase when you couldn’t find the original? And think about the money made by storage companies every month.” She notes that there’s a very good business reason behind the growth of storage companies in Ottawa.
The cost of clutter can also be measured in time wasted, says Tobin, spent looking for stuff buried somewhere in your home – the library book you wanted to return, the shoes you wanted to reheel, the stamps you bought last week and the Tupperware you borrowed. She quotes from a book authored by Eisenberg and Kelly entitled, Organize Your Life , in which the authors observe that “(c)lutter is the number one impediment to having more free time. We are drowning in our possessions”.
Pictured here are the before and after results of decluttering a home office of one of Martha Tobin’s Room to Breathe clients. Photo Supplied
According to Tobin, the root causes of household clutter are over-purchasing and the lack of maintainable systems that work with people’s busy lifestyles She offers the following tips and tricks to help conquer clutter:
One in, one out. For every item, you purchase, make a pact with yourself that you’ll discard or donate another item that you no longer need or want.
Would you move with it? If you were to move right now would it be worth packing up and unpacking that box, bag or bin again? Why are you hanging on to items that you’ve not looked at in years? The answer will help you discover those items that are truly meaningful and those that you can take a photo of and let go.
Donations that do good. It’s difficult to let some items go because of sentimental attachment. By donating them, they don’t wind up in a landfill, and they benefit someone less fortunate in the community who needs them. With the colder season upon us, coats, scarves, mitts, boots, blankets, and sleeping bags are just some of the items desperately required.
You can also sell your items on the GIVESHOP app, receive a tax receipt for them and direct all the sales proceeds to local charities.
The 15 Minute Sunday Sweep. Each Sunday take a bin and walk through each room picking up items that belong somewhere else and then distribute those items accordingly. This exercise will not only reduce clean-up time in general but will also save you time and stress when trying to locate items in future.
Tobin considers the current pandemic an ideal time to begin the process of decluttering your home. “While we are all staring at the same four walls this winter, it’s a great time to take stock of all the stuff we possess,” she says. “Perhaps try and declutter one room at a time, or if you are finding the thought of conquering your clutter too overwhelming, reach out to a professional organizer and declutterer. In a surprisingly short period of time, they will help you determine what to keep and what to let go of, create order, and give you back functional space.”
