Archives for April 2007

Tackling your iPod clutter

Belkin has a solution that adds virtually nothing to your desk space and keeps the iPod wires where they belong — out of sight. The Belkin In-Desk Dock saves valuable desk space and you can seamlessly charge and play your iPod as you sync it to your computer. It also has stereo-output jack which lets you listen to your music through your stereo, powered speakers, or headphones.

It requires one of those standard 3-inch holes in your desk. If your desk doesn’t have one already, you can always just buy a hole cutter at a hardware store and drill one.

Posted by Matt on Apr 30, 2007 | 2 Comments | Tweet This

No more wire hangers!

The next time you head to your dry cleaner, take all of your unused wire hangers with you. Most dry cleaners recycle hangers and actually appreciate you returning them because it saves them money. You get rid of clutter in your closet and help keep landfills free of hangers.

Also, unless you have a need for the plastic bags they wrap around your clothing, you can ask for the dry cleaner to keep the bags off of your clothes. It keeps you from having to toss the bag when you get home, and again saves the dry cleaner money. Mens dress shirts also can be folded instead of put on a hanger so that you don’t have to take a hanger home with you at all.

Posted by Erin on Apr 30, 2007 | 4 Comments | Tweet This

Toy clutter treatment

I’ve been to homes where children’s toys are literally everywhere. Toys on the floor in the foyer, kitchen, den, playroom, bedroom, bathroom, and hallways. Parents are conditioning their children to become little clutter monsters.

My wife and I have already started to teach our child to put her toys away in certain designated places. She is not quite twelve months old, but she understands where her toys go when she is finished playing with them. If one always cleans up after a child, the cycle will never end, and one will continually be dealing with a toy tornado. On the other hand, if you don’t ever clean up after a child, then the child will begin to think that the toys are supposed to be all over the floor all of the time. The key is teaching the kid to fish, as it were.

We’re not quite at the point where we have purchased storage bins for our child’s toys, but we have considered this storage bin shelf system. It makes the toys easily accessible and makes clean up easy for a toddler. Also, the natural finish is versatile so it can be painted or stained to match the decor of any room.

How do you help your children to keep clutter under control in your home?

Posted by Matt on Apr 28, 2007 | 16 Comments | Tweet This

There’s wealth in simplicity

I just finished reading Tim Ferriss’ new book, The 4-Hour Workweek. It’s a great book if a little schizophrenic. On the one hand, the strategies to eliminate distractions and focus on the activities that generate the most value are excellent. On the other, the chapter on starting an automated mail order business wasn’t for me. That said, it’s an inspirational book that deserves a read from anyone looking to redesign their lifestyle. So, I was pleasantly surprised when I came to this passage toward the end of the book:

I’m not going to tell you to walk around in a robe and sandals scowling at people who have televisions. I hate the kashi-crunching holier-than-thou stuff. Turning you into a possesion-less scribe is not my intention. Let’s face it, though: There are tons of things in you home and life that you don’t use, need, or even particularly want. They just come into your life as impulsive flotsam and jetsam and never found a good exit. Whether you’re aware of it or not, this clutter is creates indecision and distractions, consuming attention and making unfettered happiness a real chore. It is impossible to realize how distracting all the crap is–whether porcelain dolls, sports cars, or ragged T-shirts–until you get rid of it.

What’s remarkable is how well that jibes with our own philosophy here at Unclutterer. The point isn’t to be a monk or disavow consumerism. The point is to be selective about the things you do have in order to live a quality life. On of Ferriss’ great insights is that when people say they’d like to be millionaires, they don’t mean that they’d like to have a million dollars. They mean that they’d like to live like a millionaire. It’s possible to do that without the money, and in my mind the first step to luxury is paring down.

Ferris goes on to explain how simplifying helps:

I created 40% more space in my apartment and hadn’t even grazed the surface. It wasn’t the extra physical space I felt most. It was the extra mental space. It was as if I had 20 mental applications running simultaneously before, and now I just had one or two. My thinking was clearer and much, much happier.

I certainly recommend you check out the book.

Bonus: Here’s Tim Ferriss’ talk from SXSW. (MP3)

Posted by Jerry on Apr 27, 2007 | Comment | Tweet This

Organizing digitally scanned data

Continuing in my series of posts on controlling paper clutter in the home, I want to tackle the issue of manuals and instruction booklets.

In my recent past, I have had an obsession with holding onto every manual that came with what I purchased. I can only think that this hoarding had something to do with a little voice at the back of my mind saying, “but, what if I need it one day…”

Our filing cabinet is not the world’s largest piece of furniture, so finding more available space in it was a priority for my husband and me. When we started on our paper reduction plan, we had more than 50 current manuals in our top drawer, and now there are none. Here is the plan that we followed to clean up the clutter:

The obvious first step is to throw out the manuals for products you don’t own. (I’ll keep my mouth shut about how many of these we had in our files!)

The second step is to set aside the manuals for all major appliances that will remain in your house if you ever sell it. I put these manuals in a magazine file and then stored them nicely on a bookshelf. Manuals in our permanent file include the refrigerator, stove, built-in microwave, dishwasher, water heater, furnace, washer, dryer, and security system. It’s kind to pass these manuals on to the next resident of your house so that he or she will know how to operate the equipment properly. In addition to storing these paper copies, you also may want to apply the fourth and fifth steps listed below to these manuals.

Continue reading this post »

Posted by Erin on Apr 27, 2007 | 9 Comments | Tweet This

The tupperware is everywhere!

One of my pet peeves in my kitchen has been the tupperware drawer. Most food storage containers aren’t that easy to stow away neatly in an organized manner. In my kitchen, we had a plastic tub that barely contained the clutter of all the bowls and lids. They just didn’t fit together nicely and the overflow began to make me see red every time I reached for a container.

Our solution was fairly simple. We purchased a set of Tupperware FlatOut containers and happily trashed our old set. The FlatOut containers are collapsible and flatten down to a half an inch which makes storage so much easier. Now when I reach for tupperware my blood pressure doesn’t rise and the clutter in that drawer is completely gone. I highly recommend these containers, which are dishwasher safe and also very durable.

Posted by Matt on Apr 26, 2007 | 8 Comments | Tweet This

The Collyer brothers, a study in compulsive hoarding

Homer and Langley Collyer were brothers who lived in a Manhattan row house in Harlem in the early part of the 20th century. Their story is bizarre and illustrates the depths people will go to hold onto anything and everything.

The discovery of just how bad the Collyer brothers’ hoarding was came to light in March 1947 when an anonymous person reported there was a dead body in the Collyer residence.

The authorities did not have an easy time gaining entrance to the home. They started by trying to remove tons of garbage from the front foyer, which consisted of newspapers, phonebooks, furniture, boxes, and other miscellaneous debris. Unsuccessful in their attempts, a patrolman broke a window on the second floor in order to gain entry. After climbing through junk for two hours, he found the body of the elder brother Homer among the boxes and trash. Missing from the home, however, was Langley, the younger of the two recluses.

Continue reading this post »

Posted by Matt on Apr 26, 2007 | 7 Comments | Tweet This

Junk Removal

So you’ve taken the initiative to clean out all of your cluttered closets, junk drawers, and other trash accumulating areas. Considering that not all of your clutter can be donated or FreeCycled, you may want to consider options on what do you do with all of those bags and boxes of unwanted clutter? Well, how about contacting 1-800-GOT-JUNK. Most city garbage collection services only pick up bulk garbage once a month, if you’re lucky. 1-800-GOT-JUNK claims:

…from old furniture and appliances to yard waste and renovation debris – including many things that your local garbage company won’t typically accept. We’ll find a time that is convenient for you – even the same day in many cases!

This is a convenient option that will help rid yourself of your unwanted clutter and your home will be better for it.

Posted by Matt on Apr 25, 2007 | 5 Comments | Tweet This

Send in your pics

Are you in the process of uncluttering your home or workspace? Send us before and after photos and we’ll post them on Unclutterer to help inspire others. Just shoot them to editor@unclutterer.com. And don’t forget we love to answer your questions on the site, so send them our way, too.

Posted by Jerry on Apr 24, 2007 | Comment | Tweet This

Reader question: Magazine clutter & organization

Unclutterer reader Michael wrote in with this question:

What solutions can you suggest for magazine freaks? I have about 10-12 magazine subscriptions–which means about 30+ objects or so come to my door each month, demanding attention. Plus I buy other magazines. I sit at a computer all day and so prefer not to switch to digital subscriptions.

Well, the first question you have to ask yourself is why do you have a dozen magazine subscriptions. These can pile up out of inertia because it’s often a lot easier to subscribe to a magazine than to unsubscribe. Whenever I get a renewal letter from a magazine I take the opportunity to consider whether I’ve been reading it and really enjoying it, or whether it’s been piling up unread. Piles of unread magazines can cause feelings of guilt, but you should remember that you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. Let magazine subscriptions expire if you don’t devour them and no one will think the less of you for it.

Now, I’m not sure that advice applies to Michael because he seems like an avid reader who does consume the magazines he subscribes to. If that’s the case, what I suggest you do is keep them all together in one place, pull out only the one you’re reading, and always put it back before you take out another once. Magazine clutter comes from having them strewn about–on the coffee table, by the bed, in the bathroom. A drawer or a simple desk tray might be all you need to keep all your mags in the same place. If you’d like something sharper, try a nice wall-mounted magazine rack.

Continue reading this post »

Posted by Jerry on Apr 24, 2007 | 12 Comments | Tweet This

Undo the junk mail damage

Jerry mentioned in a previous post a couple of ways that you can cut down on the amount of junk mail that comes into your home. His suggestions got my thoughts about junk mail spinning and I knew that someone out there had to have a service to take care of the junk mail problem for me. Not only did I find a company to do the work, but I found a company that also works toward improving the environment.

Green Dimes, for a fee of $36 per year (monthly and lifetime membership options also exist), does the leg work of unsubscribing you from the majority of junk mail lists and also has a service to specifically get catalogs out of your mailbox. You can even unsubscribe previous residents of your home from receiving junk mail at your address.

The best part of this service, however, is that for every month that you’re a member the company plants a tree in your honor. EVERY MONTH! If you become a lifetime member, they immediately plant 270 trees for you. Reading the company’s FAQ page really helped convince me that of all of the companies out there that could help reduce my junk mail problem, Green Dimes was the one for me.

Posted by Erin on Apr 23, 2007 | 8 Comments | Tweet This

Slay your wire monster, part 2

Belkin has some very useful alternatives to your usual run-of-the-mill surge protectors. They are compact and can conceal the unsightly mess of all those outlets. Belkin says:

Now you can add outlets, protect your electronics, and save space with multiple outlets as close at hand or far from view as you want them.

The regular surge protectors that you probably have are not very user-friendly and don’t lend themselves to keeping the cord situation inconspicuous. They simply serve the purpose of adding more outlets for your needs. The Belkin solutions add the outlets and take into consideration the unsightly mess that those outlets add to your home or office.

The three options are the Conceal Surge Protector, the Compact Surge Protector, and the Clamp-On Surge Protector. Each serves a different purpose and you should be able to find the one that’s right for you.

The Conceal Surge Protector does exactly what its name suggests. It conceals the outlets and plugs underneath a cover that closes over the top. Leaving a clean white box instead of a wire octopus. The Compact Surge Protector has more to do with space saving than concealment. It features a vertical design that combines functionality and style. The Clamp-On Surge Protector provides a mountable design for portability and convenience. Each model also includes a Connected Equipment Warranty.

Posted by Matt on Apr 20, 2007 | 1 Comment | Tweet This

Scanning documents to reduce paper clutter

Three months ago, my husband and I hit our limit and knew that we had to get the paper clutter in our house under control. Our paper clutter problem has since been greatly reduced and I would like to share some tips for how we accomplished this task in a series of posts on the topic.

Our filing cabinet was the worst of our paper monstrosity. Crammed into folders were papers that we wanted but didn’t necessarily need in tangible form. We knew that there were some papers that we had to keep in paper form — like mortgage documents, tax returns, and insurance policies — but finding them was next to impossible because of all of the other clutter. Ultimately, we decided that we wanted our filing cabinet to only include those documents that were at must-keep status.

To rid our home of the unnecessary papers, we invested in the Fujitsu ScanSnap (available for the Mac and PC) and scanned all of the papers that weren’t vital for us to have in paper form.

The ScanSnap is surprisingly small (about the size of a football) and takes up less of a footprint than the papers it scans. It comes with a copy of Acrobat Standard, which means that in addition to the image of the document you can also OCR the text. In one pass, it scans BOTH SIDES of a piece of paper in color or black and white, and it even deletes empty pages. It’s fast (up to 15 pages per minute based on quality settings), and it automatically straightens your pages with its de-skew function. And, the Mac version integrates with DevonTHINK Pro Office for great organizational help.

After having so much success with reducing the paper clutter in our filing cabinet, we went next to our magazines. We pulled out each article or image that we wanted to keep and scanned it. Now, I have files on my computer such as “sewing inspiration,” which are right at my fingertips.

If paper clutter is overwhelming your home, I highly recommend putting the money into buying a Fujitsu ScanSnap for either your Mac or PC.

Visit the whole Paper Clutter Begone series:

  • Part 2 — Organizing digitally scanned data
  • Part 3 — Paper file organization systems
  • Part 4 — Shredding unnecessary paper

Posted by Erin on Apr 20, 2007 | 45 Comments | Tweet This

Freecycle

One of the most innovative decluttering resources I’ve discovered in the last year is Freecycle. Freecycle is an online community that connects people wanting to get rid of goods with people who want to take possession of those goods. All of the goods are free, as the name suggests, and vary greatly in type.

Earlier in the week, my husband and I discovered that we had two shoe boxes full of computer cords stuffed in a corner of our office closet. Inside the box were 20 or more RCA, USB, and coaxial cables that we hadn’t used in years. Instead of throwing them in the trash, we posted them on Freecycle around lunchtime, immediately someone responded that they wanted them, and by 5:00 p.m. that same day the cords were out of our house.

We have seen bikes, holiday decorations, and Renaissance-era chainmaille up for grabs in our neighborhood. Usually, however, the items are more conventional and are similar to what people post on eBay, but with the exception that they don’t want money for the goods.

If you’re looking to get rid of clutter in your home, Freecycle might be one way to say goodbye to your stuff.

Posted by Erin on Apr 19, 2007 | 4 Comments | Tweet This

Bedrooms are for sleeping, part 2

In the previous post in this bedroom series, I talked about simplifying your room so that it serves its purpose as a place for rest and rejuvenation, and not an extension of your home or work life. Once you’ve got everything out of your bedroom that doesn’t belong, what should you be left with?

Ideally, the answer is nothing more than your bed, bedside stands, maybe a chair and some soft light source. If you can, avoid clunky bedside tables. Connie Cox and Chris Evatt in 30 Days to a Simpler Life advise us to consider small wall-mounted night-stands. They don’t take up much space and they’re easy to vacuum under. If you have to have a dresser because storage space is a concern, choose one that’s not too ornate or distracting and make sure it can shut completely keeping its contents out of view.

Under-bed storage is a debatable proposition since some claim it will block chi. I say, do whatever feels right to you. I for one don’t think that having some containers under my bed as I sleep will affect me one bit. But if you’re going to worry about the possibility, maybe the extra storage is not worth the stress. That said, if you do opt to use the space under your bed for storage, avoid using it for storing things you’ll need frequently. Don’t put your art supplies or shoes down there because you’ll be crouching down every other day. Instead, store your out-of-season wardrobe and other such seasonal items.

Superman had his Fortress of Solitude (which, as I remember from the movies, was a modernist and sparsely decorated affair) where he went to, in the words of George Costanza, “sort of get away from it all.” It’s not so hard for you to have your own.

Posted by Jerry on Apr 18, 2007 | 1 Comment | Tweet This

Pets are clutter!

Can pets themselves be clutter? They add chores to your daily routine and they contribute virtually nothing to your living space, don’t they? Let’s get right down to it, they’re freeloaders plain and simple.

I know this is going to get me into hot water with pet lovers, but it is the truth. The thought occurred to me as I vacuumed all the cat hair off a flight of stairs in my home. Pets add clutter to your life. Whether it be their food dish and water bowl in the kitchen, the hair they leave around the house and on your clothing, the toys that you buy them, or the cat litter in the laundry room, pets clutter up your home on many levels.

I don’t consider myself a pet lover, but there are plenty of people out there that partake in the billion dollar industry of pet supplies. These “supplies” can include outfits, jewel encrusted leashes and collars, multiple baskets of toys scattered about the house, combs, brushes, beds, booties, gourmet food, scratch pads, more toys, gates, treats, car seats(!), and whatever else that’s out there. These products clutter up the home and do more for the pet owner than the pets themselves. Does a dog or cat really enjoy wearing those ridiculous outfits? If you are a pet lover, do yourself a favor and think before you buy.

Here are some tips:

  • If you buy a new toy, throw an old one away.
  • Clothing is for humans and cartoon animals only. (Yogi Bear had a cool hat.)
  • Keep the pet’s feeding area in a inconspicuous place. Don’t worry, the pet will remember where it is.
  • Keep all the pet’s non-day-to-day items in one spot. (eg. outdoor toys, carrier, leash, bath supplies)
  • Brush your pet on a regular basis to remove dead hair and cut down on shedding that ends up all over your home.

Posted by Matt on Apr 17, 2007 | 18 Comments | Tweet This

Bedrooms are for sleeping, part 1

As I’ve said before, simple living shouldn’t be about deprivation, but about avoiding the stress that often comes from too many possessions. One of the best examples of how this philosophy can be applied is in the bedroom.

Ideally, your bedroom is a place for sleeping. That is, it’s a place for rest and relaxation. Anything in your room that doesn’t contribute to the relaxation will likely only keep you from recharging your batteries. A TV will keep you up all night. Piles of books and work will only remind you of things you have to do or read, so will clothes strewn about.

For those of us who live in small urban apartments, a bedroom often must serve multiple purposes. But for those who have the luxury of a separate bedroom, why not keep it as conducive to rest as possible? The first step toward this goal is to take everything out that doesn’t have to do with sleep or sex. Work desk with a computer? Find another room for it. Overflowing hamper? Put it in a closet or other space. Photos on the wall? How about taking those to the den and replacing them with a big art piece, or maybe nothing at all?

Connie Cox and Chris Evatt in 30 Days to a Simpler Life have some great tips to make a bedroom a stress-free sanctuary. First they suggest getting rid of extra linens. You only really need two sets (one to use while the other is being washed). That’ll cut on clutter beyond the bedroom. I suggest that when it comes to the two linen sets you do have you go for luxury. Most people spend at least eight hours in bed every day, and it’s eight hours that has a big impact on how the rest of your day goes well. Why not outfit your bed with the most comfortable accoutrements you can find?

And don’t go pillow crazy. You only need a pillow or two for each person. A dozen little pillows are only fluffy clutter that you have to shuffle around every day. Avoid it.

In my next post I’ll talk about bedroom furniture and under-bed storage.

Posted by Jerry on Apr 16, 2007 | 7 Comments | Tweet This

Clutter creeps into the car

Some people live in such a state of clutter that even their cars become ensnared in a hopeless state of disarray. Sometimes it looks as if the person may live out of their car. CD cases strewn all over, fast food wrappers carpet the floor, receipts from last century in the glove compartment, and don’t even look in the trunk that’s where the real mess is.

Needless to say, the car is in need of a serious cleaning. After the cleaning, organization must be put into place so the state of clutter does not return. If you have CDs in the car, consider a small sleek CD case. The CDs will stay protected and all in one place. Better yet, upgrade to an MP3 player!

Next, keep the small compartments in your console for things that you’ll actually need while driving. For example, spare change for tolls and parking meters, sunglasses, and a hands-free cell phone device. You’ll now have room for these things now that you’ve removed all the trash and unnecessary items.

Now, let’s move on to the trunk. The trunk isn’t an extension of your closet and shouldn’t have articles of clothing and multiple pairs of shoes in it. After all the irrelevant items have been removed, add a strategically placed trunk organizer with velcro on the bottom for storage of necessary items (e.g. umbrella, emergency kit, flashlight, maps). The velcro will keep the box in place while you drive and it can be moved around to fit luggage and other large items when needed.

Traveling in a clutter-free vehicle will keep your mind on the road and make your travels safer and more enjoyable.

Posted by Matt on Apr 13, 2007 | Comment | Tweet This

Tough questions for your things

I like to think of myself as a person who is unattached to physical objects. Truth be told, however, this might not necessarily be the case. My lifestyle, being more minimalist than the average Jane’s, means that I make a conscience decision to bring something into my home. Each object exists in my space for a reason, and a chunk of time, planning, and research was dedicated to its acquisition, and there are further evaluations to let it stay. I make an investment of myself in every object, and that is why it’s hard for me to say that I’m not attached to these objects.

I likely will never resolve this quandary, but I think that the acquisition and evaluation process that I put into every object — and I do mean every object — is a valuable one. If I bring a non-essential item into my home, it ultimately will become clutter, and I am more interested in keeping a clutter-free lifestyle than one full of knickknacks and pointless objects.

I have two set lists of questions that I ask myself about every object in my home. These lists have changed a bit with time, and I expect them to go through some adjustments as my family grows, so feel welcome to adjust and adapt these lists for your own use. The first list is directed toward new acquisitions and the second is for objects that are already inside my house.

Questions for New Acquisitions:

  1. Do I have something like this already that fulfills the same purpose?
  2. If I own something like this, am I ready to get rid of the older item since this newer item will have to replace it?
  3. Will this item make my life easier/save me time/save me money/fulfill an essential need?
  4. Where will this object live in our house?
  5. Is this the best price for this object, is this the best quality that I can get for the money, and is this object in its best possible condition?
  6. Do I need to do more research about this object before I make this purchase/bring it into my home?
  7. If this is a perishable item (like food), when will I use it and what will I do if I don’t use all of it?
  8. Does this item help me to develop the remarkable life that I want to live?

Questions for Items Already in My Home:

  1. Do I have something else like this that fulfills the same purpose?
  2. If this is a duplicate item, which of these items is in the best condition, of the best quality, and will last me the longest?
  3. Is this item in disrepair and need to be replaced or fixed?
  4. Does this item make my life easier/save me time/save me money/fulfill an essential need?
  5. Why does this object live in our house and is this the best place for this object?
  6. Do I need to do more research to know if this is the best object to fulfill its essential need?
  7. If this is a perishable item, has its expiration date passed?
  8. Does this item help me to develop the remarkable life that I want to live?

I’m interested in knowing if others have additional or alternative questions that they pose before acquiring or retaining objects for their homes. Please feel welcome to use the comments for this post to discuss your decision-making process!

Posted by Erin on Apr 13, 2007 | 18 Comments | Tweet This

Put an end to remote control clutter

Quick quiz. How many remote controls are in your den? I have five. I’m going to venture a guess and say you have more than two. You could get a ridiculous remote control caddy with six compartments. On the other hand, you could get a universal remote. It’s always better to simplify than to store.

One could go for the universal remote gold and spend over $600 on deluxe model or a competitively priced Logitech Harmony 880 for your high end home theater. Units such as these can control the lighting in your den and possibly even the weather. You could also go the economical route and replace your remote controls with a reasonably priced unit, under $25, from Sony. Depending on how intricate your home entertainment center is, the sky is certainly the limit on what you can do to eliminate remote control clutter.

Posted by Matt on Apr 12, 2007 | Comment | Tweet This