Get Organized (or Don’t)

FEATURING YAMAZAKI HOME

Articles and books about organizing can be oversimplified and straightforward, authoritative, annoyingly bossy, and presumptuous. But they can lean spiritual, philosophical even, in suggesting that cleaning out a junk drawer or two can be akin to removing mental blocks or raising your whole damn vibration. This kind of sounds right. If you’re in a state of flow, there simply isn’t room for clutter, right? But nothing’s black and white, life isn’t lived in absolutes, and sometimes it’s not possible to prioritize home organization or even organized thought. A cluttered, brimming mind, or space, that is the result of a rich and full life can be a beautiful thing. We’re not robots (yet). Have you ever seen the desks of really creative people? The apartments of poets? The abodes of great thinkers and artists? Not usually the neatest. Fact is, some people don’t think about organizing at all and feel at ease or in their flow amidst chaos. Some people need things organized just enough for them. And some people can’t sleep knowing there could be something, anything, out of perfect place. Which is to say, there are levels to this, and wherever you are on the spectrum – from total fucking mess to maniacal OCD immaculateness – is ok. Organization is subjective. And personal. Go easy on yourself, but don’t land a feature on Hoarders either, ok?

Whatever your organization style and skill set, we’ve whipped up a quickie guide to process, for cleaning out one cabinet or tackling the whole house:

Step 1: Center!

Take a deep breath and try not to get overwhelmed. At the end of the day, it’s just stuff. We like to do a Kondo-inspired routine of giving lots of thanks, even to the little things.

Step 2: Sort!

Categories and groups. Do you like it or love it? Do you need it, want it or actually hate it? Little spoons go with little spoons. By season, genre, theme, size, feeling…you get it.

Step 3: Declutter!

Parting is such sweet sorrow, but the pain is fleeting we promise. Like Elsa, let it go. The most helpful hint we have for a good purge is to think about all the new stuff you can buy once you’ve outed the old. Ok that’s gross, but hey, you’ve gotta make room for the NEW. This applies to everything in life; see, we’re getting spiritual.

Step 4: You do you!

Organizing your books by spine color? Not our bag, but to each their own. Don’t be afraid to follow your instincts and make organizing personal because no one knows you like you.

Step 5: Put it away!

Baskets, boxes, shelves, cubbies, containers. Reign it in with places, spaces, and holders for every single thing. We can really help here, keep reading.

Step 6: Label!

Seems fussy but works. Make laminated calligraphy tags, use an electric labelmaker, or stick a damn post-it on it. We don’t care.

Step 7: Maintain!

Aka clean a little every day. Every. Day. Even if it’s just one little surface. Five minutes or a half day of tidying and putting things where they belong, it all adds up.

Just landed on the site, some amazing accessories by Yamazaki to help you on your quest to get it together, sorted here according to your organization skill level. The kings of all things handy, clean, streamlined and cool, for homes of all sizes and any style, Yamazaki’s got solutions.

BEGINNER

For the semi-slob, baby hoarder, hot mess who needs help with pretty much everything, let’s start with the basics.