This is probably a theme you’ve no doubt heard about lately.  Simplify your life… your home, your activities, your cooking, etc.  And oh, has this been true in my life.  This post is about simplifying your home.

We recently made an out-of-state move which involved selling one home and buying another.  It was one long, drawn-out, tiresome event, and I never want to do it again!

However, in the whole ugly process, I definitely learned a great thing… SIMPLIFY YOUR HOME.

Do you know what led me to this?  Having our house for sale!  And what do you have to do when your house is for sale?  Declutter, minimize, and de-personalize it.  

When we got our home ready for the sale, we put away a LOT of things so as to make it look open, fresh, and clean.  And guess what?  I didn’t end up missing any of it!  I say ‘no’ to knickknacks now.  All they are good for are dusting!  (Ok – I shouldn’t say I don’t have ANY knickknacks, but I’m down to allowing only a few places around our home to house them, and the displayed item has to have had some major significant emotional attachment to have made the cut.)

And, once we arrived in our new home and started unpacking, we ended up donating three-quarters of all the ‘clutter’ stuff we had packed away when the old house was for sale.  We didn’t want it anymore!  (By the way another lesson was learned here:  Get RID of your stuff before you move.  Otherwise you pay to A.)Pack it  B.)Move it  C.)Store it.  And if you get rid of something and find you need it again, you can re-buy it for cheaper than the packing/moving/storing would have cost you.)

Back to the simplifying topic… How about the kitchen, you ask?  Our counters have never been so clear and I love it.  I have found space in our cabinets for all appliances except the coffee maker and toaster.  And I actually donated a couple of larger appliances (i.e. a bread maker and an indoor grill).  Why get rid of perfectly good items?  I hadn’t used them in years.  They took up so much space that I needed for other daily items.

This concept fits the bathroom as well.  The functional things I need regularly go into drawers or cabinets.  Instead of storing cotton balls or Q-tips in clear glass jars on your counter top (like all the home and garden magazines show), put them in a drawer or a cabinet. Put it away… don’t keep it out.  Do you know what a good feeling it is to spray down your counter and wipe it clean without having to move aside or wipe around all that useless clutter on your countertop?  Clutter attracts clutter, and cleanliness attracts cleanliness!

SO, get rid of all those candle holders, candy bowls, baskets, dusty fake flowers, magazine tubs (when you’re done with the magazine, give it away or recycle it), figurines, pencil holders (put your office supplies in a well-organized drawer), and ornamental whatevers.  Trust me – you’ll never miss them!