keeping your home a place you want to be.

Every once in a while I find myself anxious & stressed & can't quite figure out why....more often than not it's because my house is a mess & I never want to pick a pillow of the ground again.
Here is a list I came up with to help make your home (or office, or bedroom) a place you actually WANT to be.

-de-clutter & de-furniturize- 

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Yes, I know de-furniturize is not a word...but it'll make sense.  I love to pin beautifully decorated homes in hopes of one day having a huge house to fill.  But whenever I see a room with too much furniture, throw pillows, accessories...I start twitching.  The less "things" (including furniture) in a room, the more spacious & organized it will feel.

-return to normal before leaving-

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I read in an article somewhere that a way to reduce stress in your home is to return each room back to normal before you leave somewhere.  Genius.  

I hate leaving to run (planned) errands or going on vacation & then coming home to a messy house.  Doing a quick pick-up of each room (or at least the living room) before leaving helps keep me relaxed and still focused while gone rather than stressing about finishing my task, coming home from vacation as well as cleaning a still messy home.


-a spot for everything- 

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Clutter & messes are often due to the fact that a. something doesn't have a place to go or b. no one know where things actually go.  Here's an example- my husband sometimes unloads the dishwasher for me- and he asks me about 10 different times where something goes (can I get an amen?), but each thing has an exact spot. Each toy, pillow, and bedroom trashcan should have a "return to 0" spot.


-make beds-

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I believe a room can be completely clean and still look messy because the bed is not made, and visa-versa.  It makes a room look finished and polished (even if there's a few pieces of clothes on the floor) and only take a few seconds.

-one load of laundry a day-

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Obviously this may not always be possible, or you have a specific day for laundry, but this is something I try to do because I HATE trying to do 4 loads of laundry in one day. It's do-able and helps keep down the to-do list & "mess-anxiety".