Tag: garage

Posted in cleaning, organizing

Tips for Cleaning the Garage

Posted on by theselfcleaninghouse

It’s finally starting to feel like Spring in North Idaho! It felt like a long time coming….like a looooooooong time. We have never needed spring like we need it now!

We have had a couple of beautiful sunny days that make me want to throw open the windows and clean the garage! Okay, maybe that is just me?! But seriously, have you noticed how the garage seems to turn into a disaster over the winter?

I think we tend to dump things out there, maybe not as neatly as we should because it is COLD out there! It just isn’t as easy or pleasant to put things away properly.

Spring is a great time to spruce up the garage and get it looking nice again! Many of us are home with time on our hands and the last thing we need to be doing is being idle in front of the TV. So, if you are wondering what you should do next….

Here are tips on how to clean a garage.

  1. Make sure you have plenty of time, your tennis shoes on, your water bottle and some tunes.
  2. Pull out as much stuff as you can to the middle of the garage or driveway if it’s nice out.
  3. Make three piles. Keep, Toss, Donate. Don’t get caught up in trying to sell things unless it is quite valuable. Those things usually just get put back and become clutter once again.
  4. Sweep or blow out the mostly empty garage.
  5. Organize your keep pile by like items, such as Christmas Decorations, tools, canning jars, etc.
  6. Determine where to put things according to how often it is used. Less used items should go in places that are less accessible. Frequently used things should be on shelves that are easy to get to.
  7. As soon as possible take the junk to the dump and donations to your local charity. Don’t let it sit in the garage, clutter seems to multiply on it’s own! Before you know it there will be stuff everywhere again! Get it out!
  8. Admire your work! It feels so good to have accomplished something like that! Great job!

I hope this inspires you to get that garage clean! I know I will be working on that this week. It’s in desperate need!

Happy Cleaning!

Elizabeth XOXO

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Posted in camping, cleaning, Coeur d' Alene River, happiness, motivation, organizing

Minimal Stuff Makes Minimal Mess

Posted on by theselfcleaninghouse

My husband and daughter took a couple of weeks off for hunting. After a week of “camping in the fall” and not seeing anything, they came home. They are still hoping to get some day-hunts in before the end of the season!

My hubby, bless his heart, decided to be productive the last week of his vacation time and clean the garage! We clean the garage really well a couple of times of year. Isn’t it crazy how fast it can get disorganized again???

APhoto Credit: memes.com

This time we decided to really clean it out. Not just organize the “stuff ” but take a good hard look at what we have and decide if we really need it, if someone else could better benefit from it, is it replaceable, or is it trash?! We were brutally honest with ourselves. We made a “Trash” pile, a “Donate” pile and a very small “Sell” pile (that is a dangerous pile and you don’t want many things in that one or they will just be re-assimilated!) We also had a pile of “Things to return to others”.

We opened boxes, took things off shelves, pulled things out. We ended up with a truckload of things to go to the dump, a truckload to take to donate and a few things to sell. It felt AMAZING!!!

I honestly thought I would not come up with a lot to get rid of. I hate clutter. I don’t like a lot of “stuff”. Come to find out, I had a lot of crap I didn’t realize was crap!

Truly taking an honest look at what I had, was so freeing! I realized that a lot of things that I had been keeping, I was keeping out of fear. Fear that I would need it and not have it. Fear that if I did need it, I wouldn’t be able to afford to replace it. Fear that someone would be offended if I got rid of it. Well, kicking fear to the curb and thinking “If my house burned down, would I miss it? Would I be able to replace it? Would I buy another one? ” helped me to get rid of soooooo much!!

Getting rid of “stuff” is the only way to really have a self-cleaning house. Minimal stuff makes minimal mess.

I have started on a new “Crap crusade” in my closet and I am excited! I will keep you posted on that venture!

When you let go of stuff you unclog the positive flow and new and wonderful things can come into your life in many ways, not only just in your garage. When you hang on to too much stuff and things it clutters your mind and life, not just your home. Your life isn’t meant to be stagnant. By hanging on to old things, too many things and unnecessary things you are blocking the stream of abundance that belongs to you!

Remember when you were a kid or when you told your kids that they couldn’t have a new toy unless they got rid of one (or five!)? Yes!  Just like that!  Our life is supposed to be rewarded and blessed, but first…. you have to get rid of some stuff.

you can't reach for anything new

I encourage you to kick the fear, tell yourself that it’s ok to let go. Enjoy the amazing feeling of a clean uncluttered home, and the positive things that will come your way!

Go get rid of some stuff!!