Organizing Tip: If it's Visible Make it Lovely

An attractive bowl hides the daily necessities (vitamins, etc.)

Recently  I was in TX teaching a live Destress Dejunk Declutter workshop, and we talked about a principle that I’d like to share with you.  After you’ve decluttered your home, and everything that you have is really a reflection of who and what you are today, how do you know what to display and how to do it in a way that makes your home look its best? In other words, how can you make sure the things you need every day, don’t look, well, junky?

I have a simple principle that’s the guiding light when it comes to what to keep out:

WHATEVER IS VISIBLE IS USEFUL *and* LOVELY.  

Repeat after me, "Whatever is visible is useful AND lovely." 

Kitchen: heart of the home & clutter magnet

How can you apply this in your home? Let’s start in the kitchen, probably the most clutter-catching area in the home.  After you have decluttered your kitchen counters, you only have out the things you use every day.  Let's say you like to cook, but those jars, cannisters and items just junk up the counters - what do you do with them?  Corral your clutter by placing baking / cooking items on an oversized tray.  Just like that, you have a still life - instead of a mess.
 
Staying in the kitchen - I see a lot of homes where people have lots of snacks out on the countertops. If this is you, here’s a suggestion. Grab an over-sized basket or mixing bowl – like a mixing bowl or an interesting serving bowl you use when you host dinner parties. Place your snacks in the basket or bowl – potato chip bags, granola bars, small tin of nuts… whatever your family likes to nibble on, just put them all in the over-sized bowl on your kitchen counter. Now, instead of a disorderly pile of bags and such, you have one single container with all the snacking goodies. Visible, useful and attractive.  See how this works?  And the benefit of this particular application of this principle, is that when you have a movie night, you can just grab the bowl and head for the couch. 

Snack basket makes everything attractive and easy to grab

Master Bathroom

The next most cluttered room in the home usually is the master bathroom. If you have an assortment of lotion bottles, perfume, hair spray and what-nots, and you want to keep them out, let’s take it from cluttered jumble to an attractive display. How? Grab a tray and put all those misc. necessities on the tray. There’s a book about how to do the "adulting" thing, and they talk about this principle. Anything and everything looks better when put on a tray!

Or if you're like me and you have a seeming jumble of hair appliances (how many curling irons do I really need?!?), here's another idea.  Put all the daily hair necessities into an attractive basket– and you have instant charm.  Now instead of jumbled mess, you have an orderly composition – a still life – a study in loveliness on your bathroom counter.  Every morning your organized bathroom says, "Well done, you!"

Visible. And. Beautiful.

Whatever you have out visible, make it look much nicer by putting things together in a basket, bowl or on a tray. This tip takes minimum effort but has a big impact.  Reach over and pat yourself on the back.  

Happy organizing, Give this a thumbs up. 

~Alana Light