New Year, New (Organized) You!

January is almost on its way out the door, but before it goes, Uncluttered would like to provide you with some top tips and tricks to get your year off to an organized flying start!

1. Home Maintenance Essentials

Check your smoke detectors and replace all batteries. Too often we forget to pay attention to this and you’re left with an alarm that beeps in the middle of the night with no batteries to replace it. It is also important to check your carbon monoxide detectors too. Consider these other important tasks too:

• Furnace filters
• Chimney Sweep
• Water Heaters
• Clean bath and shower drain
• Clean clothes dryer vent

2. Strategic Scheduling

January is a great month to schedule things for the upcoming year. The most favorite thing to schedule? A vacation! Scheduling your vacation at the start of the year gives you something exciting to look forward to. It also saves you from searching high and low for accommodations when looking last minute.

• Schedule medical appointments for the year – annual physicals, dental visits, etc. It doesn’t mean they have to happen in January, but at least you know this is the month you schedule it all so things aren’t missed.
• Passport and/or driver’s license! Check the dates on these important documents and ensure you don’t need to make any appointments for them this year.
• Financial plans. Do you have any financial goals for the year or have any important documents or meetings?
• Birthdays! Are you someone who enjoys sending out cards? If so, filling in the cards and addressing them can help. File them under the month they need to go out and avoid forgetting about it when you’re busy during the year.
• Life list! Got something you’ve always wanted to do? Why not write down three things you’d love to do this year and get it checked off your list? Writing them down can help you stay accountable to your goals.

3. Kitchen and Household Cleanup

Out with the old, and in with the new! How many of us can say we’ve been through our pantry and everything in there is in date?

• Check those expiration dates! Often we end up with so many boxes and canned goods that you can easily find dates on them from well over a year ago. Use this month to go through what you don’t need. If items are in date, you can always donate them to a local food pantry.
• Check those freezers too! Freezers always seem to have something in the back that is old and freezer burnt. If you have a chest freezer, make sure you dive to the bottom and get rid of anything that you can’t use anymore.
• Don’t just stop in the kitchen! Check your bathrooms. Often there is an expired medication or tow that needs to be disposed of correctly.
• Makeup! Check your makeup carefully. Maybe it’s time to replace those brushes. Makeup brushes can harbor a lot of bacteria, so it’s good to either clean them properly or replace them.

These tips are a great way to help your new year be efficient and organized. Doing them every January ensures these necessary tasks are completed and you’ll also know when they were last done if you get into the habit of doing them in January.

Happy New Year!

If your home organizing project feels too big for one person, it could be time to talk with a professional organizer. Let’s start the conversation! Send us an email at info@unclutterednw.com and we’ll schedule a time to talk about what’s on your mind.