Cleaning Out a Closet

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2010-07-07

Home and Office
Cleaning Keywords

So you're a pack rat? Set aside a couple of hours to home clean out your closet. All it takes is a little organization to bring order to the chaos.

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Cardboard Boxes

Clothes Hangers

Lidded Storage Bins

Plastic Storage Drawers

Closet Organizer Parts & Kits

Closet-organizing Systems

Markers

Multi-purpose Labels

Markers

Cardboard boxes

Step 1

Start with a clean room, or you'll make an even bigger and more intimidating mess as you clean out the closet.

Step 2

Choose one area of the closet to focus on, such as a shelf or the floor, and begin there. It will make the task seem less daunting if you break it up into manageable parts.

Step 3

Get three boxes and mark them 'Garbage,' 'Out of Place' and 'Charity' or 'Garage Sale.'

Step 4

Buy some stackable plastic bins with lids.

Step 5

Evaluate each item you remove from the closet. Ask yourself if you have used the item in the past 12 months. If not, it's time to think seriously about getting rid of it.

Step 6

Put things for Goodwill, the Salvation Army or another charity in the Charity box. Or if you have enough stuff to warrant a garage sale, set it aside in your Garage Sale box.

Step 7

Stash things that belong in other rooms in the Out of Place box. (Give these things the 12-month test, too.)

Step 8

Put as much as possible into the Garbage box. It's cathartic!

Step 9

Sort the items you want to keep into categories, such as 'High School Memorabilia,' 'Johnny's Artwork' or 'Winter Accessories,' and store them in the bins. Be sure to label the bins.

Step 10

Label one bin 'Odds & Ends.' In it store found parts, orphaned gloves and other things that may eventually be reunited with their counterparts.

Step 11

Stack the labeled bins neatly on the shelves and floor of the closet, making sure the ones you need to get into regularly are accessible.

Tips & Warnings

Give yourself a time limit. If you plan to spend 1 1/2 hours cleaning, don't do more than that. It will still be there later.

Some charitable organizations will come to your house to pick up unused items.

Get permission to throw away things that do not belong to you personally.

Read more: http://www.ehow.com/print/how_8565_clean-closet.html