Be ruthless as you go about purging your belongings. If you haven't used it in three months, stagers say, box it up and store it away; if you haven't used it in a year, get rid of it. Make a house rule that for every new item that comes in, an old one has to leave. Any mixed feelings you have about tossing life's accumulated belongings will quickly be replaced with a sense of relief and appreciation of your uncluttered surroundings.
Sound daunting? Take it one room at a time. If your bookshelves are bursting at the seams, for instance, "clear them off and start over," suggests Michelle Yackel, owner of Divine Redesigns in Atlanta. "It's OK to have empty space around your books and knickknacks." Suggestions:
- Inexpensive baskets make great hiding places for unsightly paperbacks while adding texture and visual interest.
- Books stacked vertically serve as pedestals to show off prized pottery or other objets d'art.
- You can even remove the dust covers from hardbacks and group them by color, turning a busy jumble into a decorative addition to the room.
If you simply can't part with your collection of National Geographic or your kids won't let you anywhere near their carefully assembled Lego creations, it's time to get creative about storage and organization. Retailers like The Container Store and Target sell handy rolling bins designed to slip under a bed and house everything from household supplies to kids' toys.
If you can't get rid of it and can't hide it, flaunt it with style: "Places like Ikea sell colorful and inexpensive fabric, cardboard or melamine magazine holders," says Michael Friedes, owner of Nest Home Design in Oakland, Calif. "Lined up on a shelf, they look a lot cleaner than stacks of magazines everywhere and add a unified visual element to the room." Your home will be far more inviting, like the home office above by designer Sue Adams, if clutter is out of sight.
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