Project Clean Up 2017...Week 5 Living Room/Great Room/Family Room

We are into Week 5 of "Project Clean Up 2017" How is your organizing and cleaning going? 

Whichever you have in your home, whether it be a Living Room, Great Room or Family Room, this is the room you will be cleaning this week! This room should be a place where you can read, relax, watch TV, spend time with your family and friends. It is very important that everything in this room has a designated home so that if company is unexpectedly coming over, you can have this room all ready to go in 15 minutes or less.

We still have our Christmas decorations up (my husband says Christmas is all through the winter months) so my Great Room clean up will begin with the removal of our tree and decor, then the real clean up begins! Are you ready for your list of things to do this week? Here you go!

This week's goals:

___ Decide the functions for this room. List all the things you do in this room. A place to gather, a play area for the kids, a work area for you, a place to watch TV or read, a place to exercise. Use it the way you see fit.

___ Remove everything that does not serve the functions of the living room. Return items to their rightful place or simply find new places for them. Find the right storage spot after you have finished organizing your living room...remember never to get distracted from what you set out to do.

___ Bread the room down into zones of the functions of the room. These zones become "home" for the things you use in the room. Toys and games go in one area, books in another, movies in another, work in another. Each area should have it's own shelving or furniture with built in storage to hold or hide the items, however you choose to store.

___ Clean off the coffee and end tables. Never leave any more than a few books or magazines, coasters and maybe a decoration on the tables.

___ Figure out one place to keep the TV remotes so you are never searching for them. Use a basket, drawer or a pocket organizer that you can hang over the arm of the chair.

___ Hang your photos on the wall instead of taking up space on end tables and other table spaces. Forming a collage in a hall or up a staircase may help with finding a home for these items.

___Keep one basket for magazines and newspapers. Keep only the current issues and recycle the rest.

___Clean off the mantle if you have one. This is most likely a focal point so clean it off and only replace a few favorite items.

___Toss all half-dead houseplants, old remote controls, broken CD cases, dusty fake plants and excessive knick knacks. Keep only items that you really cherish.

___Replace dirty or non-matching lamp shades. This improves the lighting and the appearance in the room.

__ Unclutter the walls. Take down everything and then only put back your favorite items.


**Tips**

Try to find coffee tables and end tables with drawers.

Ottomans that have built in storage provide a place to put up your fit and hide toys, blankets, magazines, etc...

Keep wires and cords organized by binding them together with a twist tie.

Keep any craft or sewing projects you are working for in a basket or storage container so it kept in it's own place and does not create a mess in the room.

If you are limited on space, do not use an end table unless they are providing storage. If an end table is just used to hold a lamp, consider switching to a floor style lamp and get that bulky table out of there.

Never keep more than 3 items on your coffee table. Otherwise, it will turn into a clutter table.


Staying Organized!!

Once a Month:

__ Vacuum the upholstery on all of your furniture.

__ Clear this room of any items that belong elsewhere.

Every 3-6 Months:

___ Throw out old magazines.

___ Clean the switch plates, doorknobs and doorjambs.

___ Clean and disinfect the telephone.

___ Vacuum the heating and air conditioning vents.

___Dust the window blinds

___Wash overhead lighting fixtures and clean fan blades.

Once a Year:

___ Wash the insides of the windows.

___ Wash the curtains.

___Move large pieces of furniture and vacuum or mop underneath.

___ Consider rearranging the room to help reduce wear patterns on the floor.