October 3 2013

Let’s Talk Export Station

The Single Most Effective Home Organizing Trick EVER!

For the most part, I find that people know how to sort through their own stuff. Clients can usually decipher what’s what, and they know what role their belongings play in their own unique lives. It’s the stuff they want to get rid of that usually poses the problem. Also, the post-sort can be tricky and sometimes even causes the re-disorganization of a space.

The scene: there, lurking in the corner, (cue spooky Halloween music) lingers a pile/box/bag of stuff you know you want to get rid of, but it doesn’t actually ever leave. Aaaaah! It can’t (for some dark, mysterious reason) make a prompt final exit, and it remains as stagnant clutter, or worse – it gets re-opened and reincorporated into the space! Totally. Scary.

We want to prevent this near-tragedy from occurring, and at the same time, facilitate perpetual organization. Enable the stuff you no longer want to make a prompt and final exit preventing clutter for all eternity. Creating an Export Station is super easy and extremely effective when it comes to eliminating clutter.

Does your home have a designated spot to accommodate such things? If not, you might have a Clutter Bottleneck, i.e. a disaster-breeding disaster. I’ll divulge more on this topic in the next feature.

So, what is this genius concept, you ask? An Export Station is a place in the home where we (very) temporarily store items that will leave permanently.

This includes items to:

Donate
Recycle (think small stuff like batteries, light bulbs, etc.)
Sell
Hand-down
Return to a store, library, school, rightful owner, etc.
Bring to tailor, drycleaner, etc.

The good news is you don’t have to do any binge purging in any one sitting. Just filter through your stuff as life and time allows distribute it into your Export categories. It will be amazing how quickly living spaces become free of clutter.

We simulate this process every single week. Just like when we (1) decide something is trash and (2) toss it into a garbage pail, (3) empty the garbage pails into larger garbage barrels and (4) wheel them to the curb for the garbage collectors to haul away. We can do the same with clutter, but likely most of us don’t YET have a designated spot – much like the garbage barrels – to accommodate the items we have already decided we don’t want. Setting up an Export Station is super easy.

This is the general idea, but it’s not exactly a lovely set-up. Let’s not neglect aesthetics here. Making the space work well and look great is the one-two punch Tapper Richards Interiors focuses on landing every time. However, if it means sacrificing a slightly unattractive corner of a hidden hallway to the basement to alleviate clutter in what could be a gorgeous living room, I’ll take the trade off every time.

Start with picking an area of your home. In a smaller home, it might be a single cabinet. In a larger home, you might be able to designate an area of the garage or basement. Any area you can spare – preferably near a frequently-used door (think mud-room, kitchen door, etc.) – will work. The smaller the area, the more frequent you’ll have to empty it, but the process will be the same.
Select your containers of choice. Bins, baskets, old gift bags, boxes are good options, the key being it can stand on its own. OR… hang some nice hooks and use a cute variety of bags or canvas totes to sort your outgoing stuff.
LABEL each container with categories that relate to your stuff. Using containers with easily-changeable labels like these made using chalkboard paint is a great idea. Set up the basic structure, but always be fluid and adaptable and your new organizing system will be a sure success!

It is my experience that literally 75% (at least) of organizing is removing clutter. Stagnant clutter is clogging up otherwise functional (and beautiful) living space.

Set up your very own Export Station today – it only takes a few minutes. Send me a picture and let me know how it’s working out for you.

{image credits: 1 2 3 4 5}