Six Tips to Prepare Your Home for Downsizing in the New Year
Try approaching one room at a time. Or take a page out of the Marie Kondo journal and address all your books one day, housewares another.
Remember the beginning of the pandemic when organizing was de rigueur? We were all on such a roll! Then summer came around, and things got somewhat congested again. Piles grew back like weeds. To-do lists increased in length. The organization fire that was lit earlier on somehow burned out.
Now, it is overwhelming to look around the house and see the mountain of holiday decorations that need to be rehomed and the Amazon boxes that need to be refilled with purchases that just didn’t work.
While the new year is still new, recommit to streamlining and downsizing, particularly if you have made a resolution to prepare for a move later this year and want to get a jump on it.
Here are a few things to consider as you get your home ready for a downsize:
Don’t rush things. Going through decades of accumulation takes time. Create a calendar with a detailed timeline for your move so that you give yourself ample time for each task. Try approaching one room at a time. Or take a page out of the Marie Kondo journal and address all your books one day, housewares another.
Think about the space you will be moving to. Will you have a guest room? Will it double as an office or sewing/craft/exercise space? Will some of your furniture be just too large? The logistics of your new home determine which possessions make the cut.
Think about things that you are saving just because they were expensive, and family items that don’t serve you. These are the hardest items to part with, but keeping them will not allow you to maximize the efficiency of your new space. Check with your kids and family members about what they might like, then take lots of photos of the rest.
Edit, edit, edit. This is where the services of a professional organizer really help (wink, wink). You need to figure out exactly what will work in your new space, and that means doing calculations down to place servings and sheet sets.
Technology is your friend. A wall-mounted television can replace your old media console. Think wireless keyboard, laptop computers, and Alexa with a Spotify account for music. Similarly, downsize your books.
Wall space and closets in your new home can be configured for maximum storage potential.
It looks like it will be many months more until we will be out and about. Use this time to recommit to getting things in order. There is no better time than the beginning of the new year!
I can help you go through all of your treasures with a practiced, compassionate eye to determine what will work best in your new place so that it will feel like home right from day one.