Three tips for a tidy room 

Following the lifting of lockdown restrictions, charity shops have been overwhelmed with donations flooding in. Households had plenty of time to have a thorough sort out of their old or unwanted possessions. January is also a good time to consider having a proper tidy up of your room. Christmas time can often be a bit frantic and chaotic, things can easily become messy. With new clothes and gifts, a task to set yourself this month may be to bite the bullet and tidy your room!

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There are different approaches to decluttering. Marie Kondo, for example, suggests only keeping items that ‘spark joy’ and encourages ‘tidying by categories’ beginning with clothes, then moving on to books, papers, miscellaneous items, and, finally, sentimental items.

For those who aren’t quite ready for this pretty comprehensive approach, here are my 3 tips as someone who is not only messy but hates tidying:

Take time to consider

While tidying, consider whether the items you are sorting are still important or sentimental to you. Tidying is a great opportunity to get rid of unwanted or unloved items and give them another home. You could set these items aside in a bag, and at the end of your cleaning, you could donate these to a charity shop. Remember, you don’t have to get rid of anything, but I often find that delving into my old possessions, I come across some things to give to my brother, and put others on a pile for recycling. Recently, I have had a good look at my bookcase and realised that there were many books on the shelf that I would probably never read again. I took them to the charity shop and picked up a couple of new murder mysteries at the same time. 

Organisation 

As you tidy, you could try to create a system so you can better organise your room. For example, you could experiment with new ways to put away your clothes. You could have a separate drawer for trousers and tops. To create more space, I roll my clothes, something a video about packing tips taught me. However, this may not be for all, but new ideas like this are definitely something to consider.

You could create a space for your schoolwork, or separate your work into different subjects. Last year, I cleared my drawer space and made three separate piles of revisions for each book I am studying for English Lit. This has helped me to find my work more easily. Pretty tubs and boxes help me keep my make-up in one place. I’ve also created an ‘overflow’ box for books and clothes in case my tidying has to wait until the weekend. 

Personalisation

Making your room a place you enjoy spending time is essential for encouraging yourself to tidy. By making it a comfortable, pleasurable place to be, you can keep it tidy as you begin to take pride in your room. Having friends over is often good encouragement to tidy. Tidying can also allow you to make changes to your room. For example, you can try moving the furniture into different positions. You could ever consider rewarding yourself with a new accessory, for example, a new lamp or cushion.  

Tidying isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Sometimes the task can feel a little overwhelming. We can all end up with more items that we really need and for some people, it’s worth bearing in mind that discarding or decluttering is almost impossible. But for most of us, finding a time and then a strategy will work in the end. There are more benefits from tidying your room than simply being able to see the carpet again!.