By Lu Ann Staheli

I LOVE the TLC program Clean Sweep. Even though I’ve seen each episode a dozen times, I watch whenever they run one, and organizer Peter Walsh is the reason why.
When I listen to his genteel approach with people who cling to their stuff, I am more motivated to clean house, de‑clutter areas, and show respect toward meaningful items. One of my favorite ways to clean is to turn on Clean Sweep and watch while I de‑junk a closet or sort items in a dresser drawer.

When TLC announced the show’s cancellation, I thought, “How will I get anything done without Peter to guide me?” Someone at Free Press must have thought the same thing because they published It’s All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff. Now I can motivate myself to do a clean sweep anytime.

For those of you who haven’t read Walsh’s book or watched the show, here are a few tips I use to help me clean and organize more effectively.

Look At One Room At A Time

If thinking about cleaning your entire house is too overwhelming, consider breaking the work into smaller chunks. Which room could benefit the most and make you feel better?

Use Short Blocks Of Time And A Specific Purpose

Set a timer, then give yourself an assignment. Start by simply clearing away obvious trash—junk mail, empty soda cans, old newspapers. Just removing surface clutter can make a big change in the way the room looks.

Start With What You See

Gather up everything that doesn’t belong in the room. Set these items on a flat surface like a kitchen table or a made bed. Vacuum and dust the rest of the room.
Spritz air freshener for a just-cleaned touch. Divide the things on the table or bed into what you can quickly put away or items to deal with later, such as clipping magazines, scrapbooking, or clutter without a true home. Set those into a plastic tub.
Put everything else into its proper storage.

Move To Deeper Cleaning

Once the room looks clean, it’s easier to face the clutter that hides inside of drawers, cabinets and closets. Choose one area and give yourself a block of time to do a thorough job. Empty the entire storage spot, placing items together in a small area where they can be seen. Amazing, isn’t it? No wonder there is no room for storage.

Divide The Items Into Groups To Keep, Sell/Donate, And Toss

This time as you sort, look at each item carefully. Is this something you use or dearly love, or has it long out-lived its usefulness? Have garbage bags handy for those items you decide to toss. Divide everything else into two piles for keep and sell/donate. Do not put anything away yet.

Consider Your Space

Clutter often happens because we try to shove too much stuff into too little space. Give an honest assessment of the items in your keep pile. Have you pared down enough for it to fit comfortably and accessibly into the storage space you are cleaning? If not, then more needs to go. Remove any items that belong elsewhere and take them to their correct storage, such as children’s toys that have found their way into the master bedroom. Let items that are torn beyond repair, chipped, or not working properly go into the garbage bag.

Organize The Rest

As you put the remaining items away, organize them, placing like pieces together and having the most often used closest to the front. Walsh suggests you hang clothing with the hanger backwards on the rod. As you use an item, replace the hanger correctly. Anything that has the hanger backwards at the end of six months isn’t being used and is therefore clutter.

Move It Away

Take the garbage bags to the outside trash bins. Divide the remaining items into two piles—sell or donate. Bag the donations—keeping track of their value for tax purposes—then place them into your car for drop off at a local charity. Box the other items and move them to sell. Set a target date for either a yard sale or online listings. Any items not sold by that date need to be discarded, donated, or given to an outside source for selling. Do not bring these pieces back into your home.

Finish The Room

Follow these steps until the entire room has had a deep cleaning. You’ll feel better about this room without being overwhelmed by a whole house project, and you’ll be motivated to move to the next area.

Set A Cleaning Schedule

Once a room is done, pick up every evening, but mark your calendar for its next deep cleaning. If you have family members living at home, assign rooms to them as age appropriate. Post a chore chart with your expectations, then hold children to it.

I always feel better about myself and my home when I’ve completed a clean sweep. I know those same feelings will come to you as you finish yours. By the way, Peter Walsh’s other book—How to Organize Almost Everything—is a great reference tool as well if you’re looking for even more ideas.

Lu Ann Staheli is a member of the Wolf Hollow 1st Ward, Spanish Fork Utah South Stake. She is the author of Books, Books and More Books: A Parent and Teacher’s Guide to Adolescent Literature.