• The Five Golden Rules
• Whip Your Living Room Into Shape
• Streamline Your Kitchen
• Tackle an Overloaded Garage
• Make a Welcoming Entryway
• Sleep in an Uncluttered Bedroom

Do you want an organized home but don’t know where to start? Relax — you can tame problem areas like the kitchen, bedroom, living room, garage or hall quickly and easily if you stick to a few simple rules. So get to it and give yourself the gift of a fresh, new home for spring.

Memorize these basic principles first, then work through your home one room at a time. Be strict — you’ll get the best long-term results if you make tough decisions now.

1. Create an organizing kit. Fill a zipper-lock bag with sticky labels and a permanent marker. Stock up on storage bags, boxes and trash bags for recycling or garbage.
2. Assess what you own. Eyeball every item in each room and ask yourself these questions:
   
   
   1. Did I use this in the past year?
   2. Will I use it again?
   3. Does it have sentimental value?

   If the answer is no to all three, throw out, recycle or donate the item. And do it before you have time to change your mind.

3. Store occasional-use items. You don’t need them on hand if you don’t use them every day or every week. Label every storage box you fill and itemize everything you store in it on the label — it’s easy to forget what you put where after six months.
4. Look for unused vertical storage space. Check above desks or below furniture to keep floors clutter-free. This tactic will make your home seem bigger and tidier.
5. Institute a regular organizing routine. For example, allow 20 minutes to tidy up at the end of each day. Stick to it by always putting items back in the same space. Doing this daily will help you stay on top of clutter.

Now ... put the rules to work in your home.

Find a way to keep this room in order so that it looks just as tidy every day as it does when you’re expecting company.

Problem: Tech tangles
A jumble of remotes, magazines, books and papers, as well as equipment like the TV, DVD player, stereo and video game system, can make your living room look disorganized and messy.

Solution: Create a zone for each activity
Designate an area for each pastime your family uses this room for: reading and quiet time, kids and games, entertainment and family time  . . . Then, organize equipment and objects in their proper zone.

• Make three lists: items you use regularly, occasionally and rarely. Stow things you use every day on low shelves and put things you rarely refer to on higher shelves.
• Stash toys and magazines in storage baskets under a bench. This solution creates seating, too.
• Invest in a coffee table with plenty of drawer space. Use the drawers to hide clutter like remotes.
• Control technology by housing the TV, DVD and stereo in an armoire. Close the doors when you’re entertaining to hide it all neatly.
• Purchase a universal remote control. Then get rid of the clutter of remotes all over your coffee table.
• Install tall storage systems. They’ll keep floor-space clear.

Figure out what you use daily and then find clever storage spaces for everything else.

Problem: Multiuse mess
Your kitchen is a high-traffic room that has a lot of purposes — food storage and preparation, casual dining, bill paying and homework. It’s no wonder your counters are messy and your cabinets are overflowing with gear you use only when company’s coming over.

Solution: Unclutter your countertops
Liberate cupboard space by stowing bulky, awkward items you use once or twice a year — like large roasting pans, lobster pots or fancy dishes — somewhere else in the house. Try finding space in your garage, attic or basement.

• Unclutter drawers. Toss or store any cutlery or gadgets you use less than once a month. Get rid of duplicate vegetable peelers, can openers and garlic presses.
• Make sure the objects you need daily or weekly are near where you use them and are readily available. Pots and pans should be near the stove; plastic wrap, foil and zipper-lock bags near the refrigerator.
• Clear off the countertops and leave out only what you use at least twice a week. You’ll make the kitchen look bigger and free up space.
• Create an office area for storing household paperwork, bills, envelopes and stamps. Mount a corkboard on the wall. Pin all bills or paperwork that requires action onto it. File bills right after you’ve paid them.

Find ways to divide the space so that each family member has room to store their things.

Problem: Car space vs. storage space
There doesn’t seem to be enough room to house your car and car-maintenance equipment, stow the trash bins and store bicycles, outdoor toys and tools for your home and garden.

Solution: Divide and hide your gear
Divide items into major uses (garden, car and sports, etc.), and then dedicate an area to each one. Within each space, keep heavily used items easily accessible.

• Hang a bucket stuffed with basic car cleaning equipment on the wall. This way it’ll always be easy to keep the car clean.
• Invest in rolling storage. You can move heavy items more easily when they are in bins with wheels.
• Recycle jars from the kitchen to store small items like nails or nuts. Label each glass jar clearly to quickly spot what you need.
• Store toxic items like antifreeze, car oil and pesticides where kids get at them. Ideally, keep them locked up or in a spot too high for kids to reach.
• Keep as much equipment off the garage floor as possible. Install an overhead storage system for bulky equipment like coolers and camping supplies. Hang bikes, garden hoses and shovels from racks on the wall.
• Find a new place to put clothes and old soft toys, books or furniture. Most garages aren’t temperature-controlled and are generally more likely to get damp and suffer from bug infestations.

Give the best first impression you can by keeping the foyer neat and tidy.

Problem: Family dumping ground
This area is everyone’s depository for school bags, shoes, coats, mail and keys — and it all seems to end up in a big, messy pile.

Solution: Boost storage options
Carve out a space in your hall closet where you’ll be able to store and find coats and shoes easily. This may mean clearing out the content of the closet and installing a rail for coats. Hang a plastic shoe organizer on the door, reserving the lower level for your kids.

• Install wall hooks to hang coats and handbags if you don’t have a hall closet. Hang a lower level of hooks so it’s easy for kids to hang their coats and bags, too. A heavy-duty hook will keep a flat-packed stroller out of the way.
• Invest in a bench with a lid, and place it near the door. This will not only create a place to sit and take off your shoes, it will create a place to store them.
• Find a new place to store keys. They really should be put somewhere out of sight.
  If a thief can see your keys hanging by the door, your home might be an easy target.
• Put up a light in your hall closet. Even an inexpensive, battery-operated light will do, as long as you can see what you’re looking for. You’ll be more likely to organize the space if you can see the contents, and you’ll be less likely to forget about them.

Make sure this is a place to unwind — keep clothes and clutter out of sight.

Problem: Closet overload
There’s barely space to store your clothes and shoes, never mind your partner’s wardrobe. Then there are extra towels, sheets and blankets — and that stack of books and magazines on your bedside table is starting to tower and tilt.

Solution: Put everything in its place
Create more closet space by storing out-of-season clothes in vacuum-sealed plastic bags, which save space. Or use empty suitcases to store out-of-season clothing.

• Get an over-the-door hook system for repeat-wear items. You’ll have a place (besides the end of the bed) to put items like pajamas and nightgowns.
• Make the best use of drawers by purchasing plastic dividers. Keep underwear, socks and bras from getting jumbled up.
• Use rolling suitcases or clear, wheeled plastic boxes to store items like sweaters or extra linens. Stow them under your bed — just make sure all boxes have a tight lid, as the space below your bed can be a real dust trap.
• Double your closet space by adding a hanging closet rod from the existing rod. Get a simple kit to install a second rod below the first. It’s good for men’s clothes —hang shorter items such as shirts, pants and ties on it.
• Maximize closet space and liberate drawer space by purchasing a hanging sweater bag with shelves. Store bulky sweaters in these affordable extra shelves.
• Hang clear, plastic, over-the-door shoe holders on closet doors. Organize shoes, purses, belts, hats and gloves in them.