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MoneyWi$e: Organize Your Home on a Budget · Talking FACS

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  Welcome to Talking FACS, what you need to know about family,
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  food, finance, and fitness.
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  This nationally recognized, award-winning podcast is hosted by the University
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  of Kentucky Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Program.
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  Our educators share research knowledge with individuals, families,
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  and communities to improve quality of life.
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  Hello, and welcome to MoneyWi$e on Talking FACS, where we share research-based
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  information that you can use to strengthen your family, your community, and our state.
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  I am your host, Mindy McCulley, Extension Specialist for Instructional Support
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  with Family and Consumer Sciences Extension at the University of Kentucky.
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  We are housed in the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment.
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  A new year brings inspiration and encourages goal setting.
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  Is that resolution that maybe you have set for your family?
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  Being organized and in control of our stuff helps open the door to calm thinking
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  and easier productivity.
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  And on many resolution lists, it's a foundational goal that helps to make other
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  resolutions more achievable.
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  Although getting and staying organized does take effort, it does not need to
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  take much money to achieve.
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  There are many ways to obtain order on a budget.
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  So today we are joined by Jeanne Badgett. Jeanne is our Senior Extension Associate
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  for Family and Consumer Sciences.
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  Her content areas relate to clothing and textiles and household equipment.
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  And she also has a passion for decluttering and organizing.
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  She has lots of experience with this. So Jeanne is the perfect person to talk
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  with us today about our topic of saving money while organizing.
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  Welcome, Jeanne. I'm so glad you're here with me.
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  Hi, Mindy. Thanks for having me. So when we're talking about organizing,
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  what is the first thing we should do?
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  I think the first thing we should do is think about our end goal,
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  meaning why do we want to get organized?
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  Usually people say the reason is so that things are easier to find or their
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  space looks neater and tidier.
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  There's many reasons. But I think one of the best reasons for getting organized
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  is to remove the physical and mental barriers in our spaces.
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  So that way we can function in a productive manner.
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  You know, I'm one of those people that says, oh, but I have organized chaos.
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  And so, you know, maybe that's my fallback when really if I were just organized,
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  then I wouldn't have to say this chaos is something that I understand.
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  If I were organized, everybody could understand it, right?
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  Right, exactly. So what's next?
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  Okay, so to really, to start the process of organizing, first you want to do is declutter.
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  So start by decluttering first. And this is because we can't and we shouldn't
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  try to organize clutter.
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  You know, clutter is that, that's the stuff that doesn't belong anywhere.
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  It's the stuff we don't really like or use. So we never end up giving it a proper
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  home or place in our space.
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  So you know before you buy all those cute
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  containers you see online to organize and what
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  you want to do is make sure that all those things you're containing and
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  organizing are things that you actually want to use or actually want to keep
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  or use so you'll need fewer of those organizing products when you have less
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  stuff and that is a way to save money by not purchasing a bunch of organizing
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  products that you probably won't need or shouldn't need.
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  So if we can get rid of some stuff, that's going to definitely make our organizing job easier.
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  So yes, decluttering, step number one.
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  So what more can you tell us about that decluttering process?
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  Okay, so with the decluttering, it's easier when you group all of your like items.
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  So sort the like items together and that way you can see how much of one particular
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  thing you have or all the specific things like grouping all your office supplies
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  together. It can be very eye-opening.
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  I like to use this method in places like the kitchen.
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  So for example, if my kitchen drawers are so crowded and you can't open them
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  or find anything, just pull everything out, put it on the counter and start grouping.
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  Put all your spatulas together, all of your spoons, your forks,
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  or your different gadgets.
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  It's like, do you really need three can openers? Because you realize,
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  oh, I've got a can opener in each drawer, but you didn't know that.
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  But when you put them all together, you realize, okay, I can let one of these go.
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  And as you declutter, you might choose to go drawer by drawer or room by room
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  or gather everything in one spot, do what works for you.
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  But the big takeaway from decluttering is definitely toss those broken or worn out things.
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  I mean, people will try to donate things, but if something's broken or worn
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  out, if you don't want to use it, it's not right to pass it on to somebody else.
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  So just let go of things that you can't use anymore and then donate the rest to a local charity.
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  With this, this whole process is when you're decluttering, if you're trying
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  to recoup some money for items that you bought, but you're not getting rid of,
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  remember that something's only worth what another person will pay for it too,
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  because often it's like, we don't want to get rid of stuff because we spent
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  a lot of money. It's painful to give those things away.
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  But just remember that that money has already been spent. Okay,
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  so now an item is just taking up space in your home. It's making you feel bad that you bought it.
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  So would you rather have a crowded space or a decluttered space?
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  Because again, either way that money has been spent. You can't change that.
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  So there's nothing wrong with having a yard sale or selling your items in other
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  ways. Just be careful and don't be disappointed if you don't get as much money
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  for that item as you expected.
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  So once we've decluttered our items, is it time to buy those pretty containers?
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  Not quite, because I would say the next thing is really, it's a no cost step
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  that doesn't cost anything.
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  And that's to really carefully consider and think about where all of these remaining items will be kept.
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  Some things will just go back or stay where they were. But if you're tackling
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  a bigger organizing project, say your whole basement or an entire kitchen or
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  bedroom, I think it's good to establish zones for things, like putting,
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  again, where all the like items would go.
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  And that way, it's where you would naturally look for them. Where are they going to be?
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  Yeah, so basically, we want to make sure things are visible and easy to reach.
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  This doesn't mean all of your things need to be out on the counter,
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  but rather when you're searching in your closets or cabinets or drawers,
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  are you going to be able to see the thing you're looking for and find it?
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  And then will you be able to easily reach it?
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  And if you have a special container or a special organizing product,
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  is that going to help you or hinder?
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  In that case, sometimes we'll get all these little drawer organizers.
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  And we realize when we start putting the drawer organizers in our drawer,
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  but the things we want to put in the organizers don't fit or it doesn't use the space efficiently.
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  So that's where I'd say like, hold off on the pretty containers first and just
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  think about where you want to where you want to keep the items first so what
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  about the actual organization products and containers what is a good way to save money on those,
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  So I would say is before you do invest in all those color-coordinated crates
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  or space-specific storage to organize your stuff, first try to repurpose other
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  bins and containers that you may already have.
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  They may not be as pretty, but you can use cereal boxes or tissue boxes,
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  cut off the tops and even lay them sideways so they fit in your drawer or use
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  jars. They're great for sorting and organizing.
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  There's probably several things around your house that you can use.
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  I also like to use plates and bowls that, you know,
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  something that's decorative, I'll use that to hold frequently used items because
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  things look a lot less like clutter when they're in a tray or in a basket or
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  on a tray, the things that we're actually using.
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  You know, if they're just sitting on the counter, they kind of look messy,
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  but when you corral them, they look more intentional, like they belong there.
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  So I would try those homemade containers first to see if you like the way the space functions.
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  And then you know if you want to go ahead and and and purchase some things that's okay.
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  So other ways to do this on a picture what are some ideas you have for me when
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  you you know how we we said to start by decluttering so sometimes as you're
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  getting rid of things you might empty one of your vessels that you were using
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  for something else so decluttering will free up some containers some people
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  say we have a container problem we've got too many containers we need containers for our containers.
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  So I'm not saying, I'm not saying like, yes, go buy containers,
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  because the whole point is to organize on a budget.
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  The less things you have, the less things you have to store.
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  But to be organized, sometimes you do need containers to corral the like items
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  to make things easier to find and see and reach.
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  So what I really suggest is, if you're going to invest in new containers,
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  is trying to get containers that are the same type. What I mean by that is,
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  let's say you want to do wicker baskets.
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  Well, you can get all wicker baskets that they look the same,
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  but they come in different sizes. So that way,
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  From an aesthetic standpoint, it looks uniform, it's all the same,
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  but having different sizes helps you with some flexibility with the way it fits
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  in your space or the things that you're storing.
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  Sometimes you need a big container, sometimes you need a little container. So that's what I use.
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  Like I said, I mentioned I have clear boxes, but these clear boxes that I have are the same brand.
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  So they look the same, but they come in all different sizes.
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  So they mix and match, if that makes sense.
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  So that's what I would do is select those multi-purpose containers that you
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  can use in various spaces because your storage needs, they may change over time.
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  And I'm like you, I have the clear as well because they do come in various sizes
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  and you can be flexible with those.
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  So I guess you have to find where you sit
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  on the continuum and make that work for for
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  your budget and for your your needs
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  yeah yeah and one of my favorite things to
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  do like this is a very low cost no cost thing
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  so if you're using random containers that
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  you do have around the house and let's say
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  you're organizing a closet and all these boxes are in there but they don't look
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  the same and it doesn't look pretty you know one thing that can make it look
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  a lot better if you label those boxes with the same kind of label and this could
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  be even post-its of the same color and you just use the same handwriting or
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  the same font if you print something on a computer or just sticky labels.
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  If you label everything with a uniform label, then there is that continuity.
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  So that's something that makes it look like, oh yeah, that looks all the same.
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  Plus when you have a label on something, it shows that you were intentional.
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  Like you actually looked, you know, you know what's in that box,
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  it's labeled and it makes you look a whole lot more organized.
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  You know, some people like to label, some people don't.
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  But I'm a fan of labels because it helps you know where things go.
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  And it also helps where it helps the other people that live in your house know
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  where to put things back and where to find things.
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  Again, another thing that doesn't cost anything is periodically go through your
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  boxes just to make sure like, oh, is this still something that I need?
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  And then when you put a label on the outside, put the date, because I've done
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  that. I've gone back through boxes.
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  The label will say, you know, 2018.
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  Okay, this was, what, seven years ago? Clearly, I'm not using this.
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  So, and that doesn't cost anything.
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  Well, and if you haven't had it out of the attic in seven years,
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  maybe, unless it has really sentimental value, maybe you can just take the whole
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  box and get rid of it, right?
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  Yes, exactly. Exactly. It sounds like a monumental task. Is there a way we can make this more fun?
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  Yeah so again with our other low-cost ways to do this and organizing is invite a friend to help,
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  because you know sure like if you hired a professional
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  organizer to get that can really get the job done that costs money a close friend
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  can also give you honest advice about what to keep and what to part with and
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  then you can swap roles so once you're done organizing your place and you can
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  go over to your friend's house and help them declutter because it i think it's
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  easier to go through other people's things.
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  But that's a really great way to save money while organizing is to invite a friend over to help you.
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  Well, and I can say to you, Jeannie, I have not seen this dress on you in the last six years.
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  And I won't think a thing of it. But if you hold that dress up,
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  you're like, oh, I might decide to wear this again.
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  But if I'm there, then you might be like
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  okay Mindy's right I have not worn this dress
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  in the last six years so yeah you
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  do it definitely you have to you have to really like your
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  accountability partner right account yeah yeah and it's like you just have to
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  be ruthless is the word I'm looking for ruthless when you declutter and being
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  ruthless does not cost anything you know you can save money yeah having extra clutter is.
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  Isn't free for sure you
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  know so clutter itself has a cost because
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  again this is the money wise podcast so we're talking about how to
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  save money so i think clutter has a cost so going forward you know a big takeaway
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  from this podcast is i want people to think going forward remember to always
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  consider the cost of bringing an item into your home and this isn't just what
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  it actually cost money, you know, how much did you pay for it?
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  But bringing it into your home and keeping something, things just in case,
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  it's like, that's all stuff that you have to, you have to clean it or maintain
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  it or move it to get to something else. It's just stuff you have to manage.
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  It's an inventory that you have to manage. So too many items taking up your space,
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  whether it's limited or not, but too many items in your space,
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  that just creates physical as well as mental obstacles that can prevent you
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  from having or doing more meaningful things with your time and space.
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  And also that clutter, extra clutter just makes it hard to find things because
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  sometimes we'll end up buying more of an item because we can't locate what we already own.
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  Have you heard that like, oh, I couldn't find my sewing scissors, so I bought a new pair.
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  So that's why being organized can save you time and money.
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  And again, in order to get organized, you don't have to spend a lot of money.
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  Yes, exactly. And so if everything has a place and everything is in its place,
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  then everyone knows where to find whatever item is, whether it's the sewing
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  scissors or the remote control.
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  And as you said, you know, not only is there a cost for the items that you might
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  have to replace that you can't find, but there's the opportunity cost of trying
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  to find those items or trying to clean those items or,
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  you know, all that other stuff. So, yeah, you're exactly right.
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  Everything has a cost. Yeah, yeah, exactly.
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  Jeannie, this is all great advice and so much to think about as we head into
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  the new year and try to become more organized and declutter.
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  So, you know, we have lots and lots of resources that are available to anyone
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  if they want to reach out to their local extension office and try to find ways
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  that they can enhance their lives by being less cluttered and more organized.
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  Yes, use that extension office. It's a great resource.
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  And Mindy, I just want to thank you so much for inviting me on the show today. I appreciate it.
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  And everybody enjoy the Money Wise newsletter that comes out.
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  Yes, yes, that Money Wise newsletter does have a wealth of resources in it as well.
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  And we'll link that in the show notes so that you can download it and use it.
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  Or you can also pick it up at your local Extension Office.
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  Thanks again, Jeannie. And if
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  you are just tuning in, you're listening to Money Wise on Talking FACS.
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  And you can find us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.
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