It can be found on that table right by the front door, or on your kitchen table, or maybe on the nightstand by the bed. It can hide your car keys or that one crucial piece of paper. It can even happen in bathrooms. It's clutter, and it's annoying at best. But with a few simple tips, you can keep clutter from taking over your home.
Clearing the "Hot Spots"
Most likely you have a few places where clutter tends to accumulate -- what the cleaning site FlyLady refers to as "hotspots." If you want to start small, take just 15 minutes and devote it to cleaning out one of your hotspots. Start with the first hotspot you see when you walk in the door -- the next time you come home and see a clean spot where there used to be clutter, you'll feel encouraged.
Get in the Habit
The best way to decrease clutter is to get into the habit of putting something away in its right place immediately. If it hangs around an intermediate spot, it's clutter. Make it as easy as possible to hang coats up in a closet (instead of on the backs of chairs) or file important papers (instead of just setting them down on the coffee table). Keys should go on a key rack, or perhaps in a small basket, near the door. If you can develop that habit, it will save you time looking for them later.
Storing your Stuff
Even if you diligently develop new habits, you may still have a lot of clutter in the form of small objects that are hard to find a home for, or items you haven't touched in months but aren't ready to get rid of. One strategy is to get a few boxes that can be stored easily.
If you don't have an attic or access to storage space, buy some models designed to fit under the bed. Then start grabbing those items that don't have an obvious home and start tossing them into the box. If you think you might need an item later, make a running inventory of the box's contents. If in three months you haven't had to open that box, you can safely give away, trash, or sell the items. You may also want to do this for objets d'art that, while pretty, attract more dust than attention. You can always take them back out if you find they really do add something to the room.
Get rid of clutter
The last step in decluttering is finding a new place for all the stuff you've finally admitted you no longer need in your home. Local charities are always an option; some will do pickup of particularly bulky items.
Another option is to join The Freecycle Network, where people post items they no longer need, or put an ad on your city's version of Craigslist. Take reasonable precautions, though: you might want to arrange for a drop-off, or leave the items outside so the person picking up doesn't have to come into your home.