The ubiquity of photo sharing sites like Instagram, Houzz, and Pinterest have given us so much inspiration for creating the home of our dreams. At the same time they set the bar high for what our homes are supposed to look like. Achieving a Pinterest worthy home does not mean you’re slaving away or spending hours cleaning up. You have a life, right?! Why not just, “Fake it ’til you make it,” and no one will be the wiser!
Declutter Often-
If you truly want to have a Pinterest worthy home, you need less – less clutter, less mess, less stuff! That means letting go of things often and not being so attached to your stuff. Treasure your family and your experiences, not your stuff. Every week, make a quick sweep and choose 5-10 items to get rid of. Put them in a donation box or trash bin and get them out of your home. Know ahead of time where your unwanted items will go. Post items on Freecycle or Next Door, or bring them to your local church or charity drop-off. Whatever solution is easiest for you to get the items out of your home, figure it out and make it happen!
Daily 15 Minute Cleaning Bursts –
A clean house is achievable in just a few minutes a day if you stick to a schedule. One day focus on mopping and vacuuming, another dusting and wiping counters, or take a room by room approach. Whatever method you choose, write it down, tape it to your fridge (or any space where you can easily see it), and stick to it!
Put It Back and Don’t Leave a Space Empty Handed –
When you’re finished with something, put it away. Never just say, “I’ll do it later.” Later usually never comes and meanwhile the item you didn’t put back seems to find friends and multiply. Along the same lines, every time you leave a room or a space don’t go empty handed. Find something in the kitchen that belongs in the playroom? Put the item by the kitchen door and take it where it goes when you leave (better yet, ask your kid to do it). Are upstairs items migrating downstairs in your home? Collect the items in a container on your stairs then carry it up each evening, disperse the items where they need to go, and bring it back down.
Give Your Kids Responsibility –
Fabricating a Pinterest worthy home is not a one person job. Your family lives there, why shouldn’t they contribute? Kids can help from a very early age by putting their toys away when not in use, hanging up their coats, putting their dirty clothes directly in the hamper, or picking up bits of trash and recycling and putting them in the proper bin. As they get older they can have assigned tasks for clearing the table, doing the dishes, putting their laundry away, taking out the trash, etc. Giving kids chores and responsibility is not a bad thing, it’s teaching them a life skill that will benefit them greatly.
Clean as You Go –
Whether it’s a school art project, home project, or cooking a meal, there will be mess. Take a few minutes here and there to put things away as you use them. Don’t stand around waiting for the water to boil or the glue to dry, pick up something you’ve used and put it away. If you wait until the end, the clean up job is much greater and you might be too tired to do it.
Don’t Be a Victim of “Organizational Porn“.
Those Pinterest, Houzz, and Instagram photos exist to present the ideal and motivate you, but oftentimes they’re not real. Remember no one is perfect and there’s no such thing as a perfect home. Fabricate a Pinterest worthy home based on your own standards and lifestyle and be okay with it.