Spring into your Garage

Here in the midwest the weather is finally getting nice.  I don't know about you, but I don't really like to work outside when it's cold. My garage is a mess, and this Saturday is the day!  Yes, I'm super excited about getting into my garage and getting it organized! You may live somewhere that doesn’t have a garage; maybe you have a carport, or no garage at all.  You can still use these tips to organize your outdoor storage area.  It's best to do this project if you have nice weather, because you will to be able to pull the things out of your garage onto the driveway.  You may not want to start this project unless you have at least two hours to work on it!

•  Make sure you have these supplies:  garbage can, garbage bags, broom, dustpan, boxes for donations
• Turn your vehicle around and have the back end facing the garage.  This is so that you can load it up with the things that you are going to donate or return. Loading up your vehicle as you clean out the garage gets you one step closer to getting rid of things.  And, they won’t be coming back into the garage!
• Bins, boxes, buckets to use for sorting items.
• And a broom to sweep out your newly organized garage.

Start by walking around your garage and picking up all the trash/garbage and throwing it away.  Next take everything that sits on the floor of your garage out onto your driveway.  Group like things together.  The tools go into a pile, kid’s toys, gardening tools and supplies, shoes, bikes, etc.  Look at each item and ask yourself the following questions:

• Does this belong to someone else?  Yes…give it back and get it out of your garage!
• Do I want this item?   Yes…keep   No…give away, donate, sell.
• Does it work?  Yes…keep.  No…trash.

After you have sorted through all the things that you have taken out of your garage, keep them grouped together.  Now that the garage floor is empty you have space to begin sorting the rest of the things that are in your garage.  You might have items that are hanging on the walls, on shelves, or even hanging from the ceiling.  If you have a folding table, you can use this to sort items.  Sort items that go together into bins, boxes, or buckets.

After everything is sorted, look around and decide where the best places to put things back are.  Do you have the proper storage solutions.  Are you using vertical space?  Do you need shelving, hooks, and bins?  Determine if you have what you need.  You may need to take a trip to your local WalMart or Home Depot.  Before you go, measure your space so that you purchase the right size.  It's a bummer if you get your new storage solution home to find out that it's not the right size!  

Items that are not used very often, or are seasonal can be stored up high.  The items that you use most often should be stored in the easiest to reach places.   Children’s toys can be stored down low. . Begin to put your garage back together!  If you are storing items in totes, be sure to label them. It's so much easier to read a label on a bin that do drag it down off of a shelf because you can't remember what is inside of it.  Especially if you have several that look the same. 

Now that  you have organized the garage, load up your car and drive the donations away!

I'd love to hear what big things you were able to get rid of!  Email me and let me know how your garage organizing is going!  Monique@OrganzingYourChaos.com

Let's Do It Together!