As the holiday season draws to a close, it's time to reclaim your home and garden with an end-of-season declutter. But putting your summer paraphernalia into storage for winter can be a bittersweet experience.
Once those attic ladders recede back into their hole in the ceiling, you know there’s no going back until spring (the annual Christmas decoration hunt aside, of course). No more camping trips, summer festivals or long, langarous days on the beach...
But stashing your redundant summer items can also be a highly cathartic exercise – and the perfect opportunity for a serious clear-out in preparation for the new season.
“Clutter in our external environment is often a clue to congestion in our internal world, and letting go of physical things that no longer serve us can have a profound effect on every area of our lives,” says life coach, broadcaster and Huffpost blogger, Jayne Morris.
“Allowing the natural rhythm of the year to prompt a clear-out can be transformative, welcoming in an abundance of happiness, health and space,” she adds.
Well, if that’s not enough of an incentive to chuck out that broken tennis racket and mildew-ravaged deckchair, we don’t know what is!
Put a day aside for the big de-clutter with an aim to: donate or recycle anything you don’t want, chuck out anything that’s broken beyond repair, and repair, prepare and store anything you’d like to be reunited with next spring.
If the loft is going to be one of your main storage spaces, Rebecca Tucker, interior designer and co-director of Suna Interior Design suggests: “Treat your attic like another room. Keep it clean and tidy. Store items in labelled boxes and no matter how tempting it is, don’t just dump!”
Likewise, now is the time to brave those spiders and give your garage or shed a thorough sweep, clean and clearout.
Once your storage spaces are good to go, it’s time to tackle your summer regalia one item at a time. Here’s how…