Step One – Create Designated Storage Areas

Creating designated storage areas is an excellent way to streamline your belongings and make it easier to find and put away items, resulting in a more simplified and efficient home. Start by assessing your storage needs and available space. Identify areas where items tend to accumulate, such as keys, mail, or shoes, and designate specific storage solutions for them. Utilize hooks, baskets, trays, or shelves to keep these items organized and easily accessible. Maximize vertical space by using wall-mounted organizers or overhead storage. Create a system for storing items based on the frequency of their use or category, and label containers to easily identify their contents. Regularly declutter and reorganize these storage areas to maintain order and prevent clutter from building up. 

Step Two – Declutter

Decluttering your home is the first and biggest step in simplifying your home. Start by tackling one area at a time. Begin with small tasks like organizing your desk or decluttering a single drawer. Sort items into three categories: keep, donate/sell, and discard. Be ruthless and quick in your decision-making process. Only keep things that you truly need or bring you joy and let go of duplicates and items that serve no purpose. Utilize storage solutions like bins, baskets, and shelves to create designated spaces for belongings. Regularly assess your possessions and develop a habit of mindful consumption to prevent future clutter. Remember, simplifying your home is a gradual process, so be patient and persistent.

Step Three – Organize

Organization is vital to a simplified home. It promotes a sense of calm and makes daily life more efficient. Start by assigning a specific place for each item. Use storage solutions like bins, shelves, and organizers to keep belongings in order. Categorize items based on their function or use and label containers to easily identify their contents. Remember to regularly declutter and donate or discard items that are no longer needed. The less you have to organize, the better. 

Step Four – Clear Surfaces

By clearing surfaces in your home, you’ll create a sense of spaciousness and serenity, allowing your living spaces to feel more organized and simplified. Start by removing unnecessary items that accumulate on countertops, tables, and other surfaces. Keep only a few essential items that are functional and aesthetically pleasing. Find designated storage solutions for items that tend to accumulate, such as mail or keys. Utilize trays, baskets, or hooks to keep these items organized and easily accessible. Then, implement a habit of regularly decluttering and putting things away after use. Consider minimalist decor or a few carefully chosen decorations to create a clean and uncluttered look. 

Step Five – Minimize Furniture

Furniture easily takes up the most space in your home. A simplified home has open space. To minimize furniture in your home and simplify it, start by assessing each piece’s functionality and purpose. Remove any furniture that serves no practical use or doesn’t align with your desired aesthetic. Create a spacious and open atmosphere by keeping only essential pieces that enhance the room’s functionality and flow. Consider multi-purpose furniture to maximize space and minimize clutter. Rearrange the layout to create an uncluttered and visually pleasing environment. Embrace a minimalist mindset and opt for quality over quantity. By reducing the amount of furniture, you’ll not only simplify your home but also create a more peaceful and harmonious living space.

Step Six – Limit Decorations

To limit decoration and simplify your home, adopt a minimalist approach. Choose a few meaningful and visually pleasing decorations that truly enhance the space. Avoid excessive knick knacks or cluttering surfaces with unnecessary items. Opt for quality over quantity, selecting pieces that bring joy and align with your aesthetic. Embrace functional decor that serves a purpose, such as storage containers that double as decor. Regularly assess and edit your decor, letting go of items that no longer resonate with you. By limiting decoration, you’ll create a clean, uncluttered atmosphere that promotes a sense of calm and simplicity. For further reading, check out our post on the top home decorating hacks. 

Step Seven – Streamline your Wardrobe

Simplifying your home isn’t only about the stuff you see. Clothing can accumulate easily and is often a big part of disorganization frustration. Streamlining your wardrobe is an excellent and important way to simplify your home. It will also save you time in getting dressed. Begin by decluttering your clothes. Remove items that no longer fit, are out of style, or don’t align with your style. Remember, if you haven’t worn it in the last six months, then you probably don’t need it. Keep only the essentials and pieces that you truly love and feel comfortable wearing. Create a capsule wardrobe by selecting versatile pieces that can be mixed and matched to create various outfits. Organize your clothes by category or color to make it easier to find what you need. 

Step Eight – Digitize Paperwork

By digitizing your paperwork, you’ll reduce paper clutter, free up physical storage space, and have instant access to important documents, leading to a simplified and more organized home. To digitize your paperwork, start by sorting through your documents and separating them into categories such as financial, medical, or personal. Invest in a scanner or use smartphone apps to digitize the physical copies. Create digital folders and organize your files in a logical and easily searchable manner. Back up your digital files regularly to ensure their safety. Shred or recycle the physical copies, keeping only the essential documents that require a hard copy. If you need to keep some vital documents (like birth certificates or auto titles), designate a large binder and keep it stored in a specific location.

Step Nine – Establish Routines

Now that you’ve decluttered, minimized, and organized, you will want to keep it that way. By establishing routines, you’ll maintain a clean and organized home effortlessly, reducing stress and creating a simplified living environment. Start by identifying tasks that need to be done regularly, such as cleaning, tidying up, and doing laundry. Create a schedule or checklist to outline when and how often these tasks should be completed. You can Break down large tasks into smaller, manageable steps to make them more approachable. Consistency is key, so stick to your routine and make it a habit. And don’t be afraid to periodically adjust your routines to fit your lifestyle and evolving needs. 

Step Ten – Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the key to a simplified home. Now that you’ve got things in order and you are keeping it that way, you can relish in it. By practicing mindfulness, you’ll develop a deeper appreciation for your home and create a more intentional, simplified living environment. Start by being conscious of your belongings and shopping habits. Before purchasing new items, ask yourself if you truly need them and if they align with your values and lifestyle. Avoid impulsive buying and instead focus on intentional purchases that bring value to your life. Regularly declutter and let go of items that no longer serve a purpose. Embrace gratitude for the items you have and cultivate a sense of contentment with what you already own. Now that you know what you have and where it is, it’s easy!

Simplifying your home through these ten steps is a transformative journey toward creating a serene and harmonious living space. By decluttering, organizing, streamlining, and being mindful, you’ll experience the liberating feeling of letting go of excess and embracing a more minimalist lifestyle. You can say goodbye to chaos and hello to a peaceful sanctuary where you can truly relax and recharge. Remember that simplicity is an ongoing process, so stay committed to maintaining a clutter-free and simplified home. Your efforts will be rewarded with a space that supports and nurtures your well-being.

The post How To Simplify Your Home in Ten Steps appeared first on The Branded Daily Digest.

Homemade Bath Bombs

Give someone you love the gift of taking a long and relaxing bath. This will save you from spending a fortune at stores like Bath & Body Works or Lush, by the way. Although bath bombs might seem complicated, they’re easy to create by following these instructions.  You might already have the ingredients around your home, like baking soda, corn starch, citric acid, food coloring and essential oils. You can invest in a bath bomb mold or make your own molds by adapting utensils meant for food or ice cubes. Feel free to get creative with the colors and scents; the wilder, the better – after all, you’re giving your loved one an unforgettable creative homemade gift.

String Art

All you need to make this DIY handmade gift is a string, a hammer, nails and wood. Before you begin your string art project, choose an image you want to outline with string. It’s best to start with a simple image like a house, a tree, flower, letter or a simple animal. Tape this picture to a piece of wood and then hammer nails along the outline. Once you’re done outlining, rip off the paper and start adding string. There are lots of ways you can tie the string around the nails to give it a different effect. Creative homemade gift ideas like this are easy and they make the best wall art!

Engraved Copper Mugs

This is one of the best birthday gifts in our opinion. If someone you know loves Moscow mules, this DIY handmade gift will get a lot of use. An engraved copper mug adds a personalized touch to every drink. Best of all, when the mug gets cold, the engraving becomes even more visible. All you need to engrave your own copper mug as a birthday gift is a permanent marker, engraving pen and nail polish remover. Before you start drawing on the mug, practice what you’re going to engrave on a piece of paper first. When you’ve got a design you like, draw it on the copper mug with a permanent marker. If you mess up, use nail polish remover to remove the marker and fix your outline.

Once you’re satisfied with the design, use the engraving pen to etch your design into the mug. When you’re done, use the nail polish remover to remove the rest of the permanent marker from the mug. Your loved one will think of you every time they drink from it!

Glasses Case

Unless your friends and family own an expensive pair of glasses, it’s likely they just throw their pair of sunglasses or reading glasses in a bag. This leads to scratches, which forces them to buy a new pair. Some of the coolest creative homemade gift ideas we’ve seen are homemade glasses cases. All you need is fabric, ribbon, thread, a needle and pins; no sewing machine is required. This easy tutorial can help anyone create the perfect glasses case.

Macramé Mason Jar Plant Hanger

There’s a reason indoor plant sales are booming at the moment: foliage is amazing for your mental health. Give someone you love the gift of better mental health with creative homemade gift ideas like this macramé mason jar plant hanger. This modern plant hanger is perfect for small plants and really spruces up any space. All you need for this fun DIY handmade gift project is a macramé cord, a mason jar, scissors, soil and a plant of your choice. Follow these simple instructions and who knows – you might find yourself creating mini planters for your own space as well!

Baked Goods in a Jar

Does your loved one have a favorite recipe? Fuel their sweet tooth with creative homemade gifts like baked goods in a jar. To create your own, find a recipe you want to give to your friend or family member to bake on their own time. Choose from homemade cookies, bread, cakes, brownies and so on. Once you’ve selected a recipe, get a large mason jar and add every dry ingredient to it. Afterward, write down any wet ingredients they need to add to create the complete recipe, alongside specific instructions for baking the treats. You can also decorate the jar with a ribbon and attach the instructions to it. This is the perfect gift for anyone who loves baked goods fresh from the oven.

Photo Mason Jar Lid Coasters

Save someone’s table from rings with these thoughtful photo mason jar lid coasters. Whether you want to display pictures of you and bestie, your parents, pets, wedding photos or just about anything else, this DIY handmade gift makes a lasting impression and has an endless amount of possibilities. All you need for this project are mason jar lids, pictures printed on semi-gloss paper, clear epoxy and adhesive. This project takes about a full week to complete due to the drying time of the epoxy, so give yourself enough time to make the gift in advance.

Tea Wreath

As one of the best birthday gifts for somebody who can’t drink enough tea, this tea wreath is the perfect creative homemade gift idea. Your recipient can hang it in their kitchen, and it’s easy to restock if the supply runs low. To create the tea wreath, you will need two pieces of 12×12 cardboard, colored or patterned paper, clothespins, hot glue and a ribbon for hanging. Try to choose a color palette that matches your loved one’s kitchen. Cover the cardboard pieces and clothespins with the paper, then hang the wreath using the ribbon. Using the clothespins, attach tea bags to the wreath. Not only is this personalized gift thoughtful, it’s practical. Every time your friend drinks a cup of tea, they will think of you!

Sangria Dispenser

If you know someone who loves to throw get-togethers complete with sangria, transform a drink dispenser into a DIY handmade gift. It’s easy – just fill up the dispenser with ingredients for your favorite sangria recipe. Choose a bottle of wine that fits inside the dispenser and then add whole fruit, mixers and a wooden spoon. You can personalize the gift even more by tying a ribbon around the top and attaching a complete sangria recipe. Get ready to enjoy a lot more sangria at this person’s house after this gift!

Cactus Scratching Post

Get your cat a birthday present – or make this creative homemade gift idea for someone who owns a cat. This unique scratching post resembles a cactus, so you don’t have to deal with the traditional eyesore of a cat tree. Cats love it, too! This crafty cactus cat tree has a lot of steps to it, so you will likely need to get started on this gift at least a week prior to giving it to your friend (or feline friend). You can shape the cactus any way you want and even get creative with little flower accents. Follow the instructions here to get started.

Not only is it fun and thoughtful to give homemade gifts, but it’s often less expensive. To help you pay for the materials to create some of the best birthday gifts, consider online surveys for money with us at Branded Surveys. Not only can you take surveys whenever and wherever you want, but you can redeem the points you earn for gift cards to local crafts and home improvement stores or for cash. And hey, if you don’t like how your DIY handmade gifts turn out on the first try, you can always gift your loved one a gift card you earned from high paying surveys instead. Sign up today to get started! 

The post Best Birthday Gifts You Can Make By Hand appeared first on The Branded Daily Digest.