Spring cleaning season is here. As the days get longer – and the sun returns to show up all those cobwebby corners you’ve missed when you’ve been dusting - it's the ideal time of year to have a sort out.
You could call Marianne Gibbs Norfolk’s answer to tidying expert Marie Kondo.
She has written for local newspapers and magazines on the topic of clutter and its effect on people’s lives.
Before she retired, she also ran courses at the Wensum Lodge adult education college in Norwich, answered questions from the public during regular live phone-ins on Radio Norfolk and appeared on Anglia Television giving clutter clearing hints and tips.
During the coronavirus lockdowns, Marianne decided to write down everything she’d learned about sorting and tidying.
The result is the book, Clutter Control Your Life, which is packed with no-nonsense advice to create a tidy, organised and smooth-running home.
Marianne describes clutter as a “thief”. “It steals your time, your money and your health,” she writes. “If you are cluttered up with too many possessions, the clutter in your life will prevent you from moving forwards towards what you really want out of life. Happiness and success will only come if you learn how to control it.”
Marianne starts by looking at the reasons that clutter accumulates. She admits that it was her collection of holiday souvenirs that opened her eyes to what she calls her “own clutter problem”.
She also asks why we hold on to items that don’t fit, don't work or no longer like, from emotional attachment to a fear that if you get rid of an item you will then need it.
And, once you’ve sorted, she advises seeing the job through and making sure that the possessions you no longer want actually leave your home – take them to the charity shop or recycling centre as soon as you can, otherwise they could just become clutter in your garage or shed instead.
Here Marianne shares some of her favourite pieces of advice.
If someone wants to control their clutter, where would you recommend that they start?
I would recommend that they start somewhere straightforward where they are unlikely to find any sentimental stuff.
Easy places to start are the cupboard under the sink; the airing cupboard or the cupboard under the stairs for example.
Once these are cleared and cleaned it will start to change a person's mindset and encourage them to tackle the more difficult spaces.
Once their clutter is controlled, how can they maintain that?
Maintaining a clutter free life can be quite difficult because no matter how well or thoroughly you do it, clutter will always creep back.
Think of it in the same way that you would think about weeding the garden. You do it, it’s weed free and then a fortnight later the weeds are back so constant vigilance is needed.
A lot of clutter comes through the front door on a daily basis; things like catalogues and travel brochures that not only take up your time looking through them, but put temptation in your way as well. Stop these by sending the unopened post ‘back to sender’.
Avoid temptation at all costs by staying away from car boots, shops that sell ‘knick-knacks’ and non-essential items.
In fact, stop browsing round shops entirely; buy what you need form a pre-planned list using cash where ever you can to avoid over spending.
Another tip would be to stop other people giving you ‘things’ for your birthday or Christmas presents. Let them know that you would prefer an experience that could be enjoyed like a theatre ticket or other outing and stop giving ‘things’ yourself. Stop cluttering up other people and they won’t clutter you.
Can you estimate how many people you have helped to control their clutter? And how has this been transformational for them?
I cannot possibly know the answer to this because when I started writing about clutter in the EDP Saturday magazine years ago and also taking part in live phone-ins for Radio Norfolk, I was frequently asked to speak to various groups on the subject.
I have, however, had feedback from some of my students from my time running courses at Wensum Lodge and they tell me their homes look completely different with the clutter gone.
What is your all-time favourite organisational tip?
Don’t think you can do it all in a weekend as seen in a lot of television programmes.
Getting rid of stuff that you’ve had for a long time needs careful thought, so that three months down the line you feel good about it and not regretful that you parted with a sentimental item to the wrong place.
And what is the worst tip that you have heard?
It's ‘if you haven’t used it in a year – get rid of it’. Would you really part with a fire extinguisher because you hadn’t used it in a year? Surely you would be glad that you hadn’t needed it.
I have a posh frock I seldom wear. Sometimes it might not get worn for a couple of years because I don’t go to many places where it could be worn, but I would never throw it out because when an occasion crops up, there it is in my wardrobe ready to wear.
And no, I’m not embarrassed to be seen in the same dress more than once.
Clutter Control Your Life by Marianne Gibbs is available now, priced £9.99, plus £3 postage and packing. It can be ordered by emailing cluttercontrol@waitrose.com. A donation of £1 from every sale will be made to Asperger East Anglia.
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