More and more I am finding myself going into a new client home, looking around, and realizing that no amount of new furnishings, updated colors, or new art work is going to save them from their own clutter.  Visual clutter clogs up the flow of chi (life energy) within a home.

I am now asking every new client whether they would be open to starting out with an organizing phase before diving into the design phase.  When I point out (in a nice way) some of the visual clutter I am seeing, they begin to see their "stuff" that had completely faded from their visual field into the background.  This is common and quite similar to the concept of background noise except it's visual "noise" that has become invisible to the client's eye.

Before reading on, stop right now and take a look around your place.  Are you seeing anything that doesn't have a proper "home"?  Is there extra "stuff" that is on the floor, sticking out of drawers, sitting on top of tables, sliding off of shelves, crammed into an already overstuffed closet?  Be honest with yourself.  

Redfin recently asked me if I would add my "two cents" in a recent article on a Minimalist Lifestyle.  So, here is the tip I shared with them and I now share with you: 

"Don't decorate without decluttering first".

And to provide you with a few additional tips on how you can make your interior spaces a bit easier to breathe in, here are some helpful decluttering tips from that Redfin article.

If you need help getting things moving or are in need of a little (or a big) spring tune-up, try out my 3R Services (Reorganize, Repurpose, Renew)