How to Get Organized Quickly for the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays

Holiday Home Organizing

The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are almost here. The Christmas shopping and buying season is already underway. Friends and family, not to mention you and your family, are making plans for Thanksgiving and Christmas... traveling, hosting, etc. But is your home organized and ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas? If not, here's how to get organized quickly for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

First, don't try to do everything at once. Pick one room to clean and organize at a time. If you have a lot of organizing and cleaning to do, trying to do it all at once will probably overwhelm you, and you'll just give up and quit.

Next, as you clean and organize each room in your home, decide what you want to have "out" and showing, verses put up and not seen. Throw out anything that you simply have no use for. Vacuum, sweep, mop, wipe, dust, and/or wash whatever in each room that needs cleaning.

After the room is clean, now is the time to find a place for all the clutter plus odds and ends that are laying around. A simple rule: Everything has a home (or place) that it goes when not being used. When done using something, put items in their home, where they belong. Storage containers can be almost anything, depending on the size of the items being stored and what they are. You can store things in boxes, in plastic storage containers (some slide nicely under the bed for easy access, like for blankets), stackable plastic crates, paper and bill organizers, cups for pens and such.

Closets can have hanging organizers on the door, both sides if you like. If you have a lot of shoes, these are great. Smaller and lighter items can be organized in closet organizers that hang from the clothes rack pole. Out of season clothing can be packed away until needed, making more space for what you wear right now. Get in the habit of hanging your closets in an organized manner so that you can find what you want quickly and easily. Hanging by particular type or what you wear most helps you to save time by not having to search through everything to find what you want or need.