Unless you’ve been living under a rock, the most motivating new show to hit Netflix is Tidying Up With Marie Kondo and it will have you dumping everything you own into a pile within the first 30 minutes of watching it. I’m sure it was no accident that it was released in January, the month where everyone and their mother is trying to get their life together.
Not only have I enjoyed it because I am an organization/cleaning freak but it also has some pretty solid tips for purging all of the stuff we just don’t need in our lives anymore. I personally cannot stand clutter and find myself more and more willing to part with things I use to deem important or sentimental each year. Well, except for clothes. I always struggle with the clothes!
When we think about purging in the new year I think we all immediately think about our closets, our make up collection, our junk drawers, etc. And obviously those are biggies and great places to tackle, however, there are other places that can be just as impactful to your day to day life that you may not be thinking of. Specifically, purging these 5 places in your life will help you get up, get ready and get out the door much faster every morning. I think we all deserve a few extra minutes of sleep in 2019 so I hope you find these tips helpful! Here are 5 places you can purge that you may not think about initially but will totally up your efficiency when getting ready in the morning.
YOUR BEDSIDE TABLE
I think a lot of us use our bedside tables as dumping grounds for whatever it is we didn’t get to putting away or taking off before we crawl into bed each night. Earrings, hair ties, books, dirty tissues, alarm clocks, contact cases, glasses, birth control pills, literally EVERYTHING and anything ends up there. Which can lead to quite the overwhelming sight when first waking up in the morning.
Clear the space next to where you rest and make it as minimalistic and serene as possible. This way the last thing you look at and use before you go to bed and the first thing you see in the morning won’t bring you stress or anxiety. Start the day off right!
UNDER YOUR BATHROOM SINK
I recently went through and re-organized underneath my sink and I didn’t even realize how much of a game changer it would be. My cleaning supplies are all on one side, no longer thrown on top of each other and impossible to distinguish between. The other side has all of my sunscreens, feminine products, and travel sized items stowed neatly away in an open container. I can see everything this way and no longer am spending 20 minutes digging around under there every time I need to pack toiletries for a trip.
I know a lot of you ladies keep the essentials for getting ready under your bathroom sinks (hairspray, straightener, makeup, etc.) so why make it harder on yourself by keeping it a mess? Get rid of old, expired products and organize all of your current ones in a way that makes getting ready a breeze.
YOUR VANITY
If you’re a makeup girl like me, your vanity often looks like Sephora exploded. I have lipsticks everywhere, eye shadow palettes opened, makeup products staining my table—it’s a whole thing. By purging all of my old, gross makeup and reorganizing my vanity with new containers I’ve been able to do my hair and makeup way faster in the morning.
The trick is, of course, to actually clean up everything when you’re done using it which I know can be a little unrealistic when you’re already rushing in the morning. I’ve made it a habit to do a quick room tidy up every night and part of that is putting all of my makeup away and wiping down my vanity with a Clorox wipe. It makes sitting down and getting ready way more enjoyable every day!
YOUR PANTRY AND/OR CABINETS
I live in a San Francisco shoebox so the word “pantry” is pretty foreign to me, but the huge disaster that is my kitchen cabinet is not. I am greeted by it every morning, noon and night (plus snack time) and it is a constant reminder that I am not as on top of it all as I like to think I am.
My cabinet is stuffed with snacks, old and new, cans on cans on cans of what?? I don’t even know. It’s absurd and makes cooking my meals a hassle. I know we’ve all seen those swoon-worthy pantry organization pics on Pinterest so we know what to do. And honestly, wouldn’t it be nice to have all of your non-perishable breakfast items at the ready in the morning? If I’m heading out the door sometimes I don’t even eat breakfast because I just don’t have time to deal with the mess.
But this weekend I am tackling this sad little corner of my otherwise pretty neat and organized apartment. And I think you should too!
YOUR CAR (YES, THE TRUNK TOO)
I know so many people who have to schlep old water bottles, papers and just straight up garbage off of their front seats for me to sit down. It’s not a cute look. If you’re like me, you spend a good amount of time in your car and it’s kind of like your traveling home. Why not make being in it more pleasant?
I personally keep almost nothing in my actual car because I live in San Francisco and if you leave a gum wrapper out in the open someone will break in. However, I do tend to create quite the snack trash pile on the inside of my driver’s side door. I have granola bar wrappers and empty sparkling water cans stuffed in there at all times. Also, not cute. But this year I am cleaning that bad boy out and taking my trash with me instead.
My trunk is also a bit of a shit show, with shoes, oil, grocery bags and ton of other random stuff just thrown in haphazardly. I know once I clean it out I’m going to feel so much more organized every time I pop it. Also, if your car breaks down on the side of the road, you don’t want to be frantically tossing beach blankets and old socks around back there trying to find your spare tire or a flashlight, ya know?
You don’t need to spend your commute to work sitting in a moving trash can. Uplevel your drive with a clean car!
What parts of your life are you purging in 2019? Tell me in the comments below!
Xo, She
