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Where to Donate Books When You’re Decluttering

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If you have a collection of reading materials you’re ready to let go of but aren’t sure of where to donate books – this one’s for you!

 

Every reader knows that books can change lives. Children’s books help to shape and broaden our minds and imaginations as little ones. Self-help books give us direction in confusing or difficult times. Even recipe books bring life to our kitchens when we’re experimenting with new foods!

 

It isn’t always easy to let go of our favourites, which is why book libraries are one of the fastest-growing types of collections! When our shelves are filled to the brims, the stacks start toppling, and our little ones let go of picture books in favour of novels, these are signs it’s time to declutter. Continue reading for our full list of where to donate books.

 

Decluttering books is already quite a task in itself. But once the collection has been sorted, what should you do with the to-go books? Recycling them seems like a waste when so many others can still benefit from the books, and passing them on to friends and family can only go so far (especially if you’ve got a lot to give away!).

 

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How to Declutter Your Books

First, gather your supplies:

  • Boxes from Home Depot, a local storage facility, or banker boxes from Amazon
  • Packing tape
  • A thick, black marker (to label boxes for where they will be donated)
  • Research where to donate books (we’ve done most of the research for you here, and you can search for similar resources specific to your area)

 

Books are heavy, and glossy cookbooks are even heavier, so remember that you’ll still need to be able to lift the boxes of books for donation! Big Brothers does offer a pickup service, but you’ll still need to move them outside your front door. If lifting a box of books is too much for you, use sturdy reusable bags that you can lift by handles and carry to your car.

 

Pick one room to start in first. Use our Simply Productive Method for decluttering books – Left to Right, Top to Bottom.

 

Start on the top shelf from the left side and work your way to the right side of the shelf. Then continue decluttering on the shelf below. If you can’t get to the top shelf, then start with the floor and work left to right.

 

The goal is to make decisions on what to keep or donate, one shelf or area at a time.

 

Have several small boxes pre-assembled and ready to put your books for donation in. When decluttering with a client on-site, we prefer to use the small boxes or file boxes from Home Depot. Just don’t fill them to the top as they will be too heavy to lift! We only fill them three-quarters of the way for this reason.

 

“Now what should I do with them?”

 

To address this exact question, we’ve compiled a list of resources for where to donate books, textbooks, magazines, and comic books. Our guide spans across borders, for those in Canada, the US, and beyond. Ensure your books find a welcoming home and continue to inspire minds near and far by donating to these great causes today!

 

 

Where to Donate Books When You’re Decluttering

When deciding where to donate books, textbooks, magazines, and comic books, remember it is not just a single generous act but one that continues giving. You are capable of sparking curiosity, education, and joy in the hearts of many more readers!

 

Whether you reside in Canada, the US, or anywhere worldwide, you now have the resources to make a significant impact in your community and beyond. Don’t let your books sit idle and collect dust – share the knowledge and stories tucked in those pages! Give them a new life with someone who would appreciate them as you have by donating them to a good cause.

 

Bookmark this article to use as a reference for your next decluttering session. It will save you time from researching where to donate books on your own!

 

Make sure your beloved books continue to inspire and educate others for years to come. Share your favourite books with those in need by donating to these great causes today!

 

 

 

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Small Laundry Room – Big Organization

By Blog, Home Organizing, Simple Living No Comments

Organizing a small laundry room can seem like a pretty big, intimidating task. But with the right strategies and organizing tools in your belt, you can easily transform it into an efficient, functional space!

 

Being realistic, organizing a small space takes a lot of thought. There are many aspects to consider when setting up any type of organizing system in a small area.

 

There’s the challenge of physically fitting all your items, plus making sure they’re all actually accessible, and on top of that, it’s got to look nice too! With a bit of forethought, organizing a small laundry room can be a lot of fun and very rewarding when you put in the right organizing systems.

 

Let’s get right into these valuable tips and tricks for decluttering, utilizing vertical space, and creating a well-organized laundry room.

 

And who knows? You might find yourself enjoying your next laundry day! 😉

 

 

Organizing A Small Laundry Room

 

Step 1: Clear the Clutter

The first step in organizing any area is to declutter the space. Remove anything that you don’t need to store here, including; mismatched socks, ragged towels, miscellaneous items that have accumulated over time, and anything else that doesn’t belong in the laundry room.

 

You’ll want to make sure that you actually get rid of these things. Meaning donating, recycling, or throwing out what you no longer want. It’s important to completely remove these things because if you don’t, there’s a good chance they’ll migrate right back to where you removed them from. By creating a clean slate, you’ll have a better sense of the available space and can start organizing effectively.

 

The next thing you’ll need to do is assess your vertical space. For this, I’m going to let you in on how I have maximized literally every square inch of my own small laundry room!

 

Step 2: Embrace Vertical Space

One of the most effective ways to maximize a small laundry room is by utilizing vertical space. I’m a big fan of storage units with adjustable shelving. I can change them as things change over time, and it allows me to use all this vertical space in the closet that might otherwise be wasted.

 

 

When you’re buying products for your laundry room, make sure you purchase items that will realistically fit. For example, we have a vacuum in here. One thing I had to consider when vacuum shopping was that there’s no outlet available in the area, so I can’t pick one that requires a wall plug-in. Plus it has to be a certain size for the designated space. So when I’m looking at buying new things, I ask myself, “Is that going to fit in my space?”

 

If your washer and dryer are side by side, you could also install a shelf above them to take advantage of otherwise unused space. This shelf can hold laundry essentials or even decorative items to add a touch of style to the room.

 

I like to keep some useful tools for the second level of my home in my small laundry room as well, so I don’t have to make as many trips around the house! In this small tool drawer, I store; batteries, picture-hanging hooks, light bulbs, felt pads for furniture legs, a hammer, a small level, a screwdriver, a flashlight, extension cords, a measuring tape, scissors, a pen, and an exacto knife. Our larger tools are stored in the garage, but these are things that I wanted to have easy access to.

 

In another section are my extra supplies and bulk items. Things like toilet paper, soap, bulk cleaning products, vacuum parts, garbage bags, plastic zip bags (for travel), extra laundry detergent, extra dryer sheets, clothing hangers, and a small sewing kit.

 

 

Step 3: Choose Fitting Products

When purchasing storage containers and products for your small laundry room, always, always, ALWAYS keep the available space in mind! Measure the dimensions of your closet, shelves, and drawers BEFORE you shop for anything to ensure that everything you buy will actually fit into the space. Clear containers work best in these spaces so you can easily identify the contents. And don’t forget to label them for quick access!

 

 

Step 4: Placement of Items

Consider the placement of items to enhance convenience and ease of flow in your small laundry room. Position your laundry detergent at a comfortable height. Make sure you won’t have to move anything out of the way to reach it, and that it’s secure enough that it won’t tip or drip. Use a protective liner underneath to prevent any accidental drips from staining your shelving.

 

Having a small folding step on hand makes a world of a difference, too! Even if you’re on the taller side, there are usually a couple of cabinets or shelves that are hard to open from tippy toes. And when we can’t reach the top shelf, things are simply not going to get put away. The brand I prefer for these is Kickerland, and their step stools come in white, black, or grey. These are very sturdy and very slim to store!

 

Step 5: Establish a Laundry Routine

Creating an efficient laundry routine can help keep your small laundry room organized and prevent clutter from building up. Set aside specific days for laundry and do your best to stick to that schedule. Set a goal to stay consistent for a month. Then two months. Then six months! Once you’ve developed a consistent habit of doing laundry, an organized small laundry room will soon come as a side effect.

 

You really can avoid overwhelming piles and maintain a tidier space by doing laundry more regularly!

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In Conclusion…

By implementing these simple strategies in your small laundry room, you’ll be amazed at how much much bigger it will feel! A well-organized space not only makes your laundry routine more efficient but also enhances the overall functionality and aesthetics of the room.

 

When you can easily access, see, and reach everything you need, life gets a whole lot easier. Since laundry is going to be a part of our weekly schedule for the rest of our lives, this space should be one of the most efficient, am I right?! You got this!

 

Enjoy your clutter-free, maximized laundry area!

 

 

 

 

 

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5 Decluttering Projects to Tidy Your Spaces

By Blog, Home Organizing, Quick Organizing Tips No Comments

Quick decluttering projects are perfect solutions to create a fresh, organized vibe in your living and entertainment spaces for the summer!

 

In preparation for the busy season, start taking advantage of the longer daylight hours now. Tackle those forgotten-about corners to create some space for sunlight in your home today!

 

The good news is, you don’t need to set aside an entire weekend or trade hours of family fun for a more organized home. Today we’re giving you 5 simple 30-minute organizing projects that will transform key areas of your living space and teach you how to declutter your home.

 

Let’s get to it so you can enjoy your newfound sense of calm today!

 

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Decluttering Projects to Tidy Your Spaces

1 – Tidy the Desk Space

Your desk is the hub of productivity, a very important space! But it can also quickly accumulate a chaos of papers, office supplies, sticky notes, cluttered decor, and other miscellaneous items. Here’s how to declutter your home quickly in this area: spend just 30 minutes decluttering those unnecessary things and rearranging the surface of your desk. It’s that easy!

Work to create a space that offers you focus and creativity. Clearing your physical space helps in clearing your mental space, so try to store away as much as you can in drawers, cabinets, binders, and file folders. Be ruthless when decluttering papersdigitize what you can, file away what you need, and recycle what you don’t. You’ll be amazed at how much more efficient and inspired you feel once everything has a designated place!

2 – Clear the Kitchen Counters

Kitchen counters tend to attract clutter like magnets. They often become the dumping ground for keys, sunglasses, junk mail, dusty appliances, to-do lists, kids’ toys, and other odds and ends. Spend half an hour today to declutter everything on your kitchen counters. Reevaluate the items you regularly keep on your counters too. Ask yourself questions like, when was the last time I used this French coffee press? Do I use my bulky KitchenAid mixer often enough to permanently store it on the counter? Reclaim your meal-prepping space to one of beauty and order.

If you find yourself regularly dropping mail on one end of the counter, put a small basket there instead. Now that you know how to declutter your home, you’ll have a space to catch those odds and ends so they don’t take over your entire counter!

3 – Calm the Bedside Table Nightstand

Your bedside table should be a sanctuary for relaxation and rejuvenation, not a cluttered mess. If you don’t already have one, think about a bedtime routine you’d like to implement. What does it involve? Maybe you like to use a lavender spray on your pillow, journal or read a book, listen to relaxing music, and sleep with an eye mask, for example. Now that we know the contents you’ll be keeping close by, we can begin to organize the bedside table. Take just 30 minutes to declutter anything you don’t need, then organize what you do.

In our example that may look like a bottle of lavender spray, a pen and journal, reading glasses, your current reading material, earbuds, and a sleeping mask. Spend some time thinking about the necessities you want to have now so you can unwind before sleep and wake up to a calm and clutter-free morning, every day!

4 – Pare Down in the Linen Closet

Combat the embarrassment of not being able to find a matching sheet set for your guests (or even for your own bed)! Today, dedicate 30 minutes to decluttering and organizing your linen closet. Chuck out any linens with stains, rips, or worn-out spots. If you have pieces that don’t match, donate them. Ensure that everything you choose to keep is neatly folded and easy to access.

Once you’re comfortable with how to declutter your home here, an extra level of organization here could be sorting the linens one step further. This can be done by size (King, Queen, Double, Twin, etc.) and type (sheet sets with pillowcases, duvet covers, bath towels, etc.). Then label the shelves according to which bedroom they belong in or by bed size. Resetting your home every week when laundry is done will soon be a breeze!

5 – Lighten the Freezer Load

How many hot summer afternoons have you gone to defrost something for dinner, only to discover the items left in your freezer are unidentifiable? Save yourself last-minute grocery store trips and wasted money by decluttering your freezer in advance!

Invest just half an hour in organizing your freezer space(s) today. Sort through everything, discarding expired foods and setting aside or tossing unidentifiable ones. Then think about how a retrieval system might look for you. Make sure that it would allow you to easily locate and pull out your frozen items. Use bins to contain items and label them in categories like fruits, vegetables, chicken, beef, seafood, bread, and frozen treats.

Goodbye scrambled dinner plans, hello meal prep haven!

By learning how to declutter your home with these 5 quick decluttering projects, you can make significant changes to the way your home functions for you! Even decluttering just 3 of these spaces will lead you to a more harmonious living space.

 

Just in time for summer!

 

Grab your timer, put on some motivating tunes, and get started on bringing order and tranquility back into your home. One 30-minute project at a time!

 

Which space will you tackle first? Comment below!

 

 

 

 

 

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