Achieve A Tidy Home With These Habits

Home makeovers aren’t just about renovation and decor—sometimes, it’s as simple as getting rid of clutter and freeing up space to make room for better things. You'd be glad to know it’s easy to do, too. The best trick for downsizing? Minimizing your consumption of things to throw away. It’s all about lessening the accumulation of waste in your life. Get started with these habits: 

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1. Use canvas bags for shopping. 

When shopping, bring your own reusable canvas bags to reduce the number of plastic bags you bring home. Group grocery items together to refrain from using a lot more bags. If you don't want to spend on plastic bags, you can ask most groceries to pack your goods in boxes. 

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2. Ditch unnecessary packaging. 

Take note of how much packaging is involved in your purchases. Ask yourself: Is it necessary to have individually wrapped toilet paper rolls when you can buy a pack to use at home? Can you shake off the habit of using individual drink packets if you can buy larger refill packs you can store in jars?

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3. Buy in bulk. 

Buying in volume and planning your purchases and menus help minimize waste and the need to buy single-serve items. Shop with a friend so you can save on gas or buy in bulk then divide the items accordingly. Menu planning also extends to preparing your meals for work in reusable containers, to reduce having to use disposable take-out packaging. 

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4. Have a recycling system. 

Once you have your recycling system in place, reduce clutter by having a magbobote visit every week or by making regular trips to the junk shop to sell old newspapers, cans or glass bottles. Reuse items when possible—ice cream canisters, take-out boxes, and shoeboxes can be reused as storage pieces.

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5. Shop your closet.

Instead of buying new things, review the contents of your closet and you might find pieces that you've forgotten, shirts that you've worn only once, and other must-haves that have come back in fashion. Doing this periodically will save you money in the long run. 

Read the original article ("How To Live With Less") in the January-February 2010 issue of Real Living magazine. Download your digital copy at the Real Living App. Log on tosummitnewsstand.com.ph/real-living for more details.