Recently, while helping a client, professional organizer Nanette Duffey of Organized Instincts LLC came across a surprise—an uncashed check for $4,400 dollars! According to other local organizers, finding long-forgotten treasures is not uncommon; they’ve unearthed cash, gift certificates and even family heirloom diamonds. “I almost always find something valuable that can still be used,” says Allison Carter of The Professional Organizer. On the downside, they also encounter old food, piles of unwashed dishes and even the occasional dead mouse. If you’re ready to rid your house of dirt and clutter and maybe even find some surprises, now is the time to organize your home.

The challenge of clutter
According to Leslie Walden of It’s Time to Get Organized LLC, the pace of life these days makes it difficult to take the time to organize your space. “Even for those who like working in an uncluttered environment, it’s a constant challenge to toss, file and think about where something should go,” she says. “If you don’t tend to be organized, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and do nothing.”

Also, in a society full of procrastinators, many of us tend to put things off until later—but sometimes, later is put off indefinitely. “People will leave a project undone to come back to later, then it is still there days or weeks later, and more half-done projects have stacked up on top of it,” says Angela Bacon of Designed to Organize. “However, people who are considered basically unorganized can do many things to get organized or stay organized if they put in a little effort.” To get started, pick one area to organize, and don’t move on until that area is finished—and remember, every little bit helps. “Break down the project into smaller digestible portions rather than trying to do it all at once,” says Alison Caputo of Clarity Consulting. Here are a few tips for straightening up your home.

In the kitchen
• Put things where you use them. Don’t put potholders way over by the refrigerator when they should be near the oven and stove.

• Recycle plastic containers without lids and give away those in odd sizes that you never use. Also, throw away worn dishtowels and potholders, or use them to wash your car.

• Maximize space by installing pull-out shelves in blind corners. They allow you to reach items in the back spaces that are normally quite useless.

• Add tension rods to divide cabinets and create vertical storage for cookie sheets and cutting boards. They are easier to access this way than if they are stacked on top of each other.

• Get rid of your large knife collection and storage block. Wooden blocks can be a harboring ground for bacteria, so use plastic sleeves to protect the blades instead.

• Use spice and can racks in your pantry.

• Pare down excessive collections of coffee mugs, glasses and other items that seem to multiply on their own.

• Take everything out of your silverware drawer and empty the cutlery tray. Only put back the knives, forks and spoons. Look at the remaining items and decide what to keep, what to store elsewhere and what to give away.

• Empty your junk drawer and throw out any unnecessary items (expired coupons, old pens, etc.). Then group similar items together in storage bags, rubber bands or drawer dividers.

In the bathroom
• Purchase different colored towels for each family member to avoid confusion (make sure they can be washed together).

• Give each family member a drawer or storage bin for his or her personal items.

• If you have deep cabinets under the sink, install pull-out shelves so you can access the things stored in the back.

• Use decorative jars to store supplies such as cotton balls, cotton swabs, hair accessories, etc.

• Take some time to weed through and throw away expired medicines and cosmetics, tattered towels and duplicate hair styling appliances.

In the bedroom and closet
• Use the space under the bed. It’s especially easy for children to reach.

• Use guest room space to store bulky items such as pillows and blankets.

• Hang shoebags inside closet doors. They can store so much more than just shoes.

• Use rolling plastic containers to store things in your closet under hanging clothes.

When purchasing dressers or nightstands, be sure to select pieces that maximize your storage options and include enclosed cabinets and drawers.

• When swapping seasonal garments, hang all clothes with the hanger hook facing out. Once you wear the item, return it to the hanger and flip the hook so that it’s facing in. When the season’s over, consider giving away anything with the hook still facing out, since it hasn’t been used.

• Group clothing by type first and then by color family. Creating blocks of color in your closet makes it easy to find what you need quickly.

In the family room
• Keep attractive baskets with lids to hold a few favorite toys or items. This will limit how much is allowed to remain in family areas.

• Instead of letting childrens’ artwork pile up, choose a few favorite pieces to frame and hang so everyone can enjoy them.

• Reorganize your bookshelves and make a pile of books to give away or store out of sight. Stuffed bookshelves will make the entire room look cluttered.

• Be vigilant with catalogs and magazines. Keep only those you love and read. Ask around at schools and doctor’s offices to see if they might be interested in your old issues before you throw them away or take them to the recycling center. Organize the ones you keep in magazine racks.

• Use commercial breaks to clean out a drawer or pick up items left on the floor.

• Buy a silver permanent pen, and use it to mark all plugs and cables by product name and date.

Time to purge
One of the most difficult parts of organizing for most people is deciding what to keep and what to throw away or give away. “Most people who tend to hold on to things have an unhealthy attachment to ‘stuff,’ ” Bacon says. “It is almost like they are defined by what they keep. Professional organizers recommend asking yourself a few questions as you sort:

• What would my life be like without this item?

• Am I keeping this because I feel too guilty to get rid of it?

• When was the last time I wore or used this item?

• Is this something that I love or value?

• If I lost this item in a fire, would I be devastated?

• Is this item important to my job or everyday life?

• Will I really use this item again, or is it just taking up space?

• Can I easily find this somewhere else if I happen to need it again?

• Do I need this entire outfit, file, collection, etc.?

The answers to these questions should help you decide with what you can part. If you end up with a pile of things that you are unsure whether you’d like to keep, seal them in a box and set it aside for six months. If you haven’t missed anything in the box during that time, take the whole thing to a donation center. Don’t open it back up—you’ll just end up right back where you started.

If there are a few items you’re keeping out of guilt and absolutely can’t part with, such as gifts you don’t like, expensive purchases or hand-me-downs, Carter suggests putting them in a “guilt box” and placing it in an out-of-way spot. That way, you’ll know the items are there if anyone ever asks about them. Just be sure to stick to one box!

In the end, the less stuff you have, the better. “One of my clients, when we finished organizing her belongings, told me that it felt as if she had lost 50 pounds,” Walden says.