5 Steps for Rightsizing & Simplifying Your Home
Last September, we talked about downsizing (more positively referred to as “rightsizing”) and how motorized blinds can help simplify your daily routine.
A year later, the movement toward simplifying one’s home is still in full swing. Since we encounter this situation more often than not, we thought we’d expand on the topic with some straightfoward tips and strategies.
The Reality of Downsizing in DFW
“Downsizing” a home generally means “going smaller,” but we consider that a bit of a poor description. Most of our clients in the Denton and Dallas / Fort Worth Metroplex Area aren’t trying to go small — they’re trying to go simple and specific!
5 Steps for Rightsizing & Simplifying Your Home
- Make a plan for your future space.
Before you can appropriately rightsize, you should be familiar with:
- the size of the space you’ll be occupying in the future
- the functions each space will serve
Think about how you’ll use a space, and it will be easier to decide which items (and how many) you want to keep. Most people who rightsize discover that a purely decorative space is wasted real estate!
- Accept that narrowing down your possessions takes time… and let it.
Going through your possessions can be a time-consuming and emotional process. Not only will some items whisk you down Memory Lane, but it’s likely that you’ve accumulated quite the collection over the years.
Don’t let the volume or the memories deter you.
Segment the task by room or even by sections in a room (cupboards and drawers, for example) so that you only have bite-sized pieces at a time. You don’t need to stress about overhauling your home in a weekend. Let it be a process and enjoy the memories.
Pro Tip: If you plan to work with a professional stager to get top dollar for your home, consider communicating with them before narrowing down your possessions. They’ll be able to tell you which furniture you might want to keep for the staging — potentially saving you $$ on rental costs. If you’re in the Metroplex area, Eileen Ellis is a wonderful home stager.
- Take a realistic approach to your possessions… and find them a good home.
Be realistic about what you’ll actually use in your simplified life.
We all have items we envision ourselves using in the future, like the magazines we swear we’ll reread one day, or those adorable-but-wicked-painful heels in the back of the closet… (Guilty!)
It can be difficult to part with some of your favorite possessions, but giving them a good home — with other family members or in the community — can be just as rewarding. Don’t think of rightsizing as “getting rid of” your things; turn it into an opportunity to bring joy to others.
If you’re looking for a few extra bucks while you’re at it, here are some options:
- A good old fashioned DFW garage sale
- Close5 (an app that lets people near you buy your items)
- Craigslist (online item sales)
- Consider renting a storage unit.
If you have things that just can’t be donated or sold (like family heirlooms), but they don’t belong or fit in your new space either, consider putting them into storage. It’s an easy and affordable solution that can keep your rightsizing and simplifying goals a reality.
- Design your new space for daily success.
We can’t tell you how to design your space for your best lifestyle — only you can do that! But we do have some simple tips to get you started…
- Keep countertops, tabletops, floors and surfaces clear and functional. You may find you have to whittle down your possessions again!
- Consider bringing in a professional to help you organize your space. We recommend DFW’s Professional Organizer Michelle Brooks.
- Opt for low-maintenance wherever and however you can — in window treatments, furniture, flooring, etc. (I.e. no one likes scrubbing tile grout on their hands and knees every week…)
- Look for ways technology can simplify your life without frustrating you (motorized blinds are a great example — they’re easy to use and require no technical knowledge to operate)
Lastly, take your time moving in, and remember that you aren’t committed to the first furniture layout or products you choose. Keep your mind open to the possibility that something else might work better and let your creativity lead your design to happier, simpler life. 🙂
Looking for window treatments that make your life easier? We’ve got what you need! Let us bring our selections to you to see what looks and works best in your home.
