oh help! Moving tosmaller house...hints and tips desperately need on being organised/neat and tidy

[tigana]

Please.
Pretty please.

Am currently overwhelmed with paperwork/post, most of which must be kept (am not generally hording 12 year old bank statements etc). But will also have 'issues' with shoes, coats, ironing pile, washing up pile...everything one accumulates in the process of living in fact.
The only room in this new place that is big is the bathroom!

all coats in bedroom apart from the one that has just come off.

Same with shoes. Ikea shoe rack in hall the one that comes in a pack of three and hardly stick out is fabulous.

Ironing pile - bag it and put it in a cupboard folded. Washing up - just do it lol!

paperwork get box files and stick it in the loft apart from one expanding file for filing as it comes in.

Chuck out as much as possible and do the same every couple of months.

I have three expanding files on the go at the moment...and think I need a fourth! They all contain info from April 2007 onwards, generally.
plus a basket of opened stuff that hasn't been 'filed', plus an intray of unopened post/post DH has opened and abandoned.

Have less stuff. Design fantastic storage (Ikea).

Have a look on that flyLady website. There are loads of tips on getting sorted and tidy. Also a feng shui book from the library could help as there is often a helpfull section on getting rid of clutter.
I used a feng shui book for my last move and got rid of loads of stuff and even now I know I could live with less.

Have tried FLYing...can't do it and work FT/stay sane/see dh and ds.
Am trying to declutter in terms of getting rid of random 'stuff' and I already try to do my ironing in 15 minutes sessions each night - as recommended on FLY website - to keep the pile down...but there is still a pile and even if I did ALL the ironing, the pile would reappear the next morning as the next load of dry clothes is ready and must make way for the next load of wet clothes to dry...
life just generates mess you see!

file file file and archive stuff >1yr old.

either stop ironing altogether, put it away creased then get it out again if it needs it, or iron the minute it is dry so no 'pile'

ditto washingup -either do it sharpsh or put it in a washingup bowl under the sink till you do it

Get a proper filing cabinet if you have that much paperwork, it'll keep it all neat and organised.

Get a dishwasher to save on washing up, and send your ironing out. (Yes, lazy, but life's too short to spend hours ironing imho- if I could afford any of this I'd do it myself!)

Do yu have an understairs area for coats/shoes/ the hoover etc? if not then as someone said- restrict everyone to ONE coat and keep the rest in bedrooms.

flylady works for me; you don't have to do it all at once or follow every single instruction.

Try ironing for 20 mins; that extra 5 mins will eventually make the pile vanish.

Also, do you have to iron it all? Surely some from your pile can just be put away as it is?

If it doesn't need ironing I don't iron it...no fear!

Would LOVE filing cabinet, but small house, small rooms, would have to decide between filing cabinet and an armchair I think. Same goes for dishwasher...maybe if I removed the oven there woudl be space? Seriously, kitchen is already so limited on cupboard space we will be commandeering one of the alcoves in the dining room as a larder!

Maybe I can wedge a small filing cabinet somewhere in DHs office without him noticing...(don't get excited, the office is smaller than the one he has at the moment...which is full of CDs, music magazines and guitars)

tigana - I think that ironing every day is really depressing and hard to motivate oneself for. Much better IMO to do it in one or two sessions a week.

I don't find it too bad actually. I set the ironing board up in front of TV and set my mobile for a 15 minute alarm and off I go. Knowing it is only for 15 minutes makes it far less agonising than just ironing solidly until you get heartily sick of it.

God I moved into a small house after i left my ex. Just have to chucking things out all the time and don't keep stuff you don't need. Bonus less time cleaning smaller house.

We lived in a tiny touring caravan for six weeks in the summer, (all five of us) and I found it really liberating not to be tied down by so much stuff.

In a space of 21 feet by 10 feet we managed to contain enough clothes, shoes, wellies, and wet weather gear for us all. As well as;
Sofa beds that converted to two doubles and one bunk,
Washroom with shower cubicle, sink and WC.
TFT telly/monitor that sits on a shelf above sofa/bed.
All bedding, (2 double duvets, one single and 6 pillows).
Double oven, microwave, fridge, kitchen sink.
Cutlery, crockery, glasses.
Loads of board games.
Huge tub of Lego.
Arty stuff.
Loads of teddies
3 Bikes (ok they were stuck on the car)
Food.
Fishing kit.

Maybe go and have a look around some caravan showrooms and see how they make the most of space with cupboards everywhere and fold away dining tables/chairs.

I feel more cluttered in our house than I did in that tiny space.

We moved to a much smaller house quite a few years ago.........nightmare, i am afraid!!
There are five of us and three bedrooms and just a small living room and small kitchen and bathroom... All i can say is you really only need to keep what is necessary, put other stuff in the loft or dispense of it!!
Paperwork is my worst thing aswell, it is quite organised but i have a pile of box files and one current folder just in a pile in my bedroom, not good. I find if most things are put away then the house looks reasonably tidy, but just a couple of things scattered about and it looks awful, could get away with that in a bigger house, but not anymore!!
Ironing i do like you, about 15-30 mins each day then at least no pile lying around.
Shoes are in one of those pull down units in the porch and i also have a coat hanger in there which is crowded with coats!!
Wellies have to go in shed.