HOW TO DECLUTTER AND ORGANIZE YOUR BOOK COLLECTION

Are you unsure how to control your ever-growing book collection? Try these simple steps to edit and organize your collection so your inner bibliophile can relax and read easy.

How to Declutter & Organize Your Book Collection Home Organization, Home LIbrary Organization, Book Organization, How to

 

Books are my happy place!  Of course, I love reading books, but I also adore the way they smell, the weight of one in my hand, and the sound of a page turning. Books bring us joy, knowledge, comfort, and escape. They can also sneakily start to overrun your home. I have to be honest. Editing my book collection continues to be one of my the hardest decluttering tasks.

 

bibliophile-a person who has a great love of books; someone who finds joy and peace of mind while reading

 

Why is it so hard to declutter books?

You are not alone-most book lovers have a hard time parting with their books!

  • We have sentimental attachments. Books evoke special memories, like the time you were snuggled up reading the last page of book 7 in the Harry Potter Series. (Yes, I still remember laying on my bed on a rainy day in 2007 and finishing the last page of The Deathly Hallows.) 
  • We might need them. We keep books, like old textbooks,  because we might need to refer back to them one day. 
  • We spent hard-earned money on them. Books are expensive. If you are anything like me, you prefer to have the hardcover edition over the paperback. That makes the cost at least $10 more!
  • The book is part of a set. There is an unspoken rule in the bibliophile world. ONE MUST NOT BREAK UP A SET. I honestly can’t explain why I hate to break up sets of books, even if I liked some more than others.  
  • We plan to read it one day. We are all guilty of buying new books before we’ve finished what we’re currently reading.
  • We like the aesthetic. Part of being a book lover is enjoying being surrounded by all of the stories we have consumed over the years. Books are not only beautifully written, but the artwork on the covers is equally as pleasing.

How to let go

Have you failed at decluttering your books in the past? Have one or more reasons I’ve listed kept you from parting with your book clutter? Saying goodbye to some of your books doesn’t mean you have to stop your love affair with reading! It’s a way to create more room for your most loved books, and the new stories yet to be discovered! Here are tools to create space on your shelves.

 

“Be a ruthless editor of what you allow into your home. Ask yourselves, ‘What does this object mean to me?'” Nate Burkus Quote

 

the first step

This may sound jarring, but I want you to gather up every book in your home in one location. Divide them into categories as you do. For example, cookbooks in one pile, science fiction in another, and romantic summer reads in a third.

When you have collected all of your books in one area, take a moment to reflect. Does it look like you have found yourself trapped in the middle of the Library of the Neitherlands, a multiversal archive that contains all knowledge in the multiverse? If you have never dreamed of diving into a fountain there, may I suggest you check out Lev Grossman’s The Magicians Trilogy ASAP! I know, I know, we are supposed to be decluttering books not picking out new ones, but as soon as you follow my steps, these books are a great way to treat yourself! After all, this whole carrying heaps of books around is hard work, right? Okay, let’s get back to work!

Old Door Surrounded by Books Home Library, Organize my Books

 

diving in

Once you have your entire book collection in one space, the real work can begin. Take a deep breath and grieve if you must. This may not be easy but it IS worth it. Looking back at the reasons we give ourselves for keeping books, let’s also consider rational reasons to let them go to new homes. So pick a pile, and we will go through each book one by one. 

The least sentimental areas to start with are informative books, like cookbooks, old textbooks, or hobby books. 

 

Decision making questions to assist in decluttering your books Home Office Organization, Home Library Organization, Book Organization

 

when holding each book ask yourself the following questions

Does this book fit my current interests?

We change and evolve, and so do our interests. If you are no longer enthusiastic about the idea of rereading the book, ditch it! Make more space for the person you are today!

Do I enjoy the book?

Great books are hard to put down. If you have a DNF pile, did not finish, this is a great place to declutter. After all, life is too short to waste time on substandard books. And space is too limited! If you DNF the book then it should be a prime contender to go.

Do I have the space for it?

The space on your bookshelves is prime real estate; new books will always be coming through the doors. So be honest when you ask yourself these questions. Is this book worth taking up space or will it free up space for a new adventure?

Would I read it again?

Books are meant to be enjoyed, so if you won’t read a book again, it’s better to give it to someone who will!

Is this book out of date, old, or can I find this information online?

We live in a digital age. If you are storing information in book form, chances are you can find the information on the internet with a few clicks of a mouse! YouTube once helped me fix my leaking freezer! Eliminate these books. They tend to be large. Think of all the new space you will have!

Do I have it in digital format?

If you have any form of e-reader, cross-check your physical collection with your digital one. If you have duplicates, this can be a great way to make more space. If you find yourself longing for the physical book, you can always rent it from the library.

 

When you have worked your way through each pile, discarding along the way, you should have a nice collection of books that need new homes. The question now is, where do I take them?

 

What to do with discarded books?

  • Donate them to The Little Free Library
  • Give them to family or friends. 
  • Sell them at a yard sale or a used bookstore. 
  • Donate them to your local second-hand stores, schools, or charities.
  • Recycle them-Generally, most paperback books can be recycled with curbside paper recycling programs. But to recycle hardcover books, you may need to remove the pages from the hardcover binding. At many recycling facilities, only the paper inside the cover can be recycled with regular mixed paper recycling.
  • Host a book swap party!
  • If the weather is nice leave them on your stoop or curb with a Free sign!
  • Post them on Nextdoor, Facebook Marketplace, or Buy Nothing.
  • Upcycle them-Create beautiful art from old books. Visit my book upcycling Pinterest idea page

Little Free Library With Succulants on Top Free Library

Photo from Little Free Library

organizing your bookshelves

Now that you have your CURATED book collection, you are ready to put them back on your shelves! There are so many possibilities for how to organize your books. For this, I have collaborated with my avid book collector friend Sara Haven. She not only has beautifully organized bookshelves in her home but some insightful and inspiring reviews on her social media! You can find her @sarareads_nc on Instagram. Keep in mind, there’s no “right” or “wrong” way to organize your book collection. It’s all up to personal preference!

genre & Author

Organizing your books by genre and author helps you find what you are looking for quickly and easily.  These bookshelves by Sara Haven on Instagram are a timeless way to organize your collection.

Organized bookshelf by genre and author. Home Organization, Organized Home Library, Organize my Books, Book Organization, How to Organize my Home Library

Organized bookshelf by genre and author. Home Organization, Organized Home Library, Organize my Books, Book Organization, How to Organize my Home Library

Organized bookshelf by genre and author. Home Organization, Organized Home Library, Organize my Books, Book Organization, How to Organize my Home Library

  Photos from @sarareads_nc on Instagram

 

Sara also has her TBR, to be read, books kept in a separate location. Her use of a rolling cart is a fantastic idea.

You know exactly where to look when you need to pick a new book! Beauty meets function!

Rolling Book Cart

Photos from @sarareads_nc on Instagram

 Organizing Pro Tip: To keep the clutter down, if you do not have room for a new book in your TBR space wait to make that purchase!

 

Color

Organizing your books by color can be a visually satisfying art piece in your home, made famous by The Home Edit. These bookshelves by Emily Sweet on Instagram are a great representation of what you can create with your beloved book collection.

Reclaim Your Closet: How to Organize and color code your closet

When you walk into your closet does it make you feel excited to get dressed for the day or does it fill you with anxiety instead? It happens to the best of us: a cluttered, disorganized clothing closet. You’re busy and after a long day, you’re too exhausted to put the clothing back into order. My step-by-step guide on how to organize and color code your closet will make organizing your cluttered closet a breeze.

Reclaim Your Closet: How to Organize and Color Code Your Closet

An unorganized closet makes it difficult to find what you need, quickly ending in frustration before you even leave the house.  It can also lead to the dreaded “I have nothing to wear!” situation.

As daunting as it may feel, organizing a clothing closet is surprisingly simple! You just need to set the time aside to do it. With my simple tips and practices, you will have a beautifully organized closet.  Take a deep breath and let’s jump in!

Tips for Staying Motivated and On-Task while Organizing

Schedule a Time

When doing any form of organizing or decluttering,  I always set a date and time. Yes, put it in your calendar and set an alert on your phone! This is a simple way to hold yourself accountable. You can schedule a large block of time one day, or if you’re short on time or the task feels too daunting, schedule 30 minutes over a few days until the task is complete.Ste an Alarm

Closets, drawers, and shelves can sometimes feel like they’re bursting at the seams, making getting ready for the day seem overwhelming. Use these three simple steps to painlessly organize and reclaim your closet.

Here is an example of a closet I recently worked on before we started our process.

 

Pick a Starting Point

There are two ways you can start.

Large Time Frame

If you’re setting aside a large chunk of time, start by taking every single item out of your closet, even the hangers, and place it all on your bed.  

Pulling out all of your clothing in one big overwhelming pile helps you see just how much stuff you have so you’re motivated to get rid of more.

Tip: Now is a great time to give your closet a good vacuum and a wipe-down.

Short Time Increments

If you’ve set aside 30 minutes, start with sections. Pick one section,  like dresses, shirts, pants, or shoes, and pull all of that section out. 

If you don’t have your clothing sorted into sections already,  you might want to start with that. Move around all of your clothes so that “like” items are together. This may seem daunting, but don’t worry about colors or length. Just move all dresses together, shirts together, pants together, and so on. You can do this in 30-minute time slots as well. After you have all “like” items together then you are ready to start!

Work your way around the closet doing one section daily until you have completed your entire closet.

Pile Of Clothing on Hanger

The Clean out stage

When sorting your clothing, whether all at once or in sections, the process is the same.

Create three areas in your space for Keep, Donate, Sell/Toss. You can use garbage bags, laundry baskets, plastic tubs, or simply designate areas on your bed or floor for these. Use my free PDF printable signs to help keep things organized.

Sort all items. Decide which pile each item should be placed in. Some key things to keep in mind when sorting.

Decision Making Questions To Assist in Clothing Sorting

 

When placing items in a category, don’t second guess your decision! Keep sorting so you don’t lose your drive!

 

Tip: Stop buying new hangers. On laundry day when it's time to hang clean clothes up and hangers are hard to find, I know it's time to go back through my closet. This keeps the amount of clothing I own manageable, and keeps my closet from getting too packed.

 

Putting your “Keep” Pile Back

Matching hangers help streamline the look of your closet. If you can’t invest in all new hangers. I suggest swapping them around so that all of your sections have the same color hangers. For example, all tops could have white hangers and dresses could have black hangers.

When you’re ready to put your edited clothing and accessories back in their homes, put your frequently used items in the most accessible locations in your storage space. For example, if you’re a daily yoga instructor, place workout clothing in the front of the closet and more formal attire in the back. You don’t need quick access to these items during your daily routines. Save the prime real estate in your storage for your most used items!

Sort your clothing into groups, placing “like with like”.Groups can be pants, dresses, shirts, tank tops, etc…

Remember: Not everything needs to be hung up. I have color-coded stacks of tank tops on my top shelf. I group them by hue. 

  • Red, Pink & Orange
  • White
  • Gray & Black
  • Green & Blue

I use these shelf dividers to make little cubbies for my t-shirts, tank tops, jeans, and leggings. You can find them on Amazon or at your local home improvement store. Visit the list of my favorite organizing products for more options. 

 

Color-Blocking Fun!

When clothing is grouped, you can apply the color-blocking method. Designate a spot in your closet for each clothing group. Make sure to base it on what you need access to most in your daily routines.

Within each section, organize clothes based on the rainbow color spectrum. For example, group all shades of red shirts together.  Here is the order of colors: black, gray, white, tan, pink, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.

When you come across a patterned item, group it with the most prominent color in the pattern.

Color Coding Shirts in Rainbow Order

Here is the organized closet after we sorted, edited, and applied the color-blocking method! Nothing new was purchased for this closet makeover, we repurposed what we already had on hand!

This beautiful and simple method makes maintaining your organizational system a breeze. You know where to go to find what you need and you know where items need to be placed when putting clothing away. This method is also helpful for children – a visual system children can see and use all by themselves.  I organized my husband’s side of the closet this way, and he is still putting things back with the correct colors!

Below are a few of the top professional organizing tips to help you along the way.

 

Professional Organizer Tips for Organizing Your Closet

 

I would love to hear how you organize and color code your closet. Leave me a comment below!

Family Command Centers: Organizing Your Busy Family

Do you find yourself overwhelmed with the daily struggle of managing your household? Whether your family consists of 2 or 12, the balance between navigating schedules, paying the bills, birthdays, school events, work and so much more can be all-consuming.

Family Command Centers: Organizing Your Busy Family

Enter the Command Center! A command center is a centralized location for inputs, processes, and outputs. The military uses them. Why shouldn’t we? Family command centers are places where you can input all of your family’s important dates and times visually—surrounded by your family’s daily processes like chores, meals, notes, and to-dos.  With back-to-school just around the corner, now is the perfect time to create your very own command center. Follow my steps to organize your busy family today.

Step 1: Pick a Location

The command center should be in a central location in your home. I have mine set up on a wall between the kitchen and living room. I feel that most of my at-home time is spent in the kitchen, and since people are always hungry, it’s usually a busy area.

Where to Put a Command Center

 

Step 2: command center calendar

This should be the center of the command center. From Amazon to Etsy, calendar options are endless! I recommend dry erase so you can update and reuse it for years. Below are some of my favorite centerpieces for a command center.Command Center Calendar

This dry-erase calendar is the one I have in my home. It’s from Inspired Decor Co. on Etsy. It has a place for your menu and notes on it as well.

 

Magnetic and Dry Erase Calendar to use in a family command center.

Here is a simple budget-friendly option from U Brands on Amazon. It only cost around $23!

Glass Calendar for Family Command Center

Here is a glass calendar from Target for a simple modern look.

 

No matter what style of calendar you choose, be sure to measure your space and choose a calendar that is large enough to fit all of your important dates for your family. After all, the calendar is the heart of your command center.

Step 3: command center must have options

Every family is different, so there are no one-size-fits-all command center must-haves. Below are some of my recommendations.

  • Menu Board-A place to write down your meals for the week so you can shop and plan ahead. Also, a place for the family to check what’s for dinner each night, saving you time answering questions about it!
  • Shopping List & Reminders-A place to make notes on what you need to shop for and reminders for any to-dos you may have coming up. 
  • Notes-Here you can write any notes or reminders for the week or month. Or, it can be a place for you to leave a cute “I love you” or inspirational quote on your way out the door for the day. 
  • Family Chore Chart-Have a chore chart so everyone knows their roles for the week and what they are responsible for. Helpful for adults and kids alike! 
  • Hanging Wall Paper Organizers-Take out menus, sports schedules, bills…These can also be used for kids. One for each child. They can be used to hold your child’s daily take-home folder and homework. 
  • Paper for Quick Notes-A simple roll of kraft paper for a grab-and-go note is always handy. 
  • Cork Board or Magnetic Strip-Here is a good place for party invitations, kid’s artwork, or greeting cards.
  • Key Hooks-Hanging keys in the same spot every day can save you time!

 

Step 4: put it all together

I approach my command center as I would a gallery wall, and Command™ Picture Hanging Strips are going to be your best friend! They are strong and non-damaging! Pick some command center options listed above to create a simple layout.  Below are some layout options. The possibilities are endless. Print & Proper has a great blog post about how to lay out a gallery wall that can be very helpful here.

 

Gallery Wall Art Template Layouts for a Family Command Center

Money Saving Tip

Make your own or download my charts for free! You just print out the charts on paper and place them in an 8 ½ by 11-inch picture frame! You can write right on the glass with dry erase markers! Click on the images to get your free download. 

Meraki Home Organization Free Chart Download for Weekly Meals & Chores

DIY command center too much work for you?

If a DIY Command Center feels like too much work, there are All-In-One Systems you can purchase! Here are a few options at different price points!

 

pottery barn daily system $$$

Pottery Barn Daily System for Family Command Centers

1 Thrive command your life $$

The home depot $

Family Command Center from The Home Depot

 

Having a command center will streamline your day-to-day tasks and save you precious time that you could be spending with your loved ones!

Do you already have a command center that you love? Leave a comment below and share the creative ways that you organize your busy family!