Note: This is a guest post by Andrea Dekker.
A common misconception in the organizing world is that the solution for too much stuff is simply to find more space.
All you need to do is get more creative with your storage, buy more bins and baskets, use vertical space more efficiently, hang additional shelves, add a closet, build another garage, finish off the basement, or rent a storage unit.
After all, won’t more space magically solve our stuff problems?
You may live in a home with poorly designed storage spaces, which certainly doesn’t help the situation. However, in my experience as a professional organizer and mother of 4 young children, lack of space is rarely ever the main issue.
The main issue is owning too much stuff.
As humans, we are naturally wired to want more — even those of us who try to live minimally and contentedly with what we have.
It’s easy to let emotions dictate our purchases or inhibit our ability to let go of items we no longer need.
Can you relate?
One solution = Space Budgets.
What are space budgets?
They are simply boundaries (or budgets) for our space.
The concept is similar to setting a timer to limit the time we spend on a specific task. Or creating a budget to assure we don’t spend more money than we have.
With a space budget, the goal is to use the space we have… and remove everything that doesn’t fit within that space.
Easier said than done, I know! But once you get on board with space budgets, your minimalism goals will be much easier to achieve.
How to Use Space Budgets in Your Home:
Clothing. Set a limit of how many hangers you will allow in your closet (choose a number that realistically fits, with plenty of breathing room).
Whatever number you choose is now your “space budget”. It determines the number of clothing items you will allow to live in your closet.
If you purchase a new item of clothing only to realize your hangers are all used up, your choices are to either return the item or donate something currently in your closet. Similarly, if you are gifted bags of hand-me-downs, you can select a few favorites and guiltlessly donate the rest, since they don’t fit within your space budget for that particular closet.
By utilizing a space budget for your clothing, you can almost guarantee you’ll never have a cluttered closet again!
Kitchen Gadgets. Designate a specific shelf or drawer for food storage containers, water bottles, small appliances, dish towels, serving platters, etc., and vow to only keep what will fit in that drawer or on that shelf.
When you have a drawer that won’t close or a shelf that constantly spills over, you know you’re crossing your space budget boundary and it’s time to take action.
However, instead of feeling overwhelmed by the thought of reorganizing your entire kitchen, you can focus your energy on that one specific area and feel good about the fact that you solved your space problem in just a few minutes.
Seasonal Decor. If you’re the type who enjoys redecorating your home throughout the seasons, space budgets will help you keep your storage under control while still enjoying a festively decorated home.
First determine how much space you are willing to “sacrifice” for seasonal decor, then put your favorite items in that space (I like using a large clear storage tub). Once the allotted space is comfortably full, the rest must go. Period!
As you change out decor items with the seasons, your space budget will alert you when it’s time to weed through and remove your least-favorite items.
Your space budget will also serve as a helpful reminder not to go crazy with after-holiday specials… if they won’t fit within your allotted space, don’t bring them home.
Use Space Budgets Anywhere!
This same process can be applied to ANYTHING in your home — books, toys, games, outer gear, luggage, gift wrapping supplies, technology, workout equipment, dishes, cleaning supplies… even furniture!
Simply designate a specific amount of space for your items and commit to not using more space than that.
Yes, that might mean you need to get creative or make do without a certain convenience… but won’t it be worth it when you can enjoy a less cluttered, less chaotic home each and every day?
A space budget is a simple and free tool that works!
Well… it works, as long as you don’t cheat!
The goal is not to cram as much into our spaces as possible, but rather, to allow space for the things we truly need and use — hopefully with a little empty space and “breathing room”.
It’s a lovely feeling to open a drawer, find exactly what you need in just a few seconds, and easily close the drawer again. Space budgets can help you accomplish this throughout your entire home!
Just as we know it’s in our best interest to faithfully budget our finances and our time, we will also benefit from budgeting our space.
The next time you feel the need for more storage space, consider instead implementing a space budget and simply storing less.
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Andrea Dekker is a wife and mother of 4 young children who loves nothing more than being home! She’s passionate about creating a peaceful home, pursuing a simpler + slower lifestyle, and encouraging women in all stages of life to lean into their values and live more intentionally. She shares new content weekly at AndreaDekker.com.
This is a fabulous concept!! Dana K White (A Slob Comes Clean) talks about this as “The Container Concept.” You can keep anything you want, but it must fit into its allotted space. It really does help to focus on what you have and love. Sometimes it’s easier to pick your favorites to keep and let the rest go, rather than choose which to part with.
I live like this all the time! It works great!
What a great concept. It’s like Parkinson’s Law applied to space/clutter.
Parkinson’s Law of course being that a project will use up all the resources assigned to it.
If you have an essay, chances are you’ll be working on it right up until the 11th hour.
If you have an allocated budget for a project, you’ll use every last penny in maintaining a balance of cost vs time vs quality.
If you have a family budget, then ‘lifestyle creep’ will ensure you stretch every last penny out of it.
Likewise, if you have X amount of space, chances are you’ll fill it and overflow it :D
It’s why I stopped buying new ‘storage solutions’, because I know if I buy a new set of drawers, then I’m going to fill it with things.
I love this idea of consciously budgeting your space instead of unconsciously letting available space be filled.
I love the simplicity of this idea. Limit what you own by the space that you have! This post encouraged me to take another look at my closet and take out things I never wear or that do not fit anymore. I actually wear the same 10 things all the time because they fit well and I like them! Why are there other items even there? I like the idea of having a choice, I might get back into that outfit (wishful thinking), I spent a lot of money on the item, or I am emotionally attached to the memory of when i wore that item. None of these reasons equate to “I am going to actually wear this item again.”
This post is helping me to feel motivated today & thinking of creative ways to use what I already have to make more space, one drawer/section at a time.
I am going through old photos and documents: framed photos of my children growing up, old photos of relatives, my children’s baby books, cards from children….my high school/college pictures and diplomas….my grandfather’s well-organized trip to Sweden….I want my children to know what he sacrificed to come to America, why he left Sweden, and what it was like to go back 40 years later…I am 72. I have a large, disorganized closet full of these things. I want to get it down to 1-2 shelves. I want to preserve what is important, but I don’t want to leave a mess for my children.
This is a great idea! My husband and I plan to downsize our house in the next couple of years, so I am actually decluttering now and purposely emptying some shelves/cabinets/closets so that it is easier to move when the time comes. I am also identifying the furniture we will let go of when we have fewer rooms in our next house.
I like this idea as it gives you a different perspective on minimalizing. For me the part about being able to find things right away is so important when you think about how much time can be wasted otherwise. It always reminds me of the saying “A place for everything & everything in it’s place”. (Mother of two young and rambunctious cats)
Thanks Andrea
This is a great article Andrea. I think a space budget is probably the single most important tip you could give anyone. We lived in 400 sq ft for 10 years and that was our space budget. We still had more than we needed and as time passed I desired the room more than the stuff…it’s funny to think that at first I thought ikea would fix it all! Thankfully we don’t live anywhere near an ikea and I had to learn to keep it simple instead!
wow — 400 square feet! That’s impressive :)
And yes, we live 3 hours from an Ikea — which is probably for the best!!
Wow–glad to read that you were happy in a small home.
I am preparing to relocate to a 680 sq ft apartment and it will be the smallest space I ever lived in. Looking forward to the challenges and rewards that come with downsizing.
When we moved into a small apartment we knew not all our furniture would fit. We also acknowledged that we needed a place to file some important papers. One we realized we could use a nice file cabinet as an end table in our living room two space problems disappeared like magic. It amazes me how minimalism encourages creativity.