Organizing our living space can be one of the most challenging aspects of an interior. Do any of you like myself tend to move things from one drawer to the next, and one room to the next?

Being married over 32 years, Tom, but mostly myself collect all those what we thought were treasurable items and put them in boxes. We will periodically clean out a room and just can't throw anything away. We will drag the box and put it in another room. Does this sound familiar?

I wanted to share with you some tips on how to not become a pack rat, and if you already are one, take the time and steps to unclutter your living space.

One of the first things I do is to assess each room. What are the necessities in the room and what items have been around forever and don't really do much for the room? Part of my problem as a designer is I like to save things to use in the future when I want a new look for a certain room. All your collectables can be broken down into a couple of categories. One is memorable, and the other is, "I just can't throw this away."

Organizing your interior space if you have collected things over the years can take a little time. If done right, you will be have items categorized and neatly put away for future use, or give away to a good cause. Below are some simple and basic tips to take your cluttered living area, and create a clean and enjoyable space for you and your family.

1. Assess furniture, accents, and accessories in each room of your living space. Do you really need or use any or some of these items? Can they be used in other rooms, can you part with them, or do you have the room to store them somewhere else?



2. Go through each room and take out the things you don't use, or something that isn't meaningful anymore.



3. Separate the items and put in boxes. Mark on each box what room and what the items are. Determine if you are going to give them away, store, or move to another room.



4. If you have access to a computer, create a spreadsheet of each room. This is a great step to do if you are building a house, moving to another living space, or just trying to get organized.



5. Organize your boxes for storage. Use cardboard or there are a variety of storage containers available to purchase in many different sizes.



6. Don't be afraid to give away things you really don't need. That special collectable item that has stood in the corner forever with two inches of dust on it. Do you really need it or is it a focal point or accent to the room?



7. Periodically go through the containers or boxes, and make sure you really want to keep the items. This is a critical step in not continually saving things you don't use or will never use.

Each room should balance with a focal point, accents, and an enjoyable feel to it. Organizing the boxes by themes and also rooms. You can reuse themes by decorating them in different rooms periodically. This is one thing that I love to do as it stays within my budget, and also creates a new look and feel to a room.

The whole goal with taking cluttered spaces and getting them to where you want them to be, is to take the time to go through old boxes, give away or store items you want for future use, and go ahead and display those memorable items for you and your family to enjoy. 2010's decorating trend continues from 2009 decorating trends, which is decorating your living space with your own personality and your budget. This can be done through themes, color, accents, and accessories. For me personally, this is going to be a goal for the new year.

Organizing my interior space by containers, giving things away, and marking down what I have saved. I hope these simple and basic ideas will get you motivated to take your living space and unclutter the clutter!