Q & A with Dilly Carter, Author of Create Space
Dilly Carter is a professional organiser and the founder of Declutter Dollies - a comprehensive organizing and home styling service that promises to turn people’s chaos into calm.
She has zhuzhed the homes of A-list actors, authors, fitness influencers, CEOs of well known companies and also busy mums. She can tackle a mansion but also overhaul small spaces in two hours.
When Dilly organises things, she doesn’t just arrange things aesthetically, she resets the approach on how her clients live and how their home operates. Proper organisation can make you feel like you have moved into a brand new house and not only that, but freeing yourself from stressful mess will help you find headspace and mental clarity,
“I want to provide the tools to empower you and give you back control of you whole life, not just in your home but in your mind”
There are books on creating an organised home already, but this one is different. It will give you a reality check and help you get your whole life in order.
Learn some of Dilly’s top tips for reclaiming your space, your time and your mind today!
Read more below.
Having a well organised home saves you time in your daily tasks. It allows you to be in control of your space and most importantly know where everything is. This in turn also helps you to take control of your spending as you can now see what you already have.
I use these 4 simple steps:
1. Empty the space and clean it thoroughly
2. Go through what you have emptied and organise items into their like for like groups.
3. Sort through the ‘Three Rs’:
Rubbish to throw away
Items to Recycle
And
Items to Return to their rightful place
4. Reorganise the space with the items you have left, returning them to the space in their groups - beautifully.
Kitchens tend to be the most unorganised spaces followed by the bedroom.
Kitchens are my favourite room in the house to organise because they are such a powerful space in our homes. They can make such a difference to people’s lives as they are totally functional but they are also the hub of the house. Kitchen’s shape the way we interact with our families and the memories we create together, so we really need to take the time to look after them. It is essential that your kitchen flows and has a structure that works for the whole household.
Label maker so things always return to the right places every time.
And also containers/ jars for food so you can control your spending. They are not just an aesthetic storage solution, they allow us to see exactly what we have and to be able to identify when we need to buy more.
Containers can be expensive, so for things going away in cupboards, consider holding on to containers for household items that are now finished with and you would normally chuck out, for example, a Quality Street tin.
Get them involved.
You could ask them to help organise with you to get them involved. Explain but don’t just do things for them. You could give them some responsibility when sorting, for children this will also be a big confidence booster as they gain some independence whilst helping you.
Show them and teach them from a young age.
Try to create a system with structure for your children wherever possible. Shadow what they learn at school. Children like structure and routine, and they need it too! Divide toys as much as you can, keeping all the things of one type together so they are easily accessed. Not only does it make tidying up faster and easier, it will help your children become considerate partners/housemates in the future.
Labelling helps with the above as well, so everyone in the house knows everything has a place.
The only reason our houses are messy is because of our own overconsumption of toys, clothes, food, cleaning products…
We need to stop buying. We need to be mindful and only buy what we really need.
When decluttering, look at something and think:
Does it make you smile? Evoke emotion? Is it purposeful? Irreplaceable? Everything you own in your home should be items you love, use or really need. If they do that, they really need to stay.