Get Organized Month - Declutter Your Linen Closet

Choose one linen closet or one area where you keep your linens - whether towels or sheets, it doesn't matter. If you're feeling extra energetic and you have more than one place where you keep linens, go on to another area!!

Take all the linens (and anything else) out of the closet, drawer, shelf, etc.

- Sheets. If you store sheets in the area you are decluttering, match sheet sets. In order to keep them together, you may want to tie a ribbon around each set and attach a note stating its size (king, queen, full, twin, crib), especially if they are sheets you don't use often.

If you end up with mismatched sheets because you let your child use one as part of a costume, decide if you want to keep them. They might go with other mismatched sheets to form a set (wouldn't that be amazing?).

If they are in poor shape, you can recycle them as rags, kite tails, for tying up tomato plants, or for other uses. If you have an excessive number of sets, determine which ones you will let go.

With the sheet sets you have left, make sure they fit the beds in your house. If you no longer have twin beds, get rid of those sheets! Put them in your sewing cabinet, give them, donate them, but get rid of them! If you sew, sheets are wonderful assets - great for curtains, quilts, and other sewing projects.

- Towels. Do the same thing with your towels - match sets. Determine if you have
too many, enough, the right kind and color for your "philosophy of towels" :

- use a different towel each day philosophy
- use one a week philosophy
- leave the pretty ones up for show and use other ones philosophy
- use them until you can see through them philosophy
- who cares if they match philosophy.

If you enjoy having matching towels, here's a hint to get more mileage out of them: when you purchase towels, buy extra hand towels and wash cloths. They wear out faster and can be replaced without replacing the bath towel.

Now that you've sorted and discarded unwanted linens, arrange them in the linen closet, drawer, etc. in like stacks - all queen sheets together, for example. Place the ones you use most often in the most accessible place and the ones you use least often farther away.

Doesn't that feel good? Is your house feeling lighter?