Decluttering Newspapers and Magazines

Are you being inundated with printed material? Here are a few hints to keep it under control:

When you find an article you want to save, cut or rip it out of the newspaper or magazine you're reading. I read my magazines while waiting - the doctor's office, picking up the girls from school, etc. If I find something I want to keep, I just rip out the page. I also circle what I'm interested in, so I don't have to reread the page and I can easily identify where I want to keep it.

If it's a recipe, I put it with other recipes I want to try. If you like to collect decorating ideas, for example, it can be put in a page protector in a binder with other decorating ideas. Or dropped into a hanging file.

The end result? A few pages kept and stored, and the rest of the magazine recycled and out of my house! I traumatized one of my foster daughters one day as I was doing this. She thought I was ripping up the doctor's office's magazines. LOL

If you find yourself not able to read the materials you're receiving, start observing which ones you read and which ones are neglected. Unsubscribe or let your subscription lapse on those you're not reading.

Another idea is to give yourself a day to read your newspaper, and then dispose of it whether you have read it or not. Give yourself a month to read your monthly magazine, and then dispose of it whether you have read it or not. In other words, read your newspaper or magazine before the next one comes.

I love reading the newspaper, but found that I was recycling newspapers regularly without reading them. As much as I hated it, I couldn't really see paying for a newspaper when I didn't have the time to read it. I could usually find the same news online. And it reduced the clutter in my house!

If you do take a newspaper, have an established place where you place old newspapers, ready to recycle. We would place them in a paper grocery bag inside a closet. That way, they were out of the way, and ready to be set out for recycling since the paper bag was also recyclable.

How do you manage your inflow of printed materials?


More on magazines and newspapers:
5-Minute Stress Relievers - Organizing and Cleaning
Get Organized Month 2009 - Decluttering Magazines
Spring Cleaning Using Household Items - Salt, Newspaper, Coffee Filters, and Olive Oil
Tips from a Master Gardener - Watering, Mulch