SPECIAL SECTION: FOR YOUR HOME
SHELF
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Messy shelves in your home driving you mad? Breathe – we have the expert advice you need to tame the chaos.
BY ALIX NICHOLSON
W
hether it’ s a kitchen pantry stacked with half-empty cereal boxes, a linen closet bursting with mismatched towels or that side table that’ s become a dumping ground for keys, cords and yesterday’ s coffee cup... We all know how quickly shelves and surfaces can spiral into disarray.
But with a little intention and a few smart systems, even the most unruly shelves can become streamlined, functional and – dare we say it? – a pleasure to look at.
Start with intention
Whether the shelves you’ re tackling are on display or behind closed doors, professional organiser Amy Revell, owner of The Art of Decluttering( theartofdecluttering. com. au), suggests taking a moment to consider the ideal purpose for the shelf in question.“ Out-of-control shelves are common, especially when there aren’ t clear intentions for how you use the shelf,” she explains.“ A shelf needs a purpose. Decide if your shelf is going to be functional or decorative, or a combination of both. Once you understand the purpose you can more easily organise what you keep there.”
Decluttering and organisation coach Lauren Winzar( laurenwinzar. com. au) echoes this sentiment.“ Before touching a single item, I ask,‘ What do I want this space to do for me? What is its ideal purpose in my day-to-day life?’” she says.
Clean the slate
Once you’ ve defined the purpose of the shelves you’ re working with, it’ s time to decide what stays and what goes.
To do that, Amy recommends starting with an empty shelf.“ Rather than looking at the shelf and deciding which individual items to remove, take every item off the shelf, clean it then decide what to put back,” she suggests.
Next it’ s time to curate.“ Curating isn’ t just about getting rid of stuff – it’ s about choosing what belongs,” Lauren explains.“ Every item gets gently interrogated:‘ Do you support the dream or are you just loitering?’”
Amy also suggests asking yourself a few key questions, including,“ Do I still need this? Is this where it belongs, or does it belong elsewhere? If it belongs here, does it need to be put in a container to make it neater?” >
COSTCO CONNECTION SEP / OCT 2025 | 23