Ros Sparks, professional de-clutterer, shares her tips for turning your pad into a spacious sanctuary this spring. For more home detox ideas, check out the article we posted on ruthless spring cleaning. To find out more about Ros Sparks Home Decluttering, visit the official website.
Make room
Before you start any job in the house you have to clear out your clutter. That alone gives you a pep in your step and creates space and light. I usually have a consultation with the client a week beforehand, and go through each room in the house. That way I get a very good feel of what the client wants, take notes of what they want to keep or throw away and get to know them. I am quite sensitive with them, and would not bully them into anything, but the client really has to want to do the job 100%. As the day goes on the house begins to feel spacious - we would even begin to move furniture around because there is more space.
I usually do a client's wardrobe, which is fun and very rewarding. I give the client some basic ground rules like for example if you haven't worn it in two years ...out! But any designer clothes I always advise them to keep. I encourage people to have a box of special things, such as one special copy book full of essays, a few drawings, maybe birthday cards. When it’s your own house you are inclined to be indecisive and it is easier for an outsider to do it.
My style
My home is not so clinical that there is no clutter. I have three boys at home still who are typical students When I am talking to clients I emphasise that, while you must be able to move around in your house and not gather clutter, it is still a home. The reason why I do this is because I have moved house 11 times. I am a natural de-clutterer. I have moved all over the world because of my husband's job and it means that there is less to move. This in turn saves money and time.
How I started de-cluttering
I stopped myself gathering clutter, then I started doing it for friends, before they moved out of their houses, or I would offer when I saw a room full of clutter. I started doing it professionally two years ago. I take the same approach in my home, certainly with my clothes. There is no point in keeping anything that is not being worn. It’s also nice to think that someone else may enjoy it. When I put my clothes away at the end of summer or winter I get rid of anything that looks tired or that I have not worn. I always have a Vincent de Paul bag to continually top up, and when I do my recycling I drop off the bag.
It makes sense
De-cluttering is the most obvious thing to do if you let a painter in or get a new anything. The first thing you must do is clear clutter. A whole lot of areas are created by clearing it out. In the kitchen, for example, if you buy a new dinner service and you still have the old one, when are you going to use all of them?
What we do
The cost of my service depends on how much clutter you have. It is very hard to decide a fee when I have not seen the house yet and do not know how many people I need. It could be anything from €800 to €2000, and then sometimes it takes only two hours. It depends on how big the house is and how much clutter it contains.
