CELEBRITY EXPERT SHARES CHRISTMAS-FOCUSED DECLUTTER TIPS

With October half-term fast approaching and festive gifts already appearing on the shelves, celebrity organiser Dilly Carter says that now is an ideal time to clear out the clutter ahead of all the hosting, decorating and gift-giving that takes place at Christmas.

As the company behind the clutter-clearing HIPPOBAGs, waste removal firm HIPPO teamed up with TV personality Dilly Carter earlier this year in a bid to encourage more Brits to get decluttering and to do so in a way that’s kind to our environment.

Organisation expert, author of Create Space and TV presenter, Dilly is the ultimate ‘go to’ expert for those looking to transform their clutter chaos into an organised oasis. And, as an eco-friendly, hassle-free alternative to the cumbersome metal skip, HIPPO’s HIPPOBAGs are just one of the resources that Dilly would recommend using.

Dilly comments:
“Now is a great time to declutter ahead of Christmas before you start filling your home with decorations, gifts and no doubt a few house guests too! This is why I’m delighted to collaborate with HIPPO and their genius HIPPOBAGs in encouraging more of us to get decluttering! These are my Top Tips for clearing the clutter before guests come round:

1. Go through your crockery
Is your fine dining crockery separate from your everyday set? Should you be using your fine dining set more often, instead of it sitting there unused all year? Don’t save the best for the best. Go through the plates and make sure all the sets are together, matching styles and sizes. Even making sure a set is grouped together can change the aesthetic of your cupboard and help you distinguish what you do not need.

2. Sort linen and towels
What is the linen cupboard and towel situation like in your home? When you have guests staying could they find a towel easily? When did you last go through them? How long have you had them? How are your sets organised? Do you have too many or not enough? Store your sets inside one pillowcase belonging to that set so it’s easier to find. And try and separate them into baskets for single, double, king size, etc.

3. Borrow don’t buy new cutlery or furniture
So many of us buy items we use for one day that then take up space we don’t have. Only buy what you have room to comfortably store.

4. Organise Christmas decorations
If you shoved everything away last year then let’s organise our decorations this year so that it’s a doddle when it comes to decorating our homes next year. Buy enough separate storage boxes or use old shoeboxes to separate types of decorations. Label every box with a pen, labeller or simple white stickers. It’s always good to separate decorations by style or colour. The more we split up our decorations the easier they are to find and use what we need or don’t each year. It also helps to wrap your lights around a hanger to keep them from getting tangled. Make sure you use one hanger per set.

5. Get rid of your Christmas clutter
After Christmas Day, sort through the inevitable pile of rubbish by grouping items together according to how and where they can be disposed of. Remember sticky tape, glossy wrapping paper and broken glass decorations cannot be recycled, unlike Christmas trees or old toys and clothes that have now been replaced by a new gift. If you don’t have the time or the energy to work through your rubbish then HIPPOBAGs are a brilliant solution! These fully recyclable skip bags are a hassle-free, eco-friendly alternative to the metal skip. Once you’ve filled your bag, HIPPO will take it away, contact-free, and ensure that over 95% of it is recycled for you, with the remainder disposed of ethically.

Available to buy online at hippowaste.co.uk or through the HIPPO App, HIPPOBAG prices start at £13.99 for the MIDI Bag only or £189.99 for the MIDI Bag with collection. These clever skip bags come in three handy flat-packed sizes so they don’t take up valuable room outside your home until you need to use them.