Most houses have them: hot spots where the family dumps everything from homework and bike helmets to sneakers and cell phones. We offer fast fixes for organizing the messiest, my-home-is-out-of-control spaces.

Behold the picture-perfect home: Appliances sparkle, plates and utensils gleam, pillows are forever fluffed, the floors are so clean you can eat off them. Oh please! While the time-honored deep-cleaning ritual that spring used to bring sounds lovely, it just doesn’t fit on our iCals anymore. We’ve learned to survive with scuffed floorboards and the fur Fido leaves behind. What we really need is a battle plan to win the war on clutter. Dust bunnies we can live with; it’s the disorder that drives us nuts. By organizing the dumping grounds— spots like the entryway, dinning room table, kitchen or playroom where clutter seemingly clings—we can bring much-needed order to our homes. It may not be the company-is-coming sort of clean our mothers strived for each spring, but it can help lighten heavy-duty chores and allow us to feel like everything is where it should be. Here, experts’ timesaving techniques and simple shortcuts that will make spring cleaning a breeze.

Entryway
This is first spot you see when you walk in the door after a long day, and it’s the last thing you look at in the morning as you run for the train. (It’s also where guests get their first impression of your home, but we’re not even going there.)
And talk about a feng shui nightmare: This is the space where jackets lie splayed on the floor, where sports equipment threatens to topple, car keys vanish and household bills disappear (“What do you mean they’re shutting down our cable?”). For such a small area, a lot seems to accumulate here—mostly unintentionally. But with a few simple steps, you can gain control and get the chi flowing.

Place a pretty drop box at the door (check out pepperkids storage crates, $29, thepepperkids.com). Toss in keys, mail, wallets, the kinds of things that often seem to have evaporated into thin air when you’re searching for them. as long as these oft-lost items have a regular spot they can land every day, you’re all set.

Hang an over-the-door organizer (try the natural canvas over the door organizer with Mirror by Richards Homewares, $26, organize.com) near the front door or in the coat closet, low enough for kids to reach the bottom pockets.


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