A professional organiser who gets paid to sort people's messy homes is sharing her tips to sort your house in time for Christmas - and her golden rule is to declutter first. Rebecca Galligan, 41, is a "natural-born organiser" and made her full-time passion her career.
After working for 14 years in marketing with a big toys company, Rebecca went on maternity leave in 2018. She took a four-year career break and started 'Rebecca's home sort' as a passion project in November 2021.
Now, she helps people all over the country "sort their lives out" - providing long-term decluttering solutions so people can "fall in love with their homes again". ‘Tidy Bex’ shares her life-changing tips and tricks for people to declutter their homes in time for the festive period - including breaking the job down into bite-sized chunks and repurposing old storage items.
The mum-of-two, from Woodstock, Oxfordshire, said: “Sorting out homes is my passion. I love the fact I’m helping others fall in love with their homes again.
“I come home after an eight-hour decluttering session and I’m bouncing off the walls - I love it so much. The longer I was off on maternity leave, the more I was keen to carry on my side hustle full-time.
“I’m an organised person in every aspect so I decided to make home organising and decluttering my focus. I declutter, organise and style homes for clients in-person and remotely."
Rebecca charges her customers an hourly rate as jobs can be quicker or longer than envisioned - rates for organisers across the country can vary between £30 and £60 an hour.
Rebecca’s top tips and tricks for an organised happy home include starting with decluttering. She said: "You cannot start organising without clearing out items you don’t need and use."
She also says it's important not to do everything at once. “For goodness’ sake don't try to do everything at once,” Rebecca said.
Rebecca advises to break down the decluttering into doable bite size chunks to fit around a busy schedule. This could be one small corner of a room or spending one hour an evening doing the job.
She also says she has a 'rule of three' - meaning there are three piles and three questions. She explained: "You must break everything into three piles. Pile one - recycle and rubbish. Pile two - donate. And pile three - sell.
“I try to recycle, repurpose and sell as much as possible but don’t underestimate the third pile - sell. There is money to be made on Vinted, Facebook marketplace and eBay."
The three questions Rebecca says everyone must ask are 'Do you use it? Do you need it? Do you love it?'. The organiser explained if the answers to these questions are yes, keep the item.
If the answers are no, she suggests you should add the item to one of the three piles. She also says it's important to find storage solutions.
Rebecca said: “The solution may be under your nose, as you declutter you might find old boxes and Kilner jars to repurpose elsewhere in your home.”
For on-display storage, Rebecca says people might wish to have more aesthetically pleasing boxes from companies such as iDesign or Not a Boring Box. She swears by Home Bargains and Dunelm for incredible storage solutions without a hefty price tag.
Rebecca added: “Charity shops are absolutely brilliant places for storage, you can find wooden crates, wicker baskets and leather trunks.” She says people need to "organise what is left".
Rebecca said: “Once you have decluttered you can find a home for the things you truly love and organise.”
She says it's also important to ask for help if you need it. “Clearing out can be a daunting process - if you find it overwhelming, family, friends and professionals are there to help,” Rebecca said.
You can get more advice from Rebecca @RebeccasHomeSort.
Rebecca's simple hacks for keep a tidy home
Keep a donation bag in bottom of wardrobe
“Keeping a donation bag in your wardrobe helps you to stop things building up, even if you have just done a clear out,” Rebecca said.
Keep two baskets - an upstairs-downstairs basket and one in the kitchen
“I keep a basket at the bottom of my stairs to throw things into that get left in the wrong place that I can carry up at the end of the day," she said. “I have a belly basket for my kitchen to keep things in that I don’t want out on the surface.”
Keep things in a logical place
"In the kitchen you should have your heavy pots and pans next to your oven and can locate your less-used items further away - it's all about the flow," she said.
Strive for progress not perfection
"It's all very well striving for picture perfect cupboards or drawers, but it’s about finding a system or solution that works for you and your home," said Rebecca. She added: “When you declutter and organise it’s going to get worse, before it gets better but trust me- there’s method in the madness."
Rebecca's top tips and tricks for an organised home
1. Start with decluttering
2. Don't do everything at once
3. The Rule of Three - have three piles and ask yourself three questions. The three piles are Recycle and rubbish, Donate, Sell. The three questions you must ask - Do you use it? Do you need it? Do you love it?
4. Find storage solutions
5. Organise what is left
6. Ask for help
