With the holidays approaching, I’d like to offer you a quick win in the decluttering department. This will only take you 15 minutes or less… are you ready? Declutter your gift wrap!

My gift wrap used to resemble the cluttered backroom of a forgotten Hallmark store: unwieldy spools of ribbon, bags of bows, thrice-used tissue paper, and legions of wrapping paper (in various states of unroll) were stuffed into my closet as if I was a prepper awaiting the gift wrap apocalypse.

But since adopting simplicity, I’ve come to one main conclusion about gift wrap:

Your gift wrap should function like a nice cocktail dress.

In other words, make sure your gift wrap works for multiple occasions. (Think a little more LBD and a little less Lady Gaga in the meat dress, ya know?) 

Here are some examples:

• “Happy Arbor Day to a Great Mailman” wrapping paper? NO

• Plain blue paper you can dress up with colorful ribbons? YES

• “It’s a Girl!” sparkly pink gift bag? NOPE

• Plain silver gift bag you can accent with tissue paper? OH YEAH!

• “Happy Mother’s Day Great-Grandma” paper? SORRY BUT NO

• Brown craft paper your kids can paint to create a one-of-a-kind-grandma-tear-inducing gift unwrapping experience? THE HECK YES

Ready to do this? Here’s how:

STEP 1: Remove all gift wrap from your closet. Yep, all of it. Even that “30 and Flirty” gift bag you’ve been hanging on to in case you turn 30 again.

STEP 2: Make piles according to type–tissue paper together, rolls of paper together, etc. Arrange gift bags by SIZE, since that is the #1 determinant of which bag you’ll use.

STEP 3: Ruthlessly cull, remembering that gift wrap is your LBD and should work for multiple occasions.

Fill your recycling bin with glee, and yes, you can donate extra gift wrap that’s still in good condition. Why not? I’m sure there’s a mailman out there just waiting to be wished a very happy Arbor Day… 😉 

To less stuff and more you, 

PS: If you’re a busy working mom who wants to simplify your work-mom life, but aren’t sure where to start… join me for my FREE *live* masterclass: How to Organize Your Family’s Home Without Exhausting Yourself or Resorting to Threats. Click here to save your spot!