One of the best ways to prevent clutter, is to stop it before it starts. Here are three simple questions to ask yourself:

1) Am I going to use it?
Many a clutter pile originally started from an impulse buy. Perhaps you were enticed by an infomercial on TV for a handy-dandy pancake flipper? Or perhaps you bought a new dress adorned with glitter and lace because it looked so pretty on the store mannequin.

Before you buy something, always ask yourself a) if you're going to use it, and b) if you're going to use it often enough to be worth the space it's going to take up in your home.

The pancake flipper would probably be worth it if you use it once a week, or once every two weeks. But, if you're only going to use it once every few months, it's probably not worth the extra money or the extra space it's going to take up in your kitchen cabinets.

The same goes for the glittery, lacy dress. Unless you spend a lot of time at dressy parties and events, opt instead for something you'll make more use of. Otherwise, it's just going to be taking up space in your clothes closet.

In addition, if you have well meaning friends or relatives who are constantly trying to pass things on to you that they no longer need, and that you don't need either, learn to politely say "Thanks, but no thanks."

2) Am I going to use it now, or in the near future?
Of course, if you have a lawn and you spend a lot of time mowing, and you need a new lawn mower, and you see a mower on sale in the winter--then, you might want to take advantage of purchasing that item while it's on sale.

However, beware of buying things with the reasoning, "I'm not sure when I'll use it, but I'll use it someday."

My friend, who never bakes, was planning to buy a spring form pan because I had one. Her reasoning was that if she had a spring form pan in her possession, that it might entice her to bake someday.

I told her that before she goes out and buys one, that I would loan her mine for a week. She could leave it on her countertop, and see if the inspiration hit her.

Needless to say, she returned the pan within a week and told me that she hadn't had the inspiration yet, so she would borrow it from me when she was ready to bake--that was three years ago.

In other words, she saved money by not buying that spring form pan. It would have been gathering dust for years.

3) Where is it going to go?
On my last trip to Pier One--a wonderful store for purchasing decorative items for the home--I came across a candle holder that I really liked. But before making the purchase, I immediately asked myself "Where is it going to go?" After some thought, I determined it would look great in my home office on my bookshelf, on the 2nd shelf from the top.

I also came across a neat looking basket that I was considering buying along with the candle holder. But when I asked myself, "Where is it going to go?", I could not come up with an area off the top of my head. In the end, I bought the candle holder, but did not buy the basket.

Make sure you have a clearly defined "home" for the item you're considering getting. Otherwise, it's bound to be brought home, put someplace temporarily, and eventually end up in a pile of other purchases that were not well thought out.

by Maria Gracia - Get Organized Now! http://www.getorganizednow.com FREE Get Organized Now! Idea-Pak and E-zine, filled with tips and ideas to help you organize your home, your office and your life, at the Get Organized Now! Web site.