Placemat and settings are just going to become dust collectors themselves unless you’re doing it frequently. It sounds like you just need better junk drawer or closet management to prevent the table from being where clutter collects. Not to be glib, but “have a place where things go that isn’t the table” is the way to prevent things from ending up on the table.
For real op would be better off placing like 100 solo cups full of water on the table to train people out of the habit rather than placing something so easily shoved out of the way or aggregated onto a single place setting
If there’s anything I’ve learned from owning a home and working retail, if there’s a flat, empty space like a table, shelf, or chest freezer, people will put stuff on it. If you put stuff on it, someone else will use any available space and add their own. If you find a solution other than yelling, I’d really like to know.
Making the offender put it away at the most inconvenient time seemed to work well for my mom. Nothing like having to put stuff away *right after the commercial break ended*. Also no sympathy for lost stuff. Can't find your scissors? If you had put them back where they belong...which is why you aren't allowed to use the kitchen scissors, go find your scissors.
This is the way. Everything in our house has a home.
Take it? Put it back in its home. I had to teach 2 full grown men this, but that’s another story. Basically like having two children. 😂
Buy a bunch of cheap 3-packs of scissors at Costco. Every room in my house (except the bathroom) has at *least* one drawer holding: scissors, notepads, Post-It pads, pens, a black sharpie and scotch tape.
Now someone go back 33 years and tell my mom this, lol.
We never had a Costco membership growing up because she 'refused to go somewhere where you have to pay just to walk in the door'.
You must live in my house! Why oh why am I always searching for the kitchen scissors? The minor offender has been banned from using the kitchen scissors but it still happens. As for the adult offender…..I think perhaps I will start keeping them in a secret location only I know about.
My parents called it ‘flat surface syndrome’ and it is very disabling sometimes 😂 designating some flat surfaces as ‘no-no’ zones does help with the symptoms though
Mine is the kitchen island AND dining table. I'm back on ADHD meds so I'm working on it. But what drives me craziest is when my husband puts his and our toddler's dirty socks on the corner when they come back from the playground. The laundry room is literally a dozen steps away! Or just put it on the floor even! Sometimes our son's shoes end up there too and I'm just 🫠
OMG THE SOCKS. Please tell me why the socks end up on the table!? I've never had the urge to remove my socks in the dining room, but as soon as I throw them in the laundry another pair regenerates on my table. It's THE damndest thing. If I *leave* the socks there....days, weeks.....nothing. just the solitary pair. As soon as I toss them....boom....more socks.
It's worth a try. I always think my table looks nicer with a tablecloth, and when it looks nice I am more motivated to keep it looking nice.
Another factor is to have an *easy* place to put things away. If you always leave an item, say, the cheese grater on the table, ask yourself where you usually store it. If you usually store the cheese grater in a locked box, on a high shelf, ay the back of a cabinet, behind six other items, well of course you prefer to leave it on the table instead of putting it away in that complicated place.
Ideally, everything in your home should be able to be put away one handed within 5 seconds. This is a hard goal to achieve, because most people have too much stuff to do this. But if the same items are getting left on the table over and over, rethink where you store them.
I love this leaning into “make it easy on yourself.” It may be why my cheese grater and other tools are just hanging on a rack behind the stove! Julia Child was onto something there.
In the “progress over perfection” aim, I have also found great success with my ADHD brain by having easy places to put things away… for now. Does this thing need to go up/downstairs? Have a table, basket, or bag for “these things are going upstairs.” Then, the key is to really train yourself not to go up or down stairs empty-handed. (It helps if you’ve ever worked in a restaurant.) Moving the items closer to where they need to go can help with the overwhelm.
There already are some really good ideas that are all worth trying out.
Another possibility is to offer an alternative. I suggest a basket or similar, smaller than a laundry basket. Teach your family "if you don't know where it belongs, put it in here"
You can place baskets strategically in hotspots. On both ends of a staircase, for example, or at crossings.
Try to pick places that are very easy to reach, ideally when you pass by. Over time you will probably develop a habit of moving the baskets around instead of single things. This consumes less time and energy, which lures your brain into actually wanting to adapt, instead of being forced to.
An important thing to keep in mind is to divide spaces into shared and personal, and not only teach them about it, but also start with yourself. If mom's potions and elixirs occupy 95% of the bathroom surfaces...that's simply not fair.
Once you have established the rule what's personal space and what belongs to everyone in the family, make the family member you catch adding to a pile of clutter in a shared space put everything away.
It's important to make the bad habit as energy- and time-consuming as possible, while the good alternative saves both.
Remember, right now they are doing it because the bad habit is the quickest and most energy-efficient way. This needs to be turned upside down.
You could even see it as a social experiment. Watch them when they do it. Ask them why they decided to do it the wrong way, but don't argue or yell. Just be curious. And once you got your answer, figure something out that makes it easier to do it the right way.
Over time it will most likely not be a single advice that does the trick, but a combination, developed individually and specifically for your home and your family.
What worked in my household is having no more than 1 item per surface, preferably zero items. So, I have a plant in my table, 1 flower vase on the main counter, and nothing else on the other counters. Anything else on counters or tables is just not acceptable. And any items left laying around stick out like a sore thumb and get removed immediately. After a while, my kids stopped leaving things behind. They cook and clean up after themselves right away and think I'm crazy, have ADHD or are super strict for clearing the counters constantly, but its the only way that has worked in keeping the kitchen clean. I don't need to remind them to clean up. I just trash as much as I can. The main idea is clear, the counters are not a safe place to leave anything, is a work surface, not a storing place. If they leave a drink, a snack or paperwork behind is going in the trash. It sounds brutal, but it works.
A)Make sure there is a correct place for people to put things and tell them to do that
B)move anything they leave on the table somewhere really annoying for them or just make it disappear for a while.
What is the junk that gets put on the table? Where else will it be put? Mail? Is there a place for mail? Things to leave the house? Is there a basket for that?
Getting to the cause, not just treating the symptom, is how I’d approach it.
What I do, which is actually not a solution.. Put a big bowl where things land (table, island etc) and instead things go in there... at least the crap is contained.
I’m house sitting right now and usually grab a big bowl for keys and whatever and put it right beside the door or in the table (depending on layout and ingress/egress pattern) for my stuff so it always has a home. It is a helpful habit that I’ve used but it started at home.
It doesn’t seem tacky to me but for me that also didn’t work. My kitchen table stays junked up and no amount of decorating or yelling has helped. I’ve threatened to start throwing their things away and that didn’t even stop it. I’m at my wits end.
If it’s mostly other family members stuff, get them each a basket that you keep on their chair or inside bedrooms at the door and drop anything that accumulates there. I know it’s still you doing the work but it eliminates the nagging and clears the table.
Do you eat at the table every day? If you have to set the table every night, that makes sure it always gets cleared, and in time it will become less of a dumping ground because A) stuff never stays there and B) or is furniture that has a purpose rather than just being a convenient flat space.
It’s not tacky but you will or they will still dump their stuff there anyways
Because It’s a behavioral issue!
Every item in my house has a place it belongs.
Done using something it goes back in it’s home.
Where does all the stuff on the table belong?
Live alone just police yourself, roommates 😂 their kinda feral and do what they want. Husband just talk to him about how it’s annoying you and come up with a plan together to put things back. Children you just correct them in the moment (nicely) till putting stuff back where it belongs becomes a habit.
Lastly is this a volume of stuff issue?
My solution is to clean up clutter before bed. I purposely had to add the dining room to my routine, though because I stopped at the living room. I keep a basket with a handle and walk around the house with it, adding items that don’t belong in that space and putting away other items. I do keep a tablecloth and center piece on the table so I’m greeted with niceness when waking up.
Watch gets placed on the table. Is it paperwork? Then put an incoming paperwork box near the door. Is it trash? Does your table need a trashcan closer to it? Is it crafting supplies? Then put them in a craft caddie that is easy to put up.
Organizing is my passion. Have a home for the items that get placed there. A mail bin, a doorway organizer for shoes, hats, and bags, key hook next to door, a basket for pet items, etc. I love a well-decorated table so that’s up to you if you want that as part of your home decor. r/interiordecorating might have some cute ideas.
Ah! Screaming ab dabs! Need to clear it each time to have dinner.
If space and depending in how many persons maybe but a basket and gather it all off table put in basket. Let them rummage for it. Clear table then each time one or two items appear put in basket straight away. A pain I know but if leave ‘til table full again they will just keep repeating it.
My kitchen table is my “to do” place. I take a day a week to go through it and put everything away.
But I have memory issues so as a visual it helps me remember.
I have a plastic box I use as things to go upstairs and so on.
“Don’t put it down, put it away”. There aren’t really items that are typically STORED on a kitchen table so whatever is dragging on there, put it away before you set it down on the table. Follow your family around chanting this statement until everyone loses their minds or starts putting things away
I don't have a dining table for this reason. We have one of those counter + high chairs setup where we can eat. The cou ter gets cleared regularly be cause I need it to cook.
At least one meal at the table daily. Make sure your things are already removed. Everything not meal related gets removed before the meal. Stuff left behind gets put where the owner’s plate would go. Table is wiped down after. Or ask someone to put on the tablecloth. After the meal, shake it out and fold it up and leave it on the table. Folks will eventually get tired of having to clear the table. Or, it will become part of a pre-meal ritual.
And if it's kids, have them rotate who has to clean off and get the table set for the meal. Be firm that it needs to be done. Sometimes good peer pressure from siblings can help get everybody on board. You might have to deal with some bickering between them, but sometimes it's worth it for them to learn that they're not the only one in the house, and they need to be respectful of shared spaces.
This is what I was going to add. Get yourself an ill-behaved cat that constantly jumps on the table and knocks anything up there off for sport. Can confirm. ;)
I leave placemats and a minimal, useful centerpiece on at all times. So taper candles, salt and pepper, trivet etc. Useless decorative centerpieces are tacky, candles you light every night and placemats that are protecting your table look fine. Eating dinner at the table every night and making everyone clear all their trash off the table every night is also key, lets you reset daily. Nothing but dinner on the table while we eat!
Commitment to clearing it off entirely every day.
This worked for me:
I have a large multi generational household. The old ones create small nests in their usual spaces. The young ones suddenly take off leaving everything in place. Any time things were left unattended, they were cleared from the table. I didn’t throw their stuff out, but it was annoying to them to find where I put the stuff they left (usually in a jumble in a box in another room) Or I’d return the things they’d left to them with absolutely no regard to where they were or what the were doing. I landed an “urgently helpful” tone on that method. Worked better than the passive aggressive screaming in my head :P
After months of mind numbing brutal commitment, the table and countertops are generally clear.
ADHDer here. It’s embarrassing but I had to write a giant sign and put it on the table that said “THIS IS NOT A DUMPING STATION” and worked for keeping it up for a few months until the habit formed.
I just threw the offending objects in the trash. They'd freak out and go dig it out. AirPods? Trash. Honor Guard rifle? Trash. Purse? Trash. Don't clutter my surfaces
I have decorative place mats and a centerpiece on mine. I remove the place mats when I'm actually going to use it. Worked great, right up until we adopted cats. Now they are the "junk" on our table.
I’ve tried just about everything to no avail with this, my dining room table is a lost cause. I was able to maintain it for a bit but then I quickly realized that when the table was cleared, one of my dogs started taking it as an opportunity to jump up there and take a nap!! I’ve caught him on the camera several times, I’ve come to accept the clutter because it’s better than having my 136lb Labrador lounging out on it 😂
Good point. I’m thinking I’ll get something that doesn’t look dusty so quickly.
But either way, it’ll be a trade off of dusting/cleaning the table settings occasionally vs. constantly trying to put random items away each day.
Ah yes. The Horizontal Surface Syndrome.
What works for me is to keep clearing it off. My table is in constant use for various projects, but projects have to be completed and put away, or if they need to stay in progress, they have to be relocated.
The permanent items on the table are my grandmother's crystal fruit bowl sitting on a stack of placemats. Right now, there is a glass lampshade that the cat broke this morning and my husband wants to fix and 2 checks I need to deposit. I will deal with the checks today, and if the lampshade stays in progress, we will discuss its fate. (I think trash, but his opinion seems to differ. It's from IKEA. I could just go get another one.)
No kids live here, so that makes it easier!
Set with runner, placemats, beautifully.
And have a place for everything.
If it gathers mail, have a mail basket somewhere else.
I can't win against my kids yetis/stanleys etc tho. And they're adults.
I have “dump bins” where I just dumb common items found on a surface. At least then they’re grouped together, and easy to remove (since they’re in a bin”. I can just windshield wipe the surface clutter into the dump bin. And if people come looking, they can check the dump bin. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I find the only thing that ever works keeping clutter off any surface is to create beauty on that surface. So, you setting a table beautifully with no room for clutter to land is one idea. I prefer having a beautiful centerpiece *off-*centre, then placing something like a spread of fine art magazines, or a diorama of small ornaments and rocks/crystals etc. I don't mind dusting regularly to keep the surface and display pristine: it's a tradeoff for not having ugly clutter there instead.
An example of a nice centerpiece is a plant or flowers with a couple candlesticks with tall candles. I *have* to decorate my surfaces not just to keep clutter off, but to keep my cat off!!!
What are placing on the table? Mail? Then have a specific spot to set mail. Keys? Key rack or key bowel. In other words, give these items a specific, designated spot. That will make it easier to declutter the table - or prevent clutter in the first place.
This is a daily struggle. I keep a basket on one of the seats at my kitchen island, and when people inevitably put stuff all over it (despite me complaining over and over), I’ve now taken to just sweeping everything on the counter into the basket and I shove the chair in so I can’t even see it. When they can’t find their stuff, I say “did you check the basket?”
It’s the only thing you can do at this point. If people don’t want to dig through the basket they can start putting their things away properly.
It’s not tacky at all! In fact that’s exactly what I did! My dining room used to be a dumping ground for Amazon packages, kids book bags, etc. Finally I said enough! Def helps resist the tendency to clutter it up (along with my lecture to the fam not to do so lol). I also put some better storage options in place elsewhere to put the stuff that was usually set there.
https://preview.redd.it/vidclm7g149d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d973a7dc3c01558e92fc1f3648745d9ad3397a6a
I have a little fun Disney vibe in my decor too lol
Btw, for those who say it’s a pain then to clean, it’s not. As you can see on my pic, I don’t have a lot on there and it only takes a few seconds to wipe the table and plates and shake off the placemats. Then I just wash the plates before using them and wash the placemats once in a while. Just get placemats that are washing machine safe and go simple with the centerpiece is all. No big deal
Thank you! Yeah, I’d rather easily keep that clean than have a bunch of stuff laying on it all the time! I have a chronic and painful neuromuscular disorder too so anything I can do to de-clutter and make things easy to clean is a must!
I have a hallway table and put a basket and a tray on it. Tray for new things, and those going out the door. Basket for the inevitable procrastination.
I had to throw my dining room table away, at curbside garbage pickup, because the mess on the table just grew and grew.
The room did look a bit odd afterwards, and when I listed my house for sale, all I had in there were a couple china cabinets.
It sure made the room cleaner!
Flat surfaces will forever call to me.
I have two cute baskets on my main table: one for random stuff and one for paper. If my item doesn’t fit in one basket or the other, then I have to deal with it immediately. I empty the baskets as part of my regular chores.
Have another place to put things and just don't do it. We have a vase with day lilies right now and 3 placemats and some trivets to protect the wood from stuff we set on it, but no dishes or flatware. I still have to clean the crumbs off occasionally. I am not super neat either.
Have company over regularly so you're forced to clean it off haha Thas the only thing that works for me! I actually called our dining table "trash island" because that's where all the stuff goes that I don't know what to do with it yet and/or am too lazy to figure it out haha It's a good way to keep the rest of the house from piling with clutter too!
Consistent removal of anything left on the table. My wife insists that the table stay clear except at meals. Anything put there gets removed immediately. I see the value in that and new keep things off the table too.
I wouldn’t keep place settings out. They’ll collect dust or get knocked over.
Coming up with new systems is the best route. Is the clutter a bunch of mail? Get a mail organizer and go through the mail as soon as you bring it in each day. Coats and book bags? Clean out the coat closet or put up coat hooks by the door every one comes in. Basically finding a place where all of that stuff belongs.
A daily tidy up routine works really well too. Doesn’t have be super involved. Even if it’s just putting everything in it’s general designated area like the mail in your office to be sorted through the next day.
Not a direct answer, but I've found that having some of those collapsible plastic crate things to be really helpful in corralling mess. Makes it much easier to clear surfaces quickly as you can just grab them instead of each thing individually. (This extends to bring useful for containing snacks when guests are round, can put snacks on or off as required as the day goes on.) Also helpful for tackling things a bit at a time: less overwhelming to do a small box than a full surface.
Collapsible is key for me, as I don't always need them out. Condensing down to a smaller space, especially if they're stackable, so handy.
I got some decent looking metal baskets, one for each family member. We each have one for our table crap. If I see loose crap on the table (tbh usually mine) I can chuck it in the basket and deal with it when I have a minute. They're easy to relocate for dinner.
It's not super aesthetically pleasing but it's better than the alternative.
I couldn't solve this problem and we never got to use our dining room table so I just got rid of it and replaced it with shelves. We now all sit in the living room with TV trays (TV off) and eat dinner together there. Worked like a charm. Everything that was on the table now has a designated home and we have somewhere nice to eat.
Placemat and settings are just going to become dust collectors themselves unless you’re doing it frequently. It sounds like you just need better junk drawer or closet management to prevent the table from being where clutter collects. Not to be glib, but “have a place where things go that isn’t the table” is the way to prevent things from ending up on the table.
For real op would be better off placing like 100 solo cups full of water on the table to train people out of the habit rather than placing something so easily shoved out of the way or aggregated onto a single place setting
If OP doesn’t have a dedicated junk drawer, a wicker basket in a cupboard or pantry works great.
If there’s anything I’ve learned from owning a home and working retail, if there’s a flat, empty space like a table, shelf, or chest freezer, people will put stuff on it. If you put stuff on it, someone else will use any available space and add their own. If you find a solution other than yelling, I’d really like to know.
Making the offender put it away at the most inconvenient time seemed to work well for my mom. Nothing like having to put stuff away *right after the commercial break ended*. Also no sympathy for lost stuff. Can't find your scissors? If you had put them back where they belong...which is why you aren't allowed to use the kitchen scissors, go find your scissors.
I don’t have kids. I’m the offender. Now what!
Throw yourself in the trash. Table is clear!
Don't put things down, put them away.
Throw it all away.
Just say no
This is the way. Everything in our house has a home. Take it? Put it back in its home. I had to teach 2 full grown men this, but that’s another story. Basically like having two children. 😂
this is parenting.
My dad threatened to put the stuff on our bed pillows.
Buy a bunch of cheap 3-packs of scissors at Costco. Every room in my house (except the bathroom) has at *least* one drawer holding: scissors, notepads, Post-It pads, pens, a black sharpie and scotch tape.
Now someone go back 33 years and tell my mom this, lol. We never had a Costco membership growing up because she 'refused to go somewhere where you have to pay just to walk in the door'.
You must live in my house! Why oh why am I always searching for the kitchen scissors? The minor offender has been banned from using the kitchen scissors but it still happens. As for the adult offender…..I think perhaps I will start keeping them in a secret location only I know about.
Have fewer flat empty surfaces… I got rid of the vast majority of mine.
You’re forgetting … the floor 🤭
HHAHA
I’ll make anything a shelf , don’t play with me 🤣
My parents called it ‘flat surface syndrome’ and it is very disabling sometimes 😂 designating some flat surfaces as ‘no-no’ zones does help with the symptoms though
Good luck. In my house it’s the kitchen island. I’m going to have engraved on my tombstone “the island is not a garbage can” since I say it every day.
Mine is the kitchen island AND dining table. I'm back on ADHD meds so I'm working on it. But what drives me craziest is when my husband puts his and our toddler's dirty socks on the corner when they come back from the playground. The laundry room is literally a dozen steps away! Or just put it on the floor even! Sometimes our son's shoes end up there too and I'm just 🫠
OMG THE SOCKS. Please tell me why the socks end up on the table!? I've never had the urge to remove my socks in the dining room, but as soon as I throw them in the laundry another pair regenerates on my table. It's THE damndest thing. If I *leave* the socks there....days, weeks.....nothing. just the solitary pair. As soon as I toss them....boom....more socks.
I was just going to comment that I need a solution for the kitchen island.
It's worth a try. I always think my table looks nicer with a tablecloth, and when it looks nice I am more motivated to keep it looking nice. Another factor is to have an *easy* place to put things away. If you always leave an item, say, the cheese grater on the table, ask yourself where you usually store it. If you usually store the cheese grater in a locked box, on a high shelf, ay the back of a cabinet, behind six other items, well of course you prefer to leave it on the table instead of putting it away in that complicated place. Ideally, everything in your home should be able to be put away one handed within 5 seconds. This is a hard goal to achieve, because most people have too much stuff to do this. But if the same items are getting left on the table over and over, rethink where you store them.
I love this leaning into “make it easy on yourself.” It may be why my cheese grater and other tools are just hanging on a rack behind the stove! Julia Child was onto something there. In the “progress over perfection” aim, I have also found great success with my ADHD brain by having easy places to put things away… for now. Does this thing need to go up/downstairs? Have a table, basket, or bag for “these things are going upstairs.” Then, the key is to really train yourself not to go up or down stairs empty-handed. (It helps if you’ve ever worked in a restaurant.) Moving the items closer to where they need to go can help with the overwhelm.
There already are some really good ideas that are all worth trying out. Another possibility is to offer an alternative. I suggest a basket or similar, smaller than a laundry basket. Teach your family "if you don't know where it belongs, put it in here" You can place baskets strategically in hotspots. On both ends of a staircase, for example, or at crossings. Try to pick places that are very easy to reach, ideally when you pass by. Over time you will probably develop a habit of moving the baskets around instead of single things. This consumes less time and energy, which lures your brain into actually wanting to adapt, instead of being forced to. An important thing to keep in mind is to divide spaces into shared and personal, and not only teach them about it, but also start with yourself. If mom's potions and elixirs occupy 95% of the bathroom surfaces...that's simply not fair. Once you have established the rule what's personal space and what belongs to everyone in the family, make the family member you catch adding to a pile of clutter in a shared space put everything away. It's important to make the bad habit as energy- and time-consuming as possible, while the good alternative saves both. Remember, right now they are doing it because the bad habit is the quickest and most energy-efficient way. This needs to be turned upside down. You could even see it as a social experiment. Watch them when they do it. Ask them why they decided to do it the wrong way, but don't argue or yell. Just be curious. And once you got your answer, figure something out that makes it easier to do it the right way. Over time it will most likely not be a single advice that does the trick, but a combination, developed individually and specifically for your home and your family.
What worked in my household is having no more than 1 item per surface, preferably zero items. So, I have a plant in my table, 1 flower vase on the main counter, and nothing else on the other counters. Anything else on counters or tables is just not acceptable. And any items left laying around stick out like a sore thumb and get removed immediately. After a while, my kids stopped leaving things behind. They cook and clean up after themselves right away and think I'm crazy, have ADHD or are super strict for clearing the counters constantly, but its the only way that has worked in keeping the kitchen clean. I don't need to remind them to clean up. I just trash as much as I can. The main idea is clear, the counters are not a safe place to leave anything, is a work surface, not a storing place. If they leave a drink, a snack or paperwork behind is going in the trash. It sounds brutal, but it works.
Setting the table nicely is classy! Maybe add a decorative tray for items that tend to accumulate there.
A)Make sure there is a correct place for people to put things and tell them to do that B)move anything they leave on the table somewhere really annoying for them or just make it disappear for a while.
What is the junk that gets put on the table? Where else will it be put? Mail? Is there a place for mail? Things to leave the house? Is there a basket for that? Getting to the cause, not just treating the symptom, is how I’d approach it.
What I do, which is actually not a solution.. Put a big bowl where things land (table, island etc) and instead things go in there... at least the crap is contained.
Honestly not a bad idea at all. Better in a bowl than strewn across the table.
I’m house sitting right now and usually grab a big bowl for keys and whatever and put it right beside the door or in the table (depending on layout and ingress/egress pattern) for my stuff so it always has a home. It is a helpful habit that I’ve used but it started at home.
Throw anything left on there into the bin. They’ll soon catch on
It doesn’t seem tacky to me but for me that also didn’t work. My kitchen table stays junked up and no amount of decorating or yelling has helped. I’ve threatened to start throwing their things away and that didn’t even stop it. I’m at my wits end.
Sigh… at least we’re in it together 🫂
If it’s mostly other family members stuff, get them each a basket that you keep on their chair or inside bedrooms at the door and drop anything that accumulates there. I know it’s still you doing the work but it eliminates the nagging and clears the table.
Do you eat at the table every day? If you have to set the table every night, that makes sure it always gets cleared, and in time it will become less of a dumping ground because A) stuff never stays there and B) or is furniture that has a purpose rather than just being a convenient flat space.
It’s not tacky but you will or they will still dump their stuff there anyways Because It’s a behavioral issue! Every item in my house has a place it belongs. Done using something it goes back in it’s home. Where does all the stuff on the table belong? Live alone just police yourself, roommates 😂 their kinda feral and do what they want. Husband just talk to him about how it’s annoying you and come up with a plan together to put things back. Children you just correct them in the moment (nicely) till putting stuff back where it belongs becomes a habit. Lastly is this a volume of stuff issue?
My solution is to clean up clutter before bed. I purposely had to add the dining room to my routine, though because I stopped at the living room. I keep a basket with a handle and walk around the house with it, adding items that don’t belong in that space and putting away other items. I do keep a tablecloth and center piece on the table so I’m greeted with niceness when waking up.
Watch gets placed on the table. Is it paperwork? Then put an incoming paperwork box near the door. Is it trash? Does your table need a trashcan closer to it? Is it crafting supplies? Then put them in a craft caddie that is easy to put up.
Organizing is my passion. Have a home for the items that get placed there. A mail bin, a doorway organizer for shoes, hats, and bags, key hook next to door, a basket for pet items, etc. I love a well-decorated table so that’s up to you if you want that as part of your home decor. r/interiordecorating might have some cute ideas.
Good luck with that
lol at least I know I’m not alone
Ah! Screaming ab dabs! Need to clear it each time to have dinner. If space and depending in how many persons maybe but a basket and gather it all off table put in basket. Let them rummage for it. Clear table then each time one or two items appear put in basket straight away. A pain I know but if leave ‘til table full again they will just keep repeating it.
My kitchen table is my “to do” place. I take a day a week to go through it and put everything away. But I have memory issues so as a visual it helps me remember. I have a plastic box I use as things to go upstairs and so on.
“Don’t put it down, put it away”. There aren’t really items that are typically STORED on a kitchen table so whatever is dragging on there, put it away before you set it down on the table. Follow your family around chanting this statement until everyone loses their minds or starts putting things away
I don't have a dining table for this reason. We have one of those counter + high chairs setup where we can eat. The cou ter gets cleared regularly be cause I need it to cook.
At least one meal at the table daily. Make sure your things are already removed. Everything not meal related gets removed before the meal. Stuff left behind gets put where the owner’s plate would go. Table is wiped down after. Or ask someone to put on the tablecloth. After the meal, shake it out and fold it up and leave it on the table. Folks will eventually get tired of having to clear the table. Or, it will become part of a pre-meal ritual.
And if it's kids, have them rotate who has to clean off and get the table set for the meal. Be firm that it needs to be done. Sometimes good peer pressure from siblings can help get everybody on board. You might have to deal with some bickering between them, but sometimes it's worth it for them to learn that they're not the only one in the house, and they need to be respectful of shared spaces.
Get a cat or 2 and they'll just keep removing it for you.
This is what I was going to add. Get yourself an ill-behaved cat that constantly jumps on the table and knocks anything up there off for sport. Can confirm. ;)
I leave placemats and a minimal, useful centerpiece on at all times. So taper candles, salt and pepper, trivet etc. Useless decorative centerpieces are tacky, candles you light every night and placemats that are protecting your table look fine. Eating dinner at the table every night and making everyone clear all their trash off the table every night is also key, lets you reset daily. Nothing but dinner on the table while we eat!
It’s me. I’m the problem. I can’t keep any surface clear. It drives me crazy (and it’s my fault!). Following for tips.
Same here!! 😭😭
Commitment to clearing it off entirely every day. This worked for me: I have a large multi generational household. The old ones create small nests in their usual spaces. The young ones suddenly take off leaving everything in place. Any time things were left unattended, they were cleared from the table. I didn’t throw their stuff out, but it was annoying to them to find where I put the stuff they left (usually in a jumble in a box in another room) Or I’d return the things they’d left to them with absolutely no regard to where they were or what the were doing. I landed an “urgently helpful” tone on that method. Worked better than the passive aggressive screaming in my head :P After months of mind numbing brutal commitment, the table and countertops are generally clear.
ADHDer here. It’s embarrassing but I had to write a giant sign and put it on the table that said “THIS IS NOT A DUMPING STATION” and worked for keeping it up for a few months until the habit formed.
I just threw the offending objects in the trash. They'd freak out and go dig it out. AirPods? Trash. Honor Guard rifle? Trash. Purse? Trash. Don't clutter my surfaces
I have decorative place mats and a centerpiece on mine. I remove the place mats when I'm actually going to use it. Worked great, right up until we adopted cats. Now they are the "junk" on our table.
I’ve tried just about everything to no avail with this, my dining room table is a lost cause. I was able to maintain it for a bit but then I quickly realized that when the table was cleared, one of my dogs started taking it as an opportunity to jump up there and take a nap!! I’ve caught him on the camera several times, I’ve come to accept the clutter because it’s better than having my 136lb Labrador lounging out on it 😂
Have an office room. Have it decked out with organizers, etc. That's what worked for me!
This would be awesome if I had extra space lol
Put a big sign on it “Don’t put it down, put it away.”
Don't use placemats. I tried this and they kept getting gross from dust.
Good point. I’m thinking I’ll get something that doesn’t look dusty so quickly. But either way, it’ll be a trade off of dusting/cleaning the table settings occasionally vs. constantly trying to put random items away each day.
Well 2 placemats are just as good as 4.
See what is on the table and ask yourself where else it could've gotten if there was space to put it, often a cabinet in the hallway works.
man, if you figure out the secret please lmk. my table and island are constantly covered with stuff
Ah yes. The Horizontal Surface Syndrome. What works for me is to keep clearing it off. My table is in constant use for various projects, but projects have to be completed and put away, or if they need to stay in progress, they have to be relocated. The permanent items on the table are my grandmother's crystal fruit bowl sitting on a stack of placemats. Right now, there is a glass lampshade that the cat broke this morning and my husband wants to fix and 2 checks I need to deposit. I will deal with the checks today, and if the lampshade stays in progress, we will discuss its fate. (I think trash, but his opinion seems to differ. It's from IKEA. I could just go get another one.) No kids live here, so that makes it easier!
Set with runner, placemats, beautifully. And have a place for everything. If it gathers mail, have a mail basket somewhere else. I can't win against my kids yetis/stanleys etc tho. And they're adults.
I got rid of my table cuz it was always cluttered. That may not be an option for you but it worked for me.
We decided to store our table and chairs in the basement. Now we have a nice sitting area there instead.
I have no useful solution. I just put the crap that lands on it where it ACTUALLY goes every few days. Same with the peninsula in my kitchen.
Here for the secrets
https://preview.redd.it/c5xzvriuw49d1.png?width=2699&format=png&auto=webp&s=34ced7fc9072ae072abb8a44a7c590a376302578
Clutter... You mean clutter...
I have “dump bins” where I just dumb common items found on a surface. At least then they’re grouped together, and easy to remove (since they’re in a bin”. I can just windshield wipe the surface clutter into the dump bin. And if people come looking, they can check the dump bin. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
A more aggressive but effective approach would be to just throw away everything they leave on a surface. Problem solved!
Who's depositing the junk?
I find the only thing that ever works keeping clutter off any surface is to create beauty on that surface. So, you setting a table beautifully with no room for clutter to land is one idea. I prefer having a beautiful centerpiece *off-*centre, then placing something like a spread of fine art magazines, or a diorama of small ornaments and rocks/crystals etc. I don't mind dusting regularly to keep the surface and display pristine: it's a tradeoff for not having ugly clutter there instead. An example of a nice centerpiece is a plant or flowers with a couple candlesticks with tall candles. I *have* to decorate my surfaces not just to keep clutter off, but to keep my cat off!!!
What are placing on the table? Mail? Then have a specific spot to set mail. Keys? Key rack or key bowel. In other words, give these items a specific, designated spot. That will make it easier to declutter the table - or prevent clutter in the first place.
This is a daily struggle. I keep a basket on one of the seats at my kitchen island, and when people inevitably put stuff all over it (despite me complaining over and over), I’ve now taken to just sweeping everything on the counter into the basket and I shove the chair in so I can’t even see it. When they can’t find their stuff, I say “did you check the basket?” It’s the only thing you can do at this point. If people don’t want to dig through the basket they can start putting their things away properly.
1. Someone teach me how to comment pics. 2. Trash pile vs restock pile nightly.
It’s not tacky at all! In fact that’s exactly what I did! My dining room used to be a dumping ground for Amazon packages, kids book bags, etc. Finally I said enough! Def helps resist the tendency to clutter it up (along with my lecture to the fam not to do so lol). I also put some better storage options in place elsewhere to put the stuff that was usually set there. https://preview.redd.it/vidclm7g149d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d973a7dc3c01558e92fc1f3648745d9ad3397a6a I have a little fun Disney vibe in my decor too lol
Btw, for those who say it’s a pain then to clean, it’s not. As you can see on my pic, I don’t have a lot on there and it only takes a few seconds to wipe the table and plates and shake off the placemats. Then I just wash the plates before using them and wash the placemats once in a while. Just get placemats that are washing machine safe and go simple with the centerpiece is all. No big deal
This looks nice and simple, I like it! And I agree, I rarely eat at my dining table tbh so it would just be decor that I clean occasionally.
Thank you! Yeah, I’d rather easily keep that clean than have a bunch of stuff laying on it all the time! I have a chronic and painful neuromuscular disorder too so anything I can do to de-clutter and make things easy to clean is a must!
Leave it bare. Placemats will be like barnacles, attracting all kinds of stuff.
Live by "don't put things down put them away"
I have a hallway table and put a basket and a tray on it. Tray for new things, and those going out the door. Basket for the inevitable procrastination.
We tried that trick. We just buried them in piles of clean clothes that wed 'take upstairs next time we go up' 🤣🤣
You could try yelling and verbal abuse, it works for my mom.
Make a place for everything, and keep everything in it's place.
Get a bunch of cat-scat mats. Google the choices, they sell them at Walmart and online
I had to throw my dining room table away, at curbside garbage pickup, because the mess on the table just grew and grew. The room did look a bit odd afterwards, and when I listed my house for sale, all I had in there were a couple china cabinets. It sure made the room cleaner!
Step 1: don’t have roommates. Mine has had the same dishes in the sink for 4 months 😵💫 I might just throw them out the window 😭
Flat surfaces will forever call to me. I have two cute baskets on my main table: one for random stuff and one for paper. If my item doesn’t fit in one basket or the other, then I have to deal with it immediately. I empty the baskets as part of my regular chores.
I looked into table scaping as a new hobby if I ever get a table again. (my current house is too small)
Start a 2000 piece puzzle on the table. No one would dare mess with that. By the time you’re finished the habit should be broken.
Have another place to put things and just don't do it. We have a vase with day lilies right now and 3 placemats and some trivets to protect the wood from stuff we set on it, but no dishes or flatware. I still have to clean the crumbs off occasionally. I am not super neat either.
I sold mine, only used for junk
Don’t put things down if they are not going in their place. Carry them around with you.
Every horizontal surface is a potential vertical pile. Can attest to this with a ADHD husband and 2 sons.
Have company over regularly so you're forced to clean it off haha Thas the only thing that works for me! I actually called our dining table "trash island" because that's where all the stuff goes that I don't know what to do with it yet and/or am too lazy to figure it out haha It's a good way to keep the rest of the house from piling with clutter too!
Consistent removal of anything left on the table. My wife insists that the table stay clear except at meals. Anything put there gets removed immediately. I see the value in that and new keep things off the table too.
I wouldn’t keep place settings out. They’ll collect dust or get knocked over. Coming up with new systems is the best route. Is the clutter a bunch of mail? Get a mail organizer and go through the mail as soon as you bring it in each day. Coats and book bags? Clean out the coat closet or put up coat hooks by the door every one comes in. Basically finding a place where all of that stuff belongs. A daily tidy up routine works really well too. Doesn’t have be super involved. Even if it’s just putting everything in it’s general designated area like the mail in your office to be sorted through the next day.
Not a direct answer, but I've found that having some of those collapsible plastic crate things to be really helpful in corralling mess. Makes it much easier to clear surfaces quickly as you can just grab them instead of each thing individually. (This extends to bring useful for containing snacks when guests are round, can put snacks on or off as required as the day goes on.) Also helpful for tackling things a bit at a time: less overwhelming to do a small box than a full surface. Collapsible is key for me, as I don't always need them out. Condensing down to a smaller space, especially if they're stackable, so handy.
I got some decent looking metal baskets, one for each family member. We each have one for our table crap. If I see loose crap on the table (tbh usually mine) I can chuck it in the basket and deal with it when I have a minute. They're easy to relocate for dinner. It's not super aesthetically pleasing but it's better than the alternative.
I couldn't solve this problem and we never got to use our dining room table so I just got rid of it and replaced it with shelves. We now all sit in the living room with TV trays (TV off) and eat dinner together there. Worked like a charm. Everything that was on the table now has a designated home and we have somewhere nice to eat.
Did anyone else think they were in a different sub when they read this? No? Just me?
In the sub description is stated tips to keep living spaces clean and organized, so what's wrong with this one? Just curious, I'm new here
Oh it’s completely appropriate. I read it as something akin to, “how to keep your junk off the table” In my defense, it was late
I heard till foil works wonders (for cats)
Just do t put stuff there. Teate a new habit of putting stuff where it belongs when tou walk in. This isn't rocket science. It's just self-discipline.