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QUINCY, ILL. -- If you're looking for Laurie Murfin, you'll most likely find her buried in someone else's closet. As a professional organizer with Little Clean House in Quincy, she says the most important thing to remember is to take one step at a time. That will prevent you from getting overwhelmed.

When you have a small house and growing kids it's hard to stay organized.

But taking the time to do it is one of the best things you can do to make a big difference in your life.

Here's a scary fact. We wear just 20 percent of our clothes, 80 percent of the time. That means closets could be a lot less cramped. Click here to read about organization of closets in Good Housekeeping.

Murfin says the first step is to start with a clean canvas. Click here to watch.

"What I like to do is start by taking everything out of the closet and then go through it to see what you want to keep and what you want to get rid of," Laurie Murfin said. "Then when you put it back inside the closet, you'll know exactly what you have and where it is."

Once you've purged, it's time to contain. You can use containers around your house or clear containers like this. Then label them so you know what's inside. Click here to see Laurie talk about containers.

Another trouble spot is the kitchen. The first step here is to start at the high traffic sink area and move out from there. Also place items used together in the same place. For example, keep straws with the cups.

Then there's the plastic container area.

"Tupperware is always an issue. What you do is get all of your plastic containers out. If you don't have a lid for it put it in a pile. When I'm going through the kitchen and I'm organizing, I'll use tupperware containers without lids for containing other things," Murfin explained.

If you're overwhelmed by even the thought of organization remember this:

"In the long run its going to save your so much time and money. You're not going to spend a half hour looking for something. You're going to know exactly where it's at and go and get it," Murfin said.

You can contact Murfin with 'Little Clean House' by calling 217-316-2132.