FlyLady Zone 4: The Master Bedroom and More

Welcome to Zone 4! This FlyLady zone focuses on creating a peaceful, relaxing sanctuary in your master bedroom. Zone 4 also includes the your closets and can include your en-suite bathroom, if you have one. With this guide, you’ll transform your space into a restful retreat that you’ll love spending time in. 

Why Zone 4 matters

The master bedroom is where you start and end each day. A clean, clutter-free bedroom helps reduce stress, improves sleep, and sets the tone for the rest of your home. Zone 4 is about creating harmony in your personal space.

Detailed monthly cleaning checklist for Zone 4

Follow this simple list to deep clean your bedroom and keep it looking its best:

Declutter first

1. Clear the flat surfaces: Remove clutter from nightstands, dressers, and shelves.
2. Deal with rubbish:collect up any rubbish and empty bin if you have one. I find a pedal small bin with a lid in the bedroom is very useful to dispose of empty make-up, socks with holes in etc
3. Sort through clothes: Go through your wardrobe and donate or store items you no longer wear and deal with the clothes pile on the chair and on the back of the door.
4. Tidy under the bed: Check for items that don’t belong and store them properly.

Deep cleaning tasks

1) Dust and Wipe Down

• Dust all surfaces, including headboards, lampshades, and picture frames.
• Wipe down mirrors, windowsills, and any other flat surfaces.
• Dust skirting boards. I find the dusting brush on the vacuum is great for this
• Polish wooden furniture I like to use a beeswax furniture spray as it smells wonderful and leaves the wood looking wonderful.

2) Clean Bedding

• Strip the bed and wash all linens, including pillowcases, duvet covers, and mattress protectors. You may already do this as part of your weekly home blessing, but if not do it when you are in zone 4.
• Vacuum or rotate the mattress if needed. Flipping the mattress and or vacuuming it can extend the life of the mattress. 

3) Vacuum or mop floors

• Pay special attention to corners and behind and under furniture.

4) Tidy your closets or wardrobe

This is a really good opportunity to prune your closet

• Put clothes back on hangers.
• Reorganise wardobe
• Put out of season clothes away
• Sweep or vacuum the floor.
• Wipe down shelves and re-organize shoes and accessories.

5) Clean mirrors and glass

• Use a window cleaning product to clean mirrors, windows and any glass items including pictures

6) Ensuite bathroom (if applicable)

• Scrub sinks, countertops, and taps.
• Clean the toilet and shower/bath.
• Wipe down mirrors and empty the bin.

My zone 4 detailed cleaning lists for the master bedroom and ensuite & wardrobes 

This is my Zone 4 detailed cleaning list I print it off and sometimes I add to it as the week goes on. I aim to do 5-15 minutes each day that we are in zone 4 & work through the list. I tick ✅ things off as I do them. 

1. Detailed vacuum 

2. Declutter bedside drawers 

3. Dust 

4. Clean Windows

5. Clean mirrors 

6. Clean pictures 

7. Declutter make up 

8. Organise one drawer chest of drawers 

9. Organise one drawer on dressing table 

10. Declutter books & journals 

11. 15 minutes decluttering wardrobe

12. Cobwebs 

13. Clean skirting boards

14. Empty bin 

15. Clean and clean top of bedside 

16. Declutter the top of the dressing table 

17. Tackle the clothes pile on the chair

18. PUPA (pick up and put away 5 minutes 

My top 3 tips for maintaining Flylady Zone 4

1. Daily Habits are important: Make the bed each morning and tidy up before going to sleep. Put clean clothes away and dirty clothes in laundry baskets to wash. Hang us clothes that can be worn again on hangers and put them on a hook somewhere you will see them and remember to wear them again. The back of the bedroom door is good for me. I find it best not to put clothes you have worn back in your wardrobe without washing them as they can attract moths and make your wardobe smell.
2. 15-Minute regular declutter: Set a timer and tackle one small area at a time.
3. Seasonal refresh: Use Zone 4 weeks to swap out seasonal clothes and decor.

Decluttering your closets

Decluttering is something many of us struggle with including me. I love clothes

Here are 20 tried and tested methods that I've used to help me when I'm decluttering my closets and clothese when we are in Flylady zone 4:

1. Create a donation box or bag: Keep a box or bag in your closet for items you no longer wear. When it’s full, donate it immediately including the bag or box to free up space, and replace it with another donate bag. I find large supermarket bags for life are ideal for this purpose, and most charity shops really appreciate the bags and boxes, as they can reuse them.
2. Sort by category: Pull out all your shoes, bags, or scarves and assess them as a group. It’s easier to identify duplicates or unused items this way. Focus on one category at a time. 
3. Spark Joy Method: Use Marie Kondo’s technique to handle each item and ask yourself, “Does this spark joy?” Keep only what makes you happy.
4. No-Buy January: Commit to not buying any new clothes this month. Instead, focus on making the most of what you already own.
5. Rediscover hidden gems by trying on items you haven’t worn in ages. Create new outfits based on what you already have.
6. Seasonal switch-out: Store off-season clothes in suitcases or vacuum bags to free up space and make your wardrobe more manageable.
7. Use the 80/20 Rule: Remember that we wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time. Focus on keeping your most-used and loved items and give away, donate, or sell the rest
8. Assign a Declutter Buddy: Invite a friend or family member to help you decide what to keep or donate. They’ll offer a fresh perspective.
9. Declutter in layers: If a full wardrobe overhaul feels overwhelming, start small. Tackle one drawer or shelf at a time.
10. Take Photos: Photograph your outfits to see how items work together. It’ll also help you notice pieces you rarely wear.
11. Create a capsule wardrobe: Choose versatile, timeless pieces that mix and match easily. Let go of items that don’t fit your style.
12. Keep a wishlist: When tempted to buy something new, add it to a wishlist instead. If you still want it after a month, consider purchasing it—but only if it fills a gap in your wardrobe.
13. The hanger trick: Hang all your clothes with the hangers facing backward. Each time you wear an item, turn the hanger the right way. At the end of the season, donate any items still on backward hangers.
14. Set a limit: Decide how many of each item you really need (e.g., five pairs of jeans) and stick to it. Let go of anything that exceeds your limit.
15. One In, one out: For every new item you bring into your closet, remove an old one. This keeps your wardrobe manageable and prevents clutter from building up.
16. Think of your decluttering of your clothes as blessing others with your abundance.  I visualise how happy someone will be finding the item in a charity shop. I recently decluttered 6 beautiful winter coats that I loved but did not wear using this method. The weather was really cold at the time, and I imagined how happy the individuals who purchased the coats would be and how happy the charity shop would be to receive the donations. It really helped me let go of them without feeling guilty.
17. Sell items on ebay or Vinted: donating is a much quicker method of decluttering but you can also sell items. Although this method is slower and requires more work i do sometimes do it with the nearly new items, where I paid a lot for the item. I then use the money raised by selling the item to put towards a treat as a reward or to buy an item of clothing that fills a gap in my wardrobe.
18. Do a car boot sale or garage sale: this can be a way to declutter a large amount at once and also bring some cash in. Clothes need to be well presented to achieve the best prices on a car boot sale ideally clean, ironed and on hangers. Alternatively just pop them all in a box and sell them cheaply for 50p an item. people love to rummage and they love a bargain Don't expect to achieve as much as you would get selling them online and be prepared to drop the prices to clear the stuff. Word of caution: be careful not to buy more than you sell! if you love a bargain it can be very tempting.
19. Repurpose an item: if you are having difficulty decluttering an item that is not suitable to donate or give away, I sometimes find it easier to repurpose it. For example, I recently did this with a pair of once beautiful soft cotton pyjamas that were a gift many years ago. I cut them up and repurposed them into lovely disposable dusters. Or an old blanket or throw could be repurposed into a dog bed for a dog basket. Get creative. By doing this it can make it easier to eventually declutter the item from your life and gives it an extra use. 
20. Start with something super easy. For me I find decluttering my husband's clothes much easier than my own, so I will offer to help him, and that gets me going. I can then move on to my clothes. or start with something that you find easy maybe its scarves. The more you declutter the easier it gets. Its like you have a decluttering muscle and you have to strengthen it by practice. A word of caution do not declutter your family members' stuff without their involvement, while it may seem an appealing idea, it's a bad idea to try to force someone to declutter and that would be very disrespectful. Always encourage but don't force. It's best to put your wardrobe in order, and then often the rest of the household will follow your example.

How to Fit Zone 4 into Your FlyLady Schedule

Spend just 15 minutes a day during Zone 4’s designated week. Focus on one task each day, and by the end of the week, your bedroom will be clean, calm, and serene.

These zones come around really fast and it’s amazing what a difference just 15 minutes a day can make ( or even 15 minutes a week ) it’s a good way to declutter and decorate as well.

If 15 minutes a day is too much as it often is for me, just start with 5 minutes or even 2 minutes or 1 minute. You get the idea. Use a timer it’s amazing how much you will get done if you focus this way.

Just do what you can and remember as The Flylady says it's about progress, not perfection. I’m finding each time I come to a zone it seems to get that bit easier. It’s also a great way to declutter by focussing your decluttering by zone.

Join in the more the merrier 😊  baby steps will get us there.

Flylady Zone 4 videos