13 Tips To Start Decluttering Your Home
Photo of keep, donate and trash boxes by RDNE Stock project on Pexels
Updated 2024.07.21
There are benefits to living in a decluttered space.
With less to clean, dust and organize, there’s more time for pursuing your passions and having fun in your life.
Recent research shows living in a cluttered environment can contribute to stress and anxiety. You may feel happier, calmer and more relaxed in a clutter free environment.
When you declutter your home, you’re ultimately left with items that will best serve you. You’ll have functional products and the favorites of everything you currently have and enjoy.
Decluttering simply eliminates what you’ve outgrown, what’s past its prime and what’s broken.
There’s no need to live with clothes, hobbies and gadgets you no longer need or use. You can release these items and step into a cleaner and more organized space.
Below are 13 tips to start the decluttering process:
Photo of person putting fabric in box by cottonbro studio on Pexels with text overlay 13 Tips To Start Decluttering Your Home
1 - Begin with the least sentimental area of your home
This could be the kitchen, bathroom or entryway. It’s wherever you keep more of your utility goods and where unused items lay around.
2 - Work in one area at a time
Choose a drawer, area of a room, or a room itself, and go through the space piece-by -piece.
Put things you no longer need in four piles - keep, trash, donate or sell.
Keep, for items you love and use. Trash, for items that are broken, past their prime and low value. Donate, for low value items that still have use to them. Sell, for high value items that are close to new condition.
3 - Let go of single job items
Some items, like old medications and spices, enter your life with a specific job to fulfill. When their job is over and the task is now complete, you can usually let go of the item.
4 - Throw away expired things
When cleaning out the refrigerator, pantry, and medicine cabinet, check the expiration and throw away anything past the expiration date. Using the expiration date as your guide is a great way to get rid of alot of things.
5 - Recall when you last used the item
If you haven’t used something in over a year, you are not benefiting from this item’s presence. “Future you” has not needed it yet, so you can let it go.
6 - Reduce duplicates
If you have multiple can openers, you can likely part with one.
Same with anything that multiples like winter knitwear or beauty products. When you have multiple items, count how many you actually use and love, then discard or donate the rest.
7 - Hold the item and see if it makes you happy
Many items carry memories - when you got it, why you got it, and the reason why you’re saving it. Pick up each item individually and notice if you feel anything.
If you feel happy or are reminded of positive times when you hold it, keep it.
If you feel sad or are reminded of something unhappy when you hold it, you can let it go. Keeping things that contribute to sadness, especially if it isn’t useful, does not support your mental wellness.
8 - Set aside items with potential monetary value
Set a dollar amount for items you want to sell. For example, if an item is worth $50 or more, set it aside to potentially sell when you’re done decluttering.
When you’re finished decluttering your home, research your potential valuables online. For those items that have value, set up an eBay or Facebook Marketplace account to sell them.
9 - Sleep on it
You’re not on a reality television show where you only have three days to figure it out. You can sleep on items that you’re not sure about parting with.
Set aside items you’re unsure about in an out of the way place, and notice if you want to recover that item and use it anytime in the next month or two. If you go get that item to use it, keep it. If you don’t, discard it.
10 - Finish decluttering first
While decluttering, you may get ideas for items that are useful to have or that you wished to have, but don’t currently own. Write these ideas down, and hold onto them until you’re finished.
As you declutter, you may find something you can repurpose for that need in other rooms. If when you’re finished decluttering you still want to refresh the space with a few new, useful items, do it.
11 - Give away items you plan to pass on
If you’re holding onto sentimental items to “pass on” to someone else, the time is now. It’s okay to give these gifts away now while you’re in the spirit of letting go.
12 - Pretend you have to move
There’s only so much you can put on the moving truck. Would you take this item with you? Is it necessary or useful? Do you love it, is it your favorite?
If you wouldn’t want to drag it out of the house and set it up in a new place, then let it go.
13 - Would you purchase this item now?
Some items are brought into the house during other times of your life, when your needs, wants and living situation were different. If you would not buy the item now, you can likely get rid of it.
Photo of person sitting in front of keep, donate and trash boxes by RDNE Stock project on Pexels
All in all, decluttering can be a fun process that allows you to keep what you truly love and enjoy. The act of letting go can also give you a freeing, liberating feeling.
To keep your home clutter free in the future, once you’re done with the above, follow these simple steps:
Before buying an item, check to see if you have a similar item first
Before bringing anything new in, consider where you’re going to put it
Don’t accept “free” items before considering how you’ll use them
Use clear organizing bins for the remainder of your items
Spend a few minutes every day keeping spaces clutter free
Decluttering gives you permission to let go of objects that no longer fit in your life. It can help you reduce your overhead costs in the future, as the less you have, the less space, storage supplies, time, money and energy you need to maintain these objects.
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