The Complete Guide That Makes the Home Decluttering Process Simple

Do you remember all the Marie Kondo rage a couple of years ago? Well, it’s still going strong.

However, it’s one of those things that can intimidate a war general. Decluttering a whole house is a huge undertaking, regardless of whether you’re doing it as part of a downsizing attempt or just to make your life easier.

Keep on reading for everything you need to know about the decluttering process. We’ll cover the essential decluttering tips you need, one at a time.

When Does Clutter Become an Issue?

Clutter may be an energy drain for many individuals, as well as a huge waste of time spent hunting for items they can’t locate.

Many people said that having undesired clutter in their home made them feel anxious.

When a person’s consumption stretches beyond “things,” he or she may experience despair or obesity. If mold and dust are present in more significant hoarding conditions, further health issues may arise. A cluttered home might potentially pose a fire threat, but this is a rare occurrence.

Decluttering Your Life: The Advantages

There are several advantages to having less stuff. Even then, taking action is difficult. That is, until the many advantages of decluttering become apparent.

Let’s take them one at a time.

There’s Less to Clean and Keep Track of

Cleaning is always a difficult task, but having to clean around items to which you have no emotional relationship (or, worse, actually despise) adds to the burden.

Also, finding stuff becomes a lot simpler. Things no longer just “vanish.” Instead of navigating around objects that are in the way, you can truly walk about your house and appreciate the space.

Less Stress and Less Debt

When your home gets out of hand, it’s a nauseating sight to see what’s surrounding you. When you look about your property, isn’t it wonderful to locate a spot you adore?

If you don’t spend as much time shopping for material goods, you’ll have more money in your bank account and less debt on your credit cards, and your home won’t be overrun by stuff you don’t use or want.

The Decluttering Process 101

Now, you’re ready to see the step-by-step game plan for transforming your space and boosting both your financial and mental health.

And, when you’re feeling overwhelmed, remember to take breaks in between every single step.

Set Aside Some Time to Concentrate on Decluttering

It takes time to organize and tidy up your room. A major decluttering project takes more than five minutes. In fact, I prefer to set out at least an hour for every decluttering project.

Schedule time in your calendar if you’re ready to make significant work on your home organization. You may want to schedule it across multiple weekends or days off in chunks of a few hours. If you don’t make organization a priority, you’ll never get it done, so make a list and stick to it!

Only Keep Anything You’ve Used Last Year

To be honest, you need to move rid of the mindset of “maybe I’ll use this stuff later.” Nope! If you want to keep your house clutter-free, you can’t think like a packrat. If you haven’t used anything in the previous year, it should be thrown away or donated.

A year’s worth of time works nicely since it enables you to choose seasonal decorations and things. You should have the chance to utilize every item in your house throughout the course of a year. It’s time to simplify if you haven’t used anything in a year.

Get Rid of Any Duplicates

If you have multiples of an item (unless it’s a storage item like lightbulbs or batteries), it’s time to get rid of it. We forget we have something and have to purchase it again. We sometimes improve yet keep a less-useful, lower-quality item.

When it comes to cleaning and organizing your closets and drawers, this is particularly true. You don’t need five white sweaters, believe me. Sort your multiples, which include trousers, shirts, accessories, and other products. Make a list of what fits well and which goods are in good condition. The finest of the best should be kept, while the remainder should be donated or discarded.

Designate a Storage Area for Objects

Everything needs a place to call home. Even if it’ll be put away in a drawer. To help you optimize your storage space, use smart container solutions for drawer organizing.  You should even have a way to store artificial Christmas trees.

Find inventive ways to store and organize what you wish to retain. To help me place goods in cupboards, I prefer to use beautiful boxes, trays, and even reused Kleenex boxes (and to organize tough areas, like underneath the sink). If you want to retain it, you’ll have to be inventive.

Make the Most of Your Furniture Storage

Do you have a storage desk, space beneath your bed, or a bare bookcase?

Make good use of these areas. When you have the correct containers to keep your goods in, you will be astonished at how much extra room you will make in these areas.

The beauty of tucking goods into places inside your current furniture is that they’re completely hidden. Many storage containers are designed specifically for odd, unused locations like between refrigerator shelves, behind your bed, or the loft space in your garage.

Label Every Object

Have you ever wondered why Pinterest’s organizational ideas are so appealing? It’s usually due to their clean labeling. Labeling may seem to be a time-consuming task, but the end result will be well worth the work when you see the final product piled neatly in your storage locations.

When you add a label to a stack of boxes, it adds a visual aspect. Even if you can’t see what’s inside a box or behind the back of a dark cabinet, you can figure out what’s inside.

You won’t be rummaging through your well-ordered area looking for anything you need later, causing it to become a jumble. You can tell exactly where it is. A label maker is a fantastic invention.

Reduce Paper Clutter by Digitizing Your Mementos

Do you have a lot of pictures? I’m sure we do! But the good news is that we now live in a time when we can save them all on our laptops (or in cloud storage).

It might be difficult to let go of cherished belongings, particularly if you’re new to digital storage, but once you realize how much paper clutter is reduced, you’ll be persuaded.

Sort the Remaining Things Into Three Piles

You undoubtedly have a large pile to get rid of after you’ve reduced down your belongings, tagged, and given a location for each thing you wish to preserve. Make three piles of “don’t keep” items: trash, sell and donate.

First, determine if you can sell each item. You may make money on things you don’t use anymore by selling them online via sites like Craigslist and eBay.

Don’t forget to look at secondhand and consignment businesses in your area. Selling your belongings is a good idea, and you could wind up with some additional cash.

Donate anything in good condition that isn’t worth the effort to sell for the remainder of the stuff you have left. Goodwill and the Salvation Army often accept clothing, dishes, and toys.

The most important guideline to remember is that if you don’t sell or donate it within a week, it’s time to toss it in the garbage. Don’t hang on to trash bags. Remove it from your life and move on. If there are items that are too large or heavy for you to get rid of yourself, you can call on a rubbish removalist service, like 1300 Rubbish, to help clear the junk from your home.

If you feel like the project is too big for a first-time declutterer to handle, then you might want to call in the pros like Closet-doctor.com.

Adopt a Policy of Returning Items to Their “Homes”

The first step is to declutter your house. The true struggle comes in keeping your house neat and decluttered! You must make a mental change and integrate organization into your everyday routine. Adopt a new policy so that you always go out of your way to return an item once you’ve used it.

If it has a previous home, return it to it. We’ve all done it because we grow tired of doing things. We’re some of the worst offenders when it comes to stashing goods near the front entrance. If you come into our homes, you’ll most likely notice a stack of my shoes. When we come in, we take them off and never go back to put them away.

However, we’re being patient with ourselves and getting better one step at a time.

Ready to Make Homeownership Look Like a Pinterest Board?

Now that we’re spending more time at home than ever before, all the negative qualities of our home space seem rather unavoidable.

However, it doesn’t need to stay that way. Hopefully, our guide has shed some light on the entire decluttering process, and how you can start.

And, if you enjoyed reading our article, then you’ll love checking out our additional tips and tricks in our lifestyle section.

 

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