Have you been avoiding a home decluttering project? You may feel overwhelmed or you don’t know where to start. Those things can stop anyone wanting to organize their home. Small tasks can help you from feeling overwhelmed. Even doing one little thing is progress. To help you along your way, consider doing one of these 8 easy decluttering tips.
8 Easy Decluttering Tips
Clear One Surface
Clear your kitchen table. If that’s too overwhelming, choose an area of your countertop. Make it a surface you see daily, and be sure to keep it spotless.
My kitchen table is a catch-all for everything. Books, toys, paperwork, mail, and crafts all end up on the table. I would like us to all sit down as a family and eat our meals but we never do because it’s always cluttered. I finally told myself and my family that we can no longer put anything on the kitchen table. Of course, bad habits are had to break but when things start to pile up on the table I try to clean it off right away. It definitely makes a difference seeing that big area clean!
Empty a Shelf
Empty one shelf of unnecessary items. Remember to continue to keep it neat.
Another place in our home that always has clutter covering it is the shelf by the front door. Of course, mail gets put there and keys and other random things like water bottles and batteries. Finding homes for these items in the following steps helps keep this shelf empty.
Choose a Paper Zone
Nothing gets out of control like papers. Choose an area as a catch-all for your paperwork, and always place new papers in that tray or box.
This tip has been helpful for keeping the clutter down. I have a lot of mail and school paperwork lying around in a bunch of different places. Designating a paper zone helps keep the clutter down. It also helps to keep the surfaces clean like the kitchen table and shelf.
Find Homes for 5 Things
We all have a few items that never seem to get put away. Choose five items that are often left-out the most, and find special places to store them.
Hats, sunglasses, clothes, stuff from pockets, and lunch bags never get put away in my home. When we come home we are in the habit of setting these items on a surface and it usually stays there until we need it. This is a terrible habit to have because it makes our small home look more cluttered.
To give hats, sunglasses, and stuff from pockets a home is to buy some baskets and designate a basket for each of these items. I put a basket for hats, sunglasses, and stuff from pockets near the front door. That way when we walk in we can put those things where they need to go.
Clothing has 3 different homes, the closet, a dresser drawer, or the dirty clothes hamper. My family is still working on making this a habit. Everyone likes to leave their clothes wherever they feel like. Once we break this habit it will cut down on the clutter!
Lunch bags have a special space on the kitchen counter. That way it’s easy to take out what’s left in the bags and put the ice pack away in the fridge.
Donate Three Pieces of Clothing
Clothes are often the worst to declutter. Choose three pieces to give away each day while getting ready. Soon you’ll have a bag full.
Donating clothes is always hard for me. I always tell myself that I might wear something again even though I haven’t worn it or it hasn’t fit for years! But I told myself once something goes in the bag it doesn’t come back out.
*Pin these tips so you can refer back to them later
Dump One Drawer
Pick one drawer in your home to declutter. Then dump it out. This lets you see everything at a glance and makes the sorting process easier.
This is an easy tip for cleaning out the sock drawers. Every sock drawer in my house was overflowing. I ended up finding there were many socks that didn’t have a match or had holes. So I tossed them or turned them into cleaning rags. Now it’s much easier to find a pair of socks and the drawers close!
Organize Your Medicine Cabinet
Medicine, bandages and other health supplies are better organized together. Clean out and take inventory of your medicine cabinet. Creating a neat and tidy place to keep the up-to-date items you use most often.
This is also good for taking inventory for what I actually have. That way I don’t keep buying floss or pain relievers because I can see what I have and what I need.
Create a Simple File System
Remember that paper zone? Soon it will overflow. Choose a few file folders to hold your most common categories of paperwork. Then sort through the paperwork in your tray to file them in their place.
Paperwork is the worst because it adds up so fast. Having a place to keep your paperwork definitely helps keep the clutter down. I like using these accordion file folders. These folders are cute and colorful. They also come in a three pack, so I can organize all our paperwork into different categories. Such as bills, school work, and other random stuff.
Take That Box to the Car
Once you have a few tiny tasks underway, you’ll likely end up with a bunch of stuff to donate. Take the bag or box out to your car so it’s ready to take to the thrift store. Make sure to do this step as soon as you fill a box. That way you won’t second-guess your decluttering efforts.
Find more time in your day
Decluttering your home and having a plan to do so can give you back so much time in your day. One of the things that take up the most time of my day is picking up clutter. My kids are always making a mess and I’m always fighting a losing battle to keep our home clean.
Following these 8 easy decluttering tips add up. Take a look around and picture how your room might look when it is clutter free and organized. Taking small decluttering steps is easy. Soon you’ll be on your way to an organized life!
I agree bad habits are hard to break but it’s worth it. I have never put anything on a kitchen table (like something that just stays there) but if I did, I’d definitely try to break this habit. For me, the kitchen is the place to cook and eat. That’s it. A bedroom is a place to sleep.T hat’s it. Basically, I try not to do anything else.. Nowadays, when we sometimes need to work or study at home, we tend to do it in the bedroom but then, later that evening we can’t fall asleep. It’s messed up, and it’s our own fault. We need have some rooms with purposes. 🙂 And, of course, these places need to be clean