Typically, spring is a time when people in their masses set out to declutter and deep clean their homes and it is coming up to that time of year. Moreover, more and more of us are buying into the idea of minimalism which is beneficial in living a simplified life in an uncluttered environment. Minimalism promotes having fewer possessions – getting rid of ones that seem unnecessary.
Decluttering your home, whatever the time of year or whatever your motive, means you will have less to clean, less debt, less to organise, less stress and more money and energy. Many of us are ready for an almighty declutter, but the question which stumps most of us is – what do I begin? The journey of decluttering need not be a painful one and once complete will make you feel a lot better about your living space.
We understand this can be daunting, so we have come up with some ideas to get the ball rolling on the declutter extravaganza in your home. Consider these creative ways of decluttering over time.
Make a list
To start you off, you could make a list. Spilt the list into different rooms and specify what the challenges of each room are and what you believe needs to go in the bin or could be given away to a friend or someone less fortunate than yourself.
Over time, you can work through the list – perhaps one room at a time over a number of days, weeks or months.
Ticking off on the list will provide clear goals and provide a sense of achievement. You will be reminded what has been done, and what still needs to be done.
Give yourself a timeframe
Giving yourself a timeframe to work within can be extremely helpful. You do not have to do one big declutter. You could assign yourself a 5-minute slot to commit to decluttering, or you could commit to an hour – it’s up to you. Shorter bursts of decluttering can ease the anxiety of tackling a large task, so this is advisable.
The closet clear-out
Something which you may have to tackle to truly declutter your home is your wardrobe. We often collect a number of clothing items which we do not wear or even forget about.
One way to do this is to pull everything out of your wardrobe and draws – we advise you to tackle one of these at a time, perhaps on different days. Then, create piles which are for ‘keep’, ‘charity shop’ and ‘throw away’.
You could also try the ‘Hanger Experiment’ which found its fame on the Oprah Winfrey Show. The idea is that in order to identify items of clothing which should be going out, you hang your clothes up with the hangers the reverse way around. As you take the items out to actually wear them, you put them back in with the hanger the correct way around. After a six-month period (could be longer or shorter if you wanted), you should be left with clothing hung up the right way and clothing hung up the wrong way – providing a clear picture of what you really wear on a daily basis. Obviously, you should discount things like occasion wear as these are pieces which will only get worn when necessary. With all the clothing items which clearly have not been reached for, you can then discard through donation or throwing away if they are tatty.
Try and see your possessions with a new perceptive
A lot of us are hoarders, even though we may not know it. We can get so used to things in our home that we do not even notice they are there. But try and look at your possessions with fresh eyes and ask yourself – “do I really need this?”.
