Decluttering your house is a transformative process that can breathe new life into your living space. It provides numerous benefits for your physical and mental well-being. However, as reported by The Spruce, decluttering is not always an easy task. Things can get even more overwhelming if you don’t have a clear plan.
In this article, we try to explore a few essential things to remember when decluttering your house. These will help you turn your cluttered home into a more organized and peaceful sanctuary.
Set Clear Goals
Before you dive into the decluttering process, Happy Organized Life suggests establishing clear goals for what you want to achieve.
What is your motivation for decluttering? Are you aiming for a more minimalist lifestyle? Are you trying to create a more functional space? Are you simply looking to reduce stress and improve your overall quality of life?
Understanding your goals will help you stay focused and motivated throughout the process. For example, let’s say your objective is to create a clutter-free living room. In that case, you must identify specific areas or items you want to address, such as the bookshelf, entertainment center, or storage cabinets. This approach will make the overall task seem less daunting and more achievable.
Start Small
Decluttering an entire house can be an overwhelming endeavor. Therefore, it’s best to start small.
Choose one room or even a specific area within a room to tackle initially. Once you’ve successfully decluttered one area, you’ll gain a sense of accomplishment and momentum to tackle the next. This step-by-step approach not only makes the process more manageable but also prevents you from feeling discouraged by the enormity of the task.
When you select a starting point, be sure to declutter systematically. Take everything out of the chosen area, sort through your belongings, and decide what to keep, donate, or discard. This method ensures that you’re thorough in your decluttering efforts and helps you avoid merely shuffling items from one place to another.
Embrace the One-Year Rule
A common challenge in decluttering is deciding which items to keep and which to let go of. One helpful rule to keep in mind is the one-year rule.
If you haven’t used an item in the past year, it’s often a good indicator that you can do without it. This rule applies to clothing, kitchen gadgets, home decor, and various other possessions.
Separate the things into two groups. The first ones should be things that you can donate, give away, or sell. The others could be things that are basically wastes, and neither you nor anyone else can use them in any way.
Then, call in a skip-hire company and have them handle the waste group. These companies are well-versed in dealing with waste disposal. From residential and commercial waste to even hazardous waste, these companies can do it all. Hence, they can bring over a skip as per your size requirements and take the waste items away.
According to BS Recycling, there are skip-hire companies that offer same-day service too. Hence, if you’re decluttering on a whim, and don’t have any waste management or removal process planned, don’t worry. Getting in touch with the right skip-hire company can solve most of your problems.
Of course, there are exceptions for sentimental or seasonal items, but the one-year rule can be a practical guideline for weeding out unnecessary clutter.
Create an Organization System
The idea that decluttering is about getting rid of things is a baseless one, and it’s something you should get out of your head. Decluttering is also about creating an organized and functional living space. Hence, to maintain a clutter-free home, what you need is an effective organization system.
Consider investing in storage solutions such as shelves, cabinets, bins, and baskets to keep your belongings tidy and easily accessible. Labeling is another key component of an organization system. Labeled containers and shelves help you know where everything belongs, making it easier to put items away in their designated places.
Also, regularly review your organization system and make adjustments as necessary. This helps ensure that the system in place remains efficient.
Be Mindful of Sentimental Items
According to Homes & Gardens, when it comes to decluttering, dealing with sentimental items is always one of the most challenging tasks. Whether it’s old photographs, heirlooms, or mementos from special occasions, these possessions often evoke strong emotions and attachments. It’s essential to approach sentimental items with care and mindfulness.
Start by identifying which sentimental items truly hold deep meaning and bring you joy. It’s perfectly okay to keep meaningful items but remember that not everything associated with a memory or emotion is worth holding onto.
Consider taking photos of certain items to preserve the memory without the physical clutter. You can also create a designated space to display a few cherished sentimental pieces.
Conclusion
From the discussion above, it’s once again established that decluttering is easier said than done. Even then, if you stick to these tips, the overall process will become much easier for you to comprehend. That way, you’ll be able to free up space at your home without too much difficulty.
