5 Tips For Decluttering Your Home

Split the work up

By splitting the work up, we don't mean offloading the work onto someone else, although getting a friend or partner to help is never a bad thing! We're advising you to divide the job into more manageable sections. Don't take a scattergun approach because before you know it, you'll have items everywhere and an overwhelming mess to deal with. It helps to section things off, one room at a time, and work your way around little by little.

Sort your items

Throughout these tips, you'll see the importance we've placed on organisation and when it comes to sorting through your things, it's no different. Create a minimum of two piles: keep and bin. It's a good idea to add another pile for items you don't want to keep yourself but could bag up and donate or gift to others or even sell. Finally, it's normal to feel some doubt about some of the objects and although we encourage you to be ruthless with your selection, you may want an undecided pile that you can revisit at the end when you've got a better understanding of your final inventory.

Discard first

This approach helps create space. If you've got through the sorting process and have a collection of items you want to get rid of, don't wait. Get them out of your home and make use of the extra space without them around. It's also a good way to take a breather and assess your progress. You might find after discarding the unwanted pile that you've ended up with more room than you first imagined, which may influence your decision and allow you to be a little more lenient with any items you're on the fence about.

If in doubt, throw it out

It's natural to be sceptical when having a clear-out, but people often mistake this scepticism as a reason to hold on to things. Generally, if you've not used something in the last year, allowed it to gather dust or forgot about its existence entirely, it's best to discard it. After all, you've survived without it, so it's no great loss. It can be hard but you have to be ruthless. Make an exception here and there, and you'll find yourself clinging onto things you have no reason to cling onto. The one exception is items of great sentimental value. Sometimes, despite logic saying otherwise, we're not quite ready to part with items that mean the most to us. This is where the aforementioned revisit pile comes in useful. As a rule of thumb, if you've put it to the side for later, revisited it and still can't muster up the courage to throw it away, it's probably best you don't.

Take a longer-term approach

You've done the hard work, but now it's about making sure you don't have to do it again for some time. Instil good habits now and you'll reap the rewards of a tidy home for much longer. Consider the most effective storage arrangements, assessing items you'll need regularly and those you'll use far less. Invest in storage solutions in the form of boxes, shelves, or smart solutions for inside your wardrobe or under your bed. It's about keeping things organised for the foreseeable future, so you can reduce the need for a big clean and enjoy your freshly decluttered home for as long as possible!