Clearing out old junk cleares stagnant energy and create space – physically and emotionally. It feels good to go through your things and make a pile of what you no longer need.
When we declutter, we feel more organized and in control of our lives.
I love to use the ‘golden rule’ of if I haven’t used it in the past year, it needs to go.
If you’ve forgotten about it, odds are you won’t miss it when it’s gone either!
Here is a organized list by categories which will help you to go throw:
Bathroom
1.Old makeup (most makeup expires in six months – and if you haven’t used it in that long anyway, then you can probably let it go)
2.Expired medicine (prescriptions, cold medicine, aspirin, etc)
3.Torn, stained, or mismatched towels, washcloths, etc
4.Old cleaning supplies
5.Beauty products you no longer use (that half-empty bottle of shampoo collecting dust, or the deodorant you don’t really like)
Bedroom
This can sometimes be the most challenging part of your house to declutter because it involves getting rid of clothes that you may love (or love the idea of) but don’t actually wear. Stick to your guns! Be strong and honest with yourself! Only keep what you’ll actually wear and get use out of.
1.Any ratty clothing or socks etc with holes, stains, or unwanted tears
2.Any clothing that doesn’t fit you or that you haven’t worn in the past year
3.Accessories (jewelry, belts, etc) that you haven’t worn in the past year
4.What’s under your bed? Most anything that you’ve forgotten about under there is a great declutter candidate
5.What about your night stand? Any knickknacks that don’t have any sentimentality or books you’ll never read / already did?
Closet
A pro tip is to remove every piece of clothing from your closet to start. Then assess what you love and put it back. Anything remaining you can probably get rid of. Be honest!
1.Any shoes that you don’t wear or that are too worn out or out of style
2.Any purses that are out of date or that you haven’t used in the past year
3.Jackets – how many do you actually need? Are there a few you can do without? Consider the idea of quality (one nice winter jacket) over quantity (five cheap jackets that will fall apart)
4.Hats – ask yourself the same question of how many you need and quality vs. quantity
5.Out of season items (it’s winter, so if your closet is full of your summer gear, consider moving it to your basement or storage unit until you need it again)
Kitchen
While you may assume your kitchen is a clutter-safe zone, just think of all the areas your clutter has to hide – from the refrigerator to the highest, most hard-to-reach cabinet . . .
1.Clean out that fridge! Throw out anything expired or that hasn’t been touched in several weeks
2.Take that same approach to your pantry – anything expired or that you won’t use can go (bonus points for donating any food you won’t use that’s still good to a local food drive!)
3.Stained, chipped, or mismatched dishes or mugs.
4.Do you have any old dusty serving dishes, crockpots, or blenders that you’ve forgotten about in those hard-to-reach cabinets? If you’ve forgotten about it, odds are you won’t miss it when it’s gone either!
5.Final step – the drawers. Any old grocery bags, random scraps of tin foil, mismatched silverware, old takeout menus, expired coupons, or that third wine bottle opener
Living Area
1.Junk mail, old instruction manuals, used or outdated magazines/notebooks/planners . . . time to let go!
2.Attack that junk drawer! Dried out pens, paper scraps, cords that don’t belong to anything, your sixth phone charger
3.Anything related to broken or outdated devices (CDs or DVDs, maybe even a few ancient VHS, old model phones/phone chargers, etc)
4.Books you’ve already read or never
5.Any extra pieces of furniture you don’t use / don’t love that’s needlessly taking up space?
Also, if you’re having a hard time with the project as a whole, organize yourself by a specific goal. For example, decide to remove five things from each category above, or aim for getting rid of three pairs of shoes, three shirts, and three pairs of pants, etc.
The motivation of donating or giving away also helps stoke the declutter fire. As humans, we gain satisfaction from giving. Adding to the donate and give away piles will make the declutter process more enjoyable and more rewarding.
Clearing your space before the new year is the perfect time to get organized, create space, and set your resolutions in motion to start your 2018 right.
By cleansing our space of the inevitable clutter that builds up over time, we cleanse our mental, emotional, and psychological space too.