This year I decided to take a few weeks off social media over the Christmas Holidays and its proven to be a great way to refresh my mind, home, and soul. I HIGHLY recommend it! If only I had done this sooner!
This week I’ve felt a burst of energy and motivation to declutter our home in time for the New Year! I can’t explain how amazing it has felt to tackle some of the closets, drawers, random baskets and paperwork that have been sitting there staring at me for FAR too long.
FULL disclosure: I had a box of random office supplies sitting on our bedroom floor for over a year. A box that I had emptied out of my old real estate office more than 15 months prior….It felt so daunting for some reason and I’m a bit sheepish in sharing that it took less than 10 minutes to tackle that eye sore. Why do we (or me at least) always procrastinate on this kind of stuff? I’ll never know. Regardless, I thought I’d share all the little nooks and crannies I’ve been tackling this week and maybe I can inspire you to tackle a few of those pesky areas that need a little declutter in your home as well.
#1 Entry Closet
Another pesky area that has felt like such a daunting task. Our entry closet had become such a dumping ground of family history. Bins of photos, board games, random totes of our kids old school papers, school supplies that had never been used yet stuffed in there on the last day of school. There were random seasonal decor items I hadn’t used for years, an old punch bowl, empty boxes from small appliances (why do I always think I’ll “need” that original packaging again?
My #1 goal with this declutter project was to have a spot to store our vacuum cleaner. I am proud to say that our vacuum is now happily stored in the entry closet – WINNING –
I recycled so much loose paperwork, sent a garbage bag of unused items to the thrift store, threw out broken frames and organized family games, puzzles and photos. I even found my collection of Royal Conservatory piano books. Dang does it feel good to get that closet organized!
#2 Bathroom Cabinets and Drawers
I feel like this is another area that can easily pile up. It felt so good to get these areas organized. I went through old lotions, soaps, nail polishes and more. It was amazing how many were outdated or just not being used. Most of this was either dumped and recycled or throw out all together. I used little baskets and bins to organize the items we still use and also wiped down the cabinets and drawers.
#3 Paperwork
Paperwork is probably my biggest struggle. To be completely honest, I am NOT good with paperwork but I’m really trying to get better routines in this area. I used to feel like I needed to keep it all but I’m learning to decipher what to keep and what to toss. Even kids art…shhh don’t tell, but I typically recycle most of them and keep a few favs. Trust me…I have older kids and am still working through art work I thought we needed to keep. Lesson learned;)
#4 Kids Toys
I usually tackle this area right BEFORE Christmas so that there is room for the gifts they are about to receive. Go through and remove toys that are no longer age appropriate and put together a bag to drop off at the thrift store. Weed out toys and books that your little one has lost interest in. You can either donate them and remove them all together or do a toy rotation. Here are a few posts I wrote about creating minimal and organized play areas. “The Minimalist Play Space” & “How to set up an organized Play Area”
#5 Books and Magazines
This is going to be a very personal preference. I know that a lot of people love to have a home library and keeping books to read and read over is important to them. I personally only ever read a book once. Once they are read they tend to sit and literally collect dust. Now, there are a few books I do keep because they were extra special. The same goes for magazines. For example, I love keeping my collection of Magnolia magazines for future reference to recipes or Home decor ideas.
This week I went through all of the Books and Magazines I’ve been holding onto and did a hard purge. I took some to a used consignment book store and others went to the thrift store.
#6 Pantry & Spices
This past year I did a pantry overhaul and it was so nice to have it organized and the bins and baskets helped to keep things organized. Its amazing how quickly this area can get cluttered again. Go through your pantry and spice drawer. Pull out dated food, merge duplicates and place similar items together. Write a list of items you are running low on and another trick is a “DO NOT BUY” list for items that you have plenty of.
#7 Clothes and Shoes
This one is pretty simple. Ask yourself these questions and it will make the purge easy! You may need to do a hard purge if you haven’t done this in awhile.
Shoes | Do they still fit? Have they been worn in the past year? Do they still go with my style?
Clothing | Does it still fit? Will it fit again and if so will they still be in style? Has it been worn in the past year?
Asking these questions will honestly make this task super easy. Throw it in a bag and either donate it or sell it. One rule that I’ve always loved is the “one in and one out” rule. I haven’t completely jumped on that rule but I do try to weed through clothes and shoes at least a few times a year. Its also made me more conscious when I’m making clothing/shoe purchases for our family.
#8 Junk Drawers & Baskets
Ok, I’m a firm believer in a good junk drawer. I also love how pretty baskets can hide clutter and keep things “somewhat” organized. With that said, these areas need a declutter every now and then. This week I did a hard purge on random baskets and drawers that have been doing a great job of hiding away the clutter. I found cords from electronics we don’t even own anymore. I found a birthday card with cash still in it, even a watch I’ve been looking for! I found new homes for a bunch of items, found treasures we’ve been looking for, threw out random garbage and thrifted a bunch of items we didn’t use or need anymore.
#9 Under the Bed (s)
I recommend moving the bed all together and getting right under there. It’s amazing the treasures (and garbage) to be found hiding under a bed. A good vacuum cleaning is also a good idea. Dust bunnies LOVE living under beds.
#10 Vehicle Storage Compartments
Ok, not necessarily in your house but most of us spend a lot of time in our vehicles so why not start the year with a fresh and tidy set of wheels. I went through my glove box, and random storage containers. Oh my gosh, I found favourite lip glosses, the earring I’ve been missing, and a ton of random goodies. I also threw out a bunch of misc papers, and off course empty coffee cups….
Finish it off with a vacuum and voila! A new lease on life for your faithful ride.
Welp! That feels amazing! A decluttered HOME to start off the New Year! Click the link below for a PDF checklist and I can’t wait to hear how your decluttering goes. As always, I’m here for any questions you might have or just say hello!
Until Next time,
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