How to declutter your home

Having a house full of clutter can easily become overwhelming and can feel like a physical weight, adding stress to your day. It can also become difficult to know how to declutter your home and where to even start. We get it! Things can start accumulating quickly, and in the blink of an eye, you’re swimming in clutter. 

But, there’s hope! We have the tips and tricks you need that will help you know how to declutter your home. Luckily for you, this is a skill that anyone can master, and by breaking the process down into manageable steps, you’ll be able to transform your space, reduce your anxiety and enjoy a more peaceful environment. Here, we’ll walk you through a step-by-step process on how to declutter your home.

A step-by-step guide on how to declutter your home

As we mentioned before, the most important thing to keep in mind is to take this process one step at a time. So, here’s what you can do to make your space more feng shui.

Step 1: Prep and plan for success

Often, the biggest hurdle is to actually start. So, the best thing to do is to start small and build momentum. First things first – get your supplies and your organisational system ready. The first step is to get your supplies ready and use the four-box method.

Label four distinct containers clearly – you can use boxes, laundry baskets, or sturdy bags.

1. Keep: Items you love, need, and use regularly.

2. Donate/sell: Items in good condition that someone else could use.

3. Bin/Recycle: Broken, stained, or unusable items.

4. Relocate: Items that belong in a different room

Use the one-hour rule

Instead of using your whole day to get your house decluttered, use one hour a day to tackle the issue. Focus on small areas first, like drawers and shelves. This way, you’ll build up momentum and confidence, preventing burnout.

Step 2: Tackle the high-impact areas

Next, we suggest that you target areas that will deliver the biggest emotional payoff first. Seeing an area that is highly organised will give you a massive sense of satisfaction and a huge burst of motivation.

The 80/20 clutter rule

Think of your clutter this way – 20% of your items you’ll only use 80% of the time. So, keeping this in mind, you’ll be able to prioritise the items that you feel truly deserve your space.

Using this methodology, you should be able to target all of the important areas in the house that need to be decluttered. For example:

• The kitchen counter: put all small appliances away that you don’t use on a daily basis
• The ‘junk drawer’: We all have a junk drawer – and we don’t need it. Use small dividers to categorise anything that you absolutely need.
• The entryway/landing: Clear the entry and the landing spaces. This will automatically create a clear and neat space in areas where there is a lot of traffic.

Step 3: The decision-making test

This step will be one of the most important ones when looking at how to declutter your home, and it can easily become the step where most people get stuck. If you’re struggling to decide whether or not to keep something, ask yourself these three questions:

1. When did I last use this? – If you haven’t used the item in the past 6 months to a year, it should probably go into the donate/sell pile.
2. Would I buy this today? – If you wouldn’t buy the item currently, you should probably get rid of the item, too.
3. Am I keeping this purely out of guilt? – This will likely apply to gifts or items you feel you ‘should’ keep out of guilt.

So, this begs the question – what about handling sentimental clutter? You don’t need to keep every memento if you feel like it’s taking over your life and your peace. If you feel like you’re able to part with a sentimental item, you could also consider taking a good-quality photograph of the item and creating a digital album. There will, no doubt, be items that you can’t part with, and this is truly understandable. So, don’t be too hard on yourself.

Step 4: Creating long-term order

The next most important thing to consider when looking at how to declutter your home is putting in the effort to maintain a clean and organised space. Here are our top tips on how to keep your space decluttered:

‘One in, one out’ rule

This is a very effective strategy when looking to maintain a decluttered home. For example, if you buy a new pair of shoes, donate an older pair that you no longer wear as much. This rule can be used for pretty much anything in the house and prevents accumulation and hoarding.

The 5-minute daily tidy-up

Set yourself a timer at the end of every day to do a quick tidy up. Sweep your floors, put books back on shelves and fold away laundry, for example. By being consistent every day and by doing the small, but important tasks, you’ll find that your space will be a lot easier to clean during those times when you need to do a spring clean.

And, of course, if you feel that you need to store your personal items away from your home, looking into self storage will be your best option. With Extra Space Self Storage, we have a range of storage units for you to choose from. So, whether you’re decluttering or downsizing, we’ll be your partner along the way.

Mastering how to declutter your home doesn’t mean that you have to live a minimalist life, but you can absolutely create an environment where you feel calm and productive. And now you know exactly how to do that.

For more information on our different storage unit sizes and how to get started, get in touch with our extra-friendly team today! We’d be more than happy to help with any questions you might have.