2020 was a year of stress and overwhelm and 2021 unfortunately hasn’t begun much better. As we’ve all spent so much time at home, I find having a cluttered house adds to the chaos and makes me feel so much more overwhelmed if it’s a mess. However, it doesn’t necessarily need to be a tough task where you need to devote a lot of energy to sorting. Little and often can help declutter your home without having to dedicate a full weekend to the job. So, if you don’t know where to start, I thought we’d start with fourteen things to declutter right now, to instil a sense of relief that is so important at the moment!
Things to declutter right now!
#1-Toys
Item number #1 to remove from your house right now are old toys. If you have children, I’m sure you will find toys in your home that are not age appropriate and which they have grown out of. It’s a great opportunity to chat with them about giving and donating and a way to help charities as well as freeing up some space and having less mess.
#2- Old ornaments
You are bound to have some ornaments which you don’t like anymore, that don’t suit your décor, or which don’t give you joy anymore. A big thing about minimalism is to get rid of things which don’t serve the purpose, or you don’t experience happiness from and instead surround yourself with things which bring sparkle and joy.
#3- Candles that are done
You may have old candles which might have a few minutes of burn left in them, so throw them away as you are probably never going to use them again. You can even repurpose them by taking out the wax using boiling water and using the container as a makeup stand etc.
#4- LEGO cards
Every time we went to the supermarket a few months ago we used to get these collectable cards. The boy’s delighted in these at the time and they were great – however, now you will find these strewn all over the house. So just put them away or wrap an elastic band around them to prevent them from cluttering the whole place up or maybe just file them under B for bin….
#5- Old mobile devices
Phones you bought initially and don’t use anymore can be hazardous as over time their batteries leak and they can implode. So, no matter how many good memories you have about them, get rid of them. You can sell old mobile phones and make money from what will otherwise just sit in the drawer!
#6- Old chargers and plugs
When it comes to things to declutter, I can pretty much guarantee you will be able to find tangled up old chargers and plugs which you don’t need anymore and are taking up space unnecessarily. Some for things you don’t even own any more!
#7- Seasonal Decor
Remember those pumpkins you made for Halloween which are still on the shelf?! Probably time to move those along. If you can store them well, you can use them year after year, and declutter them from your sides to make way for something a little more seasonal.
#8- Makeup items.
The next things to declutter right now are the beauty items like empty lipsticks and pallets that have the last little bit left which you are never going to use. You can use rubbing alcohol to reset powders that have broken, but things like mascaras have a shelf life so make sure you’re not using really old make up on sensitive areas.
#9- Odd socks
Get rid of socks for which you have only one pair. Where they go, nobody knows! But if you’re not an odd-socks kinda person then just declutter your home by throwing them away or using them as rags for cleaning.
# 10- Old tins of paint
You may find old cans of paint which are of no used in the house any longer. So, what are you keeping it for? Open up some space by getting rid of them or use them on craft products – just don’t let them sit in the cupboard for years to come!
#11- Old skincare and cream products
If your cleanser has something left in the bottom or other beauty products which you don’t want to part with but you just store on the shelf for all of eternity, then think again. If they have passed their expiry date then their ingredients can actually harm you. So just like old makeup, make sure you dump all the skincare that’s past it’s best.
#12- Old Christmas and birthday cards.
You’ll probably find lots of birthday cards and Christmas cards sent to you maybe when you were very young, many years ago which you’ve been storing but don’t give a second look at. It’s easy to want to store sentimental things but often you’ll never look at them again.
#13- Expired Loyalty cards
You don’t need these loyalty cards anymore as you can nowadays download them as an app on your phone, and put them all together so these are some great things to declutter. This is one way of being more sensible with your clutter. So, think about the things that no longer exist (Blockbuster card anyone?!) and which you can access digitally.
#14- Damaged or bobbled tights
The final thing you should think of decluttering immediately are the tights which have seen better days. Even when you know they are past their best and have holes in them, if you still seem to hold onto them then it might be time to invest in some new ones!
I’d love to know which things you recommend decluttering in your home to help out our readers – 20 more things to declutter will be coming soon!
What do you think?