Everyone has clutter in their home. It’s a given in today’s busy world, but you don’t have to have a cluttered home forever! I am going to share with you some secret tips I have stashed away that will have your home, and your life, clutter-free in no time.
It may seem overwhelming at first, but I’m sharing 25 tips to learn all that you need to know about how to clear clutter and stay on track. Let’s dive deeper below:
25 Simple Clutter-Clearing Tips for Your Home
1- Start Somewhere Small, then Move Up to Bigger Projects
To keep yourself from getting too overwhelmed, it is a good idea to start small. Organize your desk drawers, sort the silverware, make the bed, or do anything small and methodical like that to get your mind prepped for cleaning.
As you do this, you can gradually move up to bigger things so you don’t get slammed with all the clutter at once.
2- Ask For Help
You don’t ever have to do things by yourself if you are overwhelmed.
Ask a friend or family member for some help and spend the day cleaning your clutter while listening to your favorite music, eating snacks, and catching up.
3- You can Start From High Places and Move Down to Lower Places
It sometimes helps to plan your cleaning from the top down. For instance, dust your shelves first, then straighten the pictures on the walls, then wash the windows and declutter the windowsills.
This will help you clean in a linear way that will make the entire process less chaotic and overwhelming.
4-Clean in Small Increments of Time
If you clean a little bit at a time, it will seem less overwhelming than if you spend giant chunks of time on your home.
Break it up into thirty-minute increments so you can focus on one area at a time and get the job done!
5- Get Out Three Boxes and Label them “Throw Out”, “Keep”, and “Donate”
When you are swimming in clutter and don’t know what to do, it is a good idea to create a visual with which to organize your clutter. Get out three large boxes and label them “Throw Out”, “Keep”, and “Donate”.
Then, go through each room in your home and designate the items to one of the boxes. It will be much easier to visualize what you want to keep and what you want to give away, plus the boxes will make it easier to transport the unwanted items to the garbage or donation bins.
6- Use the One Year Rule
If you have not used an item in over a year, you probably don’t need it. Either store it in your attic, donate it, or trash it.
Most items that you think you will need are purely sentimental, so you need to think with your head and determine the actual level of need you have for an item.
7- Get Furniture that Doubles as Storage
Many pieces of furniture, such as stools, ottomans, and even coffee tables, have storage capabilities. Utilize smart pieces of furniture to minimize your overall clutter.
8- Put Items in Specific Places
To keep clutter at bay, make sure you keep items around the area they will be used. This minimizes clutter and confusion.
For instance, keep small appliances in the kitchen, keys on a hook or in a bowl by the front door, mail in a mail organizer, and shoes on a shoe rack.
9- Try on All of Your Clothes
Go through your closet and try everything on. If it fits, keep it. If it does not fit, toss it unless it is something sentimental like a wedding dress.
Don’t keep clothes with the thought that you will someday fit them, for you can always buy new clothes later down the road. Get rid of clothes you don’t need for now.
10- For Every One Thing You Bring Home, Toss Out One Thing
Every time you buy something, swap it out instead of piling up the clutter in your home. If you buy a new toaster, throw out the new one. If you buy new pillows, donate the old ones.
Try not to increase the overall number of things you have in the house.
11- Toss Out Broken Items
No matter what it is, if it’s broken, toss it. You are not going to have the time to fix every chipped glass, stained tablecloth, or ripped shirt.
Don’t waste your time, and simply get rid of broken items before you get into hoarding territory.
12- Go Through Your Refrigerator Weekly
Once a week, go through your refrigerator and clear out any spoiled
13- Organize Your Important Papers
A cluttered workspace can be incredibly chaotic. Invest in organizational folders, a file cabinet, or other sorting methods so you never have to deal with desk clutter again.
14- Don’t Second Guess Yourself
Go with your gut. If you toss something, leave it in the trash. If you donate something, leave it there. Your gut reaction is always best, for if you start second-guessing nothing will get clean.
15- Clean When the Urge Hits You
Anytime you feel the urge to clean, do it. You never know how your mood will be from day to day, so leap on the opportunity to clean when the mood strikes you.
16- Write Down What You Clean and What Needs to Be Cleaned
Keeping a detailed list of what needs to be clean and what has been cleaned helps you stay on track.
It also gives you a sense of accomplishment when you can check things off the list, which will then motivate you to continue cleaning.
17- Leave Sentimental Items for Last
If you start with sentimental items, the whole cleaning process will be driven by emotion. You will start to become attached to items you would not have been previously, which will make the whole process harder to finish.
18- Try Not to Buy Too Much
When you go out to shop, keep a list and buy only what you need. If you buy a lot of needless items when you go out to shop, the clutter will just continue to pile up over time.
19- Congratulate Yourself
When you clean something, congratulate yourself for it! It will give you a sense of pride in your work and your home, and you will be motivated to continue the good work.
20- Make it a Habit to Donate Once a Month
Make a designated donation bin in your home. Once a month, donate to the needy and get rid of anything you don’t need. This will minimize clutter and put items toward a good cause.
21- Declutter Mail with a Mail Organizer
Mail organizers are lifesavers. Hang a cute mail organizer by the front door with three hanging baskets on it.
Every time you bring in the mail put it in the top basket for incoming mail. Place read mail in the middle basket, then place outgoing mail in the bottom basket. Simple, right?
22- Make a Weekly Cleaning Schedule
Cleaning schedules help you stay on track so clutter is never a problem. They give you a visual so you won’t ever get sidetracked or forget what needs to be cleaned and when.
There are many useful resources online that you can model your schedule off of, so give it a try!
23- Teach Your Kids Some Cleaning Skills
Teaching your kiddos how to clean up after themselves will make your life a lot easier in the long-run.
It will also help them learn valuable skills that they can take into their adulthood, such as responsibility, organization, and cleanliness.
24- Make Organized Toy Bins for Your Kiddos
This is a really fun clutter-clearing tip. Grab your kids and make a fun day of picking out colorful totes for toys. Label the totes for each type of toy your kiddo has, and have fun making a game of cleaning.
Turn it into a scavenger hunt for your kids and race to see who can organize the toys into the correct bins the fastest! It will be fun for them, and it will relieve a lot of stress on your part. Try it out and see for yourself!
25- Declutter the Bathroom
Go through your medicine cabinet and toss out any expired prescriptions, toothpaste that is dried up and nearly empty, old toothbrushes, and more. Then turn to the shower and get rid of and empty bottles, tidbits of soap bars, and beauty products you know you won’t be using anymore.
Do this every month to keep your bathroom clean and tidy.
Final Thoughts
Remember to just stay dedicated to it and make a habit of tidying up so you never have to feel overwhelmed with clutter again.
I hope my tips have helped you find great ways to declutter your home, and I wish you the best in your cleaning endeavors!