Post 2 - A Decluttering Guide

Decluttering… Oh what a productive and rewarding pass time!! Quite honestly it's been driving my man up the wall because I keep re-configuring the house into ways that I find more convenient for myself. Also he is a bit of a pack rat and doesn’t like getting rid of anything at all!! put it this way, we have 3 dressers, 2 sectional sofas, and a second dining table (not including the patio set) along with a futon that we re-purposed into the garage just to clear up space in the basement. The garage has since


become the man cave, which I have no problem with. We even put one of our extra flat screen TV’s in there along with some game consoles… The fact that I can say that makes me cringe… (For the record, we did not just buy the extra TV’s and consoles. Those items multiplied when I moved in and combined my stuff with his.)

We had come to the agreement that while I am not working through the last bit of the pregnancy, I would be the one that keeps the house in order. That’s when I looked around and realized how much space was being incorrectly used and how much stuff was not even necessary. Like bath towels, who needs 17 bath towels?! And tumblers in the kitchen… I counted 14 of them… it was like that through the house. There were empty boxes that electronics came in that were taking up shelf space in our tiny house and items that hadn't been touched in who knows how long! So I started decluttering and putting things away for storage… I’ll start with decluttering, and explain how you can maintain what is left with organizing later. I'll do things in this order because organizing clutter gets you nowhere.

A quick point too that I would like to make before we jump into the decluttering… When it comes to decorating a home, clutter can be hidden in the décor. Yes, those trinkets you got from your great aunt are gorgeous along side the trinkets that were given to you by your inlaws, and your mom, and your aunt from the old country, and those plates you found in the store that you HAD to have… but suggestion, decorate strategically. I decorate in 3's. No more than 3 items to a surface. If you really insist on using all of those items at some point, try doing it seasonally. The rest that you are not using right away, pack up and put away for now (you aren’t tossing them, just storing them is all, so no tears!).

DECLUTTERING:

Here is how I decluttered our tiny home:

You will need:

• pen & paper
• binder (I suggest 3” from the dollar store with dividers as it will be useful with my other blog posts that will be posted to help you get in order preparing for baby. Look for my 'Life Binder' post. Seriously, it's a life saver!)
• boxes/storage bins
• tape & squares of paper (or labels from the dollar store)
• a marker
• news paper/wrapping paper for anything delicate

How to start:

I find it easier to go room by room. After doing the area that I planned to store the storage boxes in, I started in the common areas as this was a process that I did over the course of a week so I wouldn’t burn myself out (pregnancy takes a lot out of you), and of course you want to be able to see the results to keep motivated. From there I went to the kitchen, bathroom, then the bedrooms and any extra spaces.

Notes:

• Try to keep anything seasonal separate for now, we will get to that later. Have a box to the side to put anything seasonal into till we get to it.
• Write the room you are working with on 2 labels. Place one label on the lid of the box and one on the side of the box. If you are planning to use more than one box in that area, put a small number in the corner of the label to help keep track.
• Write at the top of a piece of paper the room/box you are working with. Again, if there will be more than one box, put the number on there as well. This will become your inventory list. (Keep these lists in a pile, there is a plan for them later.)
• I suggest vacuuming or sweeping the area you are working in prior to starting as you will eventually end up there when it comes to weeding out items.

Rules to successfully declutter (consider these as strict for those who have a hoarding issue):

1. If you think “Oh I could use this later. Maybe I won't store it just yet”, PUT IT IN THE BOX!! Basically, focus on the decluttering. If you do need the item later, you will be able to find it later. Don't think about the use of an item while decluttering, it gets you nowhere.
2. Do NOT make exceptions for an item if you have not used it in a while.
3. If there is multiples, put some away into storage. Again, if you need it later, you will be able to find it.

What to look for:

You basically want to ask yourself, what have you (and your partner if applicable) not used in the last while? By while, I mean the last few months minimum. Take those items and place them in the middle of the room. Then sit down and look at the items to determine if there is anything that would make them unusable. So look for wear and tear, broken pieces, etc. place it into a toss box (no “I’ll fix this later”, you are on a time limit with baby on the way. You have plenty more to do with your time). If it's still a good item, but you KNOW you will not use it again, place it into a donate box. Anything else place into a labeled box (refer to rule #1). as you place items into the storage box, write it down on a labeled inventory list that corresponds with the appropriate box. Remember to open drawers, cupboards, cabinets, etc.

Once done in a room:

DO NOT look in the toss box or the donate box, you will second guess yourself and end up with clutter again! Just close it up and label 'toss' or 'donate', and put it to the side and move onto your storage box. Put the storage box into the space that you will be using for storing the clutter boxes. Remember, if you need the items later, you will be able to find them by referring to your inventory sheets, but for now, focus specifically on decluttering. Now to move onto the next room. Keep going until you have hit every space. Note: extra bits like pens etc, put into one place. I will post storage solutions later in this post on what you can do with these items. (My man has a habit of dragging tools, nails, screws, etc into the house, so I had to find in-house-temporary solutions for these items till I could get them back to their appropriate place in the detached garage.)

Guide (in the case of extreme clutter, move around the room in stages based on these points. It will help if you focus on just one part at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed):

Living room:

• entertainment unit
• tables
• any drawers/cupboards
• Etc

Dining room: (if its an eat in kitchen, just focus on the table, place mat/table decoration storage area if in the area)

• table(s)
• any drawers or cupboards (some people have a storage unit in the dining room)

Kitchen:

• cutlery drawer (if it's over flowing, think on what the maximum amount of guests is that you have over at one time and add that number to the number of people in your family. The rest go in a box unless you NEED them)
• cooking/baking utensils drawer (you don't need multiple ladles, spoons with holes, etc. if there is multiple items with the same function, keep one, maximum two of each item (less is better. Again, if you need more later, and I don’t mean cause the other one(s) are in the wash, you can get them later)
• plates/bowls/cups (I keep one large plate, one small plate, and one bowl per person, MAYBE 2 at most. Also two cups per person, one large one small. Having more than that when you don’t need it only allows for buildup in the sink. There is nothing wrong with someone washing a cup to use it if theirs is used. The more dishes there are, will be more dishes for you to do.)
• keep going through cupboards and such. Basic rule is get rid of multiples, less is better.
• food pantry/cupboard

Bathroom:

• under sink
• drawers
• shelving (if you have it)
• around bathtub (toss empty bottles etc)
• vanity & sink top

Bedroom(s) (split into 2 sections. Room & closet):

Room:

• dresser top(s)
• desk (if in bedroom, example: in kid/teen room)
• shelves

Closet (including dresser drawers with this):

• Basically anything that is clothing, go through and ask what hasnt been worn in 1 year. Next, look at what is left and if you wouldnt buy it if you saw it today, donate it. If it's worn/ripped, etc, toss it or rag it (try to limit to 5 rags in the house and no more than 10 in a garage)
• Out of what is left after that, what doesn't fit? You may have to try everything on. Store the items that do not fit you anymore due to pregnancy. You most likely will end up loosing a bunch of the weight you have gained.
• You get the idea, keep going through your clothing.
• Still too much clothing? Separate your clothing into 4 piles. Spring, summer, fall, and winter. Rotate these as the seasons change. One, it will give you a refreshed opinion and view of your clothing when you haven’t seen them in a few seasons. Two, it will free up space from items like long sleeves that you wont use in the summer or strapless in the winter. (Always keep maximum 5 tank tops minimum 3 out. They work great for going under items that need a little bit more modesty added to them or for lounge days.)

If you have extra rooms and/or spaces, just apply this concept to those as well. For those that are like my boyfriend, the junk/storage room is not an exception!! get in there or it'll all just pile up!!

NOW, as for those seasonal items that I mentioned to keep separate… What I did because I had a lot of décor when I moved in, and it combined with his, I went through and used things like shoe boxes for items that were packable like garlands (soft items that wont break if packed tightly) and labeled those by season and color, since they were a mass amount of colors. The rest I packed as I normally would, everything labeled and in boxes respective to the season.

For decluttering these items, it'll take a bit longer than the general house, because you probably don’t remember 100% what you did and didn’t use last year. So what is going to happen, is when that season comes around next, decorate your house as usual, and anything left over, get rid of. No 'what if I want to use it next year?'….. what if you don’t? Quite honestly, these decorations are not expensive and they will just keep piling up. I suggest keeping strings of lights though. I once tossed a string of lights once for Christmas, and the next time I went to use the ones I kept and found that I needed more bulbs… which I could have used the ones on the string that I got rid of… so I learned my lesson there.

One last thing that I would like to mention. Craft drawers… I’m 100% guilty of this, and it's actually where my decluttering and organizing kick started when I was younger. They are 100% a magnet for junk and clutter. It's where some things go to rust/deteriorate. Empty those drawers onto the middle of the floor and sort through it. Put pins in a pile, put fabrics into a pile, put things into piles. Get rid of tiny scraps that you know you wont use, and don't hold onto them just cause you think you can make it into a bow or tie something with it… Once this is done, things will be much easier on you.

So that is pretty well it! Once you have the house decluttered, you can move onto the next step, organizing! I hate organizing clutter. There is a huge difference between an organized house and a cluttered organized house. Good luck with your home! Let me know how it goes! And if you have anything you would like to add to these points or even requests/suggestions, feel free to leave a comment! If you notice I've missed something, again, feel free to comment or email me and I’ll go back in and fix it!!