26 Creative Ways To Declutter Your Living Space
Hello Mama’s! The Uncluttered Project is in full effect and I wanted to share some creative ways to declutter your living space that are not only stress free but excitingly fun. Be sure to join our group for all of your decluttering inspiration, motivation and share your tips with members.
I’m not a huge fan of Marie Kondo when it comes to cleaning, decluttering and organizing my home. There, I said it. Sorry. Not sorry. I don’t feel the need to thank every item that came into my space before I toss it into the garbage. Yes. I’ve come to a point in my life where donating adds unnecessary stress so, sometimes throwing away helps me heal a lot faster. To each their own. She’s got a huge following but I just have different ways of coping with crap! My method has always been, don’t think, just toss.
If you’re anything like myself and suffer from anxiety, stress and depression then you understand that I don’t have the patience to fold neatly, let alone thanking a fork that I’m tired of seeing. However, I do like her sayings. But, you’ll rarely ever hear me repeating them because I don’t believe in taking her ‘sparks joy’ motto.
#homesweetsanity is really what our lives are about. If our homes are not pure sanity then we’re completely lost and that’s just not a good vibe. I’ve been there. It’s nothing anyone should ever feel in their entirety.
26 Creative Ways To Declutter Your Living Space
1.) Invest in containers, baskets and bins for organizing. Dump all original food and even some products into these and toss the packaging it came in. This is such a relief in terms of household organization. It relieves some real anxiety I kid you not.
2.) Throw items that bother you away. When you’re sick and tired of seeing them (stand in a room and look around), don’t think, just toss.
3.) Declutter challenge yourself weekly and monthly until your space clears free. This is something I do on a monthly basis; it used to be weekly but now I barely have anything left to get rid of. Grab a garbage bag and go into each room to eliminate some things. Don’t overwhelm yourself and think you have to get rid of everything…just do in small steps. One shirt here, one lost sock there…one pair of jeans you’ll never wear again…a vase you shoved in the back of the cupboard. Do this every week until there’s only one bottle of shampoo in your shower stall. You get the drift.
4.) Host a closet purge party. Everyone gets to pick a few items that you wish to pass on. Grab the snacks and drinks girls…let’s do this mama’s. Also super fun for moms in the neighborhood. Give your kids clothes and toys to other families.
5.) Go green! This has helped me so much. I no longer have toxic chemicals under the kitchen sink for cleaning. There’s one bottle of all purpose spray (1 cup water with lemongrass essential oil) and some garbage bags. That’s it. My cleaning closet consists of cloths, eco friendly scrubbing brushes and microfiber mop heads. The rest of the products ie: baking soda and vinegar are in the laundry room.
How To Become A Minimalist
6.) Use the amount of people X the amount of items you need for each person. This is a technique I use often. If there’s typically only 3 of us living here, then all we need is 6 pieces of dinnerware. This helps keep the clutter at bay and the cleanliness is always happening.
7.) Put yourself on a shopping ban. In the uncluttered project we talk about ways to avoid impulse shopping because it’s so important to realize that you don’t need any more stuff. I love #6 in the course.
8.) Bring in the plants. I preach this so much but when you bring in oxidizing plants that purify the air in your homes, it makes you want to take care of your space a lot more.
9.) Mindset. This is by far the most important creative tip in your decluttering journey. You have to want it to achieve it. It’s the same thing with losing weight. Train your brain to lose the stuff you no longer want in your life. If you’re ready, you’ll start doing.
Make A List And Start Doing : Decluttering 101
As I age, I find myself needing to write things down all of the time. There’s more sticky notes lying around than shoes in our home. I do go through and make sure that I finished all of those items on the list. It may take a couple of weeks, but they get done.
10.) Lists and notes are a simple way to remind yourself to empty the leftover foods sitting in those containers stinking up your fridge.
11.) Stack in likes. I’ve always been attracted to the same style of bowls and mugs, so when organizing your cupboards, get rid of anything that is really odd ball and opt for a similar, cohesive look. Stacking the same color of bowls, towels and rags will give you an idea of what you have and condense the space. I stack all of my books neatly on the floor in a huge pile because I’m not getting rid of any of them just yet and I’m waiting to find the perfect bookshelves.
12.) Host a trunk sale. This can be really fun. Declutter and put the things aside that you want to make money off and place in the trunk. Advertise on FB marketplace and make some extra cash.
13.) Grocery shop more often. This may seem like a hassle but for anyone that understands the minimalist lifestyle, it’s better to go more frequently. It allows you to shop for food that you need versus food that clogs up space in the pantry. If you have a bigger family then try to go 2X a week versus one. It also helps in terms of thought process. Take more time to think about when you’re going to be eating it, etc, etc.
Declutter Your Closet Space Monthly
14.) If you have so many clothes in your closet that your hangers are bunched together, it’s time to let go. Open the closets to a breathable living space for your clothing, bath towels and blankets. Yes. They deserve to breathe too. That’s how I like to look at it. If I’m looking at how cluttered this little space is and I can barely catch a breath, I’m going to consider the fact that it’s no longer living. It’s time to move on and breathe again. Here’s how to start a minimalist closet.
15.) Temporary vs Permanent. Your collection is neatly organized just temporarily. Permanent organization begins when you adopt the less is more lifestyle. Limit the things you love to hoard because there will come a day when it becomes messy once again.
16.) Open shelving is a great way to constantly see the things you have and let’s face it…no one wants to see it cluttered if it’s on display. If you have the option to do this in your kitchen (at least in some areas), DO IT! I highly recommend. It’s like daily therapy.
Declutter Your Home With Ease
17.) Invest in higher quality. This took me a long time to understand and I’m kicking myself for not applying it to my life sooner. I was that frugal gal that only looked in clearance sections and thrift shopped every week. Not that I’ll ever stop loving a good scour through the ReStore but, now I’m more mindful about what I purchase for our home. It’s really so much better to buy the more expensive rack to hold the things I like to collect rather than purchasing a bunch of little baskets and bins that have no shelf to sit on. I would simply buy an item on clearance believing I would someday use it and that day never came. You’ll appreciate the higher quality investment than those pieces you got for a few bucks.
18.) Upcycle + Resell. I do this often with furniture because I am that kind of person that likes to have a new look in our living space every 6 months or so. I’m getting used to buying furniture that fits the space accordingly but if you’re having a hard time letting go of something that is taking up too much space in your area, paint or give it a minor face lift to resell. That way you feel good about passing it on.
19.) Create an online shop. To this day (I’m getting better) I have a hard time letting go of my mugs but I am able to list and sell them online so I don’t feel as bad. Do this with clothing, high end bags, artwork, décor and more. You can even start a FB group to just sell your stuff. And FB Marketplace is your best friend here.
Rebrand Yourself
This is something that we do all of the time in our professional lives, so why not do it in our own homes?! Right.
20.) The ban isn’t forever. For some reason people think that they cannot renew themselves or their belongings. Your shopping ban is temporary. Learning to let go is part of the process. It helps heal and prepare you for a new YOU. You can buy a new sofa every couple of years. Live with only having 5 shirts in your closets. Start a new trend that involves wearing the same jeans 3-4 times a week. You can toss the old cups and replace with a new set. You can only have 2 handbags. One for everyday use and one for a classy dinner date. You can and will survive getting rid of extra things you don’t need.
Helpful Ways To Declutter Your Space
21.) Make cleaning easier by limiting the amount of towels, blankets, pillows, clothing, shoes and products you have. Cleaning is not something I enjoy doing unless it’s simplified. I teach clients how to live with less so that their routines are stress free. Having 20 blankets is really uncalled for. The amount of pillows on your beds is per person. 2 pillows per person. That’s all you need. The linen closet doesn’t need more than 2 sheet sets. We recently went down to 1 sheet set per bed in our home and it feels so, so GOOD. I wash them weekly and buy a better quality so that they last longer. The blankets are limited to about 5 throw blankets and 2 covers per bed. There’s really no need to store more in a house that limits space.
22.) Before + After Pics. Taking before and after pictures of your projects really inspires us to be creative and show off our work. Now just keep it that way!
23.) Fresh Picked Flowers have a way of brightening up any room and helping us clear the counter space to make room for the prettier things in life. I used to buy fresh flowers weekly and still do often because it makes me smile and of course I want my dining room table to hold just the glam. Not the sham!!
24.) Try something new. Going out of your element whether it’s with new foods from the produce section, a brisk walk around the block without the phone, setting up bird feeders, adopting a pet or going curtain-less can really set the tone for how we want our lives to be. When you do these things it helps us declutter our homes because our minds are clutter free.
25.) Print Inspirational Art. Etsy amongst other places offer inspirational wall art that calms the home. There’s something about seeing a beautiful print that makes you love your space and that, in turn makes you wanna live with less clutter cleaning it more often.
#26 Creative Ways To Declutter Your Living Space
Put away the visual things that are covering your perfectly good vision to feeling free. This means pay attention. Look around your place and decide what is causing clutter. Be mindful and take action by tossing weekly, converting, and officially downsizing. I love that you are here because that just means that you want this more than anything.
Sometimes it’s easier said than done but you’ve got this! As long as you stick with it, you’ll be well on your way to having more control of not only what is in your home but your everyday surroundings.
What are some ways you declutter when doing your monthly challenges?
Fantastic tips! I will definitely be applying them . Thank you so much