How to Declutter Your Home (and Subsequently Your Life)

Last updated on July 24, 2019

If you’re like the rest of the world that was enthralled by Marie Kondo’s Netflix series, you’ll know what a difference clearing out clutter can make on your home and your psyche. Although it may not seem obvious, holding onto a lot of stuff in your home can make you feel stressed or overwhelmed. You don’t need to be in a hoarding situation to feel this stress either, as there are plenty of reasons to collect and keep items that end up being messy clutter: kids in the house, working from home, or simply accumulating “junk” over the years from trips, events, or gifts are all very real reasons.

Decluttering and taking a more minimalistic approach to your home and your belongings inside it can help you feel less stressed and more in control. Here are some excellent tips on how to declutter and downsize.

Set goals

It can be overwhelming trying to tackle clutter, especially if the clutter has taken over every room of your home, so setting goals is a good way to organize yourself and the task at hand.

• Make a list of all the rooms you want to declutter
• Identify the clutter “hot spots” in each room (i.e., closets, drawers)
• Prioritize by assigning each space a letter grade from A through F
• Set timelines for completion, but make sure they’re realistic, so you don’t get frustrated

Get cleaning

When you’re ready to start the actual cleaning and decluttering, remember to take your time. Trying to tackle everything at once will only lead to stress and frustration, and you might not even accomplish your goals at all. Going through one room per day, or over a week, is a great place to start and a good way to pace yourself. If you’re trying to declutter a major space, like a garage or basement, give yourself a weekend or a few extra days, or even start on it and come back to it after tackling smaller rooms, so you give yourself that feeling of accomplishment.

Come up with a sorting system as well to make it easier. Have three piles: one for garbage, one for donations, and one for keeping. A fourth pile is for any items you come across that you aren’t sure of yet. These could be sentimental items that you never use but don’t want to get rid of because of the memories they hold, or objects that need repairing to be useful again, for example. If you’re already feeling overwhelmed by getting rid of a lot of your things, this pile can help make it easier, however, eventually you do want to eliminate the fourth category and get everything into those original three piles.

Give everything a home

Once you’ve organized and cleared out what you don’t want, it’s time to find a place for everything you’re keeping. If you’ve got the space and the budget for a new piece of furniture, consider a stylish and minimalist sideboard or shelving unit from Luluna to help hide any clutter. Otherwise, utilize the storage space you have with a few nifty tricks.

Vertical storage is a great way to use empty wall space and give it purpose. Every room of your home can probably benefit from some kind of vertical storage, whether it’s hanging a laundry hamper over your bedroom door, hanging up cookware in the kitchen, or storing towels in your bathroom. You can get as funky or as minimalist as you like!

Having storage bins for loose items like toys, art supplies, pantry items, or gardening tools can also keep everything organized neatly. Label everything for ease of use and convenience, and have a place for your bins to go. You might even want to consider furniture that comes with built-in storage space, like benches that open up, or beds that have drawers underneath.