Decluttering Tips for a Fresh Start in the New Year
- Nancy Lane
- Jan 15
- 4 min read
Updated: Feb 16
If you're still riding the coattails of the New Year push to start fresh, I'm right there with y'all! I actually started decluttering last month with more of my "year of the house" journey, but if you're in need of some inspiration or a push to tackle that closet that you just keep shut and hope will go away, I'm here for you!
Scroll through for my best decluttering tips for being organized long-term in your home.
Decluttering Tips for a Fresh Start in the New Year
Purge the Kids' "Keep" Boxes Down to One
Over the years, we've been able to purge and get each of the kids down to one storage container box filled with their memorablia keepsakes. The boxes haven't yet made it to the college apartment (I will happily keep them until they have their own home to bring it to), but this has helped to free up space in our closets immensely.
Plus just think of the kids that will be blessed and so happy to have what your kids donate. Definitely a win-win!
Empty Out Each Closet into a Bigger Area
When I'm trying to organize a closet, I have always found that completely emptying that closet helps me visualize the space fresh, and decide from there what needs to live there. The last home visit from my professional organizer helped me ultimately decide that I only wanted clothes, shoes, and that one box for each kid in each of their closets. No more stashing away Christmas decor in there (guilty).
Pull everything out of that closet and put it all in one space so you can see literally all of your items. It's chaos, but it will 100% help in the end!
Store Things Properly
In light of the horrific fires out in California, having your most precious things together in one place has now been on the forefront of my mind. Of course, grabbing your most important documents, passports, hard drives, etc. are critical if you have preparation time. Since my own house burnt to the ground when I was a child, I am fanatical about storing certain items in fireproof boxes.
Now this list is different for every person, but if you have mementos or things that you don't have displayed in your home, but have stored away because they are important to you, consider gathering them all into sturdy containers that you can carry with a lid, and keeping it in a readily accessible closet. Give yourself the best chance of being able to grab it if you have time in case of an emergency.
For long term storage items, we recently upgraded to weathertight bins and wrapped each item according to its material, shape, and size. Just be mindful as you pack things away and consider the environment you're storing things in (humidity? climate controlled? pests? and plan accordingly. When in doubt, I'm all for hitting the easy button and hiring a professional.
Digitize Photos
We became parents pre-iPhone era, so we have a good little collection of printed photos and albums that needed to be organized. If you have the ability to digitize your old photographs, you'll know you have a copy somewhere in the event something happens to your physical copies. We have photos backed up and back ups of backups. It's just something I can't shake since losing everything in our house fire.
Paper Hoarder No More
My name is Nancy and I'm a paper hoarder. It's true. Even Ellen, the professional organizer on my team agrees with me on that moniker. Apparently I have a thing for cards and letters (if you were born before the 80's you'll remember those and cursive writing, ha) and as such I had an insane number of bins loaded to the brim, had being the key word.
While I kept certain items like the beautiful handwritten letters from my grandmother and cards from my parents and in laws, I did manage to part with other cards, notes, and articles and the like, freeing up all but one storage container.
While I was in the middle of paper piles, I continued sorting through paperwork gathered over the years for house repairs and improvements, including a basket of information where I keep warranties and information booklets for every appliance big and small that's in our house. Its crazy how that stuff accumulates over the years so I took the opportunity to remove outdated info for items that have been replaced or donated. Now some might say, oh you can find all that stuff online these days, and yes, I'm sure you can but me? I still prefer paper.
I highly recommend keeping this type of information for your household items together again in an easily accessible place so that if something breaks, you have the info right at your finger tips for, hopefully, a quick fix. Whether everything is hardcopy in a bin you leave behind or an electronic folder with links, at the very least, you'll be happy you thought ahead when you go to sell your house one day.
For more inspiration, check out these previous posts...
Are you ready to tackle any of those cluttered closets yet? Remember too that, for me at least, its better to make a plan and work the plan. Start small, one little space or area or even one drawer at a time. You've got this! Share your wins in the comments!
And if you're itching to take on an outdoor space, take a look at 5 Key Factors to Keep in Mind When Planning Your Outdoor Design Project.
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