Revitalize Your Space: Essential Decluttering Tips to Kick Off the New Year Right
- Nancy Lane
- 3 days ago
- 7 min read
I don't know about you but every new year brings with it the urge to declutter and organize every nook and cranny of my house and our NLI office space. I admit I got off to a slow start but in my defense this is the first week that all of our boys are back in their respective schools. In case you're in need of inspiration, I'm here to cheer you on with some of my favorite Essential Decluttering Tips to Kick Off the New Year Right.
Scroll through for my best decluttering tips for being organized long-term in your home.
Essential Decluttering Tips to Kick Off the New Year Right
I actually started "the purge" last month while working in the studio. Every year as the holidays approach things go quiet especially the week around Christmas and New Years. I took that opportunity to tidy up our office studio, archiving client folders and samples for projects we completed last year. We try to stay on top of it as the year progresses but it never fails that I'll find some unused samples squirreled away so off those go back to their respective vendors.
If you're in need of a big purge...
While that felt yummy, after the new year began, I felt the urge to purge every. single. room. in our house and the only way to really scratch that itch is with a 40 bags in 40 days type purge. I haven't done one in a while but with our third guy headed off to college in the fall, I felt like this is the perfect time to a deep dive and a deep clean. In case you've not heard of this, let me explain.
Start a list, either on your computer, phone, or old school on a piece of paper. On your list write down 40 areas of your home that are cluttered or unorganized. (Note you can do more or less than 40, it's definitely dealer's choice and what you're up for.) It can be a drawer, a closet, a whole room...you pick. Then every day grab a huge garbage bag and cleaning supplies.
Your mission (should you choose to accept it) is to hit one area from the list. I like to keep this quote by William Morris in mind as I go through each area:
I usually start by emptying out everything from the specific space I'm working on that day. Next step is to sort through it all, considering each item and whether it falls into one of the following categories: Keep, Donate, Trash or Recycle. Here's where I try to be brutal...
Keep = I use it often and I really need it.
Donate = I don't really use it but one day I might need it. Hence why I've kept it.
STOP right now! If you really want to bust through clutter you've got to be brutal...if I haven't used it in a year then I make myself right then and there put it in the big black trash bag. For me with this type of purge, there's one hard fast rule: No going back in the bag, no second thoughts. GONE!
Trash = I haven't used it & nobody else can use it either based on its condition.
Recycle = we have a great local recycling system and are able to recycle things like paper, most plastics, electronic waste, etc. so anything that is leaving our house gets checked to see if we can recycle it if it doesn't fit one of the categories above.
Once I'm done with the designated area of the day, I grab the cleaning supplies and clean the item and area, wiping down surfaces, washing things as necessary. This is also a great time to replace storage containers, particularly in your kitchen. I reinvested in new pantry storage containers and I'm loving the results.
Finally all trash goes out to the trash bins and donations are put in the back of my car so that I won't be tempted to go back through them. I take them once a week or the next time I'm out by the nearest drop off point. In my case I take them to one of two church re-sale shops that are close to our house and serve local communities. So look around your house and make your list...I'm almost done with our kitchen cabinets and drawers and it feels so good (so good, so good).
Empty Out Each Closet into a Bigger Area
When it comes to organizing any closet, I have always found that completely emptying it completely 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 one, maybe two, long term storage boxes for special keepsakes in each of our closets. No more stashing away Christmas decor and what not in a person's bedroom closet (guilty as charged).
Pull everything out of that closet and put it all in a bigger space so you can see literally all of your items. It's chaos, but it will 100% help in the end! You can read specific tips on How I Organize My Closet in this blog post.
Purge the Kids' "Keep" Boxes Down to One (or Two)
Over the years, we've been able to purge and get each of the kids down to one or two storage container boxes filled with their memorabilia keepsakes. The boxes haven't made it to their college apartment yet (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.
This can definitely be a sentimental process to go through and honestly it may take you a couple of times to go through before you actually get down to one or two boxes. We would work through items with our kids and gently remind them that passing on gently loved items they no longer use (or truly want) like books and toys will be a blessing to other kiddos who might need them. Definitely a win-win!
Store Things Properly
In light of recent natural disasters like the horrific fires out in California and various flooding events all over, having your most precious things together in one place has long 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. Last year I hired a professional photo organizer who did an amazing job of organizing and scanning our very large collection of photographs and it was worth every penny. #hittheeasybutton
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. Its on my to do list to scan all these items as well.
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'm old school and I'm ok with that.
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 clutter and get it under control 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 come spring, take a look at 5 Key Factors to Keep in Mind When Planning Your Outdoor Design Project.
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