When it comes to decluttering your home, there is no ‘one size fits all.’ So many of us have different ways of working, different levels of clutter and different-sized families and, indeed, family homes. Even the smallest of homes can build up until you find yourself unable to move, but often, I find the biggest of houses hide the most ‘stuff.’ After all, if you have a cupboard, a closet, an attic or a spare room, there is always enough space to have more ‘stuff’ and hide it away from yourself and others.
I have so many tips for decluttering your home; I hardly know where to start. But
when it comes to having a decluttered home, some sayings ring truer than others. These are some of my favourites –
“Less is more.”
“Your home is a living space, not a storage space”
“A place for everything and everything in its place”
So, when it comes to tips for decluttering your home & achieving inner peace, why don’t we start with the bedroom? After all, if there is any room in the home where we crave inner peace and serenity, it’s the bedroom.
BEDROOM CLUTTER
My recent blog does outline some key ‘do’s and do not’s of having a brilliant nights’ sleep. You can view my blog HERE.
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Wardrobes for your clothes
I have gone for a simplified room, with as little clutter as possible. In fact, I have decluttered my clothes enough to the point that I now have a rail – but a sophisticated one. Bought from Wayfair.com it’s turned into one of the best purchases I could have ever made. There is plenty of room for my clothes; everything is neatly hung or put into gorgeous boxes (bought separately). Who says that a girl who loves clothes could survive without an actual wardrobe and still feel like a “fabulous fashionista?”
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Bedroom colour scheme
I suggest muted colours – in bedrooms, colours like the palest of pinks and sage green, are perfect.
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No hard stuff and no bad memories
Try not to store any paperwork or anything negative under your bed. That includes old family photos and memorabilia. There are better places for that, and the bedroom is not one of them. The same goes for books. I love to read a book at night and have just one by the side of my bed; all my other books are in the living room.
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No electronics
Ensure your bedroom is free of electronics and anything that goes bleep! Of course, many of us, me included, use our phones as an alarm, but I have recently learned that turning off all unnecessary notifications until the next day is a great way to “switch off.”
This is really important. Anything like laptops and any other gadgets must stay in the living room; that way you are more likely to have a wonderful night’s sleep.
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Put up a blind or a curtain
As much as we all like light, it’s good to have darkness in your room, which helps your sleep patterns. Personally, I like a window open at night too; it just makes me feel less claustrophobic.
KITCHEN CLUTTER
Kitchens are normally one of the busiest rooms in the house because, for some reason, we all like to congregate in a kitchen; in this way, we are creatures of habit. Therefore, it makes sense to have it clutter-free.
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Clear surfaces
Try to free up surfaces so you have room to cook. If everything is spilling out and over it can cause confusion and often lead to abandoned cookery projects as one of your family members is bound to find the chaos a bit disconcerting.
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Clutter free fridge
I rarely have a full fridge; this is because I choose to buy fresh. I also like to see what I have in my fridge to avoid any foodstuffs going off. Plus it’s easy to keep clean.
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A place for everything
One of my top tips for decluttering your home or, more specifically, your kitchen, is to think like a chef. What would a chef have in their kitchen? If you look around and see lots of stuff that could do with being in another place, then that’s a good way to start decluttering your home. Full cupboards are stressful – do you really need a full dinner service when it’s just the two of you? I always loved a party plate, but years ago, I realised that I did not have to have every design going and ejected quite a lot of plates, etc., that were not needed and were never being used.
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Avoid the gadget trap
I said to a client the other day that I cook like Grandma. In other words, I don’t have any gadgets, gizmos or fancy electronic items that simply become another form of clutter in the kitchen. I cook fresh food in a pot. In fact, whenever I have purchased something, I have found myself finding it impossible to find somewhere for said item and eventually selling it on, or giving it away! I find a lot of clients have so many gizmos, their kitchen surfaces are full, and there is little to no room to cook.
BATHROOM CLUTTER
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Toiletries
How many toiletries do you need? If you find an overflow of toothpaste, find somewhere else to store the ‘extras’, but in my view, it’s best not to overstock in the first place. Unless you have the luxury of a large home, few of us have a pantry, a larder or a large utility room to store surplus items. Declutter those out-of-date lotions and potions – not everything has a ‘forever’ shelf life. Did you know that most opened sunscreens and liquids only have a shelf life of 6 to 12 months? I used to have about 20 lipsticks on the go – I now have five. My life is easier!
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Short on bathroom/shower room space?
Here’s a good tip and something I just brought into my own en-suite shower room. I have purchased a soap holder for the wall and an extra towel rail, as well as a shelf (all suction-padded so you don’t have to drill into your tiles). These are great space savers, and they stop your sinks from gathering limescale, plus it’s easier to clean your sink. I used to spend a lot of time wiping up gunk; now that is a thing of the past! I bought my extras from my favourite store – https://www.dunelm.com.
LIVING ROOM
If there is one room that is probably the hardest to declutter (which is why I have left it until last), it is the living room. Normally, because this room is not only the family room (and therefore, probably has lots of stuff belonging to all family members) but it also contains a mixture of pleasure (TV and gadgets) as well as possibly craft, as well as toys and a heap of other things.
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Books – do you have too many and are you going to read them? Be honest.
I do love a book; I have a real thing about them, but if your bookshelf is overflowing then maybe it’s time to be strict and do a thorough declutter. I always keep the books that I am a) either going to read again b) am going to pass onto someone (in which case I would probably pack it up ready to go to said person or c) I want to reference over and over. My golden rule is not to keep fiction. Once it’s read, it’s read, and there are always another thousand stories to be read. I am in the middle of Wuthering Heights, an absolute classic, but once I have read it, I will gift it to a friend or simply leave on a bench with a note about what I thought about the book and hoping the next reader loves it as much as I did.
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Toys and clutter belonging to your family
It makes sense that your children are going to play with their toys, in your presence, in the living room, but I always suggest a play box/wicker chest, which contains said toys. They come out, get played with and then, at the end of the day, they get put away. If your children have brought something from their bedrooms into the living room, then make sure they take them back to their rooms at the end of the day.
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TV gadgetry and paraphernalia
So many of our TV’s come with more than one gizmo, and if you are a gamer, then you have a heap of wires and handsets, etc. It’s not pretty, and out of sight is far better than in your face. Find a space beneath your TV for storage of said items. I have a little stool which doubles up as a footstool, a table for my tea/coffee, but also has storage for my remote and anything else I want to hide. I bought mine from Argos
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Is there something lurking in your living room that should not be there?
I often find, with a lot of clients, that things that ideally should be in another part of the home have snuck into the living room and kind of stayed there. This is normally due to a lack of space. This goes back to my mantra “A Place for everything and everything in its place.” If you find things spilling into other rooms, then that is a clear sign that you need to start decluttering your home. It may well be that there are some things that have to stay in the living room but, if that is the case, then style them in such a way that they become a piece of you. I work out most mornings, and there is no place left to store weights and my mat, so the mat is placed under my sofa (hidden) and my weights are proudly on display (albeit hidden in a corner). This way, I am saying “this is me, this is part of my life,” but neither do my weights impinge on my enjoyment of my living room. Remember, your living room is a room for living in, not a room for storing things in.
GENERAL
These are some of my top Tips for decluttering your home & Achieving Inner Peace, but there are many more. It’s best not to allow your clutter to take over and cause you stress. In other words, if your clutter makes you feel anxious, it’s time to grab the bull by the horns and let go.
I often ask my clients, “What would you pack if you had three hours to do so?” I bet it would be around 20% of their entire home. I, myself, only have exactly what I need, love and use. Anything else is ‘extra’, and if it’s extra, I ask myself, “Do I really need it?” Often the answer is a resounding no.
We all have memories from the past, and I get it; it’s hard to let go. But not all memories are precious; keep the things that mean the most
One of the many benefits of apartment living is to realise that we can survive with a lot less stuff than we think. Clutter takes up headspace and physical space and, if left unchecked, can cause mental stress as you struggle to feel in charge of your life and your home.
It may well be that you want to let go but have no clue how to start. I have recently been ‘body doubling’ for a couple of clients, and it is amazing how much we get done together, working as a team. Just the very act of me being there seems to create a life force all of its own (a bit like having your own PT but in the form of a declutterer/organiser).
Please feel free to contact me and see what I can do to help. It would be my pleasure.
With Love
Beth X