Inside: Don't spend all your time getting rid of clutter. Check out these awesome tips for quick ways to declutter. Your home will look great in no time at all.
A few months ago I started reading The Magic Act Of Tidying Up. It got me in a real cleaning and decluttering mood. I love having a clean and well-organized room.
It just makes things go a little smoother when my house is organized. Plus I just feel better about my house when it is clean and clutter free.
Although it's nice to live in a clutter free home it is sometimes hard to get started with decluttering. Are you looking to get a handle on your clutter and get organized this year?
It's easy and doesn't have to be overwhelming. Check out these quick ways to declutter your home. You can have a clean and well organized home without spending a lot of time.
Have Supplies Ready
Get ready for decluttering by having some trash bags for trash and large bags for donation items in whatever room you are decluttering. It can also be nice to have a shredder around if you are sorting through papers. I personally prefer to shred old bills and bank statements.
It's much easier to just sort the items into the trash, keep, and donate. You can quickly see what you have to work with and get rid of trash and items that need shredded right away.
I am always amazed at how many bags of trash I can go through when I am decluttering. If this is one of your first times decluttering a room then you will probably find a lot of trash.
Get Rid Of Stuff Fast
A few years ago I became a certified organizational specialist. One of the big things I learned in the class is to get rid of stuff fast.
Don't keep small items around that you don't want anymore. I like to drop them off at a donation center that day. It's too easy to put things in a pile to sell and then forget about them or worse yet, change your mind about something.
I hate when I declutter the house only to make a large garage sale pile in the garage. If something is larger or more valuable list it on Craiglist or Ebay right away.
By getting rid of things right away you can help your home feel less cluttered and prevent yourself second guessing what you are getting rid of.
Tired of clutter?
Sign up for the free 7 day decluttering challenge. Create a clutter-free home you will love!
Have A Place For Everything
This is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to get a handle on clutter. Make sure that everything has a place. If something doesn't have a home it tends to sit on the counter or on a table near the door.
I have found that organizing the junk drawer and having a hanging file folder for bills help make the kitchen seem less cluttered.
When I was tired of all the mail and bills laying around I bought a file folder and wall file from Staples. I hung it on the inside of the cabinet and put all the bills and papers inside.
Every Sunday when we do money then we get down the file folder and go through everything. If everything has a home then you always know where to put it.
Instead of spending all of your time cleaning out your cabinets or going through your closet look at what is laying out around the house. Find a proper home for those items. Your home will seem less cluttered and more organized by doing that. It's one of my favorite quick ways to declutter your home.
Do It In Large Chunks
I love to break things like cleaning into smaller tasks, but I have found with decluttering that doesn't always work so well.
I have found it works best if you declutter in large chunks of time. Try doing 2-3 rooms a day. Then you can be done decluttering in a long weekend.
When you try to do it in just 15-20 minutes a day I have found that you just get into decluttering when the time is up. It's easier to set aside an hour or two to work on decluttering.
Try on Clothes
Take a little extra time to try on all the clothes that you haven't recently worn. I have found that I tend to hang onto clothes that don't fit me well if I don't try them on.
By trying them on you can see how they fit and if you really want to keep the clothes. This works well for kids too because they so quickly outgrow clothes.
Having less clothes will make your closet seem more organized and then you only have clothes that fit you and that you love.
Get Your Family Involved
Although I love to declutter the house alone I often need my whole family to pitch in and help. I can only declutter what is mine, so it is helpful to have other people there so they can go through their things too.
Whenever you have rooms that have things with everyone's stuff it in goes faster when the whole family is there. I try to do the kitchen and the living room as a family. It really is one of the best quick ways to declutter your home.
You can easily get your home decluttered and looking great in a long weekend with these tips.
Check out these other decluttering tips and tricks.
- Check out the 7-day decluttering challenge
- 5 Simple Tips to Stop Clutter
- 6 Tips For Summer Decluttering
Holly says
I love that book! So true about clothes. I was holding on to an expensive pair of jeans that I bought about 5 years ago. Finally tried them on again...um...way too small for me now - so they went into the donation pile!