Written by guest author, Shirley Martin of Tidy Life Today

With covid restrictions still continuing in some areas, maybe you’ve been sitting around twiddling your thumbs, trying to figure out what to do during your unexpected spare time. If so, decluttering is the answer! There is nothing quite like a clutter-free home, and now is the perfect time to make that happen. And if you are planning to host a party once we are through the crisis, your friends and family will come to your house and recognize that you put your time to work productively—making it that much more satisfying. So here are some tips to help you make excellent use of your time.

How To Get Started

The best part about your decluttering efforts is that you can start with zero dollars. It costs nothing to start combing through your belongings, and you might even make some money from your castoffs if you sell them online or save them for a garage sale later.

Begin your home’s transformation by going through the closets. We all have clothing that we are never going to wear again. Put these in a bag and mark them for donation. Keep in mind that if you’re concerned about how to accomplish this during lockdown, Closet Factory says some organizations like Green Drop will schedule pickups at your home. 

Next, set your sights on the most-used areas of your home. Spend a few hours digging through the pantry and kitchen cabinets for old appliances, mismatched Tupperware lids, and cutlery and utensils that never see the light of day. These are likewise great items to donate. In the bathroom, check the linen closet for threadbare towels, expired makeup, and other health and hygiene items that you bought and forgot about.

The living room is next on your list, and may be one of the most impactful areas you tackle. If possible, clear this room out completely, including furniture and artwork. U-Haul suggests getting a helping hand and using furniture sliders to make moving large pieces easier. When the room is empty, clean the carpets and dust window sills, baseboards, and walls. Return only the furniture and personal belongings that are practical or give you joy.

When your main living spaces have room to breathe, head into the bedrooms. Apply the same principles to the living room – remove everything and only return the essentials.

During your decluttering endeavors, set aside one area for trash. If you wind up with appliances, mattresses, and furniture that is no longer usable, call a junk removal company, which can dispose of these things according to local regulations.

Decluttering Tips

• Enhance your available storage space. Even if you purge half of your worldly belongings, there is a high chance that you’ll add to it once the shopping malls are back open. Expand your available storage areas by utilizing unused space. In the kitchen, for example, you can use a hanging spice rack inside a cabinet door to free up shelf space.
• Implement the “one-touch rule.” The Overstuffed blog explains that the one-touch rule simply means that you only touch something once before it goes to its rightful place. Make sure that everyone in your home understands that everything has a place, and you expect those things to go into those places without having to be asked twice.
• Don’t forget the garage. Although your garage is valuable storage space, you should make time to evaluate the necessity of the things you have stored there. A few items that belong in the garage are yard equipment and seasonal lawn decorations. Books, clothing, and keepsakes should be kept in a temperature-controlled closet inside or at an off-site storage unit.
• Have a garage sale. Obviously, this depends on the restrictions in your area. But that doesn’t mean you can’t start the planning process. Anything you don’t want to donate or sell online, you can turn into hard cash. Sort and organize the items you have for sale and plan for the first weekend of the month once your community is free to move about.

Additional Benefits of Decluttering

Decluttering doesn’t just have to be about freshening up your home (which reduces stress) and making the best use of your time. It can also be a great way to get your house ready to sell. Best of all, even if you aren’t planning on putting your house on the market for a few months, getting ready now will make it easier on yourself later, and the cleaning will also be easier to maintain once things are in order.

Decluttering is truly the best quarantine project there is. While you may have to spend a few dollars on having junk carted off, your decluttering efforts can pay off big time in either charitable donation tax deductions or sold into a new life. But more than anything, you’ll have a clean and cozy place to call home throughout lockdown and beyond.

Whether Joanna Organize is helping you organize a space or an aspect of your life, the focus is on creating a system that can be maintained. Click here for a free consultation!