Tips & Tricks for a Clutter-Free Home – The Ultimate Guide to Keeping Your House Uncluttered

What is Clutter & Why You Should Work to Keep it Under Control

Clutter can be defined as the accumulation of items that are not in use or necessary. I define clutter as a collection of many ‘things’ that I think I need to have in my life. And believe me, I have had my moments of chaos and clutter that have been overwhelming from time to time. And there are quite a few things I have learned along the way to help keep the clutter out of our home. So I thought it might be helpful for me to share some tips & tricks for a clutter-free home with you.

However, clutter can quickly take over our homes and lives. Creating a sense of chaos and disorganization. It can also lead to stress and anxiety, making it difficult to focus on the task you set out to do in the first place. When your space is cluttered, you can feel overwhelmed and out of control. This is why it’s important to take steps toward creating a clutter-free home and lifestyle.

Organizing your home and belongings can help you feel more in control of your life while also allowing you to better use your living space. And more importantly, your time! With the right organization tips and techniques, you can clutter-proof your home and create an environment that promotes productivity and calmness. I want to share how you can keep clutter out of your life while making your home easier to keep tidy.

Tips & Tricks for a Clutter-Free Home

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5 Steps to Decluttering Your Home in Record Time

Decluttering your home can be a daunting task, especially if you don’t have a lot of time to spare. But did you know that it’s the clutter that’s robbing you of your time? with the right tips and tools, you can declutter your home in record time. Here are five steps that will help you get started on your journey to a clutter-free home.

• Step 1: Create a checklist with areas you want to focus on
• Step 2: Focus on one room at a time
• Step 3: Deep clean that room before putting things back
• Step 4: Give every ‘thing’ a purpose and a place to live
• Step 5: Remove the clutter and regain control

Breaking Down the Decluttering Steps

First, create a decluttering checklist outlining the areas you want to focus on that will give you a goal. This is the first step! I love making lists, it makes me feel accomplished when I can check things off that list. I would recommend starting with a room or an area that will be easy for you to tackle. This will give you an easy win right from the beginning. So start with something small, and as your confidence grows, you can move up to working on an entire room.

Next, as you focus on one room at a time, break it down into smaller tasks. This will help to keep you from becoming overwhelmed. It’s ok to give yourself some leeway when you are working on a single room or task. Take the time to determine what you need to keep, what you may need to keep, and what needs to go. I am sure you are familiar with the ‘pile’ system. And while that may work for you, it may also create more clutter. So keep your focus on what you need to get rid of. If you haven’t used it in the past year, it needs to leave your home.

Thirdly, take some time to deep clean each area before putting everything back in its place. Have a bucket of cleaner to clean as you go. As you tidy an area, clean it. Then before putting everything back, clean that item as well. If you are tackling an entire room during this decluttering session, have your cleaning supplies with you so you will stay in this area until it is completely clean.

Tips & Tricks for a Clutter-Free Home

Next, as you are putting things back, give every item a home. This is where this one thing will always be returned to. Think of a bookshelf or a cabinet. When you take this thing out to use it, as soon as you are done – it goes back. There are no exceptions to this. When you are done using that item, put it back. After you have done this several times, it will become a habit. Which will help you to keep your home tidier!

When you are finished with your room, take a step back and really look at your progress. To make it easier for you to do this, take a before and after photo with your phone. Then look at the 2 images and compare them. This can be empowering! When you can really ‘see’ the difference, it will make a difference. And there is something powerful about looking at a picture of your space. I don’t know why, but it’s easier to see the difference between the before and after when you are looking at a picture of it.

As an example, look at the two photos above. Yes, this is my own home. This is an actual decluttering of one of the areas in my house. Can you see the difference? And this is just an example of an area that gets super cluttered for me – my office area! And to make it more difficult, this is a part of my living room. So it is readily available for anyone who enters my home to see. Which is why I really want this area to stay neat and tidy.

The 10-Minute Tidy

Establishing a regular cleaning routine is essential if you want to keep your home clean and organized. It can be hard to know where to start, but having a plan in place can help make it easier.

And the plan is simple. The 10-minute tidy. Every evening before you go to bed at night, you are going to tidy up for 10 minutes. No more, no less. Set a timer and see how much you can get done in 10 minutes. At first, you probably won’t be able to get a whole lot done. But you will learn what things you can do quickly and what chores take more time.

You can even break it down into a certain area of your home for each day of the week. For example, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, you will tackle certain rooms. Think about the busiest rooms in your home, like the living room, kitchen, and bathroom. Or whatever works for you. But every night before you go to bed, you will spend 10 minutes tidying up your home. Like everything, the more you do this, the sooner the habit will become ingrained. If you have family members, enlist their help too! Make it a family routine to clean up at the end of the day.

Give it a little bit of time, but you will see what a difference this makes. And as you are working on getting rid of the clutter, your home will become easier to tidy up!

Decluttering Hacks to Reorganize Your Home & Implement Lasting Change

It can be difficult to keep your home organized and tidy, but with the right organization hacks, you can make lasting changes to your home. Implementing storage solutions and closet organization ideas are two of the best ways to reorganize your home. Additionally, there is a variety of organizing ideas that can help you declutter and create a more organized living space.

The One In One Out Rule

This sounds pretty fun, don’t you think? Do you know what this means? The one in, one out rule is a great way to keep your home organized and clutter-free. With this rule, whenever you bring something new into your home, you must get rid of an item you already own. This ensures that your space stays balanced and equal. It helps to reduce the amount of clutter and provides a sense of order in the home. The one in, one out rule is a helpful way to maintain a clean and organized living space.

Keep Things That Spark Joy

Instead of letting your space become cluttered and unorganized, take the time to declutter and only keep things that spark joy. Marie Kondo has popularized this idea by encouraging people to focus on items that bring joy when making decisions about what to keep or discard. The idea is simple: if it doesn’t bring you joy, don’t hold onto it!

Keep A Box In Your Closet

Closet cleaning can be daunting, especially if you’re trying to declutter your wardrobe. But with the help of a simple idea, you can make it easier and faster—keep a box in your closet. Every time you put something on and don’t feel good in it, you toss it in the box. This way, you get rid of clothes that don’t suit your style or make you feel uncomfortable. Then when the box is full, donate the clothing. Who knows, that blazer you no longer need may be just the thing to help someone else!

Pretend You Are Selling Your Home

I know, I know. Pretending? As an adult? Absolutely! It sounds silly, but it works, and it’s fun. Act as if you were getting ready to list your home for sale and the photographer is coming to photograph your home. One of the first rules of getting your home ready for sale is to declutter it. So why not do it now? Clean each room as if a photographer were coming over to take pictures. Get rid of the things you don’t use or need.

And if you want to take it a step further, take photos of each room after it’s decluttered and clean! I love doing this in my own home. I mean, it’s fun to pretend, and then I have the motivation to really clean and declutter.

Start With The Obvious Clutter

The obvious clutter should be your first priority. Those items that are staring you in the face and taking up valuable real estate in your living space should be dealt with first. Whether it’s a stack of mail, a pile of clothes or any other collection that has accumulated over time, starting with clearing out the most obvious clutter will help create a sense of accomplishment and make it easier to tackle bigger projects down the road.

Pair Decluttering With Something You Enjoy

You may not look forward to decluttering. But to make it something enjoyable, include something you do enjoy. Listen to your favorite podcast or your favorite movie soundtrack. Pair the unpleasant task with something that you like, and you may find that you will look forward to decluttering. Besides the real benefit, that is!

Tips & Tricks for a Clutter-Free Home

Now that you have all of these tips and tricks at your fingertips, you can stop the clutter BEFORE it starts! If you implement these little tips I have given you into your everyday life, you will better understand removing clutter from your life. Which will make it easier for you to stop the clutter before it starts again.

This isn’t a one-and-done process though. It takes continued effort on your part to keep your home free of clutter. But, if you work at it every day with the ideas I have provided, these strategies will help you keep your home clean and tidy without having to spend hours cleaning up every day. With a bit of planning and effort, you can ensure that your home remains uncluttered for years to come!

Happy decluttering!