The hardest part of decluttering isn’t the letting go; it’s the deciding. Once you’ve decided, the rest is easier.”-Early Bird Mom
When I first started my decluttering journey a year ago, one of the hardest parts was finding the time to get started.
I knew I wanted to make a change and take back space in my home but I was so overwhelmed with the task and didn’t have a ton of time to devote to the process of decluttering. It is so easy to feel in over your head when you look around and are surrounded by clutter.
It can feel like you will need a year to tackle everything that you want to get done.
From my experience, one of the best things you can do to feel motivated and like you are making progress is to focus on the little wins. The small steps forward that make decluttering seem not so out of reach.
I bet if you walked around your home right now, you would find at least five things that you could get rid and never think about again. (Or, if you are anything like me, you will find more than that!) Sometimes, we put so much emphasis on deciding what to get rid of and wondering if we MIGHT need it a year from now that we get in our own way.
Today, I am going to share with you a list of 10 things to get rid of right now. Like, as you are reading this. Focus on just these things and don’t worry about the rest just yet.
Donate them, throw them away or find a friend who would use the items just do not keep them in your home.
I promise you, once you get started, you will find it a lot easier to continue on the decluttering journey!
Okay, without further adieu, let’s jump in!
1. Magazines you have read.
Typically, once you have read a magazine, most people do not read it again. Yet, most of us find ourselves holding on to magazines and keeping them for a long time, never to be picked up again. Get rid of them! Ask a friend if they would want to read them or simply throw them away.
2. Expired food.
Open up that pantry and that fridge and go through all of the food. I have a tendency to buy food at the grocery store that I think I need and forget that it is in there. Anyone else do this? (Bueller?) You will be shocked when you see the amount of food that is in your kitchen that is expired. Throw it all out and organize while you’re at it!
3. Take-out menus.
Time to get rid of all of those Chinese food take-out menus! I am 100% someone who used to keep take-out menus in the junk drawer in the kitchen. Since decluttering, this is one thing I no longer hold onto. Most menus can be found online now and just wind up taking up space!
4. Instruction manuals.
Similar to take-out menus, most instruction manuals can be found online today and aren’t something that I save anymore. I used to keep them all in one spot but realized that I never even looked at them! If there is one or two manuals that you feel like you just can’t get rid of and refer to often, grab a large freezer bag or folder, label it and put the manual in a specific spot in your house that is easy to access!
5. Duplicate cooking utensils.
Have you ever opened that drawer in your kitchen and wondered why you have three sets of measuring cups and four sets of measuring spoons? No? Just me?
I am the queen of having duplicate cooking utensils but always grabbing a certain set whenever I cook or bake. So, getting rid of the sets that you don’t use is a great thing to declutter and something you really won’t miss. You can either donate them to a consignment shop, pass them down to someone who can use them or simply get rid of them but you definitely don’t need to keep duplicates in your kitchen!
6. Clothes or shoes that haven’t been worn in a year.
Go through your closets and drawers and pull everything out. Yes. Everything. Make two piles: one of clothes and shoes you wear regularly and one of clothes and shoes you haven’t worn in awhile. When you do this, sometimes you find things that you used to love and forgot you owned! Put those in the wear pile.
Everything else, donate. If you haven’t worn it in a year and are not in love with it, chances are you won’t be wearing it in the next year. Pass it on to someone who will wear it and free up space in your bedrooms!
7. Old cleaning supplies.
Okay, full disclosure here: I am someone who keeps cleaning supplies WAY longer than I should. It is something I have been working on getting rid of. Take all of the cleaning supplies that you have in your home and go through each and every one of them. If you have had them for over a year, throw them out!
8. Socks that are missing their match.
Has anyone ever figured out where the socks go when you do the laundry? I inevitably always have a few pairs of socks that all of a sudden are missing their match. Get rid of them! Unless they are a plain white sock and can be paired with another, there is no need to keep them. Clear up space in your drawer and declutter these lonely socks!
9. Old sets of sheets.
How many pairs of sheets do you have in your linen closet? Before decluttering, I had six sets for my bed and eight for my daughter’s bed. EIGHT. Of course, most of them were old and faded and I had newer ones that I started using more. I kept two sets of sheets for my bed and three sets for hers. I change the sheets once a week so they are on a rotation of laundry each week and then I change them!
Decide how many pairs of sheets you feel you need for each bed in your home and donate or throw away the rest!
10. Papers.
Last but not least, papers. All the papers. I am talking old bills that need to be shredded, schoolwork from the kids and any mail that you don’t need. For most people, papers take up a lot of the clutter issues in their home. If you can get rid of a good portion of the paper clutter, you will feel SO much better!
What is one thing you could get rid of today that you won’t miss?