HOW TO START TO DECLUTTER YOUR HOME

Ho Ho Help! I love Christmas like the rest of you but there is one thing that makes me nervous about this time of year. More stuff. Even for us minimalists, you still have to clear out old, unused items before you bring in shiny, new ones. This can be overwhelming for a lot of folks so I have a few tips to show you how to start to declutter your home before the big day!

What room do I start to declutter?

I disagree with Marie Kondo here. I know. How dare I? I’m just telling you what works for me. The Konmari method is to start with categories first, specifically, clothes. I am a visual person so I need satisfaction I can see to keep me going. Organizing clothes across every room of the house is just not going to do it for me right away. Here is what I suggest. Start to declutter with your kitchen. Gasp! Yes. It’s usually a place where everyone gathers and if you’re in an open space like me, your kitchen is very difficult to hide.

Now, that may seem like a huge ask, but I am recommending stages. We’re going to start to declutter the kitchen counters only. The space that becomes a catchall for every appliance, every paper bill (even though we make payments online) and who knows what else.

Here’s why I like starting with the kitchen counters. The space doesn’t really belong to any one family member so the hostility should be low. No one has a pot they have been trying to squeeze into for that last 10 years so emotions probably won’t be too much of a factor. Where the secret sauce lies is in the fact that everyone USES the kitchen. Low effort, high impact activities are literally the definition of quick wins. It shouldn’t be too intimidating and hopefully, at the end of it, you will all be so inspired, you have no choice but to keep going.

How do I start to declutter my counters?

1. Tell Alexa to play dance music

I am not naturally motivated but I have found ways over the years to get myself to be more productive. Music has gotten me through college, helped me raise two kids and kept me from being a complete couch potato. Playing Beyonce just makes me feel like I can do anything I set my mind to. So channel your inner she/he-ro, put on those gloves and let’s get to WERK!!!

2. Start to declutter with trash bags

Grab black trash bags and go to town on any and everything that you have been meaning to fix for years but no longer works. Please dump all the paper bills, expired coupons, mailers, old artwork and grocery lists too. When it comes to paper, I recommend you get rid of it all. If you really need it, snap a picture with your phone and save it on google drive. Be relentless here. Space equals clarity so free your mind.

3. Relocate items that don’t belong

Grab an empty laundry basket and place all items in the basket that belong in another room. Don’t try to organize as you do this. Just work from left to right. If it shouldn’t be in the kitchen, drop it in the basket and keep going. Once the basket is full, then you can return the item to its original home or at least to its original room. Do not spend any time organizing the drop off location. I repeat. Drop your items off and return to the kitchen. That will be for another day. Depending on the amount of clutter you have, it may take you two, three or four trips. No judgement here. Just keep going. You’re doing great!

4. Create a donation box

Now that we are left with kitchen items that are still working, you only have one question to ask yourself. Do I use this? Ahem. Let me clear my throat. The question is not “Will I use this”? If the answer is no to the first question, then your item has won an all expense paid vacation to (you guessed it) another home. Say thank you and place him or her gently in a donation box so another family, who will use that item, won’t have to pay for it. Look at you being a blessing to others!

Pro-tip on the donation boxes: do not buy boxes larger than what you can carry out of your house when filled or what can fit in your trunk. The goal is to get them out of your space so keep the box sizes small so they don’t sit by the door for months.

5. Remove large appliances

So, we have a Ninja Foodi that we use a couple times a month. I love it and it gives me joy to see grill marks on my food but that is not enough usage to warrant precious counter space. Utilization is what drives the priority of what goes on my counter top. If I’m being honest, visual appeal does as well. For example, Steve makes a smoothie with our Ninja blender almost every day and every day, I put that bad boy away. Why? Because it takes up too much space, it’s not pretty and it isn’t too much of a hassle to put it in a cabinet right below where we normally use it. We have an electric kettle that we use for tea almost every day and that stays out because it’s small and doesn’t give me a stroke when I see it on the counter top.

The criteria is pretty simple. If you use it every day or you use it often enough and it’s too big to put away, then leave it on the counter. Everything else goes in a cabinet or drawer. Having to take one more step or bend down to get an appliance you don’t use that much, shouldn’t be too much of a hassle. The payoff of having that counter space though, is huge.

6. Wipe it down

If you have had tons of items sitting on your counter tops for a while now, you’ll need to give it a good cleaning. I use dawn dish soap and water on a micro-fiber towel for our quartz countertops. It’s surprisingly effective. Really scrub those years of clutter off your counters. If you scrub hard enough, this can count towards cardio. You do exercise your way and I’ll do mine. When you’re finished, step back and admire your work.

Congratulations, you have completed step 1 in our Start to Declutter Your Home program. I’m hoping you and the family are feeling mighty accomplished. Take a break from decluttering and enjoy your new countertops. After a day or two, you can tackle the next thing. For now, see how different it feels to cook a meal or just walk through the door after a long day to clean kitchen counters. If you want to see my kitchen basics to get you primed for step 2, then check out my post Minimalist Kitchen: 13 Items to Keep It Simple. High five, friend. You did that!