Decluttering

3 Secrets To Jumpstart Decluttering Your Home

June 10 // by Brooke

Need to declutter your home but have no idea where to start? There are three simple secrets that make such a daunting task seem a whole lot more doable.

Getting started decluttering your home can be tricky, especially when you have piles of things on your counters, floors, and stuffed into your closet.

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link, I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)! Read my full disclosure policy.

My cluttered home made me feel like a failure

My husband always asked me, “Why do you care so much what other people think about our home?”

I don’t know that I cared so much about what other people thought, but it was more that I felt like such a failure for not being able to keep up with basic cleaning tasks.

General pick-up would take hours. Deep cleaning such as dusting and mopping seemed like a pipe dream, and we were running out of storage space in our home, quickly.

We were even talking about getting a bigger house because all of our stuff did not fit in our current home! Our house was plenty big, so that was nuts.

A new beginning

When I decided to declutter my home, it was actually the result of a New Year’s resolution to stop buying clothes. I was spoiled really, spending way too much on things I did not need, especially clothes for my growing corporate career.

After realizing how much lighter I felt from not spending money, I was inspired to do more to live with less. That’s when we decided to clean out our home, better known as “The Big Declutter” in our house!

Even if it feels like a daunting task, you too can declutter your home too.

Related Post: 11 Simple Tasks to Ease Into Decluttering

Capsule wardrobe clothes on wooden hangers

Decluttering seemed like an impossible task

I wasn’t going to try and tackle the entire house all at once. In fact, that thought made me a little crazy and even more overwhelmed.

After getting started, I knew things were going to take time. They ended up taking a lot of time. I was even discouraged at times.

I remember searching Google for “how long does it take to declutter an entire home” hoping for some magical timeline and magical direction to get done what needed to be done.

I found no magic timeline.

3 secrets you need to know to declutter your home:

After months of pursuing my mission to declutter our entire home, I finally stumbled on what I think are the three best places to start.

One of these places isn’t even a room, it was a new idea that I needed to embrace if I was ever going to be successful and if I was ever going to see the light at the end of the tunnel for my cluttered home.

1 – Start with you

The playroom is a mess, I get it. There are toys strewn everywhere. You can’t even walk in your kids’ rooms because you would have to first clear a path.

Been there, done that. You are not alone, mama.

However, if you want to make a real impact in your home, and you want to really see a difference in how your family maintains your home, you have to start with you.

A little tough love here for a moment. You cannot walk through your home with a garbage bag and start throwing away stuff that belongs to your family. Well…you can, but I don’t recommend it. There will be anarchy.

The biggest way to expect your family to embrace change is to first show them, leading by example.

I tried the other way first. That lasted all of a day, and my family members were hurt and angry.

How on earth was I going to tackle the entire house when I was fighting them on every little trinket and every little book?!

Here is the room where I recommend you start when tackling the clutter in your home:

**Start with your bedroom**

If you want to set an example for your family, start in a place that should bring you absolute joy.

Start by decluttering your bedroom and decluttering your closet.

How amazing would it be to end a busy day in a clean, bedroom retreat?

Imagine walking into your bedroom after work, or after putting the kids to bed, and your bed is made, inviting you to relax on it. Your dresser is cleared from clutter, and only a picture of your family and the most recent book you are reading occupy the space.

There are no random clothes on the floor, and your closet space is no longer overflowing. In fact, you have some empty shelf space in your closet.

It sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?

“But no one sees my bedroom!“

Having a clean, inviting space in your home where the toys and dirty clothes don’t overrun your space is possible.

You may be thinking, “Why, oh why, would I start with the one room I know my guests won’t see?”

Why would I declutter my bedroom first, that’s the space where I hide stuff right before company comes over?

I know you. I was you.

Out of all the spaces I decluttered first, and out of all the cleaning hacks I have developed over the years, my bedroom has always been the one space that has brought me the greatest joy when decluttering my home.

We don’t have a very large master bedroom, but we have a relaxing retreat.

Our house could be an absolute disaster (yes, that still happens from time to time, especially on cold, winter days when we are all kept indoors all day), but my bedroom is always clean. I’m never willing to compromise that space.

2 – Declutter the quick-hit areas

Once you are done decluttering your bedroom, you will have built some momentum, but the idea of tackling the rest of the house may still seem a bit impossible. That’s ok. Divide and conquer, that’s my motto.

I also want you to look for the quick wins.

Ever hear of the snowball effect?

When you start with something small, it snowballs, getting larger and larger and larger. That is what it is like when you start building momentum decluttering with the small things.

Pick one area, one drawer, one shelf. It doesn’t have to be an entire room at one time.

When you start small and gather your quick wins, in a week or two you will see some major wins. Pick areas you can declutter in 10 minutes or less.

Folded socks in a drawer, an easy place to start decluttering

3 – Stop the inflow

One of the biggest reasons we have so much clutter is we have not figured out how to turn off the inflow of stuff.

Unnecessary stuff equals clutter. Clutter eats away at our space, and more importantly at our time.

You spend time cleaning and picking up clutter day after day. You spend time moving clutter around from one spot to another so you can access your space.

The guaranteed solution to clutter is not more organization and not more space. The only guaranteed solution to clutter is to stop bringing in the clutter and to start living with less stuff more intentionally.

Pay attention to what clutter is taking up space in your home.

How does it get there? Is it needed stuff or just things you buy for whatever reason? Is it mail you don’t need? Is it a shopping problem?

Take an inventory of the things you are getting rid of and figure out ways to stop letting it take up precious space in your home.

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The Benefits of Being a Minimalist Family

The Flat Surface Clutter Rule

Use these 3 core principles to declutter your home. A clutter-free home is possible. Download the FREE Declutter Your Home Starter Kit, and get started with decluttering today.

Use the Declutter Your Home Starter Kit to find other things to do with your family or for yourself that brings you joy rather than going shopping for fun.

Find ways to turn off the inflow of mail.

Get creative with managing the plastic junk your kids bring home or the freebies that are picked up around town. You can do this.

When you figure out the inflow problem, that alone will guarantee your decluttering process has started, without giving away a single thing!

Don't give up if you slip. Everyday is a fresh start.

Declutter Your Home Starter Kit

Don’t let clutter overwhelm you and take over your home. You don’t need to spend all your time cleaning, and you deserve more free time for yourself and with your family.

You also don’t need to bust your butt and go into debt to buy a bigger house only to store stuff you really don’t want or need. There is a better way, and that is intentionally living with less.

You can do this. It may seem overwhelming, but it is more than possible.

Download my free Declutter Your Home Starter Kit. Let me walk you through those first few steps so you can build the momentum you have been so wanting to achieve when you declutter your home. You’ve got this!

3 Secrets To Jumpstart Decluttering Your HomeRead More

A Step-by-Step Guide For Decluttering Books (While Keeping More than 30!)

June 7 // by Brooke

Yes, you can declutter your books. Before you say, “Nope, not doing it,” please stick around. It might not be as painful as you think!

I love books. I cram them onto as many bookshelves as I can fit into my home. They are literally squeezed in on the shelves. No bookshelf decor for me. I don’t have an inch to waste!

The pandemic started a whole new level of book clutter for me. When the libraries shut down, I started unapologetically buying books online. I bought used books for myself, and I even found a book dealer who sent boxes of 40-50 chapter books at a time for kids. If I couldn’t get to a library, I was bringing the library to us.

We started a steady rotation of books in our neighborhood’s tiny lending library. Having books after a bit of a dry spell was great, until the libraries opened up again, and then, we realized we had a lot of book clutter!

Add in homeschooling, and we had books hidden in every nook and cranny in our home.

By that first summer, our shelves were overflowing but our book-buying habits hadn’t slowed. My shelves were telling me “Enough!” but I didn’t listen. It was when books were spilling over to the floor that I realized we had an issue.

Think about all the places where your home houses books right now. Are your shelves overflowing? Do you have crazy-looking stacks of books? Maybe you have books on the floor. This is your sign that it is time to declutter your books.

I love a fantastic read as much as the next person, but there can be too much of a good thing. If your love for books is making you feel cluttered, messy, or even unaccomplished (hello unread books), then take this as your signal to make a change.

You can keep books. Simply keep the books you have the space for in your home. As with anything else, if you want to keep more than what you have the space for, then it’s time to declutter something else to make room!

Book clutter emotions

Getting rid of books is hard. I’ll be the first to admit it!

You see, when you get rid of books, it means admitting you will not be taking the time to read or use the books you bought any longer.

It means feeling guilt for the money spent on books never read or letting go of books you love but will honestly never use or read again.

Yet, think about it. If you have books sitting on a shelf, who is enjoying them?

We had books sitting in boxes for years collecting dust! Books are meant to be read, not collecting dust!

Getting rid of books meant admitting I would never make the recipes I dreamed of making from my beloved collection of cookbooks or never making time to read the books I knew I would one day enjoy.

Getting rid of book clutter meant guilt and a feeling of defeat. It also meant letting go of dreams of one day making time for me, whether to relax or to make myself better.

Ridding myself of book clutter meant letting go of dollars spent but never using those dollars. I hated it.

If you feel any of these awful emotions, it is totally normal!

When I decided to declutter our books, it took some time.

It might as well have been categorized up there with getting rid of sentimental clutter. It was an emotional drain, and it didn’t all happen in one decluttering session.

Related Post: Why is Decluttering so Hard?

Here are the best strategies to declutter books:

First, commit to touching every book you own. Yes, actually pick them up and hold each one.

Touch each book in your collection. Flip through it. Be honest with yourself about your intentions with the book.

Then, start with the genre of books you care the least about emotionally. Then, move on to the next genre.

Going through all your books by category will make sifting through them easier. Have a box (or three) ready to put any unwanted books in there.

I recommend smaller boxes. Books are heavy!

Create book storage solutions

Before you start going through all your book clutter, it is best to know what kind of storage space you are working with and your end goal.

Do you want to have only one shelf of books? An entire bookcase? An entire room?

As our reading interests have grown over the years, so have our bookshelves. This meant getting rid of other furniture to make room for more books. You can’t have it all. Choose your priorities. If books are your priority, then make your home reflect as much.

I have a separate, smaller shelf, for cookbooks in my kitchen. I wanted the cookbooks to be easily accessible while cooking, and I didn’t want to have any overflow into other rooms.

My kids then have their own book storage shelves.

My oldest daughter is an avid book reader, so she has two dedicated shelves for her books. Those two shelves hold a few hundred children’s books! That’s ok. Books bring her joy, and as long as she wants the space for books, we will make the space for them.

Does this mean less space for other things, like toys? Yes. She is perfectly ok with this.

Creating book storage solutions will making sorting and decluttering your books so much easier!

Book storage solutions once you go through the book clutter.

Questions to ask when sorting and purging books:

Will I read this book?
Why am I holding on to this book?
Is this book outdated and no longer relevant?
Is this book a duplicate?
Have we outgrown this book?
Could I get this book at the library or library app if I ever wanted to read it again?
Could this book be found on an e-reader and stored virtually instead?

Find the right balance when you declutter books

Finding the right balance for the number of books you own is key. You have to find the perfect balance for you and your likes.

If you reference books often, create more space for yourself. If you actually re-read books, create space for those.

You don’t have to count the number of books in your home and never go over that number.

Find a reasonable balance that fits your home and your lifestyle.

The thing is not to hold on to books only because you are scared to let them go. Hold on to books that bring you value and function.

Fictional book clutter

I feel like fictional books are a dime a dozen. There are some amazing ones out there, but they are usually very affordable and easy to come by. Therefore, I started with fiction books.

I think I’ve only reread one fiction book ever (the last in the sequence of Twilight – don’t judge me!) I still have that book, and there is a very high likelihood I will read it again.

For all the other books in your collection that are either read or unread, pick a number to keep or space to take up, and don’t exceed that number or space.

If you have this mindset, figuring out which books to keep and which ones to get rid of will be so much easier!

What’s the right number of books to keep? Well, that all depends.

It depends on how often you read books and your storage space. If you don’t have the space for keeping books, you need to declutter your books or make space elsewhere.

Get rid of your book clutter. Sort through the fictional books.

Non-fiction book clutter

Second to go in my decluttering mission were non-fiction books. We had a few (or shelves full)! We even had a few boxes full from a prior move that never got unpacked.

Consider the following when sorting through and decluttering your non-fiction books:

*How often do you reference this book?

If it’s a book to learn a new skill but you have mastered it now, it may be time to let it go.

If it’s a book to learn a new skill but you haven’t picked it up in years with no intention to in the near future, it’s also time to let it go.

*How relevant is the book?

Have you outgrown that phase in your life? If it’s a book about pregnancy, and you have no plans of ever purposefully getting pregnant again, time to let it go.

*Do you know someone who could better benefit from the book?

I love giving away books, especially books that may be able to benefit someone else.

Share non-fiction books with friends with an interest in the topic. Save your friend or family member money by gifting them something you already enjoyed.

Declutter kid books

This one is hard. Boy, do I get it!

Those sweet memories of holding your little one, reading the same favorite book over and over again. It is hard to let that go.

Here’s the thing, your kids probably don’t want their old books for their kids. There, I said it.

We had boxes of old books from my husband’s childhood. It was sweet we were able to read them again, and we have probably a hundred of them on our shelf still.

They are thin and they are getting used. However, I am not sure it was worth the trouble of saving all those boxes of books for thirty years.

As my kids get older, we will likely pass on most of the books in our collection. I don’t have the storage space or the desire to hold on to books for a few decades.

I would rather give my kids the space to play and save the storage space for other items.

Tips for decluttering kids books

Pick your favorite one to three books once your kids outgrow them, and put them in a keepsake box. Don’t save them all. It creates a burden on your kids when they are grown.

If you are still too emotionally tied to books, give them to a family member who is expecting or a friend with little ones.

Think about the space you are creating by letting go of these unnecessary books too. What else could go there? New, more advanced books? Baskets for more age-appropriate toys?

Sometimes knowing what you can have instead of clutter, makes it easier to let go of the emotional stuff!

Declutter Your Cookbooks

If you are a collector of cookbooks and love food, this may be a difficult category to conquer. I mean, cookbooks are useful! Why on earth would you get rid of them?!!!

I had cookbooks from my Grandmother’s church, my husband’s childhood church, vegan cookbooks (from that phase in my life when a desperate solution was needed for my digestive issues), and many other favorites I collected from used bookstores or asked for as a Christmas present over the years.

Thing is, if you are not using the cookbooks regularly, help them find a home where they will get used.

I had friends experimenting with vegan cooking. It was a joy to give them my no longer used cookbooks and save them the money. I even marked my favorite recipes for them with notes!

How often do you use Pinterest for recipes now? I know I use it a lot! Honestly, with the internet, I really don’t need that many cookbooks, as much as I hate to admit it.

In all reality, I use two cookbooks more than anything else.

I use the Joy of Cooking (classic cookbook I think should be in every home) and 100 Days of Real Food (easy recipes for everyday families). That’s it.

While I still hold on to a handful more, I could probably survive on just these two cookbooks!

If you keep your cookbooks in your pantry, check out my post on organizing your pantry!

Put all your “keep” books back in their designated space

When you declutter your home, everything should have a designated space. For books, that means they should have a designated bookshelf or area to exist.

Make a rule. Once that area is full, something has to go. When you have control of a designated space, you essentially stop the overflow and the ongoing clutter.

Use your local library to help stop the inflow of new books, and if you buy new books, find a home for your old ones.

There are people that will love your decluttered books. Keep them from collecting dust and help them find a home where they can be loved!

Decluttering books doesn’t have to be an impossible task! You can do it. Take your time, and be honest with yourself.

When you are done decluttering your books, check out these places where you can donate used books.

Declutter books in your home. How to work through the emotional attachment.

A Step-by-Step Guide For Decluttering Books (While Keeping More than 30!)Read More

Inspire Your Kids to Help with Chores (Free Printable Chore Chart)

June 6 // by Brooke

Ok mama, time for some tough love. You need to get help with the chores at home. You deserve help. This free chore chart printable may get you one step closer to getting that help.

I don’t care if you are a stay at home mom, working mom or a single mom. It is time to bring in help. Who is the help? Your sweet family.

We mamas carry a big burden, and often times that means we try to do it all, even when we don’t have to do it all. We also seem to be the only ones that care that a mess even exists.

Talk to your spouse

First thing, talk to your spouse or partner. Tell them you need help with the chores at home, and ask him where he thinks he can help. He may surprise you!

I told my sweet husband early on in our marriage about how much I hate mopping the floors and cleaning the bathtubs. He totally volunteered to do these two tasks for me!

Turns out, he even enjoys mopping. (Weirdo.)

Talk to your kids about helping with chores

Our kids often want to help us more than we give them credit for. They love to be like us, and they like responsibility, even when they push back sometimes.

Talk to your kids about how they will be pitching in to help you more often. Like your husband, they may be more willing than you think.

A happy mama is a happy family after all!

Assign everyone their weekly tasks

Once you have spoken to your family, assign everyone their weekly tasks. Your kids are able to do more than you may think.

Need help? Download my free chore chart printable to get you started!

I learned my kids could clean the bathrooms at a fairly young age if I removed the dangerous chemicals from the equation.

Do they clean the bathroom like I would want it cleaned? No. If guests are coming over, I usually go behind them and give it a more thorough cleaning, but I do let them start it.

When we decided my kids would start cleaning the bathrooms, they were 4 and 5 years old. I created a homemade cleaning solution, and I gave them both their own washcloth.

I taught them how to clean the bathroom a couple of weeks in a row, and then they took over.

Related Post: A Cleaning Schedule That Actually Works!

Get help with chores at home using this free chore chart printable to help.

Give your kids a zone to clean

Each month, my kids get a new zone to clean. This month, my little one is responsible for the dining room. My oldest is responsible for the living room. Every day, they must clean their zone. They don’t have to put stuff away for others, but they do have to take it to the bottom of the stairs for others to put away.

This system makes it painfully obvious when I’m the one leaving stuff lying around!

The zone system has worked great, as it makes them aware of stuff left behind. It also holds them accountable for their own stuff, as they don’t want to be called out by their sibling.

Each week, my kiddos have to dust, sweep and/or vacuum their zone. I’ve been so surprised by the pride they take in their zones!

My kiddo doing the living room carefully places the throw pillows in her own unique way each night before bed.

My other kiddo was found one day cleaning the candle sticks for the dining room! She even learned how to fancy fold napkins and set the table because she was so proud of her space.

Give your kids a space where they can take pride in their work, that’s not just their room.

Stop doing assigned chores for your family

This one is the kicker. If you want help with the chores at home, you have to stop doing the chores for your family!

Sometimes, this means letting your family work in their own time frame to complete the chores.

For example, I may want to get the floor mopped on Monday, but if my husband wants to mop it on Friday, then so be it. I will not be one to complain.

I am super guilty of doing chores when I want them done, even if others are willing to help. Don’t do this!

I have learned from years of stress and overwhelm that if I stop doing the chores assigned to my family, then they will get to them.

If you have to, remind your family of your agreements.

Don’t criticize how your family helps with chores at home

If you are lucky enough to have your family help with the chores, don’t criticize their efforts when they help.

Instead, praise them for their work. Just because they do it differently from you (a well-practiced mama), doesn’t mean they are doing it wrong.

Getting help with the chores at home means letting go of your expectations of perfect.

I like my bath towels folded a certain way and put into the linen closet a very specific way.

In the past, when I would get help with the towels, I would secretly refold them all and put them back into the linen closet the “right way”. Finally, I had to let it go.

Doing everyone else’s chores they so graciously helped me with was exhausting!

Train your kids how you want chores done

When you get your kids to help with the chores, don’t criticize them and then, help train them. They are helping! Your biggest hurdle is complete.

Now, train your kids to clean your preferred way, especially if they are young. If you like towels folded a certain way, take the needed time to teach them. Their future families will thank you for your efforts!

Have a mandatory pick-up every evening

One of the secrets to a clean house and having less chores to need help with, is to have a mandatory clean-up every evening.

Don’t do it when everyone is cranky and ready for bed. I recommend doing it right before bath time.

It doesn’t have to take long. The whole family can spend 10-15 minutes picking up and make a big impact.

Thank those who help you with the chores

I am a firm believer that household chores are part of being part of a family and household. I don’t get paid to do chores, and neither do my kids.

A simple thank you, especially to your husband, will go a long way. Believe it or not, they want to help you, but we have to let them!

If my kids want to make extra money, I request they do extra chores, that take the load off my list.

For example, my daughter had an upcoming book fair and wanted to buy her own book. That week, she did the dishes every night, helped with laundry and took over any extra feedings for our pets. These small tasks over the course of a week earned her an extra $5 for a book she wanted.

Allowance alternatives for kids doing chores

When your kids help with chores at home, you can reward them in ways other than an allowance, if that’s not your thing.

For example, you can set up a chore chart on the fridge or on a family command center. (Download my free chore chart printable for kids.) Once the kids earn so many checks you can reward them with alternatives like the following:

An extra cartoon or half-hour of screen time for the week
An extra dessert-type snack
A half-hour or hour later bedtime
A homework-free night
Extra phone time to talk to friends
A playdate for an extra helpful week
Get creative! Sometimes, an extra reward is something as simple as a donut when we go to the grocery store or me surprising them with chocolate chip cookies on pizza night.

Little girl helping with laundry at home

Chore chart printable for free: A simple chore chart for kids

Want even more help? Use this FREE chore chart printable to get started! It is the perfect chore chart for kids so they know how they can help you with the chores at home.

Use this chore chart template to explain to your kids what is expected of them. Kids love filling in the chore chart template. You can use stickers, special markers, or whatever motivates them!

I don’t pay my kids per task. I am a true believer that maintaining a home is a family responsibility.

If my kids do “extras” on the chore chart template, I will reward them for those tasks. The type of task dictates the reward. The bigger the task, the bigger the reward. Find what works for you!

11 Brilliant Decluttering Tips for the Messy at Heart

Things for Kids to do When BORED

Use this free chore chart printable to get help with chores at home. Kids can do chores too!

Inspire Your Kids to Help with Chores (Free Printable Chore Chart)Read More

Spring Decluttering DONE: A Realistic Plan With Small Daily Steps

March 29 // by Brooke

Want to give your house a good spring cleaning without feeling overwhelmed?

Did you know a clean, tidy home can actually make you feel better? It can lower your anxiety, make you feel energized, and generally put you in a better mood.

I’m not saying you should spend your entire spring season doing housework, but a little effort each day can have you feeling pretty good about your home in as little as two weeks.

Catching up at home will also ensure you have a comfortable, happy place to work and hang out with your family.

Here is your Spring Cleaning Decluttering Plan:

1 – Catch up on paperwork

You know that pile of mail and paperwork that’s been sitting in the “to-do” spot for longer than you would like to admit? Let’s tackle it.

No one wants to pay bills, file papers, and generally do anything financial when the pile is more than we can handle mentally. Tackle it now, before it makes you dislike everyone around you!

Need more help getting paperwork under control? Check out how my best tips for mail organization without a big DIY project!

2 – Polish all the furniture

I love the smell of fresh furniture polish, and I love the look even more!

Grab a bottle of polish and a couple of dusting rags and get to work! This task won’t take long, and your home will be shiny and pretty.

This is a great task for kids too. If they’ve never dusted before, give them a quick lesson and then trust them to get it done.

Want to get your kids involved in more chores? Check out this free downloadable chore chart for kids.

3 – Wipe down your kitchen cabinets

My grandmother wipes down all her kitchen cabinets daily. I’m almost sure of it.

Me, not so much. I try to do it monthly. They probably could handle it weekly.

Grab your favorite kitchen cleaner and get ready to put in some elbow grease. Get all the “tacky film”, you know that grimy stuff that builds up, off and enjoy your sparkling clean kitchen.

After getting all the grime off, I enjoy an extra wipe-down using Murphy’s Oil. It gives a nice, shiny look to your cabinets.

4 – Inventory your food

If you haven’t cleaned out your pantry in months, there’s a good chance you have some food nearing expiration (or is already past it). You may even have more food than you think you have in your freezer, fridge, and pantry that you could be using in your rotation this week.

Grab a notebook and create three separate pages. Title each page, “Fridge”, “Freezer” and “Pantry”.

Next, write down every single thing you have in your inventory.

For example:

3 lbs chicken breaks
½ bag of frozen broccoli
2 containers of yogurt
5 eggs

You might learn you can survive for weeks off of what is in your pantry! Talk about money saved at the store while prices are climbing higher every day!

Feeling lost on how to survive on just your pantry? Check out my No Spend Grocery Challenge. It may be the tool you need to make it another few weeks and save a whole load of cash.

5 – Do a repair that’s been on your to-do list

You know that repair that’s been on your to-do list for weeks, maybe months? Now is the time.

Pick a repair or project you can do with the tools on hand, and get it done.

Don’t worry about something being outside your wheel-house. YouTube can literally teach you how to do anything. (I learned how to drywall from YouTube. Seriously, you can learn anything.)

6 – Wash ALL your bedding

I wash our sheets often. I don’t wash our blankets and comforters as often as I would like.

Open a window, air out your room, and wash ALL the bedding. You will feel so good when you crawl into bed later tonight.

7 – Wash your windows, inside and out

This is the task I never, ever do, but once it is done, there are is immediate gratification.

Check off this spring cleaning task no one really wants to do but we all enjoy it when it is done.

Get your kiddos to help with washing the windows on the inside. This is a task they can likely help with if they are in elementary school or older.

8 – Organize your spices

Pull all of your spices out. Then, inventory them if you like.

Think about what spices you use and how often.

Some people like to organize their spices in alphabetical order. That’s not my jam. I like to organize by what I use.

Baking spices and baking additions go on the top shelf. I bake less often than I cook.

The weird spices we love but don’t use often, go on the middle shelf. The least used go in the very back, on a stair-stepping type shelf. The more popular go towards the front.

The spices we use daily go on the bottom shelf, with the most used spices in the very front. It works!

9 – Declutter and organize a storage closet

I often call these “junk closets”. They literally become the dumping ground for everything we are avoiding decluttering or organizing.

Go find a box or two you’ve been meaning to tackle for YEARS, and start decluttering. Then, get it out. Move your give-away pile to the trunk of your car and get the trash out.

Finally, organize what is left.

10 – Declutter and organize your clothes closet

With the change of seasons, it becomes painfully obvious what clothes we used over the past season and which ones sat in the same spot for months without ever being worn. Use this time to declutter your clothes you don’t wear that often or have been meaning to go through.

Look for clothes you haven’t worn recently, still have tags on them, or don’t fit.

Need more help? Check out these posts:

11 – Declutter and organize kids’ toys

Kids’ interests change. They outgrow toys. They bore of toys.

If your kids have a tough time keeping up with cleaning their room, there’s a good chance they have more than they can handle. That’s always the first sign we need to declutter.

Use this opportunity to purge toys your kids have outgrown, don’t like, or that you hate. (It’s ok to hate a toy and find it a new home. I’m not judging you!)

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12 – Declutter and organize your craft space

It’s time to be honest with yourself about the types of crafts you enjoy. If you have a craft that used to be your thing, and now you don’t enjoy it anymore, move it to the give-away pile.

Use this time to also finish any projects.

Finally, organize what is left.

Don’t go buying more craft supplies until you have used up what you have on hand!

13 – Tidy up your entryway

Your entryway is the first space you see when you or guests enter your home. It can also set the tone for the rest of the space it flows into.

Use this spring cleaning time to tidy up your entryway and organize things like shoes, coats, and any other items you store in an entryway closet.

I like to keep my shoes organized on a shoe rack in the entry-way closet. Maybe you enjoy a basket or a door hanging organizer. Find what works for your space, and get that project finally done!

14 – Clean out and detail your car

OK, so your car isn’t inside of your home, but with summer coming up and spring break road trips, it will be nice to have a spic and span car to travel in!

Bonus, make your kids help. They can empty out trash, see all the fun treats they left under the car seats, and generally make the task a little less daunting.

Spring Decluttering DONE, in just two weeks

Check off a quick task every day, and before you know it, you will feel calmer and have a clean home!

Good luck!

Spring Decluttering DONE: A Realistic Plan With Small Daily StepsRead More

The Powerful Benefits to Decluttering Your Home (It’s not just about cleaning up.)

February 6 // by Brooke

The benefits of decluttering go well beyond just a clean home. It’s not even the act of giving up stuff that benefits you. It’s the act of clearing out all the excess that makes you wish life were simpler, easier.

If you are feeling like your home is full to the brim with unnecessary items that take up your time and energy, decluttering can be the start to a simpler life… one not filled with so much excess stuff.

Here are a few powerful benefits to decluttering your home:

1 – Declutter to clean less

When you have less stuff in your home, your home is a bazillion times easier to clean. It gets stupid easy.

Your kids could be left alone for hours to their own devices, and you would still be able to pick up fairly quickly. That’s the true power of having less stuff.

No more moving piles around. ⁠

No making paths.

No hiding things in your bedroom just minutes before an unexpected friend swings by.

No more feeling embarrassed because every surface in your home is covered up in stuff.

When you declutter your home, you can quickly wipe down a counter or dust a furniture top. Seriously, it gets easy-peasy.

Older woman holding a broom. One decluttering benefit is less to clean.

2 – Declutter to have more focused time

Another benefit to decluttering your home is it gives you more focused time.

You gain time with your kids and your family. One reason is that you have less to clean (see #1).

You also spend less time trying to accumulate more clutter. You aren’t shopping on the internet for the next best deal or walking through Target with a Starbucks in hand hoping to find something you can’t live without.

Instead of finding ways to bring more clutter into your home or trying to figure out how to navigate around your existing clutter, you are doing things you enjoy.

Maybe you love crafting, but your craft room has been turned upside down and inside out.

Or maybe you can’t remember the last time you sat down and played a card game because you can’t get to the table.

When you declutter your home, you have time to focus on the things you love.
⁠

3 – Declutter to save money

When you declutter your home, you save money, and you save a lot of it.

When you learn to stop buying for fun or the next “good deal”, the money saved starts to add up. ⁠

In the first year I stopped shopping for fun, I saved so much money that I eventually quit my job! Living with less taught me so many lessons. Even better though, it fattened my bank account!

Woman stressed about debt. One decluttering benefit is the money saved.

⁠4 – Declutter to make your home feel bigger

Finally, when you declutter, your home starts to feel bigger. When there’s space in your home, it no longer feels cramped.⁠

You can get rid of an excess chair, and you will gain an entire section back from your space.

If you clear out your closet, your tiny walk-in closet that was never big enough may soon feel like a huge blessing.

When we decluttered our house the first time, we had a half-basement that was nothing more than a storage unit. After decluttering, we turned that space into a guest room, office, and playroom combo. It was amazing!

5 – Declutter to improve your relationships

When your home is clean and calm, you tend to have better relationships with those around you. Decluttering your space can help reduce any conflict among family members over messes and maintenance of the home.

I don’t know about you, but it’s way easier to relax when the house is clean than when there are a million things I feel like I should be doing.

6 – Declutter to reduce your stress and anxiety

A cluttered home and stress/anxiety often present themselves like the chicken and the egg. I’m not sure which one caused the other, but they go hand in hand.

When there is clutter all over your workspace, whether that be your desk, your kitchen counters, or somewhere else, it makes it very difficult to feel productive and calm.

7 – Declutter to feel more confident

relaxed woman benefiting from decluttering her home

Decluttering your home is also beneficial in that it can make you feel more confident.

You don’t have to be embarrassed for family or friends to come over.

Because keeping your home tidy is easier when you have less clutter (see #1 again), you start to feel like you are kicking butt in your home every day. This sense of achievement can increase your confidence significantly.

8 – Declutter so you have fewer decisions to make

Have you ever been camping or on vacation and had to “make-do” with something? It’s because you are often in a clutter-free space, without all the possible solutions to all your possible problems.

I’ve felt very MacGyver on a camping trip when I’ve come up with solutions for things simply because I had no other choice.

The same happens when you have less stuff. You remove the decision fatigue.

If you only have your favorite shirts to choose from when getting dressed, you don’t have to spend any extra minutes trying to pick out the best option. Decluttering allows you to have only your favorite options.

9 – Declutter for greater happiness

Decluttering can give you a greater sense of happiness. No, it’s not a magic action you can take to make you super happy. However, it can help you get rid of all the excess so that you can focus more on what really matters in your life.

Clutter isn’t just stuff. It’s obligations. It’s busy schedules. It’s all the things that make your life bigger but not better.

A clutter-free kitchen. A decluttering benefit is you will have to clean less.

Decluttering Benefits Your Soul

Decluttering has huge benefits for making not just your home and life feel better but to make you feel better, deep in your soul.

You start to focus your time, efforts, and money on things and activities that fuel who you are and what you value as the most important.

The Powerful Benefits to Decluttering Your Home (It’s not just about cleaning up.)Read More