When you’ve been wanting to declutter and make a fresh start, ringing in the new year can be a great motivator! Decluttering your home is a fantastic resolution. Plus, it’s also an essential part of preparing for a move. By taking a systematic and intentional approach, you’ll not only create a more organized living space but also make the transition to a new home smoother and more enjoyable. Embrace the opportunity to let go of what no longer serves you.
Goal Setting and Best Practices
There are plenty of reasons to declutter. You might need to clear out your closet to make way for a new wardrobe style. Or maybe you’re planning to renovate your basement and want to clean up the storage room first. Then there’s the matter of making a move—which always calls for a little decluttering. No matter the case, start your decluttering process by defining your goals. Preparing for a move can look a lot different than simply wanting to create a calmer and collecting living space.
Clarifying your objectives will guide your decluttering process. From there, you’ll need to figure out how you’ll break down the actual work. If you’re tackling your entire house, you might want to take a room-by-room approach to prevent yourself from getting overwhelmed. You can also set deadlines to finish certain sections and your entire project by specific dates.
The three-pile method can also help with this. As you go through your belongings, the items that you’re planning to keep go in one area, what you’re donating will go in another, and then the items to discard in a third. Make sure to have a good amount of trash bags and boxes on hand to help with your sorting. Then handle each item one at a time, always remembering the motto that sometimes, less is more!
The Next Level of Decluttering
If you’re doing a real deep-dive into your decluttering mission, then you’ll want to evaluate your furniture. This is especially important for a move because the pieces that you have now may not physically or aesthetically work in your new space. You don’t want to bother moving something that no longer fits with your lifestyle.
Furniture is great to donate. When you have the time, you can also arrange to sell old pieces at a yard sale or online. As you review each piece, think about whether it serves a purpose and matches your current design choices. If not, it’s probably time for it to find a new home.
Getting a Fresh Start
Saying so-long to the old year and ushering in the new is really the perfect time to declutter. But that doesn’t mean it will be easy. Some items have sentimental value, and it can be hard to separate the memories from the actual item. Try to remember that getting rid of the item itself doesn’t have to mean forgetting what it represents.
Of course, if you aren’t ready to part ways with something, you can always create a memory box. This can help you be more selective about what you keep. It gives you the option to choose a few meaningful items and store them in a designated box. Then you can still declutter your space, while tucking them away for safekeeping.
With the hard work done, decluttering can really boost your morale. It doesn’t matter whether you’re gearing up for a move, or it might just be time for a more organized living space. Either way, decluttering is one of the best ways to have a happier and more efficient home!