Tag: decluttering your home

The First Day of Spring Means Cleaning

Posted on by Jordank

Ah, spring! It’s the season of new beginnings, when the gloomy grays of winter surrender to sunnier weather, warm temperatures and new growth. The flowers are starting to bloom, the birds are chirping and the grass is turning green again. What’s not to like?

As you emerge from your wintry cocoon, you might notice that your home has also suffered from the winter doldrums. Things might look a little bit dingier and a little bit more cluttered than they were just a few months ago. That’s not your imagination.

Your home was shut against the cold, and as a result, it kept the dirt and clutter in. But as the season of renewal begins, you can also refresh your home in preparation for the warm months that lie just ahead. And to do a thorough job, you need a plan, Vogue says.

Start by decluttering. The holidays likely helped you bring a lot of new junk into the home; you don’t need it all, and after you weed through what you want to keep, trash or donate to ClothingDonations.org, you’ll be able to see what needs a good scrubdown.

Next, gather your supplies. You’ll need your favorite all-purpose cleaner, rubber gloves, glass cleaner, a sponge, a duster, and rags or paper towels. Put these in a carry-all so that you can transport them easily from room to room.

One by one, start at the top of each room. Dust the ceilings, picture frames, wall hangings, books and shelves. Get into spaces that rarely get cleaned — behind the toilet, under the bed and under the sink.

Finally, do the floors. Pick up and wash throw rugs and send the finer area rugs out for a professional cleaning. Sweep and mop hardwood and tile floors, and vacuum all drapes, carpeting and upholstered furniture.

Don’t forget the refrigerator. Toss expired foods, unused condiments and leaky containers. Wipe the appliance’s interior clean and any jars you plan to keep, wash the shelves and drawers, and finally, replace what you’re keeping.

When you’re done, celebrate your accomplishment by bringing the spring indoors. Display a bouquet of fresh flowers or bring a new plant into your space. There’s no better way to start the season.

Decluttering Do’s and Don’ts

Posted on by Jordank

Decluttering is difficult. People tend to let stuff pile up until they just don’t have any more room for all of those extra items of clothing, appliances, knick-knacks and books. The surplus stuff often builds up slowly — purchase by purchase, gift by gift — so you may not even notice how much junk you have until you need to move.

Holding on to all of that stuff can be anxiety-inducing. At the extreme, you may actually feel crowded by it, or overwhelmed by the cleaning and organizing tasks that you’d like to get done if you could only get some of that junk out of the way. That’s when the need to declutter has reached crisis proportions.

But there are ways to keep decluttering from getting to that crisis point, and strategies you can use to keep your stuff from getting out of hand on a regular basis. These are the “Dos and Don’ts” of decluttering, and they can save your sanity — or at least some of your space.

The first “Do” is to let go of the guilt that may be influencing you to keep things. Did an aunt give you an ugly sweater you’ll never wear? Did a friend give you a tacky souvenir? Items like these certainly may have memories or some sense of responsibility attached, but you should chuck them without a second thought if you don’t use and enjoy them.

Another “Do”? Tackle one room at a time. Limiting the decluttering project (or dividing into small chunks) allows you to focus and can keep you from getting overwhelmed by the bigger, whole-house task. You can even start with a closet to see the results of your efforts fast — and it might just inspire you to check more rooms off your list.

If you’re sorting through a clothes closet, try the “hanger trick” to determine what you can get rid of. Turn the open part of the hook of every garment toward you; as you wear and return some to the closet, turn the hanger the right way around. At the end of the season, anything still on a hanger with the point facing out is something you don’t want.

What’s a decluttering “Don’t”? “Don’t hold on to things because you’re going to sell them,” the OneCountry blog says. “Either sell them or don’t sell them, but don’t hold them onto them for a nonexistent point in the future when you might get around to selling them. Most things don’t hold as much monetary value as we think they do, regardless of what we paid for them.”

One final “Do”: The minute you decide to declutter, visit ClothingDonations.org to schedule a pickup. Not only will it help you commit to the task, it will give you a date to complete it. Put that date on your calendar — it could be the start to your new, uncluttered life.

To Declutter, Donate Early and Donate Often

Posted on by Jordank

Anyone who has attempted to declutter all or part of their home knows that it can be a time-consuming and often frustrating process. If you stop to think about each item’s sentimental or monetary value and/or get overwhelmed by the project’s scope, you’ll get bogged down. You won’t see progress — and progress is what provides the motivation to continue.

The solution? Donate early, and donate often! You can contact ClothingDonations.org and request a pickup every time you gather up as little as one, two, or three boxes or bags of stuff. When a truck is in your area, it will stop, pick up those donations and leave a tax receipt. You’ll see that junk almost magically start to disappear, and the results will help you gain momentum.

To conquer those sentimental second thoughts that can defuse your decluttering, follow the “keep, trash, donate” rule. Decide quickly what will and will not stay in your home, put it in a bag or box, and don’t look back. And know that anything of value left in the “donate” pile is going to a good cause — programs that benefit our nation’s veterans.

If you’ve been in the same place for a while and share it with family members, the scope of a decluttering task can easily become overwhelming. To stay on top of it, break the project down into smaller pieces by targeting a single room each week, or dedicating an hour or two every Saturday morning. Once a few boxes are packed, contact ClothingDonations.org. Before you know it, you’ll have eliminated junk from every room.

For an in-depth decluttering, revisit each room regularly. The first sweep may net only a few bags of tchotchkes and T-shirts, but by your second tour, you’ll be a more seasoned declutterer and less sentimental about the extra stuff overflowing out of your closets and drawers. Your donations may even get bigger as you start to enjoy your new, uncluttered space; arrange another pickup!

If you get really good at decluttering, relatives and friends may ask you to help out with their moves, estate liquidations and other big projects. You don’t have to help unless you want to, of course, but if there is ever a call for it, most ClothingDonations.org affiliates can pick up more than 20 boxes of stuff at a time. For more information on what we can and can’t pick up, visit the ClothingDonations FAQ.

After you’ve decluttered in earnest, you’ll see a variety of benefits. Not only will your space be easier to clean and retain less dust and allergens, you’ll probably also enjoy the subtle, simple psychological benefit of feeling less constricted or weighed down by your extra stuff. So start right away, and donate as often as you like!

Clean Your Storage Spaces Ahead of Spring

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Is your closet, basement or utility room crammed with extra stuff that you don’t need or want? Target these areas first as you begin your spring cleaning, says Reader’s Digest, and arrange a donation pickup — or multiple pickups — with ClothingDonations.org so that the junk can’t stick around. By the time it’s time to swap out sweaters and scarves for shorts and swimwear, you’ll have tons of closet space for the items you really want to keep in your wardrobe for next year — and you’ll have cleared the path for a serious springtime scrubdown of your space.

Declutter and Sort Before You Spring-Clean

Posted on by Jordank

Decluttering is a hassle because clutter is such a burden, says The Humbled Homemaker, but it’s the first thing you should do when launching your spring cleaning. Use the “keep, donate, trash” system as you tackle each room of the home, and set aside boxes and bags of extra stuff you’d like to donate with a convenient pickup from ClothingDonations.org and get rid of that clutter out of the house once and for all. Before you put the “keepers” back in their proper places, however, remember to wipe down that shelf or drawer, and you’ll have a good start on a general deep-cleaning.