I know what everyone is thinking, Spring cleaning! Christmas decorations are coming down (tear emoji) and its time for a new you/ new home! Am I the only one? I go through this every year (ok maybe several times a year). I am pretty much a neat freak (no apologies) and freaking hate clutter, like HATE it! I can’t think when my house/ space/ office/ studio are cluttered!
You know all those fear shows like Fear Factor and stuff like that? Ask me to sleep in a room with stacks of papers, messy, clutter, and old food and I’m done, like done. I just can’t.
I can lean on the nonsentimental side a bit and throw out everything. If I haven’t used it in a few months, I probably am never going to use it, so it’s gone! We have moved an ‘ish’ ton of times so that helps because we don’t want to move things we don’t really want, so we are constantly going through things every time we move and getting rid of crap. I am a minimalist too. I like nice things but I don’t like a lot of things. I can’t figure out if this is good or bad.
I go psycho with all of this when it comes to my house. My house is where I unplug, recharge, breathe, and chill, so it cannot have clutter, chaos, and mess. Like ever.
Recently I took the decluttering to a whole new level! A really good friend of mine has been reading the book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, I haven’t had time to read it but she basically told me everything it said so I got the gist. I went home and took the decluttering to a whole new level really getting rid of anything we didn’t use/ wear/ want. We attacked our closets and drawers with a vengeance! Tomas jumped on board too, which made it a thousand times easier. We donated 8 huge bags of clothing and went through a whole room of storage. It felt AMAZING!!! I think there is still more I can get rid of but we haven’t had a real winter yet so I was hesitant to donate those clothes. I will probably do another ‘cleanse’ at the end of January. 😉
Basically the idea is that we have way more than we need (which is true). Americans are straight up hoarders! If we were really honest with ourselves, we only wear about 1/3 of our clothing/shoes, only use 1/3 of our makeup/ hair products/ fill in the blank. We get use to “stuff” and just live with it, when that is no way to live! In the book the author shares about how everything should have an appropriate place, and should not be overflowing. Basically keep getting rid of stuff and you’ll feel content when you have gotten rid of enough. This can be really overwhelming for some which is why I think you should start small, maybe with something like nail polish, any other nail polish hoarders out there?!?! If you haven’t worn the lime green since that glow in the dark party five years ago, chances are you won’t ever again, toss it! 😉
As far as the rest of my house, I don’t have a lot that I don’t use all the time, again that is mostly do to the moving so much, and getting rid of stuff. If you are feeling overwhelmed and a little uneasy about life I really think this is a good place to start. They say when you do this that your mind feels so much clearer and you can think better! I totally agree 100%! Total game changer peeps, total game changer…
I’m not sure what the book suggests but maybe start small like a bathroom drawer to gain some traction! It will feel so good to get rid of that tiny hotel shampoo from the Sheraton in 2003 that you won’t want to go back to the clutter! Every week pick a spot in your house drawer/ cabinet/ room and chip away and before you know it your whole house will be done! For goal setting tips see this post! 😉
Easy peasy! Keep calm and declutter on my friends! You wont regret it!
