Clutter increases stress, decreases productivity, and interferes with our enjoyment of our homes. Let’s talk about why, how, and where to declutter our homes.
Here at the McClellan household, we’re in the middle of a transition, getting our youngest ready to go off to graduate school. Perhaps that’s why I’ve been thinking a lot about all the stuff we accumulate over time. As I’m helping him pack and decide what to take, what to leave behind, and preparing to reorganize and redecorate bedrooms, I’m taking a look at the stuff we have and thinking about why we have it. This process is reinforcing the value of decluttering for me, of being intentional about the things we acquire and the things we keep.
Why should you declutter?
The physical impact of clutter
- Extra expense of storing, maintaining, and cleaning around all that “stuff” and of buying duplicates of things you can’t find or forgot you already owned
- Health consequences, such as those resulting from stress. Studies have found that cluttered environments cause our bodies to produce higher levels of cortisol, the “stress hormone.” Furthermore, some experts note that clutter (and the resulting stress) can contribute to poor eating habits (which have health consequences of their own):
“Clutter is stressful for the brain, so you’re more likely to resort to coping mechanisms such as choosing comfort foods or overeating than if you spend time in neater surroundings,” explains Dr. Eva Shalhoub.”
“12 Surprising Ways Clutter is Ruining Your Life”
- Reduced productivity – among other things, we deal with lost time spent looking for things, digging past stuff we don’t want to find the stuff we do. In addition, it impairs our ability to focus:
“if your home or office is filled with clutter it will overload your brain with unimportant information and make it impossible for you to focus on the tasks you need to complete. The thing is that all that piled stuff simply overloads your senses as every single thing from that pile is competing for your attention. As a result, your inability to concentrate will make you stressed and decrease your performance.”
The emotional impact of clutter: We can’t enjoy our space or the things we have
“University of New Mexico’s Catherine Roster and colleagues (2016) examined how clutter compromises an individual’s perception of home, and ultimately feelings of satisfaction with life. The underlying premise of the study was that because many people identify so closely with their home environments, the extent to which it’s cluttered can interfere with the pleasure they experience when being in that environment.” [The researchers found that] “having too many of your things in too small a place will lead you to feel that your home environment is your enemy, not your friend.”
Tips and tools for decluttering
1. Make the process easy for yourself
- Gather boxes and trash bags and keep one in each room you want to declutter so you can easily toss items in when you come across something you’re willing to part with
- Gather all your empty hangers so you can easily hang things you want to keep
- Keep a cleaning caddy handy so you have the cleaning supplies at hand as you clean out the closet or a cupboard.
2. Take your “donate” box to charity as soon as it is filled
Don’t wait until the whole house or room is completed. Carry it out to the car as soon as it’s full, and drop it off on your next errand run (or send it with your teenager). That way, no boxes cluttering the house AND no temptation to pull things back out.
3. Take small steps.
If you can’t devote a whole day to your decluttering project, work a little at a time; one room, one drawer, one shelf, one cupboard.
4. Check out previous episodes on decluttering for more information and ideas!
- Episode 14: Conquering Clutter
- Episode 16: Conquering Clutter, Step-by-Step
- Episode 37: A Quick and Dirty Look at Clutter
- Episode 163: Clutter, Stress and Simplicity
Areas to focus on
1. Closet
Often, we have more clothes that we can wear and/or closets become dumping grounds for non-clothing items “for now.” By decluttering the closet, you can save lots of time because you’re not searching through stuff to get to the clothes you want to wear, and you’ll spend less time deciding among too many options.
Decluttering clothes: we often have tons of clothes but end up wearing the same few things over and over again because we like how they look, fit, or feel. Perhaps it is time we narrow down the clothes we own.
- Konmari Approach
- Take everything out
- Touch every item and ask yourself “Does it spark joy?” If not, discard it.
- Put the clothes you’re keeping back in an organized fashion that lets you see everything.
I use this laundry folder from the Container Store so I can “file” my folded clothes. (Not an affiliate link. I just really like this tool.)
- Alternative Approaches
- Go through your clothes quickly and pull out everything that’s torn, stained, have broken zippers, missing buttons, are way out of style, you know you’ll never wear it, doesn’t fit, anything you can get rid of easily.
- Sort by toss, donate, repair (if you don’t repair it within a week, discard)
- Clothing items you bought weeks/months/years ago that still have the tags on them
- Hang up the clothes you’re keeping, but turn all hangers backward. When you wear an item, put it back with the hanger facing the right way. If anything is still hanging backward after a month, consider donating it unless it’s a seasonal item. (Put the off-season clothing aside and do this exercise again during that season.)
- Go through your clothes quickly and pull out everything that’s torn, stained, have broken zippers, missing buttons, are way out of style, you know you’ll never wear it, doesn’t fit, anything you can get rid of easily.
Decluttering non-clothing items:
- Sort quickly: keep, discard, donate, put away right away. If you’re going to keep it, it has to have a permanent home, close to where it’s used.
- Be more ruthless. If it’s been stuffed in a closet for months, you probably don’t need it.
- Recently, I found a huge box of VHS videos while cleaning out a room. I don’t have a VHS player and we can watch all the movies on streaming websites!
- I also found a box full of cookbooks I’ve collected over the years. The 2 or 3 cookbooks I consult frequently are in the kitchen, and I keep my favorite recipes in an app called Paprika. I gave away or donated the rest.
2. Under the kitchen sink
This is an area that is often neglected–stuffed with out-of-date products, half-bottles of things you tried but didn’t like, old sponges, and empty containers. However, this can be a pleasant, usable space with a little bit of decluttering.
Here’s my process for decluttering under the sink:
- Take everything out
- Toss anything that’s no longer usable (dried out, gunked up, etc.)
- Combine half-used duplicates into one bottle
- Toss or give away anything you tried but didn’t like (somebody else might like it)
- Clean out the cupboard with soapy water or your favorite cleaner
- Put down shelf liner if you like
- Browse Amazon or the Container Store for under-sink organizers that suit your space and your needs. (Here are a couple I’m using now: this and this)
- Use Command hooks to hang frequently used items on the inside of the door
- Put things back in a way that lets you easily access the things you use frequently (don’t keep things under there that you don’t use regularly)
3. Kids toys
How many toys do our kids actually need? If there are too many it’s hard to enjoy them or keep them tidy.
- Sort first:
- Trash: broken toys, toys with missing pieces, etc.
- Donate: things they’ve outgrown
- Consider rotating: decide how much space you want to allocate to “current” toys, and keep only that much out. Have a box or basket to put others in, and every few weeks take some “new” toys out of the basket and pull some off the “current” rotation.
- Develop a habit with your kids of when something new comes in, something old goes out. Donate to Goodwill or a homeless shelter or some other charity. Your kids can experience the satisfaction of sharing with a child who may enjoy it better.
4. Medicine cabinet
This is a health and safety issue as it can become a “graveyard” of expired medicine and half-used cosmetics. Again, take everything out. Look at everything. Toss expired meds and trash. Wipe out the cabinet. Replace items you will use and group like items.
5. Entryway/front porch
I started thinking about this because of a book I’m reading called Simple Organizing, by Melissa Michaels, which I recommend. It’s a quick read with lots of photos and good ideas.
Our home’s entry is the first impression for our guests and even for us. It can become cluttered if stuff gets dropped there “for now.” Look at it with fresh eyes. Remove and put away things that don’t belong there.
“Realize that the impression you make in the entryway sets the impression for the rest of your house. What does your entry say about your home?”
Melissa Michaels
6. Other spaces to consider:
- Linen Closet
- Junk drawer
- Pantry
- Coat closet
- Bookshelves
- Nightstands
- Coffee tables and end tables
- Purse/backpack
Do you need to declutter?
There’s no objective standard for what’s too cluttered. Are you happy with your space, at peace in it? If you are, then it’s fine! If you’re not feeling at peace in your space, if you feel stressed and hectic at home, then consider decluttering. It is about making your space a functional, peaceful refuge for you.
“ . . . if you can find what you need when you need it, are happy in your space, and don’t feel like your clutter is getting in your way, you are sufficiently well organized.”
Julie Morgenstern, quoted in “Declutter Your Life for Less Stress, Better Mental Health”
What do you think?
What’s a clutter sore spot in your house? What steps will you take to declutter and improve that area? Please share them in the comments section below this post or in The Productive Woman Community Facebook group, or send me an email.
Resources and Links
Articles
- “Why Mess Causes Stress: How Clutter Affects Your Brain”
- “12 Surprising Ways Clutter is Ruining Your Life”
- “5 Reasons to Clear the Clutter Out of Your Life”
- “Declutter Your Life for Less Stress, Better Mental Health”
Books
- The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo
- Simple Organizing, by Melissa Michaels
- Organizing from the Inside Out, Julie Morgenstern
Other resources
- laundry folder from the Container Store
- Courtney Carver – Project 333
- Paprika App (Recipe manager)
- Episode 14: Conquering Clutter
- Episode 16: Conquering Clutter, Step-by-Step
- Episode 37: A Quick and Dirty Look at Clutter
- Episode 163: Clutter, Stress and Simplicity
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