5 Practical Ways to Declutter and Enjoy Living With Less
There are many benefits of living with less. Most of us are living with too much stuff in our homes, which causes extra work and stress, and takes our time and attention away from the more important things in life.
As the saying goes, the more stuff you have, the more stuff you have to do. When you allow yourself to let go of the things that don’t serve you, and keep only the things you truly love or need, you quickly learn there is more joy in living with less stuff.
If you want less stress and more space but don’t know where to begin, try these 5 practical ways to declutter, and start enjoying the benefits of living with less.
Clothes - Statistics show we wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time. Think about that for a moment. We literally have wardrobes full of clothes we don’t wear, because we don’t like them or they don’t fit us anymore. When you consider how many people live in your home, that is a lot of space being taken up by unwanted clothes. Going through all the closets in your home and culling these items will give you more time and space, leading to less morning stress, and a wardrobe full of things you actually love. Once you have culled, try not to buy ANY new clothes until you begin to notice an actual need for it.
Toys - Having lots of toys not only makes for more clutter and tidying up, it is also not necessarily great for our kids. Overwhelmed by choice, it reduces the opportunity for kids use their imagination or learn how to share and value their toys. Getting rid of unused toys gives kids the chance to really appreciate and care for their favourites, and can transform their bedrooms into a calmer space. Rehomed toys will soon be forgotten, and hopefully bring much joy to their new owner.
Bathroom cabinets - When was the last time you took a really good look into the drawers and cupboards in your bathroom vanity? Chances are it is full of things you never use, and are possibly out of date! Half used bottles of lotions and creams, perfumes we don’t like, make-up we don’t use, dried up nail polish, soap bars from old gift sets, and a multitude of other things we’ve been holding onto for years “just in case”. Not to mention all those extra loo rolls! Go through and check the dates on all the bottles, throwing anything out that is past its use by date. Think about what you realistically use every day, or at least once a week or month, and get rid of everything else. Only buy new items when you need to replace something, and don’t be drawn in by the latest fad.
Kitchen gadgets - There’s no doubt that some high-quality kitchen equipment makes our lives easier. But sometimes we get carried away with online shopping or the latest infomercial, and before we know it our kitchen benches, drawers and cabinets have become cluttered with “must have” gadgets and utensils, which in reality we don’t really need. For most of us, milk frothers, pasta machines, magic vegetable slicers, bread makers, spiralisers, food dehydrators, ice cream makers, popcorn makers and fondue sets and just some that spring to mind. A quick walk around any op shop and you will find plenty of these items abandoned there. If you have items in your kitchen that you’ve barely used, donate or sell them, and revel in the joys of simplicity and space when you cook.
Linen closet - Most of us have bulging linen closets with more sets of bedding and towels than we need. The main reason for this is that we don’t follow the one in one out rule. When we buy new bedding we are not getting rid of an old set that is there, so we just end up shoving more and more into the space. As a rule, you don’t need any more than two sets per bed, or two towels per person. If your old linen has still got a lot of wear left in it, there are numerous charities and pet shelters that would love to take them off your hands, and if they have seen better days, they can be donated and used for rags.
