How to Create a Clutter-Free Home

*This is a collaborative post on how to create a clutter-free home

Clutter is a significant problem in many households across the world. If you’re working from home, then it’s an especially big deal. All of that visual chaos and disorder can impede your concentration, drive up stress, and prevent you from finding anything quickly when you need it!

Decluttering in the right way often means following a few simple rules, and developing a few simple habits. Let’s consider how this task might be approached.

Assess your space and identify problem areas

The first step should be to evaluate the scale and shape of the problem. How much clutter is in the space? Where are the problem areas localised? Does the clutter take the form of piles of books, which might ideally be stored on shelves? Or is it kids toys, which never seem to find their way back into the box?

Perform a short evaluation for each room in your house. Then give each a score out of five, when it comes to clutter. This will allow you to prioritise the truly messy areas when you start dealing with the problem, later on.

Establish decluttering goals and prioritise

Your next step should be to work out what you aim to achieve by the end of this decluttering project. Make sure that your goals are measurable and achievable. If you simply declare ‘less mess’ to be your aim, then you won’t be able to say later whether it’s been successful. 

For example, you might decide that half of the clothes in a given wardrobe need to be dispensed with. By setting this aim out explicitly, you’ll be less likely to backslide. 

When decluttering, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Do one room at a time, and break your tasks down into small, manageable steps. 

Implement efficient storage solutions for a clutter-free home

If your home lacks the right storage solutions, then it will inevitably accumulate clutter. If the space is small, or awkwardly proportioned, then the problem might develop very quickly. Consider built-in storage, or multi-purpose furniture, to keep everything out of sight.

Many of us fall into the trap of buying things we don’t need. In the worst cases, we’ll spend our money on many cheap and low-quality items, when a select few high-quality items could do the job much more effectively. 

A minimalist mindset is, in most cases, a discerning one. For every space-consuming item you’re tempted to buy, ask yourself whether it’s of a quality that your home really deserves.

If you have older items that are taking up space, then you can often sell them to pawnbrokers, or directly to buyers on sites like eBay and Facebook Marketplace.

Consider the environmental impact of decluttering

Decluttering isn’t just good for your stress levels – it can also benefit the environment. Every item you sell represents an item that doesn’t need to be manufactured from scratch. Even broken or worthless items can be recycled.

When you’re furnishing your home, of course, you’ll want to be sure that you’re making sustainable choices. Second-hand items, naturally, are a good choice.

Maintain your clutter-free home

Creating a clutter-free home isn’t just a one-off fix. To do it right, in the long term, as we’ve mentioned, you’ll need to develop a series of simple habits. These might include putting items away when you’re finished with them, 

To begin with, however, it’s worth making an effort to get on top of the problem, and to give yourself a tidy space to maintain.