I ranted last Thursday about decluttering two rooms in our basement, so with clutter-killing in mind, I'm sharing the following tips. I pulled this straight from a blog called "Simple Up." One woman's journey of decluttering the childhood home she inherited still filled with her family's things...
1. Make time, and dig in. Even 10 minutes a day of decluttering can make a big difference, and once you get things started (and see how much better you feel afterward!), you'll be more motivated to keep going. Another way to tackle clutter would be to weed out a set number of things each week--say, 6 items of clothing you don't wear anymore or 6 things in the kitchen that you never use or have too many of. I usually leave a "donations" box out for additional items that I find throughout the week.
2. Let go, already. If you've been holding on to something just because you *might* need it, consider how long you've had it without needing it so far, and how likely (or unlikely) it is that you really will need it in the future. Is it really worth the space it's taking up? If you've been holding on to something for sentimental reasons, realize that letting go of a thing is not the same thing as letting go of a memory--you can get rid of Grandma's antique tea set without losing or disrespecting your memory of her.
3. If you still can't let it go, it's ok. Find a place to keep it that is worthy of the object's value to you. Put it on display in a prominent place in your home, or keep it tucked away in proper storage (*not a musty box in your garage). Don't just cram it in anywhere--if you have to, make room for it by getting rid of something else.
4. Organize as you go, putting like things together. That way you can figure out what exactly you do have, what you have too much of, and what you shouldn't buy any more of.
5. Visualize what you want your home to look like. What do you want each space to be used for? Move, or get rid of, the things that don't belong.
6. Keep purging (and organizing) until your stuff fits in the space you want it to fit in. If it is taking a lot longer than you expected (and these projects usually do), hang in there! Take time to appreciate the progress that you're making, however slight it may seem.
7. After a space has been successfully cleared; keep it that way. Say no to knick-knacks and free junk. For that matter, you may want to look at all of your spending habits and figure out if what you're buying is really helping you or if it's just adding to the mess.
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