It can be tricky to know how often you should declutter your home – and is it a big declutter or just a small sieve through the home?
We don’t want our home to not look lived in (you know those pristine display homes…) and have zero personal items but we also want our home to be functional and clutter free.
So how do we keep the balance and ensure we are going through our things often enough?
In this blog, I will give my professional opinion on how often you should declutter your home and why.
Are you ready? Let’s get started!
First, let’s define clutter
The word ‘clutter’ has a different definition for everyone. When some people hear it, they picture a desk piled high with papers, when others hear it, they may picture a living room that is just full of ‘stuff’…bookshelves with things hanging off the shelves, things hanging over the couches, toys sprawled out on the floor…just stuff everywhere.
The truth is clutter can look different in different situations but in all of them, clutter is accumulating too many things you do not want or need that negatively affect your day-to-day life.
This can be in the form of a cluttered desk, negatively affecting you getting your work done because you are continuously getting distracted and searching for things OR it can be in the form of a living room full of ‘stuff’; well, can you really sit down in a living room and relax when it has ‘stuff’ everywhere?
You know clutter is a problem when you walk into a space and:
- feel overwhelmed
- feel stressed
- spending too much time looking for things or continuously feel like you need to clean
So, how often should you declutter your home?
This is an interesting question and can look different for everyone depending on their living space.
However, my main suggestion is to do what we would call a ‘Spring Clean.’ This is where we go through our whole home, space by space and declutter it. Getting rid of broken items, items we no longer need or want and giving everything an organised place in your home.
Once this is done, it is much easier to maintain it. You will only have to do small clean ups which will become part of your cleaning routine as the hard work is already done!
From here, it will depend on the space for how often it needs to be decluttered. For example, the kitchen and office will need decluttering more often than say the bathroom or living room. Why? Because the kitchen and office are places where new things are always added, food and containers in the kitchen and bills, letters, and work files in the office.
If we don’t stay on top of these new items being accumulated, they can get out of hand easier.
My suggestion is once a week or the minimum once a fortnight, set aside a short amount of time (15-20 minutes) to sort through these spaces to get rid of any unnecessary items.
This way, you are staying on top of your clutter!
What about those other spaces?
Those other space like the bedroom, living room, bathroom and laundry are spaces in the home that don’t see new items as regularly as your kitchen or office (unless your wardrobe gets new items weekly… then add it to the weekly/fortnightly list!)
For these spaces, once a month to once every 3 months is sufficient to keep your home orderly and functional. You don’t want to overdo it but if you stay on top of it, it won’t take you long at all!
How else to maintain…
By keeping on top of it like mentioned above, it will become a habit. You won’t take much time at all to ensure your home stays clutter free.
Some other tips to do this is once you have done your major declutter, it is important to then spend a little extra time each day in whatever space you are in to put things back exactly in its place. Again, this will keep it nice and easy for you.
And remember: Cleaning and Decluttering are two different things!
Cleaning should be done on a very regular basis where we get rid of germs and grime to keep our families healthy. Decluttering is keeping your home in order through minimising the ‘stuff’ you have to then keep functionality within your home.
Final Thoughts
Once the first big declutter is done, it will be a lot easier to maintain order in your home. That first major declutter will be the hurdle to get over!
If that hurdle is still a bit daunting, let the team Ducks in a Row help you!
We believe the process of decluttering should be explained so that it become more understandable and easier to turn it into a daily habit or organisation. We try not to do it for you but instead, guide you through it. This way, you are given the tool and knowledge to then do it yourself the next time! Head over to our Enquiry Form so we can help you today!
Now the real question is, are you ready to get your ducks in a row?
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