CLEARING THE PHYSICAL CLUTTER helps clear your mental clutter. Cutting out the excess + non-essentials in your home changes everything. It saves you time, energy + money. Learning how to create + maintain edited spaces is the vital first step to creating a home focused on your values + what you love. Once you learn this skill, you have it for life. What are you ready to “create space” for?

WHAT YOU’LL FIND ON THIS PAGE learn the basics of decluttering below, questions to ask, how to filter what you’re keeping + what you’re bringing into your home. Scroll down for even more decluttering resources to help you take action in your home now. You’ve got this! I’m right here with you. Download your FREE Declutter Guide HERE.

Q: Why Does Decluttering Feel Hard Sometimes?

Everyone on the planet associates feelings + emotions with “things”. This is NORMAL by the way. The process of decluttering is about peeling back the layers of things in our home + removing what does not serve your life + basic day to day goals. Sometimes editing a space feels emotional - it triggers good or unpleasant memories. It can be exhausting. I want to encourage you to start small, focus on something with a clear boundary (a drawer, a shelf, the fridge, a nightstand, a countertop, etc.). Take breaks. Take care of yourself. Put a timer on + see what you can do. I promise you’ll be surprised + thrilled with your results when you’re done. And the plus side…your efforts will continue to give back to your quality of life in your home long after your decluttering session is over.

Decluttering Tips:

➜ START SMALL - choose a small amount of time + a small area to work on

➜ PICK SOMETHING WITH A CLEAR BOUNDARY - think a drawer, a shelf, the freezer, socks (a single category), the top of your desk, etc. - it has a clear starting + stopping point that helps keep you focused

➜ USE A TIMER - this will help you get started + encourage you to focus for small bursts of time which help you stay fresh + motivated

➜ BE AWARE OF BRAIN TRAPS - your brain will try to constantly derail you from decluttering success - it will tell you that you need to keep everything, it will try to make you feel guilty that you spent money on something you no longer use, it will frankly make you feel like garbage AND I want you to acknowledge this as part of the process + keep going anyway - you are right on track!

➜ THE LET GO MINDSET - you will need to constantly check in with yourself + remind yourself why you are editing your space - to make space for living well + thriving - sometimes your goals are very specific (I want to clear out this room for so I can host my friends more often + have a desk space for writing) or very general (I just want to live lighter in my bedroom + rest/sleep better at night). These are all valid + you’ll need to remind yourself frequently why you’re spend time now to lighten your load as your brain tries to make excuses why you should quit + not keep going.

What Should I KEEP When I’m Decluttering?

➜ YOU USE IT - it’s helpful day to day + makes life easier - we don’t want to fill up our spaces with items we rarely use - should only a keep a small amount of things we use “sometimes”

➜ IT’S IN GOOD SHAPE - if it’s broken, can you repair or fix it? If not recycle what you can + toss the rest. If something is in good working order you will actually use it.

➜ YOU ACTUALLY LIKE IT - please DO NOT keep things you don’t like - if it is useful for you, keep it until you can make a swap for something you enjoy using + like looking at (like dish towels for example). Life is too short to surround yourself with things you don’t love + enjoy, regardless of how functional the items is.

➜ IT’S WORTH THE SPACE IT TAKES UP - it’s helpful day to day + the space it takes up is worth the value it brings (ex. the food saver that took up almost an entire shelf in my pantry that I rarely used was not worth the space it too up for how often I used it).

➜ YOU’D BUY IT TODAY IF YOU SAW IT IN THE STORE - you’d even pay full price for it because it adds value to your day to day + is helpful (or adds joy) to your home. This is particularly helpful in identify items you’ve outgrown the aesthetics/taste of over the years. PS. This is a normal thing to experiences, as we grow + evolve as people.

What Should I NOT KEEP When I’m Decluttering?

➜ items you feel guilty about getting rid of for whatever reason

➜ items you have a negative association with (brings up negative memories or triggering thoughts when you see it)

➜ items you rarely use + don’t have space for

➜ items you don’t like

➜ items that are broken or beyond repair

What Should I Do With Items I’m NOT Keeping?

➜ CHECK OUT MY SELL / DONATE / RECYCLE / TOSS GUIDE - it’s full of helpful links + ideas to help you know what to do next with items you’re parting with in as low-waste + responsible way as possible. And yes, sometimes things are just trash + we have to make peace with this reality too - simply remove it + move forward.

➜ DONATE YOUR DECLUTTERED GOOD TO HELP YOUR COMMUNITY - what a gift it is to be able to align your decluttered but in good shape items with a cause or charity in your community. See all our donation links here + be sure to share with us your favorites in the donation form on any of the category pages.

DECLUTTER GUIDES

digital / lifetime access / self-paced / simple steps

FROM THE BLOG

decluttering / simplifying / creating space

GET MORE DECLUTTERING SUPPORT

INTERESTING READS

APARTMENT THERAPY - MENTAL HEALTH BENEFITS OF DECLUTTERING

PSYCHOLOGY TODAY - 6 BENEFITS OF AN UNCLUTTERED SPACE

BECOMING MINIMALIST - 10 CREATIVE DECLUTTERING TIPS

MOTHERHOOD UNTITLED - WHY I DECLUTTERED MY MEMENTOS