Everyone has their own reason as to why there is a need to take out some of their belongings and de-clutter their homes. Some may even take go as far as liquidating some of their valuables for financial reasons. But regardless of the motivation, you may want to ask what’s the best way of going about it? An old adage applies very much in this situation: “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” and that is one of the things that are to be maintained when you’re clearing out your home.
Here are some tips when deciding to remove your home of clutter and junk:
Follow a Process
1. Clear Everything
First, you’ll need to collect everything and itemize all of the things you’ll be going through. You can place it in an open area in your home or outside it. This doesn’t necessarily refer only to things within the house, it could also be the things you have in your private storage. It also includes old appliances and furniture that you deem to be outdated or out of style. Everything doesn’t literally mean all of the things if you know that it still has value or you’d still want it then you can leave it be.
2. Clean the Place
It’s the best time to clean when the place is bare or there are only very few items left. Dust, sweep, mop or vacuum the place and who knows? Maybe you’ll see some value of the space you’ve opened up when you took out the thing that was occupying it. You can also be thorough during this step and employ extra measures to make sure that the place is clean.
3. Go Through Your Stuff
This can be the most painstakingly long part of the process – categorizing the things and applying judgment on the things that should stay or go. This applies to everything you have cleared out in a room – clothes, furniture, toys, memorabilia, etc. Separate them into four piles to make it easier for you to proceed to the next steps.
- To Keep – These are the things that you deem relevant and useful. You regularly use these items and find it reasonable to keep them.
- Maybe – You are is indecisive and will have to check with yourself again if you want to keep or dispose of them.
- To Dispose – You find no use for them, but they can still be usable or valuable to other people. You’ll deal with them in the next step.
- Garbage – These items have low to no value and it would be better to throw them into the dumpster.
4. Sell or Donate
When you decide to dispose of your possessions, you’ll have two main options on going about it – donate or sell. You can donate clothes and toys to foundations or the salvation army. If you have unused but well-maintained items like furniture, you can take back some of the money by selling them. Also, if you have a property in Denver that you’d want to sell along with the things in them, you’ll find it more convenient to liquidate them by contacting a Denver estate sales agent. They are reliable in managing the items you’d want to liquidate. They are good when you don’t have the time to go out and sell your properties or if you want to be private about it.
5. Go Through It Again
After deciding on how to dispose of your unwanted possessions you can go back to your “maybe” pile and re-examine the contents. You may have a variety of reasons why you’re having second thoughts about getting rid of them. They may be expensive, seasonal decor, limited edition collectibles, etc. but you barely use them and find them to be occupying much-needed space around the house. There is no short-hand method in deciding to keep because it boils down to your preference and how you assess its value. You don’t have to decide right away, you can store them and come back after a few weeks or months and take a fresh new look at the items in question.
6. Organize
Once you’ve taken out the things and have stored the ones you’re not yet sure about, you can begin organizing or re-organizing your house. You can add new furniture or decor that would best suit your style or you can just use your existing items and arrange them effectively. You can also take the time and value the extra space you’ve opened up and leave it bare for things that deserve to be there or just enjoy your new arrangement.
Go Through Every Room
7. Bedroom
Look at your bedroom and examine which spaces you want to free-up. You can use a variety of space savers like a hamper near your closet an ottoman chair that can also hold some of your things. You can put them under the bed to increase your floor space. You can also replace the bedside table lamp and use a floor lamp to reduce the space in use.
8. Kitchen
You can do a lot of things to save space in the kitchen and you’ll want to increase your mobility there as well since the activities there require you to move around a lot.
Go through your utensils and cooking wares and ask yourself when was the last time you used them. Also, it may seem obvious but you’ll have to check the contents of your refrigerator and get rid of things that have gone over the expiration date. It is also important to have a place for everything in your kitchen, this will help you find those things when you need them.
9. Living Room
Try to decorate your sofa and other furniture in a way that doesn’t look like you’ll a pile of rags. Have a place for the remote and make sure they organized. You can also go through your collection of books and DVDs and only keep the ones that you like.
10. Garage and Office
Many of us do a lot of work in the garage which also doubles as our private office. Make sure you have a place for everything so that they won’t be just lying on the desk or work station. Install cabinets, shelves, and drawers for your tools and equipment. Also, organize your files and regularly check them if they should be kept or they belong to the trash.
It may seem daunting to go through everything you possess and you might even feel some strong attachments to many of the stuff you have. But keeping a clear mind will help you sort out the things that are important to you from the ones that make a mess in your house. De-cluttering will also have some practical and mental benefits as it helps you keep things in your life organized.
