Decluttering

Hopefully by this point in the Cure you are an outbox convert, like me. I believe it really is the easiest way to break the hold that things can have on us and create a less crowded home. You’ve been filling ’em up for the weeks now and it’s finally time to take the last step and let go. Today is the day to make a plan to empty those outboxes.

Today’s task is one of the quickest and easiest you’ll do during the January Cure, but it has true lasting impact. The outbox is a powerful weapon against clutter and, honestly, I believe it’s the secret to a cleaner, calmer, under-control home. Let’s get it done! It’s Not Too Late to Join The January Cure: An outbox in your home makes it easier – much easier – to let go of things that you no longer need.

Apartment Therapy Weekend Projects is a guided program designed to help you get the happy, healthy home you’ve always wanted, one weekend at a time. Sign up now for email updates so you never miss a lesson. In her most famous book, Marie Kondo revealed that she keeps her personal collection of books limited to less than 30. That statement got convoluted and incorrectly quoted as Kondo prescribing the same limit for everyone else in the world.

Apartment Therapy Weekend Projects is a guided program designed to help you get the happy, healthy home you’ve always wanted, one weekend at a time. Sign up now for email updates so you never miss a lesson. As Apartment Therapy’s cleaning editor, my number one job is to help our readers take care of their spaces. It has been so fun connecting with all of you during our group projects (like the January Cure) and on Instagram (I’m always here for questions!).

Just like finding the right eating method or exercise regimen, finding the right decluttering motto can be the key to keeping your home clutter-free. Many find an admonition by William Morris helpful when deciding what to keep and get rid of: “Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” But this popular decluttering criterion could actually become a pitfall if you’re not careful.

The January Cure is all about refreshing and organizing your home for 2019. We tackle one assignment each weekday throughout the entire month. It’s not too late to sign up, and you can visit the Cure page to catch up with the assignments so far. Sometimes all you need to declutter is a fresh perspective. Once your things are yours, letting go of them can feel like a loss. A loss of money or preparedness or potential. And those are very real feelings.

Your personality can help you focus your efforts on a certain thing or category of items, so you can dig in and really start to make an impact in your space.

I wish that we could all hit pause on our daily responsibilities, welcome the prim and utterly delightful Marie Kondo into the most intimate recesses of our homes, and KonMari all the clutter out of our lives. But Kondo’s method of “tidying up,” popularized (and demonized) once again by her show on Netflix, might not always be accessible to everyone—no matter how inspired they are to speak to their belongings and make mountains of their clothing.

Nothing is worse than coming home to a messy apartment after a long day, but finding the time to clean in the morning can be equally daunting. That’s why we put together a list of micro decluttering tasks that can easily be incorporated into your morning routine. Read ahead for seven super small ways to organize your space in the AM, so you can start the day off productively (and come home to a tidier place when it’s over). If you’re anything like me (i.e.

The January Cure is all about refreshing and organizing your home for 2019. We tackle one assignment each weekday throughout the entire month. It’s not too late to sign up, and you can visit the Cure page to catch up with the assignments so far. You already know your paper problem areas. Maybe it’s the kitchen counter, dining room table, entryway console, or the front of the fridge—or maybe it’s all of the above.

Wondering about the current KonMari craze? Here's our primer for all things Kondo.

Don’t worry bookworms.

The January Cure is all about refreshing and organizing your home for 2019. We tackle one assignment each weekday throughout the entire month. It’s not too late to sign up, and you can visit the Cure page to catch up with the assignments so far. There are a few different kinds of clutter. There’s the familiar “useless” type of clutter that immediately springs to mind: clothes we don’t wear, tools we can’t use, papers we don’t need.

The January Cure is all about refreshing and organizing your home for 2019. We tackle one assignment each weekday throughout the entire month. It’s not too late to sign up, and you can visit the Cure page to catch up with the assignments so far. Decluttering is an industry. There are books, websites, and even television shows dedicated to helping people like you and me pare down and live with less.

Sometimes all you need to declutter your space is a new frame of mind. Sounds easier said than done? Not so fast. Take a look at some of the best lessons we learned this year about how to live with less. You need to purge, but you might need that gigantic waffle maker at some point. Stop playing that game; you’ll never get the job done. Find out how washi tape can help: A Brilliant, Regret-Free Way You Can Use Tape to Declutter Your Kitchen. A marathon cleaning sesh only leads to fatigue.

The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is usually a quiet one, so it’s the perfect time to go through your things and declutter. Between donating old pantry items and gently worn clothes, recycling gift boxes and catalogs, and tossing out old wine and leftovers, there’s plenty to clear out so you can make your home ready for the new year—and it’ll be conducive to helping you keep your resolutions.

A new year is about to start, and with that comes a new set of wardrobe needs with items that tend to be much bulkier and take up far more shelf space. If you’re hurting for storage, take a look around your closet and get rid of these items that you totally do not need anymore. If you haven’t worn that ketchup bottle getup since you bought it 10 years ago for your office Halloween party, it’s probably time to say goodbye.

Decluttering in December? Before you minimize your screen, hear us out. We get it: This time of year is super busy, and spring cleaning isn’t for another few months. But what better time to clear the way for better (and safer) things than before the year ends? Set yourself up for success (and less mess) in 2019 by taking some time to declutter now. Want to start 2019 off right? Sign up now for the January Cure. (it’s free!

Even where I live here in Florida, we’ve gotten out the sweaters and slipped on the Uggs. With warm weather truly behind us—December 21 is the official start of the winter season—it’s time to hunker down and savor the hygge. But the meaning of the kind of coziness that only this Danish word can describe doesn’t stop at chunky blankets and flickering flames. A big part of hygge revolves around contentment in simple things.

We declutter mostly for ourselves. We yearn for the empty space and the room to breathe. So we approach our cupboards, closets, drawers, and garages asking ourselves whatever version of the essential question—do I need this?—that gives us the most clarity. That’s how we decide what to get rid of and what to keep most of the time. But there’s another way to think about it, and there are others to declutter for.

By taking a bit of time to go through everything in your bathroom today, you'll be able to shed things that you won't (or by this point, shouldn't) use.

Use it every day or mostly just pass it by with a glance of admiration, your dining table, while definitely made to be used, wasn’t made to be a catchall. As one of the largest non-floor surfaces in your home, however, it may hold its fair share of puzzles, art projects, and, at this time of year, gift-wrapping supplies. We’re big fans of using every part of your home and furniture to serve you and your needs.

When I told my husband that I was going to write an article about what to get rid of in the dining room, he said without out a breath of hesitation, “How about the dining room?” It’s a bit of “A Subject” at our house because I inherited my grandparents’ entire dining room (the only thing I didn’t keep is the chandelier), and we’ve been shipping it from home to home for a decade.

Clutter is just a fact of life. Stuff piles up, messes are made, and dealing with it all becomes one of many things on your to-do list. Easy enough to manage when life is calm and work is steady, but when things get hectic, it’s more and more tempting to let things slide and deal with them later. And eventually, all that procrastinating can turn into what feels like an impossible cleaning challenge. But, of course, that’s not the case.

Decluttering is not for the faint of heart—it can take some serious self-reflection, a discerning eye, and the type of discipline not made for a world where Target exists. Author and organization expert Marie Kondo often shares her wisdom about the four biggest hurdles that keep us buried in a sea of our own stuff: space, sentimentality, guilt, and money all make the list. Truth be told, she has a point.

There are two kinds of junk drawers. There’s the kind that you open with one hand and, with the other hand, sweep the contents of the kitchen countertop into and shove shut. Then there’s the properly curated, random junk stashing spot. Here’s how to keep your drawer of chaos in check and looking like the latter. There will be things you always find in a junk drawer, like a burnt-out lighter and three sets of old, mysterious keys.

Summer’s over and fall is here, and that can only mean one thing: it’s time to do some major decluttering. (What, you thought that only happened in spring?). The change of seasons is the perfect time to reset by going through your home room-by-room to get rid of all the stuff you didn’t use all season, not to mention all the stuff you know won’t get much use by winter, either.

Because #pantryorganization is something to strive for.

I don’t know about you, but after this grueling hot summer, I’m feeling so ready for fall. I’m ready to bundle up, sip something warm, and make myself a permanent spot on the sofa. But before we all hibernate for the season, we need to channel some of this end-of-summer energy into making our homes the calm and in-control sanctuaries they ought to be. An organized home looks different for everyone.

In the end, decluttering is generally pretty satisfying. But in the process? It can be an emotional, guilt-ridden and stressful situation. You want your home to be a positive space, but if you’re holding onto things that you really don’t need, or even things that actively make you feel bad, it’s time to let go. It’s time to invest in and focus on the things that do make you happy.

Labor Day weekend isn’t necessarily the time you will (or should) say to yourself “Oh, this is the perfect time for housework!” But between BBQs and general leisure, devoting some of the extra time afforded by a three-day weekend to your home can give you the gift of a cleaner, happier home just in time for the coming busy fall season. Here’s a plan for doing a few strategic tasks a day so you can make some significant progress without sacrificing your entire weekend.

We go to great lengths to get things out of our homes, but there's one popular trope that will always work.

Junk drawers don’t always deserve their bad rap, since they can proffer whatever odds and ends we need at a moment’s notice. But when they’re choked with actual junk? That’s when they fail to achieve their usefulness potential, leaving this humble drawer to be little more than a ticking time bomb that will eventually require a massive and mind-numbing go-through.

Decluttering efforts tend to come in fits and spurts. There’s no denying that it feels awesome to go on a purging rampage and get bags of stuff out of our homes. Afterward, our physical and even mental spaces usually feel cleaner and clearer. But it turns out there are two reasons to sometimes put off decluttering (and not just in the way of going about the task more methodically).

Living rooms come in all shapes and sizes, and unfortunately, the smaller the apartment, the harder it can be to keep yours organized. Throw in a busy work schedule and a somewhat active social life and suddenly a tiny living room can turn into a cluttered disaster zone, especially when you don’t have a lot of extra room for storage. But fret not my busy, unorganized friends; we’re here to help.

You may have only heard of decanting when it comes to wine, but this technique is a game-changer for organizing your home. By moving everyday products into containers, you’re eliminating the visual clutter created by clunky shelf packaging—which was never meant to fit neatly on your shelves. This is also great for those who buy—or want to buy—in bulk. No need to store the extra-large box on your shelves, instead, decant into a usable jar and refill as needed.

When we declutter, our focus tends to be on getting things we don’t need or love out of our homes. But it never hurts (and often helps) to flip the script, turn our eyes away from ourselves, and, in this case, consider where our shed items are going. Turns out there’s a national day for that: July 15 is National Give Something Away Day, and it’s the perfect occasion to squeeze in some decluttering and feel extra good about it—on both ends.

Welcome to Apartment Therapy’s Chore-Free Summer. Every weekday until July 20, we’re arming you with time-saving shortcuts and hacks that’ll help you work smarter, not harder, when it comes to homekeeping this summer. Because cleaning doesn’t have to be a chore. Keeping your home clutter-free can feel like a rat race with no end in sight. Inevitably in the course of living life, stuff piles up where it shouldn’t.

Part of the benefit of vacations is the renewed perspective they give us through a change of scene and distance from the daily grind. While we may return with a fresh appreciation for our homes and the predictability of routines, there may be one area of vacation-inspired clarity that we forget to use to our advantage. With everything that has to be done to prepare for travel, it’s not usually realistic to add decluttering to the list before you leave.

Stuff. We’ve all got it, and generally way more of it than we can handle. According to the Los Angeles Times, the average household has collected more than 300,000 personal items. And with the average size of new apartments dropping to just 934 square feet, our closets, drawers, and shelves are overflowing more than ever—making that minimalist aesthetic we see splashed all over social media seem all the more unreachable. (Seriously, where do the influencers put all their clutter?

I’m expecting a baby in late August and I’m in major nesting mode. It’s a wave I really like to ride to get things cleared out and in order in our home before we welcome a new baby. Lately, as I’ve been combing through cupboards, closets, and boxes of things I was sure I’d want to keep (but now just want to toss wholesale), I’ve been remembering a three-word phrase that’s become an extremely helpful decluttering mantra.

You’d rather eat glass than put your great aunt’s ugly statue on your living room shelf. But Jacquie Denny, co-founder of online estate sale company Everything But the House, says you may be making a serious (and costly) mistake. Denny declares that the most common misstep people face when cleaning is assuming that things they don’t like have no resale value.

Getting your sh*t together isn’t easy. Staying organized is especially hard when you’re a self-proclaimed “messy” person. Luckily, we know some amazing professional organizers to call upon for help. We hit up five of our favorite pro-organizers for the number one piece of advice they’d give “messy people” looking to get their homes—and lives—in order and here’s what they had to share.

When you feel a decluttering binge coming on, you might be tempted to grab a bag or box and start filling it with things to toss or donate. That certainly is one plan of attack, and you may end up with a bulging bag of stuff that you need to get out of your house. Which is great, of course. And if that works for you in the long term, then keep on going!

My husband and I recently replaced our dresser, which spurred an event which I’ll be referring to in the confines of our relationship history as “The Great T-Shirt Eradication of 2018.” You see, between us, we own many, many tees. We could, as a couple, each wear a different shirt every day and maybe make it until Independence Day without doing laundry. At least, that was the case before “The Great T-Shirt Eradication of 2018.

Getting rid of clutter just feels good. And while there’s absolutely nothing wrong with doing something for our own well-being or for the benefit of our homes, Earth Day has us feeling a little green at the moment.

This year, we’re on a mission to help you tackle spring cleaning on your time. Each weekday until April 13, we’ll guide you through a plan to clean and organize different areas of your home, but you’ll have the flexibility to choose exactly what to work on and how long you have to dedicate to the job. Sign up with your email so you don’t miss a spot!

We all know the benefits of making the bed every morning. Along with tidying up your bedroom in a pinch, this neat ritual helps set an orderly tone for the rest of your day. Clearing off your coffee table every day can be similar. As one Apartment Therapy reader put it: “Clearing off the coffee table is the making-the-bed of the living room!” Take a few minutes to clean up your coffee table each day, and you’ll enjoy a clearer mind and set the tone for a cleaner living room.

What’s the easiest target when decluttering fever hits you? The closet, of course. It’s probably overflowing with clothes you haven’t worn since college or things you’re not sure why you even bought in the first place. And sure, there are plenty of cliches out there about when to get rid of clothes.

It's smart — before you dig in on your spring clean — to minimize the stuff that needs to be cleaned and cleaned around.

“I have so much closet space I don’t even know what to do with it,” said nobody ever. I mean, even president Obama has a closet-space shortage, so for those of us wishing for just one more little nook to stuff our things in—we’re not alone.

In my family, everything happens in the kitchen: work, bill paying, meal planning, arts and crafts, homework, evening gardening. Oh, right — and cooking and dining, too. Even though those are the main purposes of the space, so much other gear can creep into the kitchen it seems like sometimes there’s no space at the kitchen table to eat, or on the kitchen counter to prep food!

Cleaning and organizing strengths and pitfalls for each type, as well as suggestions for how to tackle homekeeping and embrace your unique personality,

The pleasure of a perpetually less-cluttered house is worth the possibility that I might need to buy something again, someday.

Clearing clutter out of our physical spaces, and therefore out of our lives, has the power to refresh the space in our heads. While this alone makes any time a good time to declutter, there’s something about this time of year that puts us all in the mood to cozy up, buckle down and start over.

We’re in the home stretch! All the heavy lifting and vital lessons are behind us. Both the month and the Cure wrap up tomorrow, so our main focus right now is just settling in to our forever homes and forever selves. Remember when, two weeks ago, I had you strip down your living room to only the essentials?

I’ve really enjoyed walking through the Cure with you all this year. It’s clear to me that every one gets something different out of this home refreshing plan. Some people enjoy the days when we get nitty gritty and deep into clutter, while others really find their groove with the more mindful days centered on experiencing and feeling at home in your home. Today’s task should hit a few different pleasure centers. We’re digging in to decluttering a hidden problem area.

The January Cure is about sprucing up your home—but it’s also a lesson in perspective. Through these daily assignments, we want you to begin to see your home through new eyes. Today’s task is a shortcut to making that happen. The idea is to start with the room you spend the most time in and strip it down, so you’re able to reassess and refine the space’s decor.

Part of the reason that the Cure works so well for so many people is its adaptability. By month’s end, you’ll start taking your own track with the assignments we send every day, and your home will be looking and working better than it ever has before. For today’s task, though, we’re targeting what seems like everyone’s worst home enemy: paper clutter. What we’re doing today is part remedy and part prevention.

Each of us has personal feelings about cleaning and home keeping. But what remains remarkably similar across the board is the trouble spots that we all find tricky to solve. Which, by extension, means that those perpetually organized people who never seem to have the stuff explosions most of us fall prey to have found successful ways to address these very same sticking points. Nothing multiplies like paper piles.

New Year’s perpetually brings on the urge to purge, and with Mercury now out of retrograde and a pack of planets in Queen-of-the-Capsule-Collection, Capricorn, it’s a luminous moment to catch some serious stardust with your Swiffer.

Sometimes the biggest obstacle standing between you and a cleaner, clutter-free home is an unwillingness to just let go of unneeded stuff. When faced with getting rid of things, we can all turn into a bunch of hoarders at heart (“but what if I need it someday?!”). Luckily, your best weapon against a chronic case of “keep it just in case”-itis is a simple thing we like to call the outbox.

She's been cleaning out her attic on Instagram.

This time of year is one of influx and more, more, more. Layers of decorations, extra throw pillows and blankets, house guests, that second slice of pie — not to mention all the new items brought into the home as gifts. While everything is still contained in wrapping paper and ribbons, before the shiny new things enter the realm of official Household Stuff, take time to make some space by getting rid of these oldies you’ll never miss.

Decluttering—especially if you have a lot of stuff to begin with—can be an exhausting task. You can spend hours going through your things and realize you’re not even remotely close to being done with all your sorting. If you always feel totally spent when you’re done with a major decluttering session, the key might be in avoiding those giant, day (or weekend!) long clean-outs in the first place.

Update: We now know more about Marie Kondo’s upcoming TV show. The Hollywood Reporter announced Wednesday that the eight episode season will air globally on Netflix. The as yet untitled series “will focus on Kondo as she guides people who, as Netflix describes them, are at a crossroads to spark joy in their homes, transforming their lives in emotional and surprising ways.