The “Reset Rule” You Should Follow for a Clutter-Free Living Room
Apartment Therapy’s January Cure is a free 18-day program that’ll help you reset your home for the year ahead. Sign up here and get all assignments delivered to your inbox.
Today, we’re focusing our energy on a spot in your home that’s so deserving of a reset: your living room. As the main space you gather in, the living room will often have the most stuff, from the sofa and throw pillows on it (we’ll get to that later!) to the decor displayed on shelves, tables, consoles, and more.
It’s safe to say there’s a lot of stuff here, so why don’t we take the time to hit the reset button by taking things out first?
Day 6: Kick off a living room reset.
That’s right! Today’s task is all about kicking off a living room reset. This is a two-part assignment, in which we spend today removing things and another day welcoming things back one by one.
For now, remove as many “unnecessary” items as you can (think: easy-to-move decor items like candles, pictures, magazines, and books). Then, leave the necessary items, like the couch, chair, coffee table, and area rug. Just get it as close to bare as possible or whatever you feel most comfortable living with for the next few weeks.
Put these away in a closet — not in the outbox! — and set them away for temporary storage. Now let your living room breathe and give yourself this time to consider what’s worth piecing back together. You can even take the time to refer to your vision board. Who knows, maybe you’ll realize that table lamp is better elsewhere, that you really do love highlighting a big art piece in your space, or that you want to welcome something new in, inspired by your board.
PRO TIP: This can be the perfect opportunity to take down all the holiday decorations you haven’t put away yet. You can even spend some time decluttering your holiday items before they make their way back into storage.
What did you remove from your living room? Let us know in the comments below.
More ways to participate in the January Cure:
- Sign up for email updates or SMS alerts
- Visit the 2024 January Cure page and catch up on assignments
- Join the Apartment Therapy Cure Facebook group
- Download the January Cure calendar
- Get organized with the 2023 Organization Awards
- Check off that you’ve completed this task and track your overall January Cure progress here!
The Cure Program is a tradition here at Apartment Therapy — it happens every January, April, and September. Click here to learn more about the year-round program and when to sign up.