10 Things to Declutter to Start the New Year Off Right
New year, new me, right? Nah, not for me. Instead, I want a clutter free home. I want a home I can be proud of and feel relaxed in. My goal before the new year is to declutter as much as I can, that way, I go into the new year with a fresh start and less stress.
Things to Declutter
I have listed all the things I plan to tackle by the end of the year. These simple things will make a huge difference in our day to day life, setting us up for success in the future.
10. Email
How many times a day does your phone ding with a new email that you, no doubt, will clear off the notification screen? I do about 500 times a day.
Why are we subscribed to so many websites when we don’t read a single email from them? I totally don’t need to be subscribed to Khol’s when there isn’t a Khol’s even in my area.
Lets go through those subscriptions, starting with the latest email in our inbox. If we aren’t reading the emails daily, unsubscribe. Then in the search bar of your email provider, search all the emails by that website and delete them.
You will be shocked how many places you unsubscribe from. Now you will be able to see the emails you are getting from the websites you care about. And your phone isn’t going off constantly with every little 10% sale going on in the world.
9.Pens
Oh, my. The pens. We’re getting rid of pens. Pens we don’t like, pens that don’t work and pens we haven’t used since we bought our car back in 2019.
Go through them. Toss the ones that don’t work and keep the ones you love. Trust me, you don’t need 700 pens.
I want to make my life easier this year and searching around for ten minutes looking for a pen that works isn’t easier.
8. Plastic Grocery Store Bags
We all have them. We all hoard them. No matter how hard we try to use them up, they still end up shoved in a cabinet somewhere, by the thousands.
It’s time to toss them. In fact, make a promise to yourself that you will get some reusable grocery bags to keep in your car that you will use when you grocery shop. If you choose not to, then after each grocery trip throw those bags away.
They aren’t serving you a purpose that is more important than the space they are taking up. Realistically, how many grocery bags do you need for the bathroom garbage? Four a month? Let’s toss the rest.
7. Mismatched Food Storage Containers
Nothing, and I mean nothing, sends me over the edge in the evenings after dinner like opening the cabinet for a food storage container to pick up leftovers or fix lunches and out of the 40k containers in there, none have matching lids.
I made the switch from plastic containers to glass containers a few years ago and it made such a huge impact. Everything stacks nicely with the lids on and I can see exactly what I have.
I remember getting so excited on Black Friday and the Tupperware was on sale for like 5o pieces for $10. I was running like a mad woman through hoards of people fighting over baby dolls to get to that Rubbermaid tub of containers because I needed to store all of the food.
Three weeks later I have ninety five bowls and about three lids to go with it.
I have given up the mismatched storage containers for a few glass storage ones that I use every day. Not having as many containers forces me to wash more, ultimately helping me to keep the house clean. It’s a win win.
6. Expired Seasoning
When was the last time you looked at the expiration date on your seasonings? Did you know seasonings even expired? I’m ashamed to admit that I didn’t know that until I was an adult living on my own. I don’t think I remember seeing my mom go through the seasons one time in my entire life. So I had no idea I was supposed to.
I can bet you have a ton in there that aren’t good anymore. The seasonings you had to buy for the recipe you made a year and a half ago that wasn’t really a hit with your family so you never cooked it again- are probably bad now.
The seasonings that are clumpy that you have to bang on the counter to break up before you use it…. I’m talking to you Onion Powder… They can go.
Seasonings are relatively cheap. Keep the ones you use regularly and trash the rest. Your cabinets and counters will thank you.
5. Coffee Mugs
This one is hard for me. I collect coffee mugs. I love a good dog or chicken mug. However, I am very picky about the mugs I drink out of. For instance, my mug can’t be a normal size coffee mug. It has to be travel size. I drink a ton of coffee and the little normal people sized mugs don’t cut it. I will always skip over them to grab the bigger one.
On Saturdays I only drink from my chicken mug. I just have to- I can’t really explain it.
I also will not drink from a mug that doesn’t have something on it. My coffee mugs make me happy so they have specifications that they have to meet. . They have to fit my hand right and their meanings and memories bring me joy.
Perhaps it is part of my obsessive compulsive behavior? Who knows.
I bet you have mugs that you also skip right over. If you’re like me, you keep those mugs in case you have company that might need to drink coffee from it.
That same company you haven’t had in years.
We’re donating the mugs.
4. Deep Freezer/Extra Freezer Foods
I cringe just thinking about this one. I haven’t cleaned out the deep freezer in years…
When I cook big meals and we have a lot of leftovers, like beans or soup, I’ll put them in a freezer bag and put them in the deep freezer, that way, one day when I don’t want to cook we can just pull that bag out and eat.
Only, I haven’t pulled a bag out in years. I’ve probably got fifty meals in there that will never be touched.
I rarely go in the deep freezer because I keep the foods I regularly cook with in the kitchen freezer. I never have a need to go in there unless I’m grabbing popsicles.
Clear it out and fill it with foods that will go with the diet we’re all going to start January 1st and forget about January 5th.
3. Bath Time Goodies
Bath bombs were a hit for like five years or something. That means we all have five years worth of bath bombs sitting in our bathroom that we aren’t using every night like we planned on doing.
I’m a working mama. I don’t have time to sit in the tub and enjoy a bath bomb. Which honestly is nothing more than scents in the air and stains on the bathtub. LORDT and if it has glitter in it… just plan to burn the house down.
Bath goodies are everyone’s go to for gift giving when we can’t think of anything else to give and these goodies just go in the cabinet with last years goodies and never get used.
Bath products expire, too. Check the expiration date on the bottle of lavender scented bubbles in your tub. If its expired, toss it.
We need bath time to be a relaxing experience. A time where we can wash the day away and rid ourselves of the days troubles. A cluttered bathroom is causing you anxiety you don’t even realize you have.
2. Cleaning Supplies
When I finally decided to declutter my cleaning supplies and simplify my life by using one product, I was in total shock at how many products I didn’t actually use but still had stored away. I had Mop & Glo from a christmas ornament project I did about 8 years ago. If I’m being totally honest, I don’t even know how to use Mop & Glo. I don’t know why I insisted on keeping it other than the nagging voice in my head telling me, “well wait, what if you want to make ornaments again?”
Did you know Bleach expires? It expires quickly, too. After six months, bleach starts to degrade. I didn’t know this until I was cloth diapering and couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t get rid of the smell when I was stripping my diapers. Turns out, my bleach was bad.
Going into my cleaning supply closet was always such a huge hassle. Eventually, I decided on using a cleaning caddy with all the things I use regularly in one place and it made my life much easier, but before I could even use the caddy, I had to make room for it.
Pick up everything in the cabinet, one by one, and think about the last time you used it. If it hasn’t been used in six months, get rid of it. Make room for the things you do use.
1. Wardrobe
The number one thing to declutter on my list of things to declutter before the new year is my wardrobe.
I’ve got so many articles of clothing that I haven’t touched in ages. I have trouble letting clothes go because what if I need it for a special event? What if I gain/lose weight and can fit into it again? I spent so much money on those items, I feel like I’m wasting it.
The truth is, you are wasting your money by keeping that item in your closet and letting it sit uselessly. Instead, put that item to use again and donate it to someone who will love and cherish it.
Cas from Clutterbug says to pick up each item and ask yourself these questions:
“Have I worn it in the last 12 months?”, “Do I love it?”, “Would I buy it again?”, and “do I look great in this?”.
If you answer no, it has to go. You want to keep clothes that make you feel good. Take out the clothes that make you feel bad about yourself and cause negative emotions and get rid of them. Don’t want to get rid of them just? Put them in a storage tote that fits under your bed and take them out when you want them. But you want those items out of your closet and out of your sight.
New Year, New Attitude
Take this time to declutter the things in your home that aren’t serving you a purpose and aren’t adding to your happiness. You don’t have time next year to spend feeling bad about things that you 100% can change by simply decluttering things that serve no purpose.
Lets go into the new year with a positive attitude and learn to love yourself and your home. It starts with simply decluttering.