And Stay on Top of It!
Could you use 10 tips to remove clutter from your home from a Professional Cleaner? Well, that’s what you’re getting with this blog post! Thank you to Emily Ann Mercer, owner of Maid of Honour Cleaning, for being our “Mom Hacks” guest writer this month!
GIVEAWAY ALERT: Emily also has her own line of natural cleaning products, and we have teamed up for a giveaway. You’ll want to read to the bottom of this post for that!
And if you want more awesome tips, check out Emily’s blog and follow Maid of Honour Cleaning on Facebook. Emily does free 10-day Facebook challenge groups a couple times a year too!
I love how uncomplicated these tips are. Anyone can do these and have a less cluttered home!
1. Stop Over Buying
My BEST tip is the hardest tip to follow. STOP OVER BUYING! It sounds so easy, doesn’t it? But we all know it’s not. When you are shopping, ask yourself if you really need what you are about to buy. If the answer is not really, then don’t buy it. If it doesn’t bring you happiness, and won’t bring you happiness six months down the road, then you probably don’t need it!
2. Always Be Decluttering
My second best tip is to ALWAYS be decluttering. The rule in our house, is anytime a box comes into the house, we fill it, and donate. So every diaper box, every box from Costco, etc. Fill it with “stuff” and donate it!
Those two tips seem to help me and my family the most, but here are some other tips that might help you as well!
3. Empty or Bare Ain’t a Bad Thing!
Just because you have an empty drawer, cupboard, or corner in your house, doesn’t mean you need to fill it.
4. Put it in the Calendar
Schedule TWO decluttering weekends a year. Put it in your calendar, get the whole household involved, and stick with it!
5. Find a Cause that Means More to You than Stuff
Choose your favorite place to donate. Pick a charity that means something to you. We donate everything we have (that’s in good condition) to a local woman’s shelter. It makes me feel good about decluttering!
6. Just Do It.
Start with just 5 minutes. Just START! Once you start, you probably won’t want to stop.
7. Don’t Let Junk Sit Around
For example, recycle junk mail as soon as it comes into your home. Don’t let piles start!
8. Have a Spot for That
Make sure everything has a “home” in your house. That way you can always put everything away where it belongs.
9. Give Yourself a Big Picture View
When decluttering a cupboard or a drawer, take everything out and go through it. It makes it easier to visualize everything.
10. Involve the Whole Family
If everyone in the house is on board with decluttering, it makes things way easier. Have a conversation with your family before you start decluttering and make it a family affair!
I hope these tips help! They have helped our family so much!
xoxo Emily
Get in on the Giveaway!
RULES: You have until the end of December 8 to enter the draw. Draw open to all residents of North America. You must provide an e-mail address and subscribe to the blog to be entered. Winner will be announced via e-mail. You can get additional entries by following the additional instructions below.
PRIZE: A Maid of Honour Cleaning Sample Pack + a voucher for one free product (total value up to $53). See Emily’s full cleaning line here.
Debra
November 24, 2019 — 10:55 am
Wonderful tips to put into practice to help declutter. Love the idea of getting the whole family involved.
Danielle Swanson
November 15, 2019 — 10:52 pm
This sounds great. Some good ideas too.
Carrie Regamey
November 14, 2019 — 12:31 am
Great idea on the boxes, one come in and it goes out full!
Lyosha
November 13, 2019 — 7:36 am
Great ideas! i used to have a very cluttered apt and I just wanted to keep as spacy as I could when I moved to a bigger one. We still have a lot of things we need (hobbies in fact take up a lot of storage space). Your tips are great! Starting now is the best time
Daphne Takahashi
November 12, 2019 — 5:30 am
So many great ideas! I don’t tend to buy lots of stuff so i don’t get much clutter. But, occasionally little spots of mess can appear around the house lol
Candace
November 10, 2019 — 9:57 pm
These a great yet doable tips. Thanks for sharing
Smita
November 10, 2019 — 8:53 am
I hate clutter and don’t tend to overbuy – can’t say the same for my partner though! So our house does tend to get cluttered. Love all these ideas, will definitely implement them. Especially loved the box one – fill every box and donate! So simple yet so effective.
Sonia Seivwright
November 10, 2019 — 2:18 am
Thanks for shring these tips. I am moving to a new place soon, so this has come in very handy.
Jovita Routzong
November 9, 2019 — 8:01 pm
Great tips! Came on the right time for Fall Cleaning!
Kristine
November 9, 2019 — 7:33 pm
Awesome tips!
Alexandra
November 9, 2019 — 5:50 pm
This was really a good article. I wish you had a printable version to download and print out for later reference. There were some really good ideas. But my life is so chaotic that I doubt I’d remember them. I really like the idea of filling a box every time you bring it into the house, though with the amount of diapers we go through we probably wouldn’t have anything left in the home!
Kayleigh
November 9, 2019 — 11:03 pm
Thanks for the printable idea. I’ll have to consider that for future posts!
William Bailey
November 9, 2019 — 4:21 pm
I was told that a clean desk is a sign of a sick mind! My wife thinks I’m wrong. That my messy desk is proof of a sick mind…
She will be happy if I do even one of these tips.
Kayleigh
November 9, 2019 — 5:33 pm
My desk is also a disaster! And that’s AFTER doing a major reorganization/declutter of it in the spring. It just piles up again so fast.
Amy
November 9, 2019 — 3:31 pm
That is a great idea….to put it in the calender. I find that one I do that I live to get it done and check it off. We have way too much stuff anyway.
Kayleigh
November 9, 2019 — 5:34 pm
Yes I find I need to schedule it in too. Same with lots of other things that aren’t high on my fun list – taxes, family budget review, meal planning, etc.
Despite Pain
November 9, 2019 — 4:30 am
This is timely! I need to get rid of ‘stuff’. I don’t think I have an empty space anywhere. (I’m blaming my husband). We really need to declutter, so I think I’ll suggest filling those boxes.
Sarah Emery
November 9, 2019 — 4:01 am
We tend to fill our space and 3# Empty or Bare Ain’t a Bad Thing! is a great tip. Great post Kayleigh and I love your tip #5 (I recently found one here in Singapore that does amazing work).
Kelly Martin
November 8, 2019 — 10:42 pm
I really needed these decluttering tips. I have so much stuff I don’t use anymore. I especially like the idea of filling empty boxes and donating them to charity.
Kayleigh
November 8, 2019 — 11:02 pm
Yes I love that empty boxes tip too! I could get rid of so much stuff, ha! Between my husband’s tech business and my Thrive Life grocery orders, we get A LOT of boxes every month!