Does the idea of starting a cleaning or organization project sometimes overwhelm you to the point where you find other things to do just to avoid facing that project? I believe we have all been there at one time or another. There are certain items in everyone’s homes that can be purged pretty quickly and have a big impact on your storage and space. Today’s post will shed light on the top 6 kinds of clutter you can purge today to be on your way to a cleaner, more organized house!
1. Cookbooks
Let’s face it ladies, cookbooks can get out of hand. We buy them because we like the idea of cooking downright amazing meals. We imagine this new cookbook to be the one our grandmothers had perched in their kitchen that was ragged and worn with constant use. The truth? Most of our cookbooks end up looking brand new without the spine showing an ounce of wear or tear for YEARS. Why? Because it’s just plain faster and easier to hop on Pinterest, Youtube or Google and find the recipe we are looking for in seconds, with pictures AND reviews.
If you’ve got a pile of cookbooks, tackle those first. Cut out the ones you flat out never use or were gifts. If you’ve had it longer than 1 year and haven’t cracked it open, use it tonight or lose it.
2. CD’s
5 years ago I decided to “downsize” my CD collection by simply throwing away all the plastic covers and organizing them all into a zippered CD organizer. Now I have 100 old CD’s with 90’s club, dance, alternative and pop music that would rather forget about. I’ve got whole CD’s from my weird music phases in the days before you could buy an MP3 of the one song you liked.
If you are holding onto a music collection that you have no interest in listening to, just do your storage a favor and donate, sell them or take them down to CD Warehouse and trade them in for cash. What you can’t sell, immediately donate.
3. Expired Coupons
I use coupons regularly. However I get lots of coupons that I hang onto and put in a coupon folder only to be forgotten about and stored well after all the expiration dates. Save only the coupons for items that you actually use on a regular basis, keep those in your purse and ditch the rest.
4. Physical Books & Magazines
Have you read any of those books more than one time ever? Could you get it from the library if you wanted to read it a second time. I know that you paid the equivalent of one months rent for those college textbooks but do you think you will actually ever read that book that you barely cracked open in college again? Once you read that magazine, scan or rip out the stuff you want, remove your address and donate those babies.
The only way I have a physical book in my hand anymore is if comes from the library. Library books go back to library and don’t take up valuable space in my home. Otherwise I only buy EBooks and digital magazines. EBooks & digital magazines are so easy to organize, they never get lost and don’t take up any space.
If you need extra help in this area, check out my good friend Kalyn’s post from Creative Savings titled, 3 Questions to Help Downsize Your Book Collection.
5. Weight Loss “Goal” Clothes
Not everyone does this but I’m sure there are many of you out there. You have a pair of jeans, a blouse, a skirt or some piece of clothing from a time when you wore a smaller size. You hold onto these items for the day that you can victoriously slide them on again and not look like 5 pounds of potatoes stuffed in a 2lb bag. Am I right? I know I am because I’m guilty of this myself.
If you lose weight, find joy in celebrating that victory by going out and buying something new for yourself. Don’t let the past keep you from moving on. If you had a baby, your body may never go back into those size 8 Junior’s low ride jeans again. There’s probably a fantastic pair of non-mom jeans out there that you can feel good and look great in today!
6. Clothes & Shoes in Your Closet You Avoid
In your closet I’m positive that there is at least one or two blouses, pants, shoe pairs or shirts that you pass up every single day because a) You don’t like it. b) It doesn’t fit well c) You don’t feel good in it d) You got a good deal on it, it was a gift or it was free but you don’t really like it. Those things don’t deserve space in your life. They are just one more obstacle to your daily routine productivity.
Fill your closet with clothes and shoes you love and need! For special occasion type clothing, keep it for one year and if you don’t wear it, give it a new home outside your house.
I hope that this post has given you some momentum to get started on a few projects around your house. They are easy first steps to freeing up your life from unnecessary excess.
What kinds of projects around your house seem the toughest to start?
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Marie says
September 25 at 10:52 pmThere are several groups around that take expired coupons and send them to troops or their wives. The special stores on the bases will take them past their expiration date by I believe up to 6 months. One group I was a part of was Expired Coupons for Overseas Military and they are on Facebook. So if you don’t need them maybe they can use them 🙂 Here is their link just in case: https://www.facebook.com/ExpiredCouponsforOverseasMilitary
Kim Anderson says
September 26 at 8:12 amMarie, That’s great. Thank you so much for telling us about that opportunity with coupons!
Jenni says
August 19 at 5:41 pmYour article inspired me to continue decluttering & organizing our home. Our daughter moved back here and she has the bedroom that was my office. I have an armoire now. LOL Thanks for the inspiration.
Blessings
Kim Anderson says
August 19 at 8:35 pmJenni, thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know! Good luck with the transition!
Angela @ Setting My Intention says
March 12 at 9:48 pmim about to declutter my books – it’s hard as an English major, but as i purge more, it’s getting easier to release things.
Kim Anderson says
March 12 at 10:52 pmBooks are sooo hard to purge! Good luck!
Robert says
February 2 at 7:19 pmI can relate to your “Weight Loss ‘Goal’ Clothes” even though it deals with women’s clothing. I tend to buy shirts & jeans at outlet retailers, because of the discount, that I can never wear, as an attempt to motivate myself. (sadly) My closet is filled up with them (tags still attached)! My thing is buy when you need, not when you want! It’s a money saver.
Kim Anderson says
February 2 at 9:41 pmRobert, I have done the same thing too. Especially at thrift stores. LOL. Thanks for your true confessions.
Angela says
January 31 at 5:26 pmConfession: My family has a book problem and I personally have a shoe problem. I might have something come up where I need that pair of shoes I just threw out! I don’t have more shoes than will fit in a Rubbermaid though… Can you seriously sell cds without the original cases? I’ll have to find out about that. You hit the nail on the head with this post!
Kim Anderson says
January 31 at 7:35 pmAngela, the books are probably one that most people have a hard time with. It’s nice to have your own library but I find that even though I had my library I rarely checked something out twice. One other thing I love about Ebooks is that you can “lend” most titles out to friends if you want to. So it’s kind of like having a physical book…sort of.. 🙂
Cindy says
January 25 at 11:07 amVery helpful. Do you have any pointers on decluttering paper… I find myself overwhelmed in old utility bills, receipts, cc bills, etc.
Kim Anderson says
January 25 at 9:50 pmCindy, I actually do and that will be coming in a post in the next week or so. I’ve got a serious paper problem but I’ve come up with a solution I’m going to share and I’m looking forward to seeing if it helps other people like me too. Thanks for asking!
Kim Anderson says
January 27 at 2:09 pmHere is the post on annihilating paper piles Cindy- https://thriftylittlemom.com/2015/01/27/create-paper-pile-annihilation-system
Flavia says
January 23 at 10:05 pmI am 100% with you with these 6 types of clutter! Especially the closet…. I’m overdue with that decluttering project, that’s my toughest to start… Why is it so hard to let go of certain clothes, uh? but I will sure follow your a, b, c and d reasons. Thank you! Lovely blog!
Kim Anderson says
January 23 at 11:57 pmFlavia, thanks so much for taking the time to comment and complement the blog. It is super hard to get rid of certain clothes and I have found that sometimes you just need to call in reinforcements like your best friend to give you an objective perspective.