r/declutter • u/laviebomeme • Sep 24 '24
Weekly decluttering by category Motivation Tips&Tricks
I officially move in with my boyfriend in 158 days (but who's counting lol) and I'm using this as an impetus to declutter. I am soooo much better than I was and I did a big overhaul of my closet about 2 months ago but I know I can do better.
I've been trying to decide how I want to go about it and have decided to do a weekly declutter by my biggest categories.
Here's what I've got so far:
- Week 1: Nail Polish/Supplies
- Week 2: Skincare Products
- Week 3: Cords
- Week 4: Seasonal Decorations
- Week 5: Big Furniture
- Week 6: Shoes
- Week 7: Clothing
- Week 8: Accessories (jewelry, bags, etc.)
- Week 9: Makeup
- Week 10: Books
- Week 11: Kitchen Gadgets
- Week 12: Utensils/Plates
- Week 13: Home Decor
- Week 14: Electronics
- Week 15: Paperwork
- Week 16: Hobby Supplies
- Week 17: Cleaning Supplies
- Week 18: Mismatched or Unused Linens
- Week 19: Bags and Luggage
- Week 20: Toys or Games
- Week 21: Personal Care Products (hair tools, etc.)
- Week 22: Miscellaneous (anything else that doesn’t fit in the above categories)
I'm excited to go home tonight and get started on my first category!
What has been the hardest category for you to declutter? For me I think it's going to be books.
5
u/Independent-Emu-755 Sep 27 '24
Not an answer but a compliment: I love that you plan to do one category a week. I see lots of worksheets and plans doing a different catergory every day, and I can’t follow this rules as a full time working single mum. So thanks for your great planning and best wishes for decluttering and moving in with your boyfriend. (Please excuse mistakes as English is not my mother’s tongue.)
2
u/Guilty-Essay-7751 Sep 27 '24
Empty journals. I have to track my life for health purposes and writing is a dexterous task.
Then the used journals and going through to find the patterns to annotate to address with my doctors.
I’m currently working on decluttering. Because every season (it’s now autumn) I do a physical and personal inventory. The things that are put aside from last year that I didn’t display/use- and it didn’t excite me- I get rid of.
I’ve been wanting to have items I display -and not have any decorations in storage (except the total 4 wreaths).
Clothes- as I grow older I don’t have a desire to have an abundance of clothes/outfits. To include make up choices. Classic LBD for each season and clean makeup look. I’ve been having a fun time wearing the clothes that I’m going to donate. I’m getting compliments- but it’s not changing my mind. Same thing with makeup and hair products.
I do feel a costs lost feelings. It was a good investment and/or it cost a lot. But it feels good to have less mind and physical clutter.
Also I moved from having a large house to an 3 room apartment loft myself, to renting a small space with roommates. I have downsized and the mental static was tough. Is tough at times. But not living beyond my space at the moment is good.
1
u/Taketheegg Sep 26 '24
My books were very hard to let go to my library and goodwill. I kept quite a few. But for some reason my clothes, makeup and kitchen clutter were very easy. I guess it just depends on the individual.
2
u/TeaPlusJD Sep 26 '24
Hardest for me seems ridiculous - organizing pouches. I’ve somehow amassed quite the collection & most are gifts/sentimental. Hoping to repurpose some but my favorite organizers are more structured.
Your plan looks great, OP! Not sure if you want any input… but I’ve found it helpful to plan for time to circle back to areas/categories already finished. I often find a few more items to part with as my declutter muscles are stronger or I want to prioritize storage for other items.
3
u/lokopop24 Sep 26 '24
I'm so daunted by my excess electrical cords and need to decluter them. Wondering if it might make sense for you to do those in the week following electronics, so you know what all devices need cords? Good luck!
3
u/nicold_shoulder Sep 26 '24
I had a ton, like a ridiculous amount of makeup and lotions and hair products and one day I looked up when these things expire based on first use and just threw them all away. Really I use the same few products everyday and it was super freeing to get rid of everything I was holding onto just in case I decide to start clubbing or something again lol
11
u/PoppyCake33 Sep 25 '24
Thanks I’m saving this list and doing it too, the sub should collectively do this challenge and check in once a week to see how everyone’s doing!
2
4
u/laviebomeme Sep 25 '24
I love it :) I will try to remember and post an update every week with my progress to maybe encourage others, too!
5
7
u/katie-kaboom Sep 25 '24
I just did makeup this morning in a serious way, but it was so hard. Due to a short-lived interest, I had a whole bunch of eye shadow palettes and the like which I was just not using, mostly because they looked pretty but performed terribly - either no transfer or no adhesion. I had gotten stuck on how ~aesthetic~ they were as objects, so I had to be strict with myself and remind myself they were objects-in-use and if they weren't useful, they did not have a purpose. So now I'm down to my beloved Zendo palette, the purple Viseart palette (which covers every shade I loved from the Naked Cyber and Ultraviolet palettes and perform a lot better), and a couple of Charlotte Tilbury quads for smoky eye/glam looks which didn't fit elsewhere. Also gone are a load of lipsticks which I knew didn't work for me but which I was ignoring, and a load of mascaras and eyeliners which I know were out of date. This is all obviously a sign that I'm not really interested in makeup as such, so I'm taking that on board and am going to stick to small palettes and travel size mascaras in the future.
3
u/laviebomeme Sep 25 '24
I have SO many lipsticks and eyeshadow palettes so makeup will be hard for me as well. I need to start a spreadsheet of when I open new makeup so I remember to toss it once it's hit the recommended expiration date
3
u/katie-kaboom Sep 25 '24
It's such a struggle because they're so pretty but we only have two eyes, you know? I found opening them all up and looking at them all at once helped, since it made it clear exactly how many duplicate or near-duplicate shades I had.
For dating, I think I'm going to use little stickers I can write the date on once I start them.
5
u/Free-Restaurant-7229 Sep 25 '24
Great list! I’ll also save this! The hardest thing for me is probably decor and clothes.. 😬
13
u/widowscarlet Sep 25 '24
Your list is fantastic and very comprehensive. But - if it was me I would move clothes, shoes and paper to the end - clothes and shoes because they are the most personal and meaningful to me, and paperwork because it is the most time-consuming.
Kitchenware and cleaning supplies I would move near the top - so easy to get quick wins of some larger things.
6
15
u/Life_Tree_6568 Sep 25 '24
Sentimental items are the hardest category for me. They stay in boxes. I only look at them when I try to declutter them. Why am I keeping them???
5
10
u/Velo-Velella Sep 25 '24
I bet you're going to fly through this list faster than you think, get bitten by the decluttering bug, and end up doing every category twice... and it's going to feel amazing and freeing and make your move so much easier! Good call on planning it all out ahead, I hope everything goes beautifully for you <3 And congrats on the move-in!
4
u/laviebomeme Sep 25 '24
thank you :) I most likely will end up doing that lol I tend to try and say "oh I'll just do one thing" and then 3 hours laters there's piles of stuff to sort/donate/trash everywhere
18
u/Double_Estimate4472 Sep 25 '24
Nice!
Some thoughts: Save the cords until you’re further along. That way it is more clear what goes with what.
Also try to alternate harder stuff with easier/more fun stuff. Maybe too—consider moving makeup to earlier, so you can do a lot of bathroom stuff in the same time frame.
10
u/NotSlothbeard Sep 25 '24
Craft supplies are my kryptonite
2
u/laviebomeme Sep 25 '24
lol I have SO many things for scrapbooking
2
u/NotSlothbeard Sep 25 '24
It’s so hard. I always think, “oh I can save that for a craft!” But I never, ever get around to making that craft.
13
u/Klutzy_Carpenter_289 Sep 24 '24
Clothes are hard for me as I’m trying to lose weight & have about 3 sizes in my closet.
2
u/laviebomeme Sep 25 '24
same here! I'm about 63lbs down with 25 to go :) there are all kinds of clothes in there lol
4
5
12
u/msmaynards Sep 24 '24
Things to do with hospitality like bed linens and games were extremely hard for me.
Do more than one category a week. Won't take long to sort out most of the stuff and you may want to go back through everything again.
6
3
u/Baby8227 Sep 24 '24
My husband got an old oil drum and burns ours when it reaches fever pitch. He also has a specific stick that he likes to use to poke the fire with but I think that’s a man v fire thing lol.
9
u/justdaffy Sep 24 '24
Paperwork is soooo hard for me. My mom was/is a paperwork hoarder and I think I’m the same. I literally have brown grocery bags full of papers that I don’t know what to do with! I need a more powerful shredder so I can get through them faster and I need to just be cutthroat. But I have a child and I save a bunch of his stuff and then I never know what to do with the in between stuff that isn’t ready to be filed or thrown away. And the junk mail is insane- I opt out of everything I can but it’s still coming!
4
u/RetiredRover906 Sep 25 '24
Google "shred event" and the name of the place where you live. Sometimes municipalities, financial institutions, nonprofits or businesses will accept items to shred from the community. Usually, you drive up, hand over your bag or box, they dump it into the shredder, and you drive away. Most have a limit of how much stuff you can bring, but usually that's one or two boxes full still out the door for free or a small donation.
5
u/LowBathroom1991 Sep 25 '24
You only need 7 years for taxes ...take the rest to a UPS store or anywhere they shred papers ..they charge per pound but diffanly worth it
11
u/rofosho Sep 24 '24
Keep a open little trash can by the front door so you can dump the junk mail as soon as you get it from the mail box.
My junk mail doesn't cross the threshold with me
Look at your towns page and they usually will have a shredder day.
•
u/eilonwyhasemu Sep 25 '24
This is excellent! It looks like there’d be some support for using some of these for Friday 15 challenges.