Whether you’re moving home or just spring cleaning, a good declutter can do wonders for your mental health.
Have you ever moved house and thought “how did I accumulate all of this stuff?” Well you’re not the only one. In fact, it’s amazing what you can collect in such a short space of time, so if you’re packing up a family home you’ve lived in for years it can feel quite daunting.
But even if you’re not moving home. And you’re just trying to give your home a refresh. A good declutter is the first thing you should do. So, we thought we’d put together a list of 5 quick and easy things to declutter that can make a big difference.
Old pantry items
Canned food or staple pantry items are things that can get forgotten at the back of the shelf easily. So setting some time aside to reassess what you need can do wonders. Throw out anything that’s opened and past its sell by date. And if you have way too many tins of one thing, consider donating them to a local charity.
Shopping bags
As we have moved away from single-use plastic and onto reusable options, sometimes the cupboard with the shopping bags can get a bit overfull. Especially if you’re anything like us and often get to the supermarket, only to realise you’ve forgotten to bring your bags with you. So, rather than holding on to them, get rid of the older tattier ones you’ve had for a while and keep the newer ones for another year or two.
Expired skin care
Surely we aren’t the only ones that sometimes find a moisturiser or sunscreen that expired last year? It’s easy to do. We just put them back in the drawer and forget about them until we decide to declutter. So use this time to go through your bathroom and bedroom draws, and clear out all the skincare bottles that are long past their sell-by date.
Old containers and odd lids
Tupperware can be a bit like socks in a washing machine. You start with a full set and then strangely discover that you’ve got more lids than containers or vice versa. Unfortunately, we don’t have the answer to where they go, but we can say that getting rid of the odd ones out will help clear your cupboard.
Books that you’ll never read again
There’s something quite special about a full book case. But sometimes it can get a bit too full. So, if you’re finding you have to store books in drawers or they’re spilling out into your home, maybe it’s time to say goodbye to some. We normally start by getting rid of the ones we know we won’t ever read again. Charity shops are a great place to take them so they’ll find a new home. And if you can’t decide which ones need to go, put a time limit on them. Have you read them in the last three years? If not, maybe it’s time to say goodbye.