10 Things to Get Rid of in Your Home

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Where do we start when we get the declutter bug? It’s always nice to have a few things to focus on when starting to declutter your home. These tips help you hit the areas that are problems and commonly create things to get rid of in your home.

Things to Get Rid of in Your Home

#1. Extra Clothes

Oh my! Where to begin… clothes tend to pile up in my closet. It is a constant battle.

I have created a rule for myself whenever I buy new clothes. For every article of clothing that gets added to my wardrobe, I donate one to Salvation Army. This has helped keep my closet clutter to a minimum. So helpful!

#2. Extra Plates and Cups

Plates and cups are definitely on the list of things to get rid of in your home. So over the years of being married, we have accumulated a lot of extra plates and cups. I counted how many coffee mugs we have and it is a grand total of 24! Who needs that many?! Most of the mugs were gifts so the majority are mismatched and have silly says or shapes. I went through our cups and I was shocked how many we had of those as well. Let’s just say it is more than the mugs. Plates are also a big culprit in our household. Those have been gone through and have been donated.

#3. Papers

This is another “where to begin” kind of statement. It is nice that most bills and receipts you can get online and save digitally. The concern is, what do I do with all that extra paper I have accumulated over the years? The reason for the delay is due to not having enough time.

That has been my problem recently. Finding the time to sit for an afternoon to go through all of my paperwork and shred as much as possible. But it has to get done! It will get done! In the meantime, I have created a filing system for all new paper that I have to save. If it’s something that doesn’t belong in my system it gets put right in the trash/recycling bin.

#4. Linens and Towels

Linens and towels definitely tread in the category of things to get rid of in your home. Over the years I have saved towels and rotated them out for rags when cleaning. My mindset with towels and linens is that they help with dusting and help to deal with heavier chemicals. If they get ruined I just throw them away.

When I was organizing my linen closet I noticed my stack of cleaning rags and my stack of nice towels and linens. They were all mixed up with each other! What happened?! It seemed I would get in such a rush I started just throwing things in the closet and not pay any attention to what belongs where.

I took the time to get rid of all the excess and only saved a few rags. I made sure I had a good system for the towels and linens that were still in good shape.

#5. Toys

Yep. Toys. If you have kids you know this battle. The best time to go through toys and donate the things they don’t need anymore would be when they are at school or down for a nap. Make sure you hide the toys you are donating. If they find them it’s like Christmas again and they won’t want to part with them.

#6. Electronics

Now, how many cables do you actually need? My husband has a tendency to save every piece of electronics he has ever owned. This has created an issue for storage. So we made a deal kind of like when we get a new piece of clothing. We get rid of the old, outdated computer system if we need to upgrade. There is no need to keep it if it literally cannot turn on anymore.

#7. Appliances

I like nifty kitchen appliances. The problem is that I tend to somehow accumulate two or three of the same type of appliance. For instance, I have a large, medium and small crockpot. Do I need them all? Nope. So the next logical step would be to donate these items or give them to a friend who needs them more than I do.

#8. DVD’s

Since everything can be streamed it only seems natural to get rid of old DVD’s. I used to love to display these in my apartment living room showing off my collection. We have moved a few times since then and the DVD’s have made a home in some storage bins. It is time to either donate or sell them on eBay.

Since streaming is our primary choice when watching a movie, we have decided to use Wal-Mart’s service called Vudu. We discovered their disc to digital feature. You use their app to scan a movie you already own and can get the digital version anywhere from $2-$5. It’s a total win for us! This a great solution for things to get rid of in your home.

#9. Trinkets and Knick-knacks

Oh boy! This is a touchy subject for my husband and I. When we got married, almost eight years ago, I learned he likes to save everything. I have helped him break that habit over the years but it was a challenge at first. He loves to save little trinkets and knick-knacks. I noticed after the first year of marriage this bad habit was rubbing off on me. Eventually, I got back to my old roots and stopped it before it got out of hand.

Now we try to live a little simpler and have a mindset where we ask ourselves the questions from the Declutter My Life Challenge.

#10. Furniture

Since moving into our house in September 2016, we had many pieces of furniture that were given to us through the years. My goal when moving into this house was to have matching furniture so the home would feel cohesive and not like a thrift store. This was an awesome goal! The only issue… we were stuck with duplicate furniture pieces that had either sentimental value or were just too cruddy to give away/sell. They were cluttering up our home! This was not my ideal situation.

Most of the pieces ended up in a yard sale or donated to Salvation Army.

How do you look for the things to get rid of in your home? Do you have a different approach? Let me know! I would love to see how you organize your home.

Related: How to Part With Stuff

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Kim Calderon

Kim is a wife and a stay at home mom who loves spending time with her little boy. She likes managing her home and seeking out ways to improve her way of living.

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