Change your mindset for a more sustainable spring clean.
Many of us dream of living in a calm, organized home, and a big spring clear-out can be the answer. But is it time to rethink the way we declutter? It’s easy to get caught in a cycle of getting rid of stuff, then buying more stuff, but it’s possible to live in a more sustainable, considered way.
We spoke to experts about how best to let go of the things we no longer need, and how to think about what we’re bringing into our homes in the first place.
How to declutter your home
Whether you're looking to clear your hallway, organize your bedroom or sort out your make-up bag, these are the rules to follow when it comes to decluttering your home...
Declutter little and often
For Lynda Wylie of Tidy Rooms, ‘mini habits’ are key and she encourages people to let go of things during Lent. She says, “Every day of Lent, put a household item (or a bag of items!) in a box. By Easter, you'll have 40 items you can give to a food bank or charity shop.”
“Decluttering is a lifestyle, not a project,” says Juliet Landau-Pope, author of What’s Your Excuse For Not Clearing Your Clutter?. “It can take less than 15 minutes to sort out one drawer, so start with a small space or a category of items and work from there.”
You don’t always need more storage
“When people ask me what they need to buy before they start decluttering, the answer is nothing,” says Juliet. She identifies three stages to organizing, “none of which actually require you to buy anything”.
She says, “The first stage is to let go of stuff. Review and then reduce your things and think about what you can recycle and reuse. The second step is to organize the things that you've decided to keep (they’re staying in your life right now, but they may not be there forever!). And the final stage is creating systems and routines so that you can maintain order.”
Embrace the circular economy
According to a survey from the British Heart Foundation, 30% of us have thrown away furniture, electrical items and homeware that were in good enough condition that they could have been reused, sold or donated.
But it’s easier than ever to find people who would love the things you’re getting rid of – consider local WhatsApp groups, eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Depop. You can sell books, CDs, DVDs and games on Ziffit, and the Olio app allows you to give away unwanted food and household items to your neighbors.
It helps you let go of things if you know they’ll go to a good home and live on, says Lynda: “You can donate sewing machines and household tools to Tools With A Mission, and they go to people who need them in Africa. Meanwhile dog rescue centers love receiving old bedding and towels.”
Buy long-lasting products
“There are a lot of different ways you can shop sustainably – buying products made with recycled materials, or from a carbon-neutral factory, for example – but nine times out of 10, the best thing you can do is buy long-lasting products,” says Tara Button, founder of Buy Me Once. Tara set up the online homeware and clothing store after being given a cast-iron pot with a lifetime guarantee and realizing that she wanted to invest in products that would go the distance.
She said, “The average T-shirt lasts two and a half years, but if you have an item of clothing that lasts 10 years, then the cotton didn’t have to be watered, or ploughed, threshed, woven, manufactured, packaged, transported… It’s so much better for the environment.”
Know what you like
It’s easy to be swayed by trends, so it’s important to know your home style and stick to it, says Tara. She explains, “Everything that we bring into our lives should be a considered choice rather than thinking, ‘I need something and this is easy, or this is cheap’.
“Having a plan is important – take the time to think about your own tastes and what your ideal home looks like, maybe even make a mood board. Otherwise you’ll buy a sofa you like but it won’t go with your cupboards or your carpet, and you’ll think, ‘Now I have to change my carpet!’. It’s an ongoing cycle of consumption.”
Live well with less
“Decluttering can help you live more simply, especially during the cost of living crisis,” says Lynda. “You know what’s in your house so you avoid buying duplicates – if you've already got it in the cupboard then use it up rather than buy more of it. Before you get anything new, picture where it’s going to live in your house. Have a physical boundary – so if you buy a lot of art supplies, have two boxes and if it goes over that don’t buy any more.”
Thinking of others
When we’re surrounded by bags of clutter to get rid of, it can be hard to imagine that some people are living in furniture poverty, with nothing in their homes, not even flooring or curtains. But that’s often the case for families in social housing.
Emily Wheeler is the founder of Furnishing Futures, a small East London charity that furnishes homes using items that would otherwise end up in landfill. She says, “I started Furnishing Futures when I was in frontline social work. Children had no beds, there’d be no cooker, and it was impacting families. Women who’d fled domestic violence had lost everything.”
With a background in interior design, Emily knew that furniture brands often had a huge amount of ex-display or customer-returned stock. She now works with brands and designers to use this furniture in social housing. Furnishing Futures accepts some pieces from the public, if it’s in excellent condition, but look out for charities near you that accept furniture donations to help those in need.
Make space for what inspires you
Decluttering can have strong emotional benefits, says Helen Sanderson, a psychotherapist and author of The Secret Life Of Clutter: “I say to people, your home is like a garden. It's a living, breathing space. It needs cleaning and loving and caring for and maintaining.
“I think of this process as being mindful, rather than a chore. It's an act of self care. Ultimately, what it leads to is a sense of lightness, and then joy and possibilities come flooding back. If you have clutter, you’ve filled your space. But what can you make space for?
“Maybe you've got that box room that’s full of stuff. But if you clear and open up that room, and make it into your writing room or your crafting room or a space for a friend to stay, you start to live a life that is more about nourishment and expression, rather than consuming and drudgery.”
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