Do you wonder how some people always have clean and clutter free homes? And maybe you spend hours decluttering and cleaning your home on the weekends or once a month but it always ends up looking cluttered in a few days?
In this post, we are talking about 9 things you must do to maintain a clutter free home. Because let’s be honest, it’s not a one time job, it’s actually a a continuous process. And you need to be at the top of your game in order to create a clutter free space and maintain it as well. And sometimes, decluttering and tidying is the easy part and actually maintaining your clutter free home is where people struggle.
And that’s why establishing habits and routines in place is equally important because they will help you maintain a clutter free home. There may be some other reasons why your home still looks decluttered though, even after you think you went Marie kondo on your house.
Now, I know you are busy, I am too, but it’s still possible for you to have the space you’ve always dreamed of. And I promise it doesn’t have to take hours and hours of decluttering and you can still have time for your wine and Netflix night. I got you, mama!
RELATED: Practical ways to find time to Declutter
Why a clutter free home is important?
A clutter free home is important because it makes your life simple. Having too much clutter or un-necessary things around the house makes cleaning and maintaining your home a pain in the ass. I am not going to sugarcoat it, but if you spend way too long cleaning your house, that may be simply because you have too much stuff.
And decluttering will help you simplify your home and life. And when you have a clutter free space, you will have more time to actually enjoy your life.
Not to mention, having too much stuff and visual clutter can be a cause of stress, and no one wants that, right?
And the first part of having a clutter free home is the big old decluttering process. You know you have been delaying it or dreading it, but you just need to get done with it. And you’ll be happy that you did, trust me.
Getting rid of clutter around the house will help you shift your focus on things that are important and will help you make a clutter free space that’s easy to manage and practical as well. I do not mean to say that you need to get rid of all your decorations and have a basic AF home. Certainly not. But you also don’t need a thousand things on your shelves. It just makes the cleaning process that much harder.
Now, coming onto decluttering:
How to declutter your entire home:
Of course you need to start with a clutter free home to maintain a clutter free home. And this is going to be time consuming and challenging. You may even end up balling your eyes out, haha, kidding. Okay, there maybe a few tears. But the whole decluttering journey is very rewarding if you stick with it, and you must.
Here are some resources that will definitely help:
- 20 tips for decluttering clothes
- How to declutter and spring clean your entire home
- 12 tips to declutter sentimental items
- 7 questions to ask yourself while decluttering
Now, the thing is, even when you have spent hourts and days into the decluttering process, maintaining a clutter free home is going to be a challenge. Simply because we tend to buy new things and create clutter in our everyday lives. And while that’s perfectly okay, you need to have habits and routines in place. These habits and routines will help you keep a clutter free home without having to spend hours on it in one go. And here are the best habits and routines that I have found super helpful in maintaining a clutter free home:
Habits and Routines to maintain a clutter-free home:
#1: Have a home for things:
This one is really interesting, hear me out. Everything in your home needs a home of it’s own. Meaning you need to know where things go. Because if you don’t they end up creating clutter around the house.
So have a designated place for everything. That will just make it easier for you when you are doing a quick declutter and refresh. Because you already know where the thing is supposed to go. So if something doesn’t have a home yet, try finding a place for it. And being more conscious about where you are putting things also helps. Like for me, my blue light glasses always end up on my bedside table. So I made a place for them there and now they no longer create “clutter”.
So have a look at where things usually end up and what makes sense and give everything a home. And if you are struggling to find a home for something, it’s worth asking whether you should have that thing in the first place. And if the answer is yes, then see where you usually use it and when.
#2: Don’t buy duplicates:
So often we end up buying duplicates of things we already have at home, simply because we fail to see the practicality. Whenever you are about to make a purchase, ask yourself whether you have something that serves the same purpose? And then tell yourself that you certainly don’t need two of those.
For some things like batteries, it of course makes sense to have some extras at hand, but for most things, you don’t really need duplicates. A good example is coffee mugs. If you have 20 coffee mugs already, you certainly don’t need another cute one that you saw while on your target run on the weekend.
And if you really love the mug, then make it a habit to use the one in and one out rule. Meaning you have to donate one coffee mug if you want to buy a new one. This simple habit will make it easier to accumulate less stuff over time. And less stuff means having to spend less time to tidy and keep a clutter free home.
#3: Make weekly declutter a habit:
Make it a habit to do a weekly declutter and refresh of the house. It doesn’t take that long when you are doing it every weekend. So make a list of things that you’d like to get done on the weekend and tackle that list either on a Friday night or first thing Saturday morning.
Throughout the week, you will end up accumulating a considerable amount of clutter, and it’s a good habit to take time to declutter on the weekends. This way, your monthly declutter won’t be super overwhelming.
#4: Have a dedicated bin for things to donate:
Another amazing tip that will help you in managing the clutter is having a donation box handy. It is super helpful because instead of keeping things you no longer need, you can simply put them in the donation box. And when the donation box is full, you can take it to your nearest donation centre and start afresh.
This way, you no longer have to wait for decluttering days to actually get rid of things you no longer need. So whenever you come across something in your home that you no longer use or need or love, put it in the donation box. It will make decluttering your home so much easier.
#5: Plan your shopping trips:
Another tip that really helps in reducing the amount of clutter is, to manage what you bring into the house. Because if you are not bringing in more stuff, that simply means you have to spend less time decluttering.
So always plan your shopping trips and never shop without a shopping list.
I mean, raise your hand if you’ve gone to target to get a couple of things and returned home with bags full of stuff?
I know we’re all guilty of this one. And the best tip that helps is to have a shopping list whenever you go shopping. No matter whether you’re going grocery shopping or to a mall. knowing exactly what you need will help you in managing the amount of clutter you bring into your home.
#6: Make a 15 minute declutter list to do every day:
I know no one has hours to declutter everyday and that’s where these daily declutters come in. Making a daily declutter list will help you tackle the areas around your home that accumulate the most amount of clutter on an everyday basis.
And each morning, you can simply take 15 minutes and declutter these areas around your home and it will make such a big difference. For me, I usually declutter the bed side tables, coffee table, dining table and the kitchen counters.
It is such a simple habit to form and it goes a long way. it is simply resetting your house and doesn’t involve any deep cleaning. You could even do this every night before going to bed so you wake up to a clean and clutter free home. That could be such a blessing, especially if you have kids.
#7: Make it a habit to use and put away:
One simple habit that will save you so much time while decluttering is putting away things when you are done using them. So instead of waiting for your daily declutter time, put away things immediately. It will just save you the time.
The more you get into this habit of putting things away, the less clutter you will have to deal with. I have my some of my appliances in the drawers instead of the kitchen counter. And I always make it a point to put them away once I am done using them. It saves me so much time when I am doing a 15 minute daily declutter.
#8: Create good Habits:
There are a few simple habits that don’t take that long to do but make a big difference when it comes to having a clutter free home. And one of these very simple habits is making your bed in the morning. Making you bed doesn’t take longer than 5 minutes and when you do this everyday, it can have such a huge impact on the rest of your day.
And your bed is the biggest piece of furniture in your room and having a tidy bed makes the whole room so much cleaner and fresher.
Another good habit to adopt is putting dirty laundry in a hamper rather than on the floor. It’s quite simple really. And the more you get into developing these smaller habits that easier it becomes to clean and tidy the house. Simply because there is less clutter to deal with.
Another example is putting your dirty dishes in the dishwasher straight away and not letting them pile up in the sink.
#9: Clean as you cook:
I felt like I needed to make a separate point for your kitchen. It is probably the most used space in your entire house. And when you are cooking meals at home, it is the one place that gets the most cluttered through out the day, especially if you have kids.
But making it a habit to clean as you cook or cleaning right after the meals will help you in maintaining a clutter free kitchen.
Another thing that will help you keep a clean and clutter free kitchen is reducing the number of items you have on the kitchen counters. Having less stuff will make wiping down the kitchen counters so much easier. It will also help in reducing the amount of visual clutter you have and make the space looks so much cleaner.
It also works well to have a weekend routine in place. We usually do grocery shopping on the weekends and do all the meal planning and prepping too. And meal prepping for the entire week on the weekend makes it easier throughout the rest of the week. Simply because you do not have a lot of dirty dishes to deal with.
We also love making one pot meals so there are less dishes to wash at the end of the meal. And even if you think it wouldn’t make much of a difference, it really does. So why not give it a shot?
And that’s it. 9 simple habits and routines that will help you manage and maintain a clutter free home. It doesn’t have to be overwhelming and complicated and it doesn’t have to take hours everyday. All you need is to put the right routines and habits into practice and you can have a clutter free home you’ve always wanted!
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