Today, we’ll address the top things to declutter in each room. But, if your home is cluttered, it is probably already affecting your health, your finances, and your relationships. If you are ready to jump right in and get started decluttering, check out my plan here. You can find my laundry room and patio declutter checklist below.
The declutter series is on video now. You can subscribe via youtube. Watch and subscribe through the video linked below.
You can get the complete digital printable copy of the Year Long Thorough Declutter Series Calendar and Checklists here. The printable digital download is delivered to your email. It includes 25 pages of printable calendar pages and checklists like the one above to help you declutter every room in your home. You can find that here.
Struggling with the daily housekeeping chores? Check out my ebook on this topic, entitled Make Over Your Homemaking. Use this link to get it at a discounted price.
Before beginning the laundry room declutter, I though it might be thought provoking to look at some statistics on clutter.
- US consumers buy 40% of the world’s toys, but bear only 3% of the world’s children.
- Most people wear 20% of their clothing 80% of the time. (source )
- 9.4% of U.S. households rent a storage unit. (source)Though we don’t have a storage unit, my laundry room often becomes a hot spot for items I don’t know what to do with.
- People do not look at 80% of the papers and information they keep.(source)
- The average American house is double the size it was in the 1950s–and getting bigger. (source.) If your laundry room is small like mine, storage space is at a premium.
You can find my Laundry Room Declutter checklist below.
- The U.S. Department of Energy reports that one-quarter of people with two-car garages have so much stuff in there that they can’t park a car. (https://www.becomingminimalist.com/the-statistics-of-clutter/)
- According to the National Soap and Detergent Association, getting rid of clutter would eliminate 40 percent of housework in the average home.(https://www.becomingminimalist.com/the-statistics-of-clutter/) Dirty clothes and extra laundry can be simplified by decluttering.
Let’s get started eliminating that laundry room clutter.You can also join my declutter challenge on youtube by subscribing in the video linked below.
LAUNDRY ROOM AND PATIO DECLUTTER CHECKLIST
1. BROKEN CLOTHES HANGERS
2.UNUSED DETERGENTS
3.BROKEN LAUNDRY BASKETS
4.SOCKS WITHOUT A MATCH
5.STAINED AND DAMAGED CLOTHING
6.UNUSED CLEANING TOOLS
7.BROKEN APPLIANCES
8.OUT OF PLACE ITEMS
9.SPORTS EQUIPMENT
10.CHEMICALS
11.DEAD PLANTS
12.BROKEN PATIO FURNITURE
13.GRILL AND ACCESSORIES
14.PATIO CHAIR CUSHIONS
15.SEASONAL GARDENING TOOLS
16.DAMAGED OR DATED FLOWER POTS
17.ANYTHING BLEACHED BY THE SUN
18.DAMAGED BIRD FEEDERS
19.ANYTHING BEYOND REPAIR
20.UNFINISHED PROJECTS
How to Declutter using my LAUNDRY ROOM AND PATIO DECLUTTER CHECKLIST:
Supplies Needed:
1. boxes -preferably ones you can donate (Avoid plastic storage bins because you may be tempted to just store the items and not part with them.)
2. sturdy trash bags
3. marker/pen to label boxes
Decluttering Tip: Avoid using storage bins to declutter. Storage bins tend to tell your brain to “store” the items for later. That is just delaying decisions. If you aren’t getting rid of items when you declutter, you are not truly decluttering. This is why I recommend a trash bag, also. A trash bag tells your brain to “trash” the item.
Obviously, recycle if you have that option. The boxes you use should be ones you are willing to part with (not a laundry basket), so I recommend sturdy cardboard boxes. As to donations, there are many charities that will come pick up your items for you at your home.
I use one in particular where you can book an appointment for pick-up online. This is so convenient, as it saves you the hassle of hauling stuff away yourself. Scheduling that pick-up also motivates you to declutter by a certain date.
As you are clearing away the clutter from your home, I want you to take notice of the common types of clutter you find lying about. Chances are, you have the same type of clutter you find yourself clearing daily.
In the laundry room, you may need to grab some storage containers for your fabric softener sheets and cleaning supplies to get this area more organized. You can read about why I keep my ironing board in the closet. Find out why and learn more on Laundry Organization here.
For example, I have a kitchen countertop that daily becomes a clutter magnet. The types of clutter that appear here might be mail, packages to return to the store, projects that need to be completed, etc. If you will pay attention to the type of clutter you are clearing daily, it will show you what areas of your home need the most organization.
For example, mail piling up on the counter will reveal that you need to develop a “home” for your daily mail. I have a financial binder that I put all of the bills inside as soon as I bring them in the house. Mail that needs to be filed and kept goes into my daily file basket. Papers that need attention go into my daily planner.
Don’t ignore the vertical space in your laundry room. Most laundry rooms have some type of shelving for storage. Research some organization ideas to make this vertical space more efficient.
How to Declutter:
1. Start by eliminating trash first (empty bottles, broken items, etc) – use a sturdy trash bag
2. Sort items by category if needed so you can see what you have
3.Get rid of duplicate items, broken items, outgrown clothes and shoes, anything you’ll never use again. If you have 2-3 half filled bottles of detergent, combine them into one.
4. Box up the donations and trash/recycle the rest
5.Select a charity to donate your items and schedule the pick-up if that is an option
Need to deep clean? I have lists for you to guide you along.
My How to Deep Clean Your Kitchen list can be found here.
My How to Deep Clean Your Bathroom list can be found here.
My How to Deep Clean Your Kids’ Rooms list can be found here.
My How to Deep Clean Your Living Room list can be found here.
My How to Deep Clean Your Bedroom list can be found here.
You can get your printable Daily Housekeeping Routine and Deep Cleaning Your House Schedule here. This 15 page printable kit is delivered digitally to your email for you to print and personalize. What Does a Deep Clean Include? It includes a daily schedule, calendar pages, and deep cleaning checklists for every room and area of your home. Below is a sample page of what you’ll get in my printable set designed to help you make a Housekeeping Schedule for Your Home.
Also, to keep up the general housework, you may need to create a daily housekeeping schedule that suits your specific needs. To do so, I have created a helpful series you can read here.
Need to Declutter Every room? I have declutter checklists for every room and every space in your home to guide you along below.
Also, you can get the complete digital printable copy of the Year Long Thorough Declutter Series Calendar and Checklists here. The printable digital download is delivered to your email. It includes 25 pages of printable calendar pages and checklists to help you declutter every room in your home. You can find that here.
How to Declutter the Guest Room or Your Kid’s Room checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Laundry Room and Patio checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Coat Closet/Hall Closet/Linen Closet checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Home Office checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Attic checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Garage checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Living Room checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Kitchen Checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Entry/Foyer/Mudroom checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Clothing checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Bedroom checklist can be found here.
How to Declutter Your Bathroom checklist can be found here.
Need some Inspiration to Declutter? Join us for the Year Long Through Declutter Series by subscribing by email below. Leave a comment below to subscribe.
Happy Decluttering!
New to deemiddleton.com and don’t know where to start? I recommend going in this order:
Step 1: Check out this post on the 1st step you should take to get organized. If you don’t have a calendar, you can grab my free weekly printable calendar page here. It is in my shopify store, but it is totally free, so you won’t be prompted to put in any payment information. It is a free download and will be delivered straight to your email.
Also, you can get the complete digital printable copy of the Year Long Thorough Declutter Series Calendar and Checklists here. The printable digital download is delivered to your email. It includes 25 pages of printable calendar pages and checklists to help you declutter every room in your home. You can sign up here.
Step 2: Create a daily Housekeeping Schedule. You can use this series to start to set up your own schedule. You can also use this simplified weekly schedule.If you often ask: What is the fastest way to clean a dirty house? Or, if you struggle to get organized and have tried and failed time and again, you can likely find out which of these 11 reasons cause you to fail to get organized.
Step 3: How do you remove clutter?.…Sign up for the Declutter Series and get your entire home decluttered in just 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week.”Declutter Your Home” checklists are provided in each email.
Step 4: What is the fastest way to clean a dirty house? Use a timer and use the Deep Cleaning Checklists above. They will help you get your home sparkling after you’ve decluttered.
Interested in becoming a full-time blogger like me? Check out my blogging series. At the top of every page on my blog, you’ll find a drop down menu. Just select the BLOGGING category.
Check out the most popular posts on deemiddleton.com:
14 Things That Make Your Home Look Cluttered
How to Create a Daily Housekeeping Schedule
How to Clean House When You Are Completely Overwhelmed By Clutter
What is Preventing You From Getting Organized?
Also, check out a great post on decluttering over here from becomingminimalist.com. Joshua Becker has some great tips on decluttering and minimalism.
For further reading, check out the fly lady here. She has some great cleaning and kitchen decluttering ideas plus excellent organization tips to get you started.
I’d like to join the Year Long Through Declutter Series by subscribing by email below.
Good advise
I ve learned a lot.