Aug 24, 2022
Moving house is almost always a challenging ordeal. The stress of uprooting yours and your loved one’s possessions can be demanding and sometimes emotional. However, there are things you can do to take the stress away, including decluttering your possessions. Over the years, you will probably have accumulated hundreds of mementoes you never knew you had.
Before moving, it is imperative to streamline all your possessions. Streamlining is even more important if your new home has limited storage options. After all, why would you need that glass jug you received as a wedding gift twenty years ago? It’s tempting to hold onto those things with sentimental value, but sometimes it’s necessary to declutter. This blog post will look at some of the best ways to declutter before you make the big move.
Step One –Preparations
To start the decluttering process, you need to prepare. Preparation is especially vital if you have a large family. To prepare to declutter, observe these detailed tips.
- Firstly, set an exact date when you start your decluttering process. It will probably take you more than a day, which is perfectly fine. Just make sure to schedule enough time to avoid unnecessary distractions. Make sure everyone in your household is on the same page as you, too.
- Consider your plans and what you need to streamline. Instead of having a basic idea, create strategies and rules about what you are going to throw away and whether you will have a use for it or not.
- Create a detailed list. A list is helpful to determine which rooms you will tackle, as well as the specific items. A tick list may help you tick off items as you go.
- Finally, you can set a deadline. A deadline for decluttering may help you organise your other commitments, as decluttering your home should be a priority.
How To Declutter Before Moving
Let’s take a little look at the basics of decluttering before we go into the specifics.
Firstly, work in a single room at a time. If you try to declutter your entire house simultaneously, you will double the workload for yourself. If you tackle one room at once, you will focus on the items only in this room.
To add, when you are tackling a room, make sure you remove everything. For one, this will save time and allow you to see better what you possess. Once you have removed everything, you can see everything and decide what you need and what you no longer need.
Once you have determined what you do not need, you can start decluttering. You may find that books, clothes, and knick-knacks will take up the most space in your home. It may even take you an entire day to clear out one room, but the results will be conspicuous.
Create a pile of items you are unsure if you want to keep. Creating an ‘unsure’ pile will give you a clear vision of what you want to keep and how much space you will save without them. It is also helpful to make other piles of things you are unsure about, items you’d like to keep, and items you can donate to loved ones.
Once you have decluttered as much as possible, consider the items from the ‘unsure’ pile. Remember, you can sell any valuable items and give sentimental items to family and friends. Once you have spent at least an afternoon in each room, you’ll be sufficiently decluttered.
Now, let’s take a look at decluttering room-by-room. A room-by-room guide can help you whittle down what you should aim to throw away.
Living Room
The living room is often a shared space, which means the room can acquire many unwanted items. If you’re starting with the living room, look around the room for old or broken items and disposable items such as paper or rubbish. When decluttering a living room, focus on your books, DVDs, toys, game consoles, small electrical devices, and pet toys.
These items can accumulate, and whilst we are not implying throwing everything away, you could easily streamline some things you no longer need or use.
Kitchen
Kitchens typically have a lot of storage, meaning you may find appliances at the back of cupboards and cabinets. These appliances may not have been used for years, and decluttering is the perfect time to remove them. The best items to remove when decluttering your kitchen are small appliances, tools and utensils, cookbooks, Tupperware and mismatched items, cookware, and water bottles.
We all tend to over-clutter a kitchen, and there will likely be a lot of mismatched, broken items that you may have forgotten you had. Make sure that you are throwing away any electrical appliances properly.
Bedrooms
We all know that bedrooms can become the most cluttered rooms in the house. Again, there is often a lot of storage in bedrooms, meaning we can often put clothes and shoes in wardrobes and never see them again. Cupboards and drawers become storage areas for things we do not use daily, and they frequently become inaccessible due to their capacity. When decluttering bedrooms, clothes, shoes, accessories, and hangers are things to be cleared.
It’s always wise to go through your clothes once a year, but be harsh with your clothes and accessories. Anything that no longer fits or is not your style should be donated or repurposed. Hangers are practical, but you may have too many of them. Donate spare hangers to charity shops or friends.
Bathrooms
Finally, it’s time to declutter your bathroom. Bathrooms often hold many medicinal and healthcare items with expiry dates. When decluttering your bathroom, try to remove any old or unused towels, expired creams and medicines, old cosmetics, and unused beauty products and tools.
Similarly to kitchens, bathrooms may have a lot of overhead and cupboard storage, meaning you will probably find a surplus of expired creams and tablets. These are not things you would want to take to a new home and removing items such as towels and bed linens will help save you storage space.
Closing The Doors
A cluttered house is never ideal before packing up and moving. Houses accumulate a considerable amount of unnecessary and unused items. When moving house, you should consider your priorities and the situation in your new home. Although it can be tempting to keep everything you own, the idea of a fresh start can be just as captivating.
Moving into a new home with your most essential items allows you to create the new home you want. As well as our comprehensive guide to decluttering, Vangaroo can provide you with the ultimate removal service to make your move stress-free.