It’s that time of year where we’re all getting ready for a good spring clean. Decluttering is quite like spring cleaning for your mind, too, even though it’s great for your house. It frees up your space, gives you room to breathe, and it makes your home look as fresh as a daisy as you welcome in the new season.
The problem with decluttering is that once you get started it can become overwhelming very quickly. You also want to be able to clear out all the clutter and keep your home sustainable. The last thing you want to do is toss everything into the landfill and add to the problem that’s already happening on our planet.
Decluttering is a great idea as it gives you a chance to see what you have and that you didn’t remember you had so that you can reuse it. You can then reduce the amount of clutter in your home, reuse anything that can be repurposed and then recycle the rest.
We’ve put together a list of the best ways that you can declutter your life sustainably while keeping things eco friendly.
Start by going through your electronics
If there’s one thing that most of us have in abundance, it’s a drawer full of electronics that are either out of date or old. If you have a drawer full of ancient mobile phones that you’ve kept because you’ve been upgrading your current one, you have old laptops, old computer towers or even out of use games consoles, it’s time to recycle them properly. You don’t have to toss them in the bin when you can look for e-waste recycling programs in your area.
These programs ensure that your electronics are disassembled and recycled piece by piece rather than leaching toxic chemicals into the environment. After you recycle all of your old gadgets, you could trade them in for money and have them recycled properly and then use the money to upgrade. You can buy refurbished or second-hand tech if you want to be truly sustainable. They’re as good as new and they often come at a fraction of the price.
Get involved in a clothes swap
If you’re decluttering your closet next, then it’s time to look at the clothes that you’ve forgotten and sort them from the ones that you want to keep versus the ones that you really don’t want to keep in your wardrobe anymore. Old clothes can take up hanger space and unless you have some kind of emotional attachment to the item, it’s time to get rid. Go through all of your clothing and anything that doesn’t fit can be moved from your wardrobe to a clothing swap.
You could host this with your friends and extended family, or you can donate the items to a local charity if you haven’t got enough people around you want to exchange clothes. You could even check out online platforms where you can list your clothing and sell them on. Not only will they get to live a second life elsewhere, but you’ll have enough money to be able to buy a whole new wardrobe. You won’t be contributing to fast fashion, and by doing a clothing swap you can refresh your pieces without even having to go shopping at all. That sounds like a money spinner to us!
Reuse everything you can
Empty jars can work really well as flower pots or paint pots. Old furniture could be repurposed for a new use. Take a minute to consider how you could repurpose anything because those empty glass jars can become something helpful and old wooden chairs can be turned into quirky side tables with a little bit of sanding and a little bit of love.
You can really embrace the magic that comes with upcycling, and that way you won’t have to get rid of the furniture, but you can change its direction so that it’s not just sitting and gathering dust. If you need new furniture, consider the furniture that you’re decluttering and how you can reuse it before you go out spending any more money.
Choose donation over discarding
If there are things that you really don’t want to re-purpose and you can’t reuse sustainably in your own house, then it’s time to look at how you can donate them. Donating items can make a big difference to somebody else. Clothing, toys, books and even kitchenware, can all find a second life with somebody in need. If you’re on social media go into your local giveaway pages on Facebook and see whether people are asking for the items that you have.
You could even put photos up listing the condition of the items and offering them out for free if people can come and collect them. If you’re not on social media, local thrift stores and shelters would be open to your donations. When you donate, you’re not only reducing waste, but you’re also supporting your community in a more sustainable way.
Make a little cash
When you declutter, you don’t have to give away your things for free. If you have valuable items out there that are still in great condition, sell them. You’d be really surprised at what people are willing to pay for especially when there are things you no longer want or need.
Online marketplaces like eBay, Facebook, or Depop are great places to list. The best part is that when you sell what you don’t need, you can earn a little bit of income so that you can replace anything you’ve had to throw away or give away.
Declutter your paperwork
You don’t have to hoard paper documents or magazines, not in the world that we’re living in today. Important papers can be scanned in and saved digitally in the cloud or in folders or USB sticks to reduce clutter.
You should consider going as paperless as you possibly can, especially with billing statements, receipts, or subscriptions. With a little organisation, you’ll be able to save paper, save the trees, and free up a lot more space in your house. Do you really need to have files of paperwork cluttered around everywhere? Absolutely not.
Think twice about your furniture replacement
If you’re replacing furniture as part of the decluttering process of your home, think twice about what you’re replacing it with. Don’t choose cheap, mass-produced furniture that’s going to fall apart after a couple of years.
Go for sustainable, more durable pieces. There are second-hand options or brands that will choose to use recycled or sustainably sourced materials. When you buy from these places, you’re keeping the theme of decluttering sustainably in your home. Buying good quality, long lasting furniture helps to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfill.
Go sustainable with your storage
If you need a new storage solution so that your newly decluttered items can stay organized, up to something sustainable.
Don’t buy plastic bins that could take hundreds of years to break down, not when you can buy bamboo, recycled materials, or natural fibres. These are better and more eco friendly, durable, and more stylish than plastic counterparts.
Host a free cycle party
If you’ve got stuff that you don’t want but you also don’t think it’s good enough for donation, host a freecycle event. Just because they’re not good enough for donation or for you doesn’t mean they won’t be good enough for someone else. You can do this with friends and family, or you can set up a local community event.
It’s a good excuse for a get together and it’s a great way to declutter responsibly. All of those things that you no longer want, and you don’t have any space for can find a new home and you won’t have to worry about dumping it in landfill.
Start decluttering your shopping process
It’s a lovely idea to declutter your home and get rid of all of your excess but what do you do next? Shop! Sustainable decluttering will start before you even bring things into your house. You have to be mindful in your shopping purchases by only buying things that you truly need or truly love.
Before you buy anything, ask yourself whether it’s going to add any value into your life. Impulse buys are often cheap buys, and you don’t want to add to the clutter down the road. You’ll save a lot of money by only buying what you truly need, too.
Keep landfill to a minimum
As you go through decluttering your whole house, keep the landfill at a minimum where you can. Landfills contribute massively to environmental damage, and you want to aim to reduce waste in any way you can be sure to dispose of any non-recyclable items properly and try to find creative ways to reuse or repurpose.
The goal here is to keep as many items out of the trash as you can.
Now that you know how to declutter while being kind to the planet, you should get excited about your upcoming spring clean. Decluttering doesn’t have to mean that you are wasteful, not when you can transform your space without hurting the environment or anyone else around. Remember, less is more when you do it sustainably, and you should remember that.
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