Moving house is never much fun – but there are some simple things you can do to make it easier and stress-free. An important first step is to declutter your home.
By giving away, throwing out or selling your unwanted belongings, you’ll have less to pack, less to move and less to unpack at the other end.
In fact, it’s the perfect chance to take stock of all the items in your home, and rid yourself of the things you don’t need. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Throw Away Anything That’s Broken
If you’ve been holding on to something for ages in the hope that you’ll repair it one day, either do it today, or bin it. The chances are, if you’ve not taken the time to fix it yet, it will probably stay broken at your new place and do nothing but take up space.
If You Have Multiple Items, Just Keep What You’ll Use
Over time as your belongings accumulate you can double up on certain things. So if you find you have too many wine glasses, oven trays, towels or anything else, when you’re sorting things out, donate the excess and only keep what you will actually use.
If You Haven’t Worn It in More Than a Year, It Has to Go
When it comes to decluttering your clothes, keep it simple – if you haven’t worn at all in the last year, let it go. You’ll probably find there are plenty of forgotten items that have been gathering dust. If you didn’t pull out that jacket last winter or those shorts last summer, it’s unlikely they’ll get a run again, so it’s time to send them to the op shop.
Donate or Sell Items You No Longer Use
You may have a juicer that you’ve only used once (and that was 5 years ago) or a chair that sits in the corner and never gets used (other than to pile up with clothes) - rather than take them with you, let them go. You may have outgrown them, or never really needed them in the first place, so now is the time to sell them or donate to charity.
Clean out Your Cupboards
Be ruthless when you are packing up your pantry – bin anything that is out of date or won’t survive the journey to your new home. Same goes for your bathroom – check dates and make the most of this chance to do a stocktake and clean out your old lotions and creams.
Sort out Your Paperwork Once and For All
Piles of papers can be a daunting prospect to tackle. But moving house is the perfect motivation to get your paperwork in order. Pick up a folder or two and spend some time organising your files. You’ll probably find that much of it is no longer relevant or needed, and the stuff you do keep is much more useful when you can actually find the things you need.
Start Decluttering Now
Decluttering will make your move much easier – but don’t leave it until the last minute. Start as soon as possible and tackle your house room by room or drawer by drawer.
Have three boxes set up alongside you – one for throwing out, another for donating and one for selling. That way you can easily move the clutter out of your house once it’s sorted.
After you declutter you’ll have less belongings to move – plus, you’ll end up with more room in your new house to spread out, relax, and enjoy being clutter-free.
Have you got any declutter tips that have worked for you? We’d love to hear them.
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