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If you feel like the clutter is slowly taking over, you are not alone. As someone who used to struggle with feeling incredibly stressed by the piles and clutter on all of the surfaces, I can honestly say decluttering has made things so much simpler for me. 

As a mum of two who has helped thousands of people declutter their homes, I’m sharing in this article some super-easy things you can declutter right away—small steps that feel very manageable but have a big impact on your home.

Let’s go through them, room by room.

Keep reading below or watch the video:

Kitchen

1. Expired food

This can be such an easy win. You can just quickly go through your kitchen cupboards, have a quick look at the dates, and throw out anything that’s not good anymore because you’re not going to eat that anyway. 

2. Fridge

While you’re in the kitchen, also look through your fridge. Any old or spoiled items, any unused condiments, anything like that can go from your fridge, so have a look in there.

I really like going through my fridge every single week before we get our food shop and just have a quick browse through. I throw away anything we don’t need anymore or that’s almost empty. Then I give it a quick wipe while I’m there. And it just feels so nice to have a fresh space in there.

3. Plastic bags

A few things that tend to accumulate a lot in the kitchen are plastic bags. And these can come from so many different sources. We get most of them when we do our food shop, as in the UK, a lot of the items are packaged in plastic bags. But we don’t keep them, we just recycle them.

4. Plastic carrier bags

I used to be someone who had a big plastic bag full of bags, and I would keep it just in case one day I would need a whole bunch of bags. Of course, having some plastic bags can be very useful, but we do not need to keep tens of them. Nowadays, I don’t keep bags of bags anymore, and I recycle most of our plastic bags at our local supermarket. 

And instead of many plastic bags, we mostly use our reusable carrier bags, which are so much better than just having a lot of plastic ones. However, I do keep a few plastic bags in a basket in a cupboard under the stairs, so we know where to get them if we need them.

5. Spare towels and cloths

Spare towels, kitchen towels, kitchen cloths—you can go through all of these and get rid of anything that’s no longer usable or is just too old. You want to keep things hygienic as well, so getting rid of these and maybe replacing them once in a while can be a good idea. 

I used to keep way too many towels, but I realised we don’t really need that many. Nowadays, we keep about two per person. We are four people in the house, and we have a few hand towels in the downstairs toilet for us and guests, and that’s about it. Our airing cupboard is much clearer now, and I don’t feel the need for any more.

Bathroom

6. Empties or half-used products

When I was doing our massive decluttering a few years back, I realised we had so many half-empty products we’d bought a long time ago but had stopped using—probably because we didn’t really enjoy them. Sometimes we bought new products to replace those, yet I still kept the old ones, which is why our bathroom cabinets were so full. If you have the same, remember that any empties or half-empty products you’re not really using can go.

7. Expired medicine

I tend to go through expired medicine once in a while. First, because we’re not going to use them anymore, and second, because expired medicine can actually be dangerous.

We keep all our medicine in a basket that’s up in a cupboard, out of kids’ reach. And once in a while, I like to go through it. And it surprised me how many expire so quickly. 

While I’m there, I’ll also check for medicine I used for my kids a few months ago, for example, but no longer need.

Just going through medicines and getting rid of expired or no longer used ones can clear up space. Plus, you are sure that what you have in there is actually good to use. 

8. Cleaning products

We often have so many cleaning products that we don’t really use. I know I did. I used to feel like having a clean home meant having tens of cleaning products. 

Nowadays, I have a surface spray that I use in the kitchen and on all the surfaces around my home. I then have a bathroom spray that I use on bathroom surfaces, mirrors, and windows. And that’s pretty much all I use; those are my two main sprays.

Having fewer cleaning products also means that when I go around our home to clean, it’s so much faster. I don’t need to carry a bucket full of products. I only take my spray and maybe a few cloths, and that’s it. I’m good to go around the home. 

So, get rid of any products you’re not really using. Maybe products you’ve tried in the past but haven’t worked great, yet you still kept them. Get rid of anything that you don’t truly need in there. 

9. Make-up

Anything that’s old, unused, or expired can go—makeup has quite short expiry dates, too. If you check the labels of products, they might say they’re good to use up to six months from opening, or maybe up to twelve months, depending on the item. For example, mascara has a much shorter lifespan. That’s why it’s so important to keep on top of it and make sure what you’re using is actually good for your face and skin.

Bedroom & Wardrobe

10. Socks without a pair

What’s the point of keeping a bunch of mismatched socks? You’re probably not going to wear them anyway—unless it’s kids’ socks and the kids don’t really mind. But for the most part, mismatched socks serve no purpose and can easily be decluttered. Some people like to use them for dusting, which is an option. Just make sure your underwear drawer is free of mismatched socks, as that makes getting dressed in the morning much easier.

11. Underwear

While you’re looking at your underwear drawer, have a look at all the bras and underwear and socks that maybe have holes in them, or they’re just not in good condition anymore. You can easily get rid of anything that’s really worn out or you no longer enjoy wearing. 

12. Shoes

Then, looking at shoes, I like to ask myself: Is this pair comfortable? Does it fit me properly? Do I wear it regularly? If the answer is no, that pair needs to go. If it’s still in good condition, I might try to sell it. But anything that’s too worn out or rarely used is something I can simply get rid of, because I don’t need it; it just clutters up my space.

So just go through your shoes and let go of any pair you don’t wear or that doesn’t fit.

13. Jackets and coats

Any jacket or coat that’s too worn out, doesn’t fit anymore, or you simply don’t enjoy wearing can go. Having a smaller capsule wardrobe of items you actually enjoy wearing will make getting dressed in the morning so much easier.

I find that when I open my wardrobe and it’s full of things I love to wear, it just makes me start my day on a much more positive note. Compare that to opening it and seeing a bunch of things I don’t really like—I put them on and feel frustrated. That’s just not a fun way to start the day.

14. Bedding

I used to have so much bedding for all the beds in our home. Then I realised we weren’t using all of them. It’s usually two bedding sets per bed that we use regularly. 

Now, for each bed in the house, we have one set that’s in use and a spare one in the wardrobes in each of the bedrooms. This means that when I put one in the wash, I have one to change. And I find that we don’t need more than this. Anything extra or more would just clutter up our space. 

If you have a linen cupboard stuffed with bedding, towels, and other things, like I used to, this is a great place to start. Declutter the towels, declutter the bedding—anything you don’t use. You’ll be surprised at how little you actually need and how much space you can create. 

Living Room

15. Old magazines

When it comes to your living room, any old magazines or newspapers—things you have in piles but aren’t really reading, or that are just too old—can easily be decluttered to create more space. 

16. Decor

I also like looking at my decor items. Anything that’s outdated, that I don’t really love anymore, or items we don’t actually use can go. Sometimes our style changes, or we move, and the decor items we have no longer fit the new space. Other times, we buy new things and don’t declutter the old ones. 

So it’s really helpful to look at your decor and ask yourself: do I enjoy looking at this, or is it just creating visual clutter and adding stress?

17. Freebies, gifts & souvenirs

I also think it’s good, once in a while, to go through freebies, gifts, souvenirs, and all the little things we sometimes receive at events. They can really add up and make drawers feel cluttered, making it harder to find the things we actually use. Getting rid of these can be really helpful, too.

If it’s something special or you want to keep it for the memory, maybe you can make a memory box for it and keep it stored somewhere safe. But if it’s something you don’t really care for, then it might be a good idea to just get rid of it. 

Storage & Miscellaneous

18. Old receipts

We don’t need to keep all the receipts and invoices for very long, unless they’re business expenses. For most of them, you can either digitise them, which is what I tend to do, or simply shred them, because you probably don’t need your Tesco receipts from last week. 

19. Broken toys

I also like to go through any broken toys, trinkets, or little items that tend to accumulate, especially in my kids’ toy baskets. I do this once in a while to get rid of any broken toys, like those little birthday party toys that often break quickly. 

Also, you might be surprised what you find in those toy baskets—I found Cheerios, napkins, and all sorts of random things. All good things to get rid of as well.

20. Art & craft supplies 

I also encourage you to go through your art and craft supplies. Sometimes pens and markers dry up, sometimes items are broken or no longer work. It’s really good to go through these supplies once in a while and get rid of anything that isn’t usable, isn’t needed, isn’t enjoyed, or hasn’t been touched in ages.. These are all great items to declutter.

I hope that once you’ve gone through this list and decluttered some of these items from your home, you’ll be feeling a bit lighter. Let me know where you are in your decluttering journey; I love hearing from you.