This time of year always makes me want to declutter the house. But finding the time to start and to work through the house room by room can be hard. Which is why this year I have devised a 15 minute a day declutter plan.
The plan goes through each room and breaks down what needs to be decluttered. For example, instead of looking at the kitchen as a whole I’m going to concentrate on one thing per day i.e. utensils one day & food cupboard the next. The plan will take about 40 days to complete. I know that sounds a long time but having it in bite sized chunks will make it so much more manageable.
Decluttering on your own can be hardwork and sometimes being accountable to someone else can really help the motivation. So if you would like to join me, and reclaim your house too, subscribe to my mailing list to receive a downloadable copy of the plan.
When you subscribe you will be sent a hello from me with a link to download the plan. You will then also receive weekly updates from my blog which will include any latest posts published, as well as few little extras here and there! I will be doing a post a week on how my decluttering is going as well as sharing any tips and tricks for organising what’s left.
I will be starting my decluttering on Saturday 7th January as I need to gather a few things together first. If you want to join me then you will need:
- Lots of black Bin bags
- A box for things to go to the charity shop
- A box to put in things that belong in other rooms
And the rules I’ll be following are:
- Set a timer for 15 minutes
- Declutter as much as you can within those 15 minutes
- If you have more time carry on with the daily task or move onto another
- If you can’t do the daily task because life gets in the way then don’t worry, do it when you can. This isn’t a regimented plan.
I will be posting the daily task on my Organised Jo Facebook page and Twitter. If you join in I would love to hear about it. I will also be using #declutterin15 on social media so if you do post anything please use this hashtag. It would be great to see how you are doing.
Don’t worry if you can’t start this weekend, the joy of this plan is that you can start it anytime and repeat it throughout the year. I know I probably won’t be able to complete all the tasks on some days. But when I’ve finished then I’ll repeat some of the tasks.
Don’t forget, if you want to join in and download a full copy of the plan subscribe to my mailing list:
Good luck and let’s get organised!
Jo
X
This sounds great Jo I’m doing a similar thing and is one of my goals for 2017. My house need’s a major de-clutter xx
Thanks Caroline. I’m actually secretly excited about cracking in with a decljtter. These things make me happy, sad I know! X
What a great idea. I did something similar in the run-up to Christmas last year – went through the house and made a list of all the areas to declutter and then tackled one a day. It worked really well but another decluttering session is long overdue. I may well be joining you with your declutter plan! #bloggerclubuk
this feels like a huge guilt trip to me, so much of my home needs a good de-clutter. Happy New Year #BloggerClubUK
Subscribing! My house is an absolute tip, the mess is getting me down and there’s so much stuff that needs sorting. I’m hoping your declarer plan will help!xx #bloggerclubuk
This is a great plan, one which I really need to follow. Thanks for sharing. I only have little windows of time in the days for cleaning and organising so I feel it all gets on top of me. This is really great. Sarah #SharingTheBlogLove
Thanks for your lovely comments Sarah. With juggling general life I always feel like the house takes a back seat, but I hope this plan can change that. If you join in I hope it works for you. X
Love this post and it’s one I definitely need to follow! I am craving a simple more minimalistic life but feel constantly surrounded by ‘stuff and clutter’. It doesn’t help that we have a teeny tiny flat! #BloggerClubUK
Hi Alex, thanks for your comment. I know totally what you mean, I hope this plan really helps clear all that stuff and clutter. If you give the plan a go good luck! X
My resolution for this year is to declutter, we have so much junk & stuff and don’t have a house big enough for it. I don’t like people coming into the house as I’m ashamed of it all and being a bit of a hoarder doesn’t help either. I’ve subscribed and I’ve bookmarked your other post on organising toys as following the post christmas ‘tidy up’ I’m finding toys are slowly being distributed throughout the house (lego duplo in particular). Thanks for #sharingthebloglove
Thanks for your comment Gemma and glad you found my posts useful. I am going to be posting a post every week that focuses on each room in the plan too. SO hopefully you may find other ideas to help throughout your house. Good luck with the declutter. X
This is perfect timing for me! I’m going back to work in April AND we are hoping to move house. I’m on a de-clutter mission but feel overwhelmed by the time it will take especially with two little ones. I’m so going to do this. Bite size 15 minute jobs are the way forward! I’ve signed up! #Sharingthebloglove
Thank you for the comment. Wow, you do have a lot on. Good luck with both the return to work & the move. X
Sounds like an achievable decluttering plan, Jo, even one that I might be able to accomplish! Thanks for the tips #BloggerClubUK
What a great plan to break it down into such small chunks. We have such limited storage in our house that thankfully I don’t think we need to do too much decluttering. The one area that really does need looking at though is my wardrobe – I hang onto far many clothes that don’t fit because they have happy memories for me! I’ve got to the point where I desperately need the space though, so a clear out is definitely called for. THanks for joining us at #SharingtheBlogLove
I love a good declutter! I did one last month & got rid of BAGS of stuff! Some to charity, some I sold & some was for the dump. Best of luck with yours – sounds like you are organized & ready to rock! Thanks so much for joining us at #BloggerClubUK
Thank you for your comment Becky. Decluttering just feels so good, like a weight being lifted, literally out of the house. X
I love this idea! I sometimes get a bit overwhelmed with everything that needs doing that I don’t know where to start. And as a result I don’t really start!!! Breaking it down to manageable chunks is a great way to do it. I would not loose interest in 15 mins which is what normally happens. Thank you for joining us at #SharingtheBlogLove x
Just catching up on comments, and come across your lovely one. Thank you, and if you give it a go I would love to hear about it. X
This is such a good idea. I need to declutter my kitchen! So I will definitely be catching up with these tasks.
#SharingTheBlogLove
Thank you for your comment Cathryn. If you are still looking for ideas for your kitchen then check out tomorrow’s post, it’s got lots in it! X
I love the idea of using a timer, its a definite motivator for a lazy cleaner like me! #sharingthebloglove
I love this and have been doing something similar myself for over a year now. It has really helped to reduce problem areas around the house. So much so that after a big toy throw out between Christmas and new year (to accommodate all the new stuff) I felt more in control than I ever have. It is amazing how small steps soon add up to big changes. Something we working mummies need to stay sane in this crazy world #sharingthebloglove
You are so right. Taking on a room in one go is so daunting, but breaking it up into smaller manageable chunks make things so much easier. Congrats on your mass declutter, it really feels so good! X
This is a really great idea. The thought of doing a big declutter is always daunting but breaking it down into small chunks is much more manageable, and much more likely to actually get done x
#SharingtheBlogLove
This is so helpful and motivational! I might actually do similar. #sharingthebloglove
Aww thank you Sinead, really glad to hear you found this helpful. X
I’m a big fan of Decluttering. I’ve been doing it for the past couple of years. I love when I have a lot of energy to do a massive Decluttering, but small projects are definitely effective as well!
I love the idea of attacking the job in 15 minute blocks. Makes it seem much more manageable.
I always feel so much lighter when I’ve cut the clutter too.
Great post
#familyfun
I love this idea. I’ve just moved house and had to have the biggest declutter ever seen to man – but I’m going to use your ideas to keep things in check in the future! #sharingthebloglove
Glad to hear you liked the post and hope the house move went well. X
I feel I’m forever decluttering. I’ve been signed up to a similar scheme for a while now. #SharingtheBlogLove
What a great post – after having our second baby in August, we’ve obviously accumulated more stuff and I think being on maternity leave and in the house all the time, I just see clutter everywhere! So I’ve also started decluttering the whole house room by room – it’s crazy how much stuff we amass that we don’t actually need! #TheListLinky
I know what you mean about seeing clutter everywhere, and how much you seem to keep write really quickly. Good luck with your de clutter. X
Great idea. I went mad and cleaned out loads of stuff between Christmas and new year. I just need to keep on top of it now! #sharingthebloglove
That’s when I normally do most of my decluttering to. As well is that before the birthdays because my two girls have theirs a month apart. Thanks for commenting. X
I’ve started having a massive clear out and am doing it drawer by drawer, shelf etc so that it makes it a bit easier. We’ve also made a new rule that if we don’t use it/need it we’ll get rid of it. We have so must stuff that we’ve accumulated over the years
How very timely! I’m in the midst of a new series that I’ve titled “Let’s Get Organized,” and this is RIGHT up my alley! 15 minutes is a completely manageable time frame that anyone can do and it makes the little tasks (which collectively, add up to major league improvement) a lot less frightening. Thank you! (If you get a moment, I’d love for you to stop by http://www.carolinatwinmom.com/blog/ to offer your thoughts!
#SharingtheBlogLove
I love having a good ol’ clear out! Fab tips. Thanks for linking up to the #TheListLinky x
It’s a good idea to do little chunks! It can be overwhelming and tiring to do decluttering so this ensures you at least do a bit and get going. I’ve got to try this too. #thelist