It doesn’t take long for everyday things in our home to take over. Clutter can take over if we allow it to. If you start with common everyday items, it will instantly make you feel better about your space and ready to take on more decluttering projects! So today I am sharing 10 everyday things to declutter from your home!
It’s not a secret that I am not a Knick knack kind of person. Besides making a space look messy you will also have to clean and dust each one of those objects! Lol, no thank you! Less is better in my opinion. But I did find when we moved that we often lose sight of a lot of common everyday things in our home that end up cluttering our space. Most of the time we don’t even realize it. Going through and decluttering will make your spaces look and feel so much better! It can sometimes be addicting!
I did a blog post a while back that might help you with organizing; My Top 5 Home Organizing Tips. You can read that here.
This site uses affiliate links, which means a commission is earned if you make a purchase via the link. All content and images on this site are protected and may not be reused without written permission from the author.
1. Medications
This includes everything from prescriptions to vitamins. Pull out, go through them all, and look at the dates on the bottles. Get rid of any expired medications or vitamins. If needed go out and buy new ones to replace them.
Does it matter if medications are expired? Yes, it can. Expired medications can be less effective and can have a change in their chemical composition. Some medications can even be at risk for growing bacteria in them and have the total opposite effect you are expecting. Always check with your doctor if you have any questions about a medication that you think might still be good.
Also, check out that first-aid kit. They also go bad; did you know band-aids can lose adhesiveness? Also, antibacterial ointments expire so check those out also.
2. Make-up
I am guilty of it; I can admit it! Hanging onto eye shadow for a long time! Thinking I will use it again. But makeup does expire. Most makeup has an expiration date on the package. But in general, most makeup is “good” anywhere from 1-2 years. Even less if it has been used.
Once you use makeup it can start to harbor bacteria. Especially eye makeup like eyeliner and mascara. Most of those you don’t want to keep longer than 3 months. And if you ever find yourself having a case of pink eye, throw it all out.
So, if you have a stash under your bathroom sink of old makeup that you think you might use again you might want to rethink that. Go through it. If it’s been used it’s probably a good idea to toss it. And if it hasn’t been opened look at the date on the packaging to decide. If you have no idea when you bought it, I think you know what to do!
3. Pantry
This is something that should be on our to-do list quarterly or at least twice a year! I was really surprised when we moved in the spring, and I went through my pantry. I thought I kept up on my expired food well. Apparently not! Lol!
A few things to go through that sometimes we don’t think about, spices and dry goods. I have a lot of spices that I don’t use regularly that maybe I bought for a specific recipe. Spices do go bad so you might want to check your spice rack. It can be difficult if you are someone who transfers them to a different container than the one, they come in. You might want to think of a way to keep that in check.
I also learned something new over the past year about dry goods/baking supplies. Things like flour do expire and go bad! Flour goes bad in about 8 months – 1 year and if it’s gluten-free even sooner! Using flour past its best-by date can cause issues like food poisoning. Typically, the flour will have an off odor and discoloration to it. Always store it in an airtight container to help prevent it from going bad. You can also freeze flour!
4. Pens, Pencils, and Highlighters
Are you a pen hoarder too? I used to work in a medical office at a time when pharmaceutical reps were allowed to hand them out like candy. I still have so many pens I can’t count them, let’s not even talk about the notepads. Lol! Recently I started to go through them and realized half of them didn’t even work. Pen, markers, and highlighters dry out.
So, try to gather all your stashes of pens, pencils, and markers and see what works and what doesn’t, and scale down! These things have a way of cluttering up a space, especially a “junk drawer”!
5. Water Bottles, Insulated Cups
Do your water bottles seem to multiply? Or those insulated cups? Do you open your cabinet, and several come falling out? It’s time to go through them and get rid of them!
Do you have leaking bottles or cups? Have some of them lost their seals? Missing lids? How about bottles with a company’s name that you have no idea where you got them from? Do you need to hang onto that one? No, you don’t! I bought the best thing to help me keep my bottles and mugs organized and I think you might find it helpful also. Mdesign makes it. I have it linked below. They fit great in your cabinet and help to keep them organized and everything looking nice!
6. Business Cards
We are in a digital age, but we still have business cards! I still have them and give them out! Lol! I have a few ideas for you on how to get them under control!
First, go through them all. Throw out the ones that you have no idea who they are or are so old that you will never contact them. Remember the first step of organizing is letting go! Next, I am going to share a few options on where to store them, so you know where they are in case you need them!
- There are apps for your phone that you can download that will scan the business card and organize the information for you. Then you can throw away the card! That’s right there is an app for everything! There are two that I know of; Business Card Reader and CamCard.
- Use a binder to organize them. They have inserts that you can buy that are clear and you can put each business card in and be able to view them without digging through them all!
- Get a business card file box. You can then put them in alphabetical order and have them at your fingertips!
7. Décor
If you are like me, you are always looking for new home décor items! But where do all the old ones go? I have a habit of sticking them in my spare bedroom closet just in case I need them. Do I ever end up needing them? Usually not!
I recommend you go through your old home décor items and either have a yard sale or set up a Poshmark account and make some extra money that way. If you have never used Poshmark it’s a great way to sell new or gently used items. It’s easy and you can use my code to receive $10 for setting up an account! Code: Hello_South
8. Jewelry
Do you have a bunch of broken chains and earrings that have lost their partner? Kind of like the socks in the dryer? Lol! Chances are you will never find the missing earring and you will never fix that broken chain. Right now, they are just taking up space. If they are costume jewelry, I would just get rid of it but if a precious stone or metal is involved you have options!
- There are still stores around that you can take your jewelry to, and they will buy it from you by the ounce. You would be surprised how much money you get out of that broken jewelry!
- Another choice would be to have it made into something else if it is sentimental to you. I you have an earring that is missing its mate and it has special meaning to you try taking it to a jeweler and have it made into a necklace or maybe they can even replicate a matching earring so you can wear it again.
9. Kitchen Utensils
How many spatulas does a person need? I can tell you that it’s not 10! Lol. This is something that can easily get out of hand quickly! Our kitchen utensil drawer needs to be looked at and decluttered occasionally.
10. Electronics
My husband has a problem with this, lol! We have an armoire in our spare bedroom that I have made our “electronics home” just so I can try to keep it wrangled a little bit. Honestly, do we ever fix broken electronics or even for that matter use parts from them? I would say it very rarely if ever! If you can get rid of it! A lot of areas have recycling centers that will take your old electronics. And believe it or not, there are people out there that will buy your old and even broken electronics for cash. You can list them on eBay or your local Facebook Marketplace.
Most of these everyday items don’t seem like much but they can clutter up space fast! You will be surprised how much better your space will look if you get rid of some of these things. It can be kind of freeing to not have clutter in every cabinet, drawer, or space that you go into.
What is the worse space in your home that tends to get cluttered easily? Share in the comments below!
Leave a Reply