10 Simple No Fuss Ways To Tame Household Clutter

(Links in this post are affiliate links. I will be compensated when you make a purchase by clicking those links. See my disclosure page for more information)

Do you have problems keeping the clutter in your home under control? Me too! But the clutter in our home has shrunk a lot since  I started using these 10 ways to tame clutter. 

 

I don’t see myself ever being labeled a minimalist, but I have learned a few things that help curb my cluttered ways.

10 Simple No Fuss Ways To Tame Household Clutter

1. Contain it

I set myself space guidelines. For example, for paper items I like placing a basket like this one on a shelf and when it starts to overflow, I go through it all.

2. Give It A Place To Land

I love bowls and small baskets on tables for corralling like items. I have several throughout our home that hold everything from keys to loose change. I like using decorative ceramic bowls that I find at yard sales so that if they should break they are not expensive to replace, but wooden bowls would also work–plus they wouldn’t break and are easy to clean.

3. Practice The One In One Out Rule

This rule is particularly helpful in the closet area. Each time I bring home a new item of clothing, I get rid of one. Ever since I performed my closest overhaul several years ago, this rule has helped me keep my tamed closet in tip-top shape. An easy way to reinforce this rule is to never let yourself buy new hangers again. Splurging on really nice hangers is helpful if you decide to try this trick as you don’t want to add an odd hanger to your collection of beautiful matching ones.

4. Stop Bringing It Home

I had a tag on my keyring that read, “Lord, help me to be grateful for what I have, to remember that I don’t need most of what I want, and that joy is found in simplicity and generosity.” It is a quote from the book Enough by Adam Hamilton. I  looked at it for years whenever I was tempted to shop as a form of entertainment. Eventually it fell off, but by that time I was pretty much cured of my desire to shop for pleasure.

5. Deal With It Now

When the mail comes in, I try to dispose of the junk mail in the recycling or garbage right away instead of dumping it on the coffee table. I am not perfect at this, but I do try.

I am also trying to tidy up small piles of clutter the minute I see them with the thought of, “It takes a minute at this size and a whole lot more time if I let it grow.”

6.  Spend 15 Minutes A Day On Hot Spots

You can do this by yourself, but I find it works even better when you get the whole family to pitch in–especially if you have young kids. Set the timer for 15 minutes every day either before or after dinner and assign everyone a job or a room to tidy up.

For example, the youngest child could put the toy cars back in a basket, while older children put away shoes and coats and you get the dishes in the dishwasher.  This will reduce the visual clutter in your home significantly each evening, making it easier to relax and unwind for bedtime.

7. Have A Regular Time Slot To Sell It

When I can successfully clear clutter and fill my wallet at the same time, it is so rewarding. However, I do set limits on what the item I am selling must be worth for it to be worth my time to sell it.

This might not work for some people. Others may be better off just giving it all away. Here is a guide to help you decide whether to sell it or to toss it.

8. Celebrate Small Successes

I find taking a moment to admire my clean coffee table or my neat bookshelf helps me want to declutter more.

Of course, it is even more motivating when others share in your success, which is why you should join the Snail Pace Clutter Removers Facebook group. The women in there cheer each other on, motivating each other to keep tossing!

9.  Expose Your Problem To Others

Exposing my clutter ways to my readers for 52 weeks in a row kept me motivated to keep getting rid of it even after the challenge was over.

This is another reason I love the Snail Pace Clutter Removers Facebook Group. Only members can see the posts and pictures inside the group and they are dealing with clutter too.

10. Create A Challenge For Yourself

One thing I loved about my self-imposed 52-week decluttering challenge is that it gave me a clear decluttering goal to shoot for every week for a year.

There are other decluttering challenges out there. Here is a list of 8 that either I or someone in my decluttering group has done with success. 

Dig Further Into Ditching Clutter For Good With These Posts:

• How To Start Decluttering When You Feel Overwhelmed
• How To Stop Accumulating Stuff: End Clutter For Good
• How To Declutter Even When You Don’t Feel Like It

Feel like you would love to get rid of the stress your cluttered home is causing you, but you simply don’t know how you could squeeze time to declutter into your already cram-packed life?

I recommend taking Make Over Your Mornings and/or Make Over Your Evenings. These are 15 day, video-driven courses that come with a workbook for you to complete. Each day’s lesson consists of a five-minute video, five minutes of reading and a five-minute workbook activity.

The information I learned in the Make Over Your Evenings course gave me 30 minutes each and every morning without getting up earlier. The Makeover Your Mornings course is just as full of great time-saving advice that can help you carve out time to rid your house of clutter and finally make your home the haven you know it could be.