Bonjour lecteurs! Don’t we all have a particular cupboard that we never want to open and sort out? You know the one: under the stairs, or tucked behind the boiler with stuff you don’t use anymore. But if you are moving, you will have to declutter your home before you get packing. Here is how to declutter your home before a big move.
Give It More Time
I hate doing it in one go. So instead, I spread the decluttering to make it feels easier. Plan short sessions, twenty minutes here and there, or do a room at the time, et voilà! It won’t be a daunting as doing it all in one go.
Plus if you rush it, you might miss some things. Take your time. go through things and see what you really want to keep, throw away and give to charity or resell on Vinted.
One Room, Start to Finish
Sorting by category rather than by room sounds efficient in theory. But let’s be honest, you will be left by piles of books in every room, clothes stacked on the landing, and nowhere in the house that actually feels finished.
Picking one room and don’t leave it until it’s properly done, boxed, bagged, or binned. Once it is done, it will feel so much brighter and calmer. Plus it’s so satisfying anyway! There is nothing worse than a pile of clothes hidden in the corner to remind you that you did not finish your spring clean.
Keep, Donate, Sell, Bin
Don’t even bother with the “maybe” pile. We both know it will never get sorted and you will have to start the process again in a few weeks.
Sticking to four categories, with no exceptions, keeps things moving. Keep, donate, sell, bin. If something hasn’t been touched in the last year and doesn’t hold real meaning, get rid of it. Be strict, otherwise, you will keep things to pile up that need to be sorted later on…
It’s the same with a spare room. I know what I am talking about; ours was a hot mess of everything for a year. But I cleared it up when my family came over this summer and it’s like having a new home! It’s clear and spacious and I am now redecorating it to turn it into an office / wardrobe space. I can’t want for it to be finished!
Kids’ Stuff Needs Its Own Honest Pass
Toys have a way of multiplying on their own. From baby clothes to artwork and past toys, the list adds on. But not your home space.
Kids’ belongings tend to quietly fill whatever space they’re given.
Letting a child choose a handful of favourites to keep, framed as a game rather than something being taken away, makes this much easier for everyone. The rest can go to a friend with a younger child or a local charity.
Even with all the creative storage solutions you can think of, you don’t want your living-room to turn into a toys shop!
Sort the Paperwork While There’s Still Patience For It
Old warranties for appliances that broke years ago, instructions for a toaster that’s long since been replaced, bank letters from an account closed ages back. None of it needs to travel to the new house, yet somehow it always ends up in a drawer or a folder somewhere.
Shred what’s no longer needed and scan les documents importants. Don’t let it pile up!
Take a Photo, Then Let It Go
For the things that are genuinely hard to part with, a school jumper from reception year, a theatre ticket… You can take a photo of it.
It sounds almost too simple written down, but this small step makes parting with sentimental things considerably easier. Knowing a memory is safe in a photo somewhere takes a surprising amount of pressure off the object itself.
Or if you really want to hold onto them, put them all in your ‘memory box’.
Then Think About the Actual Move
Once a house starts feeling lighter, the practical side of moving becomes far less stressful, and it’s worth sorting out the date. For homes in North London, Clockwork Removals and Storage cover house and flat moves across the area, along with a full packing service and storage if anything needs to sit somewhere in between properties.
Sort it out as soon as possible so that you can get started with your he decluttering.
Would It Actually Get Unpacked?
Once you are close to the moving date, you will often realise there are still things you don’t need. Would this book come out of the box in the new house and get an actual spot on a shelf or in a drawer? If the honest answer is no, it doesn’t need to make the journey. It’s an easy rule to bend for a few sentimental exceptions, but sticking to it properly makes unpacking on the other end a completely different experience.
A move is chaotic enough on its own. Getting the decluttering right beforehand makes all la différence the moment the front door of the new place opens, with far fewer boxes waiting on the other side than expected.
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