Minimalism and margin: Simple Room Decluttering in 7 Steps

(5 minute reading time)

Do you have space for what you want to do daily? Are you storing lots of stuff that you rarely use?

I’ll walk you through a minimalist journey to declutter and re-organize your daily living areas. Why? Because you’ll open up space for the here and now.

I’ve provided a free, printable step-by-step guide (below) to use with this article! Let’s take a deeper dive.

minimalism decluttering Mindset

Hey there! It’s easy to hold on to stuff. And . . . it’s much harder to let it go? Here’s why: you have to make a decision, which takes a lot more brain power!

Now, I can go on and on about decision-making and brainpower, but let’s focus more on what you’ll gain when you let go of things: SPACE. Out with the old, in with the present! Let’s live for TODAY! Sound good?

Grab this free printable guide that I made just for YOU! It’ll help guide you in a step-by-step process.

1. CHOOSE A ROOM TO START

Okay, imagine one room in your home that you want to focus on. It could be the room where you hang out most or where you have the biggest clutter problem every day.

Why you should focus on just one room? Choosing the room is essential because you can hone your thinking, visualize, and immediately act on what is possible for your new, more peaceful space. (It’s another brain thing!)

2. HOW MUCH STORAGE DO YOU HAVE?

Next, with your specific room in mind, think about what storage you have, if any. Do you have a cabinet, a closet, a drawer, shelves? With that in mind, look to see what you’re storing and ask yourself, “How often do I use these items?”

If the answer is rarely, then it’s time to let that go OR give it another home. The reason: This is prime real estate. This storage space should be set aside for daily things you do, need, or use.

If you only use those things occasionally, consider letting them go or storing them somewhere else where they won’t be in the way daily.

Reminder: The storage in your living spaces should only hold things you use daily.

3. WHAT INTENTION DO YOU HAVE FOR THE SPACE?

Next, your goal is to create space for the life that you’re living right now. What are your interests and hobbies right now?

What do you want to do in that space daily?

For example: Do you want to watch TV, play games, or read books? Or, do you want pure peace: no tv & no clutter, only music and books.

4. WHAT KIND OF VIBE DO YOU WANT?

Thinking about the Intention for the space is one thing, but also think about what vibe you want. Is it peaceful, beachy, romantic? You get the point.

Deciding on the vibe for your space can make you feel more connected to your home and what you want from it; how do you want it to feel?

Once you know this, releasing old things will be easier. Then, you can add back what you genuinely want.

5. REFRAMING EMPTY SPACE

Now, think about EMPTY SPACE. Does it make you feel comfortable or uncomfortable?

Space is a funny thing. If it’s too sparse, I’ll want to fill it up. If it’s too full, I’ll feel overwhelmed.

Understanding how empty space makes you feel is the first step in creating margin in your life: buffer space for what you want today.

6. Wall Space

Now, think about the walls in your space. Are they all full? Or is there one wall with nothing on it? Ask yourself how it makes you feel?

Does your wall full of photos make you happy? Or does it feel cluttered?

Consider leaving one wall in every room empty. Enjoy it.

7. Flat Surfaces Space

Next, think about the flat surfaces in your space. Are any of them empty?

My minimalist decor rule is 1-3 items per flat surface. That’s my comfort zone.

But, the truth is, the flat surfaces in my home get filled up throughout the day. We’re human. If someone sees a flat surface, they WILL automatically drop whatever they’re holding and put it down.

But, the key here is that when you pick up the house, your goal is to leave that surface with just 1-3 items, a baseline for decor.

REVIEW

Starting with one space and keeping in mind what your DAILY focus is for that room will help you to easily let go of items that aren’t meant for that space daily.

1. Start with one space or room.

2. Evaluate the storage.

3. Decide on the Intention & vibe for the room.

4. Embrace empty space, especially on walls and flat surfaces.

5. Keep what fits; remove everything else.

6. Either find another home or;

7. Let it go.

Example: Let’s talk about my living room for an example. I have two cabinets in my living room that can be used for storage. The problem was that one was filled up with my excess decor, and the other was stuffed with CDs, DVDs, and a whole bunch of other stuff.

So, that meant that I didn’t have space for things I wanted to do daily. Like, I needed a place to put my magazines or notebooks for the projects I was working on.

So, first, I dispersed the decor and donated anything I didn’t truly love. Next, I decided which movies and DVDs I wanted to keep. I moved those to a binder that took up much less space and gave over a hundred movies away.

I left the cabinets as empty as possible. I wanted to get used to having empty storage space to see what I’d need them for daily.

I enjoy having that empty space. The restructuring of my storage space has created more calmness.

LETTING GO AND GIVING

Letting go can do a little mind trip on you. You might be worried about the value of what you’re giving up. But, I want to introduce the idea of GIVING and GETTING: You’ll be GIVING away things that no longer serve you by finding a recipient who could benefit from it. And, you’ll be GETTING EMPTY SPACE; SPACE TO CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW.

So, don’t think about it, don’t make any decisions. Just do it. Do it for the YOU of TODAY.