If clutter is overwhelming you, use this room by room guide of things to throw away to get a jump start
I have been working really hard on decluttering my house recently. Having too much stuff makes keeping your space clean and organized very difficult. Plus, it makes everything seem overwhelming.
It can feel like a huge undertaking to get your home decluttered once and for all which is why I like to start with this list. All you need to do, is go through and toss the things on this list. Of course, making sure to donate or recycle the things you can.
We’ve been using The Declutter Workbook as well, to help us get everything back in order.
50 Things To Throw Away for Instant Decluttering
Once you start going through all your old things you may start second guessing yourself and want to keep a lot of it. Don’t! Let it go especially if it is something you haven’t used in the last year or so.
If you start feeling overwhelmed than maybe try to throw something away everyday. Even if it is just something like a couple papers or a magazine. The little things eventually add up to big things and soon you’ll notice your house clutter free!
Living Room
The living room should be a place of comfort, a place to relax, and is usually the first place company sees. It can be embarrassing sometimes when your living room is super cluttered and once you notice the clutter then it is time to throw things out.
Some of the things that you can throw out are:
- Old magazines
- Old couch pillows
- Movies you don’t watch
- Movies that are scratched/don’t work
- Burnt out candles
- Extra cords
- Games with missing pieces
- Old books
Bathroom
The bathroom is another one of those places where things tend to pile up. It is time to go through cabinets, shelves, and counter to throw away all the old things that aren’t being used.
You’d be surprised at how much trash, not just useless stuff, but trash piles up in the bathroom without us noticing. Some of the things to throw out are:
- Broken makeup
- Old makeup
- Old nail polish
- Old perfume
- Old toothbrushes
- Half empty bottles
- Towels with holes
- Anything you haven’t used in the last 3 months
Bedrooms
I can’t throw anything away. I’m one of those people who think I’ll wear those jeans from 10 years ago again or find the missing sock or mend the shorts with a hole in them.
It is time to throw everything away! Well, not everything, but some of the things to throw away are:
- Socks without a match
- Socks with holes
- Underwear with holes
- Clothes you haven’t worn in at least 6 months
- Clothes that don’t fit
- Earrings without a match
- Old ties
- Old belts
- Old purses
- Old hats and gloves
- Worn out shoes
- Worn out blankets
- Old pillows
Kitchen
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t have a cluttered kitchen. If you do please tell me your secret to keep it that way!
But there are plenty of things to throw away in the kitchen may it be food, cleaning stuff, or a very full junk drawer. Some of the things we suggest throwing away are:
- Expired food
- Take out menus
- Restaurant sauce packets
- Old coupons
- Old cleaning supplies
- Cups with missing pieces
- Anything you have too many of
- Excess tupperware
- Rags with holes
- Expired medication
- Old mail
- Old manuals
- Old receipts
- Old paperwork
- Birthday cards
Kid Stuff
This is another one where clutter gets crazy. Kid stuff tends to pile up. This list is a great start, but I’d also suggest throwing away old art supplies, coloring books, and art projects. We can’t keep everything even though we’d love to.
Other stuff to throw away are:
- Broken toys
- Happy meal toys
- Anything with missing pieces
- Things they never play with
- Duplicates
- Puzzles with missing pieces
Make sure to go grab The Declutter Workbook, it’s so helpful to get through your whole house. It’s 11 pages of tips and worksheets you can instantly download and it’s only $4.
More Organization Tips
Now that you have your how decluttered let us help you organize other parts of your life.
Once you throw out all the old toys, you can use these nursery organization hacks to keep everything orderly.
Don’t forget about your car! Your house isn’t these only thing that needs to be decluttered and organized. Let us teach you how to keep your car organized.
Even the little things organized like your purse and diaper bag and we’ve got you covered with these bag organizer ideas.
I agree that tossing things in the trash is a good place to start but what about donating the condiment packets to a homeless shelter or repurposing some of the items so they don’t end up in the ocean or landfill? Thank goodness my grandmother didn’t throw away the “old mail” her son sent her from Europe during WWII. To us, finding those letters was a priceless treasure. I’m not saying we shouldn’t get rid of things but some things such as letters from history can’t be replaced. Have you ever thrown something away and regretted it later?
Promoting “throwing away” all these things is very harmful to the environment. Please consider teaching people to reuse old things they have (ex: turning old clothes into cleaning rags, using up those half empty bottles before buying new, donating things they no longer use but are still usable, etc.) I understand wanting to organize and declutter a home, but how about doing it in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way?
While I agree with some of the things on the list, some of it just seems downright wasteful to me! Think about how a kid in a family with no money for toys might love a Happy Meal toy, and imagine a life where you throw everything out when it’s half done instead of actually finishing it. That’s not all, and that’s already a lot of unnecessary waste!
When I saw the graphic on Pinterest, I immediately thought, “some good points but so wasteful”! Then I read the actual article. As you said, “making sure to donate or recycle the things you can” makes this much so much more palatable and responsible. I would definitely adjust the 6 months for clothes and the 3 months for items you haven’t used to at least 9 mo or even 1 yr because of the seasonal nature of some items. Obviously, people have to use their own judgment based on their own situations and values. But overall I think this is a helpful tool! Thanks!
Hi Liz!
Dog owner here.
May I recommend old dog supplies such as leashes and collars that are worn! Tags that are expired or can’t be read, etc
Maybe you could change the words “throw away” to “get rid of” so it doesn’t sound like you’re advocating throwing perfectly good usable things in the garbage.
That is a REALLY good point! You are completely right, it is rare that we are throwing away vs. donating, etc.