I tend to get overwhelmed by clutter. When my house is a mess (which is often, as I have 3 kids and a husband!) I feel more on edge. When my house is clean and organized, I tend to feel more at ease. The same goes for my finances. When my money was a hot mess, so was I!!
This is a nice, cozy looking, clean space (not a picture of my house)
I have watched Netflix’s Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and The Home Edit. I love The Home Edit because I love containers and the rainbow colors, and of course, the hosts of the show are a hoot! However, I am not even close to being that organized, and truthfully, I am not sure that is attainable anyway.
Using clear containers has a clean and organized feel to it
But I have decluttered my house a lot over the last couple of years by selling many of my household items. Purging feels good to me and I was able to put all the money I received from selling our unwanted items onto our debt.
I like going through items, keeping some, selling some, and donating the rest. I have a box of sentimental items for each of my boys, that has some of their baby clothes and memorabilia in it, but I don’t keep all of their arts and crafts from their childhood. If I did, I would have to rent a storage unit for each kid!
I am one of those weird people who like to pack things up and move. However, my husband and I built our house 12 years ago and we won’t be moving for a long time. We live on our family farm, so unless we sell the farm, we are staying put. I love our house, but I miss packing up, reorganizing, and going through all my household items. Decluttering helps me feel like I am working towards a more organized household.
Selling unwanted or unused items will help you pay off debt or bills quicker
I still have a way to go and items to get rid of, but I have a lot less “stuff” than I used to and more money in my pocket from selling the items.
There is something freeing about having a clean space. It’s like I have a clean slate to work with and it helps keep my mind calm.
I’ve been thinking it would be fun to create a capsule closet. That is basically having minimal clothing options, but your clothes pretty much all mix and match with each other. You also only buy items you LOVE. You might buy more expensive clothing, but you wear them more often. You may buy a shirt for $60 and wear it 100 times, instead of buying a $5 shirt and wearing it once or twice because you don’t really love it. In the long run, this would save me money.
For certain clothing items or even household items, I am a firm believer in buying quality products versus cheaper products. I tend to spend more money on shoes, socks, and winter gear. Well, quality shoes and socks for me and my husband and quality winter gear for the whole family. My boys rip through their shoes and clothes too quickly these days.
If you are feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or burnt out, try de-cluttering, and see how that makes you feel. You might be like me, and a clean, simple, organized space is just what you need.
I suggest you take it slow when starting to de-clutter. Go with one drawer or one room at a time. Make sure you don’t throw out or get rid of anything sentimental that you will regret. If you aren’t sure if you will miss something sentimental, keep it for now, and reassess in a month or two. Sometimes just clearing off and having clean kitchen counters is enough to put a smile on my face!
I also do not have a lot of pictures on my walls and wall décor. I am a photographer and I love having photographs hung up, but I keep it simple and minimal. Again, the cluttered space on my walls makes me feel overwhelmed.
This will also help you save money. If you aren’t buying and updating your furniture, house décor, picture frames, and kitchen gadgets all the time, you will be saving money! It is a win-win.
I also tend to be simple overall in life. I am not a super girlie girl; I put on a little bit of make-up and straighten my hair because it is a hot mess otherwise. Think frizzy, wavy, and sticking straight up and out, kind of like the 80s style. I don’t get my nails done and I only recently started dyeing my hair because my grays were starting to show. Even with my hair, I get an all-over color, not all kinds of highlights and lowlights. I’m not knocking on those who do these things, it just seems like so much time, effort, and money to keep up with maintaining it all.
Me with my usual outfit. I’ve worn this sweater at least 3 times a week all winter long. I also have on my smart wool socks that I love and still have some from 6 years ago that do not have holes in them!
When the kids have a project, I tend to keep it simple as well. Maybe this is because I am not a super creative and crafty mom, and I definitely am not artistic…like at all. I feel that this helps me keep my stress lower though. Because I am not trying to have the best hair, the best kid’s Valentine’s box, or the best/fanciest house. I love Pinterest, but when you try to make your whole life look like a Pinterest board-to me that must be stressful.
These are just some things that I have realized help keep my stress levels lower and since I have anxiety, anything I can do to keep my stress low is a benefit for my overall health.
So, if you are anything like me, keeping things simpler might be best. I want you to live a fulfilled life with minimal stress. Maybe having a clean, organized, and minimalistic environment is just what you need.
