In the coming days, and probably at this very minute, your feed will be full of articles about decluttering and organizing. It’s a topic that surfaces in ernest at this time of the year, as we struggle to find new homes for those holiday gifts. And as we strip our homes of holiday decor. There will be so many different ideas out there, some of which I’ve written about myself (see links below for those). However, a lot of the methods will involve, wait for it, buying more things! Or trashing things willy-nilly. Isn’t that we are trying to get away from when decluttering? Adding more totes or baskets and the like is just not helping. Nor does throwing out all the items you’re trying to declutter. Does anyone think about the impact on the earth when writing about all this decluttering? We can do better. Environmentally friendly decluttering is so easy to do. Instead of trashing what you have or adding more holders for thing, there are some great alternatives including:
1st Choice For Eco-Friendly Decluttering: Sell Your Clutter
I’ll bet you can guess why this option is my personal favorite? I make my living selling other people’s things at Consignments Ltd. It’s been 20 years of fun thus far. When you think consignment you may think of selling your large, furniture items, but have you considered selling some of those handbags that are cluttering your closet ? Or maybe those kitchen utensils you just never use? Most home consignment stores sell all manner of things for the home, so you can make an appointment, declutter and make money all at once. Perhaps you don’t live near a good consignment shop or you have things to get rid of that your shop doesn’t accept? Then consider selling your items at home by having a garage/tag/yard sale. (Tips on those are available below in my eBook).
2nd Choice For Eco-Friendly Decluttering: Donate Your Clutter
Thrifting is so popular these days, so why not you and your clutter? Donating to thrifts is a great form of environmentally friendly decluttering. There are resources for books, home goods, clothing, etc. There are donation centers and thrift shops in almost every town. Pick a concern that you think is worthy of your cast-offs, learn their hours and rules and have at it. These organizations, like The Habitat For Humanity ReStore in our area, fund so many efforts with the sale of donated items. You are decluttering and doing good all at once. Yipee!
Photo by Max Vakhtbovych on Pexels
3rd Choice For Eco-Friendly Decluttering: Re-Use or Up-Cycle Your Clutter
If you can’t sell it and you can’t donate it, what does that leave you? Well, re-using, in a new way is also a good choice. Maybe you can’t stand that bookcase in the den another minute? Perhaps it would make a good shoe caddy in the mud room? Maybe it’s your old tee-shirts from your punk rock days? A fun, funky quilt might be in order? This one requires creativity, but I know you’ve got it in excess.
For more on decluttering in general, check out some of my previous blogs like: A New Year Revisit to The KonMari Method and Thought on The Move-Out Method of Decluttering. Happy organizing!
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