What’s The Didn’t Know Rule of De-Cluttering?

The holidays are coming up fast. Maybe you’re hosting a holiday party or having guests spend the night? For a lot of people getting ready starts with purging. So it’s in the vain that I offer you a primer on the Didn’t Know Rule of De-cluttering.

What Is The Didn’t Know Rule of De-cluttering

According to an October, 2024 article in RealSimple.com, the Didn’t Know Rule is really basic. In their article, Meaghan Kessman, an L.A. based home organizer explains, “This simple yet powerful technique encourages you to let go of items you didn’t even remember owning,” says Meaghan. “The logic is simple: if you haven’t missed it, you probably don’t need it.”  There are some key areas that this rule really works for. Just consider…

Kitchen Gadgets and The Didn’t Know Rule of De-Cluttering

We have a most awesome kitchen store in the town of Wickford, RI. I LOVE going there. And I almost never leave empty handed because their items are so inspiring for someone like me, who loves to cook. But I have to admit I have, on occasion, purchased something spontaneously that I truly did not need. These are the things that the didn’t rule of de-cluttering helps you to purge. I went through my kitchen drawers and found an unused garlic peeling tube (I just smash the cloves with the side of my knife) and a once-used herb shaver (fingers work much better) among other things. These qualified under this de-cluttering rule because I truly forgot I owned them. They are now on sale at a consignment store you may be familiar with. LOL And I think this illustrates where I’m going with this rule in this category.

Clothes Are A Good One Too

I was looking in my closet for my jean shirt the other day. I did not find it, which makes me a little ticked, but I did find three other shirts that I had completely forgotten about. Don’t tell Bruce, but two of these shirts still had the tags on them. Yup. They were out of sight and out of mind. One I kept because I immediately thought of a way to wear it. The other two are in my donation bin. It makes sense to me. If I can’t keep track of these clothing pieces I probably don’t need them.

Craft & Office Supplies Can Be Purged with The Didn’t Know Rule

My kids will tell you that I sometimes need a “Pin-tervention.” I love all the crafts on Pinterest so much and will get into a crafting whirl at the slightest provocation. I buy all the stuff to stamp words on silverplated silverware, do it once, and forget about it. This means I have a lot of craft supplies that are just taking up space for “someday I might try this again.” We are not talking about my glue gun, which I could practically wear in a holster We are talking about 300 pages of scrap-booking paper and 30 sheets of stickers I have left over from a project. I don’t remember I own them, so when I come across them they go in the goodbye pile. You can apply this rule to your crafting materials and your office supplies too, because, realistically do you need 5 staplers?

Holiday Decor

This rule is great for folks who change their holiday decor themes every couple of years. You know you’re out there. When you change from all silver to all gold accents this year, it’s a perfect opportunity to get rid of those silver things you forgot about or would just-as-soon forget about.

Insider Tip: Consignment shops, like Consignments Ltd., are great places to sell a lot of these items that you didn’t know you even had. Make an appointment today! And for more on de-cluttering, check out my previous blogs: The 90/90 Rule For De-Cluttering , 5 Clutter Busting Tips and Best Reasons To Consign Your Stuff.

And Now For A Little Music Before We Go…

Have a lovely day, my friends. Marianne