This post is about reverse decluttering, and I will explain the term below but first …
Bit of a disclaimer:
My usual disclaimer for you here, as I will be talking about some nice things that I have bought…Books, I bought another book. Someone, please send help, I cannot stop!
If you would also like a copy of this book, there will be an affiliate link in this post to buy it from.
I only endorse items that I have read, bought or used myself and using these links will cost you no extra money – but may potentially make me a little, so thanks in advance.
Somewhat ironically, It is cheaper through the link than what I paid for it, so if you are interested, I am actually saving you a bit of money.
Have you been trying to declutter your home?
I certainly have – for what seems like the last 20 years or so. Where is all of this stuff coming from!
There are a number of posts and articles on this site about the epic saga that is my ‘declutter journey’. It’s probably quicker for me to send you off to the ‘Home I want’ landing page. Here you find not only my attempts but some suggestions and tips that may help you on your way.
Journey is the right word to use too. I have tried so many methods to get on top of the mess here at ‘the pad’. Sometimes I feel like just giving up, but one aspect of having a zen-like perfect near-empty home, that I am particularly looking forward to, is that I will be able to fully indulge in the ‘unbusy lifestyle’ to which I aspire.
Having recently finished another book by a Japanese writer called ‘A Monk’s Guide to a Clean House and Mind’, – because Zen Buddhist monks know about these things – I have been inspired to relaunch my mass declutter…again.
A Monks Guide to a Clean House and Mind
I picked this book up last week while killing an hour or two in town. (I really need to stop doing that!) It really struck quite a chord. Particularly as it was followed close behind by an email in my inbox from Zina at ‘Becoming Unbusy‘. This email contained a link to a PDF that listed 100 things that you could declutter from your house this weekend to get your simple life started.
Many of the items are things I have suggested in my article ‘5 things you can do today to clear the clutter’ – duplicates, books, broken items, and clothes. There were also somethings I hadn’t thought of such as out-of-date products (food and toiletries) and unwanted fridge magnets. The list did get me thinking though.
Why do we concentrate on getting rid of the things we don’t want when we declutter? What if we changed it up and tried the reverse of that? What about making a list of what I DO want to keep in my home?
A different approach
When I get stuck in the middle of writing blog posts, I wander off to Canva to create the headers and find pictures, as I feel that changing tact is often a good way to reinvigorate my creativity. It was there that I came across the picture below under the keyword ‘tidy’. I was reminded of a meditation technique I used to use with my Guide Unit; ‘clearing the shelf’.
We would all sit spaced out throughout the church hall. We had a lit candle in front of us, and my Japanese Zen Spotify list playing sedately in the background on my BlueTooth speaker.
Once we had established a rhythm to our breathing, we put our hands together as if in prayer, sliced through the air downwards and spread our hand’s out to the side, palms down, as if we were sweeping away all of the items on a desk.
The idea was we were clearing all of our thoughts off of our ‘mental shelf’ (I am sure there is a cunning pun on ‘mantal health/ mental shelf’ but I can’t quite work it out yet). It was emphasised that we weren’t trying to forget all of our worries, we were just ‘moving the things that stressed us for now, and they would be put back later.
The home I want
On my decluttering journey, I have been tempted, so many times, to sweep my counters and cupboards and just throw the lot of it; with one deft arm movement I would gather it all up and bin everything.
What if I tried that? Nothing as aggressively final as binning everything I owned, but what I used the ‘shelf clearing’ idea?
This thought came in conjunction with another idea I had been thinking about while sat at my over-cluttered desk. I was thinking about what my dream desk would actually need to have on it.
Some context
It has often been said that I have a very vivid imagination. Maybe that is why I have been self-sabotaging my interior design plans; it will never look as good as the picture in my head, so why even try.?
That is not the attitude to have when it comes to decluttering your life though, you have to start somewhere and any progress is better than none at all. It was then that I decided to ‘kit out’ my perfect dream home, using both things I would really like, and things I already own.
For example, I am currently sat at my desk in the far corner of the living room. In my dream house, I would be sat in the opposite corner, nearer the window, and my desk would not be 6 inches deep in notebooks, magazines and unused stationery. Which of the things on my desk would not be part of my dream life? And why am I tolerating them now?
We often go through our possessions deciding which we will discard, but if you had to choose, which of your items would make it onto your ‘Want it to be part of my perfect life’ list? Are there items you would certainly put back onto your ‘shelf’? What if we tried a bit of “reverse decluttering”?
Clearing your desk – or a drawer
One of the key ideas of minimalist decor is to consider your space and buy something that can go into it, not to buy something and then worry about where you can put it once you get home. Furniture and interior decor is there to work for you, not the other way around.
Reverse declutter an area of your home
- Grab a large box or one of those blue Ikea bags – it depends how much clutter you need to move and store.
- It doesn’t have to be as dramatic as a ‘sweep’ but empty the entire drawer, desk or hallway coat stand. Remove everything and put it in the box out of sight.
- While the area is empty, give it a clean. A quick wipe over should do it, unless it is particularly manky. In which case, make a reminder that you should clear this area more often if it gets that dirty.
- Look at the space. What do you want this space to be? Are they any items that need to be there? Which of the items that you have removed have to go back to that spot? Can you even remember all of the things you put in the box?
- Only return the items that have to be there, and be conscious about where they are being placed. If some of the items have to remain in the box, for now, then leave them there. If you have to go get items from somewhere else in your home to complete the look you are after, go do that.
Try and do a few small areas in your home in one day. One of the points made by Matsumoto in his book about cleaning is that you should always finish jobs. Not only receive a sense of accomplishment but to save yourself future work. Now you should have a place for these newly decluttered things. Be sure and return them to the same places once you are done with them.
Little steps towards a tidy home
Reverse decluttering may be useful in small areas, but I have yet to see if I can declutter a whole house using it. One way that I plan on keeping the clutter down is to continue to envision what I want the place to look like and keep on top of these few ‘clear shelf’ areas.
It has also been suggested that when decluttering, you never leave a room empty-handed. This must refer to the idea that there is always something that needs to go back to its proper place – or into the bin.
Another suggestion in the ‘Guide to a Clean House‘ was to own less by ensuring that the things you do have are of good quality. Less is often always more.
It is certainly an intention of mine to bring less into the house and to steadily reduce what is already here. How helpful this new method will be remains to be seen, but some progress is better than no progress.
And I REALLY want that Zen-like home!
Over to you
What tips do you have for clearing the clutter? Have you tried reducing what comes into your home? Did it work?
Let us know in the comments.