March Declutter Challenge

March Declutter Challenge

On March 1^st I launched The Home Reset’s March Declutter Challenge. We are removing excess items from our homes every day for the month of March.

The number of items corelates to the date, so on March 1^st we removed one item, March 2^nd two items and so on until March 31^st. In total by the end of the challenge, we will have removed 496 items from our home.

As a professional organiser people assume that my home is perfectly organised and that we don’t have an excess number of things but that is not the case! I was actually surprised at how easy it was to find items that we no longer needed, wanted, loved and had room for. We have removed water bottles, teddies, clothes, alcohol no space was exempt from the challenge.

Everyone in the house got involved and actually enjoyed the process. My son is 11 and things he was collecting in his room from Prime bottles to Harry Potter pencil toppers were just things he no longer needed or wanted and so we recycled and passed these items on. He was delighted with the results. My daughter too enjoyed the process of decluttering her wardrobe. Clothes that no longer fit made space for items my friend has passed to us that no longer fit her daughter and again its like a whole new wardrobe for her.

The kids enjoyed trying to get to the number we needed each day and I felt as if we were looking at the spaces for the first time even though we would regularly declutter and usually follow the one in one out rule. But this challenge meant we really had to think about whether the things taking up room in our home were needed, loved, used.

The exit strategy is so important to remember also. To know where items can go whether it is to charity, to friends, online to sell, to recycle to shelters. Planning for this piece of the challenge is so important.

I have loved the feedback, the pictures, and the messages through my social media channels showing how people are getting on. Some people only did 1 day but even that is great, it is a start which is always the hardest part. Lots of people take on a challenge like this in February, as the shortest month it is the easiest one to choose. Whatever month, week or day you decide to declutter is a good one. Good luck with your own declutter challenges. Let me know how you get on and what you find the most surprising element of the challenge.

The most surprising thing about it all for me, was how I felt throughout the challenge. It has been a while since we looked at each and every space, each press, each drawer in the whole house. I found the whole process so positive sometimes having to ask tough questions about why we had kept things and letting them go felt freeing. I know lots of gorgeous items will find a new lease of life and be loved and enjoyed by others so I am so happy we took the plunge and went for it and consistently shared online what left the house that day. There are still lots of days to go and plenty of scope for you to get involved. If you need help, support or have any questions on it please get in touch. Hazel x