Decluttering: How to Decide What to Keep vs. Store
How to Declutter When You Want to Keep Everything
Clutter has a way of sneaking up on you, and before you know it, small piles you intend to deal with later turn into big headaches. If you’re wondering how to remove clutter from your home and reclaim your space, the process involves more than just throwing everything away.
Stop & Stor offers a step-by-step guide to deciding what to offload and how to prioritize what matters most. And if you find you need additional space, we can set you up with decluttering storage solutions near you in New York.
Step 1: Establish Your Goals
Before you even touch a single piece of clutter in your house, decide what your decluttering goals are and why they matter to you. Are you looking to make daily life easier and reduce stress? Are you preparing for a move or making room for something new?
Your “why” will guide your plan as you set a realistic timeline for decluttering and deciding what to do with old stuff. For example, you can start with just one drawer at a time, one room per weekend, or just 15 minutes per day.
Next, gather basic decluttering supplies, such as trash bags, labels, a marker, and bins for donations, storage, and items to keep.
Step 2: Make Piles to Keep, Store, Donate, and Toss
The four-pile method involves sorting what you own into piles for keep, store, donate, and toss. This method prevents backtracking and overthinking. However, don't buy any organizers just yet, because you don't know what sizes you'll need until you decide what you're keeping.
Here’s a quick decision cheat sheet:
- Keep: often used items that support your current lifestyle
- Store: seasonal and truly valued items with meaning
- Donate: items in good condition that someone else could use
- Toss: anything that’s expired, broken, unsafe, or unusable
Step 3: Figure Out What to Keep
Your "keep" pile should include your everyday essentials and items you've actually used in the past couple of months. Items in this pile should support your daily routines, fit your living space, and might be difficult or pricey to replace.
Here are some examples:
- Clothes you often wear and feel confident in
- Kitchen tools you use each week
- Medications, documents, and safety items
- Tools and electronics you frequently use
If you encounter duplicates while figuring out how to declutter your home, keep the best version and donate or toss the backups unless you truly need them.
Step 4: Decide What to Store Away
Decluttering storage is helpful for items you don't use often but still matter, such as seasonal items you use every year or items with sentimental value. Good candidates for declutter storage include holiday decorations, seasonal clothing, patio furniture, camping gear, heirlooms, and important documents.
However, avoid storing away broken items with no plan to repair them, “someday” projects you haven’t touched in years, and mystery cords without matching devices. Every six to 12 months, review your declutter storage items so they don’t turn into just another new clutter pile.
Step 5: Set Aside Things to Donate
Items that are clean, safe, and functional – but that don’t have a place in your life anymore – are good candidates for donation. Common things to donate include clothes, kitchenware, books, toys, and small pieces of furniture.
Before donating, ensure that items include all their essential parts and are clean and usable for someone else to enjoy.
Step 6: Throw Away or Recycle What Remains
However, some things in your life may simply belong in the trash or a recycling bin. Examples include expired food and medications, as well as anything moldy, worn out, broken, or unsafe.
Make a point of disposing of your unwanted items responsibly, such as using an electronics recycling program at a local store. You can also drop off paint and chemicals at municipal facilities and shred sensitive paperwork to reduce fraud risk.
Decluttering Help for Sentimental Items
Sentimental items are where many people get stuck, even with the best decluttering help and advice. However, it's important to remember that memories aren't stored solely in objects, and that you can curate a meaningful collection of your past without saving absolutely everything.
One strategy is to take photos of bulky items before letting them go. You can create designated memory boxes for a single person or stage of life to preserve memories, but limit how much you keep.
Ask yourself if you would proudly display sentimental items in question, if they bring comfort or guilt, and if you'd actually buy them if you saw them in a thrift store. For items you can't part with but don't want to crowd your home, consider renting a Stop & Stor unit to protect what matters most.
How to Declutter Your Home Based on Rooms
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by how to get rid of stuff, start with the easiest rooms of your house first. This is often the bathroom, pantry, entryway, and laundry room.
Next, move on to more challenging areas, such as closets, the kitchen, and kids' rooms. Save high-clutter areas like garages, basements, and attics for last, on a day when you're in a calm, stable mindset with plenty of time to dedicate to the project.
Decluttering Storage Done Right
When you decide to rent a decluttering storage unit, organize and label your items by category and season. Use clear bins for easy access and keep an inventory list on your phone.
Store the heaviest belongings on the bottom, and keep photos, paperwork, and fabrics in dry conditions. Stop & Stor facilities offer climate-control options and 24/7 security to ensure your decluttered storage items are always safe and protected.
Maintain Good Habits So Clutter Doesn’t Return
We hope that you’ve found these tips for how to declutter when you want to keep everything helpful, as you regain control over piles of stuff. However, decluttering isn’t a one-and-done process.
To prevent future clutter, practice the one-in, one-out rule, and create landing zones for items like keys and mail. You can maintain a permanent donation bin to periodically toss items into, and make a point to ask yourself where something new will go before you buy it.
Common Decluttering Mistakes to Avoid
- Organizing your home before decluttering
- Trying to declutter an entire house in one weekend
- Holding on to sentimental items out of guilt
- Paying indefinitely to store low-value items you don’t need
FAQ About Decluttering Storage
How do I decide if something belongs in decluttering storage?
If you still occasionally use something that you value but that clutters your daily space, it's a good candidate for a storage unit.
How long should I keep a “maybe” box?
Review "maybe" boxes every three to six months, and if you didn't use them, consider getting rid of the contents.
What should I store vs. keep in my home?
Seasonal, specialty, and sentimental items can be stored, while daily-use essentials should remain at home.
How should I handle sentimental clutter?
Downsize and curate your collections to preserve memories without being overburdened by stuff. Securely store family heirlooms and display what truly brings you joy.
How do I declutter when I’m planning to move soon?
Sort everything before packing for a move so that you don’t unnecessarily move things you plan to donate or throw away later. Stop & Stor offers convenient, short-term storage solutions to help you navigate life’s transitions.
Established in 1980, Stop & Stor is a family owned and operated business that has become New York’s Self Storage Leader by offering cutting-edge facilities in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island.
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