100 Things To Declutter In The New Year

100 things to declutter in the new year

Are you looking for ideas on what to declutter for a fresh start?  Here are 100 things to declutter in the New Year! And I bet you won’t even think twice.

It is amazing how much seems to creep into our homes all year long! As we dig deep and declutter more I find myself asking “Where did all of this come from?”

100 Things to Declutter In The New Year!

Here is a huge list of 100 items that my mom and I came up with from the last few times we decluttered our homes.
It is amazing we still find so many things to declutter every time we revisit already decluttered areas.

I hope this list will give you some ideas even if not everything will apply directly to your home.

1 – Cleaning Supplies

We had so many cleaning supplies that we bought on a whim, but never used. Go through and declutter all the cleaning stuff you won’t use.

2 – Candles

When I was decluttering one day with my mom she mentioned that she never lit candles and didn’t really like them.  Now that is a great reason to let the candles go.

3 – Vases

If you get flowers for a gift and save the vase then 30 years later you are going to have a lot of vases! We went through and decluttered all the generic vases that were never used.

4 – Pots

I love plants but this can lead to too many decorative pots.

plants

5 – Matches

 My mom and dad used to collect matches.  Never use them but store them in a large bowl.

6 – DVDs

We don’t even have a DVD player!

7 – Pet Supplies

My mom was going through a cupboard and found pet supplies for my dog that passed away 10 years before!

8 – Garden Tools

Declutter broken or unused garden tools.

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9 – Picture Frames

I collected a lot of picture frames through the years and decided to declutter everything that I wasn’t currently using.

10 – Utensils

Look for duplicate utensils.

11 – Crockpot of Appliances That Aren’t Used

My mom decluttered the crockpot she never used and I decluttered mine about 5 years before that.  Just because everyone uses certain appliances doesn’t mean we need to.

Keep what you actually use and get rid of the rest. 

12 – Plastic Storage Containers

Once I started to declutter I realized I didn’t need as many storage boxes.

minimalist quote

13 – Remotes

We had remotes that didn’t even go to anything in our home.

14 – Guides For Tv (you don’t even have any more)

In my parent’s home, we found guides for TVs and appliances/electronics they didn’t have anymore.

15 – Makeup

Get rid of old makeup or anything you don’t like or don’t use.

16 – Hair Products

Declutter all the hair products that didn’t work as advertised.

17 – Brushes

I have one brush I love and decluttered the rest.

18 – Combs

My boys each have one comb.

19 – Curlers

Get rid of the curlers you don’t use.  My mom found hot rollers at the back of her bathroom cabinet that hadn’t been used in 10 or more years.

20 – Old Hair Blowers

I had a travel hair blower that I never used and most of the time when I go on vacation they have a hair blower in the hotel.

21 – Underwear

Get rid of the underwear that is uncomfortable, doesn’t fit, or the ones you never pick to wear.

NEW YEAR DECLUTTER CHECKLIST

22 – Bras

After being minimalist for about 5 years I now only have 3 main bras.  I found that I don’t really need more than that.

23 – Sandals

Get rid of the smelly sandals or any sandals that are worn out.

24 – Lightbulbs

Now I try not to buy value packs of lightbulbs because I have found that, at least in my home, almost every light fixture needs a different type of lightbulb. 

25 – Old Tape

When decluttering my parent’s home we found a lot of old tape. And it turned out that it wasn’t even sticky anymore!

26 – Hats

Why do we always keep hats that we either never wear, or that aren’t comfortable?  Declutter all the hats you don’t use.

27 – Flashlights

Not all flashlights are created equal.  I decluttered all the weak old flashlights and only kept the ones that work really well.

28 – Clothes

Declutter anything that: makes you feel bad, doesn’t look or fit right, is worn out, or is something you never wear.

29 – Old Phones

Get rid of all the old phones sitting around your home.  Just make sure to clear off all the personal information before selling or recycling it.

30 – Cords that go to nothing

We had a huge bin of cords that went to nothing! Every once in a while I like to check all my organized bins because half the time we don’t have the items that the cords go to anymore.

31 – Blankets

Declutter the extra blankets that clutter up your linen closet.

32 – Sheets

We went to only keeping 2 sets of sheets per bed in our home and we donated the rest to an animal shelter.

33 – Pillows

Declutter all the extra pillows that aren’t needed.  Seriously, how many decorative pillows does one home need? 

34 – Buttons

My mom has a huge jar of buttons and of course, she decided to keep it. But I can guarantee that most of the buttons in that jar go to clothes are long gone. Which is the reason why I no longer keep backup buttons.

35 – Pens

Pick out your favorite pens and let the rest go.  Before I started decluttering I had a full bin of random pens that I stored in my closet haha!

36 – Markers

We routinely go through the kid’s markers and throw out the ones that are dried out and no longer work.

37 – Hobbies we no longer do

Hobbies come and go.  Just because we once loved doing something and we have all the supplies doesn’t mean we need to keep doing this for the rest of our lives.

I used to like scrapbooking, but now I don’t.  SO I decluttered all the scrapbooking supplies.  I also used to love making beaded bracelets and now I don’t.  As we go through life our interests shift and I think that is ok as long as we don’t have to store all this stuff!

38 – Supplies Left Over From Finished Projects

We are currently working on our fixer-upper of a home and that means we have a lot of supplies left over from finished projects.

For a while, we were storing it all in case one day we needed it. But I stopped doing this because we were never using these things and they were taking up too much space.

39 – Socks

Socks seem to accumulate quickly! I decided to narrow it down to about 10 pairs and I decluttered the rest.

40 – Extra Kitchen Gadgets

Look through your kitchen to see what you rarely or never use.  That is a good starting place for decluttering those extra things.

41 – Junk Towels

My mom had 2 huge plastic tubs full of “junk” towels.  These were in case of emergency towels. In the last 30 years, only the top few were ever used. 

We decided to keep one bin and donate the other bin.

42 – Photos

Declutter the blurry bad photos. I also like to declutter duplicate photos.  

43 – Bathroom Supplies

Find all the things that you don’t use, but store in your bathroom.

44 – Duplicate Items

Look for duplicate items. When we first started decluttering we had 3 strainers. I saved one and donated 2 and I still haven’t needed more than one strainer.

45 – Kid’s Clothes

I like to go through my kid’s clothing often.  They are always growing out of things or their clothes are getting trashed. 

46 – Broken Toys

Look for broken toys. Clearing this junk out really helps to keep my kid’s room more organized.

47 – Old Electronics

Get rid of the old electronics that we tend to save for backup.

48 – Christmas Decor

Declutter the Christmas decorations that you are no longer enjoying.

49 – Office Supplies

Save what you know you will use up and declutter the rest.

50 – Decor you are not Using Anymore

I sometimes see videos on YouTube where people have this huge closet of decorations! Declutter all the decorations you don’t use every year. I get that lots of us like to switch things around, but I normally only save something if I know I will use it sometime throughout the year.

51 – Baby Clothes

The best way to have a minimal amount of baby stuff is to declutter their clothes all the time.  Babies grow really fast and by going through often I avoid all the outgrown clothing cluttering up the closet.

52 – Baby Gear They Grow Out Of

We recently decluttered a baby walker and a baby carrier. I decided to declutter all these items the moment I knew we wouldn’t use them anymore.  This way they aren’t adding more clutter to our home.

53 – Baby Clothes That are out of Season

This is very specific, but maybe it will help a mom out there.  I realized I could declutter all the off-season pajamas because, by the time we will need warm pajamas again, he won’t fit into these items.

Thinking this way has really helped me to stay minimalist.  A few years ago I would have kept those pajamas saying well they technically still fit him now so I will keep them.  Shifting my mindset to only keep what we currently use has helped me to stay clutter-free.

54 – Manuals

Even though I am minimalist I still keep some manuals.  Especially for items that are complicated to use.  But I have found I need to go through this bag every once in a while because a lot of the time the item is gone and we still have the manual.

55 – Parts that go with something You No Longer Have

When decluttering with my mom we found what turned out to be a George Forman grill scraper. We had no idea what it was until someone in the comments of my video told us. That made us laugh because my mom had decluttered that grill about 10 years before.

56 – Books You Already Read

I love reading books and I mostly use the library. But in some cases, I want to buy a book! After I have read the book I always declutter it right away.

There is no way I am going to reread a book unless it’s something I need to reference for a project.

57 – Expired Food

If you have ever made cookies with expired flour you know what I am saying.  Food does expire especially things like rice and flour.

58 – Stuff we have for Home Projects That Aren’t Going to Happen

Once in a while, we collect things or buy things for a home project that we are planning to do. Then the plans change and we don’t do said project.

In this situation, these things still need to be decluttered.

59 – Random Junk in Your Car

So much junk seems to accumulate in our cars/vans.  Every few months I like to see what can be cleaned out.

60 – Uncomfortable Shoes

I don’t have time or space in my life for uncomfortable shoes.

61 – Anything that is Broken

This is obvious but sometimes overlooked.  Also if you plan to fix something and haven’t for months or years maybe it’s time to let it go.

62 – Kids Projects from School

Around the holidays and at the end of the school year my kids bring home a lot of projects.  I like to spend a little time deciding with them what can go.

paper clutter with kids

63 – Cups

This was one of the first things I decluttered in our home.  I had so many cups!

64 – Mugs

I don’t know what it is about mugs/coffee cups, but I know everyone seems to have a lot of them.

Save your favorites and declutter the rest.

65 – Souviners

Declutter all the little trinkets that probably don’t even have much meaning.

66 – Things we made but don’t want to use

Being creative myself and being married to a carpenter you can imagine all the projects that collect over the years.

I finally realized if I wasn’t going to use the item then it must be decluttered even if we made it ourselves.

67 – Old Calendars

We tend to save old used calendars so we can remember the important dates and what happened that year. 

My mom told me about a hack that finally allowed her to declutter the calendars.  Make a Word document on your computer and jot down everything important that happened that year.  Every year you can add to the same document. 

Productive Morning

68 – Plants that are too hard to keep Alive

Some plants are hard to keep alive or our home is not the ideal location for all types of plants.  I was given a tropical plant, but I live in the desert.

No matter what I did this plant could not survive so I had to give up.

69 – Non Absorbent Kitchen Towels

This last holiday season I was gifted some fresh kitchen towels (which I was really excited about).  My current towels were very worn out and needed to be replaced.

After washing and drying the new towels and trying to use them I realized they were not absorbent.  That is so annoying! 

I decided to declutter them back to the store they came from and got the money back for different towels.

70 – Unneeded Mirrors

How many mirrors does one person need? 

71 – Makeup Cases

Throughout the years makeup seems to come with a free carrying travel case. I had so many of these little bags, but only ever used one or two.

72 – Travel Cases

Declutter the travel cases that you don’t use.

73 – Under the Bathroom Sink

For weeks my mom was calling me to say she found more things she didn’t need under the bathroom sink!  Check and recheck to see what you can find.

74 – Lotions 

It is inevitable that we will end up with lotion or body products that we don’t like.  I decided to let these things go instead of continually storing them in my cupboards.

75 – Luggage

Declutter the luggage you don’t use as often or is damaged.

76 – Purses

I have my favorite purse that I always default to which has allowed me to declutter the rest. 

77 – Rugs

Declutter the rugs that don’t look good anymore.

78 – Bathing suits

Over time bathing suits tend to lose the stretch in the material and can become very saggy.  It’s a good idea to check your swimsuits before summer rolls around.

79 – Tools We Don’t Use

When decluttering our garage I was surprised to find a few tools that we didn’t need.  My husband being a carpenter brings home tools from jobs that no one wants and sometimes we don’t need them or we already have the same thing.

80 – Plastic pots new Plants Come In

We are currently landscaping our backyard.  A lot of new plants have been added and all of them come in little plastic pots.  We saved a few, but we didn’t need 40-plus pots!

81 – Damaged Paint Brushes

If paint brushes are not washed properly then they no longer work.  I recently went through our paint supplies and got rid of all the bad paintbrushes.  This was a good idea for a few reasons.

It gave us more space, but it also made it clear what would actually work when it came to getting a painting project done.

82 – Art

My mom and I are artists and love to paint and draw.  This means there was a whole closet filled with paintings and drawings.  We decided since we didn’t want them on our walls it was time to donate them.

83 – Crayons

We had a huge plastic box filled with crayons.  Not all crayons are the same quality so I went through and decluttered all the freebie junk crayons and all the broken or tiny leftover pieces.

84 – Craft Supplies

I love to craft and paint and get creative.  That usually involves a lot of supplies.  Recently I went through and decluttered all the dried-out paint and supplies that no longer worked.

85 – Fine China

My mom had 3 sets of fine china.  We probably used these dishes 10 times in my whole life and I am middle-aged. Long story short my mom was burdened with these dishes because she didn’t want them, but she also wanted them to go to the right person.

Finally, one of her friends who has fancy parties decided to take them, and what a relief it was for my mom.

86 – Your Schedule

As I write this it is summer time and my children are home! This means I have less time than normal and that is a good thing. But I can’t do everything! So I decluttered my schedule.

This is easier than you think.  Knowing I only have to drop these tasks for a few months is very doable.  I just made a list of my must-do taskings to keep everything running in our home and in my business and I took everything else off my schedule…for now.

87 – Your Phone

Declutter old text messages and pictures that are slowing your phone down.

88 –  Social media

Declutter your social media accounts.  Every once in a while I will go on Facebook and look at who I am following just to see if I still want to be “friends” with everyone. 

89 – Emails

Emails compound daily! Go through and delete emails that are no longer needed. 

90 – Subscription Services

Look through your credit card to see if there are any subscriptions you don’t use.  Recently we unsubscribed from Disney Plus and now we are saving that money!

91 – Formal Clothes

I had prom dresses saved until I was 30… Even if they fit I would never wear them again.

capsule wardrobe pants

92 – Notes App

If you use your notes app like I do then it’s good to go through once in a while and delete notes you no longer need.

93 – Receipts

I like to deal with receipts immediately! As soon as I can I look to see if it is something I need to keep for a write-off on my business or if there is something I might return on there.  If I don’t need it for those two reasons then it is thrown out.

94 – Mail

Deal with mail right away and get rid of the piles that clutter up your home.

95 – Jackets

Declutter all the jackets that don’t fit or maybe you bought them for a one-off trip.  We live in a warm climate and my mom had a jacket she bought for a vacation to Alaska.  Years later she decided to let it go.

96 – Coins

The weight of carrying change/coins is very annoying.  Whenever I end up getting coins I dump them into a bowl and then that just sits there until I declutter it.  The best way is to roll the coins and put them in the bank. This way I can actually use that money instead of having it sit around my house.

97 – Notebooks

I love to take notes but every once in a while I flip through my notebook and look to see what notes I no longer need and some of the time I can recycle the whole notebook.

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98 – Tablecloths

I have two of my favorite tablecloths that I love to use so I decided to let all the ones I don’t use or like as much go.

99 – Old Cameras

Cameras are expensive, but over the years a lot of cameras become out of date (the quality gets bad) or we stop using them.  I ended up decluttering my really old camera that I was holding onto “just in case” even though the photo quality was terrible.

100 – Keys

Most homes have one area where there are a bunch of keys that no one knows what they go to.  This is a good time to let those keys go.

I hope this list of 100 things to declutter today sparked some ideas on what you can let go of to make more space in your home.

CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR PDF 100 THINGS TO DECLUTTER CHECKLIST

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Let me HELP You Declutter! SOMETIMES ORGANIZING JUST ISN’T ENOUGH.  I WANT TO HELP YOU GAIN SOME TIME TOO!

If you are spending a ton of time continually organizing the same area, check out The Declutter Your Home Minicourse.  I created this course for anyone who is sick of all the time wasted tidying their home.  This course is easy to follow and helps you figure out a decluttering schedule so you can declutter your entire home.

This is the perfect course for you if:

  • You worry about your home before having people over (aka shoving things in closets).
  • Things are always “missing” in your home.
  • You wonder why your home doesn’t ever look clean or tidy, no matter how much cleaning you do.

If you need direction on how and where to start on your decluttering journey check out The Declutter Your Home Minicourse!

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Read More Decluttering Posts:

How to Declutter the Garage

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10 Things to Declutter For Summer

The Best Decluttering Methods for Your Home

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