Decluttering Help Before and After

One of my friends asked me for some decluttering help and we were able to transform her room. See the decluttering help before and after below.

I was surprised someone asked me for some decluttering help. I honestly never thought of going and helping someone declutter. This was such a fun project and I am happy she asked!

When I first stepped foot into her room, I didn’t think it looked too bad. There were a lot of shoes on the floor, but besides that, there wasn’t that much stuff. As we opened the closet I could see that we could easily downsize and organize everything to fit a lot better.

Since her room wasn’t that big I thought it would be a good idea to go through the items as we took them out of the closet. There is more of an impact if you take everything out at once, but in this case, there wasn’t enough room. I pulled clothes out and she sorted.

We made three piles; keep, donate, and toss. Most of her items were in excellent condition and could be donated.

Watch the Full Decluttering Process here:

Sorting & Decluttering

We came up with a few different bins to sort all of her items; keep, donate, think about, and keepsakes. She was storing a lot of keepsakes in her everyday closet.

This was a problem because she wasn’t going to use these items, but she wanted them for her future.

We decided it would make more sense to store these items in a box for her future. Keeping her closet full of the items she needs daily.

Declutter Momentos

I think it is a great idea to have a memory box. Somewhere you can store items that are near and dear to your heart, but that you will never wear or use.

We all have those items, photos, graduation cap, and gown, and the list goes on… If you can’t store these items in another location I would put them in a box and store them all in one section of your closet.

If they are grouped together and out of the way, it will be easier to find the things you need all the time.

Decluttering Muscle

This was the first time my friend had ever decluttered! She was really good at decluttering and deciding what she wanted and what she didn’t need. Because she had never decluttered she was finding stuff from 10 years ago.

I think she was surprising herself. Decluttering is like a muscle and the more you use it the better you get at it. When I first started decluttering on my own journey it took forever to decide on one item.

Flash forward 2 years and I can easily pick out what I don’t need in a minute. I explained to my friend that she will get better at deciding the more she does it.

Downsizing Surprises

I am always surprised and what I find when I am decluttering. Sometimes I find an item I was missing and sometimes I find something out about myself or my home. On this particular day, we learned a lot.

One thing is she found her missing boots! There was a long story, but the short version is, she lost her boots and had to buy expensive new ones. Only to find out they were in her closet the whole time.

The second thing we figured out, was her bed was facing the wrong direction! There are drawers under her bed and the 2 closest to the wall could never be used because the furniture was in the way. By flipping her bed around she could use all of her drawers! Yay for more storage.

Switching Hangers to Help Declutter

As we added her clothes back into her closet we put everything in with the hanger facing the wrong way. When she wears an item she will return the clothes with the hanger facing the correct way.

This will be an excellent way to see what she has actually worn. After 6 months or a year, she can see what she never wears and decides if she wants to donate those items. I have used this trick in my own life and it works like a charm.

This will help you to sort through items that you are worried about getting rid of.

In the end, she donated a huge pile of clothes and shoes. We were able to fit all of her shoes into the closet and she had extra room to spare!

Make sure you watch the video to see the mom’s reaction. Her mom was even more excited than she was.

Conclusion for Helping a Friend Declutter

Check out this article on how to organize all the rooms in your home for more inspiration.

Declutter Help Day In Life:

In this video below I am sharing what my entire weekend looked like including getting ready for the declutter.