Overwhelmed by clutter and junk

[Ineedcleaninghelp]

What I need is a skip, and to throw my house into it.
Husband out of the house 13 hours a day for work and commute. I have a toddler.
Toddler is about to go down for a nap. Where do I start clearing out pretty much everything?
I'm so overwhelmed. The only tidy spaces are main room where toddler plays and their bedroom. Everywhere else is just stuff.

[pontiouspilates]

One room at a time. Be methodical, using three bags 1 for rubbish 1 for charity shop and 1 for selling on eBay etc. It won't happen overnight but getting just one room done will make you feel more in control and on top of things. Good luck!

[expatmigrant]

As per pp make up different bags or boxes for rubbish/charity/sell/keep, then do room by room. Do not try to do all rooms at once because that will be overwhelming. The only thing I would do first is to get a black bag and just wander through each room picking up all the superficial rubbish like papers, letter etc and then go from there. I'm a brilliant 'clearerouter' as my DH calls me. If i had the time I would pop round to help you .
Good Luck!

[DearTeddyRobinson]

Good advice above. Also I enjoy taking a 'before' photo, to encourage me to keep going! It really helps when you can actually see the progress being made.
Why don't you post it on here so we can have a nosey cheer you on?

[Queenofthedrivensnow]

Leave the living room until he awake he can watch tv when U do in there. Be ruthless and throw out as much as you can

[tobee]

You're not alone. I could do with a skip rental for at least a month.

[whatkatydidnext1]

If you have a car Get the stuff your Boxing for charity and rubbish out the house ASAP. Put it straight in the boot as soon as a box is filled then at your earliest convenience get to the local dump/ recycling centre and charity shop. Don’t let it sit around. Good luck !! You do feel so much better when jobs like this get done.

[RoryItsSnowing]

Definitely one room at a time. Pick a corner and work your way round. Quick assessment of every item- if to keep then either leave where it is or put in a pile for the correct room it should be in.

Otherwise bags for rubbish/ donations/ family and friends.

Little and often and you'll get there!

[Glittermakeseverythingbetter]

Maybe start with the smallest room, a downstairs loo if you have one or the bathroom. Take a bin bag and declutter all the old shampoo/bottles etc that are old and you don't use. This should be fairly easy as there's no sentimental stuff there and once you can see a space it should spur you on for other rooms.

[ProseccoMamam]

Start on the smallest space - hallway, under stairs cupboards, bathroom, bedroom, living room then kitchen
Before and after pics are good as they can be used for motivation
Be ruthless, which is easier said than done I know. So try to allocate a spot in the house for things - a spares drawer for batteries and light bulbs, only clothes in the wardrobes, toys must be kept in a certain box ect. if you know how you want the house it will be a lot easier to clean up as you know where to put everything and you know what you need.

Also this is the method I used when I worked in cleaning. I did a lot of houses which were lived in by hoarders or people with mental/physical illness which stopped them cleaning their houses, I promise you it's the easiest and quickest way to get results.

Rubbish - anything that obviously needs to be binned, throw it out immediately. It's amazing how much space this clears up.
Recycling - again anything that is noticeably recyclable goes in the recycle bins.
Empty - take out everything from the cupboards/drawrers, dressers ect (I'd advise to do one at a time or else you will end up with all the contents from one room on the floor and it will make you feel overwhelmed and want to stop - also it's your home so you need to have access to everything obviously)
Clean - whatever cupboard or drawer you have just emptied, clean it
Sort - anything you've taken out, sort into piles (keep, throw, charity, belongs in another room)
Throw - pretty self explanatory - chuck the junk out
Put away - put all the things you need where you want them to go. (If you have something which belongs in a drawer or cupboard you haven't cleaned out yet, place it in a box near the cupboard - it has to go there you're not allowed to chuck it in a 'I'll do it later' drawer - I personally found that when I saw a box of things that needed to be put away it motivated me to clean out the place they needed to go into)


At some points you will just have boxes or bags of things waiting outside allocated rooms and cupboards but it is really good motivation to work through the house so everything can go into its place.

[BadCarrot]

Marie Kondo is your friend - she says declutter by category (items) not room. It's then far easier to see exactly what you have and work out what you want to keep

konmari.com

There are loads of FB groups/ webpages etc to help support people working through piles of stuff. Many threads on here too. Good luck.

[Ineedcleaninghelp]

Thanks everyone. I'm not doing charity, ebay etc, Just means it sits longer and it's too emotional. I'm talking like can't see surfaces in rooms where there's no toddler.

I've filled 6 bin bags. Just chucking it out. All out. No just in case etc. Leaving the toys as I'll have a proper sort through them once I'm on top again. I don't need 80 pens, I don't need 6 torches, I don't need old magazines, I don't need cables for stuff I don't own anymore.

Skips are so expensive. Going to go to the tip every morning.
When this room is empty I'm going to go buy some nice sunny yellow paint, and that will be my reward. A nice sunny room. Not just tidy so my toddler can play, nice and tidy for me because this is seriously emotional going.

It was either this or a nervous breakdown though, so it's a start.

[Queenofthedrivensnow]

Op you are doing amazingly already. Just keep going yiur kids can watch tv for a few days it won't kill him plus it's cold.
Make sure you have plenty of bin bags and wet wipes - chuck and clean chuck and clean. You can do it xx

[Akire]

WEll done in middle of de- junk myself. I have to wait until I’m in ruthless mode. 6 bags is great start!

[MrsMoastyToasty]

Set up systems for stuff.
An in-tray for mail.
Get rid of flyers into the recycling as soon as they arrive.
Put newspapers in recycling before going to bed (they're not likely to be read when they are a day old)
Bag up outgrown clothes and take them to a cash for clothes place. Our local one takes shoes and bags too.
Put things "away " , not "down".
Get rid of DVDs etc if they now regularly show the film on TV.

[Ineedcleaninghelp]

Thanks, I'm adding your tips and rules to an electronic to do list!

I love lists, so much you'd think I'd be organised.

[Queenofthedrivensnow]

Don't be scared to fill a box with 'bits of another toy etc I need to sort through later' it's still declittering

[pontiouspilates]

How are you getting on OP? I really hope you are getting ready to enjoy a sunny yellow room.

[ineedcleaninghelp]

Very well thank you. And bless you for asking!

I've took 3 car fulls of crap to the recycling centre, like back seats down full to the brim car full. Felt amazing slinging it away. I am nowhere near painting, but that's because I've started throwing out in other rooms as it felt so good.

Embarrassed reading how badly my OP is written, but it was honestly weighing down on me starting this. Now I'm away with it, I'm enjoying it. The little tips everyone shared helped me break it down from a huge mammoth task to something manageable.

Thanks again to everyone who posted.

[pontiouspilates]

Brilliant - it's a good feeling isn't it!

[00100001]

I love a good clear out.

We just did the shed, car full of crap allllllll gone. She'd now shelved and sorted.


Bliss!


Next is study.