There’s a whole industry built on decluttering and home organisation and I’m not going to claim to be an expert on this topic, but I do work closely with a great local professional in this area and she’s given me some great tip and tricks on how to get organised at home.

Let's face it, our homes are barely ever Instagram perfect. I dont know about you but often when we have friends over and I rush around the house, hurriedly shoving all the stuff into the nearest cupboard!

Now everyones different and some of us are happy living surrounded by toys and clothes etc strewn about the house - but I have to say that I like everything to have its place and ideally be in its place for me to feel calm and at peace.

Clutter creeps doesn’t it. And it can feel so overwhelming at times. Every now and then, it is SO cathartic to have a bit of a sort out. Get rid of the plastic dinosaurs, cardigans we haven’t worn for years and random phone chargers we’ve been holding onto ‘just in case.’ I find having a sort through every three months or so if the only way I can stay on top of all the stuff in our house.

But what better time to do it when we’re having a home update?

So I am encouraging you now - declutter. Go through your stuff. Enable yourself to see the wood for the trees before you begin to update your home.

I always ask my clients at the start of any project, what they wish to keep and what they want to get rid of.

Ask yourself, what sparks joy? What can you not live without? Everything in your home should serve a real purpose AND / or make you feel fabulous.

Go through. Get rid. Sell on. Give to charity. Edit edit edit.

If it’s useful but not beautiful, can you make it beautiful? Can you paint it, change the handles, give it a good old upcycle? Can you let it live on rather than getting chucked into landfill?

...Because this when you’ll uncover the trinkets that are lurking, forgotten, in the back of a cupboard.

We moved house a year ago, and I have to admit, we still have a ton of stuff stagnating in the garage.

I have this delightfully pretty china tea set which my Granny bought me over the years while she was still alive. It’s probably near enough the most precious and sentimentally valuable thing I own, but where is it now? In a box in the garage. Have I ever used it? I've had it out literally once or twice for at least the past decade.

I am going to bring it out and put it on display! I know it will spark joy AND I'll get plenty of use out of it.

So go for it. Carve out time and prepare yourself for the start of your interior design journey.

Below to help are some practical tips and tricks on how to declutter cleverly and edit carefully. Best of luck and enjoy..!

Sort everything into seven piles: Keep, sell, donate, chuck, mend, upcycle, store.
If you haven’t worn it for a year, get rid of it. If it doesn’t make you feel good, ditch it
Pop it on Facebook marketplace, Vinterior if its something for the home, or eBay
Don't try and do it all at once, it’ll feel too overwhelming and you’ll never get started. Begin with your sock drawer and go through gradually room by room. Even if it’s one room a month, that’s serious progress.
Bag up in the spare room or garage.
When life gets hectic it’s so easy for piles of paperwork, broken toys and clothes to end up strewn about everywhere. Create a home for everything and discipline yourself to put things back in their home as soon as you’ve used them
Invite people round! It’ll encourage you to tidy up and have a sort out.
Get the whole household involved, even the kids.

Planning a home redesign? Start with a declutter