12 Items To Scratch Off Your Checklist And Declutter Before The New Year

As this year comes to a close, you likely have several things on your to-do list. However, there is one more item that you might want to add to help you start the new year off right: decluttering. Taking some time to declutter your home will deliver several benefits. Beyond the more obvious rewards of making your home feel less messy and more organized, you're also likely to experience some physical, mental, and emotional payoffs as well.

Decluttering can help alleviate anxiety, allow you to focus on what's most important, improve your sleep patterns, and increase your overall energy levels. And December is an ideal time to prune certain areas of your home. Not only will it give you a more organized space in which to start the new year, but it can get your home holiday-ready — or help get things back on track after the influx of food and gifts (which equals more belongings) that Christmas invariably brings. It's also the perfect time to go through holiday-centric items, like Christmas decorations and unused gifts. The first step to decluttering is making a list of which areas you plan to tackle. Below, we've highlighted some of the top areas to direct your attention at, so you can set yourself up for a clean and fresh start to the new year.

Do you really want to start the new year with an overstuffed closet? Is there really any point in taking up all that space with clothing and shoes that no longer fit or match your style? Not to mention, many of us receive clothing as a gift over the holidays (or take ourselves on a little shopping spree), so you'll want to be able to easily fit your new treasures in your closet and make sure they don't get lost in the chaos.

The most effective way to declutter your closet is to empty all of the shelves, hooks, and rods. Lay everything out on your bed or another flat surface and think carefully about what you really need to keep. This is known as the out-in-the-open closet organizing and decluttering approach. As you're assessing your collection of shoes and clothing, consider whether you actually like each item, if it still fits, if it's easy to style with the rest of your pieces, and whether you would buy it again given the opportunity. Or, can you remember wearing it in the last year or see yourself wearing it in the near future? If the answer to any of these questions is no, then it is probably best to sell, donate, or throw away the item, depending on its condition and value.

The end of the year is the ideal time to downsize your holiday decoration collection. You've already pulled all the boxes out of the garage or attic to put up your winter decorations. So, you'll be saving yourself a step if you would've attempted this task at another point in the year. But, most importantly, you're in a good position to assess which decorations you actually use.

Anything that's still in storage after your decorations are up isn't being used, so do you really need it? The answer is probably no, especially if you didn't use it last year either. If you're questioning whether to keep a particular item, consider whether it has any true sentimental value. If not, don't feel obligated to hold onto it and let it continue taking up space in your home. Instead, see if any nursing homes or children's hospitals in your area would be interested in it as a donation. Clearing out all the extra décor items will make it easier to take down your current ones and will save you from trying to cram them into the box. It will also free up space for any new decorations you purchased this year.  

When was the last time you went through your bathroom drawers, shelves, and medicine cabinet? If it has been a while, there are probably several items taking up precious space that you'll want to clear out before the end of the year. Starting the new year with storage space (and counter space) in your bathroom can help simplify your morning routine and allow you to focus on what you really need.

Empty all of the cabinets and drawers in your bathroom. Start by setting aside any expired medications as these will need to be disposed of properly. Most should not be flushed down the toilet or thrown in the trash. You can check with your local pharmacy or police department to see if they offer a drug take-back program. Then, move on to the personal care products. Empty, clean, and recycle any bottles that are mostly empty, drying out, or otherwise unusable. Remember, makeup doesn't last forever due to the growth of bacteria. Mascara should only be kept for about three months while face makeup should be kept for a maximum of two years (or only six months for liquid products).

Once you've cleared out everything that is no longer good, take one final look at everything that is left. Don't keep anything that you know you won't use. For example, those bath bombs you bought that didn't really smell that great don't need to take up precious cabinet space.

There's no such thing as too many purses, belts, or necklaces, right? Unfortunately, the answer to this is that one can definitely have too many accessories. While these items may be relatively small, when combined they can still take up a lot of space. If you have too many accessories or pieces of jewelry, it's also probably difficult to fully know what you have or to find a particular item. Set yourself up for a clean start to the new year by decluttering these personal items.

For your jewelry pieces, start by sorting them by category, such as rings, necklaces, or earrings. If you don't already have a jewelry box that lends itself well to keeping these items organized, consider purchasing something like the Songmics Jewelry Box with Glass Lid. Now, the key will be to downsize your collection so that you can keep everything organized and accessible. To guide you through this process, consider how often you wear certain pieces (or if you ever really do) and whether anything has a particular sentimental value attached to it.

You can follow similar steps to go through your collection of purses, belts, scarves, and other accessories. Sort items into similar categories and sell or donate anything you no longer use or like. Avoid keeping too many items that are very similar; the extra space in your closet or drawers will be worth it. Once you've downsized your collection, consider organizational tools, such as the Whitmore Accessory Hanger or the Moryimi Purse Organizer, to make your closet easier to navigate.

We've all been guilty of it. We get a gift from a loved one that we know we'll never use, but we still stash it in a drawer or closet. However, this practice is only adding to the cluttered feel of your home. Take time before the end of the year to let go of any unused or unwanted gifts that are only accumulating space. You may even be able to make the holiday season a little brighter for someone else by re-gifting or donating these items.

You may feel guilty for getting rid of something that someone gave you. However, if you put yourself in the other person's shoes, would you really want them to hang onto something that they would never use? Consider taking a picture of the gift and saving it if you want to remember the thought they put into picking something out for you.

Are you barely able to close the door to your linen closet? If it's overflowing with towels, sheets, pillowcases, and more, then it is probably in need of a good decluttering. Tackle this project before the new year to give yourself a clean slate and make sure you have space to store those seasonal hand towels you purchased for your guest bathroom or the new bath towels that you were gifted for the holidays.

To declutter and re-organize your linen closet, begin by emptying all the shelves so you can take full stock of what you have. Pull out any worn and tattered sheets and towels or partial sets that are missing a piece. Depending on their condition, these items may be donated or given to an animal rescue organization in need of bedding. Once you've gotten rid of the more obvious items, assess what is left. Should you keep the towels that always feel rough and scratchy after a shower? If you only live by yourself or with a partner, do you really need eight sets of bath towels or 15 hand towels? Probably not. Downsize and only keep the items that you really use and like.

The end of the year is also a good time to clean out old and expired food from your kitchen. Whether you have leftovers from a recent holiday meal that are no longer good or other food items that have been hanging out too long, take a little time to clear the chaos out of your kitchen. It can also help set you up for a successful start to the year getting back to cooking and eating healthy meals after a busy holiday season with lots of parties and sweets.

Decluttering your pantry might be the biggest task. Empty everything out onto your counters and weed out any expired food items. Consider labeling and repackaging items that you want to keep to make the space feel more organized. For example, Storeganize's Food Storage Canisters can hold dried goods like flour, sugar, and cereal, helping keep everything fresh and making it easier to see what you have. When you're ready to move onto the fridge and freezer, empty them out onto the counter as well. Again, look for expiration dates and get rid of anything that isn't good. Frozen food keeps for a long time but starts to lose freshness after a few months. So, if you're keeping anything that's been around for a while, put it towards the front of the freezer so you can use it soon.

Ugh, paperwork. It isn't fun, and it isn't exciting, but it is probably consuming way more space in your home than is necessary. The end of the year is the ideal time to go through the stacks of paperwork that are making your home office (or kitchen table) feel cluttered. Taking the time now to purge what you don't need and to set up a better organizational system will help you start the new year off on the right foot.

Start with a rough sort by making a few piles, including items that can be recycled, those with sensitive information that need to be shredded, and a pile that you want to keep. After the initial sort, go through that keep pile again. Reassess whether you actually need everything you kept (remember, credit card and bank statements should be available online). When possible, consider securely digitizing other items like the three years of tax records you should keep. For many, this is the best way to organize all the papers around your house. It retains the info while eliminating the physical pieces of paper, preventing them from contributing to a cluttered home.

Do you have a broken blender that is taking up space in a cabinet? What about an old and rusty pair of garden shears that you can't use? If so, it is time to stop letting these unusable items add to the clutter in your house and let them go before the new year. Taking time to get rid of them now will not only help you free up space, but it will also help you identify if there are any replacement items you should be looking for at a holiday sale.

If the items you're ready to get rid of are fixable, you can consider donating them to a charity, with a note describing what is broken and the necessary part (if known). Otherwise, you'll just want to trash these items or recycle any parts that are eligible. Just remember, small appliances are considered e-waste because of their electrical components. They'll need to be recycled through an approved e-waste program. So, check with your local city or county offices to find where the closest drop-off site is for you.

As you're prioritizing what you should declutter before the new year, be sure to add any duplicate items that you don't really need. For example, if you've forgotten your phone charger when traveling and had to buy new ones (or keep getting duplicates with new devices), do you really still need all of them? You can only use one charger at a time, and having multiple extra ones at home won't do you any good if you forget one again. If you don't need spare ones at work or other spaces around your home (or maybe in your car), don't let them continue making your drawers more cluttered. Start the new year chaos-free by letting go of extras.

Similarly, assess other belongings that you have multiple styles or copies of. Some rooms in the home where you might discover these duplicates include the kitchen (think about whether you really need all of those spatulas or salad tongs), the bathroom (do you have a use for three eyelash curlers?), and your bedroom nightstand (how many pairs of nail clippers does one need?).

If one of your New Year's resolutions is to start actually using your craft supplies, then it may seem counterintuitive to start purging things from this space. However, clearing out supplies will actually better enable you to achieve your goals. If your crafting space is cluttered, you won't be able to focus on one particular project. Finding the specific supplies and materials that you'll need will be challenging, and you might end up throwing in the towel (or in this case, the hot glue gun).

Conversely, if you declutter your craft room, you'll be able to enjoy the time you spend completing DIY projects so much more. To take back control, empty all of your crafting supplies onto a large table. If you have any projects that are in process, ask yourself whether you actually intend to finish them. If the answer is no, then it is time to let them go. Then, go through all of the crafting supplies themselves. If there are any empty (or nearly empty) bottles, toss them. Similarly, donate materials that were purchased for a specific project, but that you'll likely never use again. Once you've gotten rid of everything you won't use, you can organize the items that you do want, creating a space where you can actually enjoy crafting.

Do you still have a cabinet full of DVDs or CDs? What about even older VHS tapes? In many cases, you probably can't even watch or listen to any of this old media. Most VCRs are long gone, that old DVD player might have broken years ago, and most newer computers don't even have a CD or DVD drive anymore. So, why are you holding on to outdated media if you have no way to play it? Declutter these items before the end of the year, and you'll find that you regain so much storage space to keep items that you use organized and accessible.

It may be challenging to get rid of outdated media if it holds sentimental value. Perhaps you still have that mix tape your first boyfriend or girlfriend made you or a VHS tape of a family wedding or holiday. In these cases, you can find a local service that will digitize these items for you. This way, you'll retain the special memory, actually be able to view or listen to it, and still clear the physical clutter out of your space. Non-sentimental items can either be sold, donated, or recycled (but look into proper recycling procedures as these items may be considered e-waste). If you have an extensive music collection, consider taking down the album names so you can find and add them to your digital library.