Decluttering your small apartment or condo unit

Declutter a small apartment!

Living in a small apartment or condo unit can definitely feel a little cramped at some point. Since space is so limited, it’s hard to create spaces dedicated to a particular function and one thing overlaps into the other. Studies have shown that physically decluttering your space also helps tidy up headspace. A little home organization goes a long way and is the roadmap to a successful declutter. Your 3 key piles should always be keep, sell, and store. Here are a few tips to get you started!

Make a list

Decluttering can definitely feel a little overwhelming but it’s always best to divide and conquer. Go by area, then determine categories per area, and finally sort by category into the main keep, sell, and store piles. Remember to make a list of everything you want to tackle before you begin. This is the greatest way to stay on track and also see the progress you’re making with the clean up. The list is also a wonderful way to to generate ideas on how to organize items. Once you’ve managed to pare down to the essentials, you’re really able to see how each space needs to function so you can create systems accordingly. Being able to free up space, allows you to finally give everything you own a designated space in your home. Reducing the “noise” seemingly quiets the brain as well. Storing away things that don’t need to be around everyday is so impactful to the quality of life you can have. It’s important to have access to those things, sure; but it’s more important make room for creation, laughter, collaboration, playtime, moments; memories. 

Set a Schedule

Of course, the only way out is through and this declutter isn’t gonna happen unless you make it happen! Be sure to do a little planning and carve out time in your schedule to clear things up. Depending on how much stuff you have, a weekend will definitely be a great jump-off point for the journey. Remember, this is a marathon not a sprint. So don’t feel defeated if it takes awhile, the important thing is to get it going. If you’re going through a house or years’ worth of stuff, perhaps choosing a few weekends will allow you to better manage the amount of things that need to be sorted. Decluttering can be a great bonding experience with the people you love and it’s also cathartic for yourself. The feeling of physical lightness after you let go of things that no longer serve? Priceless.

Visualize each room/space

Get excited for all the space you’re about to create and do so literally by planning a little refresh of the different areas. Assess your goals or important functions that require space to better guide how and what you declutter. Then once you’ve made room, see how you can best refresh the aesthetics of the space to suit your needs. The visualization method encourages you to really think about what you need to make room for, allowing the declutter to compliment how you intend to redesign your lifestyle.

Get rid of your clutter

Once all the prep work has been done, you can finally start the process! It’s important to go by intention and make sure that everything you keep will serve a purpose and, yes wait for it, spark joy. Between the items you discard, there are distinct criteria for what can be resold and/or donated, others can be given to those in need, and the rest is for you to decide to repurpose or upcycle, keep in nearby storage [we highly recommend self-storage like leeveit], or say goodbye to forever by throwing it away.  You may donate lightly used items to to charity centers, old clothes can also be dropped at retail stores for discounts. Bigger ticket items like electronics and appliances can be sold online for extra cash. So get excited about the whole process, it will be worth it!

Organize what is left

More often than not, doing a declutter makes you realize just how much stuff you have. Trust us when we say that nothing beats the accomplishment that comes with a good spring cleaning. Also, as creatures that crave the familiar, it’s also very normal to feel nostalgic and sentimental which is why self-storage is such a convenient solution. leeveit aims to generate community-powered storage that, in turn, powers our communities towards progress. It’s good to be reminded that the world isn’t so big after all.
In need of a self-storage unit nearby to store your belongings? Contact us today and we can’t wait to assist you!