Decluttering Confessions: Simple Organizing Tips That Stick

Get Your Copy of Simple Organizing! Amazon or Barnes and Noble /// Hall Details

I’m excited to welcome you to the launch of my Simple Organizing book and our Simple Organizing Clutter Confessions Blog Tour. This week we’re sharing real-life clutter confessions — mine is here — and you’ll find links to the other bloggers on the tour below.

Be sure to scroll through the post to visit the other participants and enter the giveaway at the end.

Simple Organizing Book

We all enjoy looking at beautifully organized spaces, but expecting perfection in our own homes can easily stop progress. Today I want to focus on simple, practical steps we can take this spring to improve how our homes function. To inspire you, a few blogging friends are sharing their clutter spots so we can see common problem areas and realistic solutions.

If you read my decluttering book Make Room for What You Love, you know I emphasize being specific about the purpose of each drawer, basket, or shelf. Clear intention prevents confusion. When a storage spot is vague, it invites everything — and that’s how clutter starts.

Case in point: my house.

Exhibit A (pictured at the top of this page)
“Baskets for kitchen overflow” located in my front hallway.

Exhibit B.
“Clutter” found inside the baskets.

These baskets were indispensable during our kitchen remodel, holding items that needed a temporary home. They kept the hallway looking tidy, but I failed to apply one of my key organizing rules: name the space and define what belongs there. When you label a space clearly — like a “silverware drawer” — everyone understands what goes there and what doesn’t. Without that clarity, any storage spot becomes a catchall.

Because the baskets were labeled only as “kitchen overflow,” family members filled them however they saw fit. If someone put pants in a silverware drawer, you’d notice immediately and fix it. The baskets didn’t have that same clarity, so things drifted in.

Here’s a sampling of what I found in basket number one:

Exhibit C
Mission Trip 2006. This has been here far too long — we moved into this house in 2015.

Exhibit D
Yearbook from 2007 and a Phil Wickham CD (we don’t even own a CD player anymore).

Exhibit E.
An embroidery hoop. I don’t embroider, so this likely came home as an unused craft supply and then wandered into the basket.

Exhibit F.
A chewed-up lid for wall putty (teeth marks suggest our dog). There’s a trash can nearby, so this should have been discarded — and where is the putty it belongs to?

Exhibit G.
Faux Christmas greenery, apparently stashed for quick decorating bursts.

By the time I reached this point, I was a little overwhelmed and stopped digging — a familiar feeling when clutter has been accumulating. These baskets could be put to much better use, and it’s clear I need a spring declutter.

From a distance the hallway still appears neat — that’s the advantage of deep baskets: they hide disorder. But hidden clutter only multiplies if we don’t manage it. Systems need to evolve as our lives change. Regularly paring down what we keep allows our homes to serve their true purpose: a comfortable, peaceful sanctuary rather than a storage room.

I remind myself often that my home should be a place of calm and inspiration. When things get out of control, I feel compelled to restore order because my surroundings affect how I feel and function.

Simple Organizing – Available Now!

Now it’s time for the Clutter Confessions tour. Enjoy visiting the participants below!

ENJOY THE CLUTTER CONFESSIONS TOUR BELOW!

Home Stories A to Z

Enjoy the tour — and thank you to all the bloggers, Instagrammers, and friends who supported this launch. Your encouragement means so much.