Ready to learn what things to declutter in Lent? – let’s get started!. This is a brilliant Lent Decluttering Challenge to form a good habit. You in?
It’s a twist on the usual ‘giving up’ something for Lent – and it can be the perfect way to start a fantastic habit that you can use daily forever (or at least until the clutter has gone!).
You’ll find everything you need right here to make it a complete success, including ideas for what to give up each day to declutter your home one bit at a time, plus a free printable checklist to keep you on track.
Lent.
An entire 40 days where we look to give up something in the lead up to Easter, and this amount of time can be perfect to create a new habit – so I thought – why not make that habit decluttering this year?
When I think about what to do to mark Lent, decluttering was the obvious choice – as it’s a slant on the usual option of giving something up, and it is a really positive thing to do for your home, and yourself!
After all – by decluttering, you’ll be giving up things that you no longer need or use in your home, and making space for what matters – and that sounds good to me!
Without further ado – let’s get going, shall we!…
40 Things to give up during Lent
They are split up into categories to make it even easier to do, but whether you declutter one of these 40 things each day of Lent, or you tackle them all over a few days, I know you’ll feel a real sense of accomplishment once the list is completed!
TIP – Doing one thing a day is really easy to slot into your schedule, and it can create a fantastic habit that will hopefully last even longer than just 40 days as well!
Get this checklist (it’s FREE!)
Your very own copy of the ‘4O THINGS TO DECLUTTER IN LENT’ is waiting for you in the Free Printables Library.
To get FREE access to the entire library simply click the button below – hope you enjoy!
5 Items to declutter from your living rooms:
- DVDs and CDs that you no longer watch or listen to (why not think about selling them to get some pennies back!)
- Old magazines and newspapers – if you’re keeping for a specific article then tear that out and create a folder of useful articles – then get rid of the rest (recycle if possible)
- Broken or damaged ornaments – only have what looks great on show
- Excess furniture – we often have too much furniture in rooms so clear out what you don’t really need and use and make way for some space!
- Cushions and Throws that are past their best – you want the space to feel relaxing and comfortable, and old flat cushions will not create this effect – look for cushions that have feather inserts as these will fluff up better and last longer than standard fillings.
5 Items to declutter from your bathroom:
- Any bottles of toiletries that are used up, or past their best
- Old toothbrushes – you should change your toothbrush every 3 months
- Too many bathroom toys – how many can your children play with at one time!
- Old towels – we usually keep far too many, so why not minimise what you have and stick with the better ones!. The rule I use is 2 per person (1 to wash and 1 to use), and a couple for guests (dependent on how often and how many guests you have), and lastly one for the gym per person – kept in the gym bag.
- Old medicine (give to your pharmacy for safe disposal)
Related: Decluttering The Bathroom? Free Printable Checklist To Tick 31 Things Off
5 Items to declutter from your bedroom:
- Makeup past its best – take a look at my post on makeup for the guidelines of the amount of times to keep each type
- Anything that doesn’t promote relaxation and sleep – if you can, take out your work, your laundry piles etc…..
- Excess bedding – keep 2 sets per bed (1 for the wash and 1 to use) and keep within easy reach of each bed
- Visible clutter – the tops of wardrobes are the biggest culprits for clutter, and can feel very overwhelming looming over you when you are in bed. You will automatically feel more restful in this room if you eliminate as much from sight as possible.
- Electronics – things like laptop, TV, mobile phones etc… all hinder restful sleep – if you can’t remove completely from the bedroom then make it a habit to turn them off every night at least.
Related: 17 Things To Declutter From Your Bedroom Today For A Better Nights Sleep
5 Items to declutter from your kitchen:
- Any food past its best before date
- Anything that’s chipped, cracked or broken
- Recipe books you simply don’t read or use (if you are keeping just for 1 or 2 recipes then consider photocopying these and giving the book itself to charity.
- Everything but the essentials off the work surfaces – all too often they are the place we put piles of post/paperwork/homework etc…. – clear the surfaces and you will much more quickly be able to clean the space and feel calmer
- Those one off items that you have never got round to using – bread maker / ice cream maker etc…. – we all have them!
Related: 30 Things To Declutter From Your Kitchen Today
5 Items to declutter from your wardrobe:
- Any clothes that you don’t feel great when wearing
- Anything that doesn’t fit
- Anything that is damaged/torn/with holes etc… thats beyond repair
- Anything you haven’t worn for over a year (unless its a specific item that only gets worn once in a while)
- Anything that doesn’t go with anything else (you’ll never wear it!)
Related: 25 Things To Declutter From Your Wardrobe – Get Your Clothes Under Control
5 Items to declutter from your home office:
- Pens that don’t work – get rid of them all so that you know you can find a working pen when needed
- Junk Mail / Old paperwork etc… – shred or recycle
- Your paperwork – whether you work from home or not, there will be a pile of paperwork to action no doubt in your home. Go through and do as much of this as you can in 30 minutes
- Your email – declutter what you can from emails – create folders for important items, but get rid of what you can. Ideally your inbox should be empty each day (or only have things you need to action in it)
- Your TO DO list – go through your TO DO list and ensure all items on it are still needed – as time goes on our TO DOs can change, and so you may be looking at a list much longer than what it really should be.
5 Items to declutter from your diary:
- Anything that you are doing each week that you don’t absolutely have to do, and that you don’t feel happy doing
- Anything that you cannot truly fit into your available time / schedule – start to say no or delegate more
- Social events that don’t make you happy – don’t force yourself to go out or do things because you think you should – save your energy for that which truly makes you smile
- Excess travel to places – try and make every journey count by doing as much as you can at each place – for example – when you are going into town make sure you have all your errands in a list so that you don’t have to go again later in the week and waste time – or if you visit relatives a long distance away aim to visit friends on the way back to make the most of the journey etc.
- Things that take too much time. For example – If you spend half a day food shopping each week – then look into shopping online. You can get on with other things while someone else shops and delivers your food for you.
5 Items to declutter from your mind and life during Lent:
- Anything you are worrying about – talk to someone or do something about any worries you have as this can clutter your mind to the point you can’t think about anything else.
- Any person who makes you feel low when you are around them
- Negativity – you are the best person you can be – so stop giving yourself a hard time about things!
- Any “I should be doing” thoughts – if you want to do something and keep talking about it, then just take one step towards doing it and you will feel happier immediately – (for example – if you want to get a job, then start brainstorming what jobs you are qualified for, what you love to do, and where you see yourself in 2 years time – that way you get more focused and it feels more real)
- Regrets – you can’t change the past, so theres no point in looking backwards. You are you because of the life you have had so far, so the very best thing to do now is to look forward and focus on what you want your life to look like from this point on.
Are you giving up anything for Lent, or have you been inspired to declutter your home and life for the next 40 days?
If so – I hope it goes really well!
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