Clutter Storage – Clever Options for Minimalist Living

Clutter storage can be anything-from bags and boxes to an attic or unused bedroom.  When we start feeling overwhelmed by all of the clutter, it’s time to reorganize and prioritize our clutter-and perhaps even reduce it!

Clutter storage is the physical space used to store things we don’t often use.  We can reduce clutter by starting small, letting go of stuff, and prioritizing needs over wants.  We can also store through various types of storage for each room as well as organization, categories, and labeling.

Are you feeling overwhelmed by all of the stuff around your home?  Are you looking for better storage solutions for all of your clutter?

What Is Clutter Storage?

Clutter storage is the boxes, shelves, bags, and rooms or buildings used to store the stuff you don’t often use.  So what’s clutter?  Clutter can be defined as belongings, collectibles, and items that aren’t used much (if at all) and tend to just take up space.  Clutter is also known as the state in which excess items, or their representation or organization, degrade performance at some tasks. But what’s clutter to you may not be clutter to me!  What can we do about clutter then?  Let’s explore.

How to Reduce Clutter

When you’re feeling surrounded or overwhelmed by clutter, it’s best to start sorting it out and getting rid of some of it.  Whether that’s through a garage sale or the storage solutions place, you have to start somewhere.  We’re going to share some tips with you for reducing all of that clutter.

 Tips for Reducing Clutter

Decluttering can be overwhelming to think about, but it can also bring joy and order (i.e. peace) to your life.  There’s something super satisfying about sorting through and organizing the clutter, and anyone can do it.  Here are some tips for reducing your clutter:

1. Start Small – A single bookshelf, a corner in your kids’ bedroom, or the garage workbench.  Starting small makes it feel more manageable than trying to take on an entire room at once.
2. Ask for Help – If it feels like too daunting of a task or you don’t know how or where to start, ask someone to help you.  Not only can they help you come up with ideas on how to declutter, they can help you with the process too.
3. Start at Some Place You Like to Hang Out and Relax – You need someplace to destress and chill that’s uncluttered.  Then once you’re done, you can relax in your newly decluttered space before tackling the next task.
4. Cherish Memories-Not Clutter – Hold on to special events and memories, not the things you collected from those events.  Memories don’t take up physical space!
5. Prioritize Needs Over Wants – If you need it to survive, it’s worth keeping.  If it doesn’t contribute to survival or happiness, you don’t need it.  If you want it AND you’ll use it, go ahead and keep it.
6. Use the 6-Month Rule – If you haven’t used it or thought about it in 6 months, you don’t need it.  Donate or trash.  The only exception is holiday stuff-give that category about a year when considering keeping or trashing.

When you’re feeling surrounded or overwhelmed by clutter, it’s best to start sorting it out and getting rid of some of it.

How to Store Clutter

When it comes to how to store clutter, it’s not always all clutter.  Sometimes it’s memorabilia that can’t be replaced, and other times it’s extra supplies you just don’t need right now.  There are things you may need in the near future, and other things that can be stored for later use. Some clutter is visual, or on work surfaces, such as a desk. Ruth Rosenholtz, Yuanzhen Li, and Lisa Nakano talk about visual clutter in their research study, Measuring Visual Clutter, published in the journal of Vision.

Tips for Storing Clutter

Sometimes we just need to find a better way to store all of our stuff.  You’d be amazed at how little we actually maximize the space that we have available!  Let’s review some tips for storing clutter:

1. Categorize – Group things together by category.  Office supplies, gift wrapping supplies, winter clothing, etc.
2. Accessibility – Consider how easily accessible you need these things to be.  Will you need it in the next week?  Store it close by.  Will it be 6 months?  Consider the garage or a shed.
3. Labeling – Label the category appropriately so it’s easy to identify what is where-especially for easy accessibility.
4. Storage Type – Find the types of boxes, bags, bins, and baskets that not only fit the space available, but also fit the category you’re trying to store.  Make it look nice so when you open the door you’re not instantly overwhelmed.
5. Space – Consider the amount of space available and use the right storage type that fits and keeps the storage space looking nice. Dealing with clutter entails decisions over how much space people have, what they can afford to buy or replace, and moral ideas of what is wasteful.

Researched insights can help guide us in determining what to declutter and how to organize things. According to the Sociological Review journal, in which Mary Douglas and Michael Thompson outline the vibrancy and potential of unnoticed materials and matter of everyday life.

What’s great is there are plenty of resources available to help you declutter, organize, and store your clutter.  From big box stores to companies that will declutter and reorganize for you, there are plenty of options out there-just choose what works best for you and your situation.

Storage Clutter Ideas

Clutter storage ideas help you organize and store your belongings effectively, keeping your space clean and tidy. Evaluate your storage needs, consider the available space, and choose storage solutions that fit your lifestyle and help keep your belongings organized and easily accessible. Everyone’s got different tastes and different spaces when it comes to storage clutter ideas.  There’s the right storage available for everyone-just name your space!

Bag Chair Storage for Clutter

Bag chair storage for clutter is a fresh new take on stuffed toy storage for kids!  It looks like a beanbag, but it unzips to reveal storage for soft toys.  What a great way to declutter a kids’ room of stuffed toys!  These come in different shapes, sizes, and patterns-so pick out the one that you think they’ll like, or let them choose!  Who knows-you might even be able to find one for all those pillows and blankets you need to store.

 Kids Room Storage for Clutter

Kids room storage for clutter is just as unique as the kid who needs the storage.  To teach your kids good organization skills, get them involved!  Let them pick out the type of storage-whether it’s bins, shelves, baskets, or all of the above, and have them help with the decluttering and organizing.  That way you can be sure they’ll use it!  From captain’s beds with storage drawers underneath to toy hammocks and hanging shoe holders, there are multiple options for kids room storage for clutter.

Bedroom Storage for Clutter

The bedroom is a space for rest and rejuvenation, and bedroom storage for clutter should assist with keeping it a restful space.  Maximize your closet by adding a storage solution that fits the space and works for you.  Additional shelving, clothing racks, drawers, and baskets can help better utilize your closet and reduce the clutter in any bedroom.  Multipurpose storage solutions and closet systems can really help you personalize your closet and bedroom space with tailored options and systems that work perfectly.

Free Storage for Clutter

You don’t always need to go out and spend a fortune on storage solutions-they may already be right under your nose!  All it takes is a bit of decluttering and reorganization, and you may not have to spend a dime.  Look around your home at the baskets, bins, and shelves you already have-then make a plan to better utilize your space.  Especially if you can collect similar-looking baskets or storage bins-you can really make any closet or pantry look pretty and super organized.  I recently reorganized my pantry with storage baskets I had all throughout my house-now my pantry looks like something out of a magazine.  You can do it too!

In this helpful video, learn organizing tips to minimize and essentialize household clutter room by room:

Related Insights

How do I store my clutter?

Storing clutter doesn’t have to be difficult-it needs to be manageable.  It starts with decluttering and weeding out the things you don’t need or don’t use.  Then you’ll be able to better utilize the space and storage you have on hand for a more manageable amount of clutter.

 How do you organize and hide clutter?

The best way to organize and hide clutter is to categorize and store behind closed doors (or curtains).  Use pretty bins, elegant clear storage, or even woven baskets to store your clutter.  Organize by size, type, color, or usage date.  Then close the door or hang a nice curtain in front of an open space.

 What is the fastest way to organize clutter?

The fastest way to organize clutter is to place it in categories.  There’s office clutter that consists of papers, writing supplies, printer supplies, electrical cords, etc.  Then there’s kitchen clutter that consists of cooking utensils, eating utensils, cleaning supplies, linens, spices, baking supplies, snack foods, etc.  Figure out the categories that work for you and go on from there!

Areas Where Real People Would Like to Minimize Clutter

I asked friends and family to list an area in their homes where they struggle with clutter. Here is what they shared and what I learned from the poll, and the percentages of their responses.

Other Resources:

• Clutter – Causes, Fixes, and Methods for Simple Living
• Being Clutter Free – Benefits from My Own Experience
• Declutter Your Mind: Succesful Methods from Real Practice
• Declutter Challenge – Getting Motivated for Simple Living

You can find and use the right storage solutions for your clutter (and belongings).  It’s a great way to create a space that is free of clutter, freeing up time and space to be better used by you and your family.  Try the tips and tricks and let us know what you think!  What works for you?