Steps To Decluttering Your Bedroom

Steps To Decluttering Your Bedroom

Your bedroom is the first thing you see when you wake up in the morning and the last before you fall asleep at night. If it's cluttered and chaotic, it doesn't just impact your physical surroundings, but your mental wellbeing too.

We're all guilty of hoarding things - tote bags, old pairs of shoes, magazines we loved reading years ago - but do we really need all of this stuff?

Decluttering not only makes your room neater, cleaner and so much more Instagrammable, but it also streamlines your life. That's less time wasted looking for what you need, fewer things to maintain and repair and less space taken up by storing possessions you'll probably never use again.

But how do you know what to keep, sell, or donate? Here's our expert guide to help you make some cash from your clutter as well as figure out what you really don't need.

1. Be practical

If you're the kind of person that likes to hang on to seemingly pointlessly possessions (you'll definitely need a thousand plastic bags one day, right?), decluttering can seem like a huge emotional hurdle. Professional declutterer Kate Ibbotson of A Tidy Mind recommends simplifying the process by being organised. 'Have three different coloured bags at the ready - one for donations, one for items to sell and one for rubbish,' she says. Go through items logically: ask yourself how often you actually use it, whether it brings you happiness or (honestly) whether it's simply taking up space in your home.

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2. Think about your bank balance

You may have a hidden gold mine in your wardrobe - Kate advises using eBay to make a tidy profit from your unwanted garments. Listing your clothes online 'will increase your chances of finding a buyer quickly', says Kate. 'Ensure you're selling quality items. Designer clothes are always going to give a good return as are 'cult' products such as popular children's toys and electrical goods, like hair straighteners.' But you can still make good money from selling more general items, too - that high street sweater you bought a few years back might be someone else's perfect piece.

3. Be efficient with your time

Rather than starting to declutter, getting overwhelmed and leaving everything you want to sell in a corner, deal with your 'to sell' items right away. The first step? Taking pictures of every piece. 'Photograph them in good light from different angles, being sure to highlight any faults or unique features,' advises Kate. If you're planning on using eBay to list your items, download the app so you can upload your photos straight from your phone.

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4. Don't delay decisions

Although it can be tempting, avoid storing unwanted possessions in a cupboard, attic, suitcase or shed. Instead, decide what you're going to do with them immediately. 'You're just postponing dealing with the clutter and it's gathering more dust elsewhere,' says Kate. 'Just because it's out of sight, it doesn't mean it can't still weigh on your mind.'

5. Do your research

Before going online and listing your items for what you think they're worth, do some due diligence to make sure you're being realistic in your valuation. On eBay, you can search for the 'recently ended auctions' for a particular item, which should give you an idea of what similar items are selling for. Make sure you don't undervalue pieces you think might be worth more, though. 'Your aim is to make as good a return as possible', says Kate.

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6. Don't be scared to let go of larger items

'If that dressing table doesn't fit or look right in your bedroom, that's going to affect your quality of life - don't hold onto it because of what you originally paid for it,' says Kate. 'If it's an inherited piece, ask yourself if you can photograph it to keep the memory alive and then let it go. If you're tempted to keep it for the future, weigh up the cost of storing it and the chances of it getting damaged.' Kate suggests then starting afresh with furniture that is perfect for the here and now - list a large item for collection only on eBay to attract local buyers, or consider a courier company to transport higher value items to buyers.

7. Donate things to charity

While the age-old tradition of dropping bags off at the local charity store is still alive and well, you can make life so much simpler by selling on eBay For Charity - simply select the items you want to give away and choose to donate 10-100% of the final selling price to a registered charity of your choice. It's simultaneously space-saving and charitable.

With millions of buyers ready and waiting, there's no better place for you to sell than eBay. Get listing now.

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Steps To Decluttering Your Bedroom

Source: https://www.housebeautiful.com/uk/renovate/a1310/the-expert-guide-to-decluttering-your-bedroom/