Struggling to figure out what to get rid of and what to keep? Decluttering challenges are a great way to jump-start your home's decluttering. We tend to get frustrated and blocked from getting rid of things because we just don't know where to start. My Loves Challenge will help you pinpoint the items you want to keep and those you are OK with letting go of, so you can declutter and review the other items.
If you are feeling overwhelmed by your stuff, I suggest you start by finding the things in your home that you love. Let's determine what you love and want to keep before we start decluttering. I am challenging you to a "31 Days of Love" challenge. The premise is simple. Find 31 items in your home that you truly love and don't want to get rid of.
Jump to:
- Key Takeaways
- Why should I do this loves challenge?
- How does this loves challenge work?
- What should you do with the love list below after you are done?
- Free Printable
- Get the free "Loves Challenge" printable and our other ebooks.
- Subscribe
- How to determine what you love in your home?
- 8 Questions to ask yourself to decide on what you love.
- What things may I be interested in keeping in my home?
- How to Make Masculine Days of the Week Clothing Organizer
- How to Make a Chalk Paint Days of the Week Clothing Organizer
- DIY Affordable Weekday Clothing Organizer - upcycling project
- How to Make Repurposed DIY Day of the Week Closet Dividers
- DIY Small Garage Organization Project
- How To Make An Effective Garage Organization
- 11 Surprising Signs Your Garage Needs Purging
- 4 Areas of Your Garage to Keep Safe and Organized
- 4 Areas of Your Garage to Keep Safe and Organized
- 15 Garage Items to Toss for a Stress-Free Place and a Garage Organization DIY Project
- Garage Organizing Challenge
- Frequently Asked Questions: The 31 Days of Love Decluttering Challenge
- Closing
Key Takeaways
- The loves challenge helps you identify 31 items in your home that you truly love, making decluttering easier.
- Each day, choose one item, write down its significance, and plan who to pass it on to later.
- Use the provided printable to keep track of your love list and the stories behind each item.
- Consider essential items that enhance your daily life, even if they aren't emotionally cherished.
- This challenge fosters clarity about what to keep and what to let go of, making the decluttering process less overwhelming.
Why should I do this loves challenge?
This love challenge will show you what you actually enjoy in your home. What makes you happy when you see it? And what do you want to pass on to others? All these items make you happy to see them and the memories they bring, so knowing them and not forgetting them is key to understanding what you do not want in your home.
How does this loves challenge work?
First, you need to know what you love before you know what you do not need or want in your home. That's the key to this challenge.
Now, each day, pick an item and describe and write down what it is, where it is in your home, and why you love it. And, if you want, take a moment to determine who you would like to give it to after you have passed.
Remember what this item means, the story (affiliate) it tells, and if you want, write that down on a separate piece of paper. And attach it to the bottom 31 Days of Love sheet. Feel free to make it into a binder (affiliate) to share as part of your estate.
What should you do with the love list below after you are done?
You can easily keep this list in your safe (affiliate) or in your will, so your family knows what you absolutely loved in your home and why. I added a "Give to" section, where you can write who you want to give the item to, if you wish.
Free Printable
Here is a free printable you can use, or you can make your own.
You can use my printable here or make your own on a piece of paper. There are two pages:
The first page is where you would write the brief of what you love, why, and where it is, and to whom to give it.
Then the second page is for adding more details. Adding the story (affiliate) of how you got the item, what it means to you, etc., is great to include on this sheet so the person who receives it will truly understand why you chose to give it to them.
Get the free "Loves Challenge" printable and our other ebooks.
How to determine what you love in your home?
I'm glad you asked. Answer these questions while looking around your home. Write down the items on the free printable below.
8 Questions to ask yourself to decide on what you love.
- Does the item bring you happy memories when you look at it? If it brings you no emotion, it is probably not loved.
- Does it represent a time in your life you want to remember? If it does not, it can be purged.
- Are you proud of the item because it shows you accomplished something in the past?
- When looking at the product, does it look beautiful to you?
- Does it represent what you want in your future?
- Do you look at this item every day and feel a sense of happiness?
- Is the item something that will remind you of your goals and where you want to be in the future?
- If you had to move to a smaller home, would this item go with you?
Some of these items may be needed and not necessarily loved, and that's OK. If it makes your life better having it around and using it for either emotional enrichment or functional purposes, it's a keeper.
Hopefully, after you ask yourself these questions, you will be able to find 31 items you love and see which ones you can do without.
What things may I be interested in keeping in my home?
Things in the home can easily make you feel like you don't want them becuase it hasn't been taken care of. But there are some items that you may know you need to keep right away. Below is a list of these items you may want to keep.
Living Room items you may want to keep
In the living room, you may want to keep your TV, your sofa, coffee table (affiliate), end tables, and chairs. These items should be ones you use often or need when company comes over.
Dining Room items you may want to keep
In the dining room, these items can be hidden away and forgotten. Especially if you do not host parties often. So, go through your buffet or china cabinet to remove any platters (affiliate) as the first step. Some items you may want to keep are.
Candlesticks and candles (affiliate), if you use them often.
Plate sets, platters (affiliate), and trivets are used throughout the year. We have several we use for different holidays, so we usually keep them all.
Liquor, if you use it. Go through your liquor bottles and see if any have gone bad or are finished but not removed.
Chairs and dining room table. If you use your dining room for eating or entertaining, you will probably want to keep these items. Some people may not use their dining room. So, instead, they turn them into a playroom for kids or a home office.
Kitchen items you may want to keep
There are many things that may get forgotten in the kitchen. Things like small appliances (affiliate) are bought once and only used once, and can easily be hidden away in a back-of-the-cabinet or deep pantry (affiliate).
The items below will probably need to be kept to make your cooking easier.
Plates and bowls - for reheating food or just a place to put your finished dish. If you have more than you need, you can get rid of some of them.
Silverware and utensils (affiliate) - These items can easily pile up over time. Think of kids coming back from college, and their silverware ends up in the drawers. Pull out the ones you use often. Then, examine the items left.
Serving platters (affiliate) - paring down your collection of platters (affiliate) is a great way to reduce the stuff in your kitchen. Place the ones you may want to get rid of on the top shelf of your cabinets. Then revisit in a year. Did you have to pull out the ladder to get to them? If not, you can get rid of them.
Bedroom items you may want to keep
Aw, the bedroom - the area of the home that needs to be serene and tranquil. Things you will definitely need to keep in the bedroom are easy to spot.
Bed and bedding are needed, but if several pillows are moved nightly just to go to bed, you may want to get rid of them.
Nightstands (affiliate) - These are helpful at night, but if you have drawers, the items in them may not be useful. Pull out each drawer and remove any unwanted items.
Dresser - They are very helpful for organizing clothing. But if you have several of them and they don't serve a purpose, you may want to get rid of one or two. Each drawer should hold items you need for getting ready in the morning, or store out-of-season clothes, as I use mine for.
Closet items you may want to keep
The closet will be the most difficult for many people, especially those who love shopping for clothing. Below are some items you may want to keep, but will most likely need to pare down.
Tops/bottoms - matching the top with the bottom is a great way to see what you still don't like. I like arranging items by day of the week using day-of-the-week hooks (see my other DIY posts below) to determine what items I do not want to keep.
How to Make Masculine Days of the Week Clothing Organizer
How to Make a Chalk Paint Days of the Week Clothing Organizer
DIY Affordable Weekday Clothing Organizer - upcycling project
How to Make Repurposed DIY Day of the Week Closet Dividers
Undergarments/bras - The items in front are usually the items you wear often. The items in the back are not.
Shoes (affiliate) - The ones that are not dusty and in the front or on top of other shoes (affiliate) are the ones you probably wear more often.
Bathroom items you may want to keep
There are many small items in the bathroom that you may want to keep.
Makeup and hair supplies - things you use often. Taking these items out first and setting them aside gives a perfect view of what is not wanted or used. Visit my post "Beauty supplies organization" for tips on which items to keep and expiration date stickers.
Linen closet supplies - these items can get piled up often. But if you have assigned bids for certain items, such as travel supplies, you can easily set them aside and go through the miscellaneous bins.
Cleaning supplies - We tend to keep them in the bathroom, but over time, we may use some up and leave the bottle in the cabinet or closet. These items can easily be removed with little effort.
Garage items you may want to keep
The garage (affiliate) is an interesting area. It collects several things. And, since we do not go in there often, especially in the winter, we forget about them. Some items you may need to keep in this space are.
The car and car supplies should be stored together in the garage (affiliate).
Yard tools (affiliate) that are used often.
Visit our garage (affiliate) organization posts below to see other items.
DIY Small Garage Organization Project
How To Make An Effective Garage Organization
11 Surprising Signs Your Garage Needs Purging
4 Areas of Your Garage to Keep Safe and Organized
4 Areas of Your Garage to Keep Safe and Organized
15 Garage Items to Toss for a Stress-Free Place and a Garage Organization DIY Project
Garage Organizing Challenge
Kids' room items you may want to keep
Kids usually have a playroom and a bedroom. Both these rooms have many things you may want to keep. But being selective and asking your children what their favorite things are will help you determine what isn't important. Below are some items you may want to keep.
Clothing that fits right now or in the next 3-6 months. Kids grow fast, so keep the clothes that fit right now and get rid of the ones they have grown out of is your best bet to remove clutter in their closets and bedrooms.
Shoes (affiliate) that fit and are not destroyed. If there are hand-me-down shoes (affiliate), place them in a tote and store them with the size label (affiliate) attached so they are easy to find when you need them.
Learning toys. These toys are especially helpful for kids who are homeschooled or toddlers. But when the kids learned the skills, you can pass them on to others.
If you have a home office, you can visit my home office challenge, "30 Desk Items To Throw Away For A Tidy Space," on our sister site, Sabrina's Admin Services. Visit our How To Organize a Functional Home Workspace for organizing ideas.
Frequently Asked Questions: The 31 Days of Love Decluttering Challenge
Have more questions? Below are frequently asked questions to help you with this challenge.
The 31 Days of Love Challenge is a decluttering exercise that helps you identify what you truly love in your home before deciding what to let go. Each day for 31 days, you choose one item you love and record what it is, where it lives in your home, and why it matters to you.
Most people feel stuck when decluttering because they don't know where to begin. By identifying what you love first, you create a clear picture of what deserves a place in your home - making it much easier to recognize what no longer serves you.
Very little! Each day you simply choose one item, write a brief description of it, note where it is, explain why you love it, and optionally record who you'd like to pass it on to someday. It can take as little as five minutes.
That's actually valuable information! If you're struggling to find 31 items, it may be a sign that your home is filled with things that don't bring you joy, which gives you even more clarity about what needs to go.
Here are some more questions.
There are a few more questions you may be wondering about regarding this challenge.
Ask yourself a few key questions: Does it bring you happy memories? Does it represent something you accomplished or a time in your life you want to remember? Would you take it with you if you moved to a smaller home? If you answered yes to any of these, it's likely a keeper.
Absolutely. If an item makes your life better-whether functionally or emotionally-it belongs on your list. Not everything we love is sentimental; some things are simply essential to our daily comfort.
Your list is a wonderful keepsake. Consider storing it in your safe, including it with your will, or turning it into a binder to share as part of your estate. The "Give To" section helps your family understand your wishes for each cherished item.
Yes! A free, printable two-page PDF is available. The first page is for recording each item, why you love it, and who you'd like to give it to. The second page gives you space to tell the full story behind the item, which is a meaningful gift for whoever receives it.
Yes, and it's a great exercise for children too! Ask them what their favorite items are - this helps you figure out what toys, clothes, and belongings matter most to them before decluttering their rooms.
Here is my last question.
There's no wrong answer, but starting in a room you spend the most time in - like the living room or bedroom - often makes it easier to identify items you genuinely love and use daily.
Closing
I hope this helps you decide what you don't want to part with and, as a result, determine what you are willing to get rid of. Please come back and let me know how the challenge is going for you by leaving a comment below. I would love to hear from you.
Visit our other home organizing challenges below for more motivation!
Below are some other bloggers' challenges that may interest you, too.
31 Day Love Your Home Challenge
Make a list of 20 things you love about your home (31 days to Love the Home You Have)
Please note that these are affiliate links through Amazon (affiliate), and at no additional cost to you, I will earn an affiliate fee if you decide to make a purchase.
Seana Turner says
31 items feels like a lot, but once I got started, I think I could easily find them. It's sort of like keeping a gratitude journal, where you track something every day. Once you develop the discipline of being thankful, you start to notice more things to be thankful for.
I think this would be a fun thing to do with children over a monthlong period. Have every family member bring something they really love to the dinner table and talk about why. Sort of a "show and tell" of favorite things. Your sheets would make it easy to keep track of them.
A "lovely" idea!
Sabrina Quairoli says
I love the comparison to a gratitude journal. Great idea! Yes, this could be a whole family event. The kids could really get into sharing their favorite things resulting in the parents being more motivated to find what brings them joy as well. Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Seana. I really appreciate it.
Linda Samuels says
What a great idea to go on a treasure hunt (or love hunt) first! That can make letting go so much easier. I also appreciate your idea of writing a story and indicating who an object will get passed on to. That's a lovely way of extending the enjoyment and history of your things while also knowing it will move on to someone who will appreciate it.
Sabrina Quairoli says
Thanks, Linda. This part wasn't added last time I wrote this post, but I found that, looking through my own things and writing down the story of where it came from and why I loved it, helped me convey my passion for the item. And sometimes I can easily get rid of them and just keep a photo. =)
Janet Barclay says
This is an interesting way of looking at our belongings. As soon as I started the post, I thought, "What would I bring if I was moving to a smaller place?" so it was interesting that was one of your examples.
I really like the idea of writing stories about things so others know their significance after we're gone. This gives them the freedom to keep the stories and let go of the items if they don't fit into their lives. I have two pieces of furniture because I learned their origins when my father was dying and decided to keep them. They are special to me, but won't be on my Love list because I don't really need them.
Sabrina Quairoli says
Good point, Janet. That is so true. Descendants do not need to keep the loved item, they can just keep the journal sheet and a picture of the item. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Diane Quintana says
This is terrific, Sabrina. I really like the printables people can use to guide them as they work on this exercise. Plus the perspective is so positive - looking for things to keep and understanding why you are keeping them makes letting go of other things easier.
Sabrina Quairoli says
Thanks, Diane. I agree, I wanted to reshare it but really make the positivity be the main point of the post. No one wants to think about death but coming from a place of loving and passing on items makes it a lot easier to manage. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. I really appreciate it.
Lucy Kelly says
Great set of questions to ask, Sabrina! I love it 😉
Janet Schiesl says
I love a good challenge. Letting go have so many benefits that people don't see or understand until they have done the delcuttering. They fill up that newly emptied space with possibilities.
Julie Bestry says
Great post, Sabrina. By focusing on what you love, you eliminate all the fears that people have regarding parting with items. Picking your favorites, by the power of eliminating, makes it clear what's less worthy, too. Sneaky and brilliant!
Linda Samuels says
This is such a great perspective on decluttering. Instead of hunting for what you want to release, focus on what you love. And from there, the items that can go will become more obvious. Plus, it puts a positive spin on the decluttering process. I love all the questions you posed, but that last one really resonated. - "If you had to move to a smaller home, would you take this with you?" That cuts to the core. There's a similar one, "If I saw this in a store now, would I buy it?" We often collect things and fast forward a month, year, or decade, and those things no longer have purpose or meaning for us. The quality of our decisions is directly related to the quality of the questions we ask. And you've provided a lot of great questions!
LISA GESSERT says
This is a great blog Sabrina , one that will never be outdated! Great printable!
Ronni Eisenberg says
I often look around my home, there are so many items that have been passed down that, just as you said, spark a feeling or memory. There are other items that I’d love to replace, as soon as I can find a replacement, because they’ve worn out their welcome.
I really liked what you said, “Some of these items may be needed and not necessarily loved, and that's OK. If it makes your life better having it around and using it for either emotional enrichment or functional purposes, it's a keeper.” This gives us permission to hold on or let go. That’s perfect for a challenge.
Diane N Quintana says
This is great way to determine what should stay or go in your home. I love this twist on decluttering. If you don't know what you love, how can you figure out what should stay in your home?
Janet Barclay says
This is definitely another way of looking at things. There are many items I've had for decades and I don't think about whether or not I love them, or if I would miss them if I gave them away. There's no urgency (I don't think) but it would be good to start thinking about these things in preparation for my next downsizing.
Hilda Rodgers says
I do this with kids so they don't feel like they're being pressured to get rid of a lot of stuff... they have a hard time prioritizing things and this helps. I'll have to start doing this with adults too 🙂 Thanks for the great idea Sabrina!
Sabrina says
So, do I. That's where I got the idea from. Kids love to show what they love. =) After all, aren't we all kids at heart? Thanks for commenting.
Liana George says
Love your "twist" on this idea! So many people focus on what they're "losing" and your approach helps them focus on what truly matters. Fantastic!
Sabrina says
I totally agree. My goal is to motivate them to take action. Hopefully, this will do the trick. Thanks for commenting.
Rose Mary Griffith says
As an avid reader, keeping books is simply part of who I am. However, after moving at least a zillion times, I have approached my books with the "deserted island" point of view. If I knew I would be living somewhere tomorrow where I could only take books I could read and re-read, what would I choose to take? That helps me keep hold of the books I love and let go of the rest. Like the big box I donated to the library today.
Other stuff? Who cares.
Sabrina says
That's awesome that you know what you love, Rose Mary.
Sarah Soboleski says
Love your reverse psychology method for tackling the Decluttering process! I think this will resonate with a lot of people. Thanks for sharing!
Sabrina says
Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Sarah! Happy new year.
Andi Willis says
What a great way to reverse the purging process! I frequently push clients a little harder when they are wavering on an object even though it brings negative thoughts and feelings. This is another great way to look at things. Thanks!
Sabrina says
Thanks Andi for stopping by and commenting.
Ellen Delap says
Love this positive perspective! With knowing what you love, it's easier to let go later. Bringing out the positive always helps us work more successfully.
Sabrina says
Definitely! Thanks for commenting, Ellan.
Natalie Gallagher says
Way to reframe the decluttering/purging process! I need to get cracking on this exercise myself...
Sabrina says
Thanks, Natalie, I get sick of saying "get rid of stuff" all the time. This was my solution to change things up a bit. =)
Seana Turner says
Nice idea to focus on the positive/love side instead of the negative/don't like side!
Sabrina says
Thanks Seana! It was fun to make.
Autumn Leopold says
I love this positive and uplifting post! I use a printable like this with my senior clients and add another category: Who? Who do they want it to go to in their family. Great post Sabrina!
Sabrina says
That's a great idea, Autumn. Thanks for sharing. I love this challenge. It really does make it fun and not sad or a chore. =)