Are you overwhelmed with the decluttering process? Do you wish you could get through the clutter in your home fast? To help you streamline and declutter your home, here are 21 items you can declutter and recycle right now to jump-start your decluttering journey. Let's dive in and also find places to donate these specific items.
Now, this list is not just any decluttering list of items you can throw away. These items can also be recycled, donated, or repurposed. See the list below in the table of contents and pick the ones you want to get rid of right now, or do the entire list. Happy Decluttering!
Jump to:
- Magazines (newspapers):
- Tupperware (clear containers):
- Clear glass bowls:
- Wire hangers:
- Old shoes/sneakers:
- Clothing:
- Toys:
- Charitable Locations To Donate Stuff
- Rusty Containers / Mason Jars:
- Old toothbrushes:
- Holiday/birthday cards:
- Old Calendars/planners:
- Last year's school paperwork:
- What To Do with Old Yearbooks
- Old wedding gifts:
- Unused glass vases:
- DVDs / CDs:
- Unmatched unused dishware:
- Costume jewelry:
- Scarves:
- Paper products:
- Old paper files from a filing cabinet:
- Unwanted Books:
- Other Items you may want to donate right now.
- How to get rid of unwanted items?
Magazines (newspapers):
These are papers/magazines in your home office or your bathroom/powder room areas. It could even be in your grilling (affiliate) storage bins that you may use for kindling.
Tupperware (clear containers):
Match each lid to the bowl it belongs to. Then recycle the ones that don't fit and the shabby ones. If they are clear plastic, recycling them is OK. Colored containers will need to be trashed or donated to a charity if they are in good condition.
Clear glass bowls:
We all have extra glass bowls that we replaced with new ones but forgot to get rid of the older ones. Do this now. Clear glass can usually be recycled.
Wire hangers:
If you go to the dry cleaners often, you probably have several wire hangers. Visit your nearby dry cleaner and ask if they accept the hangers back. If not, you can probably recycle them through your trash removal company.
Old shoes/sneakers:
Some charities accept gently used old shoes (affiliate). But, they have to be like new. If you have a box, that's even better. Nike stores take shoes (affiliate) of any brand. Check here to learn more.
Clothing:
Clothing is probably the easiest to get rid of quickly. Make sure they are in good condition and washed before bringing them to a charity. Call them up first or visit their website to see what they need. Visit our frequently updated charitable locations page.
Go through baby clothes also, visit my other post about where to donate baby room items.
Toys:
Toys can range from small to large, from baby to teenager. Find those toys that are behind other items and have a layer of dirt on them. Ask your kids to help weed through them with you. Pick items in those rarely visited areas of the home. Some newer toys will say they are recyclable on their packaging, especially if they are plastic, while others will not. But if the items are gently used, you can donate them too.
Charitable Locations To Donate Stuff
When you're getting rid of items, instead of throwing them away, consider donating gently used items to a local charity or mailing them to a worthy cause listed below. With some planning, you can make a big difference in someone's life! Below is a list of charities I have found over the 25+ years
Rusty Containers / Mason Jars:
If you have a garage (affiliate) filled with reused cans filled with nails or other things, you can probably recycle the cans. I would not recommend recycling the nails, though. You can scrap nails and make a little money if you have many.
Old toothbrushes:
Another thing you can declutter is your old toothbrushes. If you are getting rid of old toothbrushes instead of trashing them, you can reuse them for cleaning. They work great to clean small crevices on track sliding doors and windows.
Holiday/birthday cards:
I found that St. Jude's Ranch for Children charity accepts the front only of greeting cards (affiliate) from companies: Hallmark, American Greetings, or Disney. Check the back of the card to see who made it, and just send the front to the address on the website. Or, you can create different holiday ornaments (affiliate) using your favorite card cover, decoupage glue, and a glass ornament.
Old Calendars/planners:
Now, be honest, how often do you look at your old planner and calendars? If you have beautiful calendar pictures, try cutting them out to a standard picture frame size and hanging them on the wall. Then, shred or recycle the paper. We very rarely look through the old planner again.
Last year's school paperwork:
A great time to pull these old-school papers is in the summertime. Recycle as much of the paper as you can. Some glossy paper is not recyclable. If you are getting rid of yearbooks, you can check out our post below.
What To Do with Old Yearbooks
I have been going through my memorabilia. And I have A LOT OF IT. When I came across my yearbooks, I wondered what to do with them. What condition should they be in to donate them? Today, I am going to share with you what I found.
Old wedding gifts:
Do you have any unused gifts in your basement or closet? Donate them to your favorite household charity.
Unused glass vases:
Another area to declutter is your glass vases. In the past, did you receive flowers in vases and not know what to do with them? These items are recyclable right away. The colored glass may not be recyclable, though.
DVDs / CDs:
Flip through your CD and DVD collections. Are there any kid movies or albums your kids don't like any longer? Pull them out and donate them or give them to a friend or family member with kids that age. They will love it.
Unmatched unused dishware:
Have a new set of dishware (affiliate)? Go through and clear out the old items that do not match. The clear glass items are recyclable. If you have a collection of 2 or 4 pieces with all the parts that are in good condition, donate them to a charity or give them to your college-bound kid.
Costume jewelry:
How often do you weed through your costume jewelry (affiliate)? Not usually, right? This one is very common. People tend to get stuck on how to get rid of these unwanted items. Visit our Places to Donate Jewelry post. If you want to sell them, you should get it appraised first.
Scarves:
Another area to declutter is your scarves. If I don't wear a scarf anymore, but I still love it, I would hang it around the house to show it off. It can also lie on a coffee table (affiliate) to add color to a living room.
You can donate these to nearby thrift stores, homeless shelters, and animal shelters, depending on the type of scarves they are. Wool scarves work well for homeless shelters because they keep visitors warm in winter. Make sure you contact the location before dropping off the scarves to see if they will take them.
Paper products:
How many 3-4 paper plates from a party that happened several years ago do you have? Pull them out and use those for kids' snacks or your kids' playdate, so that you can use them up. You can also donate them to your kids' classroom for any activities they may be doing.
Old paper files from a filing cabinet:
Oh, the dreaded filing cabinet (affiliate). Yes, you know I had to add this one to the list. Many of these papers can go right into the recycling bin (affiliate). But be sure to pull out any personal information that needs shredding. Check out the nearby recycling and shredder events in your area I have some information for Pennsylvania on this page.
Unwanted Books:
And, last but not least, are the unwanted books. Going through the younger children's books is a great place to start. Check out my post about places to donate unwanted books.
"Items are only cluttering if they stop you from enjoying your home. So, don't let them." ~ Sabrina Quairoli Read more: 21 items in Your Home You Can Declutter and Recycle right now Share on X
Other Items you may want to donate right now.
While these items are great, I found some more that can easily be donated to help others in need. Check out my post about donating items for a cause.
Hats (affiliate), gloves, sweatpants, and coats are great to donate to homeless shelters.
Blankets and towels are great to donate to animal hospitals and animal shelters.
Socks (affiliate) with tags or packaged socks (affiliate) are great for shelters and other charitable organizations.
Hand/foot warmers that are not too old can be donated to schools, marching band groups, and homeless shelters.
Bags like totes (affiliate), backpacks (affiliate), pocketbooks, and reusable shopping bags (affiliate) can be donated to donation locations.
By clearing out all these items, you will feel a lightness in your home and feel motivated to invite people over and enjoy your space again. If you have larger items that you feel you need help getting rid of, read on.
How to get rid of unwanted items?
Check with your trash removal company and see what they recycle before recycling your unwanted items. Below are trash removal companies in the eastern PA region. Some of these links are specifically about their recycling programs and what they accept. Click through and find out more. These companies are PAID junk removal companies.
TrashButler / College H.U.N.K.s
Also, check around for local shelters and other places to see if any of your items can be donated there.
Check our vast collection of places to donate items, a variety of items.
I hope this inspires you to eliminate the excess stuff in your home. Items are only cluttering if they stop you from enjoying your home. So, don't let them. Please share your favorite things to get rid of to clear the clutter right now. How do you recycle them? Please leave a comment below.
Visit our other declutter advice posts!
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