Decluttering is so much easier when you clear out small tasks a little each day. As you know, small items in any house can envelop the home if not controlled. Every group in this challenge can get out of hand rapidly if not looked at and scrutinized periodically. This time, we will be sharing a new opportunity to declutter. It's called the Small Items Big Clutter Challenge. Are you ready? Set, let's begin!
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Clear the Small Items Clutter with a 29-Day Organizing Challenge
But wait, remember, this should be a quick 15-minute purge. No need to spend a lot of time pondering what to keep. Pick up each item, look at it, and say "Yes," I want it, or "No," I don't. Place the "No" things in one pile to eliminate or donate. Visit our updated Locations to Donate Your Stuff and our Recycling and Shredding Pages for places to get rid of your stuff.
Day 1: Purses: Yes, purses. These items can be inside one another, and you may not even know you have as many as you do.
Day 2: Vitamins: How often do you go through to check your expired vitamins? They are less effective if they are expired.
Day 3: Canned food: If you ever eat expired canned food, you know that the flavor and sometimes the consistency changes.
Day 4: Cutlery: Knives can also get cluttered. Determine the ones you use most often and get rid of the rest. Wrap knives in bubble wrap or cardboard before disposing of them.
Makeup Declutter Task
Day 5: Makeup Supplies: Lotions, foundation, and other supplies that you may have tried but didn't get rid of; now is the time to do just that. Feel free to visit our What to keep in your vanity checklist (Affiliate Link) and post.
Visit our Makeup Self Life Organizing post for a free printable to label (Affiliate Link) your makeup.
Day 6: Hair Supplies: If you are like me, you probably have a variety of hair supplies. With my curly hair, it's all about the products so that I don't look like Kramer from Seinfeld. LOL. It's essential to keep the items that you use and get rid of the ones that are not necessary.
Clothing Declutter Tasks
Day 7: Shirts: Shirts also include sweaters. So keep that in mind when purging your stuff.
Day 8: Pants: Now, it's time to look at all your pants. Be sure to check out your sweatpants and PJs, too.
Day 9: Dresses: Pull out anything that doesn't fit or is outdated. Is there a dress in your closet you haven't worn in over five years? Donate it!
Paper Declutter Tasks
Day 10: Papers on Desk: Let's focus on your home office desk. Are there papers on there right now that don't have a home? Take care of them.
Day 11: Planner: Let's turn to your paper or digital planner. Get rid of the stuffed papers you may have tucked in the back of it. Make sure you clear out any unnecessary recurring appointments that you haven't deleted yet.
Day 12: Crafts: Are you into craft projects? If you have a lot of crafts, focus on one area and purge that area only. Remember to time yourself; it is only a 15-minute purge.
Day 13: DVR cable digital recording: Visit our DVR cable box or other recordable devices you may use to record shows. Purge shows you don't have time to watch or don't enjoy watching.
Day 14: Luggage (Affiliate Link): We tend not to look at all our luggage (Affiliate Link) at once. Today's the day to do just that. Pull them out and purge as many as you can.
Day 15: Coats: Let's focus on your coats only. Leave the other family members' coats for another time.
Socks, hats, and shoes declutter
Day 16: Shoes (Affiliate Link): Go through all the areas you leave your shoes (Affiliate Link) and place them in one place. Get rid of the ones you don't want right now.
Day 17: Socks (Affiliate Link): While going through your socks (Affiliate Link), if you don't match them, do that as well and then only keep the ones that are not discolored or have holes in them.
Day 18: Hats (Affiliate Link): You would be surprised at how many hats (Affiliate Link) a family can have. Place all the hats (Affiliate Link) in place and then go through them and get rid of the ones that are too small, have holes in them, or ones that you have already replaced but never got rid of the original.
Household Decluttering
Day 19: Sheets for beds: How many sheets do you have for your bed? Is it more than three? Go through them and find out. Get rid of the older ones.
Day 20: Pens: How many pens do you have in your home? We are a household of artists and writers, so we have A LOT of pens and pencils.
Day 21: Scissors: If you have crafts or kids, for that matter, you probably have scissors around your home. Get rid of the ones you don't use any longer.
Day 22: Photos on Devices: Let's turn to your devices, photos in particular. Delete as many as you can in 15 minutes.
Day 23: Files on Laptop: Go through your laptop and delete the files that you have never looked at again.
Day 24: Cables: If you have electronics, you probably have cables. In 15 minutes, pull out as many as you can and get rid of them.
Other Misc. Tasks
Day 25: Prescription Medicine: This is tricky. Go through your prescription cabinet and bring them to an appropriate place for proper disposal. National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is April 27, 2027, from 10 AM to 2 PM – Click here for location details. If you live in Montgomery County, PA, you can visit this page for details on where to dispose of these items.
Day 26: Platters (Affiliate Link): Do you have parties? Today, you need to go through your party platters (Affiliate Link). What haven't you used in 3 years? Can you get rid of it now?
Day 27: Nail Polishes: If you like to paint your nails, you probably have dried-out or finished nail polishes. Declutter them today. Feel free to check out our "Nail care supplies organization tips made easy" post.
Day 28: Dried Food: Do you have dried food, like beans, in your pantry (Affiliate Link)? While these items take time to expire, you should go through them and see if there are any open bags or containers that need to be discarded.
Day 29: Herbs and Spices (Affiliate Link): And, last but not least, it's time to visit the herbs and spices (Affiliate Link). Below are two posts on how to organize these items.
HOW TO CREATE AN INVENTORY CHECKLIST FOR ORGANIZING SPICES AND HERBS
THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO ORGANIZING HERBS AND SPICES
Last remarks
Well, there you have it. Are you planning on taking this challenge? If so, please come back and leave a comment on how you did. After completing these 29 days, your home and you will feel lighter and more focused to bring on Spring Cleaning next month.
We shared this challenge on our Instagram page. If you want to follow us, feel free to click here.
If you want to visit our numerous challenges, click here and start getting organized today.
Janet Schiesl says
I love doing small projects like these. Small changes make a big difference and they are doable even if you are super busy.
Seana Turner says
I love the concise and action-oriented nature of this challenge. It is so easy to print out and tackle during these cold winter days. I just worked with a client on the "nail polish" category. What is so interesting is how she kept hardly any, and said, "I usually just go to the salon." Still, she had quite a few bottles and accessories she had been holding onto. Once she had the lightbulb moment, most of it went out the door.
Sabrina Quairoli says
That lightbulb moment is amazing to watch, isn't it? Thanks for commenting.
Sara Skillen says
Great idea for breaking things down into manageable steps. And pens!! I think all pen factories could stop production for a year and the world would still have enough.
Sabrina Quairoli says
It's crazy how many pens we accumulate over the course of our lives.
Linda Samuels says
I love these mini decluttering challenges! Most of these areas are in good shape for me, but a few ones that you mentioned made me think further. The canned goods and some of the digital items (photos and files) could use some attention. Recently I did the purse and clothing editing, but there could be room for doing another round of edits. Thank you for the inspiration.
Sabrina Quairoli says
You are welcome! Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Janet Barclay says
Somehow I knew spices would be on the list! It doesn't seem that long ago that I went through mine, yet I found something yesterday that is nearly two years past the best before date.
Sabrina Quairoli says
Those spices and mixes that are stuffed in the back of the cabinets seems to be the ones I forget all the time. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.