My Top Ten Tips to Declutter your Living Room

I think it is very therapeutic to ‘declutter’ occasionally. Here are my top ten tips to make it easy and the results are very satisfying.

  1. Walk in / Walk Out: Take a good look around your living room, step out into the hallway or another room and step back into your living room as if this is the first time you are seeing your room.
  2. Scan The Room: Look around with new eyes and see what it is you love about your room and make a mental note of things that you can part with.
  3. The Forgotten Games or Toys: On top of the high bookcase or storage unit in the corner take the forgotten games, jigsaws, ornaments down and dust them, box them up and give them away to friends, family, or a local charity shop. These were put there for safe keeping and then forgotten about… declutter these and leave this top shelf clear of all clutter!
  4. Tidy Up Cables: Look at the T.V. Unit in the opposite corner and tidy up all the wiring at the back of this unit. Engage an electrician if the configuring is too complicated for you and make all the associated items safe and discard unused, out of date equipment.yellow houzz
  5. Clear The Decks: Rummage further into the shelves under the T.V. – remove all old DVD’s/videos/games etc. that are no longer used. Dust, re-home or dispose. Look at all that space and light!
  6. Consider the Focal Point: The fireplace that you love in your room and is the focal point – take the box of matches, old cards, used batteries, old bills and all bits and pieces that visually take from your lovely fireplace. Dust everything and only replace your lovely candle sticks, one or two photographs, and one or two mementos that you love. This will look like a new fireplace!
  7. Check Eye Level: Over your fireplace have a look at the mirror or painting hanging there – stand in front of it and check your eyelevel – I often see mirrors/painting hanging rather high. Rehanging a mirror lower can make an impact that will surprise you. Dust it, polish it and rehang it with the centre of the mirror or painting just above your eyelevel. *This is a guide only and is based on a European person’s average height of 1750mm.
  8. Group your photos and artwork: All the family photos hanging individually around your room walls – remove from their current locations and place in a group together on a wall or dedicated space of their own. Paintings to be in a separate space to the photographs.
  9. Fat or Flat: Cushions on you chairs and sofa…. if your polyester cushion fillers are gone flat, discard, and replace with new feather fillers. This change will make such a difference to your cushion covers that you will see these cushions in a new light – well worth changing their fillers!
  10. Anchor Your Rug: Your floor rug that you searched high and low for before finding the perfect one. Take the long side of it and slide it under the front feet of your sofa. This helps to connect the elements of your room together and make a conversation area more cosy.

Enjoy doing these small changes to your living room with little or no cost and get pleasure from the differences!