50 Low-Effort Things to Declutter This Spring

The easiest decluttering wins for an immediate reset.

Welcome to Marusya’s World, a simple living newsletter that explores the topics of mindful spending, home, and motherhood.

Spring from our living room window on film.

Things!
Burn them, burn them! Make a beautiful
fire! More room in your heart for love,
for the trees! For the birds who own
nothing–the reason they can fly.

-Mary Oliver, from Storage

If you, like me, have been in a spring cleaning mood and want to do some easy decluttering along the way, there are some no-brainers to let go of that are likely cluttering up your space.

I’ve been decluttering regularly for years, and I especially love doing a seasonal reset. Over time, I’ve noticed there are certain ‘quick win’ items that are almost always easy to pass on. They help build momentum and might even inspire you to do some deeper decluttering. That list, along with a step-by-step for actually getting them out of your house, is below.

Spring around our neighborhood.

General

• any obvious trash or recycling like empty products, packaging, appliance boxes (just do a quick walk through your home with a trash bag and gather anything that clearly needs to go)

• duplicates - having a few duplicates can be useful, but too many quickly turn into clutter when only one is actually being used (check your kitchen, bathroom, and anywhere you keep tools or supplies)

• ‘floating’ items that don’t have a home (or find them a home!)

• decor that’s become clutter

Junk drawer

• old cords and chargers to electronics you no longer have

• random buttons and snaps that came as extras with clothing

• random screws, nails, bolts, etc.

• takeout menus you can find online

• mystery keys

• old batteries

Kitchen

• expired food and pantry ingredients

• expired supplements or ones that don’t work/you’ll never take

• old teas and spices that you’ll never use

• duplicate kitchen utensils

• single purpose tools that don’t get any use (examples: a grapefruit knife or an apple slicer)

• scratched nonstick pans

• chipped dishware

• excess glass jars, bottles, and to-go cups

• Tupperware or jars with missing lids

• stained or torn kitchen towels and napkins beyond repair

• takeout condiment packets or utensils

Office

• old electronics

• empty boxes from electronics (we’ve all kept that nice iPhone box or two)

• instruction manuals (you can find them online!)/old warranties

• dried out pens and empty pencils

• old business cards

Bathroom

• expired personal care or beauty products

• products you don’t like/never use

• empty or almost empty bottles

• old razors

• toiletry sample packets

Closet

• clothes that no longer fit

• clothes that don’t make sense for your lifestyle

• clothes and shoes that are worn out beyond repair

• free merch that you’ll never wear

• worn out underwear and swimsuits

• single socks that are missing their pair

• excess tote bags

• closet organizers or storage containers that are always empty

Kids’ stuff

• clothes that have been outgrown (and aren’t being saved for another baby)

• toys that are broken or missing pieces

• toys that have been outgrown/are no longer played with

• crafts that don’t need to be saved

Miscellaneous

• old magazines

• junk mail or old/irrelevant mail

• knickknacks that make dusting harder

• old cleaning supplies or ones that don’t work well

• stretched out hair ties

• old greeting cards

• old pet toys

If you’d like to go deeper

I wrote a decluttering deep dive post, sharing everything I’ve learned from years of consistent decluttering (which completely transformed my life).

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For paid subscribers, I’m sharing the exact step-by-step process I use to actually get clutter out of the house, so it doesn’t just sit around and end up needing to be decluttered again later. Thank you for your support!