Decluttering Tips: A Realistic Guide to Letting Go of Stuff
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- Marketing & Operations Manager Cally Biggs shares her “vacation test” for deciding what to keep.
- Decluttering isn’t about having less; it’s about making space for what actually matters.
- Experts suggest starting with small, manageable areas to avoid feeling overwhelmed.
- Creating a system for “maybe” items prevents regret and decision fatigue.
- Daily habits, like clearing trash immediately, keep the home fairly organized for the long haul.
Summer in full swing means more people, more stuff, and, if we’re honest, a lot more mess in the home. As routines shift, families pile into kitchens, mudrooms, and backyards, tracking in all the gear, towels, and “just-in-case” extras. Suddenly, even the most organized home starts to feel off-balance.
Enter Cally Biggs, Marketing & Operations Manager of Heart & Company, a luxury home organization studio known for helping families reclaim their space and sanity. Cally doesn’t approach minimalism as a trend or a fleeting design fad. Her focus is on creating lasting change in homes, one thoughtful decision at a time. People often seek professional help when they feel overwhelmed by their clutter, and Cally’s expertise provides a clear path forward.
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“I once worked with a family preparing for a summer of travel and outdoor adventures,” Cally recalled. “Their home, especially the kids’ playroom and mudroom, was overflowing with ‘just-in-case’ items, old sports gear, craft supplies, extra towels, and gadgets they rarely touched.”
That’s where her signature method came into play: “I always start by encouraging clients to focus on what they actively use and love during this season.
Together, we sort items into three categories: Keep things that support current routines, activities, and bring joy. Donate items in good condition that no longer serve a purpose or feel aligned with the client’s lifestyle. Store seasonal or sentimental items that aren’t needed now but may have value later.” After a decluttering session, they donated several boxes of items and stored away what wasn’t needed for summer.
The change, Cally said, was almost immediate. “A few weeks later, the client shared that not only was their home easier to maintain, but they felt more present and less distracted as a family. Without the visual clutter, their kids played more creatively, and daily routines felt smoother. It was a beautiful reminder that decluttering isn’t just about the stuff, it’s about creating space for what matters most.”
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Storage Ideas That Maximize Style and Function
Facing down so much clutter
It doesn’t matter if you live in a tiny apartment in San Francisco or a sprawling farmhouse in a smaller town. Stuff accumulates. It just happens. You might have a grateful heart for everything you own, but eventually, you look around and realize your own home is stressing you out.
Take the example of how a mom like Shifrah grew her family. With five children running around, maintaining a pretty clean house feels like a magic trick. But it isn’t magic. It’s physics. Space is finite. When you have too many decorative items or gadgets, the clutter takes over. The house feels heavy.
To get rid of the chaos, you have to start somewhere. Pick one spot. Maybe the dining table where everyone dumps their bags. Focus on that. The rest can wait. By putting your energy into a single area—like sorting the clothes that no longer fit—it leaves plenty of momentum for the next task. The point isn’t to have a magazine-ready home tomorrow. Decluttering is a marathon. You have to decide what stays. You have to organize your life to create room for new memories. Utilizing storage solutions like bins, baskets, and drawer dividers can maximize space and organization. And honestly? You might find some lost money in a box while you’re at it.
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Noticing a huge difference
Writers like Jennifer Billock have noted that even a small bit of editing makes a huge difference. It doesn’t matter if you declutter for ten minutes or two hours. Don’t worry about the big picture yet. You might see a post on a lifestyle website and think, “I can never do that.” That idea is wrong. You can deal with it.
Start with the mail. Pull it out of the mailbox and sort it before it hits the counter. Don’t let piles form. Make it a rule. If you walk in from the car, throw the junk away. Grab a handful of flyers and recycle them. It is often written that habit beats intensity. That is basically true. Stop holding onto the past. If you have a system where you spend five minutes keeping things neat, you won’t have to toss an entire weekend into cleaning later.
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Think about food and future meals. Check the pantry. Check the shoes by the door. Is that trash? Get it out. Group similar items together. Make it a habit. As a person living in a consumer world, shopping is easy. But stopping immediately to ask “do I need this?” takes discipline. Grab a bag for donations. Be realistic. You don’t need to store everything. Gather the excess. Answer the question honestly: does this serve me? It can be painful, of course. But letting go is the only way to breathe. The ‘90/90 rule’ helps you decide whether to keep an item by asking if you’ve used it in the last 90 days and if you’ll use it in the next 90 days.
Practical Tips for Summer Minimalism
Use the “Would I pack this for vacation?” test. Cally tells her clients: If it’s not something you’d bring to enhance your time away, it may not be worth keeping in your daily environment either. This helps cut through the “maybe someday” trap and puts your attention on what you actually reach for.
Set a “just-in-case” limit. Hanging onto backups? Choose a reasonable container size. When it’s full, it’s time to edit. No more stashing five sets of goggles or piles of old towels “just because.” When the container’s at capacity, it’s your cue to let some go.
Create a “maybe” box. We all get stuck. For items you’re on the fence about, place them in a labeled box and revisit in 30 days. If you haven’t missed them, you likely don’t need them. This lets you experiment with letting go, minus the regret. Focus on what you gain by letting go. The real payoff isn’t less stuff, it’s “more space, more clarity, and more time spent enjoying summer moments with the people you love.”
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Keeping it fairly organized
Once the heavy lifting is done, the goal is to keep the place fairly organized. You don’t want to slide back to square one. This requires vigilance. When you realize a room is getting messy, stop. Look at the closet. Is it full of stuff you never wear? Is the file cabinet overflowing? Regular decluttering sessions should be scheduled to maintain an uncluttered space and prevent clutter from accumulating again.
It helps to have a designated place for everything. If you buy something new, let something old go. It keeps the volume of things manageable.
Making better use of storage space
Finally, look at your storage space. It is prime real estate. Don’t waste it on broken items or things you “might” fix one day. Use that shelf for the things you actually use. If you clear out the junk, you have easier access to the camping gear or the holiday decorations you actually love. It makes the whole home function better.
Letting Go Makes Space for Summer
Summer brings its own chaos, but it’s also the perfect time to reset. As Cally and the team have shown, letting go isn’t about losing what you need. It’s about making your home (and life) a little lighter.
At the end of the day, your home should support you, not drain you. (Easier said than done, right?). But taking small steps to clear the noise really does change the vibe of a house. Whether you are tackling a single drawer or an entire garage, the process is the same. Start small. Be honest with yourself. And enjoy the space you create.
