Tips for Decluttering Christmas Items {Net Zero Clutter Challenge 2019}

How is it December already?! And yet here we are. Christmas is three and a half weeks away. As the song says... "It's the most wonderful time of the year!" And it really is.

But December is also the most busy time of the year for most of us. Or the most stressful time of the year. Those aren't things they usually write holiday songs about.

When things get overwhelming for me, one of the things I do to alleviate the stress is to declutter. Call me crazy, but extra stuff around me adds to the anxiety at any time of year, but especially in December!

• When I need to find places to store all the Christmas gifts we'll be giving. 
• When Christmas decorations, though beautiful, sometimes make my home feel smaller. 
• When entertaining means hiding things in the rooms we don't use as often. 
• When our schedule is extra full with school concerts, Christmas parties for every group or activity we're part of, and extended family gatherings. 

On their own, each of these things is wonderful, but all together, in the space of a month, it can be overwhelming.

I don't know about you, but I have a heightened awareness of how much stuff is in our home. And when I think about all the stuff that will be entering our home throughout the month.... well... it's even more overwhelming.

So... I declutter. It makes me feel better at any time of year, but especially in December :)

Since I started the #NetZeroClutter challenge 5 years ago (can you believe it's been 5 years?!), I've really noticed how much better I feel as the month goes on.

Join me this month!

Decluttering Holiday Items and Storage Areas {NetZero Decluttering Challenge 2018}

Do you feel overwhelmed during the month of December with all the stuff that enters your home? It makes it hard to enjoy this festive time of year.

I've found that when I declutter it really helps me feel less overwhelmed and I can enjoy the holidays so much more.  Will you join me in the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge this year?

Last week was a big week for items coming into our homes and you might be feeling overwhelmed now as you step over and around all the new gifts and empty boxes. If you've been decluttering all month, you should have space to put those items away into their new "homes". But even if you haven't decluttered earlier in the month, there's still time to do some decluttering to make room for all the new stuff :)

Today I'm sharing tips for decluttering your post-holiday items and storage areas.

Decluttering Living Areas {NetZero Decluttering Challenge 2018}

Do you feel overwhelmed during the month of December with all the stuff that enters your home? It makes it hard to enjoy this festive time of year.

I've found that when I declutter throughout the month it really helps me feel less overwhelmed and I can enjoy Christmas much more.  Will you join me in the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge this year?

If you're entertaining at all over the holidays you'll want your main living areas to be clutter-free so you have space for your guests to enjoy themselves. Rooms like your living room, family room, dining room, and entry / hallway.  If you're having guests stay with you during the holidays, this would be a good time to declutter the guest room too.

Today I'm sharing tips for decluttering your living areas!

Decluttering Kitchen Items {NetZero Decluttering Challenge 2018}

Do you feel overwhelmed during the month of December with all the stuff that enters your home? It makes it hard to enjoy this festive time of year.

I've found that when I declutter throughout the month it really helps me feel less overwhelmed.  Will you join me in the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge this year?

I'm so impressed with stories of what you've been decluttering already this month! Let's keep it going this week.

Today I'm sharing tips for decluttering your kitchen items!

Decluttering Kids' Items {NetZero Decluttering Challenge 2018}

Do you feel overwhelmed during the month of December with all the stuff that enters your home? It makes it hard to enjoy this festive time of year.

I've found that when I declutter throughout the month it really helps me feel less overwhelmed.  Will you join me in the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge this year?

I'm so impressed with stories of what you've been decluttering already this month! Let's keep it going this week.

Today I'm sharing tips for decluttering your kids' items!

Decluttering Christmas Items {Net Zero Clutter Challenge 2018}

It's December! And you know what that means... clutter! For most of us, more items enter our homes this month than any other time of year. And we're so much more aware of the clutter in our homes because we tend to entertain more this month than other times of the year as well.

Besides all that, December can feel so overwhelming... there are so many extra tasks to do, places to go, and people to see.

All of these factors make it hard to enjoy this otherwise wonderful time of year!

Whenever I feel overwhelmed I've learned that I will usually feel better if I declutter (at any time of year... it's really a stress reliever!). But over the last several years I've found that the single most important thing I can do to help me feel less overwhelmed in December is to declutter throughout the month.

Once I reduce that overwhelm, I can enjoy Christmas much more! So this year I will be decluttering again :)

For the last three years, I've hosted the #NetZeroClutter challenge and many of you joined in and decluttered in December. Will you join the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge this year?

Week 4 - Post-Holiday and Storage {Net Zero Clutter Challenge 2017}

Happy day after Christmas! We're almost at the end of the month... just one week left in the Net Zero Clutter challenge for this year. And it's a big one this week! Today I'm sharing tips for decluttering your post-holiday items and your storage areas.

For many of us, yesterday was a big day for items coming into our homes. You might be feeling a little (or a lot!) overwhelmed today as you step over and around all the new gifts and empty boxes. If you've been decluttering all month, you should have space to put those items away into their new "homes". But even if you haven't decluttered earlier in the month, there's still time to do some decluttering to make room for all the new stuff :)

Each week I've been sharing decluttering tips and ideas to help you declutter a different area of your home.  The idea is that you'll end the month with the same number of items in your home (or maybe even less!) than what you started the month with. If you're just joining in, work on decluttering the same number of items as you just received!

Week 3 - Living Areas {Net Zero Clutter Challenge 2017}

It's living areas week in the Net Zero Clutter challenge! Are you ready to declutter rooms like your living room, family room, dining room, and entry / hallway? This will make it much easier to tidy up and clean your home before entertaining for the holidays! And your friends and family will have space to enjoy themselves in your home. If you're having guests stay with you, this is a great week to declutter your guest room too.

If you feel overwhelmed during the month of December with all the stuff that enters your home, join the Net Zero Clutter challenge so you can enjoy this festive time of year!

Week 2 - Kitchens {Net Zero Clutter Challenge 2017}

It's "Kitchens" week in the Net Zero Clutter challenge! Ready to tackle your kitchen this week so you aren't as overwhelmed when you're doing your holiday baking or entertaining? Or just so you can prepare meals easily during a busy month?

December can feel so overwhelming... there are so many extra tasks to do, places to go, and people to see.  But more than demands on our time, are the demands on our space. If we're entertaining during the holidays, we suddenly become much more aware of the clutter in our homes. And just the thought of how many new items will be entering our homes this month is overwhelming! All of these factors make it hard to enjoy this otherwise wonderful time of year.

There are lots of tips out there for managing your time better during the holidays, but I've found that the single most important thing I can do to help me feel less overwhelmed in December is to declutter throughout the month.  And reducing that overwhelm means I can enjoy Christmas much more.

This week I'm sharing tips to help you declutter your kitchens. Feel free to declutter anything you want though! Whatever will help you achieve your goal :)

Week 1 - Introduction and Holiday/Kids' Items {Net Zero Clutter Challenge 2017}

December can feel so overwhelming... there are so many extra tasks to do, places to go, and people to see.  But more than demands on our time, are the demands on our space. If we're entertaining during the holidays, we suddenly become much more aware of the clutter in our homes. And just the thought of how many new items will be entering our homes this month is overwhelming! All of these factors make it hard to enjoy this otherwise wonderful time of year.

There are lots of tips out there for managing your time better during the holidays, but I've found that the single most important thing I can do to help me feel less overwhelmed in December is to declutter throughout the month.  And reducing that overwhelm means I can enjoy Christmas much more.

For the last two years, I've hosted the #NetZeroClutter challenge and many of you joined in and decluttered in December. Will you join the Net Zero Decluttering Challenge this year?

Day 31: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I've been sharing tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I've shared my progress as I decluttered my photos along with you :)

It's the last day of the challenge! Can you believe it? It seemed like so long at the beginning of the month, but the time has really flown. Today I'm sharing some successes and challenges encountered by people who participated in the challenge this month, along with tips and ideas they shared. And of course I'm going to give a final update on my photo decluttering this month :)

Day 30: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm answering a question about viewing slides and negatives and then discussing the pros and cons of scanning slides or negatives vs. scanning printed photos.

Day 29: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm talking about maintenance. You've worked hard to declutter and organize your photo collection but now you'll need to plan some regular maintenance so it doesn't get out of hand again.

Day 28: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm talking about videos (both digital and non-digital videos).

Day 27: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm sharing another way to enjoy your photos now that you've decluttered and organized them - create personalized gifts or household items featuring your favourite photos.

Day 26: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm happy to have Offir Gutelzon from Keepy here to share another great way to enjoy your photos for years to come! I talked about Keepy last year during my Decluttering Sentimental Items series to help you declutter your kids' artwork and other sentimental items. But this app can also be used to help you preserve your photos and especially to tell the story behind your photos. Here's Offir to tell you how!

{Note: Affiliate links are used in this post which means I get a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase after clicking one of these links, which helps cover the expenses of running a blog. I only recommend products that I believe will help you go from overwhelmed to organized. It's a win-win for both of us!}

Day 25: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm talking about photo albums... which ones are good and which ones are bad for your photos.

Day 24: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm talking about creating a family photo archive to help your whole family enjoy your photos.

Day 23: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm talking about another great way to enjoy your photos... on your walls.

Day 22: 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge

Got a lot of photos? Do you want to be able to enjoy your pictures instead of having to search and search to find your favourites? Does the thought of tackling your photo collection seem so overwhelming that you keep putting it off? Me too!

That's why this month I'm hosting the 31 Day Photo Decluttering Challenge! Each day I'll share tips to help you declutter your photo collection so you can really treasure and enjoy all the best ones. And I'll share my progress as I declutter my photos along with you :)

Today I'm talking about creating slideshows to enjoy your favourite pictures.