For countless homeowners, spring cleaning is the time to do much-needed home maintenance. As we’ve previously mentioned, a few easy yet effective ways you can spruce up your house are replacing your air filters and touching up your exterior paint. Aside from these, another home improvement tip perfect for spring cleaning is decluttering and downsizing. A lot of people tend to collect objects to the point that it influences their well-being. In fact, a 2022 The Recovery Village report reveals that compulsive hoarding affects one in every 50 people. If you’ve accumulated unnecessary junk at home, it may be time to throw them out during spring cleaning.
Psychologists explain that decluttering can decrease home hazards and keep your space organized. This is why it’s important to rid the home of items that are bad for your health or are no longer useful. Below, we’ve listed four items that you should get rid of this spring.
Single-use plastic bottles and cutlery
Single-use plastic products should be the first to go at this time. Apart from cluttering your home, plastic cutlery, jugs, straws, and wrappers can break down into microplastics. These fragments can end up in the water and accumulate inside an animal or human’s body, resulting in health issues such as intestinal blockages. To avoid this, you can recycle plastic or reusable stainless steel bottles, cups, and tableware instead. For instance, Our Place’s eco-friendly dinnerware sets come from recycled porcelain that’s durable and lightweight, making them long-lasting and easy to store.
Old and unsupportive desk chairs
Clutter leads to daily distractions and decreases your focus. So for those who have trouble focusing while working, another thing to eliminate is worn-out desk chairs that don’t support your body. After removing your old office seat, consider replacing it with an ergonomic chair that boosts productivity. This equipment keeps you from re-adjusting your position too often and delaying your work progress. That said, a great ergonomic office chair available today is the HON Ignition 2.0 chair, which is ideal if you sit for long hours. The chair is equipped with adjustable seat height and offers superior lumbar support to help lessen aches and improve your posture. Notably, the chair has stain-resistant material, making cleaning easier during your next spring refresh.
Defunct toaster ovens
Your kitchen is home to various household items that you must throw out during spring cleaning. Having a faulty machine is impractical and creates an unsafe environment. Specifically, a toaster oven is one of the most hazardous tools in your kitchen since it can malfunction and catch fire. As a rule of thumb, you need to dispose of the item once it’s hit the five-year mark. You can do so by taking the product to local recycling centers or selling them for parts. Afterward, you can invest in a smart toaster such as Tineco’s Toasty One, which has its own IntelliHeat™ Technology that automatically adjusts the heat output, helping reduce the risks of fires. Another bonus? It also comes with a removable tray for an easier crumb cleanup process.
Clothes that you haven’t used in months
There are multiple reasons to get rid of clothes you haven’t worn in months. One of the most significant ones, as The Atlantic points out, is that those old clothes contribute to the increasing clothing waste worldwide. So as much as possible, it’s recommended that you donate locally or resell. You can even fill a postage-paid bag with worn shirts or pants and send it to a for-profit recycler. With your newly-found wardrobe space after spring cleaning, you can make room for sustainable clothing items, particularly ones made from repurposed fabrics and incorporating natural materials and dyes — like the jackets, shirts, and sweaters from Luce Thread. Clothes like these help you avoid textile waste while giving you an updated style.
Spring cleaning is about more than tidying up our homes. It’s an opportunity to make significant improvements to our living spaces and our lives. By embracing the practice of decluttering and downsizing, we can free ourselves from the burden of unnecessary possessions and create a more organized and peaceful environment. From eliminating single-use plastic products that harm our health and the planet to replacing worn-out desk chairs that hinder our productivity, each step towards decluttering brings us closer to a more fulfilling and functional space. Spring cleaning is a chance to reassess our belongings, make conscious choices, and welcome in a tidier and happier space. So, as the blossoms bloom and the sun shines brightly, let us embark on this transformative journey of decluttering, knowing that with each item we release, we create room for new beginnings and more harmonious life.
Article contributed by Rose JensonRose is a full-time blogger and aspiring book author. Over the last decade, she’s been contributing to various online publications. When she’s not busy writing content, she’s with her children or training for marathons.
Many thanks to our guest blogger for their contribution to Living Healthy List. Are you interested in submitting an article? Send an email with your contact information, suggested topics and an example of your work to Support@livinghealthylist.com