Clean Slate

It's January. Which means I'm overcome by the incredible urge to take down the Christmas decorations (still heavily festive around here) along with the curtains, wallpaper and furniture and completely redecorate my house in a new and clean style for the coming year. Does this happen to anyone else? I'm probably not going to rip everything out, but I am making a resolution to live my life without clutter. Just looking at my closet at the moment makes me, quite frankly, very sad. Also there is a sale on sheets and pillowcases at Selfridges. And I've got Christmas money burning a hole in my pocket.

I came across a handy guide for decluttering, if you're interested, which I think I'm going to try following:

1. Take all the clutter, useful or not, and put it away. All of it. Put the pile of clothes in a box; put the old emails in a hidden folder. Now you have a “clean slate” to work with, but you don’t have to throw anything away. Yet.

2. Go about your business as usual. As you discover a genuine need for something, take it out of storage with a clear conscience. Life will show exactly which things you actually need, and which things you only thought you needed.

3. When you’re ready, sell, donate, or throw away the stuff in storage. It’s easier now, since you’ve had weeks or months to overcome your attachment to it.

This sounds a bit simplistic to me, but I'm going to try it anyway. I've definitely got my eye on a pile of clothes that probably could go elsewhere... but there are a bunch of books and toys that might succumb to this method too.

One other thing we are trying is a dry January. We overindulged our cocktail cabinet too extravagantly over the holiday season, and we're trying to see if we can make it to February without popping a single cork. Avowed, we're going to take the money we spent and donate it to charity. You heard it here first, readers. Now help hold me to it!

What crazy resolutions are you starting 2014 with? Let me know!

xoSarah

image: lifehacker