New Year Clean Out

I have always been a proponent of a big end of the year clean out, opposed to spring cleaning. There is something about the week between Christmas and New Years where I just go to town on all of the spaces I have been neglecting throughout the year. I find it amazing how much can accumulate in such a small space with two organized people in a very short amount of time. Especially in the chaos of December, things have a tendency to be rush cleaned or put away in the wrong place with all we have going on. I will leave the tree up until New Years Day, but once that all gets taken down I feel a sense of freshness in our space and look forward to starting the new year with an organized home and everything holiday tucked away. It is also a chance to go through our ornaments and decor as we tend to accumulate more each year.

My list changes every year depending on what issues I am working with, but for the most part the core items stay the same. I get weirdly motivated reading how other people organize or purge, so I thought I would share how I tackle my end of the year clean out. I have found the easiest way for me to approach this is starting small and just checking off a few things each day, instead of tearing my entire apartment apart and getting completely overwhelmed. I clocked a lot of hours in the kitchen this year and it felt completely disorganized and a little worse for wear. My main goal was to deep clean all my cookware. My stainless steel pots and pants (especially my roasting pan) needed major TLC so I used my all time favorite Bar Keepers Friend specific for cookware to bring them back to their unstained shiny glory. Such a simple thing that I never do throughout the year!

KITCHEN
Refill Salt & Pepper
Clean out pantry of any expired items or excess holiday candy
Refill spice jars
Clean out storage cabinet with linens, half burned candles, etc.
Organize cleaning supplies under sink
Clean oven & stovetop
Refresh kitchen towels and dish scrubber

LIVING ROOM
Take books off shelves, wipe shelves down, donate books no longer needed
Clean out drawers in TV cabinet (wow drawers become a black hole)
Throw out dried out pens, old papers, any cards not saving
Go through pet toys
Wipe down ceiling fan and baseboards
Shave couch cushions and rotate
*get new candle – one of my favorite ways to start a new year is a fresh scent

BEDROOM
Closet clean out, actually part with things I never wear instead of just shuffling around
*I make a big pile to donate, a pile for friends and sell some pricier pieces
Clean out drawers – discard bras, socks, underwear, t shirts, etc. that need updating
Clean out under bed bins and bin under dresser
Shave headboard and wipe down

MISC.
Go through medicine cabinet and bath vanity – discard any products you are not using, have expired or are no longer needed (somehow this is another giant black hole of Sephora samples)
Go through products in shower
Clean drains
Organize hall closet and any work papers

  1. Lauren says:

    Thanks for sharing – it does help to read!!

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