How to Tackle Sentimental Clutter: A Comprehensive Guide
Every day, we find ourselves navigating through a sea of emotions as we come across various objects that hold a special place in our hearts.
Take a look around your home and you likely see that many of these objects, these items of our past, silently narrate stories. With every glance we take of them, they bring a rush of memories, both joyful and sometimes sad.
Looking at these items, an object from our travels, a picture of a loved one or our child's first artwork is like walking down a memory lane that is both beautiful and emotional. It’s literally transporting you to a place inside of you that holds the essence of these experiences that have shaped you.
They’ve made you who you are.
Every object, be it a photograph, a piece of jewelry, or a simple handwritten note, holds a universe of memories. It's no exaggeration to say that this journey through sentimental clutter is a deep dive into the ocean of emotions that reside within us. *wink*
Gonna keep it real with you friend, John and Sherri openly find themselves on this path quite often #NoShame
But here's the thing, amidst this whirlpool of memories + emotions, it becomes increasingly difficult to hold onto the present moment.
The vision of a home that breathes freedom.
Constantly being reminded of closets full of stuff, a garage full of stuff, a basement full of stuff or an entire home that you don’t live in (true story) feels like a never-ending cycle, an emotional battle against sentimental clutter that threatens to take over not only our living spaces but our minds and our lives.
Can you relate to this, friend?
But guess what...
It doesn’t have to be this way. Whether the sentimental clutter you have is BIG or small, at Elegant Simplicity, we have years of firsthand experience helping clients navigate + strategize what to do with sentimental clutter.
Organizing the sentimental clutter in our lives is about creating a home that honors your past but welcomes your future with open arms.
And we know it can be difficult to tackle sentimental clutter, the emotionally messy parts in our lives, on our own. It requires having serious self-discipline + clarity in why this is important to you. And even then, doing it alone or without the guidance of a professional organizer is difficult.
But we’re here for you because, at Elegant Simplicity, our mission is to change the world, by changing the world’s perspective of home. So, let’s dive into how to tackle sentimental clutter and create a home that tells your beautiful story, without the noise of the unnecessary stuff.
What Is Sentimental Clutter
Sentimental clutter refers to items that you hold onto because of the memories or emotions they evoke, rather than their practical value or function in day-to-day life.
These items are deeply personal, they remind you of certain periods of your life, people, or experiences that are significant.
Sentimental Clutter Includes:
Old photographs
Letters and cards
Children's artwork
Heirlooms and family antiques
Mementos from trips and events
Gifts from loved ones
Items belonging to a deceased loved one
Old diaries and journals
Clothing, such as wedding dresses or old uniforms
But here's where it gets a bit tangled...
While these items are the keepers of our memories, they can sometimes overwhelm our spaces, creating a clutter that tugs at our heartstrings every time we attempt to organize our homes. It's like walking through a gallery of your life's moments, each item pulling you into a reverie, making it a Herculean task to decide what stays and what goes.
Now, that’s not to say that everything that is sentimental is clutter. It’s actually quite the opposite. Everything that is sentimental but has no specific place in your home is sentimental clutter.
Creating a home that’s meaningful where when you look around you’re lifted up to become the best version of yourself is this dance between the joy of nostalgia and the desire for a home with everything you need + nothing more®.
It's about holding onto those pieces that truly resonate with your soul while graciously letting go of the ones that have served their purpose.
And here’s the truth, no one gets to tell you what is sentimental clutter. A friend, a family member nor a professional organizer.
Our responsibility at Elegant Simplicity® as your professional organizing BFF is to help you see what we know is possible. With the right approach, you can honor your most cherished memories from the past without sacrificing the tranquility and organization of your space.
Where Do You Begin With Sentimental Clutter
It doesn’t matter what we do together at Elegant Simplicity® or if you never work with Elegant Simplicity as a client at all, you always should begin by assessing.
Assess
Assessing what you want from this space.
Assessing why this is important to you.
Assessing how you’re going to get there (i.e. creating a gameplan)
Because somewhere along this meandering journey -- of paring down, simplifying + creating a better way of life -- you’re going to stumble across a stack of old pictures, granddaddies’ pocket watch, a well-loved + worn-out teddy bear, your kids’ artwork… whatever sentimental looks like for you, it doesn’t matter.
And this my friend, is when making decisions becomes difficult!
When it comes to tackling sentimental clutter in our lives, there’s no telling what emotions we’ll experience (sometimes all at once), especially when we touch an object that reminds us of what once was.
Think about it (for example) if John + Sherri were to sit down with a box that’s brimming with random objects they’ve collected from their past...
At first glance, an item that may otherwise seem discardable or insignificant to John actually holds an extremely special + enduring meaning to Sherri. And no matter how silly that thing is (a movie ticket, a hotel key card, a scrap of ribbon, an election pin...) we may feel a deep connection.
Create An Actionable Gameplan
And that’s where it’s so important to have outlined for yourself (+ we recommend writing it down) a gameplan that feels actionable.
It helps to be able to take a break and come back to it. Maybe that break is even a few weeks or months but knowing you’ve outlined not only what to do but why it’s important is such an asset to you in continuing.
Intentionally Curate
So -- now that we’re able to identify what sentimental clutter looks (or rather feels) like, the even bigger question is, how do you get rid of sentimental clutter?
And really this is more about becoming a conscious keeper of what matters and has meaning to you than it is about “getting rid of things.”
What is the best way to fight that relentless urge to keep it?
How To Declutter Sentimental Items
Even if you’ve tried + were unsuccessful, here are 6 powerful ways to help you part ways with the roller coaster of emotions, the emotional attachments to stuff aka our sentimental clutter:
Remove The Guilt Attached To Keeping It
From y-e-a-r-s of hands-on experience, something I’ve learned is that people generally hold onto things out of guilt *gasp!* or in fear of hurting someone else’s feelings.
For instance, have you ever inherited something (like a piece of furniture) that doesn’t exactly vibe with your current style but it’s been in the family for who knows how long?
Or how about when someone gives you a gift that — for whatever reason, reminded them of you? For instance, like the time someone bought you a random piece of wall decor or a pair of coffee mugs. While the gesture is extremely thoughtful, it would probably look awesome in someone else’s space because quite frankly... you never would’ve bought it for yourself?
Luckily, you’re not alone, friend!
We actually worked with clients, who didn’t realize (until we started organizing their kitchen) that they had somehow accumulated a museum size collection of coffee mugs.
We’re talking upwards of 60 hodge-podge, no mug the same, kind of coffee mug collection!
Yet, despite the fact that they only used 4 maybe 5 of them on a regular basis; for whatever reason, one partner really struggled with the idea of paring down. Through a process of assessing what was important, what the coffee cups actually represented on a deeper level to them we discovered the emotional fear-based trigger that was driving this silly coffee cup crazy train.
Any guesses?
YEP! GUILT! And the fear of offending the person who gave them the mug if they got rid of even one because their natural response was, “What if the next time that person comes over + we have coffee? They’re going wonder why we’re not using the coffee mugs they gave us last year for our birthday.”
Let me tell ya…the what-if game is not your friend.
Sentimental clutter is like the adult version of the stuffie, we’ve all had it but we don’t need to keep it.
No matter how thoughtful something was, or how much you appreciated their kindness — the harsh reality is that this guilt-based decision making is hindering your ability to make decisions. Instead of keeping only the items you use or want to display in your home, the feeling of guilt + the what-if way of thinking about sentimental clutter is actually controlling what to keep vs what to let go of.
In this instance, sentimental items are doing more harm than good and it’s adding massive amounts of unnecessary + emotional stress to you.
So now that we’ve addressed the elephant in the room…
The first piece of sentimental clutter is always guilt. So, I want you to rid yourself of that nagging wave of guilt that comes washing over you when you begin the decision making process of trying to get rid of something from your past. Promise?
Become A Conscious Keeper
When it comes to sentimental clutter it’s important to realize that our urge to want to hold on to meaningful possessions is normal. But the million-dollar question is how do we know what to keep vs what to let go of?
The quick + dirty answer is ANYTHING that’s important to you is worth keeping (psst… necessity can’t be influenced by guilt).
In fact, one of the biggest myths about creating a clutter-free home + getting organized is that you have to get rid of everything. But when it comes to sentimental clutter + working with a professional organizer at Elegant Simplicity - that couldn’t be further from the truth!
It's about diving into working through the process of curating our sentimental clutter so that we’re left with only pieces to tell a story that’s beautiful + worth remembering.
...Because you’re worth it ...Because having a clutter-free home is all about identifying what’s important to you + creating habits to help maintain a place for all of those things to live.
Ask Yourself What You’re Sentimental About
Another piece to this big ole sentimental clutter puzzle is recognizing in yourself, what things trigger an emotional response. Because in order to create a gameplan or a strategy for dealing with sentimental clutter, we need to acknowledge our weaknesses. Our soft spots. That place where our rational thinking gives way to guilt-based decision making.
In other words, what whisks you off your feet…What tugs at your heartstrings...what gets you hot under the collar?
The next time you stumble across a piece of sentimental clutter you’re struggling with or having a hard time letting go of — ask yourself a few questions:
What emotional response am I having to this object?
What does it remind me of?
How does it make me feel?
What would happen if I didn’t have this?
Jennifer Baumgartner, Psy.D., explains that nostalgia can make clearing out a space nearly impossible. She goes on to say that, “we often infuse our junk with the spirit of a moment in time, associating the tangible with the intangible. Our junk becomes the object upon which we project our internal experience.”
In other words, you’re not actually head-over-heels in love with that dusty lamp or getting all coked up over the rosy pink lamp shade. More than likely, your feelings are correlated with a specific person, place or time that you associate with it. #Deep
On a lighter note...
If you truly value + love a physical object, keep it, use it + display it in your home so that you’re able to enjoy the memory it bestows.
In terms of the sentimental clutter you choose to let go of, keep in mind that you’ll always remember that person, place or time in your life even if you remove it from your physical space.
Keep The Best, Get Rid Of The Rest
Have you ever been on the receiving end of an inheritance?
Having worked with clients who were either 1) appointed as primary executor of an estate 2) had inherited an entire estate-worth of sentimental items all at once — one of the best ways to tackle sentimental clutter can be to keep a couple of your favorite, most cherished items + not the whole thing.
Let’s say grandma had a beautiful collection of antique bone-china dishes that you remember her carefully pulling out of an antique sideboard...but only during the holidays! With scalloped edges + delicate gold-leaf details, that she only used when special company came to visit.
With all these warm + fuzzy feel-good memories swirling around inside of us, it’s easy to think that the right decision is to keep all 49 pieces (of which you’ll only use a few.) But, instead of holding onto everything — which would eventually become sentimental clutter — choose the best + get rid of the rest.
By doing this, you’re alleviating a part of the internal struggle that we experience when curating our sentimental clutter because we’re choosing to keep a few of our favorite keepsakes + to cherish the memory of your grandma in a way that’s emotionally well balanced.
Create Exit Strategies: Donate. Pass It On. Repurpose.
Letting go of something you may have previously felt was important for you to keep, can still be difficult — even if you’ve done your due diligence + followed all of the steps above.
But donating or passing items on to others is the secret sauce of sentimental clutter + how we give our items a new life. Knowing that they’re being repurposed, loved, or helpful to someone else oftentimes is all we need in order to shift our feeling of loss into a deep sense of pride. Especially when the things we’re parting with have sentimental value.
After working with clients for over a decade, a simple trick can make decluttering a lot easier (especially when trying to tackle sentimental clutter in your home) is to pull out a pad of post-it notes; Write down the name of family or friends who’d appreciate + value the items; Then, simply ask them for their honest opinion as to whether or not they want it. It’s important to seek honesty — we’re not trying to dump what is sentimental to us, onto others.
If they say no, don’t allow your feelings to get bruised.
Call a local charity, we’re certain that if the items are in good condition, they’ll be absolutely thrilled!
On the other hand, if they say yes, make it a priority to meet for coffee so you can give it to them (I’m sure there are lots to chat about while enjoying a frothy latte!)
Ask For A Professional Organizers Help
Last but not least, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Like we said in the beginning, sentimental clutter is no joke. If your clutter challenges get wrapped up in guilt-based decisions, all you have to do is ask for help.
Lucky you, we happen to know a team of great professional organizers *wink*
All jokes aside, it does serve you so well to have a non-biased perspective and someone to talk through the process of should I keep this? Is there anyone who might want this? Someone to help you think clearly + objectively. Not to mention, a professional organizer is great at lightening the mood.
Don’t Fear The Regret Of Letting Go
We can’t tell you how many times we’ve been asked by journalists, clients, family or friends alike, what most people have a hard time letting go of + regret getting rid of?
The truth is - very little. And for most, it’s a breath of fresh air.
The feeling of empowerment that washes over you immediately after getting rid of unused clutter. It’s the things that have been long forgotten — things that’ve been stuffed in the back of closets or are taking up valuable real estate on a shelf somewhere in your home.
We like to say, “tackling sentimental clutter is about pin-pointing your priorities, identifying things that are most important to you + putting them on display so that they can be enjoyed.” Then spotting anything else that clutters-up your space, causes you grief, or weighs you down is 10x easier.
Often, when we don’t know how to do something the right way or feel that we don’t have the skills to do it, instead of doing it imperfectly, we avoid doing it all together. #TruthBomb
But still, what if we’ve made it this far + we get stuck or lose motivation? What if we’re feeling overwhelmed? Defeated? How do we overcome the wave of decision paralysis because there’s too much stuff?
The reality is in these moments, you review your assessment. You review the answers to the questions that give you meaning behind why you’re doing this. Friend, when you do this… you develop a deeper understanding of the actual things we need to keep in our space in order for our home to serve us better.
Phew! Sentimental clutter can be deep *wink* But remember that the goal isn't to tackle the process of decluttering + organizing a lifetime of accumulation all at once.
In fact, much like anything else that’s successful in life, breaking down your project into smaller, bite-sized phases + using an actionable gameplan is exactly where you get started.
If you’ve made it this far then you’re about to totally rock any sentimental clutter in your home, so I'll leave you with a final piece of Elegant Simplicity®… If you want it, keep it. If they want it, give it. If not, let it go.
Not to worry friend, we’re here if you need us. If you haven’t already, check out our 4 Days To A More Beautiful + Functional Home and when you’re ready to begin your transformational journey — let’s chat.