Living rooms are busy areas of the home, and if you are not careful, they can become a haven for clutter of all kinds. Clearing your living room of unnecessary items will make it more functional for all of your daily activities while also making it more visually appealing. The ultimate goal of decluttering your living room of unnecessary items is to create a space that feels open, calm, and inviting while also encouraging relaxation and freedom of movement.
Focus on getting rid of items that no longer serve a purpose, are rarely used, or detract from the room’s overall comfort and aesthetic. You can also prioritize removing unnecessary decorations, unused furniture, and anything that has accumulated through habit rather than intention.
1. Too Many Decorative Items
A few candles, vases, and family photos can make a room feel more personal and inviting, but if these pieces are not carefully curated, they can make your room feel cluttered. Removing excess decor can help the pieces you want to display stand out more.
One way to accomplish this is to keep tables and other flat surfaces minimally decorated, leaving enough space for a drink or a book when not in use. Instead of using a large number of small, inexpensive pieces, opt for higher-quality, larger ones. This will also simplify your maintenance, as trinkets easily collect dust, and a large number of small items make cleaning more time-consuming and challenging.
2. Outdated Technology
Technology is always improving, and before you know it, your DVD players, gaming consoles, and entertainment systems are outdated. We are not saying that you should always buy the most up-to-date technology systems, but when you do, take the time to consider replacing the old one. These old systems take up valuable space and accumulate dust.
Take the time to go through your technology and consolidate and streamline so that your tech area not only looks better but is easier to maintain in the future.
3. Unused Games
Clearing out games that are not frequently played or are large and bulky from the living room can free up space for other items that you use more often. If your living room is the hub of gaming activity, don’t remove your entire collection but rather sort through your games to choose the ones that you play the most and keep them in a convenient location. Also, remove any games with missing pieces that are no longer playable.
4. Outdated and Excess Toys
Clearing out toys that your kids no longer use or excess toys that make it difficult for them to focus is an ideal way to streamline your living room space. Begin sorting through their collection by considering each toy in turn.
Think about the child’s age, stage, and how often they play with a particular item. Also consider which toys work best in your living room space. (Hint: Toys with numerous small spare parts are difficult to keep together and pose a tripping hazard in public areas.) Move, store, or donate any toys you no longer want to keep in the living room. Keep just a curated collection of well-used and age-appropriate toys that work well in public spaces.
5. Broken or Unused Furniture
Many people have been guilty of clinging to an ottoman with a broken leg or a lumpy chair that no one uses. We often keep these items “just in case” we need them later. However, damaged or uncomfortable pieces take up valuable space that could be used for more useful items or to clear the way for better traffic flow.
Evaluate each item in question to determine its usefulness and condition. If you enjoy a piece because of its style or meaning and want to keep it, make concrete plans to repair it or better integrate it into your living room arrangement so that it is more useful. Items that are beyond repair or that you simply do not want to use should be donated or discarded, depending on their condition.
6. Old Magazines and Junk Mail
Paper items take up a surprisingly large amount of space on coffee tables, side tables, ottomans, and counters. More than the physical space, they can make us feel weighed down because of the clutter that they create. Rather than let these items build up, sort through them regularly and discard junk mail and recycle old magazines and catalogs to keep your living space more organized and free up space for more current publications.
If old magazines or catalogs have sentimental value, create a dedicated storage area like standing file containers that you can place on bookcases where you can store your special items.
7. Excess Decorative Pillows
Getting rid of excess decorative pillows will instantly refresh your space and make it look more modern and curated. Throw pillows are an easy way to add color and pattern to the living room, but too many will make your sofas and chairs feel overcrowded. The current trend is to make pillows more sparing. Select two or three pillows for the sofa and one or none for the chairs. If you have too many pillows that you love, rotate them rather than pile them all on at once.
8. Work Items
With the rise of working at home, the lines between work and relaxation become ever more blurred. Even if you don’t have a workspace in the living room, it can become a storage place to put your laptop and files when not in use. While this is convenient, it can make relaxation more difficult as well as take up valuable real estate in the room.
Consider relocating your work items to a designated area that is out of sight or at least organized and neat. The ritual of putting your belongings away each day will allow you to mentally disconnect from work and begin relaxing at the end of the day.
9. Clothes and Shoes
No one purposefully stores clothes or shoes in the living room, but they often accumulate nonetheless. If your entry, foyer, or mudroom blend into the living room, this is particularly challenging.
Designate a specific storage item like a coat rack, shelver, or set of hooks to store these items so that you can keep them more organized. Go through these items seasonally to remove items that are not relevant or no longer used to create more space for pieces you use every day.
10. Exercise Gear
Most exercise equipment is notoriously bulky, and getting it out of your living room can free up space and improve its aesthetics. Staying active is a good practice, and sometimes storing exercise equipment in the living room is necessary, but if you do not use it or if it can be moved, you should remove it.
Take time to assess what gear you use and how you use it. Designate a storage area for small items such as yoga mats, weights, and resistance bands. Move larger pieces that cannot be removed to an area where they will not interfere with normal foot traffic patterns.
11. Pet Supplies
Supplies that you use for your pet can build up quickly in the living room, everything from leashes and toys to food bowls and grooming tools. Go through your items and anything that you can store away put into a container that you can easily locate for items you need. Current favorite toys and leashes will need to be more accessible, so consider open baskets that can be stored in a visible location in your living room. To avoid messy spills, relocate items such as food bowls to a kitchen or pantry area.
12. Items You Don’t Love
We get so used to our living room items that we forget to ask ourselves if they bring us any joy. Often we hold onto items because we got them on sale, as a gift, or out of a sense of obligation, which can lead to a living room that is uninspiring and cluttered.
Take some time to evaluate each piece in your living room. If it doesn’t spark love or joy, consider donating, recycling, or selling it. Even if you can not get rid of it right away, consider how the living room will look once you have replaced it or freed up visual space.
