Before you dive into any kind of cleaning project, it helps to create your own cleanup guidelines about what can stay and what has to go. It’s useful to make decisions ahead of time and determine “What am I going to do when I see something like XYZ?”

Mark Your Trail

Things can rapidly get overwhelming and confusing when you’re surrounded by clutter chaos, so it’s best to have some mental guideposts firmly established. That makes it easy for you to find your way back to the path almost instinctively. As Hansel and Gretel would tell you, mark your trail with pebbles, not breadcrumbs.

Sample Cleanup Guidelines for What to Keep and What to Ditch

You can set a baseline standard for the condition of any item that you’ll be willing to keep for sale or personal use.

Here are some core rules we created for items that we’d be willing to keep:

• Nothing with mold.

Unless it was of the non-instant-death-causing variety and was on a hard surface that could be treated with a steam cleaner or a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter, followed by a hearty dose of Concrobium as needed. That meant moldy and mildewed books, photos, letters, LPs, and other paper ephemera met their fate in the recycling bin, landfill, or secondhand shops that aren’t as picky as I am. I’ve seen other people talk about leaving items out in the sun to let the mold dry out. After dealing with some particularly pernicious mold situations, I don’t fully trust that method. Plus, it won’t remove stains.

• Nothing with a permanent stench.

Goodbye, item. Hello, garbage can.

• No torn clothing or damaged items.

Unless one of us was willing to mend the item within a set timeframe. We’d put the object aside in a bag and write the “Fix It or Forget It” date on it. That’s the date by which we had to repair the item or else get rid of it entirely. Then we held ourselves accountable and stuck to that deadline.

• Nothing stained. 

Unless it was extra-special sentimental and could be fully cleaned or at least improved to an acceptable condition.

Once you have your hard and fast rules established, you can add other guidelines and questions to ask yourself about each item, such as:

• Does it spark joy? 
• Do you love it?
• Does it have a special, positive memory attached to it? 
• Would you be willing to give up something else you own to make room for it? 
• Do you have someone in mind to whom you could give the item right away or on a specific date in the very near future? 
• Would you use it in the very near future? (Be realistic, my dear. No wishful thinking. If you can’t be bothered to scramble an egg on a good day, don’t hang onto something that would only be used by a professional chef.)

Know When to Take a Break

It is best to make decisions quickly and in the moment. If you’re in tune with your emotions, your gut can be a powerful guide.

But sometimes it can be hard to make the best decisions if you’re in the midst of the cleanup proper when tensions are high and energy’s low.

If you’re throwing things away willy-nilly because you’re ticked off or tired, you may regret some of the choices you made.

At that point, it’s best to take a break, go for a walk, have a snack, rehydrate, and tackle it when you’re feeling better. It can also help to switch up the task you’re doing so that you activate a different part of your brain and allow the other part to percolate about the earlier choice. Then return to the original item and see if you’re thinking more clearly about it. Concentrate on the items about which you feel most confident first, build up some momentum, and revisit the others that give you pause.

I’ve been getting rid of my own stuff for decades, and I can honestly say that I don’t regret anything that I’ve donated, disposed of, or sold. In fact, I’ve forgotten what a lot of the items were. Which is a great sign.

Clearing out unnecessary or unloved items gives me more brain-space for new, more exciting interests and more physical space for keeping items I love or for simply having room in which to breathe and be at peace.

Be Honest with Yourself 

Honesty is a theme that you’ll come across quite a few times in this blog. In this instance, be honest about what you can deal with, what you need people to help with, and what you don’t want to do.

Don’t be ashamed if you don’t want to deal with it and would rather have your time to do something else. Don’t be ashamed if you don’t think you’re up to the task, because it’s a real doozy. It’s better that you get someone else to come in and handle the project if you don’t think you can do it justice.

If you know that doing a hoarding cleanup will make you bitter for the rest of your days and forever darken the memories you have of your loved one, definitely call in the cleaning cavalry. It’s not worth that kind of emotional loss.

Also be honest about your own attachments to someone else’s items and whether you have trouble with compulsive collecting or hoarding tendencies.

This is where those guidelines you established before getting started will really come in handy.

Try not to make exceptions. If there’s mold, if there’s a tear, or if the item’s unrecoverable, be honest about your own abilities to clean or repair the item properly. Also be honest about how much time you’re willing or able to spend on rehabbing an item. Is it worth the expense? The hassle? The opportunity cost? The energy?

A Closing Word About Mold 

Mold is bad news for people with allergies or sensitive immune systems. Even if you don’t have allergies when you get started, extended exposure to mold can cause you to have them.

Mold has to be physically removed. Otherwise the spores can remain and continue to wreak havoc on your respiratory system and your items.

Even inactive spores can be toxic or at the very least irritating.

Don’t make your lungs mad. Get rid of items that have been permanently damaged by mold.

If you know the risks and are still determined to clean mold and mildew off of books and papers, I recommend this how-to post by Biblio. The Northeast Document Conservation Center (NEDCC) has an excellent, extensive explanation of mold, how to prevent it, and how to salvage items. The post is tailored to institutions but the principles are the same for everyday homes like yours and mine. There are also professional document recovery companies that have more specialized tools and cleaning products.

Hope and joy,

Rachel