How To Deal With Emotionally Difficult Clutter According To An Organizing Pro

And what happens if you’re not in the emotional space to start decluttering? Consider hiring a storage service, like MakeSpace, that will even pick up (and later deliver) the belongings you’re not ready to deal with just yet.

Keep the best and let go of the rest. Save heartfelt letters from mom, not every card where she simply wrote “Love, Mom”. Edit items to fit into a reasonably-sized container. Pare down plastic tubs of baby clothes to a few adorable tiny pieces that will fit in a box on a shelf.Take a photo of items that are meaningful but not beautiful enough to display: old dolls, stuffed animals, kids’ artwork, and knick-knacks. Keep the memories and let the objects go.

“Protect your treasures from harsh environmental conditions—keep paper and cloth items away from light, moisture, dirt, heat, large fluctuations in temperature, and pests.” Once you’ve decided to keep an item, it’s worth storing it the right way.