I am always looking for new ways to make tidying feel fresh, and the 'Declutter Like a Tourist' method is among the most fun ones I've ever tried.
It is all about forgetting that you live in your home and walking through the house as if seeing it for the first time, working out what looks out of place, crowded, or unnecessary. I spoke to professional organizers about why it's an effective method and how to do it.
If you're looking for decluttering methods that will give you a brand new perspective on your home, this is worth giving a go.
What is the Declutter Like a Tourist method?
Even though this decluttering tip hints at trips abroad and sunny shores, it actually just involves imagining you are seeing your home for the first time.
Ben Soreff, professional organizer at House to Home Organizing, says, ‘Organizing is all about time and manual labor, so when you apply a method to the madness, it is always helpful. The most important step in organizing is the review, and this is the step most people skip.
‘Using the Declutter Like a Tourist method may be helpful during the review process. Looking at your items with a fresh eye, like a tourist, allows you to judge your items without any baggage (despite having tourist in the name).’
You can do this by yourself, but it may help to have a friend or family member help you, as they will be able to point out items that you may have become 'blind' to.
Where is the Declutter Like a Tourist method best for?
The Declutter Like a Tourist method will help you look at your home from a new angle.
The Declutter Like a Tourist method works in any room where clutter is prone to building up, such as when organizing living rooms, entryways, and kitchens.
Ben adds, ‘The tourist method also works well when reviewing your decor and art.’
No matter what you are decluttering, it’s important to disregard the information you already have about items, such as how expensive they are or how sentimental they are.
Ben continues, ‘From here, you can focus on the frequency of use to determine the best place for it to live in your space.’
He says that you should also look at the quantity of one item you have, and work out what storage solutions you need to contain them.
How to do the Declutter Like a Tourist method
The method works particularly well in high-traffic rooms.
Want to know how to do this clever decluttering method? Hillary Cooper, professional declutterer and president at Uncluttered, has shared her top tips for getting started:
- Ask a close family member or friend to come over: This needs to be someone completely comfortable with telling you the brutal truth.
- Don’t clean up in advance: While this is a difficult part of the process, fighting the urge to clean your home beforehand will ensure you get honest, real results.
- Look everywhere: Tell your co-declutterer to snoop away, as if checking into a hotel or apartment for the first time. Open kitchen cabinets, bathroom drawers, the fridge, and closets, and take notes as you go.
- Set a timer: This will help make sure the process isn’t too overwhelming, as well as remind you to take breaks. You can use your phone or an Antonki timer from Amazon.
- Donate any unwanted but unnecessary items: You could do a yard sale or donate them to your local secondhand store.
What to shop
All prices were correct at the time of publication.
I have these boxes myself and regularly use them for sorting items out while decluttering. Once you're done using them, you can either use them as storage or fold them away neatly.
If you find any items you want to keep but don't want to make your space untidy, stash them away in a stylish container like this rattan basket. It has sturdy handles for easy transportation and comes in three different colors.
These books are perfect for stylish stashing if find any smaller items that you don't want on show but need to keep in the room. They work brilliantly as living room storage ideas and as bedroom storage ideas.
Meet our experts
Ben is part of the specialized team at House to Home Organizing, and a level 5 hoarding expert. He loves finding unique methods that will transform homes and habits for good, like the Declutter Like a Tourist method.
Hillary Cooper is a declutterer and the president of Uncluttered, which aims to assist with creating calm out of the stress that surrounds downsizing, relocation and family disruptions. She creates customized plans of action for families and enjoys finding different techniques to do this.
Looking for more decluttering ideas that will give you a new perspective? The 'No-More-Than-4' rule, the 'Buy Again' test, and the 'Ski-Slope' organizing method are also great methods.
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