According to British Heart Foundation, the emergence of ‘fast homeware’ has led to one in six people changing their décor every year, with millions of those replaced items going to landfill despite being in good condition. What on earth? We’re drowning in stuff. Perhaps this is why figures like Mari Kondo and Clea Shearer live in our collective consciousness. From the millions of tips for decluttering a bedroom and the popularity of online spaces like #cleantok, it’s clear that our appetite for tidiness and organisation is only growing stronger.
In this guide, we’re going to share the Evelyn Lily take on bedroom decluttering, from diagnosing the underlying problems, giving you some quick fixes and then long-term habits you can form to keep the chaos at bay. These essential tips keep your bedroom tidy and your stress levels low – because, yes, having too many knick-knacks has a huge impact on the environment and the feel of your bedroom, but also your wellbeing.
Here’s a nifty summary of everything we’re covering. This guide is designed to be pretty comprehensive, so do go ahead and skip to the parts you need most:
- The Problem
- Finding the Root Cause
- Before you Start…
- 10 Easy Ways to Eliminate the Mess FAST
- Thinking About the Long Term
- A New Chapter Awaits
The Problem
We all create clutter from time to time, and sometimes more often than we’d like. (If not, tell us your secrets! Also, why are you reading this…?). It’s when this clutter starts to feel like a burden or, at worst, when it spirals out of control, that it becomes a problem.
A messy environment, particularly in a bedroom setting where we should be promoting restfulness and a clear mind, a claustrophobic, anger-inducing space is the last thing we want. It can actually interfere with your sleep or ‘sleep hygiene’ and cause low levels of underlying stress. The kicker is that this stress and anxiety can make us feel overwhelmed, the sheer cognitive load hindering our ability to tidy and maintain order. Yep, it’s a feedback loop of clutter.
Which leads us nicely on to our next point…
Finding the Root Causes
Even just talking about the overwhelm can put your teeth on edge, but fear not, you can overcome this obstacle. Despite what society sometimes tells us, being messy doesn’t say anything about your character. In fact, this realisation is often what’s needed to process all the things around you vying for attention and actually start to plan what to do with them.
Another important thing: clutter is a symptom, not the cause. Some of the most common reasons behind it are emotionally charged. Maybe you’re dealing with a bout of poor mental health. Perhaps your sense of frugality has strayed towards hoarding territory, or you’re holding onto sentimental items out of guilt rather than genuinely cherishing them. All of these causes are understandable, human even, but when they’re negatively impacting how you enjoy your home, it’s time to let go.
The 1 Hour Method
So we’ve talked about the reasons, but what about the process? And what’s this about decluttering a bedroom in one hour? Well, that would be the 1 hour method – and it’s exactly what it sounds like: dedicating a single hour towards doing nothing else but cleaning.
The reason it works lies in its simplicity. With a 60-minute timer ticking down, you have accountability, while breaking a larger task into smaller chunks makes the whole thing much more manageable, which is perhaps why this method has been highly praised by people with ADHD.
Generally speaking, it helps people maintain efficiency and avoid time-wasting, but the caveat is that it won’t work for everyone. Really, your decluttering strategy depends on your reasons for the clean, the extent of the work and, of course, the way your brain is wired. Nevertheless, this is a wonderfully beginner-friendly place to start. If you do find yourself still keen to continue after an hour has passed, no one’s stopping you from doing so. In fact, it might be a good idea to stick some more tunes on and keep the momentum going.
Before You Start…
Now you know how to approach decluttering your bedroom, let’s get some of the preliminaries out of the way. First, if you’ve got a feeling you might be getting rid of a lot of stuff, make sure you have some boxes ready. It’s best to label them so items you want to keep, donate or chuck don’t get mixed up. In the case of donations, consider having a collection day or ride organised if they’re pieces of furniture or larger décor items. Finally, it might be helpful to enlist a friend; after all, two pairs of hands are better than one.
How to Declutter Your Bedroom in 1 Hour or Less: Easy Ways to Eliminate the Mess Fast
1. Tackle the floor first
If you can’t traverse the room very well, it tracks that you should start with the floor. From general bits and bobs like clothes to boxes with crafts and paperwork, make sure you clear them all out. This way you’ll have a much easier time shifting furniture, tidying certain spots or even envisioning how to make the room cosier.
2. Organise the hidden clutter
Sometimes you don’t need to see it to feel it. Whether that’s a hopelessly disorganised set of drawers, the mayhem under your bed, an overstuffed wardrobe or boxes of junk that just keep accumulating more inhabitants, investing in storage solutions like drawer organisers, stylish boxes and rattan baskets can help you get things under control.
Remove all the items you no longer have a use for and reorganise the remaining things into a system that works for your brain – while colour coordination might not work for everyone, ordering clothing by length in your wardrobe makes it easy to grab things when you’re in a rush.
3. Remove items that don’t belong in the bedroom
Ideally, your bedroom should be a space only set up for sleep and activities that allow you to unwind. This means removing objects that keep you distracted, on edge or otherwise awake. While keeping big screens in there is viewed as a cardinal sin by many, sometimes it isn’t that easy – case and point, the multifunctional office bedroom. This said, integrating a Murphy desk that can be hidden away, or nestling it into a nook, could be a welcome compromise.
4. Upgrade your storage (furniture)
Investing in high-quality bedroom furniture with ample storage potential goes a long way to making your room look and feel bigger, particularly if it’s on the smaller end of the spectrum. Sideboards are often a go-to thanks to their drawer capacity yet slimline silhouette, but don’t overlook more unusual options like corner shelving units or even floating bedside cabinets. You could even consider floor-to-ceiling or walk-in wardrobes to reduce the element of visual stimulation. Plus, in-built pieces are a great way to add value to your home.
5. Rethink the layout
A poor layout can often be the culprit of a disorganised room, making tidy decisions harder to achieve or the flow of the room feel disjointed. Here are just a few quickfire tips. Never force all of your furniture back against the wall; this can make the empty space in the middle of the room feel cavernous. Equally, it’s not a good idea to neglect the storage potential of your walls.
Another no-no, if you can help it, is positioning your bed’s headboard opposite the entrance, as you’ll subconsciously be on the alert for people opening the door. And don’t forget corners! These can make cosy nooks and a perfect place to hunker down with a book.
6. Turn visible storage into décor
We’ve written many a styling guide in our time, from bedside table décor to ways you can elevate your dressing table organisation. In most instances, the trick is to turn visible storage into décor pieces in of themselves. Stationery holders can be ornate mugs and other ceramics, wicker baskets can hold just about anything, and clear plastic boxes can be upgraded to a traditional trunk that matches the overall look, from soft furnishings to the paint scheme.
7. Give away unwanted items to loved ones
It can be really difficult to give away items you love but don’t fit your style or needs any more, particularly if it’s going to a stranger. Instead, consider gifting them to friends or family; your stuff gets a new home and your loved ones a gift – it’s a win win.
8. Reduce visual clutter not just physical mess
While we do love maximalism at Evelyn Lily, provided it's executed well, there is a red line when it comes to décor. Sometimes, too much, is simply that: too much. In this case, try to strip things back and give your eyes places to rest. Take down that painting! There’s no reason to fear negative space.
9. Hide cords & wires
Chargers, wires, WiFi connections – you name it – cords of any description can put a dampener on any bedroom décor scheme. Yes, even the most beautifully put-together country-style bedroom. So make sure to hide them away. From using wire unifiers and clips to hold them out of the way to storing extras in wicker baskets or stashing them in drawers, there are so many options to keep them out of sight, out of mind.
10. Contain the chaos
There’s never any point forcing yourself into a mould that doesn’t fit, but you can contain the chaos, or at least make it look intentional, editorial even. So don’t worry about throwing away the collection you’ve put your heart and soul into expanding; instead, think long and hard about ways you can elevate it. Perhaps a curio cabinet will do? How about a dedicated display shelf?
In the context of clothes or after a long day’s work, something as simple as an armchair in the corner can make all the difference – throw your outfit over the arm and come back to it the next day – or opt for a designer laundry basket in a natural material like seagrass, which becomes a distinct detail in your room and part of the style. Even things like movable baskets come in handy as they prevent non-necessities from taking root on your bedroom floor and making a home there.
Thinking About the Long Term: Creating a System & Forming Habits
Part of the challenge of decluttering a bedroom is making sure it doesn’t revert to its previous state, and, yes, that takes discipline. But remember what we said before? Baby steps.
The simplest path to success is to try to turn one-off actions into habits, creating a system that works around your lifestyle. An obvious step is to set a date in your calendar for a scheduled clean or committing to doing some tidying little and often. You could even create rules like the “One In, One Out” rule, whereby you force yourself to get rid of an item whenever you buy or receive one – this way, you’ll never build up too many possessions. Again, the idea is finding an approach that works for you and fits your rhythms.
A New Chapter Awaits
There we have it – all of our essential tips for decluttering a bedroom, no matter how messy. We hope you learned something here and are well on the way to plucking up the motivation (or the courage) to get started on your own.
As home interior enthusiast, Caroline Winkler, puts it: “our homes are full of real people”. It’s not about striving for perfection; the aim is to create an environment that makes us feel safe enough, healthy and happy enough to feel that we’re not just surviving day to day, but that we can really thrive. Banishing some of the mess is a great start.
If you enjoyed this post, we’ve got plenty of others just like it over on the rest of our blog. From inspiration and styling to practical design advice, we really have it all.
