Every year there seems to be a new flavour trend in food, like salted caramel or black pepper. The same can be said for decorating trends like copper finishings and pops of neon.
One of the most prolific design trends of the past year has been the minimalist movement.
Minimalist purists don’t simply throw away a handful of unused items. They completely strip their lives of every single unnecessary thing that is cluttering up their home.
The extreme minimalist movement doesn’t suit every family, but most homes could do with taking a leaf out of the minimalists’ book.
We’ve put together a list of ten items that you probably have around your home that you should definitely throw away.
1. Broken furniture
If you have an old chest of drawers shoved in a corner of your garage that broke three years ago and you never got around to fixing it, it needs to go.
Donate it to charity or leave it out on a hard rubbish day but get it out of your house. If it was an essential item, you would have made the time to fix it. If an item has been broken for longer than a year, you need to let it go.
2. Stacks of out of date reading materials
Lots of people tend to hold on to old magazines and newspapers and then never look at them again. If you have a collection of limited edition magazines that’s fine, but no one needs floor to ceiling stacks of weekly glossies and tabloids. Recycle them and reclaim your space.
3. Decommissioned appliances
It can be difficult to part with appliances because they’re notoriously expensive, so most people tend to put their old broken blender in the garage because it feels weird to throw it away.
You just have to be rational and realise that you’re going to throw it away eventually and it will either be now, or in ten years time after it’s been collecting dust on a shelf in your garage. Save yourself the space and do it now.
4. Linen you never use
Picture this: you go to change the sheets on your bed and you grab the first set of sheets you find.
Upon closer inspection you realise they’re the scratchy sheets you hate with the hole in the hem, so you shove them back in the cupboard and get the other sheets you like.
You know those sheets you just put back in the cupboard?
Throw them away. It can feel wasteful but if you’ve got a good couple of years of wear out of them and you never, ever use them, it’s not rational to keep them.
5. Stored artwork
There’s no point in holding on to art that doesn’t thrill you and you don’t want to display in your home.
Lots of people have a mental block when it comes to getting rid of or selling artwork, but if you’re not displaying it and you really don’t like it, get rid of it.
There’s no point in allowing it to clutter up your cupboards and storage spaces if you have no intention of ever hanging it on your walls.
6. Dead plants
Some minor finishing touches will help elevate your place before auction day. Picture: Leaf Supply
It can be tempting to hold on to dead plants and hope they’ll miraculously spring back to life but it’s very unlikely that will happen.
When a plant is gone, it’s gone. Chuck it in the compost and move on with life.
See more: 8 low-maintenance indoor plants you will love
7. Outdated technology
This one is similar broken appliances because it goes against human instincts to discard of something that was once expensive and useful.
If you have a stack of blank CDs donate them your local school to be used for craft projects. Old laptops, tablets and MP3 players can also be donated to schools. If you’re not using it, get rid of it and give it to someone who will use it.
8. Anything you don’t use
That coat rack that’s full of scarves no one ever wears, that exercise stepper machine that you used once and that enormous juicer you bought in the middle of a health kick a few years ago.
Just because you paid money for it, it doesn’t mean you need to keep it. You can sell almost anything online and anything that doesn’t sell, take it to a charity shop.
Alternatively, if you’re feeling crafty – consider upcycling – turn your unused items into something you will use.
Just because you paid money for it, it doesn’t mean you need to keep it.
9. Pet paraphernalia
Chihuahua at home.
Most pet owners will have a bed, scratching post or some kind of little house they bought that their pet absolutely hated and never, ever used.
It doesn’t matter if you spent a month’s rent on a giant scratching post for your cat, if the cat hasn’t used it, it won’t use it. Just because you spent money on something doesn’t mean you have to keep it.
Try to sell it online and if it doesn’t sell ditch it on hard rubbish day, take it to the tip or give it away. Keeping an item that you never use doesn’t increase its value.
See more: Pets you can own in a HDB vs Private residential
10. Surplus cleaning supplies
If you have four different types of shower cleaning product and you only use one of them, get rid of the rest. And there are four half-empty bottles, try marrying the bottles and then ditching the empties.
There’s no point in cluttering up your cupboards with unnecessary stuff.
Originally published as 10 household items you need to get rid of immediately by Carly Jacobs. Author at realestate.com.au
