If you want to maintain a neat and clutter-free home, you’ll need to declutter your belongings, including your travel souvenirs collection, once in a while. The most effective process is to do it in your own time. However, decluttering sentimental items could be easier said than done. After all, these travel souvenirs represent special memories with your special someone, family, or friends.
It’s believed that almost every person feels guilty of hoarding emotional touchstones, like you, bought on a trip somewhere. Someone could’ve given them to you or you could’ve just purchased them to commemorate the journey. Unfortunately, all those stuff could accumulate over time. And they might contribute to cobwebs and dust bunnies more than the pleasant feelings you feel when you see or touch them.
It's time to declutter your travel souvenirs now. To proceed, apply the following tips:
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1. Donate Or Throw Away Items You Don’t Need
After sorting your belongings into various boxes, those that you consider still valuable and useful should be donated to organizations or charities that can give your preloved items to the needy. You can drop them in donation centers or your local thrift stores too.
Regarding the things you need to toss away, you should consider the number of items and when you need to get rid of them. You can either hire a skip bin hire, take advantage of rubbish removal services like those offered by Same-day Rubbish Removal, or drop them off at recycling centers. Ensure to prioritize the environment’s safety when getting rid of your used travel items.
2. Decide Which Ones Are Still Worth Displaying Or Keeping
It’s time to evaluate your travel souvenirs collection. Take a look at each one and assess whether you need to keep or continue displaying them. You may want to keep the item not because they’re useful but because they’re memorable. And it’s okay if you feel that way, as long as you keep some and not all of them. After all, the memories won't ever fade in your mind and heart. If they're worth keeping, display them on a shelf so you can always see and be reminded of them.
Use items that bring you happy memories to decorate instead of putting them away. They could get damaged when stored for a long time unused anyway. You can designate a shelf display for all your travel souvenirs and keep only the most precious ones. Aside from enjoying it for yourself, your guests, family, and friends will also get to see them, making conversations about them down memory lane.
3. Set Time And Create A Decluttering System
No one loves doing decluttering, yet you need to put your home together to prepare for work somehow. Aside from how much time it takes to finish everything, it could make you feel overwhelmed and stressed to let go of things you don't want to. But with a proper mindset and good planning, you can go through this effectively.
To avoid burnout, you can set a time every day after work or during your free time. Depending on the amount of clutter you have, you can take up thirty minutes to an hour of your available time to declutter your souvenir items. Stick to your schedule so you won't procrastinate on this decluttering project.
You may need help keeping on track if you know you’ll get emotional while sorting. You can invite family members or close friends over, so they can help you decide which stuff to let go of and which to keep. You can set smaller goals for each cleaning session once you understand your end goal. Devise a decluttering system that works for you and your schedule so you won't feel burdened with this task.
4. Keep Only One Thing From Each Travel Or Event
It can be tough to decide what to keep to help retain a specific trip or memory. The best alternative is to select one representative for each travel or event. Only keep one item and get rid of the rest so they won't add clutter to your home. Assess the ones made of high-quality materials and are sure to last a long time while displayed.
5. Don’t Feel Guilty About Gifts
It’s said that gifts often languish in the hands of recipients because they think the givers will feel bad if they get rid of them. Nonetheless, the reality is they might have forgotten these items entirely in the first place. Also, the most important thing is that you appreciate and cherish their effort, so the giver will feel happy that you're grateful. You can use the gift however you like. Therefore, you have the liberty to include it in the decluttering bin.
Don't feel remorse when decluttering, as it’ll only make the task ineffective. Be open-minded and optimistic about the task, and you'll be able to finish decluttering your travel souvenirs successfully.
Conclusion
Sure, a perfect travel souvenir is almost impossible to forgo buying. But they should always be collected in moderation. You’re in for a challenging mission when you're decluttering your travel souvenirs, but it can also be an incredibly worthwhile experience. Try to apply some if not all the tips mentioned above, and you'll have a well-organized decluttering session.
