How to Declutter Sentimental Items

We all have sentimental items. Whether they are from a time before you, grandparents and parents, your childhood, or from your own children. Sentimental items are a hard category to minimize. They have memories attached to them. But a great question to start with is this: Are the boxes in our attic preserving the memory of our loved ones or are they being forgotten?

So let’s get started!

1. Pull it all out. See what you have all in one place.

2. Decision time - you do what feels right for you. I have created this rule for myself to make this process easier. If I can’t use it or display it now or if I’m not certain I’m passing it on to my kids, I let it go.
   
   Make a quick pass through on the things you have laid out. What do you immediately see that you can get rid of? Go ahead and set those things to the side.

3. Categorize. Do you have a lot of things from one person or one time period. Categorize your things so you can see them more clearly.

4. Now look at each item and ask yourself this:

1. Does this item have a memory for me? Sometimes we are gifted things that really don’t have a memory for us. If it doesn’t pass it on to someone else or let it go.

2. Can I use it now? Don’t save special things for later. Make memories with them now. We use my grandmother’s crystal. My daughter plays with the baby blanket that was sewn by her great-grandmother. Even if the crystal was broken, I still have the memories of it being used by my family and that means the most to me!

3. Do I want to display this? I’m not talking about a full shelving unit of random items. Can you use this in your decorations? My husband was honored to have the flag that was on his grandfather’s casket. He was a veteran. It is beautiful on the top shelf of our bookshelves. I have the outfits my children were dedicated in. I have them framed and hanging in our home.

4. Can I share this? Maybe you have a sibling or cousin who didn’t get to own something from this person that is special to you both. Ask them if they would like to have the item.

5. If none of the above work, take a photo of the item. Better yet, find a photo of the person you loved with the item. Put both of these in a digital or printed album. You can get rid of the item, but the memory will live on.

5. Last but not least, for the items you are keeping, it’s time to store them. Decide what space you limiting yourself to. For our family, I have one clear plastic box in our attic for these items. Then we each have a small box for smaller items like cards and awards.

1. Make sure the stains are off any fabric items. It will only get worse with time.

2. Wrap the items in appropriate packaging for the material of the item being stored.

3. Label each item. If I passed away tomorrow, would my kids know why I kept the item? Take a few minutes to type out a note. Here is an example. When I was going through my sentimental items several years ago I came across my wedding shoes. My then 4 year old begged me to keep them for her. This is my note: “Elsie, these are the shoes I wore on my wedding day. They were ones I had eyed, but couldn’t afford to buy and my sweet friend Missy purchased them as a surprise for me. When you were only 4 years old you begged me to keep these for you one day. Now you are getting married and these are yours. You have absolutely zero obligation to wear these. You might find the perfect shoes for your dress. I just want you to have these as I promised. Love, Mama.”

Going through sentimental things can see hard, but it’s so worth it to know that the things you have from loved one are being enjoyed and their memory is living on.