The JJs Declutter Podcast

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 🚚 Three Projects in a Trench Coat: Your Moving Day Survival Guide 

The truck is finally here! 

After talking through why you're moving, whether it's time, what comes with you, and how to make those decisions without losing your mind, Julie and Janis tackle the big day itself. 

As Janis puts it, a move after 60 isn't one project. It's three projects wearing a trench coat, pretending to be one. 

So we're unbuttoning that trench coat and breaking the whole thing into five manageable phases. No exploding heads allowed. 😅 

📐 Phase 1: Before You Decide
Start with the NEW home, not the old stuff. Get the floor plan. Measure the rooms, the closets, the doorways (yes, especially the doorways!), and your furniture. 

"It'll probably fit" is not a measurement. It's a prayer whispered to the moving gods, and the moving gods do not care about your feelings. 

🗂️ Phase 2: Declutter
A quick Keep or LETS-GO refresher: keep what you use, love, and truly need, and release the duplicates and "somedays." Sentimental items get intentional, not rushed. 

📅 Phase 3: Prepare
This is not a weekend project! 

Work backward from moving day, tackle one area at a time in Small Doable Doses, and build in margin for the unexpected. 

Assemble your moving team, and please don't make your adult kids your unpaid moving company. (Julie speaks from experience.) 

Plus: the client who tagged furniture two years early, Janis's life-saving "pre-move the toilet paper" tip, and why a dishwasher-sized box of hardcovers isn't a box. It's a crime scene. 

💪 Protect Your Body (Not Optional!)
Dollies, real breaks, water, and hired help for the heavy stuff. Nobody in the history of moving has ever said, "The dresser was so worth it." 

📬 The Paperwork That Sneaks Up on You
Address changes, mail-forwarding timing, and emergency contacts. Julie shares a hospital story that proves why these matter. 

📦 Phase 4: Moving Day
Keys, pets, snacks, essentials that ride with you, and a plan for where you're sleeping night one. 

🏡 Phase 5: Settling In
Bed, bathroom, kitchen, clothing, essentials. 

Functional first, beautiful later. Your throw pillows can wait; your toothbrush cannot. 

And give yourself grace for the emotional ups and downs. 

💛 The Big Idea: 
Don't move your old life into your new home. 

Move the life you want into your new home. 

🎯 This Week's Challenge
Grab a tape measure! Measure your three biggest furniture pieces, and put a piece of tape on anything that won't be making the move someday. Then pop into the ABC Declutter Facebook Community and tell us what got tagged! 

Feeling angst about an upcoming move? Reach out. We'd love to help make your transition easier. 

🔗 Connect With The JJs
🌐 Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/
🎙️ Podcast: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/
📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/
👥 Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity
📧 Email: [email protected] 

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Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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⏱️ Knowing What to Keep vs. Actually Doing the Sorting: Two Very Different Skills 

Episode 4 of the Right-Sizing series shifts from what to keep to how on earth you actually get through the sorting process without collapsing around hour three.

 Julie and Janis open with the classic mistake: pulling everything out of a closet at once, turning a manageable afternoon into a bed-floor-and-hallway disaster, and somehow ending up cross-legged on the floor holding a sweater from the Clinton administration. 

The fix is refreshingly familiar territory for longtime listeners: work in small, defined areas — one drawer, one shelf — and start with the easy stuff (broken, expired, duplicate, forgotten) before you ever touch the sentimental box. 

Save the emotionally expensive decisions for once you've built momentum, not for your first 20 minutes. 

The JJs also break down the two main organizing approaches:
A)  by category (gathering all your towels, all your holiday decor, all your Tupperware from across the house to see just how much you actually own) 
B) versus by room (for the satisfaction of walking into a finished space) — 

With the honest reminder that neither is more "correct." 
Use whatever works for your brain. 

Then comes the real heart of the episode: pacing and decision fatigue. 

The Decluttering Dozen (12-minute timer, work until it goes off, stop) gets an upgrade with the "doom-busting session" — stacking a few 12-minute rounds together with a wrap-up buffer. 

The golden rule is knowing when to stop before exhaustion turns every decision into "maybe I'll keep it," quietly refilling your donation pile back into your keep pile. 

For anyone working toward an actual move, Julie and Janis lay out four simple stages 

— Decide, Distribute, Prepare, Move — 

with one hard rule: the moving truck is for transporting decisions you've already made, never for making them. 

✅ This Week's Challenge 

Pick one small area — a drawer, a shelf, one section of a closet. 

Set a 12-minute timer, #thedeclutteringdozen, start with the easy stuff, and stop when the timer goes off (or sooner, if decision fatigue hits first). 

Share your doom-busting session wins in the ABC Declutter Facebook Community! 

Next time: Moving Day itself — the final episode of the Right-Sizing Your Life series. 

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj
 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/
 📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity
 🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/
 🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/
 ✉️ Email: [email protected] 

 #ABCDeclutter #TheJJsDeclutterPodcast #DeclutteringDozen #SmallDoableDoses #RightSizingYourLife #ClutterCrushersClub #DeclutterWithJJ #DoomBusting  #HowToDeclutter #DecisionFatigue #DeclutterByCategory #DeclutterByRoom #MovingStages #SortingSystem #DeclutterMomentum  #DeclutterYourLife #IntentionalLiving #SimplifyYourLife #DeclutterCommunity #LifeTransitions #GetOrganized #MovingPrep  #OrganizingTips #DeclutterMindset #MovingTips #HomeOrganization #DeclutterPodcast #SeniorMoving #TimerDeclutter  

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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📦 Turns Out You Own Enough to Furnish 3 Houses 

Episode 3 of the Right-Sizing series tackles the question that hits the moment a floor plan starts looking real:     okay, but what actually comes with me? 

Julie and Janis flip the whole mindset here — instead of starting with "what do I have to get rid of" (hello, deprivation mode), start with "what do I want to take with me." 

Same process, radically different feeling. 

The JJs work through the categories that trip everybody up: 
- things you use daily (easy), 
- things you use occasionally like the good china or the camping gear (not automatically clutter), 
- and the infamous "Someday" pile — including Janis's very relatable confession about apparently being prepared, at all times, to host 24 people for dinner. 

Cue Julie's imaginary "Grandma's Vase Rejection Form," which might be the funniest bit in the whole series so far. 

Then it's on to the harder stuff — sentimental items (you can love the memory without keeping the object, and there's no rulebook saying you have to choose one or the other), 
- the "but I paid good money for this" trap, 
- and the classic "I'm keeping this for my kids" situation, which really does require actually asking your kids instead of deciding for them. 

- Furniture gets the measuring-tape treatment, 
- clothing gets an honest look at what you actually wear versus what you wish you wore, 
- and yes — the garage finally gets its moment, revealing all the decisions that quietly went into retirement out there. 

The JJs wrap with a genuinely useful decision framework — a set of guiding questions (do I love it, do I use it, would I choose it again today) and a deliberately un-guilty "I'm Not Sure Yet" category, with one important rule: it's a parking space, not a destination. 

✅ This Week's Challenge 

Pick one room — just one. Imagine you're moving tomorrow and ask: what would I absolutely want to take with me? Start there, not with what you're getting rid of. Then look at what's left and ask why you're keeping it. Share your "I'm Not Sure Yet" pile discoveries in the ABC Declutter Facebook Community! 

Next time: how to actually let go of what doesn't come with you — selling, donating, and making the process feel less like erasing your life and more like closing one chapter to enjoy the next. 

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj
 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/
 📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity
 🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/
 🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/
 ✉️ Email: [email protected] 

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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 🏡 Spoiler: Granite Countertops Should Not Be Making Your Life Decisions 

Episode 2 of the Right-Sizing series picks up where Episode 1 left off, and it's time to talk about the M-word: moving. 

Not because a TV show said everyone over 60 needs a condo, and not because a granite countertop is judging you (though Julie has notes about vinegar and granite). 

Julie and Janis walk through 10 genuinely realistic reasons people decide it's time to right-size — and then flip it around with 5 things to actually think about when choosing what's next. 

The reasons run the gamut: 

- the house has become more maintenance than joy, unused rooms have quietly turned into storage units (hello, Clutter Purgatory), 

- the monthly expenses no longer make sense, 

- you just want life to be simpler, 

- or your body's sending memos your house hasn't read yet. 

Add in wanting to be closer to family, 

retirement reshuffling your priorities, 

craving real community, 

wanting to unlock home equity — and the big one, 

reason #10: making the move on your own terms, before a crisis makes it for you. 

Then comes the practical half — because falling in love with a kitchen and forgetting to ask "how far is the nearest grocery store" is a real and common trap.

 The five things that matter: 
1. location and lifestyle (including the surprisingly important "what if I stop driving" question), 
2. accessibility for the long haul, 
3. total cost of living (not just the sticker price), 
4. right-sized space for how you actually live now, 
5. and community and support. 

Janis's "Tuesday morning test" — imagining a random weekday in the new place — might be the most useful five seconds of house-hunting advice in the whole episode. 

The big question to carry forward: are you choosing a home for the life you have, or the life you want to create next? 

✅ This Week's Challenge 

Make two lists: 
1. what you love about your current home, and 
2. what's become difficult, inconvenient, or unnecessary. Be honest — the second list often reveals more than any real estate website ever could. 

Share your lists (or your favorite item on either one!) in the ABC Declutter with JJ Facebook Community. 

Next time: the big question of what actually comes with you when you move — furniture, treasures, collections, and the things that have basically established legal residency in the garage. 

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj 
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/ 
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity 
🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/ 
🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/ 
✉️ Email: [email protected] 

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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 Welcome to Season 4! 
 S4E1: Why to Right-Size Your Life (Right-Sizing Your Life, Part 1 of 5)

📦 **New Season, New Series: Say Goodbye to "Downsizing" Dread**

Season 4 kicks off with a brand-new 5-part series, *Right-Sizing Your Life* — and Julie and Janis are starting with the word swap that changes everything. 

Forget "downsizing," with all its smaller-house, fewer-things, sadder-life connotations. 

This series is about *right-sizing*: finding the amount of space, stuff, and maintenance that actually fits the life you're living right now, not the life you used to live, not the life your neighbor's shiny new condo is living.

The JJs get real about how homes quietly become time capsules. Nobody wakes up and decides to build a museum to 1998 — it happens one kept item at a time. The kids' old rooms. The dining room used twice a year. The craft supplies waiting patiently for a hobby you gave up eight years ago. And, apparently, everyone's destiny to someday own a fondue pot.

But this episode goes deeper than "does it spark joy" — because a lot of what's sitting in boxes isn't clutter, it's memory. 

Julie makes the case that the real question isn't always "have I used this in the last year," it's "what does this mean to me" — and from there, you get to decide whether the object stays, gets photographed, gets passed down, or gets released because you've realized you already have the memory without it.

Janis also tackles the guilt trap head-on — "mom gave it to me," "someone might need it someday" — and offers a gentler reframe: it's not your job to store things for a hypothetical someday. And when it comes to the kids inheriting grandma's china? Ask first. Don't let it become someone else's garage mystery.

The big idea to sit with this week: your home doesn't have to be your autobiography. Your memories live in you, not in every box in the attic.

✅ **This Week's Challenge**

No decluttering yet — this week is just thinking. 

Finish this sentence: *"If my home worked better for the life I'm living now, I would have more ___."
* Then finish: *"The things that get in the way are ___."* 

Don't solve anything yet — just notice. Share your reflections in the ABC Declutter with JJ Facebook Community!

Next time: realistic reasons to actually move, and what to consider when choosing your next home.

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity
🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/
🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/
✉️ Email: [email protected]




#ABCDeclutter #TheJJsDeclutterPodcast #DeclutteringDozen #SmallDoableDoses #RightSizingYourLife #ClutterCrushersClub #DeclutterWithJJ
#RightSizing #NotDownsizing #EmotionalDecluttering #LettingGoOfStuff #FamilyHeirlooms #GuiltFreeDecluttering #HomeThatFitsYourLife #DeclutterYourLife #IntentionalLiving #SimplifyYourLife #DeclutterCommunity #LifeTransitions #GetOrganized #EmptyNest
#OrganizingTips #DeclutterMindset #SentimentalItems 

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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🛍️ The Grand Finale: Stopping the Chaos Before It Even Starts

You've done the mindset work, survived the purge, built a closet you love, and installed the systems to keep it that way. So why do this whole thing again in two years? 

Julie and Janis say the answer is simple: the closet monster doesn't grow from what's already in there, it grows from what keeps walking in the door. 

Today's finale goes straight to the source: shopping.

The JJs break down why we buy things we don't need, and - spoiler alert - it's not a character flaw ... it's the

 sale trap (that "50% off" that talks you into spending 100% on something you didn't need),
emotional shopping (boredom, stress, celebration ... the clothes were never really the point),
vacation purchases (souvenir shirts that never feel the same once you're home),
the sneaky duplicate problem,
and online shopping's total lack of built-in pause points.

The fix is refreshingly simple: three questions before any purchase. 

1. Do I already own something similar? 
2. Can I wear this with at least three things I already own? 
3. Would I buy it at full price today? 

Add a 24-hour (or one-week, for bigger purchases) waiting period, 
and Julie and Janis both share very relatable recent confessions including an England souvenir that never quite fit right, and a 21-pocket vest situation that got returned same-day.

Then the JJs take a well-earned lap through the whole series, from the emotional groundwork in Episode 12 through the systems built in Episode 16 and celebrating everything you've built along the way.

✅ This Week's Challenge (Series Finale Edition)

For the next 30 days, before buying any clothing item, ask the three questions: 
1. Do I already own something similar? 
2. Can I wear it with at least 3 things I own? 
3. Would I buy it at full price? 

No tracking spreadsheet required, just the questions, every single time. 

Share what you notice (or what you talked yourself out of buying!) in the ABC Declutter with JJ - Community Facebook group.

That's a wrap on Closet Chaos to Closet Confidence! 

If this series helped your closet (or your sanity), a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify goes a long way. And if you want to keep the momentum going, check out the Clutter Crushers Club for live monthly Zoom sessions at ABCDeclutter.com.

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj 
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/ 
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity 
🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/ 
🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/ 
🖥️ Email: [email protected]

#ABCDeclutter #TheJJsDeclutterPodcast #DeclutteringDozen #SmallDoableDoses #ClosetChaosToClosetConfidence #ClutterCrushersClub #DeclutterWithJJ #ClosetMonster #IntentionalShopping #ImpulseShopping #StopOverbuying #ShoppingHabits #EmotionalShopping #MindfulShopping #DeclutterYourLife #IntentionalLiving #MinimalistWardrobe #SimplifyYourLife #DeclutterCommunity #ConsciousConsumer #GetOrganized #OrganizingTips #DeclutterMindset #ClutterFreeCloset #WardrobeWisdom #BudgetFriendlyStyle #ShopSmart #ClosetConfidence #SeriesFinale

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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 🪑 The Chair of DOOM Finally Gets What's Coming to It 

You did the mindset work. 
You did the purge. 
You built a wardrobe that actually fits your real life. 

So why does everything slide back into chaos six months later? 

Julie and Janis say it's never one big thing, it's a handful of small daily habits quietly working against you. Today, they're naming every single one and handing you the fix. 

First up: the Chair (or bench, or floor pile, or door handle ... you know your version). It exists because in-between clothes are a real problem, and that deserves a real solution: a couple of designated hooks or a small basket with an actual limit. Unlike the chair, a basket has a bottom, which means it eventually forces a decision. 

From there, the JJs dig into laundry as a full system, not a series of half-finished tasks. 

The golden rule: laundry isn't done until it's washed, dried, and put away ... no exceptions for "the basket is right there." 

They cover picking an actual laundry day instead of waiting for a crisis, sorting as you go, and why smaller loads (yes, really) can save water, electricity, and your sanity. 

Seasonal rotation gets a fresh spin too! It's not just swapping bins, it's a built-in twice-a-year declutter moment: if you didn't miss it in storage, you probably won't miss it going forward either. 

And then there's the overflow dresser, that innocent piece of furniture that slowly became a catch-all. The fix? The file-fold method (game-changer), and clearing the top down to one intentional item. 

Finally, four maintenance habits to keep clutter from creeping back:
one-in-one-out (or Julie's preferred one-in-two-out), 
a monthly 12-minute closet scan, 
an always-accessible donation bag, 
and protecting that hard-won breathing room from episode 15. 

✅ This Week's Challenge 

Set a 12-minute timer, #declutteringdozen, and take on the Chair of DOOM (Didn't Organize Only Moved). 

Every item gets a decision: laundry, back in the closet, or donation bag. Then set up your intentional alternative: hooks, a basket, whatever fits your space so the chair can go back to just being a chair. 

Share your Chair of DOOM victory in the ABC Declutter Facebook Community! 

Next up, the series finale — Episode 17 tackles what comes into the closet in the first place: shopping habits, impulse buys, and building an intentional relationship with clothes shopping. 

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity
🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/
🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/
🖥️ Email: [email protected] 

 #ABCDeclutter #TheJJsDeclutterPodcast #DeclutteringDozen #SmallDoableDoses #ClosetChaosToClosetConfidence #ClutterCrushersClub #DeclutterWithJJ #ChairOfDoom  #LaundrySystems #SeasonalRotation #FileFoldMethod #OverflowDresser #OneInOneOut #ClosetMaintenance #DonationBag  #DeclutterYourLife #HomeOrganization #IntentionalLiving #SimplifyYourLife #DeclutterCommunity #DailyHabits #GetOrganized #OrganizingTips #LaundryRoutine #ClosetSystem #DeclutterMindset #ClutterFreeHome #HomeHabits #OrganizingHacks #ClosetConfidence  

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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 (Closet Chaos to Closet Confidence, Part 3 of 5)

👗 The Fun Part Is Here — Time to Actually Enjoy Your Closet

You survived the purge (Episode 13), 
You named your emotional baggage (Episode 12), 

and now Julie and Janis are getting to the good stuff: 

building a closet that actually works for the life you're living! Not a Pinterest-perfect showroom, and not a shrine to Fantasy You.

The JJs kick things off with a question nearly everyone's asked while staring blankly into a full closet: why do I only wear the same ten things? 

Turns out, those ten things aren't a fluke — they're your brain and body telling you exactly what actually works. 

The real goal isn't owning less for the sake of it; it's making sure everything in your closet earns its spot the way your favorites already have.

From there, the JJs walk through five principles of a closet you'll genuinely love: 

a) everything fits today (not "if I stand a certain way" fits), 
b) everything belongs to the life you're actually living, 
c) everything makes you feel good, 
d) everything's in decent condition, and 
e) everything plays nicely with the rest of your wardrobe. 

They also give the capsule wardrobe trend a fair, funny shakedown — the philosophy has good bones, but nobody needs to fold their life into 37 neutral rectangles to benefit from it.

Julie and Janis also swap their own personal wardrobe wake-up-call stories 
(you'll want to hear these), 
then get delightfully practical: 
- organizing by how your brain actually thinks about getting dressed, 
- keeping favorites at eye level, 
- facing hangers the same direction, 
- leaving breathing room on the rod, 
- adding real lighting, and 
- why "good enough" hangers beat waiting around for the perfect matching set.

The whole episode boils down to one gloriously simple test: 

does your closet make getting dressed easier or harder? 

If harder, something needs to shift — and it doesn't have to be a big something.

✅ This Week's Challenge

Set a 12-minute timer and put together three go-to outfits using only what's already in your closet — no wish list, no "maybe" bag. Snap a photo of each. It'll show you what's working and reveal any gaps worth paying attention to. Share your outfit trio in the ABC Declutter Facebook Community!

Up next, Episode 16 tackles the systems that keep your closet from sliding back into chaos — laundry routines, the overflow dresser, and yes, the Chair of DOOM makes a comeback.

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity
🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/
🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/
🖥️ Email: [email protected]

#ABCDeclutter #TheJJsDeclutterPodcast #DeclutteringDozen #SmallDoableDoses #ClosetChaosToClosetConfidence #ClutterCrushersClub #DeclutterWithJJ  #ClosetYouLove #CapsuleWardrobe #WardrobeEssentials #GettingDressedMadeEasy #ClosetOrganization #FunctionalCloset #ClosetGoals  #DeclutterYourLife #MinimalistWardrobe #IntentionalLiving #SimplifyYourLife #DeclutterCommunity #StyleThatFits #GetOrganized  #OrganizingTips #WardrobeOrganization #ClosetSystem #ClutterFreeCloset #DeclutterMindset #EverydayStyle #ClosetConfidence #OutfitFormula 

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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🪑 This Episode Is Basically an Intervention for Your Chair 

It's a Magazine Moments episode! 

Julie and Janis are digging into a Martha Stewart piece on breaking the habit of piling clothes on furniture. 

Naturally, that means a deep dive into the household's most notorious landing spot: the Chair of DOOM. (You know the one. It's not a chair anymore. It's a clothing shrine.) 

The verdict from the experts? If stuff keeps piling up, it's because either the item doesn't have a home, or its home is too high-friction to actually use.

 The JJs break down the article's rules of thumb one by one: give everything a designated home, declutter the closets and drawers so there's actually room to put things away, and use labels 

(Julie is now a full convert, much to her own surprise). 

The JJs also cover the power of a weekly family reset: complete with a flat surface scramble and a bucket-brigade approach for kids. Plus creating specific drop zones so the chaos has somewhere sanctioned to land. Janis and Julie also get delightfully skeptical about a "valet rod" suggestion (nobody's entirely sure what that even is), debate the merits of the mysterious laundry basket system, and share a truly unforgettable cautionary tale involving Janis's childhood laundry baskets and a cat named Rags. You'll never look at "clean" clothes the same way again. 

This episode continues the Closet Chaos to Closet Confidence series — following S3E12 (the why) and S3E13 (the Great Closet Purge) — with three more episodes still to come as the JJs keep helping you take back your closet, one flat surface at a time. 

✅ This Week's Challenge 

Pick one flat surface in your home that's become a clutter magnet, something like a chair, a counter, even an entryway table, and give it a real, designated purpose or a decluttering session this week. 

Share your before-and-after in the ABC Declutter Facebook Community! 

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abcdeclutterwithjj 
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abcdeclutterwithjj/ 
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/abcdecluttercommunity🖥️ Website: https://www.abcdeclutter.com/ 
🎙️ Podcast Website: https://www.thejjsdeclutterpodcast.com/ 
🖥️ Email: [email protected] 

Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!

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 This is a fun one ... the actual purge episode! 🧥  

Last week we did the head work (the seven reasons your closet is basically a wearable therapy session). This week? We're doing the hands work. 

Julie and Janis are walking you through the actual Great Closet Purge! None of the "does this spark joy," no three-day pile on the bed, and absolutely no giving up halfway through to go make a sandwich. We see you. 

🛠️ Setup Is Half the Battle 
Before you touch a single hanger: 
block off 30-minute chunks (24 minutes sorting, 6 minutes hydrating), 
gather FOUR bins (donate, trash, lives-elsewhere, and the infamous "not sure yet" pile), 
put on a soundtrack that is NOT this podcast (yes, people have tried, no, it doesn't go well), and clear a flat sorting surface. 

Preparation is 90% of not ending up buried under your own fashion history. 

🔄 The Flat Surface Scramble 
One section at a time, not the whole closet, ONE section. 
Pull it out, wipe down the empty space, wax-paper the rod, then sort. Work that section fully before moving to the next. 
Slower feels wrong but it's actually the secret to never facing an overwhelming pile of unresolved sweater decisions. 

🗂️ Keep or LETS GO, Clothing Edition 

• Keep: Fits, worn regularly, fits your actual life
• LE: Lives Elsewhere (seasonal storage, spouse's closet, mysteriously migrated)
• T: Trash (stained, broken, done. No guilt required)
• S: Sentimental (unless you immediately know, this item gets its OWN separate session, not decided mid-purge)
• GO: Goes out — donate, sell, or "I know exactly who needs this"

⏳ The Maybe Pile (With a Deadline)
Maybes are fine ~ as long as they're sealed, dated, and set a 3-month calendar reminder. If you can't remember what's in the bag in 3 months, that's your answer. Donate unopened.

🚧 The Four Sticking Points
The expensive thing you never wear (the money's already gone. Stop paying the guilt tax).
The item that "almost" fits, or the gift you don't love.
As well as clothes from a different body or life chapter we handle here with real gentleness, because that one's personal.

✨ Putting Keeps Back Right
Group by category, hang facing the same direction, put your most-worn pieces at eye level, and wipe everything down before it goes back in. Fresh space, fresh habits.

🎯 This Week's Challenge:
Complete ONE 30-minute purge block on your closet  (24 minutes of sorting, 6 minutes to breathe.)
Take a before photo! 
Share your before/after in the ABC Declutter with JJ Community on FB.

Every win counts, no matter the size of the section.
 
 
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✉️ Email: [email protected]
 
 
 
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Keep it Simple, Keep it Intentional, and - as always - Keep Decluttering!!