12-12-12 Declutter Challenge: My Experience

I love to find new ways to keep myself motivated to have a good old sort out. Here's my review of using the 12-12-12 Declutter Challenge when I used it to clear out my guest bedroom.

What is the 12-12-12 Declutter Challenge?

Not sure what the challenge entails? Let me explain. It's an uncomplicated way to get rid of clutter by focusing on the number 12. You find 12 items to donate, 12 items to toss, and 12 items to put back in their proper place. And that's it! Well, I say "that's it," as there were a few hiccups that I found along the way - I'll get to that later.

On this page, I'll walk you through exactly how I used this approach to give my spare room a new sense of purpose. I’ll share with you what I thought worked well, what didn’t (the hiccups), and the pros and cons of using this strategy.

The Challenge & Goal

My guest bedroom had become a dumping ground for everything. Unpacked boxes, extra bedding, mismatched furniture, basically, anything that didn't have a home was hiding here. Sound familiar? I think we all have at least one room like this and I am definitely no exception. And like you, I was desperate to get it cleared.

No doubt adding to the clutter, this room doubled as my office and sewing room. Admittedly, I need it far more often as an office than I ever do for visitors - I still wanted a nice serene space for when we have anyone staying.

My goal was to transform it back into a guest bedroom, with a corner set aside for my office that I can easily remove when we have anyone staying over.

Why I Chose the 12-12-12 Declutter Challenge

Like I said at the beginning, I love finding new ways to keep motivated. Especially when it's to do things that I'm not really keen on doing. Like sorting through a mess. If I think of it as a challenge, then I'm already thinking more positively and looking at ways to make it more interesting.

In case you hadn't noticed, there isn't a category for "items to sell" using this approach. For this room, that suited me better. I had already sold a lot of items online and didn't want that hassle for this project. I needed something quick and easy for this room.

Getting Started

Choose the room or area you want to include in your clear out. Obviously, for me, it was my guest bedroom, but it can be any area, room, or even a closet or drawer. Next, grab a couple of containers and label them “Donate” and “Relocate.” If you don't have containers, you can assign specific areas as donate and relocate "zones." Use black sacks for the items you want to throw away.

After a quick scan of my room, I chose an armchair that I wanted to get rid of as my “donation zone.” It was taking up too much space, didn't match anything else, and was never used. I used my wagon-on-wheels for items that I needed to relocate to another room, and black sacks for everything I was throwing. I was ready! Well, almost. The only thing to do now was to take plenty of "before" photos so I could track my progress. Even if you don't want to post these photos on social media, it's very satisfying to compare your before and after photos. Doesn't matter if it's only you that sees them.

My 12-12-12 Declutter Journey

First up was a stack of boxes I hadn't even looked in since moving here one year earlier. Clearly not anything needed urgently. I quickly sorted the contents into donate, relocate, and toss. I also had a lot of my mother’s items. She had passed away recently and I wasn’t ready to let go of her personal possessions...yet. So I put them in clear containers to store in the attic until I’m ready to sort through them. It’s OK to be “not ready.” I will create a new page for getting rid of sentimental items when I am.

Next, the drawers…these were supposed to be empty for guest use but had accumulated an overflow of my clothes I forgot I had. There was nothing in there I particularly missed. I donated anything in good condition and threw away the rest. My trick here was to go through the stuff really quickly. I didn't allow time to second-guess myself on whether or not I'd wear it again. I hadn't worn any of it for over a year, so probably wouldn't again. Great, moving on.

Closet and Cabinets

The closets were a mess. Thankfully, on closer inspection, they looked much worse than they actually were. Turns out it was full of bulky items that I had stuffed in there out of the way (ahem). I had too many duvets and covers from my previous house. This is one of the challenges with downsizing. You're supposed to downsize the bedding to match the number of bedrooms you have now, and I didn't do this. Time to let them go.

Other sizeable things that found their way into the closet were a surplus of suitcases. Much needed when I was moving backwards and forwards between England and the USA, but not so necessary now. I kept the ones that we use regularly for vacation travel and donated the rest.

The bathroom cabinet had a lot, and I mean a LOT, of toiletries as I was using it for the overflow from my bathroom closet. I tossed out anything I didn’t use and put the rest in a box to relocate to my own bathroom. (Mental note: my bathroom now needs to be decluttered too). I've put this on my to-do list and will research the best, and most fun, way to tackle a bathroom. I don’t believe the 12-12-12 method will work well for that room. It needs a more detailed and organized strategy. Watch this space for updates!

Toss, Donate, or Relocate: Mastering the Art of Decluttering Decisions

Now I had a decision to make for each item. I tend to procrastinate if I don’t have some kind of plan or cheatsheet. So I wrote my own quick breakdown for each category. You can download and print this out to help you stay focused.

Toss

• Broken Beyond Repair: Anything broken - gone. I know I’m unlikely to fix things, so out they go.
• Expired or Dried Out: Old toiletries, makeup, and hair products. If they don’t spray, squirt, or pump anymore, throw them out.
• Things You Totally Forgot You Had: If it doesn't spark joy (or even a memory), toss it! If I haven’t found a use for it by now, I never will.

Donate:

• Gently Used Clothing: Those jeans that haven't fit in years? Someone else will love them!
• Extra duvets, blankets & linens: These are always in great demand at animal shelters, donate them.
• Household or Furniture Items in Good Condition: Think unmatched furniture, stuff you move around but no longer use, and extra lamps.

Relocate:

• Items That Belong in a Different Room: Those belongings that migrate, need to go home. Toiletries, clothes, paperwork, stationery…all go back.
• Things That Need a Designated Spot: Create a "home" for frequently used items so they don't end up back in the clutter pile. Put a shelf up for those books hanging around.
• Sentimental Items You're Not Ready to Part With (Yet): Find a safe and organized way to store them.

Printable Cheatsheet Checklist

Weighing the Pros and Cons of the 12-12-12 Declutter Method

After getting through those decisions, I was left with two piles of stuff and a couple of full black sacks. I put the black sacks in the garage ready for garbage day and loaded the "donate" items into my car. Immediately! So I couldn't change my mind. I then wheeled the "relocate" items to their relevant home around the house. A few items needed a new home, like a bookcase, which I put up once the room was cleared.

Now that was done, I felt in a good position to evaluate this method. Here are the pros and cons of using this method.

Pros:

• No items to sell. I like that I didn’t have to list items for sale and deal with interacting with strangers. That can become a whole new project.
• Quick to implement and get started. Nothing to plan or buy, just get stuck in. Although I would suggest taking plenty of "before" photos.
• The number "12" helps you to stay goal-oriented. I was searching hard to find those last few items to make up the numbers, which made me part with more than I would have.
• No Time Pressure: This was perfect for me as I didn’t want to stick to a timeline or be committed for a certain period of time.
• Visual Progress is Key: Having designated containers (or areas) helps you see how much you're actually getting rid of. Again, before and after photos really help here.
• Easy to Repeat: I would probably change the numbers for repeating in the same area, but it is a simple method that could be done monthly.

Cons:

• Difficult and annoying to try to stay within the number 12 constraints. The danger was not to relocate something that should’ve been thrown or donated just to make up the 12 items in the “relocate” category.
• Doesn’t work well for a small area. Finding 12 items for each category was tough. I don’t think it would work well for a smaller area such as a single closet or bathroom.
• Doesn’t enable you to earn money by selling items. Obviously, that’s the rub of not having to list the items.
• Can be confusing when counting small or multiple items. When donating a pile of clothes, do you count each one or the pile? Same with toiletries. I decided to count a pile as one item to make it more challenging.
• Might Require Multiple Rounds for Larger Spaces: A garage or storage area, for instance, would probably have more than 12 items of each.

My Final Result & Opinion

Ultimately, there are probably more effective methods to get a room clutter-free; however, it did get me motivated to start. And it got the job done. While the numerical aspect was more gimmicky than functional, it did help me to part with more items than I would have otherwise. I liked that I could work at my own pace rather than a time-focused challenge.

I also liked the fact that it doesn’t rely on selling items. Although this usually is a positive as it provides income, it can be time-consuming to create listings, deal with inquiries, and meet strangers to complete the deal. For someone like me, that tends to procrastinate, this usually results in the “to sell” items sticking around much longer than they should.

While sentimental items await another day, the 12-12-12 Declutter Challenge proved to be an effective tool in reclaiming my guest bedroom.  It also helped me identify other areas that need to be decluttered. 

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