Exfoliate Your Home Like You Exfoliate Your Skin

You’ve probably heard of exfoliating your skin but have you heard of exfoliating your home?

This post may contain affiliate links through which Club31Women might get a small compensation – with no additional cost to you.  See my disclosure policy here.

I’ve finally started exfoliating my skin. People have told me in the past to exfoliate but I didn’t want to spend the money on an expensive electronic brush.

A month ago, after talking to my esthetician, she told me to buy a pack of exfoliating buff sponges like these. I bought two different kinds and started using them. My goodness, my skin has never felt so smooth and soft. I have always had skin problems but ridding my skin of layers of dead cells has never been so rewarding. I’ve given a sponge to each family member and encouraged them to do the same.

Exfoliating your home.

I know how amazing exfoliating my face feels. What if we exfoliated our homes?

What if we got rid of the layers of dead stuff we no longer use, love, or need. Clutter and excess, gone. What if we could experience benefits like…

• more peace,
• less stress and chaos,
• more time with family,
• less time wasted trying to find things,
• less guilt over the state of our home,
• freedom from the weight of clutter around us,
• less misplaced papers,
• being able to invite friends over for visits,
• less hiding stuff behind closed doors, etc.

5 Tips to Exfoliate Your Home

1. Prepare for exfoliation by creating a DONATE bin.

Place a bin, bag or box where ever you can. It could be behind the door in your laundry room, in the corner of your garage, on a shelf in your closet, or even in the trunk of your car. When you find items that you no longer love or need or use, place them in this bin. If you try on a shirt while getting ready and you don’t like how it looks anymore place it in this bin instead of dropping it on the floor or hanging it back in your closet.

2. Exfoliate an area while you work in an area.

I exfoliate my face in the shower every two to three days. I do it while I wash my face in the shower because it’s convenient, easy to remember, and fast. Do the same with your home.

• While your kids are playing, grab a couple items they haven’t played with and place them in your donate bin.
• If you notice that every time you empty the dishwasher you can’t fit all the plastic cups in your cabinet, exfoliate the cabinet by pulling everything out and only putting the things you LOVE and USE back in. Put the rest in the donate or recycle bin.
• When you’re putting laundry away do a quick scan of your closet and see if you can find 5 things you haven’t worn this season.
• While you file a paper quickly scan through and see if there is anything in the file you no longer need.
• When you are refilling your cotton balls or Q-tips do a quick organize under the cabinet. If that seems overwhelming, at least try and grab 5 things to put in the donate bin.
• If you are waiting for the water on the stove to come to a boil, go through your condiments or one pantry shelf to see if you have any expired items you can throw.

3. Exfoliate when seasons change.

As seasons change take time to get rid of old, unused items. Seasons could be fall, winter, spring and summer OR seasons of life like the end of babies, the start of school, a move, etc. Let this be the year you purge your decorations after each holiday. Before putting decorations away, empty your bins and remove everything you didn’t use.

4. Allow your family to exfoliate.

If a family member doesn’t want to keep an item, allow them to get rid of it. You are training them to purge things and live simply. This is one of the best gifts you can give. I witnessed this with a client and her daughter.

The mom had brought back some souvenirs from a work trip and given them to her daughter as a gift. The daughter had displayed them on her desk for the last year. As we organized her room, she didn’t really want them but told me that her mom had given them to her. The mom walked in to check on us and said to her daughter, “It’s alright with me if you donate those things honey. They were special at the time but we’ve changed and I’m sure you have something else you’d like to put there.” I could see the relief in the daughter’s eyes.

5. Be thankful for what you have and mindful of what you bring into your home.

This is a journey. No matter how mindful we are with what we bring into our homes, somehow there is always stuff to get rid of. As you exfoliate, placing things in your donate bin, thank God that He is your provider. Be thankful you enjoyed these items and grateful you can now allow someone else to enjoy them. Thank God you are healthy and able to exfoliate your home. Ask Him to help you be mindful of what you bring into your home.

And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. 2 Corinthians 9:8 (NLT)