How to Declutter and Organize for Mental Clarity in Your Home

Your creative space is either feeding your inspiration or eating it up.

Today, we’re choosing inspiration.

Learning how to declutter and organize for mental clarity can help you create a space for your artistic soul to breathe, dream, and create without boundaries. ✨

Let me show you my favorite way of making your home a sanctuary so your creative spirit can feel alive.

The Connection Between Clutter and Creativity

How Physical Clutter Affects Your Mental Space

There’s a hidden cost of clutter in your home, and it’s your quality of life, your anxiety over cleaning, and your ability to have gratitude in the home that keeps you safe.

Every paper shoved into a drawer, boxes piling up on the floor, and cluttered skincare in your bathroom is occupying precious mental real estate.

These mental declutter tips begin with understanding that each item carries an energetic weight that adds to the background noise in your creative mind — whether a positive one or a negative one.

Your creative energy needs a clear path to flow, just like you need a clear path to walk through your studio. When your space is cluttered, each scattered item becomes a small obstacle that interrupts your focus and drains your mental energy.

But when you declutter and organize for mental clarity, you’re creating an environment where ideas can develop naturally and your creativity can expand without constant distractions. 🪐

The simple act of seeing cluttered boxes, a bed that needs to be made, or unfolded clothes can trigger a cascade of thoughts: guilt for not completing it, pressure to start working on it again, uncertainty about whether you still want to finish it.

This mental chatter can drown out the beginnings new inspiration trying to reach you. And who wants those feelings every time they walk around their home? Not me! 😵‍💫

In fact, every item in your space demands a decision: Use me? Move me? Keep me?

This is why there’s a true magic of really organizing your space (the right way; Marie Kondo’s way). When organizing for inner peace, you’re clearing up both your physical and your mental space.

💕 Related: Analysis Paralysis and Choosing Paint Colors for Your Home

The Creative’s Unique Challenge with “Letting Go”

Before we dive a little more into the Marie Kondo method for creatives, I want to address that we’re sentimental, sensitive humans. Decluttering for creatives presents unique challenges because we don’t just see objects — we see potential!

That collection of vintage buttons could inspire a future art piece. Those old magazines might contain the perfect reference image for your next project. That broken guitar could be transformed into a wall sculpture.

This is why traditional organizing artistic spaces advice often falls short for creatives. We need a more nuanced approach that honors both our need for inspiration and our need for space to create.

The key is learning to distinguish between items that truly inspire and those that merely promise potential but actually drain our energy — and that’s exactly what the Marie Kondo process does!

A Mindful Decluttering Process for Creative Souls (Based on the KonMari Method of Tidying Up)

Marie Kondo revolutionized home organization with her famous question: “Does this spark joy?” For artists, this question takes on special meaning. Your home can be the birthplace of your work.

Let’s adapt Kondo’s proven method specifically for creative professionals, combining her core principles with the unique needs of artists.

The Core KonMari Principles, Reimagined for Artists

Marie Kondo transformed our relationship with our belongings through one simple question: “Does this spark joy?”

While lots of people often associate the KonMari process with minimal living inspiration, the KonMari Method isn’t about owning less, but it’s about being intentional about what you choose to keep in your space.

The Fundamental Categories

Unlike traditional organizing methods that tackle spaces room by room, the KonMari Method works through categories in a specific order:

• Clothes
• Books
• Papers
• Komono (Miscellaneous items)
• Sentimental items

This order isn’t random at all. It’s designed to help you build your decision-making muscles, starting with items that typically hold less emotional attachment and working up to the most sentimental pieces.

Related: Reasons Why KonMari is the Best Way to Organize Your Home

The Process: Organizing Creative Workspace Areas & Beyond with the KonMari Process

Step 1: Lead with Intention and Trust.

Before diving into the practical aspects of how to declutter and organize for mental clarity, let’s begin with an emotional decluttering guide approach.

This process is all about curating your creative sanctuary with intention and love. You have to trust that this spiritual process — no matter how silly holding this up to your heart might seem — is a life-changing experience.

You’re to all items from one category in a central location. Yes, all your items, even the ones you’ve had shoved into the corner of your closet for years. It’s time to face the music. 🤓

This might feel overwhelming, and that’s intentional, too. Seeing everything at once often provides a powerful reality check about how much we actually own.

This visual impact frequently becomes the motivation needed for genuine change so you can be your most creative self without anything holding you back.

Step 2: Hold Each Item Up To Your Heart.

As you move through your space to declutter and organize for mental clarity, the core of the KonMari Method lies in physically touching each item and asking yourself, “Does this spark joy?”

Since you’re an artist, you already know the power of energy. You’ve probably felt when your body has a visceral response to something. You’ll harness this power by deciphering which items spark joy (I felt this as a little “flutter” in my gut) compared to items that don’t spark joy.

Once you find the items that don’t spark joy, Marie Kondo wants you to express gratitude before letting them go, thanking it for what it gave you. 🙏

Maybe it taught you what you didn’t like. Maybe it showed you what color clothing doesn’t look great on you, what fabrics you don’t like, what papers you don’t need in your home, or what items you never really went back to as much as you wanted to.

I love how this gratitude practice transforms decluttering from a potentially negative experience into one of appreciation and intentional choice. It can be hard when you’re releasing gifts people gave you, but alternatively, you can see the gift-giving experience as an energy exchange, and not a contract of having to add more “stuff” to your home!

Step 3: Choose a Home for Each Item That Sparks Joy.

Every item that stays needs a designated spot in your home so you can have a clear path throughout your creative process. This also includes and in-between, as you care for your body and mind throughout the day).

🤸‍♂️ Related: 9 Fun Activities for Adults to Unleash Their Inner Artist

Store similar items together to create intuitive organization systems. When choosing spots, consider both visibility and accessibility – items used daily should be easily reachable, while seasonal or special occasion items can be stored in less accessible spaces.

This peaceful home organization process ensures your home remains organized long after the initial decluttering process.

For a full view on this mindful home organization process, I highly recommend purchasing Marie Kondo’s two books, The Lifechanging Magic of Tidying Up and Spark Joy. Both of these give you a deeper look into the process at-hand, the reasoning behind it, and how to make the most of the experience. ✨

Maintaining the Magic

Daily Rituals for Lasting Order

To declutter mind and space consistently, you’ll want to establish small daily rituals that encourages gratitude for your home.

My current *fairy* favorite rituals

✴︎ Pairing Supernatural cleaning products (all-natural, essential-oil based cleaners) with Papaya reusables for an adorable cleaning routine

Get $20 off your first order of Supernatural cleaning products using the link! 🔗

✴︎ Lighting one of my favorite completely non-toxic candle brands, GoodLight, to romanticize my days or creation process (or both!)

✴︎ Turning on 80s music in the mornings to inspire me to move and dance (especially during cold seasons when I want to do the opposite!)

Creating Space for Growth

Remember that the goal of learning how to declutter and organize for mental clarity isn’t to create a perfect, Instagram-worthy space.

Focus on creating a home that supports your daily life and allows you to fully relax when you walk through the door so you can be your most honest creative self. You can focus on the aesthetic of your home as a whole different project!

♡ Related: How to Make My House Feel Like a Home (For Non-Designers!)

Empty space isn’t wasted space — it’s possibility. Think of it like taking a deep breath: your home needs room to breathe too. 🌬️

When we clear physical clutter, we naturally clear mental clutter, making room for what truly matters in our lives. A thoughtfully organized home allows you to spend less time managing your belongings and more time living your life.

I felt so much more clarity in so many parts of my life when I KonMari’d. I found myself finally gravitating toward activities and relationships that bring me joy!

I started writing music. I started going out to dinner with friends. I found TV shows that made my heart sing. Heck, I even started baking because I had cute cookware that sparks joy for me!

Most importantly, your home should support who you are becoming, not just who you’ve been. Mindfully choosing what to keep and what to let go, you create space for your future self to grow and evolve.

This is the true magic of decluttering – it’s not about having less, it’s about making space for more of what truly adds value to your creative life!

Join my community of intentional artists and subscribe on YouTube for inspiration about creating a space that truly supports your life. ♡ A tidy home isn’t the end goal, but just a little part of the artistic journey of living more fully in alignment with what matters most to you. ✨