The Great Pre-Black-Friday Edit: Declutter Before You Buy
- SAHIBA BASSI
- Oct 30
- 3 min read
Holidays are approaching… and so are the Black Friday sales! 🎉Do you know what you’re buying?More importantly — have you decided a home for everything you’re planning to buy?
Clear space before the sales hit.
Before you add one more thing to your home, let’s make room for it. Follow this quick, room-by-room guide to edit your clothes, appliances, gadgets, and even your gift closet. Use the simple Keep / Donate / Sell flow to make decisions easier and a minimalist shopping list to shop intentionally.
What you will need?
4 boxes labeled Keep, Donate, Sell, Recycle/Trash
A timer for a few rounds of 20 minutes micro-decluttering sprints
Measuring tape to check if what you are planning to buy fits and Post-its handy
Playlist to get you in the mood
Reminder: We’re making space for what matters, not just for what’s on sale.
Hotspots to Check - Bathroom: hair tools, makeup bags, unopened products, hotel minis
1. Closet (20–40 minutes)
Work by category, not by closet.
List everything you would like to replace.
Add the things to be replaced in one of the 4 boxes.
Note gaps you discover (e.g. belts, footwear, winter clothes, etc.) → add to your Minimalist Shopping List. If you’re shopping Black Friday for clothes, this step will stop the “Oh, I already had one of these!” moment.
2. Small Appliances Edit (15–30 minutes)
Before you buy another kitchen gadget on sale.
Make your shopping list.
Make space for everything you are planning to buy.
If you own duplicates, keep the most-used; let the rest go. Sort into the 4 bins.
Measure cabinets/counters
Hotspots to Check: spatulas, measuring cups, water bottles, travel mugs, food storage, holiday serveware.
3. Tech/Gadgets & Extras (15–20 minutes)
These add up and make you think you don’t have space.
Walk around and make your Wishlist and avoid duplication
Hotspots to Check: cables, chargers, earbuds, power banks, phones, laptops, camera, gaming accessories
Donate/recycle/sell everything you are replacing.
Note: Electronics can be recycled (Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity, BestBuy) instead of trashed.
4. Gift Closet Purge (15–25 minutes)
This is where “I’ll gift it to someone” clutter lives 😅
Ask: “Will I gift this in the next 60 days?”
Yes → keep
No → donate or regift strategically
Make a quick recipient list for all the Keeps (teachers, hosts, neighbors, co-workers) and match items NOW.
Use post-its to write names of recipients of each gift.
Note whose gifts you're missing → put on your shopping list so you buy exactly for those people.
Keep/Donate/Sell Flow
Once you have collected all your things in the 3 bins, it's time to work on them. When you get stuck, use this:
Something you use weekly? → ✅ KEEP
Use monthly/seasonally and you love it? → ✅ KEEP
Duplicate and yours isn’t the best? → ➡️ DONATE/SELL
Doesn’t fit/not your style/“meh” feeling? → ➡️ DONATE/SELL
Damaged beyond easy repair? → 🗑 RECYCLE/TRASH
Needs repair under 7 days? → keep in Repair Pile → add task to Calendar→ not repaired = donate
Quick Rule of Thumb for sellingOnly sell it if the value is worth the time and energy to list, respond, and drop off.
Tip: Take pictures of sentimental items that are hard to let go of. Note how you feel about keeping just the picture and not the item.
This is exactly how we make decisions during on-site sessions at Declutter Bee—fast, kind, and realistic.
Finish with:
Bag donations, put them straight in your car and drop them off
Take pictures and list sell items (20-minute limit!)
If not sold in 2 weeks → donate
Wipe devices before donating/recycling
Snap a photo of donations + keep receipts for taxes
Ready for stress-free sales?
Schedule a pre-shopping purge session with Declutter Bee and we’ll:
edit the hotspots with you,
take donations out of the house,
help you with the sales,
set up simple systems so your new buys actually have a home
Decluttered space. Peaceful mind. 🐝
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