I Tried the Chaos Method and Decluttered Decades’ Worth of Stuff

For years, the guest room in my house was the go-to spot for everything I didn’t know what to do with, and my family used the space for all their documents, art supplies, and even equipment. It became our storage room and was a place I avoided at all costs and kept closed off, with piles growing bigger over time.

I tried every well-known organizing tip, hack, and method, but I got nowhere and felt like I was just shifting piles of stuff around. When the clutter became too overwhelming, I knew it was time to take action. That’s when I stumbled upon the chaos method and decided to test it in my storage room. I had nothing to lose, and wow, I am grateful I tried it out!

What Is the Chaos Method?

The chaos method is an organizing strategy popularized by Kim Jones of Lock & Key Home. It embraces total immersion in the decluttering process. You empty every box, container, bag, drawer, and cupboard in a room or space. Ideally, it’s about creating a temporary state of chaos to gain full clarity on what you own. You then categorize, organize, and sort items using sticky notes before putting everything away.

The theory behind this method is that confronting all of your belongings at once makes it easier to see what you need and what to let go of. It can feel stressful at first, but the goal is to create an organized system that’ll help you figure out how to store things in the best way and clear your space.

How I Tried the Chaos Method

Keep reading to find out how I used the chaos method to organize my storage room.

Take everything out.

At first, I underestimated how chaotic things would get. I began by pulling everything out of cabinets, drawers, bags, and boxes. Suddenly, my floor was covered in old paperwork, toys, clothes, and random things I forgot I owned. It was extremely overwhelming and emotional. For a moment, I thought I had made a huge mistake; my anxiety was at an all-time high. The clutter seemed impossible to organize, and I couldn’t even walk across the room.

This is the hardest part, though. You must confront how much stuff you have, even though it feels like you’re making more of a mess from the start. I was tempted to give up at this stage, but I reminded myself that seeing everything laid out would paint the full picture of what I was dealing with. Plus, it would give me a blank slate to work with when it was time to put everything back in its rightful place.

Organize with sticky notes.

Once I had everything out in the open, I moved to the next phase: sorting it all out. I grabbed a stack of sticky notes and started creating categories for my things. Because the clutter filled the whole room, I used another bedroom to categorize everything. Items included gym equipment; documents, files, and books; clothes; and CDs and DVDs.

I placed each sticky note on the floor, creating clear zones for each category. Then, I began moving items into their respective sections. This part was surprisingly satisfying because seeing everything sorted out made me feel like I was gaining control over the chaos. It was also a great way to recognize how much I had of certain things.

Narrow down items.

While I was moving things to the next room to organize, I immediately set aside items I knew I wasn’t going to keep and made three piles: recycle, donate, and trash. At this point, I had to be honest with myself. Did I really need to hold onto a stack of magazines I had already read? Was I actually going to use that extra set of weights? It was tough to let go of some items, but the more I sorted, the easier it became to see what was more important.

Once I finished sorting, I packed up the donation items and moved them to my car’s trunk. That helped reduce the clutter even further and made it easier to focus on what remained. I also threw out the trash bags and placed the recycling bins in the garage. Removing these piles right away helped me avoid second-guessing myself later.

Sort and rearrange.

With the unnecessary items cleared out, it was time to reorganize the remaining things in a way that made sense for my storage room. Saving this stage for last was best because it helped me stay focused, making it easier to put all the essentials away.

I started by moving things I use most frequently — like the gym equipment — into easy-to-access spaces in the storage room. I placed the documents and other items I wouldn’t need as often out of the way. Finally, I made sure everything had a designated place. The sticky notes made it easy to create a layout and ensure I didn’t throw anything back into the room without purpose.

Final Thoughts

My storage room looked and felt completely different after I used the chaos method. Where there once were piles of mismatched items and cluttered shelves, there was now a sense of order and so much additional space! Every item had its place, and I could move around the room without stepping over things. This place was a catchall for random belongings, but now it feels much more functional.

The chaos method is absolutely overwhelming at first, but it’s an incredibly effective way to take control of a cluttered space. It wasn’t an easy process for me, but I was able to clear a decade’s worth of clutter within hours.

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