5 things you should get rid of between Christmas and New Year’s Day

If there was ever a time to declutter, the week after Christmas is it. After the big holiday, chances are your house is even more packed with stuff than it has been all year—not to mention all those empty boxes, cards and decorations that are rapidly looking out of season.

If you have any free time in the week before New Year’s Day, spend some of it gathering up the stuff you don’t need anymore. You’ll thank yourself come springtime.

Here are a few items you can easily ditch after Christmas to free up some space for those lovely new things you’ve received. And the best part? Many of these old items can be donated for someone else to love! That’s what Christmas is all about.

1. Winter Coats

Check your coat closet and I guarantee you’ll find at least a couple winter coats that nobody in your family has worn in the past year. The typical rule for decluttering is to get rid of two items for every new one you get, so if everyone in the house got a brand new winter coat for Christmas, gather up all those unused ones and get rid of them.

But don’t just throw them out. Find an organization to which you can donate those coats, like One Warm Coat or Goodwill, and make sure they go to people who need them during these cold months.

2. Boots And Other Shoes

Another thing many people get for Christmas is new footwear. Sort through your closets and donate any old shoes you don’t wear anymore. Chances are, someone out there would love to have those 2013 boots!

3. Toys

If you have kids, they probably got a bunch of new toys for Christmas. That means it’s time to round up the ones they’ve outgrown or don’t play with anymore and donate them so that other kids can love them. Organizations like Toys for Tots and others specialize in toy donations.

4. Boxes

If you’re a pack rat like me, you may think you need to keep all the boxes of the gifts you got this Christmas—but you probably don’t. I still have the box for a computer monitor I got in 2015 somewhere in my basement! Be sure to pull out any important paperwork and spare parts (after you’ve made sure the item works, of course) and toss those boxes in the trash.

5. Opened Wine

If you broke out the wine at your holiday party (which you should have!), you might have some half-finished bottles sitting around. Depending on the type of wine, and whether or not you re-corked it and stuck it in the refrigerator, you’ll have anywhere from two to five days for it to not taste nasty. Not gonna drink it? Either dump it out, make some cola-infused sangria or freeze it in an ice-cube tray for later cooking use.

If you like decluttering, it really can be the most wonderful time of the year!

[h/t: Apartment Therapy]