How To Organize and Store Your thrifted Home Decor

If you're new here, I have a not-so-mild obsession with thrifting and secondhand shopping. I particularly love collecting vintage home decor pieces that add character and soul to my home! To avoid becoming a hoarder, I had to devise an organizational plan to keep my collection under control and make sure it was easy for me to see exactly what I have. Read on for my best organization tips for home decor!

Click here to learn what I'm always looking for at the thrift store!

Let me say first, this post is not just for thrifters. Anyone who struggles to find room to store or manage their home items can benefit from these tips! And while I store my holiday decor separately from the pieces I'll show you in this post, I follow the same best practices! Now let's get to the good stuff!

BEFORE

Home Decor Organization Tips

1. dedicate a space to hold all of your décor.

The most important component to this is if you don’t have a lot of storage space, don’t hold onto too many things!  You never want to overwhelm yourself with stuff. I use two shelved cabinets in our finished basement to store all of my decor items I'm not currently using. This includes everything from candles to vases to planters to tchotchkes.

For decor like my throw blankets and pillow covers, I keep them stored in bins in the linen closet.

Don't miss our tips for how to keep your closets organized! ESPECIALLY if you have deep shelves like us!

2. round up all of your décor

Pull out ALL of your décor so you can see it all at the same time.  Being able to see exactly how much you have is going to make it easier to part with things that don’t bring you joy. When I pulled everything out of my storage cabinets, Tim said, "how was ALL of that in there?!" You just don't realize how much you've been holding onto until you see it all in front of you! Pro Tip: set up a folding table or other large surface to help you see everything!

3. sort everything into categories

Make piles of different decor items you own like:

• candles

• candle holders

• vases

• figurines

• trays

• baskets

• books

• etc

Once I saw that I owned 15 glass trinket bowls I decided I probably didn't need all of them. I held onto the family heirlooms and a few of my favorites from thrifting and let the rest go. I also discovered there were some holiday pieces in the cabinet that I had lazily shoved in there but really belonged in my holiday totes!

4. Purge

It’s time to get cutthroat! Pull things that are damaged, haven’t been used for a year, or aren’t your style anymore, and say goodbye. I create 3 different piles:

• things to toss

• things to donate

• things to sell - keep reading for tips on this!

5. Return everything to your dedicated storage spot while keeping like items together.

Think of it as setting up your own personal home decor boutique! When you're ready to swap out pieces, you can just "shop" your storage area for something new! Having everything categorized also makes it really easy to grab and go. All my vases sit together so when I want to display my favorite faux flowers, I know exactly where to find the perfect vessel!

It's also important to make sure everything is visible or labeled.  If you can’t see it, you’re going to forget you have it.  (And if it's impossible to see everything, it’s probably time to let go of some items)

• Corral small items like taper candles in bin with labels so you know exactly where to find everything.

• Stack trays and decorative plates together to save space!

• Arrange things by size so it's easier to see everything you own

Shop my favorite storage pieces here!

Other helpful tips for home & Thrifted decor organization

• Once a year, pull everything back out and go through your "stash" while repeating the steps above.

• When choosing new decor to bring into your home, be mindful of it's longevity. Try not to be tempted by trendy decor that you may only use for one season.

Read about our key home decor pieces everything home should have here!

• Make sure items are clean and dust free when putting them into storage

• Use clear bins and shelf dividers to help you keep things tidy

Tips for selling unwanted Home items

My go-to for selling home decor and furniture I no longer want is Facebook Marketplace. When photographing the items you want to sell, make sure to show them styled in your home! Shoppers will be more likely to buy items that they can see in use versus in your garage or driveway! To determine how to price your items, search for similar things on Marketplace to see the average selling price.

If you are planning a future garage sale, price items as you collect them and keep in a dedicated place. You'll make your life much easier when it comes to set everything up for your sale!

Once you've decluttered and organized your home decor, you may want to reward yourself with a little thrifting trip! Don't miss all of our best thrifting inspiration HERE!

Looking for more organization ideas from The Rural Legend? Try THESE!

xoxo, L