How Much Do I Actually Need?

One of the questions I get most often from my clients is:

“How much of [insert thing here] should I own?”

Now, if you’ve been following me for any length of time, you can probably predict what I’m going to say next, but I’m going to say it anyway for the newcomers: there is no should in home organizing. The truth is that there's no one right answer for everybody because everybody has slightly different lifestyles, preferences, and needs. The sooner you stop thinking about what you should do and start thinking about what will work best for you, the sooner you’ll be able to get organize in a way that lasts.

That said… I have three rules of thumb that I use with my clients when we’re thinking about how much of any one item to keep. Spoiler alert: if you use these very practical rules of thumb, you’ll keep less than you think you will! Without further ado, here are the LMW Edits rules of thumb for how much stuff to keep:

1) The amount you’ll use together at any one time

Use this rule for things that don’t replace each other. A great example is food storage containers, which is a huge organizing challenge for many people. Using one container doesn’t mean you can’t use another one at the same time.

Think about the absolute maximum number of food storage containers you’d ever use at once, the real worst case scenario. Maybe it’s Thanksgiving leftovers, maybe it’s meal prep, but it needs to be something that actually happens in your life. That’s the maximum you’ll ever need, because what else could you possibly do with additional containers? If you’re having trouble with this one, start with the limit of what will fit in your fridge. There’s literally no reason to have more food storage containers than that!

2) One to use and one in reserve

Use this rule when only one item or set can be in use at any one time. A great example is sheets. When one set of sheets is on the bed, you can’t really add another one - unless you want a very lumpy bed! So the total number of sheet sets you need is 2 per bed.

Think about it: why would you need more? There will literally never be a situation in which both sets are somehow in use and you need a third! If you choose to have more for a practical reason that brings you joy - for example, you like having flannel sheets in the winter and linen in the summer for temperature regulation - then that’s absolutely allowed. But do it intentionally, and not just because you’re worried about coming up short since you’re used to having a linen closet stuffed full of sheets.

3) The interval between washing plus one

Use this rule when you use a series of things in between washing. The perfect example is underwear, which is a sneaky thing that people tend to accumulate a lot of without realizing it. You wear a pair (or more, depending on your habits!) per day, and then wash and re-set.

Think about how often you do laundry. The number of pairs of underwear you need is the number that will take you that number of days, plus one day. That’s the maximum you’ll ever need, because you literally won’t have an occasion to wear any additional pairs of underwear! If you don’t have a very regular cadence of laundry, start with the worst case scenario of how long you go between laundry cycles, and narrow down as you get a handle on your laundry routine.

So many people keep redundant duplicates out of fear that they’ll somehow be caught short. But if you use my three practical rules of thumb, you’ll realize that you’ll always have enough, without having too much. And this will likely free up space and energy for other things!

Try my rules of thumb for how many items you should keep, and let me know how it goes!

LMW