Death cleaning sounds grim, but it isn't. It means going through your things in good time and letting go of what you don't need, so that no one else has to do it for you one day.
The idea became known around the world through the artist Margareta Magnusson, who published a book about it in 2017. Her point was that death cleaning isn't about death. It's about the life you still have: a home filled with things you actually use and love, and care for the people who would otherwise have to sort through an entire life in a few weekends. She believed you can start at any time, and that it's easier the earlier you begin.
Choose your path based on where you are:
- Start with what doesn't matter if you don't know where to begin.
- Keep the memories, but choose if the personal things are the hard part.
- Get your papers in order if what matters most is that others can find things.
- Talk to the people closest to you if you want to take it further.
A first step today: go through a storage room, a closet or an attic and pick out three things no one will miss.
Death cleaning sounds grim, but it isn't. It means going through your things in good time and letting go of what you don't need, so that no one else has to do it for you one day. It's less about death and more about the life you still have: a home filled with things you actually use and love, and care for the people who would otherwise have to deal with everything. This article explains what death cleaning is and why it fits any age, and it gives you four ways to start.
A Swedish word that went global
In 2017, the artist Margareta Magnusson published the book Döstädning: ingen sorglig historia ("Death Cleaning: Not a Sad Story"). She was over eighty at the time. The book was translated into many languages, and the word döstädning, known in English as Swedish death cleaning, became familiar far beyond Sweden.
Magnusson's tone was light and practical. She wrote about starting with what's easy, leaving the personal things for last, and not turning it into a sad project. She believed it's better to start early, while you have the energy and the desire, than to wait until you have to.
Why it's an act of care
Anyone who has emptied a parent's home knows what it involves. It isn't just work. Every box raises questions no one can answer anymore: what did this mean, why was it kept, does anyone want it? It's often done over a few weekends, in the middle of grief, by people who don't know what mattered.
Death cleaning moves that work to the person who knows the answers. You know which letters mean something and which papers can be thrown out. You can give things away to someone who will appreciate them, and tell the story behind them while you still can.
- No one has cleared it out Others sort through everything in the middle of grief, without knowing what mattered.
- You've done your death cleaning What remains has been chosen, and the stories behind the things have been told.
The person who knows what things mean is the one best placed to choose.
That's also why death cleaning fits any age. At forty you have no plans to die, but you've often filled storage rooms, garages and closets with things no one uses. Clearing out now gives you more space and less to maintain today, and leaves less for someone else later. Why it's hard to throw things away in the first place is covered in decluttering at home.
Four ways to start death cleaning
Start with what doesn't matter. For you if you don't know where to begin. Start in the storage room, the garage or the attic, with things that are big and impersonal: old furniture, tools you never use, boxes with unknown contents. It frees up space quickly and builds the habit. First step: pick out three things in a storage space that no one will miss.
Keep the memories, but choose. For you if the personal things are hard. Letters, photos and your children's drawings are the hardest, which is why they should come last. Choose what means the most and gather it in one place, one box per person or period. Take photos of the rest. First step: decide which box will be your memory box.
Get your papers in order. For you if you want others to be able to find what's important. Gather what someone else will need to find, such as contracts, insurance policies, accounts and passwords, in one place, and tell someone you trust where it is. Throw out what's old and no longer relevant. First step: write a list today of where your most important papers are.
Talk to the people closest to you. For you if you want to take it further. This is the most demanding path, because it means talking about something many people avoid. Tell your children or loved ones that you're doing your death cleaning, and ask if there's anything they'd like to have. Give it to them now, while you can tell the story behind it. First step: call someone close to you and ask if there's anything of yours they'd like to have.
When it feels heavy
Death cleaning can stir up a lot: memories, grief, questions about time that has passed. That's natural, and it's a reason to take it in small steps. It helps to do it together with someone. If it stirs up more than you can handle, or if it coincides with a difficult loss, take it easy and hold off on the personal things. Things can wait, and it can be worth talking to someone about what comes up.
A first step today: go through a storage room, a closet or an attic and pick out three things no one will miss.
This is the understanding and a first step. Atlas is where it becomes a habit. Add Home as its own area and you'll find Ten-minute tidy, where you declutter and clean a space until the timer goes off, and Feeling at home, where you rate how glad you were to come home and see whether the changes are making a difference. You log each time and can see week by week how it's going. Try Atlas free for 7 days, and cancel whenever you like.