I FINALLY TRIED SWEDISH DEATH CLEANING (and it actually works!!!)

I've been hearing about Swedish Death Cleaning everywhere. I felt like the universe was pushing me to learn more about this decluttering method. I first heard of it when @DoItOnaDime shared her video about it and then just kept hearing Swedish Death Cleaning mentioned all around and decided it was time to try. I bought the book The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning: How to Free Yourself and Your Family From a Lifetime of Clutter, and dove in....and I LOVED IT. I can't wait to share more with out guys about this amazing decluttering system.

🗣️MENTIONED IN THIS VIDEO.

➡️ ➡️ ➡️ I’M HERE TO HELP YOU SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE. Need more?
1. Check out my FREE guides:

🔗HELPFUL LINKS:

👋WHERE ELSE TO FIND ME

Hi I'm Kallie Branciforte from But First, Coffee! I'm glad you found my video! I'm the content creator for the blog and YouTube channel But First, Coffee.



👉DISCLAIMER

This is not a sponsored video. Some links in this description may contain affiliate links.
Music by licensed by Epidemic Sound.

[marep]

This struck a chord with me. I had to clean out my mom’s home when she died. It was overwhelming and heartbreaking. There was so much stuff and I was only able to keep a fraction of it. Pictures and a few sentimental items. I just didn’t have room or a need for most of it in my home. Some was donated to charity but at some point I had to start throwing things away. I was sobbing as I filled garbage bags. I swore I wouldn’t do the same thing to my family when I pass.

[wendee]

A hint I learned awhile ago regarding sentimental clutter: take a picture of it. Then you can get rid of the physical item and still have the memory attached to the item. 🌻

[jmoore]

When my 101 yo Mother went into nursing home, I invited all my family for a weekend at her home so we could get it ready to be sold. We spent the weekend laughing, loving, and picking out items that each person really wanted to treasure and take. It was a wonderful and memorable family time. Our real estate agent connected us with a local liquidator for the rest of the household items. What a blessing that was. The house was emptied out, cleaned and put on the market. My Mom will be turning 103 in a few weeks and all her assets were turned into funds that supports her care. She is unburdened by “stuff” and she is happier for it and when she does pass, we can all come together again and celebrate her remarkable life.

[chowfurnowmeow]

As an exhoarder, I had gone through cancer for two years - I decluttered 60+ boxes of stuff (mainly bedroom, personal gears, and clothing). I had no idea that I was literally doing "death cleaning." My goal was to have stuff that will only take my brother to clear out in 2 hours when I am no longer alive. It sounds morbid, but it's actually really motivating. In the end, I'm am clear on what's important and what's unnecessary clutter.

[bbutterfly]

After my mom died unexpectedly, I went into her Amazon account to unsubscribe from Prime, and this Swedish Death Cleaning book was sitting in her cart. I don’t think she somehow mystically knew she was going to die, but she was 60, so I think she was just trying to prepare for the inevitability. It was heartbreaking that she wanted to do this but ran out of time 💔

[Mondoshawn]

Now I understand my grandmother better. A couple years before her death she started gifting us things that we enjoyed from her home while she threw things out that no one wanted. My sister was really uncomfortable with it because she was not happy talking about the eventual death of my grandmother but actually I think she was really wise. She did not want to burden us with her stuff while she made sure we have the things from her that we really enjoy and she came up with this idea without reading about it. I think it's amazing. I have just 3 things from her and they are much more special to me and I always think about the moment she gave it to me.

[erics]

After our honeymoon and returning to our home after a week, I told my wife this: “We lived perfectly happy with all the items in one suitcase and a backpack (each had one of each) plus the basics of a hotel room. So why do we have so much stuff at home that we never use?” We still have a lot years later, but now that we are in the process of moving to a bigger house (child number 2) we’re getting rid of everything we don’t use. One tip that I find useful is to tackle one small section at a time. You see a whole room a mess and get defeated before you start. So just pick one thing. The mess on the desk. Okay 30 minutes later your desk in clean and the room slightly cleaner. And before you know it all those sections over the next few days the room is clean. Tip 2: if you don’t use it, get rid of it. If you think you might, store it in s bin in the basement and put a date on it. If you don’t use anything in that bin for a month, 2, 3, do you truly need it? Good luck! I know I still have s lot to do. Clean and decluttered is a journey not a destination. Remembering to reset a room to how you entered it helps. Oh and briefly mentioned in the video we take a lot in and not a lot out. So maybe every time you buy something, get rid of something you don’t use. Keep the flow 1:1, not 100 in: 2 out. This is s long comment. Hope it helped 1 person. Even if it’s myself.

[dorrolorro]

Swede here. Super common to go through and give away stuff to loved ones when you get older. My grandma gave me a lot of china, dining chairs, a Persian rug, and other lovely things. She just opened up her cupboards and asked us sibling to take what we wanted. So all of us now has things of hers and our grandpa that we genuinely love and cherish. She also got rid of a lot of stuff, giving it to charity and what not.
She past a few years ago, and sure there were a lot of stuff to go through anyways, but since we already had been given the things we wanted, it wasn't a terrible experience.

[ThundermansThunder]

One question that many must ask themselves is "How financially feasible is it for me to replace this item once it is gone if I need it again?" Income, or the lack of it, plays a large role in such decisions for a growing number of people these days, especially as we watch the prices of our most basic, necessary items continue to unreasonably escalate. There is an old saying that has served people well, while also giving them a greater appreciation for the value of the few things they had during hard times: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without." Despite the obvious wisdom of this old adage, there still must be a proper balance. Declutter is necessary for all of us, and videos like this make it easier to face!

[ZombehPanda]

When I was living in Japan at the start of the new year my neighbor would empty out their entire home of furniture/decor/etc like they had just moved into a new home and would clean the entire house and then clean the furniture/etc and put it back into the house. To someone like me who has TONS of clutter it was mind blowing but I've always thought it was the most amazing thing ever. That's one way to motivate yourself not to clutter if you know it'll just be one more thing to move out and back into the house every new years.

[debradrake]

My grandmother used to have a professional photographer take her picture once a year- so she would have a good picture for her obituary! She was always giving her jewelry, her stuff, food away to us; she always wanted to see us smile….the idea of leaving us something after her death made no sense to her…..we learned the joy of giving, the freedom from clutter…..great video!

[susancurd]

The leather jacket story got me. How you got through that segment without losing it is a testament to your strength.
I on the other hand cried for you….
But, you are correct and I needed that honesty because I have a similar story. Son, not brother. 😢

[SnarkySoprano]

I had a quilt from my great grandmother made in 1908. It was falling apart and full of dust and decay. I took it apart, threw out the backing and filling, and cut the front part into squares for framing. I sent a bunch to all my relatives on her side, so we could all have a small piece of her.

[LPdedicated]

This is a really Scandinavian thing. In our culture talking about death and what happens after you're gone (legally, financially, materialistic, emotionally etc.) is pretty common. Some might call it morbid, but it's realistic and a sign of love to those you leave behind. All my grandparents did it, and usually the family participates. *Update* : My beloved mom has sadly died suddenly from aggressive cancer. On Christmas Eve 2022. Even before we knew of her disease, we did it, because our dad died in 2014, also from cancer. She was re-married a week before she died (to a man she was really in love with and had moved in with), so all the legal stuff was taken care of as well. All of that out of the way, it gives more time to grief and reflect, and for that I'm thankful.

[susie]

My brother passed away when he was 21 (I was about to turn 16). I got his guitar and you can imagine how much it meant to me even though I didn't play guitar (not for lack of trying). Years later I had the opportunity to give it to a teacher who knew how to play but didn't have one and was hoping to use it with her students. Giving it to her for this "cause" felt so good. I hope all the people can give their "brother's leather jackets" to someone and feel good about it.

[EpistemeUM]

My favorite things about your channel that others hide: 1 - you don't edit out every single flub. 2 - you SHOW your clutter. I LOVE that you don't pretend to be miss perfect, which is why you are the only cleaning channel I watch on the regular. <3

[BlushnGlossy]

I cried through this entire video. My mother passed unexpectedly 6 weeks ago. She has horded 3 bedrooms full floor to ceiling and most of a 3 car garage. She loved to shop QVC, online and thrift stores. 2-3 days a week I've been going through everything. Donating half and going to sell the other half. Memories are being found everywhere. One of my favorites is a JCPENNEY catalog from 1983.
Anyway, this whole process has been so much work and my dad's house looks so torn up. I'm slowly getting him his house back and he's learning to live alone. 💞

[reneerayl]

When I was young, we moved a lot, so we coined the phrase, "Clean like you're moving." We didn't want to ship stuff we didn't use, so it was easy to declutter, at least once a year, usually more often. Seems like the same idea, and really helps to keep "stuff" in proper perspective.

[jillmacdonald]

Your idea about making a loved one's clothing into a Christmas ornament is awesome!

[jordansummers]

Her mentioning she wouldn't want homicide detectives seeing a cluttered home REALLY made me laugh pretty hard because I can relate! That was so funny & believable.