There's a particular kind of optimism in buying a basket. It promises edges, order, a place for everything — and for about a week it delivers. Then the basket fills, a second one appears to hold the overflow, and by spring you have a shelf of containers holding very little at all. Before spending anything on storage, it's worth doing the unglamorous half of the job first: clearing out what you don't need. Here are the ten things that quietly take up the most room in most homes, room by room.

Why a basket rarely fixes a crowded room

Storage does not create space. It relabels whatever is already there, and often hides it well enough that you buy the same thing twice. A drawer of tangled cables in a labelled box is still a drawer of tangled cables — just tidier to look at.

Decluttering first changes what you buy. You shop with a real number in mind (four bowls, not eleven), you know the height of the shelf, and you stop buying containers to hold things nobody uses. The order matters: sort, then measure, then buy.

The two-pass method: sort before you shop

Work on one room at a time, and one cupboard or drawer at a time within it. Emptying an entire kitchen onto the floor is how decluttering projects die.

Give yourself two passes. The first is the easy one: bin bags and recycling. Anything broken, expired, stained, or missing a part it needs in order to work. The second pass is the honest one: things that are perfectly fine but never used. Those go into a charity bag, a bag for a friend, or a "decide by" box with a date written on it.

• Set a timer for 30 to 45 minutes and stop when it goes. Momentum matters more than finishing.
• Keep a returns bag by the front door for borrowed books, loaned tools and anything that belongs to someone else.
• If something has been waiting for a repair for a year, the repair isn't happening.
• Take the charity and recycling bags out to the car the same day, or they'll drift back into the house.

Kitchen and utility room

• 1. Food past its best. Jars of spice from a recipe you made once, half-bags of flour, sauces bought for a single dish. Check dates, wipe the shelf, and put back only what's in date and within easy reach.
• 2. Mugs, bottles and lidless tubs. Keep the number of mugs you genuinely use in a week, plus a couple for guests. Match every plastic tub to its lid; the ones without partners can go.

While you're in there, thin out the plastic bags under the sink, the drawer of takeaway menus, and the utensils that only do one job. A shallow, tidy shelf beats a deep one you have to dig through.

Living room, hallway and the landing pile

• 3. Cables, chargers and remotes for phones, consoles and televisions you no longer own. Test anything you're unsure about, then keep two spares at most.
• 4. Paper that arrives and stays: magazines, catalogues, out-of-date leaflets and takeaway menus. Recycle the dated ones and cancel the free ones you never read.
• 5. Coats, shoes and bags by the door that don't fit, leak, or haven't been worn for two winters.

Most hallways also have a landing spot — the chair, the bottom step, the corner where things get put "for now". Clearing that pile is worth more than any shoe rack. If things land there because they have no home, decide on the home now: hooks for keys, a tray for post, a basket for each person's work or school gear.

Bedroom and wardrobe

• 6. Clothes that don't fit or don't suit you any more. The reliable test: would you buy it again today at full price? If not, it's taking space from something you would.
• 7. Bedding for beds you no longer have, along with the spare duvet that matches nothing. Two sets per bed is usually plenty.

A useful trick for the wardrobe: turn every hanger backwards. At the end of the season, anything still facing the wrong way hasn't been worn and is worth a second look.

Bathroom, cupboards and the loft

• 8. Half-used toiletries — dried-out mascara, hotel samples, the shampoo you didn't like. Finish it, pass it on, or bin it.
• 9. Manuals and packaging for appliances you've replaced, plus warranties you'll never claim on.
• 10. Supplies for hobbies you've moved on from — the yarn, the cake moulds, the exercise kit.

Paperwork deserves a careful look rather than a bin bag. Keep what you're required to keep and shred the rest. If you're unsure which financial or legal documents to hold on to, check official guidance or ask a qualified adviser before anything goes in the shredder.

Buying storage last, and only what you need

Once a room is clear, you'll usually find you need less than you thought. Measure the shelf, the cupboard and the gap under the bed, then write down what's actually left to store: four towels, not "towels".

Choose containers to fit the space, not the other way round. Avoid matching sets you don't need, buy one at a time and check it works before buying three more, and keep to the rule that something comes out when something goes in. A basket bought after a clear-out will earn its place. The ones bought before will just hold the question you haven't answered yet.

Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels