Tired of opening your bathroom cabinets only to find chaos staring back at you? You're not alone. In this episode of Clutter Free Academy, Kathi teams up with decluttering expert Tonya Kubo to tackle one of the most frustrating spaces in many homes: the bathroom sink...
#684 – Decluttering for Real Life: Simple Steps for Busy, Overwhelmed Women
#684 – Decluttering for Real Life: Simple Steps for Busy, Overwhelmed Women
Is your clutter making a comeback…again? You tidy up, you declutter, but somehow, all those piles and projects sneak right back into your life. If you’ve ever felt defeated when the mess keeps resurfacing, this episode will speak right to your heart.
Join Kathi and her guest, Tenneil Register, as they unpack the real reasons why lasting organization seems so hard—and how you can break the cycle for good. They talk through absolutely doable steps for busy, overwhelmed women, get real about guilt and grace, and reveal how faith can shift your mindset about home and stuff.
Whether you’re trying the “one-drawer challenge” or just wishing someone else would do the laundry, you’ll find encouragement (with a little laughter!) and practical hope for creating peace in your home that truly lasts.
Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest
Kathi Lipp gives readers an easy-to-follow process for meal planning and prep, so that they can enjoy a full day each week of real rest and refreshment.
Could you use a break from cooking (and everything else) once a week? Not only is rest vital for your mind and body, it’s good for your soul too. God designed us to enter into Sabbath rest one day per week, but as you know, meals still need to be made. Your family still needs to be fed.
Sabbath Soup includes convenient, seasonal meal plans that take the guesswork out of shopping and cooking. More than just a collection of delicious recipes—including main dishes, breads, breakfasts, desserts, salads, sides, and yes, soups—this is your guide to establishing a weekly rhythm and routine of meal planning and prep that allows you to have a true day off.
Do something good for your soul and experience the peace that comes with a full day dedicated to spending time with God, family, and friends. Savor your Sabbath as you proudly proclaim, “Soup’s on!”
Order your copy of Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest here.
Links Mentioned:
- Clutter Free Academy Facebook Group
- Mirror Jewelery Cabinet
- Tenneil’s Earrings
(Use the code “Thankyou15” for 15% off )
FYI: Some product links may be affiliate links. If you buy, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support!
Clutter Free Resources:
Support the podcast with Coffee for Kathi!
Join our Clutter Free Academy Facebook Group
Order Sabbath Soup here
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Meet Our Guest
Tenneil Register
Tenneil Register can be found creating, repurposing, decorating, gardening and welcoming guests to their reclaimed barn storefront. She and her husband, Cowboy, established rural roots for their blended family of 7 in their DIY ranch home in Iowa. Connect with her on Instagram for practical ideas to reclaim your home.
Transcript
Kathi Lipp (00:12)
Hey friends, welcome to Clutter Free Academy where our goal is to help you take small doable steps every day to live with less clutter and more life. And I’ve got one of my favorite humans in the world, Tenille Register, here with me today. Hey Tenille, how you doing?
Tenneil Register (00:28)
Hey Kathi, I’m doing great today. I actually just decluttered yesterday, so I can’t wait to talk today about this.
Kathi Lipp (00:36)
Yay, what did you declutter? What was your area?
Tenneil Register (00:41)
closets of non-bedrooms. like closet in the office, closet in the work out room.
Kathi Lipp (00:47)
Okay, can I just tell you I think those are the worst. I think they’re the worst We have a closet in our bedroom. That’s not our bedroom closet I don’t know how to describe that but we have like Roger has a closet. I have a closet and then we have this like utility closet and It is the worst spot in my house for sure So did you find any treasures? What like what was the big reveal from yesterday?
Tenneil Register (01:04)
Mm-hmm.
that our house is now like 100 pounds lighter of the weight on the studs holding it up because of the paper trash that was removed.
Kathi Lipp (01:19)
? Yes.
My goodness, it’s so true, right? It’s so true. Okay, so I want to dive into our episode today and I have you on for a specific reason Tenneil, If you guys don’t know Tenneil Register, so she’s a writer. She’s a speaker but she also owns retail businesses and I’ve worked retail I would say the first half of my life at least half of it was spent working retail
And displays and storage are such a big deal. My background in training was, ? I worked for Nordstrom for years and years. I worked in their gift area. so displays were a big deal, but you own ? some retail businesses you have to think through how to make things practical and beautiful.
And I can think of no greater challenge than when it comes to our jewelry. ? I have, are you a big jewelry person? I would say I am and I’m not, like I’m not an expensive jewelry person. The only really expensive thing I have is my wedding ring, but how about you?
Tenneil Register (02:41)
Yes, so in my early days, I liked expensive jewelry, but now I’m lucky to put my wedding ring on. You know, I have expensive jewelry, but I don’t really wear it very often. I do wear earrings pretty faithfully, because I believe it’s like, it accentuates your jawline. But other than that, like, it depends on the outfit. And so I would say I own
Kathi Lipp (02:49)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Tenneil Register (03:10)
quite a bit of jewelry, but I wear it in phases. That’s probably the best way to describe it.
Kathi Lipp (03:18)
Yeah, and it’s so interesting. I feel like jewelry is such a touchy thing when it comes to emotional clutter. ? You know, ? I think when I was younger, I thought expensive jewelry was kind of proving, hey, if you love me, you’re giving me expensive jewelry. I don’t know. Maybe that’s just a younger thing. I know also there are people who love their expensive jewelry. ?
I got very convicted. I heard a sermon one time on Matthew 621 about where is your treasure? You know for where your treasure is there your heart will be also and this woman was talking about is my treasure in my jewelry box and I I I’m making it sound more convicting than it should be because I think it’s okay to love beautiful things, but I really did hold like if you love me, you’ll buy me expensive things on
I don’t know. I was very convicted by that verse in a good way that has really freed me. I see you nodding.
Tenneil Register (04:23)
Yeah, well, I’m nodding because I think in the 90s, we were definitely intentionally sold that marketing message from jewelers. And I can remember thinking that I was the more gold I had on my hand, not just the more loved I was, but the more stable that I was, accomplished, steady, things are secure. And I think we…
Kathi Lipp (04:31)
Yeah. Yeah.
Mmm.
Yeah.
Tenneil Register (04:50)
I think we tend to think that when people have really nice things that something about their life feels like safer and more desirable than if not. So yeah, that’s kind of what made me inside.
Kathi Lipp (04:55)
Yes.
Yeah, absolutely.
I think you’re absolutely right. think, you know, I was born in the 60s. You were born much later than that. But we were told if you’re loved, the ring will be big. The jewelry will be chunky. Yeah, absolutely. And I think also, you know, there are stories we tell ourselves about jewelry. Some of our jewelry is very significant. You know, you’re going to you’re going to pry my wedding ring off of my cold dead hand.
Like this it means a lot to me, but there’s also sometimes false sentiment versus true significance ? I think we can honor memories or be held hostage by them ? Sometimes we’re given things like there there was a lot of jewelry in my jewelry box Probably about 15 years ago that I had worn once or twice like some some gold bracelets that I had
? from a first marriage, ? things like that. And I just wonder sometimes if my, some of our jewelry boxes are full of memories or are they misplaced obligations? I just felt like because I had been given that, even though it didn’t serve me, ? I had to keep it because it was worth something. It had memories attached to it. Like I had some jewelry that was passed down from my grandmother. Now some of it I wore a lot.
But some of it, it was like, okay, I’m never gonna wear it. This has nothing to do, you know, I never, it wasn’t a fond memory for me. It was just passed down. So I felt like I needed to keep it. Do you have any guilt jewelry? I guess that’s my question.
Tenneil Register (06:49)
think I do. actually keep it. This is like confession. I hope my family’s not listening. So the things that I had that I would not wear and it’s family oriented, I actually have it in our bank safe box, like at the bank. And then it’s not like in my jewelry box. But it’s there to remain part of the family estate, so to speak. And it’s not even, this stuff is not highly valuable.
Kathi Lipp (07:06)
? got it.
Yeah.
Tenneil Register (07:19)
That’s just a place out of my daily life that it can be kept safe for generations to come.
Kathi Lipp (07:19)
Right!
Yeah, because things do come around and jewelry is relatively small. So it’s easier to I don’t want to say hoard, but you know, for some of us, it’s hoard. And so yeah, it’s very it’s so much easier to do that. I wanted to tell I wanted to tell a story on here. You know, I had my wedding ring from my first marriage. And, you know, it wasn’t super valuable, but they definitely had some value to it. But
It’s not something I wanted anymore. And I had some ? gold bracelets and things like that from that. And I was trying to think of what I could do with them. And there was a cause that was really important to me and Roger after we got married about building wells in Africa. And I said, what would you think about me selling my first wedding ring? Because you don’t really sell the wedding ring, you’re selling the gold.
and the diamond attached to it if there’s a diamond on there. And so I talked about it with Roger. I talked about it with my kids. I’m like, if there’s any reason you want me to hang on to this, and my daughter said I would hawk it. And I’m like, okay, then I’m not saving it to pass down to you. And so what we did, yes. Yeah. Nope, they could not care less.
Tenneil Register (08:23)
Great.
was dying to know whether the kids wanted that. I was dying to ask you that.
Kathi Lipp (08:49)
So what I did actually was I sold it and we used the money to build wells in Africa and it’s actually part of one of Susie Flory’s books I’ve never written about it, but she wrote about it in one of her books about ? I’m trying to remember the historical figure that sold a bunch of stuff to For service and that’s what we did and can I tell you I’ve never felt a day of guilt over that like that was exact
it and so it’s this I Thought I might feel guilty about it. But what it really was is like no, that’s actually something You know, I’m not a huge fan of my ex-husband I have much more positive feelings towards him now than I did when we got divorced but He doesn’t even know that I did that but I still think about that’s something positive that came out of our Relationship does that make sense or am I weird?
Tenneil Register (09:46)
Wow,
such a beautiful way of reclaiming something out of a difficult situation and making something beautiful. I absolutely love
Kathi Lipp (09:50)
Mmm.
I do feel like there’s some redemption there. I really, really do. I, you know, I, and I didn’t want to feel judged by it about from my kids or from anybody else, but I think that there’s a stewardship aspect of this, that we can use those things.
Tenneil Register (10:17)
Yeah, so one way that I’m stewarding jewelry, think a little different, hopefully than like generations before me, like, like expensive jewelry that my husband bought me early in our marriage and I loved it and I wore it all the time. And now maybe I don’t wear it, I don’t love it as much.
Kathi Lipp (10:25)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Tenneil Register (10:37)
If I wait until I pass away for my daughters to inherit that jewelry, they will probably also be at an age where they’re not wearing that sort of thing. And so I’ve started working through like jewelry that I own currently and gifting it to them like right now while they’re in their 20s and they love jewelry. And yet maybe I lose it on vacation because they’re still at that phase of life. But if it brought
Kathi Lipp (10:48)
you
Yes.
Tenneil Register (11:07)
if it brings them joy, whether it’s for 13 months or the next 33 years, like that would be a better place for it than in the bottom of my drawer for them to find later. Plus, unless I’m gonna go through and label, like this one was from my first husband, blah, blah, blah. And this one was from my current husband, your dad. You know, like what is the…
Kathi Lipp (11:20)
That’s so true.
Yeah!
Tenneil Register (11:35)
Who wants to leave an inventory of their jewelry? And so I would rather like give it to them while I’m alive and say like when I was your age, I loved wearing this. It’s valuable. Your dad bought it for me. Here it is. So that’s that’s one of
Kathi Lipp (11:39)
Right.
love that so
much. Yes. And, and yeah, jewelry is meant to be worn. It gets more beautiful, the longer it’s against skin. I mean, I love that. And so both Tenneil and I have admitted, hey, we’re, we’re not like expensive jewelry people. I’m more like, it feels weird to say costume jewelry, but let’s just say I’m in the
$45 and below category for most of my jewelry, right? And so I want to talk about how do you actually organize that? because I’ve got I’m not gonna lie. I’ve got a lot of it and I want to be able to use it I want to be able to find it too. That’s another thing So I want to tell you some solutions that I have Tenneil has some solutions. So we’re gonna talk about
Yeah, because we’re cheapy girls. That’s it. We’re fun. ? No, we’re gonna call it fun fashion jewelry. That’s what we’re gonna call it We’re not gonna call it costume. We’re gonna call it fun fashion I feel like putting things in order in my house gives me so much joy
? To be able to find things to categorize things that kind of thing, but I will tell you until ? December of this year my jewelry was chaos I kept trying to find solutions for it so but I want my home to be a place of beauty order and peace and So I want to hear from you Tenneil, What are some? Freed because you’re a display girly and You’re good at this stuff. What are some things that you have done to really?
? Just I don’t know if it’s do you display your jewelry do you hide your jewelry? What do you do?
Tenneil Register (13:35)
So I have a combo. I’m gonna be really plain, my three jewelry habits. One of them is I tend to take off my jewelry as I unwind for the day, right? So I have three significant places then that these little small piles of things like my wedding ring and earrings end up in. And so I’ve learned that that’s my habit and I have put a cute little dish in those places.
Kathi Lipp (13:38)
Okay. Yes. Yes.
Yes, me too!
Tenneil Register (14:05)
so that they are corralled. I could scold myself to walk to my real jewelry box that hides a lot of jewelry, but I’m not going to. So I just have this pathway and then I pick them up from that path the next day. All right, so that’s one way. I do have a flown jewelry box with the doors that open on the side with necklaces and earrings and stuff like that. That’s kind of my catchall. And then
Kathi Lipp (14:05)
Yes!
Yeah.
Tenneil Register (14:34)
I have, well I guess I have four piles. I have the mess that accumulates on top of said jewelry box, because I’m too lazy to open the drawer and put it away. And then I do have some displayed jewelry. I actually have some busts that you would see in a store. And I have those on top of a dresser for my necklaces that I wear most often.
Kathi Lipp (14:51)
Hmm? ? yeah!
Tenneil Register (15:00)
And then also like one that I don’t wear, a necklace that I don’t wear often, but I love it and I want to see it. So I have that on the bust on top of the dresser. That’s my personal style. My sister, she’s amazing. She has like a screen window that’s vintage and cute and her little earrings hang on that. And then she has a window frame with all these little hooks on it. And then all of her necklaces are on that. And I always want to be that because I think she must get so much joy.
Kathi Lipp (15:16)
Right?
Tenneil Register (15:28)
when she walks up to the wall of her jewelry that also looks like beautiful wall decor and she can pull off her pieces and wear them. But that is not my personal habit.
Kathi Lipp (15:39)
Yes. Okay. I love it. I love it so much. And ? yes, the screen is something I’ve seen before. I was going to build it until another solution came into my life, which I will talk about. I think some other things to think about guys are things like velvet trays, because everybody’s house is different, right? You may have more drawer space. So a velvet tray could be really, really helpful for you. And especially if you’re like a ring person.
Like ? a or a bracelet person having those velvet trays could be really really helpful one of my friends had a cake stand and she put all of her different bracelets on it and it was so cute and then for a long time I used a pegboard where I would just hang my necklaces and things like that if If you’re a curator of things like teacups that could be really cute for you as well. What were you gonna say Tenneil?
Tenneil Register (16:35)
I actually have a cake stand in my bathroom. It’s a really pretty marble stand. And so there’s like a small plant and a little, you know, motivational saying. And that cake stand is where I can take off my daily jewelry and put it up there. And then it’s not on the counter where it can fall into the sink. It’s up on the cake stand.
Kathi Lipp (16:38)
? cute. ? huh.
you
Yes, okay. And here’s my thing. I like the people who just take their stuff off and go put it away. I will never understand those people. That is not me. And you
Tenneil Register (17:03)
This episode is not for
you. We love you. We admire you.
Kathi Lipp (17:07)
Yes, we admire you. You are listening to the wrong podcast friend, but ? here’s what I do I I have a silver antique dish that I love but I never really knew what to do it Every day I go take it off there and it just piles up until the end of the week And then I put everything away at the same time, but it’s still I think it’s it’s a beautiful It’s a beautiful way to do it and it’s a grace based system Which I love I it just says
Tenneil Register (17:11)
haha
Kathi Lipp (17:36)
Hey, you know, we’re not looking for perfection. We’re not saying, hey, we’re gonna go put this away every day. And I will say, I do have a dish on my desk because sometimes I’m at the end of my day where I have to look cute, but I’m still working. So I take my earrings off, I take my necklace off, I put it on that little dish and it works for me. And that works for me. Another thing that you might think about is a jeweler tree. ? So it has like,
holes that can stick out that you know, you can hang things off of and that’s what I did for a long time ? but I Think one thing to think about is to group jewelry with a purpose I have once I well I’ve got three sets of jewelry where the earrings they didn’t I didn’t buy them as a set but they just go together and I hang them together so that it’s just easy it’s like a capsule and I so I also keep
those where for travel, they work with a lot of different things. And I’ve got this one pair of earrings, they’re just thin gold hoops that work with everything. So I have a cup, I have one set of those that I leave in our trailer, because they’re going to go with absolutely everything. actually have, I have to replace this because it went through the wash. It makes me crazy.
I’ve lost so many things by leaving things in my pocket, but this is a pair of earrings made out of ? Boots like wading boots in Alaska. They go with everything. I love them So I need to order a new pair of those but I left those in our RV for the longest time because they just go with everything so I think either grouping things that go together is a great way to do that or reducing
If you’re just a simple gold or silver hoop person, go for it. Or maybe you’re like, I could wear the same turquoise necklace every day of my life. I love turquoise. Never buy me, yep, exactly. I love it. Never buy me diamonds, buy me turquoise. That’s what makes me so happy. Any last thoughts, Tenille?
Tenneil Register (19:42)
to my hearing everyday of my life.
I also keep a travel pack of jewelry and I actually it’s separate than my everyday jewelry. Then I don’t have to sort it all out. So I have travel jewelry. some of them are duplicates of something I own and then I there’s no back and forth with that. And then, I mean, if you’re somebody who will put your stuff away, like we’ve sold and people really love them is like the full length mirrors that open up the mirror to the jewelry inside. ?
Kathi Lipp (19:58)
Mmm.
? okay.
Tenneil Register (20:23)
And many of my customers have purchased those from me and they say it’s life-changing. I just haven’t been able to discipline myself in that way. But I can see how being close to the mirror would help.
Kathi Lipp (20:24)
Yes.
Okay.
Yeah. So I’m going to go deep into the mirror because that is the thing that has earned a place in my clutter free home. And so I want to talk about, yeah. So I’m going to tell you the story of how this came into my life and how it has changed my life. Okay, guys, this is our segment. You know it, you love it. It is things that have.
earned a place in my clutter free home and I want to tell you about my full length mirror jewelry organizer. Now, I am not the person who puts away my jewelry every day, but I have my little silver dish that goes right next to this. this is how I never seen one of these before. But my daughter, Amanda, my stepdaughter, Amanda, ? when people come to our house, they use our bath.
We redid our bathroom a few years ago and guys, it’s my favorite room in the house. I love it so much. But she saw my jewelry collection and she’s like, Kathi, you are out of control. I’m like, I know, I know. But I just hadn’t really thought through how to really take care of that. And so for Christmas, all my kids got together, they each chipped in and they bought me the full length mirror.
jewelry organizer and they bought me a couple of pieces of jewelry to put in this and you guys I love this so much first of all It’s a full-length mirror, which we already had but we had just a little one in our bedroom And this is full-length I love it And so you open it up you open up the mirror part and it has places for rings bracelets Necklaces and it has a whole rack for the earrings
And can I tell you, so once a week, I take everything from that silver dish and I hang it back up, but it’s like going into your favorite curated store and picking out your earrings for the day. And it makes me so happy. I can’t even stand it. So you said a lot of your customers have bought that as well.
Tenneil Register (22:34)
Yes, yeah, we sold them in our shop and it’s a swivel one, you know, and so it works like in a lot of flexible places. yeah, that’s been really popular. So I think you’ve changed at least my life that the mess I put on top of my jewelry box, I’m gonna put a nice tray there. Because then I can pick them up and put the pieces off and it will feel like an official task instead of shape like the pile.
Kathi Lipp (22:40)
?
Mm-hmm
Yes.
Yes, I love it.
Tenneil Register (23:03)
It’s just a matter of,
Kathi Lipp (23:03)
Yes, I.
Tenneil Register (23:05)
that’s a grace-based system, right? Instead of guilty myself of being messy, I have a system. I love it.
Kathi Lipp (23:07)
Right.
Yes, and can I tell you I feel like this is what fancy ladies do I really do like your fancy lady mate You would take your necklace off. You would take your earrings off and then some maid would come do it now I’m the maid in this in this scenario, but it makes so much better Yeah, and guys i’ll put a link to the ? the cabinet that I have that I love ? and Yeah, my kids I love when they come together, you know wonder twin powers activate because
Tenneil Register (23:23)
And you’ll see the key. Yeah.
Kathi Lipp (23:41)
This has been so great and it doesn’t take up much room, but it lays everything out. It makes me feel so happy. And Tenille, I also need to know where you got those earrings because I may need those in my life. Don’t tell me you got them like seven years ago.
Tenneil Register (23:59)
It’s been a bit, but I think I can find you the place.
Kathi Lipp (24:04)
Okay, very very cool. If you happen to find the place we will also put it in the in our show notes because Those are super super cool. I love them. I’m also going to show for people who are watching online My favorite pair of earrings my friend carol gave these to me. I they’re they’re my favorite fun and funky earrings But ? look at those little I mean aren’t those I? There can you see them? They’re they’re very
Tenneil Register (24:30)
That macrame, right?
Kathi Lipp (24:33)
Yes, they’re macrame. They’re like a yellow gold. I cannot tell you how many things these go with they make me super happy. So ? yeah, but yours are fabulous and ? mine mine are these are made out of ? how how bone the ones that i’m wearing today and ? I they just make me super happy. So guys if We ? yes, I will i’ll see if I can find a link
Tenneil Register (24:55)
And I need to know about these ones made from boots. The ones made from boots. the parents of the kid knows that.
Yeah.
Kathi Lipp (25:03)
Yeah, they’re super cute. Sadly, they don’t do well a parent leather doesn’t do well in the washing machine. Who knew right who knew? Yeah But i’m gonna find those because yeah, they make me super happy and guys You make us super happy by you just being here. I hope this gave you an idea or two for your jewelry situation because having your stuff laid out
Tenneil Register (25:10)
Oops. ?
Kathi Lipp (25:28)
to get dressed every day, add, it’s the icing on the cake. And that’s what we want for you. We want every day to have a little icing on your cake. You have been listening to the Clutterfree Academy podcast. I’m Kathi Lipp. Now, go create the clutter free life you’ve always wanted to live.
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