Author Topic: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!  (Read 1851335 times)

Write Thyme

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #550 on: August 27, 2014, 02:51:41 PM »
I wish I could handle my stuff problem.  I have my parents house full of stuff since they passed away and no relatives to help.  My mother was disabled and her enjoyment was QVC, ect.  The stuff is all real good brand hew stuff.  All the estate businesses want 40% and I think that is too much.  Any thoughts or suggestions appreciated!

That's a tough one. You can check out this site http://www.pickupplease.org/donation-pickup to see if you can have someone come out to pick up a bunch of things.

For the QVC stuff you could try selling them on ebay or amazon.

Gin1984

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #551 on: August 27, 2014, 03:08:55 PM »
I wish I could handle my stuff problem.  I have my parents house full of stuff since they passed away and no relatives to help.  My mother was disabled and her enjoyment was QVC, ect.  The stuff is all real good brand hew stuff.  All the estate businesses want 40% and I think that is too much.  Any thoughts or suggestions appreciated!

That's a tough one. You can check out this site http://www.pickupplease.org/donation-pickup to see if you can have someone come out to pick up a bunch of things.

For the QVC stuff you could try selling them on ebay or amazon.
Or here, if they are still in new condition.

Zikoris

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #552 on: August 27, 2014, 03:52:04 PM »
I did a big round of clearing out stuff recently at the advice of the forums. Here's my apartment before: http://imgur.com/a/OdC3L and after http://imgur.com/a/CvkHu.

Still have a few things to do, mainly figure out how to get the tv onto the wall, but overall it's going well.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #553 on: August 28, 2014, 02:40:01 AM »
I dropped off 4 full 50 gallon trash bags of clothes to Goodwill that have been in the closet for years and not worn.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #554 on: August 28, 2014, 09:26:42 AM »
Zikoris, that looks great! I also had a cat like yours once...what a cutie.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #555 on: August 29, 2014, 12:35:43 AM »
I've got rid of so much shit since I was last on here, whenever that was.:) I'm really paring down and I love the feeling of having a more spacious house as it's less than 650 sq ft and it needs to be minimal.

ashley

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #556 on: August 31, 2014, 11:45:59 AM »
I cleared out three very full grocery bags of old clothes this morning. I know I could get rid of more, so I think I'm going to do one more sweep before I call it done. I'm realizing as I go through my wardrobe that it's mostly old, worn out, crappy looking stuff. Even the clothes in my regular rotation are looking pretty ratty (90% came from thrift stores in the first place). This makes me want to buy more clothes, which defeats the purpose entirely. Must resist.

horsepoor

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #557 on: August 31, 2014, 11:06:09 PM »
Wow, nice work, Mapleseed!  I'm also guilty of the old windows never made into a cold frame as intended thing.

I'm off work this week and decluttering is on my list.  This thread motivated me to get off my butt and go through my closet and prune out clothes I'm no longer wearing.  Have a pretty nice pile to split between donation and maybe Ebay, but need to go through my dresser and maybe the coat closet and my scarf collection as well.

Sold a few horse equipment items on Ebay, but need to redouble my efforts and get rid of my old saddle and a few other things.  Also plan to get after DH to make a few things disappear, at least from my line of sight, such as the saddle bags and helmet for the motorcycle he no longer owns...

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #558 on: September 01, 2014, 05:14:40 PM »
I am about halfway through The Joy of Less (borrowed from the library, of course).

One line that really struck me:  "Life is the space between our things."  I read this line while sitting in my campsite last weekend.  Between my bike and a camp table was a beautiful view of the Colorado mountains.  Yep.  The view (and the camping experience) was much more enjoyable than the bike (fairly useless at that particular location) and the table of stuff I had brought with me.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #559 on: September 01, 2014, 05:19:39 PM »
I am about halfway through The Joy of Less (borrowed from the library, of course).

One line that really struck me:  "Life is the space between our things."  I read this line while sitting in my campsite last weekend.  Between my bike and a camp table was a beautiful view of the Colorado mountains.  Yep.  The view (and the camping experience) was much more enjoyable than the bike (fairly useless at that particular location) and the table of stuff I had brought with me.
Isn't this place great? I have an experience like that at least once a week here. And I don't even count the breathtaking views when I bike into the office.

CatchingFire

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #560 on: September 01, 2014, 06:23:38 PM »
Thoroughly enjoying de-stuff'ing our home.  Virtual yardsale (local Craigslist type ads) netted $265 this past weekend for things which I've been cleaning around for years.  Woot!  Must check out The Joy of Less.  Sounds perfect!

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #561 on: September 01, 2014, 07:25:00 PM »
I've sold another $750 worth of stuff including two old bikes, and iPad, cell phone, and another video game system. That's about $1300 in the last  1.5 weeks. I've got so much more to go through. It's actually fun getting rid of all this crap. Hopefully I'll be able to contribute and get our cc debt paid off quicker than my plan entailed.
« Last Edit: September 02, 2014, 04:36:40 AM by CodyAsh »

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #562 on: September 02, 2014, 03:06:50 AM »
I have another pile of stuff to go to a charity shop and I just threw away some other crap.:) Woo hoo.

I am a fan of The Minimalists at the moment.

horsepoor

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #563 on: September 06, 2014, 06:06:59 PM »
There can be a definite upside to clearing out clutter.  I was scanning books with my Amazon app to see if anything was worth selling.  One of my cookbooks that I've never, ever used, is apparently out of print and the cheapest used copy is listed for $225!  Woohoo, I'll gladly undercut the competition and sell that puppy.  That's some great motivation to keep going and see if I have anything else of significant value sitting around here.

horsepoor

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #564 on: September 08, 2014, 10:42:42 PM »
Listed a bunch of shit on Amazon and Ebay yesterday.  Already sold 5 books (not the $225 one yet) and have bids on my saddle and a brand new bathroom faucet that I apparently was going to install at some point.  Amazingly have watchers on DH's vintage Ray-Bans for $50 and Levi's sherpa jacket for $100 that his mother forced us to take last time we were at her house.

Also have two large boxes of crap staged in the basement to go to the thrift store in the near future.  Hoping to add to the pile when I get a little more time.

Threw an armload of magazines in the recycling bin.

Still have a ways to go though.  I want half empty cabinets where I can open them and see all of the contents without moving stuff around.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #565 on: September 09, 2014, 01:10:45 PM »
I've got a rather large box of stuff that I need to bike over to the local U for this upcoming weekend's freecycle event.  Yay!  Hopefully the students will appreciate having it, and I know I'll appreciate being rid of it.
Debating whether I should put the old sports helmet in there for students who want to play intramurals, or take it to Play It Again Sports and try to sell it?  Not sure it would be worth my time to try to sell it, or that they'd even take it, and don't have time before the freecycle event anyway.  Hmmm.
Gonna dig through the closets one more time, then do a pass-through in the guest room just to make sure I'm getting rid of everything that needs to go.
It's not even that much stuff but it feels so nice to know that it will be gone soon.  :)

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #566 on: September 09, 2014, 02:54:20 PM »
Drat.  Just when I was getting excited/motivated about decluttering, I broke a bone in my leg and am on crutches.  This just happened two days ago, so the break is still painful and swollen, and resting is pretty much all I can do.  But just as soon as I regain significant mobility, I will start gathering up stuff to get rid of.

Astatine

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #567 on: September 09, 2014, 03:27:07 PM »
Drat.  Just when I was getting excited/motivated about decluttering, I broke a bone in my leg and am on crutches.  This just happened two days ago, so the break is still painful and swollen, and resting is pretty much all I can do.  But just as soon as I regain significant mobility, I will start gathering up stuff to get rid of.

Ouch! Hope you recover quickly. If you're still keen to declutter, maybe you could mentally walk around your house and perhaps make a written list of stuff you want to get rid of once you have some mobility? Or if you have any visitors or live with someone, you could ask them to bring you a drawer of stuff to go through while you're sitting/lying down?

1967mama

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #568 on: September 09, 2014, 04:59:56 PM »
Gave away a fully stuffed garbage bag of kid clothes to a friend in need.

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #569 on: September 09, 2014, 06:02:08 PM »
Drat.  Just when I was getting excited/motivated about decluttering, I broke a bone in my leg and am on crutches.  This just happened two days ago, so the break is still painful and swollen, and resting is pretty much all I can do.  But just as soon as I regain significant mobility, I will start gathering up stuff to get rid of.

Ouch! Hope you recover quickly. If you're still keen to declutter, maybe you could mentally walk around your house and perhaps make a written list of stuff you want to get rid of once you have some mobility? Or if you have any visitors or live with someone, you could ask them to bring you a drawer of stuff to go through while you're sitting/lying down?

Thanks!  I live by myself.  Actually, this experience might REALLY motivate me, because not only am I surrounded by stuff, but I can't do a darn thing about it!!  So when I get back on my feet, I will attack everything with a vengeance!!  :)

Zaga

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #570 on: September 12, 2014, 08:40:47 AM »
Drat.  Just when I was getting excited/motivated about decluttering, I broke a bone in my leg and am on crutches.  This just happened two days ago, so the break is still painful and swollen, and resting is pretty much all I can do.  But just as soon as I regain significant mobility, I will start gathering up stuff to get rid of.

Ouch! Hope you recover quickly. If you're still keen to declutter, maybe you could mentally walk around your house and perhaps make a written list of stuff you want to get rid of once you have some mobility? Or if you have any visitors or live with someone, you could ask them to bring you a drawer of stuff to go through while you're sitting/lying down?

Thanks!  I live by myself.  Actually, this experience might REALLY motivate me, because not only am I surrounded by stuff, but I can't do a darn thing about it!!  So when I get back on my feet, I will attack everything with a vengeance!!  :)
Could you still clean out and declutter small areas while you are seated like junk drawers?

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #571 on: September 12, 2014, 05:18:17 PM »
I had a small but growing pile of donation items.  Five small grocery bags in all - little odds and ends, clothing, and a few items that had been mentally dragging me down.  I also culled my memory box and finally got around to ordering a T-shirt quilt off Etsy.

1967mama

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #572 on: September 12, 2014, 05:52:50 PM »
Put 10 books in a giveaway box .. I'm very slow at this and appreciate reading about all you ninja-like declutterers!

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #573 on: September 13, 2014, 07:32:15 PM »
Slowly slowly. Not making as much progress as I want, but improving. Between this, the losing weight challenge , and the buy no more clothes challenge and Project 33, I'm gradually clearing the wardrobe.  I'm finding it tougher than I thought - I have now convinced myself I don't need to keep clothes with holes in them.  I don't need to mend them, because I have way more than I need.  I can even let go of things I don't like and never wear, because I have way more than enough. Apart from an interview outfit last year, I've really not bought anything much in the last 2 years, so there's not too much I have thats highly fashionable, so really I'm down to wear it or lose it.
I used to be able to wander around the house finding old/broken stuff, not able to be donated to fill up by garbage bin (which is never full) each week, but can't do that now, so must be improving.

horsepoor

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #574 on: September 13, 2014, 10:36:32 PM »
Set aside two small items to give away today.  Noticed my medicine cabinet and the cabinets in the wet bar are wonderfully clutter-free.  Good motivation to keep going.

Next, I'm going to sell my espresso machine; hopefully craigslist will do the trick.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #575 on: September 14, 2014, 04:10:45 AM »
We attacked my husband's floor to ceiling cupboard over the past few days. He has dramatically pared down his clothes, DVDs and records.:)

I'm going to do a quick sweep through the house today to look for anything more that can be donated to the charity shop.

Astatine

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #576 on: September 14, 2014, 04:43:29 AM »
I'm going to tackle a clutter pile of "shoulds". I decided earlier this year that I would make greeting cards instead of buying them. I even bought some coloured cardboard from our one and only trip to Costco. I've eventually realised that while it's fun to make cards using prints of photos I've taken, the other fiddly types of cards are unfun to make. So I'll declutter the pile that's been sitting in the spare room for MONTHS taunting me that yes, I love doing this really, I'll get back to it soon! Yeah, but no.

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #577 on: September 16, 2014, 08:56:18 AM »
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?
http://metropolitanorganizing.com/professional-organizing-services/declutter-your-home-in-a-jiffy/

20.  I have 20 vases, which take up way too much space.  Time to cut this one down.

horsepoor

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #578 on: September 16, 2014, 09:05:39 AM »
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?
http://metropolitanorganizing.com/professional-organizing-services/declutter-your-home-in-a-jiffy/

20.  I have 20 vases, which take up way too much space.  Time to cut this one down.

Thanks for this.  I have a whole tub of outdated or broken electronics.  Need to destroy the hard drives on the computers and get it all disposed of.

Just got rid of much of the random and dried up cans of paint this weekend.

Write Thyme

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #579 on: September 16, 2014, 09:47:24 AM »
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?
http://metropolitanorganizing.com/professional-organizing-services/declutter-your-home-in-a-jiffy/

20.  I have 20 vases, which take up way too much space.  Time to cut this one down.

I have 7-9 vases. They are all different sizes so I'm prepared to accommodate whatever sized bouquet my husband happens to bring home on a rare occasion. They are displayed on top of the kitchen cabinets.

What size will you be keeping?

gt7152b

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #580 on: September 16, 2014, 09:48:37 AM »
Got together a pile of stuff this weekend and got it on craigslist or in the car for donating. Made $80 so far on the listed items. Lots more to go but they say the hardest part is getting started.

Elderwood17

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #581 on: September 16, 2014, 09:58:20 AM »
We moved a year and a half ago.  At the time we really thought we had gotten rid of a lot of stuff, but this past weekend I pulled some boxes out of a closet and opened them.   Two were full of winter clothes......hats, gloves, sweaters, etc.  They were mine, not DWs.  Obviously we lived an entire winter without them, so obviously I don't need them.  And yet I feel the urge to keep them.  Why is it so hard to get rid of perfectly fine things, even when you have proved you can live fine without them??

4alpacas

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #582 on: September 16, 2014, 10:14:58 AM »
We moved a year and a half ago.  At the time we really thought we had gotten rid of a lot of stuff, but this past weekend I pulled some boxes out of a closet and opened them.   Two were full of winter clothes......hats, gloves, sweaters, etc.  They were mine, not DWs.  Obviously we lived an entire winter without them, so obviously I don't need them.  And yet I feel the urge to keep them.  Why is it so hard to get rid of perfectly fine things, even when you have proved you can live fine without them??
I struggle with this problem.  I have a lot of nice winter clothes--for running, for every day.  Now I live in a much gentler climate, so I don't use these items.  However, I can't seem to get rid of everything. 

We're moving to a house with negligible closet space in a month, so I will need to get over my fear of purging expensive items. 

1967mama

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #583 on: September 17, 2014, 12:48:55 AM »
An Amazon box came into the house today with a helmet for my son. I had the idea that every time a box comes into the house, I need to fill it up with things to donate! I am at the very beginning of my declutterring journey. We have a large family and live in a very large, very cluttered house :0/ Will try to do this task tomorrow. The box is only about 1 1/2 feet long. Shouldn't take me too long.

starbuck

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #584 on: September 17, 2014, 06:00:07 AM »
I had the idea that every time a box comes into the house, I need to fill it up with things to donate!

I love that idea!

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #585 on: September 17, 2014, 08:38:52 AM »
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?
http://metropolitanorganizing.com/professional-organizing-services/declutter-your-home-in-a-jiffy/

20.  I have 20 vases, which take up way too much space.  Time to cut this one down.

I have 7-9 vases. They are all different sizes so I'm prepared to accommodate whatever sized bouquet my husband happens to bring home on a rare occasion. They are displayed on top of the kitchen cabinets.

What size will you be keeping?


I'm getting rid of 2 bud vases I never use, 3 different round cyclinders from my cousin's wedding, 1 from my wedding, and a few florist vases.  Still dithering over 2 matched bud vases from my grandparents which I rarely use.  They are small to keep, and I think I'm just not quite ready to let them go even if I don't use them.

Keeping:
1 small German vase from my deceased grandparents
1 very low fat round vase
1 small blue (fancy blown glass) clear vase
1 small white vase
1 rectangle red clear vase
1 large blue clear vase (always filled with two dozen dried roses, the first flowers my husband gave to me 6 years ago when he left on a European vacation shortly after we started dating)
1 large cylinder from our wedding (getting rid of the double)
1 large clear florist vase

The red vase may also be on the chopping block.  All of the others I've actually used recently, some for a baby shower for my SIL this weekend (low vase holding chocolate lollipop favors, small white and blue vases holding sock flower bouquets, large cylinder holding cookie bars) and the large clear florist vase (and broken flowers in the German one) because ironically, my husband brought me flowers yesterday as I stayed home from work sick.

Also getting rid of the dried baby's breath kept from my wedding 2.5 years ago.  My wedding flowers were lost (a friend was going to dry them but threw them out when bugs got into them) so I had been holding onto them - in a large clear florist vase - but I think I'm ok saying goodbye to both.

norabird

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #586 on: September 17, 2014, 09:48:22 AM »
Hmmm I should target some vases to get rid of--probably will just return them to the friends who sweetly used them to bring flowers over. I also have a smattering of clothes and odds and ends that aren't resaleable or really swappable that I think I can donate next week.

Was excited to get an email from twice today that they are now accepting shoes--I definitely have more pairs than I need and hopefully this will spur me to send off even more things! Plus I have a box of socks I still haven't unpacked from my move a month ago and it's also the only box available to ship anything in, so maybe I can finally get that situation sorted...

Feeling a bit of momentum and inspiration!

Zaga

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #587 on: September 17, 2014, 09:55:00 AM »
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?
http://metropolitanorganizing.com/professional-organizing-services/declutter-your-home-in-a-jiffy/

20.  I have 20 vases, which take up way too much space.  Time to cut this one down.
One more big and easy thing to add to this list:

Any expired medicines, prescription or otherwise.

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #588 on: September 17, 2014, 10:02:40 AM »
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?
http://metropolitanorganizing.com/professional-organizing-services/declutter-your-home-in-a-jiffy/

20.  I have 20 vases, which take up way too much space.  Time to cut this one down.
One more big and easy thing to add to this list:

Any expired medicines, prescription or otherwise.

Good call.  I fortunately already did this myself before my move, but along those lines - old sunscreen and toothpaste, both of which lose their efficacy over time (and are bad to use thinking they are still good!)

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #589 on: September 17, 2014, 11:02:05 AM »
I live by myself, and rarely have company in my tiny little home.  (Sounds sad, but it isn't--don't worry.)  Since I do not have other people giving me feedback about my home, I find that my levels of cleanliness and organization, while comfortable for me, are probably not reasonable for lots of other folks.

Next Monday, 4 people from the City will be coming to my small house to inspect it (as part of the new process for permitting Accessory Dwelling Units in my town).  First, I can't really picture 4 people in my house, in addition to me.  Second, I am already feeling embarrassed about all the stuff in my house!  So, the upshot is that the appointment with these inspectors has served to motivate me to declutter!!  I have just a few days to get rid of lots of stuff!

Elderwood17

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #590 on: September 17, 2014, 04:02:12 PM »
I had the idea that every time a box comes into the house, I need to fill it up with things to donate!

Great idea....box comes in, box goes out.

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #591 on: September 19, 2014, 02:37:48 PM »
Well, the City has cancelled its planned inspection, by 4 of its employees, of my <400 sq ft house on Monday.  So I can stop stressing about how they will all fit in my house at the same time.

However, this morning, before I got the cancellation news, I was still worried about all the stuff in my house and what others might think, so I packed up about 15 shirts, a big fat candle (never used), a tea pot someone gave me, about 6 books, and about 14 video tapes and took them to the thrift store.  I also poured out about a tablespoon of whiskey that remained in a large bottle of JD, so that I could get rid of the bottle.  That freed up space so that I could move something from its "temporary" (months?) place on the kitchen floor and into a cabinet.

I had high hopes of carrying a bunch of textbooks from my house to my vehicle (so that I could get rid of them) this weekend, but I have been told by a doctor to not put weight on my broken leg (go figure!), so I will have to postpone the textbook decluttering.

norabird

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #592 on: September 19, 2014, 03:07:20 PM »
Dropped off another box at the charity thrift shop today...time to start another for twice with some shoes!

starbuck

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #593 on: September 19, 2014, 03:11:01 PM »
One thing that had been sitting around my house for a long time was old electronics. Since college, we've accumulated SO MANY old desktops and laptops, cables and connectors, broken digital cameras and mp3 players. I tried over the last year to give away some of it to those that wanted it, like the old webcams and tv antennas. But most of it just sat, and I didn't want to just chuck it in the landfill. My husband had an ENTIRE storage tote of just cables. To what, I had no idea, but he was sure they were useful. I pulled it out of the basement one day and pulled out each one, asking if it should stay or go. We had 8 iPod cables in the house, in addition to the ones that are in our cars and at our offices. It was so ridiculous. And so useless.

On Wednesday I finished dropping off the last box of all this stuff at Best Buy! Thankfully they've really stepped up their recycling program, and take all sorts of stuff, including all those random cables we had acquired over the years. They used to charge for recycling computers but not any more. PHEW!

Now onto the magazines!

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #594 on: September 19, 2014, 03:16:58 PM »
One thing that had been sitting around my house for a long time was old electronics. Since college, we've accumulated SO MANY old desktops and laptops, cables and connectors, broken digital cameras and mp3 players. I tried over the last year to give away some of it to those that wanted it, like the old webcams and tv antennas. But most of it just sat, and I didn't want to just chuck it in the landfill. My husband had an ENTIRE storage tote of just cables. To what, I had no idea, but he was sure they were useful. I pulled it out of the basement one day and pulled out each one, asking if it should stay or go. We had 8 iPod cables in the house, in addition to the ones that are in our cars and at our offices. It was so ridiculous. And so useless.

On Wednesday I finished dropping off the last box of all this stuff at Best Buy! Thankfully they've really stepped up their recycling program, and take all sorts of stuff, including all those random cables we had acquired over the years. They used to charge for recycling computers but not any more. PHEW!

Now onto the magazines!

Oh, I have a box of "wires".  DH wanted me to get rid of it - but "what it" it belongs to something?!  (And many times it does, in fairness.)  I should treat it like the hangar idea - put the wires that I used in a box, and ones I haven't used after a year, I toss.

Anatidae V

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #595 on: September 19, 2014, 06:20:11 PM »
One thing that had been sitting around my house for a long time was old electronics. Since college, we've accumulated SO MANY old desktops and laptops, cables and connectors, broken digital cameras and mp3 players. I tried over the last year to give away some of it to those that wanted it, like the old webcams and tv antennas. But most of it just sat, and I didn't want to just chuck it in the landfill. My husband had an ENTIRE storage tote of just cables. To what, I had no idea, but he was sure they were useful. I pulled it out of the basement one day and pulled out each one, asking if it should stay or go. We had 8 iPod cables in the house, in addition to the ones that are in our cars and at our offices. It was so ridiculous. And so useless.

On Wednesday I finished dropping off the last box of all this stuff at Best Buy! Thankfully they've really stepped up their recycling program, and take all sorts of stuff, including all those random cables we had acquired over the years. They used to charge for recycling computers but not any more. PHEW!

Now onto the magazines!

Oh, I have a box of "wires".  DH wanted me to get rid of it - but "what it" it belongs to something?!  (And many times it does, in fairness.)  I should treat it like the hangar idea - put the wires that I used in a box, and ones I haven't used after a year, I toss.

We have so many cables and computer pieces in different boxes. I love the idea of chucking anything still in the box after a year! I will collect all the stuff into one box this week.

Yesterday I took all SO's t-shirts into the lounge room and he folded and sorted while watching tv. Didn't get rid of any, but baby steps - he now has an empty drawer!
Today I'm sorting Lego while breakfast cooks.

jordanread

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #596 on: September 20, 2014, 05:52:25 PM »
Today I'm sorting Lego while breakfast cooks.

Whoa there...Legos are always awesome (unless you step on them). ;-)

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #597 on: September 21, 2014, 09:05:36 PM »
Got rid of:
- 4 bras, each 15+ years old (yeah, time to go...DH gently pointed this out while I was debating if I really should get a new bra in the store), with 3 bras in) for a net decrease of 1.  At least it's going in the right direction.  I have plans to sort through the sock/underwear drawer more ruthlessly next weekend.
- About 2-3 inches of paper, sorting through the stuff that's piled up over the past few months.  It's been stuffed away in the closest since our Memorial Day party.  Sorted but did not file the paper I'm keeping.   Good timing on going through it - found a settlement notice from JCrew DH had 4 more days to respond to.  Still have a few more inches of paper to go.  I need a better location for our files than the furthest spot in the house from where the mail enters the house.
- A box for the iron I've apparently been carting around (I have a box issue stemming from moving too much in my childhood).  This is indicative of the random stuff I've carted around, as the iron has not been sitting in the box for many months now, and is annoying to use if you need to put it/out of the box each time, plus the iron does not need to be protected in the box.

C. K.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #598 on: September 22, 2014, 05:37:00 AM »
I realized that no matter how organized my things are, no matter how much space I have to keep the items, things are still clutter if they are not being used or bring more stress than benefit. [Thanks, Clutter Busting]

It really came home to me this past week when sorting through a box that I had labeled with bullet points. One of the bullet points read "unimportant papers." That's right. Rather than just toss or recycle the papers, I typed and printed labels and placed them on all four faces of the box, plus the top, to tell myself, there is trash in here.

And I dragged that box through two moves!



Well, the City has cancelled its planned inspection, by 4 of its employees, of my <400 sq ft house on Monday.  So I can stop stressing about how they will all fit in my house at the same time.

However, this morning, before I got the cancellation news, I was still worried about all the stuff in my house and what others might think, so I packed up about 15 shirts, a big fat candle (never used), a tea pot someone gave me, about 6 books, and about 14 video tapes and took them to the thrift store.  I also poured out about a tablespoon of whiskey that remained in a large bottle of JD, so that I could get rid of the bottle.  That freed up space so that I could move something from its "temporary" (months?) place on the kitchen floor and into a cabinet.

I had high hopes of carrying a bunch of textbooks from my house to my vehicle (so that I could get rid of them) this weekend, but I have been told by a doctor to not put weight on my broken leg (go figure!), so I will have to postpone the textbook decluttering.

1. This is an interesting story. Keep us posted.
2. Can you carry one book at a time to the car?
3. If not, how about stacked books as a book stand/coffee table, like this:


happy

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #599 on: September 22, 2014, 06:28:00 AM »
As well as getting rid of stuff, I have been steadily using stuff up and not replacing it. I looked in my bathroom cabinet today, I mean, really looked and it was almost empty.  Gone are all the random half-used and unnecessary bottles and tubes of  miscellaneous goop.