Author Topic: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2  (Read 1253774 times)

FireHiker

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2800 on: August 05, 2019, 03:43:48 PM »
I've scheduled VVA to come again this Friday so I went through and did some more clean out this weekend. I added four more large bags to the donate pile: clothes, bedding, towels, toys. I also went through all the boxes of old sentimental STUFF and condensed two full boxes, two large plastic tubs, one small plastic tub, and a medium basket down to one partial box. A lot of it is stuff I will photograph or scan and then trash/recycle after the move...I just don't have time to do it all right now before the move, although I did get through some of it. We also went through a bunch of stuff in the garage including a first pass through our camping supplies and yet another pass through tools. I did some photo sorting as well and was able to consolidate out a large shoe box and another small plastic tub of stuff just by recycling old papers and sorting out bad/duplicate photos to toss. Incidentally I was reminded that my mom is a TERRIBLE photographer, ha. Finally we went through our winter/ski bag and got rid of a couple pairs of pants, an old pair of goggles, and I think four old pairs of ski gloves. My husband and his "back up" stuff kills me...if you haven't used your "back up" pants or gloves in the past 6.5 years, it's time to go!

We have the buyers of our house coming over Wednesday night (who we already know...LONG story) to walk through furniture we don't plan to keep and see what they want if anything. While we are downsizing 2000+ square feet they are upsizing about 1200 square feet and their current home has a TON of built-ins so it should work out very nicely for everyone. Another neighbor wants any Christmas decorations we don't keep; we have the dubious distinction of having won the neighborhood contest the past two years so we have an embarrassing amount of lights, many of which I got from my boss a few years ago when they downsized their decorating.

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2801 on: August 06, 2019, 07:19:25 AM »
I've scheduled VVA to come again this Friday so I went through and did some more clean out this weekend. I added four more large bags to the donate pile: clothes, bedding, towels, toys.     

I have a lot of that type of stuff. Comforters, towels, sheets, fabric of all sorts in tubs. Takes up a lot of space so it would be good to declutter.  Going to be tough letting it go!  Guess I could try selling it at the rummage sale, hmmm.

dcheesi

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2802 on: August 06, 2019, 08:10:59 AM »
Started the process of moving into my gf's place(!). I already donated a bag full of clothes, and what's left seems to fit in the new space (for now). I bought an under-bed storage thing for my out of season clothes, which helped a lot.

Now I'm on to footwear. I went through a truly facepunch-worthy shoe binge earlier in the year, and even with some downsizing I still have too many. It's annoying because to cut any further would mean donating shoes that I bought recently and still like, but don't actually need --which serves to further emphasize just how off-the-rails spendypants I was over the last year or so. Whereas my gf is in the position of not having enough shoes, since she broke her brand new pair of sandals while gardening. It's all around embarrassing!

Meanwhile, I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to fit all of my books into one new bookshelf (I had previously downsized when I moved to my current location). However, there's really no place for all the DVDs and CDs I kept from the old pre-streaming days.

I do want to keep the CDs, if only to justify/backup my ripped library, but they can go into storage. It's the DVD/BD/Games that I'm not so sure about. Those aren't backed up digitally, so if I get rid of them they're just gone. And part of me likes having them available and even on display, similar to the books on the bookshelf. But right now I'm not even sure if my old PS3 console is coming with me or not, and if not then we won't even have a way to play any of them!

chaskavitch

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2803 on: August 06, 2019, 08:18:14 AM »
We're down to 5 days left of packing before we move.  We've gotten rid of a lot of stuff - books, duvet covers, comforters, clothes, pictures, etc., but now I'm in enough of a hurry that I'm not letting myself sort so much as throwing things in boxes. 

My goal is to find at least a little bit more to get rid of, and then to unpack SLOWLY at the new house, especially my clothes.  Like I said before, I'm still nursing/building muscle/changing shape since I'm only 4 months post partum, so I've got a lot of clothes that kind of fit, might fit soonish, or that I need to keep for nursing.  I'm going to do my best to only unpack the clothes that I want to use and see what stays packed long-term.  I have a feeling that's going to be quite a lot of it, unfortunately.

diapasoun

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2804 on: August 06, 2019, 10:11:13 AM »
Good luck, chaskavitch!!! May the moving gods bless you.

SunnyDays

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2805 on: August 06, 2019, 12:50:47 PM »
I've scheduled VVA to come again this Friday so I went through and did some more clean out this weekend. I added four more large bags to the donate pile: clothes, bedding, towels, toys.     

I have a lot of that type of stuff. Comforters, towels, sheets, fabric of all sorts in tubs. Takes up a lot of space so it would be good to declutter.  Going to be tough letting it go!  Guess I could try selling it at the rummage sale, hmmm.

If the comforters and towels are no longer "fit for human consumption," vet clinics and animal shelters are always happy to take them.

MountainGal

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2806 on: August 06, 2019, 01:01:02 PM »
I've scheduled VVA to come again this Friday so I went through and did some more clean out this weekend. I added four more large bags to the donate pile: clothes, bedding, towels, toys.     

I have a lot of that type of stuff. Comforters, towels, sheets, fabric of all sorts in tubs. Takes up a lot of space so it would be good to declutter.  Going to be tough letting it go!  Guess I could try selling it at the rummage sale, hmmm.

If the comforters and towels are no longer "fit for human consumption," vet clinics and animal shelters are always happy to take them.
+1

I donated a bagful each of towels and sheets, along with a bar stool cushion, to our local shelter last week. :)

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2807 on: August 07, 2019, 08:31:23 AM »
I've scheduled VVA to come again this Friday so I went through and did some more clean out this weekend. I added four more large bags to the donate pile: clothes, bedding, towels, toys.     
I have a lot of that type of stuff. Comforters, towels, sheets, fabric of all sorts in tubs. Takes up a lot of space so it would be good to declutter.  Going to be tough letting it go!  Guess I could try selling it at the rummage sale, hmmm.

If the comforters and towels are no longer "fit for human consumption," vet clinics and animal shelters are always happy to take them.

Thanks for the suggestion, SunnyDays. I hadn't thought of that.

FireHiker

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2808 on: August 08, 2019, 10:34:52 AM »
The buyers came over last night and we did a walk-through at our house (it's an unconventional/complicated scenario, but we know them, and everyone is very happy with the overall arrangement). They are moving from a smaller place and will be happy to keep several of the things we don't want to move/don't have the time and energy to try and sell. HUGE weight off our shoulders right now with getting ready to leave to drive my oldest across the country to college in two days. We are also swapping BBQs which is fantastic. Theirs is a smaller version of ours, and we are downsizing home and yard while they are upsizing. I'm sure we could make some money trying to sell some of the furniture and garage stuff, but we really just want to be done at this point.

It was actually really nice to do a walk-through together, go over how things work, etc. I know buyers and sellers don't usually interact much (or at all) directly, but given the specific circumstances here it is better for everyone.

VVA comes tomorrow so my oldest is making one more pass through all of his stuff before moving to college on Saturday. I feel like we're getting down towards the end of the mountain of stuff, but I'm sure there will be a few more iterations even after we move. I'll be so happy to be in a smaller space and not be able to accumulate so much in the future. I hope. ;)


slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2809 on: August 09, 2019, 06:09:44 AM »
Good luck with the move, FireHiker.

A few days ago my huge countertop microwave finally died after 30 years. Took it apart, fuse was still good, nothing obviously fried, so decided to recycle it (couldn't fix it).

Took it into Staples, fearing they would reject it, but they took it no problemo. 

Lots of nice space on my countertop now. Not replacing the micro yet. Maybe never.

In other news.....  something changed in my thinking (in a good way) and I was able to haul the 20 pound box of ancient IBM manuals to recycling and dump them in , and actually feel like I was doing a good thing.       :) 


Fresh Bread

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2810 on: August 09, 2019, 06:33:38 AM »
Well done on the manuals, what a relief!

Tyson

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2811 on: August 09, 2019, 09:52:07 AM »
In other news.....  something changed in my thinking (in a good way) and I was able to haul the 20 pound box of ancient IBM manuals to recycling and dump them in , and actually feel like I was doing a good thing.       :)

I think you found the key.  Just keep doing that.

SunnyDays

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2812 on: August 11, 2019, 08:51:37 PM »
And here's week 7's progress:

43. A few small pieces of gold jewelry I never wear - to be sold to jewelry store or gold buyers.
44. Camcorder - to be sold.
45. Winter coat that's too small - to be donated to a local church for their Thanksgiving give-away to needy people,
46. Bag of manure that's been sitting in the shed for 2 years - to be dug into the garden.
47. 3 plastic TV dinner trays - to be donated for animal rescue garage sale.
48. Worn-out length of carpet runner - hopefully to be recycled if I can find somewhere that will take it.
49. Rebounder - to be donated to a local kid's recreation program.

That's it for this week.  It is getting a little harder, and now I have to work at actually getting the stuff to where it needs to go.
Turns out that the roommate is moving sooner than expected, but I'll still stick with the 100 item challenge.  Now that I'm halfway there, I suspect I won't be able to find more than 100 things to declutter.  (Unless I count all my roommate's stuff she'll be taking with her!)  Stay tuned to find out.

mspym

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2813 on: August 11, 2019, 09:21:16 PM »
A book, two tops, a pair of trousers, merino leggings, two necklaces and a key holder moved to the donation pile. Chipping away at this, and I think if I look through the stored clothing [capsule wardrobe] there will be more things for the discard piles.

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2814 on: August 12, 2019, 08:50:25 AM »
A book, two tops, a pair of trousers, merino leggings, two necklaces and a key holder moved to the donation pile. Chipping away at this, and I think if I look through the stored clothing [capsule wardrobe] there will be more things for the discard piles.

I almost forgot it was curbside recycling day! Put my usual stuff out, then rooted around in the
 basement hoard  and found about a dozen empty cardboard boxes and put them out too. Still have a
boatload of empty boxes for 'just in case', lol. 

Gail2000

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2815 on: August 12, 2019, 08:56:26 AM »
A book, two tops, a pair of trousers, merino leggings, two necklaces and a key holder moved to the donation pile. Chipping away at this, and I think if I look through the stored clothing [capsule wardrobe] there will be more things for the discard piles.

I almost forgot it was curbside recycling day! Put my usual stuff out, then rooted around in the
 basement hoard  and found about a dozen empty cardboard boxes and put them out too. Still have a
boatload of empty boxes for 'just in case', lol.

Is t that the way? It never fails that I need a box after I clear them out.

I am accumulating a box full of things before I bring it to the charity shop. I am targeting my wardrobe this week. And hopefully the kids toys that are leachin*their way out of the corner. Her birthday is coming soon...

MountainGal

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2816 on: August 12, 2019, 12:11:29 PM »
-At least 50 pounds of paper documents were burned Saturday night.
-2 boxes of older stuffed animals and random items will be dropped off at Goodwill this week.
-Another box of not so old stuffed animals will go to the police department to be used by first responders in children involved emergency situations.
-A bag full of stickers, barely used Crayons, and other items was dropped off at our 3rd grade teacher neighbor's house this morning (I texted her last night to confirm she can use them).

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2817 on: August 12, 2019, 03:07:06 PM »
-At least 50 pounds of paper documents were burned Saturday night.
-2 boxes of older stuffed animals and random items will be dropped off at Goodwill this week.
-Another box of not so old stuffed animals will go to the police department to be used by first responders in children involved emergency situations.
-A bag full of stickers, barely used Crayons, and other items was dropped off at our 3rd grade teacher neighbor's house this morning (I texted her last night to confirm she can use them).

Wow, 50 pounds of paper burned! Good.  Where? Outdoors? Bonfire?

MountainGal

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2818 on: August 13, 2019, 11:52:36 AM »
-At least 50 pounds of paper documents were burned Saturday night.
-2 boxes of older stuffed animals and random items will be dropped off at Goodwill this week.
-Another box of not so old stuffed animals will go to the police department to be used by first responders in children involved emergency situations.
-A bag full of stickers, barely used Crayons, and other items was dropped off at our 3rd grade teacher neighbor's house this morning (I texted her last night to confirm she can use them).

Wow, 50 pounds of paper burned! Good.  Where? Outdoors? Bonfire?

Yes, complete with adult beverages and garden hose, LOL.

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2819 on: August 14, 2019, 04:17:36 PM »
I've been on a tear this summer, mostly because I'm on sabbatical & have the time & energy. I've made $920 on eBay, and more on our local site, so about $1,000 selling things. Our donation pile is huge & ready to be dropped off. I need to do that this week. So far today:
-Listed a necklace, dress, bra & 2 ties on eBay
-Added a shirt & a zippered toiletry bag to the donation pile
-Gathered around 15 items for ThredUp, which I'll try out for the first time as soon as my bag arrives

Tyson

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2820 on: August 14, 2019, 05:06:31 PM »
The Garage.  The one area that's been a bit neglected in my push toward minimalism.  Today while my car was getting tree sap removed from it, I swept the whole garage, got all cobwebs out of the entire place, top to bottom, and started removing shelves, hooks, and other crap that was just sitting there and would never be used. 

Result?  A clean garage and about half decluttered.  Gotta wait till trash gets picked up on Friday, then the ruthless culling can continue.

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2821 on: August 15, 2019, 07:15:56 AM »
The Garage.  The one area that's been a bit neglected in my push toward minimalism.  Today while my car was getting tree sap removed from it, I swept the whole garage, got all cobwebs out of the entire place, top to bottom, and started removing shelves, hooks, and other crap that was just sitting there and would never be used. 

Result?  A clean garage and about half decluttered.  Gotta wait till trash gets picked up on Friday, then the ruthless culling can continue.

This reminds me that I have some rooms I haven't even started on yet!

And congratulations on just throwing out the stuff instead of spending time trying to reuse or donate.   

My garage is OK. I can get my car in, but the sides are full of stuff.   



Zamboni

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2822 on: August 16, 2019, 01:18:15 AM »
The Garage.  The one area that's been a bit neglected in my push toward minimalism.  Today while my car was getting tree sap removed from it, I swept the whole garage, got all cobwebs out of the entire place, top to bottom, and started removing shelves, hooks, and other crap that was just sitting there and would never be used. 

Result?  A clean garage and about half decluttered.  Gotta wait till trash gets picked up on Friday, then the ruthless culling can continue.

This is very impressive. The garage is an ugly, scary monster.

I'm facing a harsh reality: due to some weight gain over the past year, neither my other half nor I can fit into some of our pants. The reason this is hard is that many of these pants do actually "spark joy." Sigh. I hate to keep any clothes that don't fit, but the ones that spark the most joy AND are closest to fitting will be kept at this time. I've put them in a separate pile so I am not faced with accidentally trying them on in the mornings. Part of the issue is that, due to my height, I have trouble getting pants I like in the first place. So when I find them, I get really attached. I almost need to categorize these as sentimental items, and then see if I make any progress towards fitting back into them over the next year. If not, then I suppose they can go. At some point in the future they will be mostly out of style anyway, so there is a limited time window for my silly hope that these pants will be worn by me again.

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2823 on: August 16, 2019, 06:09:33 AM »
Finally have some real space in front of the TV in the living room. I can walk around in a circle there now. It feels like the Grand Canyon!   

Still plenty left. Still sorting and throwing out, recycling, donating and selling (and sometimes keeping when appropriate).

I just realized I have starting visualizing my house totally barren when I am done decluttering, but must remember to keep some stuff !   

Another concern : what to have as a "purpose" when and if all the clutter is gone?

Zamboni

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2824 on: August 16, 2019, 06:52:26 AM »
^Well, @slackmax, Marie Kondo turned her decluttering skill into a lucrative business helping others declutter. Side hustle if you really like it? Or, you will be free to go outside and exercise, watch a movie, volunteer, etc. That will be great!

I actually don't think you need to keep much. Clear it all out unless you come across something that you absolutely love. Clean up really good. Once it's cleared out, visualize exactly how you want the space to look, perhaps from home shows on TV or something like that, and go on Craigslist looking for things that match your wishes.

One of my family members had a fire that destroyed everything. In a month or two on Craigslist we were able to refurnish a whole house with items that completely matched his style desire (he wanted modern looking things.) It took some time to do that, but you'll have time once you've decluttered!

Used furniture is often very cheap, the price is often negotiable, and it's really cheap if someone is moving and wants to get rid of everything, so refurnishing is easier to manage than you probably think. Before the fire he had a mishmash of things that he mostly was either ambivalent about or hated . . . in the fire he only lost one piece of furniture, a big bureau, that he had picked out and really, really loved. He lost some sentimental smaller items, like photos and drawings, but, once he got through the trauma of it all, he was actually happy to have the opportunity to begin anew with feathering his nest the way he wanted it.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2825 on: August 16, 2019, 08:09:25 AM »
^Well, @slackmax, Marie Kondo turned her decluttering skill into a lucrative business helping others declutter. Side hustle if you really like it? Or, you will be free to go outside and exercise, watch a movie, volunteer, etc. That will be great!

Yeah, honestly, I think minimalism is due for a more 'every man' rebranding. It's not a like... fringe thing, or just an urban thing, or just a female thing anymore. But when you look at the faces of minimalism, that's a lot of what you see. I've never seen someone declutter a nascar mancave, you know? =P And I don't know Slackmax, but the way you write it definitely comes across as the approachable neighbor type of a thing.

Gail2000

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2826 on: August 17, 2019, 03:02:06 AM »
I attacked the toys! I accepted the resistance and gave in to a few “but I LOVE this”. She is almost 6 so let’s face it: all things are treasures. Even slime put in the mesh side pocket of her school bag ( oh she still wanted that too but off the old bag went). I am on holidays so that took half a day and left the rest to fun and building a canoe rack for our tip.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2827 on: August 17, 2019, 07:46:31 AM »
Well, it's taken over a week, but was finally able to recycle 4 pieces of paper. They represent my task lists at work for Jan to April.  I've been pulled in so many directions that haven't had the time to tackle all the tiny tasks that are part of my core job. But that's hopefully changing! These 4 papers are evidence.

slackmax

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2828 on: August 17, 2019, 08:59:46 AM »
^Well, @slackmax, Marie Kondo turned her decluttering skill into a lucrative business helping others declutter. Side hustle if you really like it? Or, you will be free to go outside and exercise, watch a movie, volunteer, etc. That will be great!

Yeah, honestly, I think minimalism is due for a more 'every man' rebranding. It's not a like... fringe thing, or just an urban thing, or just a female thing anymore. But when you look at the faces of minimalism, that's a lot of what you see. I've never seen someone declutter a nascar mancave, you know? =P And I don't know Slackmax, but the way you write it definitely comes across as the approachable neighbor type of a thing.

Random comments:  (and some self-indulgent stuff, sorry)

Sometimes I go out to social events to get away from the decluttering. I feel like I ought to be decluttering 8 hours a day, but that's just too much. In reality, I spend about 10 hours a week decluttering. And that's slow, careful decluttering.   

I also sometimes use decluttering as a way to avoid worrying about decisions I have to make about prosaic things like what new dentist to pick, or what contractor to use to repair something. So then I like having the decluttering available as an escape.

Also some grief involved since my girlfriend's death was the beginning of all the decluttering. (She was a hoarder). I think the decluttering makes me feel like I'm getting her out of my life finally. It was finally "OK" for me to take 2 pairs of her old shoes to the textiles recycling place yesterday, for example.   

Bracken_Joy

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2829 on: August 17, 2019, 09:12:39 AM »
^Well, @slackmax, Marie Kondo turned her decluttering skill into a lucrative business helping others declutter. Side hustle if you really like it? Or, you will be free to go outside and exercise, watch a movie, volunteer, etc. That will be great!

Yeah, honestly, I think minimalism is due for a more 'every man' rebranding. It's not a like... fringe thing, or just an urban thing, or just a female thing anymore. But when you look at the faces of minimalism, that's a lot of what you see. I've never seen someone declutter a nascar mancave, you know? =P And I don't know Slackmax, but the way you write it definitely comes across as the approachable neighbor type of a thing.

Random comments:  (and some self-indulgent stuff, sorry)

Sometimes I go out to social events to get away from the decluttering. I feel like I ought to be decluttering 8 hours a day, but that's just too much. In reality, I spend about 10 hours a week decluttering. And that's slow, careful decluttering.   

I also sometimes use decluttering as a way to avoid worrying about decisions I have to make about prosaic things like what new dentist to pick, or what contractor to use to repair something. So then I like having the decluttering available as an escape.

Also some grief involved since my girlfriend's death was the beginning of all the decluttering. (She was a hoarder). I think the decluttering makes me feel like I'm getting her out of my life finally. It was finally "OK" for me to take 2 pairs of her old shoes to the textiles recycling place yesterday, for example.   

That's the big thing with decluttering, isn't it? On the surface, it may feel like just going through your stuff. But there is SO much more going on. And complex grief can definitely make it incredibly overwhelming. You're making great progress. I *am* glad to hear you haven't let it take over your entire life. Like you said before- there still needs to be stuff to go to when you're done!

Sibley

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2830 on: August 18, 2019, 02:08:58 PM »
Due to a house project that is happening in 2 phases, I have 95% of my desk packed away in a tubby. There's about 2 things I've wanted out of that tub in the past month. I'm going to have to be critical when unpacking it - there's things I need annually (Christmas cards), things I can't get rid of (oversize important papers), and the rest will be considered for decluttering. But first, I need to get carpet.

RetiredAt63

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2831 on: August 18, 2019, 04:57:11 PM »
Due to a house project that is happening in 2 phases, I have 95% of my desk packed away in a tubby. There's about 2 things I've wanted out of that tub in the past month. I'm going to have to be critical when unpacking it - there's things I need annually (Christmas cards), things I can't get rid of (oversize important papers), and the rest will be considered for decluttering. But first, I need to get carpet.

I am also finding that the longer stuff is packed away, the more I realise there is a lot I can do without.  2 moves in 5 weeks is very educational.  ;-)

mspym

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2832 on: August 18, 2019, 08:05:18 PM »
I just helped my mum Kondo her books. We identified the bookshelf she wants to take in her move, I took all the books out and she just worked out what she wanted to go into the shelf and what could be discarded. She did great. No more books that make her feel bad about herself!

Fresh Bread

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2833 on: August 18, 2019, 08:15:21 PM »
I just helped my mum Kondo her books. We identified the bookshelf she wants to take in her move, I took all the books out and she just worked out what she wanted to go into the shelf and what could be discarded. She did great. No more books that make her feel bad about herself!

Love it.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2834 on: August 18, 2019, 08:19:12 PM »
Another car load to the thrift store! I feel relieved and lighter. In this case I have decluttered as I walked through a room and got obvious stuff out. My target next week is going to be more precise. I am aiming for a drawer of pictures.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2835 on: August 19, 2019, 12:23:06 PM »
One big bag off to the Diabetes Association.  I haven't been posting much over the past month, but I am still working on the decluttering.  I have a huge pile of things to finally offload to DS now that he has a house.  We will no longer be his storage unit - yay!   Also a growing pile for donation that just needs to be boxed up.

House goes up for sale next April - it's going to take me that long to get rid of everything!  We used to move every 7 or 8 years, which was a good way to enforce decluttering.  But have been in this house for over 20 years, and it's mind boggling how many things you can collect/forget about in that time.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2836 on: August 19, 2019, 06:29:06 PM »
I have another single page ready to be shred. Since I don't have a shredder, I'll take it to work with me tomorrow. This page I had written all my passwords on. It took a year, but they are all in my password manager now. I'm moving apartments, and the shame of having this project still incomplete after my year lease was up was my motivation.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2837 on: August 20, 2019, 07:43:40 AM »
Two things.

First, Marie Kondo was a question on Jeopardy last night. (By the way, I knew the answer for Final Jeopardy, Miles Standish, and the 3 contestants did not! What do I win? lol  )

Second, I almost sold an old 1975 issue of National Lampoon for $1 at the rummage sale, or was going to donate it to lib, in my decluttering just-get-rid-of-everything frenzy. But...... I took the time to google it, and this magazine is worth $29 plus shipping, minimum, on Amazon, lots of entries. 


 

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2838 on: August 20, 2019, 08:21:00 AM »
Two things.

First, Marie Kondo was a question on Jeopardy last night. (By the way, I knew the answer for Final Jeopardy, Miles Standish, and the 3 contestants did not! What do I win? lol  )

Second, I almost sold an old 1975 issue of National Lampoon for $1 at the rummage sale, or was going to donate it to lib, in my decluttering just-get-rid-of-everything frenzy. But...... I took the time to google it, and this magazine is worth $29 plus shipping, minimum, on Amazon, lots of entries.

Lots of entries often means it's not actually selling at that price. Supply>demand.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2839 on: August 20, 2019, 08:32:46 AM »
Two things.

First, Marie Kondo was a question on Jeopardy last night. (By the way, I knew the answer for Final Jeopardy, Miles Standish, and the 3 contestants did not! What do I win? lol  )

Second, I almost sold an old 1975 issue of National Lampoon for $1 at the rummage sale, or was going to donate it to lib, in my decluttering just-get-rid-of-everything frenzy. But...... I took the time to google it, and this magazine is worth $29 plus shipping, minimum, on Amazon, lots of entries.

Lots of entries often means it's not actually selling at that price. Supply>demand.
Yes, but price it at $25 plus shipping and yours will be the first to sell.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2840 on: August 20, 2019, 10:56:16 AM »
De-cluttered: the flower vase collection sort of  - It is now 2/3 of its former size.  Two shelves are pristine empty.
- some old magazines. Now there is room for all of the magazines on one shelf.  Once the shelf is full I will go again. This tidies up an area of my office and the dining room.
-Worked on a couple of shelves in the garage. Shelves were nearly empty so the Hubs can take them down to insulate this wall.  We are not going insulated until the fall and hopefully on a cloudy day because we have to removed the solar panel inverter while insulation gets installed behind it.  Wish I had thought about this before it was installed.  But the shelves are getting de-cluttered. 
- Worked on a couple other shelves by the back door.  All the old pots that I will never ever use are in the give away pile. The pots of soil are getting solarized for re-use and added compost.  It now looks like a nice little potting bench with garden supplies.  I was able to re-purpose some pots to up-pot two orchids that were so pot bound. 
- DD went through the baking cupboard and consolidated ingredients, organized them and wiped down the shelves.  Love it now.  I feel like baking when I open it up.  I need to make a few things with molasses - three containers, corn-syrup - also three containers, pine nuts - enough for a lot of presto! etc etc etc.  Next time she tells me she is bored, I am asking her to do the pantry cupboards.
I hit a couple of shelves on the door of the fridge and got rid of the unrecognizable and the super old.  I got an old bucket and filled it with hot water and cleaned out the jars so the glass could go in the recycling and the contents went straight into the composter.
I was feeling really down about the clutter and just getting some shelves cleared out has given me the little boost to stop worrying about everyone else's stuff and just work on my stuff.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2841 on: August 20, 2019, 01:39:30 PM »
I did a bunch of yard work today, & filled the bin with debris. So, getting rid of yard clutter? ;)

I have decluttered the vast majority of our belongings, & while there is always more work to be done, I'm feeling pretty good about where we are. I did find one tablet cover that doesn't' fit any of our existing tablets, so into the donation bin it went. I'm hoping to go through one more cupboard & back through a few kitchen cabinets.

1967mama

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2842 on: August 21, 2019, 05:01:37 PM »
*Two garbage bags of clothes OUT

*One box of books OUT

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2843 on: August 21, 2019, 08:50:32 PM »
Emptied out the storage boxes/baskets in pantry, bedroom and living room. Threw away or donated stuff I don't use. Kept the boxes, obvs, no point getting rid of something useful, but they're now stacked invisibly under the bed.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2844 on: August 21, 2019, 10:45:35 PM »
Box of books off to the donation bin \o/

Two bags of wood detritus out of the shed our old housemate neglected to clean out when he moved. Be used to plane wood meditatively and wow, that was a lot of wood shavings!
« Last Edit: August 21, 2019, 10:47:32 PM by diapasoun »

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Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2845 on: August 21, 2019, 11:18:56 PM »
Threw away two stretched-out old bras.
« Last Edit: August 22, 2019, 03:21:49 AM by jengod »

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2846 on: August 22, 2019, 06:03:44 AM »
Surprised myself. My bedroom is stacked with plastic bags of clothes up against the walls 5 feet high and on top of 2 desks. How could I get rid of these perfectly good clothes?  Well, I started with just one. Open bag, look at item, what could I sell it for? $1 at most, if it sells at all. Into the donation bag with it!

I cleared out about 12 square feet of wall space yesterday. Must have removed 20 different clothing items, into the donation bag.

After the twenty items, and the wall space nicely opening up, I started to feel the 'this is wrong' feeling (which makes no sense) and stopped decluttering.  Pretty sure I can get back into decluttering mode later on this wall. 

I DID find one shawl type thing with a fancy 'made in Scotland'  tag, with 75% Mohair. Going to check that one out on Ebay. Kept it.

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2847 on: August 22, 2019, 06:33:16 AM »
Surprised myself. My bedroom is stacked with plastic bags of clothes up against the walls 5 feet high and on top of 2 desks. How could I get rid of these perfectly good clothes?  Well, I started with just one. Open bag, look at item, what could I sell it for? $1 at most, if it sells at all. Into the donation bag with it!

I cleared out about 12 square feet of wall space yesterday. Must have removed 20 different clothing items, into the donation bag.

After the twenty items, and the wall space nicely opening up, I started to feel the 'this is wrong' feeling (which makes no sense) and stopped decluttering.  Pretty sure I can get back into decluttering mode later on this wall. 

I DID find one shawl type thing with a fancy 'made in Scotland'  tag, with 75% Mohair. Going to check that one out on Ebay. Kept it.
Anything worth selling will probably have a good quality fabric, such as the mohair you've already found, and if you are handling that much clothing you will very quickly learn by feel what a good fabric feels like without even bothering with the label.

LaineyAZ

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2848 on: August 22, 2019, 03:06:19 PM »
Bought 2 small glass shelves at IKEA for bathroom storage.  They replaced 2 mesh bags.  I tossed what was expired and kept only what I wanted.  Now these items are visible and easy accessible with the bonus of the bathroom being overall neater and nicer looking. 
(it's another example of the way decluttering seems to work best for me:  after I figure out which type of storage or display unit would be most functional and attractive, then I can easily replace what wasn't useful and toss or donate the junk. I can't seem to do the process in reverse.)

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Re: Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2
« Reply #2849 on: August 22, 2019, 03:58:56 PM »
I had a few things kicking around in the freezer and pantry, mainly small servings of fruit (half a banana, quarter cup of strawberries etc). Friend of mine is having a birthday this weekend, and an idea was born!

Found a fantastic recipe for home made ice cream (with just a handheld mixer, no churning machine needed). Bought a carton of heavy cream and a tin of condensed milk, added my pantry leftovers. I now have 5 little jars of home made ice cream: strawberry cheesecake,  banana/walnut/chocolate, mango/lime, salted caramel, and rose with sprinkles (because why not). First time making this recipe, it was so easy! My fridge and pantry are a little bit emptier and I'm sure my friend will be happy getting 5 flavors of ice cream.

 

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