I'm by no means a hoarder. Minimalist would be more accurate.
I have, however, held on to a couple of items for aesthetic and practical reasons that I'm parting with.
One is a 1918 General Electric tabletop fan.
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAwMFg2NjU=/$T2eC16F,!zUE9s38-QPVBRQf,NcthQ~~48_35.JPG)
I was using it for, well, "cooling" but I hooked up a Kill-a-Watt a realized it was actually kind of energy inefficient so it's on the auction block.
Another item is a 1940's Westinghouse fan that has similar power draw. Beautiful and probably irreplaceable but just more "stuff."
I have a similar issue on the clothes front. I have a fair few t-shirts that are very worn, what tends to happen with these t-shirts is they slowly get demoted from, "I'll wear it out and about" -> "i'll wear it to do dirty jobs in" -> "i'll wear it for bed". Some t-shirts i've got i've had for the past 10 years or so and even though they have some small holes in they are good for slouching about it. :)
Great thread. Does anyone have tips for helping someone else get rid of their stuff? Mr Osprey is a hoarder and I am a minimalist. This causes is a great deal of marital strife! We recently moved apartments and I am itching to sell or donate the following:
- Kilograms and kilograms of clothes that are in good condition but far too big and completely against his current aesthetic
- A cupboard filled with electronic equipment and outdated "boys' toys" that he never uses, or that we have duplicates of (e.g. binoculars, old consoles). This cupboard has an imaginary "KEEP OUT NO GIRLS ALLOWED" sign on it.
- Piles of trading cards that keep on multiplying (Magic, The Gathering) - I play just as much as he does but I want to sell what we don't use
- Old textbooks that nobody has read in years... going all the way back to primary school!
Will report back on successes/failures.
People hold onto things for a variety of reasons:
http://minimalistpackrat.com/2010/10/31/10-clutter-personality-types/
What helps depends on WHY he is holding onto items.
nothing is quite the same as opening up a new book, especially one that you have been waiting and waiting for!
My biggest challenge is figuring out the best way to sell inherited items that have a fair amount of value (a Limoges tea set, silverplate cutlery set, several Waterford pieces). I don't want to go the eBay route, but fear that will be what I end up doing. : /
nothing is quite the same as opening up a new book, especially one that you have been waiting and waiting for!
Slimming down the books is definitely a worthy goal. It's hard to give up books but after moving a few times, the number of books sitting around just cuz I love them has decreased dramatically.
I donated another small bag of clothes into the charity bin today. Every time I do this I feel the load is lightened, both literally and figuratively, and it's great.
Anybody else have experience having to "buy back" things they've already gotten rid of?
Anyone have any suggestions for selling/repurposing the following:
Wedding dress
Tools (Craigslist?)
Baseball cards (went through a bizarre phase in 1990-1991)
Thanks.
Anyone have any suggestions for selling/repurposing the following:
Wedding dress
Tools (Craigslist?)
Baseball cards (went through a bizarre phase in 1990-1991)
Thanks.
Anyone have any suggestions for selling/repurposing the following:
Wedding dress
Tools (Craigslist?)
Baseball cards (went through a bizarre phase in 1990-1991)
Thanks.
I just sold my wedding dress about six months after our wedding.
We only asked for $250 when I had paid $700 because our goal was to unload, not make back all the money. It sold in two days on EBay.
That's part pricing, part timing (dress still in season), part dress (a popular style from David's that potential buyers could easily try on at a local retail store) and part seriously good photography of the dress by my husband.
I tried to buy my dress online before getting it at David's. my general impression was that most people are asking for almost full retail for their used dress. My opinion was I'd rather pay an extra $100 knowing there were no problems and no cleaning needed, which likely would cost that extra $100 to fix. Hence my low price on EBay.
Good luck!
How inefficient? I mean, compared to modern fans. Just talking out my butt here, but maybe you could put in a modern, efficient motor as part of your restoration and hold onto it? (I'm not sure how much of the low efficiency is due to the aerodynamics of the blades vs the older motor, though =/ )I'm by no means a hoarder. Minimalist would be more accurate.
I have, however, held on to a couple of items for aesthetic and practical reasons that I'm parting with.
One is a 1918 General Electric tabletop fan.
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAwMFg2NjU=/$T2eC16F,!zUE9s38-QPVBRQf,NcthQ~~48_35.JPG)
I was using it for, well, "cooling" but I hooked up a Kill-a-Watt a realized it was actually kind of energy inefficient so it's on the auction block.
Another item is a 1940's Westinghouse fan that has similar power draw. Beautiful and probably irreplaceable but just more "stuff."
I LOVE that fan. Tough call.
Testify! My goal is to have a small closet of clothes that I love and wear regularly like the "one suitcase" series or the 333 challenge.
I friend of mine is trying to start a business as a professional organizer, so she came over and helped me go through a few of my trouble spots in the house.
In addition to a much more organized living space, I also sold $430 worth of useful to other people items. I've also got sales pending for another $350 worth of things!
We have been executing The Big Purge for the last several months, consistently saying yes to the various charities that call frequently (Lupus, Vietnam Vets, etc.).
My biggest challenge is figuring out the best way to sell inherited items that have a fair amount of value (a Limoges tea set, silverplate cutlery set, several Waterford pieces). I don't want to go the eBay route, but fear that will be what I end up doing. : /
It's been worth the effort and hoarder-tendencies DH has been a dreamboat about it. (Way harder for him than for unsentimental me.)
Sounds like an interesting business. How does it work? Is she coaching and face-punching you through the process? Does she help evaluate and sell off your stuff? I was actually wondering whether such an endeavor would be successful, after much sorting and moving this week.
This is my first post and this was an inspirational thread for me. Today I took 20 or so books to work and sent out an email notifying friends and co-workers to come and take them. So far there are only 6 left. Whatever doesn't get taken by tomorrow will get donated.
Okay I'm in on this! Actually I'm really good at decluttering and I no emotional hang ups about getting rid of things.... The things just haven't made it out of the house yet. I have basically a whole room that could be very functional for me for my etsy business that's just all junked up with stuff. The motivation to actually move the stuff out of the house rarely strikes because we just keep the door closed and never go in there (current house is really big for our needs... too much space is a CURSE! Really!).
So I'm committing to dealing with that room as much as I can next week when I get home- I will sell what I can and donate the rest. At this point, I'm even okay with not getting the maximum amount of money (I'm getting rid of a lot of nice clothes), if it means I can just reclaim that room!! I could be using that room to make stuff to sell to make me money!!!!
Then the next battle is getting mr. Eva to pare down on the books... I feel bad even asking to honestly (books are literally the only material possession he intentionally accumulates), but there are SO MANY and when we inevitably move to a smaller space, he's going to have to pare down or we will be overrun by the books.
We got the room cleared out! Woo! We decided to forget trying to sell it and just donated everything. It felt so good to donate and I feel so much lighter without all that stuff (especially since we might be moving soon-ish). And now I can use that space to make things for my etsy shop and earn some extra money!!
...
I think we will try to draw my in-laws into the yard sale as well. They could probably make thousands back on the massive amounts of stuff they have piled up.
...
I think we will try to draw my in-laws into the yard sale as well. They could probably make thousands back on the massive amounts of stuff they have piled up.
Good luck, B20015. I've got someone in the family who sound just like your in-laws, and despite multiple attempts by various family members to help her out, the situation never improved at all until she had professional psychiatric treatment for the underlying mental disorder. Based on this personal experience, I would just suggest you not be too disappointed if your efforts to help them don't work, and don't let it discourage you from getting your own situation under control!
...
I think we will try to draw my in-laws into the yard sale as well. They could probably make thousands back on the massive amounts of stuff they have piled up.
Good luck, B20015. I've got someone in the family who sound just like your in-laws, and despite multiple attempts by various family members to help her out, the situation never improved at all until she had professional psychiatric treatment for the underlying mental disorder. Based on this personal experience, I would just suggest you not be too disappointed if your efforts to help them don't work, and don't let it discourage you from getting your own situation under control!
I'm struggling with getting my wife out of that mode. I finally got her to cut down her 4 trash bag full of stuffed animals to 1 bag.
If she turns into my in-laws, it will be a challenge. They keep almost everything. I'm amazed at how clean their house is considering how much stuff they have.
First off is clothing: My personal goal is to own two "packets" (groups? units?) of clothing, one summer and the other winter, and to be able to wash an entire packet in one load of laundry. I donated three bags of clothing to St. Vinny's this morning and I'm feeling good.
There is a great article here: http://www.theminimalists.com/21days/day3/
The premise is 2 guys want to live a minimalist lifestyle, so they pack all of their stuff up; clothes, furniture, everything. Over a 1 week period they unpack things as they NEED to use them. Anything that is left after that week is either sold, donated, or trashed.
They call it a 'Packing Party.' I did it after moving to a new, cheaper, apartment, and unloaded nearly half of my stuff! It was so liberating that I am trying to dwindle my remaining stuff in half again.
I'm still looking for something to do with my two dvd players, vcr (will probably trash), 300 disc cd changer, and dual cassette deck. Ugh. I so don't want to just trash those. Sometimes I hate electronics :-)Price them cheap/free on craigslist, or put them on Freecycle. There are always people looking for that kind of stuff. Especially if they still work.
I'm still looking for something to do with my two dvd players, vcr (will probably trash), 300 disc cd changer, and dual cassette deck. Ugh. I so don't want to just trash those. Sometimes I hate electronics :-)Price them cheap/free on craigslist, or put them on Freecycle. There are always people looking for that kind of stuff. Especially if they still work.
Sold $85 worth of stuff at our yard sale this past weekend.
Packed up some clothes for consignment, waiting to hear their offer.
Still need to sell: cloth diapers, Rock Band drums and mic (if we had the guitar, we might still be playing it!), DVDs amazon will buy back, and CDs that I won't miss -- does anyone have any ideas for where to sell CDs?
Sold $85 worth of stuff at our yard sale this past weekend.
Packed up some clothes for consignment, waiting to hear their offer.
Still need to sell: cloth diapers, Rock Band drums and mic (if we had the guitar, we might still be playing it!), DVDs amazon will buy back, and CDs that I won't miss -- does anyone have any ideas for where to sell CDs?
Amazon has a trade-in program for CDs and other media. I'm not sure how well they pay, and I'm pretty sure you get the money in the form of gift cards. If you shop on Amazon semi-regularly, it might be worth looking into just because it's an easy one-stop solution.
Sold $85 worth of stuff at our yard sale this past weekend.
Packed up some clothes for consignment, waiting to hear their offer.
Still need to sell: cloth diapers, Rock Band drums and mic (if we had the guitar, we might still be playing it!), DVDs amazon will buy back, and CDs that I won't miss -- does anyone have any ideas for where to sell CDs?
Amazon has a trade-in program for CDs and other media. I'm not sure how well they pay, and I'm pretty sure you get the money in the form of gift cards. If you shop on Amazon semi-regularly, it might be worth looking into just because it's an easy one-stop solution.
Given the value of some of those, I wonder if you do better donating and getting some tax relief as well.
Actually found a thrift shop that will actually take [the electronics] for donations. a few others wouldn't, but this one said they would. So I'm going to take them over there. I'd rather donate things then deal with craiglist/ebay. I might not get as much back, but I just feel better doing it. I know it sounds silly.
In clutter-reduction news, I've worked up the courage to sell 50+ of my book stash to a used book store. Books are awesome to have, but if I don't read them at least once a year, it's not worthwhile to own rather than borrow from the library. I found it's really satisfying to write down what you had, so you can check it out later. Still haven't worked out the art supply situation...
Woo hoo! My husband and I spent 2 hours going through crap, packing up our winter clothes, etc, and came up with a huge pile of clothes & stuff that we can donate or sell on ebay/craigslist!
the apartment was feeling a little cluttery, and it is SO MUCH BETTER now!
It's easier for me to think in a more spare environment.
I think we'll be doing another purge sometime this summer.
Just sold my first ever item on eBay :). A handbag I haven't used in years, sold for $41! I paid $130 for it new 10+ yrs ago....
stan: we just sold my husband's ps3 and rockband set (2 separate transactions). We listed them on craigslist and ebay.
Craigslist note: we always meet at a public place - you seem most concerned about a stranger coming into your home, and I agree - we don't do this. We always meet in the parking lot of a local restaurant or something.
Ended up selling both of these things on ebay. Ebay note: for these, just make sure you add enough shipping to cover since these are pretty large objects. I think we added close to $20 for shipping on the ps3, don't remember for the rockband.
Good luck!
I don't remember where I read it, or from what faith it was from, but it went like so ... if you have two coats, one of them is not yours. (Share with your fellow man who is without a coat sort of thing.) I looked at my coats and pretty much decided to keep one to stay warm, one to stay dry, one to stay warm and dry both, and one for dressing up. And a vest.I also have a severe costume problem. DH and I do medieval reenactment, and we both make our costumes. They fill an entire closet 7.5 feet long!
I still gravitate towards more coats. But I try to keep to that formula, and give away the others. I do have one of my dad's old coats in with my halloween costumes. Speaking of, I have a problem with those. I could outfit everyone on this blog in costumes and still have leftovers. I need help. Hehe.
I also should sell some things on eBay. I bought two pairs of skinny jeans a few years ago, one I've worn a few times and the other I've never worn, because as it turned out I'm not really a skinny jeans kind of girl - I just don't find them comfy and don't know how other people wear them all the time. Lesson learnt, now I just have to get rid of them. eBay feels like a bit of a hassle but it's probably the best bet if I want to recoup some of my money.
got rid of a carful of crap over the weekend. it's like peeling an onion -- i keep finding new levels of shit to get rid of.
I'm by no means a hoarder. Minimalist would be more accurate.
I have, however, held on to a couple of items for aesthetic and practical reasons that I'm parting with.
One is a 1918 General Electric tabletop fan.
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAwMFg2NjU=/$T2eC16F,!zUE9s38-QPVBRQf,NcthQ~~48_35.JPG)
I was using it for, well, "cooling" but I hooked up a Kill-a-Watt a realized it was actually kind of energy inefficient so it's on the auction block.
Another item is a 1940's Westinghouse fan that has similar power draw. Beautiful and probably irreplaceable but just more "stuff."
The hold-up is that people aren't willing to pay much for these things. I'm looking at restoring them to bring the value up. They seem to run about $300 on eBay in restored condition.
I have a question about selling stuff that is technically yours, but located at someone else's house. In my case, this has to do with what is "mine" at my parents' house. My mom has kept a ton of my old toys from my childhood, and it has occurred to me that some might actually be worth something. Of course, there are a few sentimental items that I'd want to keep myself, but for the most part, I don't want any of them. Do you all think I have the right to sell them since they were mine as a child? My mom doesn't want to part with any of it, and there is a LOT. Some of my old toys are even taking up space in a storage shed that my parents pay for each month.
This might be one of those times where I just have to grin and bear it...but I see the potential to actually make some money off of some of these items and get myself closer to being out of debt. But the "are these things really mine?" question keeps bothering me. What would you guys do/have done in similar situations?
I have a question about selling stuff that is technically yours, but located at someone else's house. In my case, this has to do with what is "mine" at my parents' house. My mom has kept a ton of my old toys from my childhood, and it has occurred to me that some might actually be worth something. Of course, there are a few sentimental items that I'd want to keep myself, but for the most part, I don't want any of them. Do you all think I have the right to sell them since they were mine as a child? My mom doesn't want to part with any of it, and there is a LOT. Some of my old toys are even taking up space in a storage shed that my parents pay for each month.
This might be one of those times where I just have to grin and bear it...but I see the potential to actually make some money off of some of these items and get myself closer to being out of debt. But the "are these things really mine?" question keeps bothering me. What would you guys do/have done in similar situations?
That is tricky. Your mom might hold onto the items because they remind her of when you're little. Choose your battles, I say. How important is it to you to sell stuff that is not stored at your place or taking up your space?
I have a question about selling stuff that is technically yours, but located at someone else's house. In my case, this has to do with what is "mine" at my parents' house. My mom has kept a ton of my old toys from my childhood, and it has occurred to me that some might actually be worth something. Of course, there are a few sentimental items that I'd want to keep myself, but for the most part, I don't want any of them. Do you all think I have the right to sell them since they were mine as a child? My mom doesn't want to part with any of it, and there is a LOT. Some of my old toys are even taking up space in a storage shed that my parents pay for each month.
This might be one of those times where I just have to grin and bear it...but I see the potential to actually make some money off of some of these items and get myself closer to being out of debt. But the "are these things really mine?" question keeps bothering me. What would you guys do/have done in similar situations?
That is tricky. Your mom might hold onto the items because they remind her of when you're little. Choose your battles, I say. How important is it to you to sell stuff that is not stored at your place or taking up your space?
This is probably one of those instances where I need to choose my battles. My mom isn't going to give these things up willingly, so I should just let it go.
Yeah, I think you have to let that go. My mom has been cleaning out her attic and digging up all sorts of old toys for my son to play with. I have to admit that it makes me so happy to see my son also love the toys that I loved. Priceless? No. But probably worth the price that I would get for them on ebay.
So I used to have an addiction to buying office supplies (my dad's the same way) and I had a bunch of spiral notebooks and writing utensils that were slightly or never used. If I tear out the used pages, do you guys think it's fair to donate useable spiral notebooks? I'm never going to be able to use all of them. I've seen people buy bags of pens and pencils and various art supplies from thrift stores so I'm sure donating those is fine, but I've never seen second-hand paper goods sold. Would donating those be an asset to a thrift store or a burden?
Donated two bags of stuff this weekend! Felt great. Now, if that Craigslist person would get back to me about buying a few items, I'd be super happy right now :)
Donated two bags of stuff this weekend! Felt great. Now, if that Craigslist person would get back to me about buying a few items, I'd be super happy right now :)
I do get tired of the people who respond to ads and then never show up. I'm trying to give away a chair and ottomann, and I'm only willing to put limited amounts of effort into giving something away!
I'd have loved to get my hands on a CD changer that large. Digital is nice but I buy CDs whenever possible since you actually own CDs unlike digital purchases. And since I get a good bit of my music at yard sales and thrift stores it's usually cheaper than digital too.
Just moved to a smaller place (woo! $400/month cheaper!) and am trying to divest myself of an epic amount of STUFF. Blech.
I find it very difficult to get rid of nice items that I never use. Like a coach bag. Sigh.
So in recent times I've been cooking from the pantry more than usual, and successfully annihilated a container of dried mushrooms, and a bag of dried borlotti beans. I'm thinking next I'll work on some dried mung beans, couscous and cornmeal that has been lying around for a while.
Ha! Love the word choice, "Annihilate." I'm working on my pantry as well. I just reorganized the whole thing, got rid of some really old stuff and started putting out on the counter the latest bag of whatever to remind me to cook it and eat it. Next up, some gourmet "red rice" I bought about two years ago.
I have a similar issue on the clothes front. I have a fair few t-shirts that are very worn, what tends to happen with these t-shirts is they slowly get demoted from, "I'll wear it out and about" -> "i'll wear it to do dirty jobs in" -> "i'll wear it for bed". Some t-shirts i've got i've had for the past 10 years or so and even though they have some small holes in they are good for slouching about it. :)While I totally get the progression of t-shirt roles and use mine up the same way, my partner (who is indeed pretty frugal but no extreme mustachian) wears hers until there are more holes than cloth. Sometimes they are so "holy" they are hard to fold! When I suggest retiring one of those holy shirts, I meat strong resistance. "But they are sooooo comfortable!" Ok, then. Lol!
Other items of clothing I donate to charity and anything else is either donated/recycled or straight up binned.
Oh, and this is an inspiring thread, by the way. We just moved and I got rid of a lot of stuff, but still feel like I have too much. A couple things I'm not sure what to do with. Feel very attached, but also silly for being attached.
1) A box with cassette tapes and CDs of my performances in college (two degrees in music). No, I won't listen to them (or will I? I don't even own a cassette player anymore!)
2) A box with letters from family and friends. Letters my grandma sent to me as a kid. Letters my sister sent to me in college. And so on. Back when people wrote real letters.
Oh, and this is an inspiring thread, by the way. We just moved and I got rid of a lot of stuff, but still feel like I have too much. A couple things I'm not sure what to do with. Feel very attached, but also silly for being attached.
1) A box with cassette tapes and CDs of my performances in college (two degrees in music). No, I won't listen to them (or will I? I don't even own a cassette player anymore!)
2) A box with letters from family and friends. Letters my grandma sent to me as a kid. Letters my sister sent to me in college. And so on. Back when people wrote real letters.
I have imported many of the CD's to the hard drive on the computer- super easy, and you have it forever. You could do the same with the cassettes, might have to borrow something that could get it into the computer, or possibly record them to CD... not sure. As a musician myself I understand wanting to hold on to those old recordings. And I also understand that you will probably never listen to them.
And with the letters... if your printer/scanner has a paper handler (or even if it doesn't) it is pretty easy to scan them in. I was resistant to this at first, since I like being able to hold them in my hand when reading back over them. My wife convinced me to give it a try. I found once I had them scanned in and could see them on the screen it was much easier to get rid of.
Ha, worldstrad, I love the comfort of well-worn clothes too! Though mine aren't as tattered as your partner's, from the sounds of it. :pSorry, I accidentally skipped your response. Going digital may work for some of this stuff. Any idea on how to do that with cassettes?
And hello to a fellow music degree holder... for your cassettes and CDs, are you able to convert them to a digital format? Same goes for the letters, you could take photos of them and upload somewhere safe. But I think it's okay to keep some things with sentimental value, as long as you don't go overboard with it.
Scanning the letters... hm. Yeah, I may be able to do that with some of them, but the ones from my grandma... I'm just too silly attached! Thankfully those aren't too many (maybe 10 or 15).
Sorry, I accidentally skipped your response. Going digital may work for some of this stuff. Any idea on how to do that with cassettes?
Ha, worldstrad, I love the comfort of well-worn clothes too! Though mine aren't as tattered as your partner's, from the sounds of it. :pSorry, I accidentally skipped your response. Going digital may work for some of this stuff. Any idea on how to do that with cassettes?
And hello to a fellow music degree holder... for your cassettes and CDs, are you able to convert them to a digital format? Same goes for the letters, you could take photos of them and upload somewhere safe. But I think it's okay to keep some things with sentimental value, as long as you don't go overboard with it.
Any advice for getting my husband to sort through his wardrobe? He did a major clean-out a year ago when we moved across the country, but he still has way more clothing than necessary (and much more than me).
I am up to around 84 items removed/given away/sold.
Yay!
I got rid of another box of stuff this weekend (left over things that didn't sell at the community yard sell). I saw a post on my neighborhood list-serv that a local church was accepting donations. I also discovered a drop-off location for clothes and shoes near a place I frequently go, so next time I have a random pair of shoes or a few shirts I don't want I know where to take them!
I just made a big donation over the weekend:
- 2 boxes filled with books I've already read and don't intend to re-read
- 2 old laptops and computer parts
- Big box of random things I've intended to get rid of for months
- Old printer/scanner that I hated
- 20 or so T-shirts I never wear
- Box of school/office supplies that I have no intention of using
I finally listed some old text books on Amazon and expect to get $150 for them :D. I also listed an old for-parts laptop on ebay to see if anyone wants it.
I made a new pile of stuff that I'll get rid of if I don't need any of it over the next couple months.
It really feels great to have all that crap gone.
Oh, and this is an inspiring thread, by the way. We just moved and I got rid of a lot of stuff, but still feel like I have too much. A couple things I'm not sure what to do with. Feel very attached, but also silly for being attached.
1) A box with cassette tapes and CDs of my performances in college (two degrees in music). No, I won't listen to them (or will I? I don't even own a cassette player anymore!)
2) A box with letters from family and friends. Letters my grandma sent to me as a kid. Letters my sister sent to me in college. And so on. Back when people wrote real letters.
Hey, I said I was decluttering, not renouncing my worldly possessions and turning into a monk ;)
Where do you guys stand on donating versus selling?
We've worked hard at purging, and have done a good job, but have more to do over Thanksgiving break. I'd really like to just donate it and get it out of our lives, because my guess is that if we plan on selling it, it will sit in a pile in our garage for a year before eventually being donated.
Are we being wasteful in that we probably could earn bits of cash on some of the stuff? Or should we just get it out of our lives and be done?
Where do you guys stand on donating versus selling?
I have a huge amount I should get rid of, but it's the expensive books from past enthusiasms that weigh most heavily on me. I'd give them away if I found people who really wanted them, but they are way too specialized for the few local secondhand booksellers to be interested in. Without a car I can't take them further afield even to give to a library, and Melbourne doesn't have any specialist bookshops for most of these narrow interests. In the UK I would fare better - most of them came from there - but international postage rates from Australia are so horrendous that no overseas buyer would want to cover that cost.
For other stuff I'm stuck because I don't have any means of taking photos and nothing's likely to sell on eBay without one. Freecycle has been great for things like ski-gear because people collect, but I've run through most of what people are likely to be looking for and it won't work for the books.
I hate selling things too. I will sell things like books/DVDs, where I can slop a big box into the used store, come back in an hour and have them give me a number. Everything else are donations. We even have a place that will pick up. They don't take everything but they will take many things.
The emptier it gets in here, the happier I feel.
I'm coming to post my goal for the weekend (to hold me accountable!): Clean out one cabinet in my kitchen. I want to have a cabinet dedicated to canning supplies/storage only. I'm going to start doing more canning in 2014, so I need some space to store the equipment and the things I can. This means I need to get rid of other kitchen items I don't use!
I'm really debating on getting rid of my microwave, which I hardly use. Since I have such a small kitchen, this would massively free up counter space! Has anyone else given it up?
I'm going through my stacks of magazines. I have 3 years worth of my college alumni magazine and Martha Stewart Living (gift & freebie) that I need to cull before I move at the end of December. Right now I'm trying to go through 1-2 each night I'm home.
I'm going through my stacks of magazines. I have 3 years worth of my college alumni magazine and Martha Stewart Living (gift & freebie) that I need to cull before I move at the end of December. Right now I'm trying to go through 1-2 each night I'm home.
Magazines are a common perpetrator. If they're that valuable, you can scan key articles or pictures into Evernote (and tag them to make them easily searchable!) or switch to electronic subscriptions.
What about listing them on Amazon? I did this for several nicer books that I didn't think the used book store would pay enough for. It doesn't require a picture, just the ISBN or title a description of the condition. If you truly don't care about making money off of them , you could just charge enough to cover the cost of shipping, whatever that might be. It would at least expose the books to a wider audience who might be interested in some harder to find articles.Thank you for the suggestion. Many of these titles are published pre-ISBNs and there doesn't seem to be an easy way to list a title on Amazon that has not been previously listed. Bulk consignments of printed matter can be sent by sea to a single address, but apart from that there's no separate print/book postage rate. A parcel weighing 1.5 - 2 kg costs $56.90 by air (which is what most Amazon buyers would want); $62.90 if tracked; and $40.60 even by sea.
I guess I'm not really familiar with Austrailian postal practices, but in the US there is a special rate for shipping books/educational materials, so this might be feasible.
Throwing in here :) I'd like to nuke a lot of my stuff. I already had a lot of textbooks posted on Amazon (probably burned close to $1k on them total) but now I'm sick of storing them. Lowered the price on most things so that they're within a couple bucks of the lowest price, just to get it moved. Whatever is still sitting by my desk in February (when the first week of school has passed for everyone around here) they'll go to Half Price.
Throwing in here :) I'd like to nuke a lot of my stuff. I already had a lot of textbooks posted on Amazon (probably burned close to $1k on them total) but now I'm sick of storing them. Lowered the price on most things so that they're within a couple bucks of the lowest price, just to get it moved. Whatever is still sitting by my desk in February (when the first week of school has passed for everyone around here) they'll go to Half Price.
Don't know how old your textbooks are, but Chegg (http://www.chegg.com/selltextbooks (http://www.chegg.com/selltextbooks)) might buy them (and they'll even pay for shipping). Worth a shot.
Any suggestions for off-beat items to sell beyond eBay and Craigslist for random stuff like:
- Wetsuit (for triathlons, not sports)
- Queen sized air mattresses
- car parts (switches for an old car)
I've posted them but if they don't sell, I'm not sure if there's something similar to a consignment shop for clothing for these - or if I just give it to Goodwill and shrug?
Any suggestions for off-beat items to sell beyond eBay and Craigslist for random stuff like:
- Wetsuit (for triathlons, not sports)
- Queen sized air mattresses
- car parts (switches for an old car)
I've posted them but if they don't sell, I'm not sure if there's something similar to a consignment shop for clothing for these - or if I just give it to Goodwill and shrug?
Do you have Freecycle where you live? That way they would go to someone who actually wants them.
Any suggestions for off-beat items to sell beyond eBay and Craigslist for random stuff like:
- Wetsuit (for triathlons, not sports)
- Queen sized air mattresses
- car parts (switches for an old car)
I've posted them but if they don't sell, I'm not sure if there's something similar to a consignment shop for clothing for these - or if I just give it to Goodwill and shrug?
Do you have Freecycle where you live? That way they would go to someone who actually wants them.
Oh yes, we do - I was just hoping not to turn 200$ into 0$ (the battle-cry of hoarders everywhere). Freecycle would be the 'free' option, over Goodwill, but I'd rather get 50$ of 5$ for it than nothing, you know?
Check out the laws in your state. In mine, you may not sell used mattresses. I don't know if an air mattress would count or not. The issue is a lot of people are uncomfortable buying it used, same as with wetsuits from a bit of the skeevy factor. I might recommend giving up on those two if you are not having much luck.
Throwing in here :) I'd like to nuke a lot of my stuff. I already had a lot of textbooks posted on Amazon (probably burned close to $1k on them total) but now I'm sick of storing them. Lowered the price on most things so that they're within a couple bucks of the lowest price, just to get it moved. Whatever is still sitting by my desk in February (when the first week of school has passed for everyone around here) they'll go to Half Price.
I went through around half a dozen bags of clothing last summer (I lived overseas for 2 months, and came back with a wake-up call!) but will need to again soon (because I get a lot of free t-shirts and they are almost always too big for me!). I've also got some businessy clothes that are too big or getting pilly that can also go.
Any suggestions for off-beat items to sell beyond eBay and Craigslist for random stuff like:
- Wetsuit (for triathlons, not sports)
- Queen sized air mattresses
- car parts (switches for an old car)
I've posted them but if they don't sell, I'm not sure if there's something similar to a consignment shop for clothing for these - or if I just give it to Goodwill and shrug?
For your wetsuit, is there a Play It Again Sports near you? It is a used sports store that has a lot of locations across the US. Another place to try and get rid of it is at a swap. Around here we have a huge Ski Swap in the winter and Bike Swap in the summer where people- mostly retailers but some individuals, too- off-load their used or last-season stuff.
Check out the laws in your state. In mine, you may not sell used mattresses. I don't know if an air mattress would count or not. The issue is a lot of people are uncomfortable buying it used, same as with wetsuits from a bit of the skeevy factor. I might recommend giving up on those two if you are not having much luck.
It's legal to sell used mattresses - I've purchased one. The skeeve factor might get me though. Guess we'll see! I only posted it within the last week so we'll see what shakes out.
Gotta love the useless laws out there. Uh, if you don't want a used mattress or wet suit, don't buy it used.
Not to beat on a dead horse, but did you buy from craigslist? The seller might not have known about the law (if you do indeed have one in your state). I learned about it when I bought a new mattress and they told us they charged a fee if you return it because they have to trash it. I then looked it up.
Where do you guys stand on donating versus selling?
Where do you guys stand on donating versus selling?
I'm going through my stacks of magazines. I have 3 years worth of my college alumni magazine and Martha Stewart Living (gift & freebie) that I need to cull before I move at the end of December. Right now I'm trying to go through 1-2 each night I'm home.
You might want to check completed listings on eBay before tossing magazines. Just sold 7 issues of Domino magazine my mother-in-law was going to toss for $39.99. Architectural Digest can do well, maybe the Martha Stewart Living also. I look up almost everything on eBay before I get rid of it, I have had many surprises over the years.
But, we just bought a house, so I think it'll be eye opening when we move and I find yet more stuff I don't really need when I pack up.
But, we just bought a house, so I think it'll be eye opening when we move and I find yet more stuff I don't really need when I pack up.
I tend to find stuff when I pack up (ugh-I don't want to bother moving this) and then again when I unpack at the new place (ugh-why did I bother moving this?)
But, we just bought a house, so I think it'll be eye opening when we move and I find yet more stuff I don't really need when I pack up.
I tend to find stuff when I pack up (ugh-I don't want to bother moving this) and then again when I unpack at the new place (ugh-why did I bother moving this?)
I've been trying to embrace minimalism and did a BIG purge (which is funny because I live in a 750 SQ Ft house with basically 2 closets, so where I'm keeping all this stuff I don't know), and donated like 6 garbage bags to Goodwill. Now I'm using up the Xmas bags I hoard with gift-giving, as well as gifting some of my travel/sample cosmetics (to a friend who I know likes them). Also started on a big paperwork fest. Finally installed the printer/scanner, and scanned years worth of medical claims/statements so I can shred the actual copies. Off to shred now!
I've been trying to embrace minimalism and did a BIG purge (which is funny because I live in a 750 SQ Ft house with basically 2 closets, so where I'm keeping all this stuff I don't know), and donated like 6 garbage bags to Goodwill. Now I'm using up the Xmas bags I hoard with gift-giving, as well as gifting some of my travel/sample cosmetics (to a friend who I know likes them). Also started on a big paperwork fest. Finally installed the printer/scanner, and scanned years worth of medical claims/statements so I can shred the actual copies. Off to shred now!
I've been trying to embrace minimalism and did a BIG purge (which is funny because I live in a 750 SQ Ft house with basically 2 closets, so where I'm keeping all this stuff I don't know), and donated like 6 garbage bags to Goodwill. Now I'm using up the Xmas bags I hoard with gift-giving, as well as gifting some of my travel/sample cosmetics (to a friend who I know likes them). Also started on a big paperwork fest. Finally installed the printer/scanner, and scanned years worth of medical claims/statements so I can shred the actual copies. Off to shred now!
800 square feet here, two tiny closets. (Well, and a linen closet, it's just towel shelves.)
I have no idea how there was ever as much stuff in here as I had. And however much I seem to get rid of, there is always more. It seriously is like peeling back an onion.
I'm here :) *waves*
I am a clutter-er. I would like to slowly release the clutter I have accumulated so eventually we can move to a smaller place, live minimally and not in clutter. I started out a thread and was invited to check out this thread. I think I have ventured in here in the past only to read but didn't have the determination to join. Now I am throwing down the gauntlet!
*off to read from the beginning to catch up*
I'm here :) *waves*
I am a clutter-er. I would like to slowly release the clutter I have accumulated so eventually we can move to a smaller place, live minimally and not in clutter. I started out a thread and was invited to check out this thread. I think I have ventured in here in the past only to read but didn't have the determination to join. Now I am throwing down the gauntlet!
*off to read from the beginning to catch up*
I need help making a decision about a mobile phone I don't use. Tried it for a while but found I'd rather not have one. Gave it to my son when he lost his, but then he gave it back because he acquired a new one with a more workable keyboard. So it's been sitting uselessly in a drawer. However, I'm reluctant to dump it in a phone recycling bin at a shop, because it has photos of documents from when I was travelling, including 2 passports. And now I've so completely forgotten how to use the thing that I've no idea how to delete all the personal information so that no-one could retrieve it.
And at the back of my mind is that I could use it again just to take photos of things I want to get rid of. Yet, people take stuff I post on Freecycle without photos and I don't really want to become an eBay or Gumtree seller. Takes to much attention to monitor, I think.
Any suggestions?
The photos may be on an SD card inside the phone, that you can take out. What kind of phone is it?
I need help making a decision about a mobile phone I don't use. Tried it for a while but found I'd rather not have one. Gave it to my son when he lost his, but then he gave it back because he acquired a new one with a more workable keyboard. So it's been sitting uselessly in a drawer. However, I'm reluctant to dump it in a phone recycling bin at a shop, because it has photos of documents from when I was travelling, including 2 passports. And now I've so completely forgotten how to use the thing that I've no idea how to delete all the personal information so that no-one could retrieve it.
And at the back of my mind is that I could use it again just to take photos of things I want to get rid of. Yet, people take stuff I post on Freecycle without photos and I don't really want to become an eBay or Gumtree seller. Takes to much attention to monitor, I think.
Any suggestions?
Hey Zaga--I need some of your boxes to pack up my CDs!! I'm only across I 70 from you. About 1600 miles. :(Lol, that is a bit far! If you lived closer I'd save them for sure! Only half of them fit in the recycle bin this time, and it's 2 weeks until the next pickup. Our bin is one of those giant ones on wheels too, it's completely full with more waiting, we threw out a ton!
I have been putting off a major basement clearing and got the inspiration at 4 am today when a pipe froze and split, sending a cascade of water over all the stuff in the crawl space. What fun.I had to smile at this. This happened to me in the house I rented out in the UK when I first came to Australia. My tenant didn't like to chuck anything out without consulting me, and I found it hard to remember what I had stored there. It was easy to say 'chuck' to the university essays I had hung onto, but harder to let go of the stash of old love letters. Having assured me they were mere black mush and illegible, she dug them in as mulch around the garden roses - which apparently then bloomed very well that year!
It has been educational, though.
I have discovered that most things which were put in the crawl space can be let go of without much pain, especially when they are soaked.
The thing is that I have absolutely no idea where we've kept all that stuff - we have a 74qm / 800 square feet inner city apartment, just thinking about it now gives me the jeebies and yet even before we started getting rid of everything our friends considered us to be minimalists living in a basically empty apartment. When we told them we'd started purging our apartment the thing that amazed them most was the fact that we still owned stuff in excess. And still there's always more and I feel like it never stops - "And however much I seem to get rid of, there is always more. It seriously is like peeling back an onion." - very true. I still have way too many spare parts for my bicycles for example - do I really need four spare saddles? I hardly think so.... Speaking of which, I also have three bikes, two of which I use regularly but the third one I haven't used in years. Maybe I should get rid of that one too.
I have a similar issue on the clothes front. I have a fair few t-shirts that are very worn, what tends to happen with these t-shirts is they slowly get demoted from, "I'll wear it out and about" -> "i'll wear it to do dirty jobs in" -> "i'll wear it for bed". Some t-shirts i've got i've had for the past 10 years or so and even though they have some small holes in they are good for slouching about it. :)
Other items of clothing I donate to charity and anything else is either donated/recycled or straight up binned.
I have a similar issue on the clothes front. I have a fair few t-shirts that are very worn, what tends to happen with these t-shirts is they slowly get demoted from, "I'll wear it out and about" -> "i'll wear it to do dirty jobs in" -> "i'll wear it for bed". Some t-shirts i've got i've had for the past 10 years or so and even though they have some small holes in they are good for slouching about it. :)
Other items of clothing I donate to charity and anything else is either donated/recycled or straight up binned.
I had an old T-shirt that had sentimental value to me, so I kept it way past its expiration date. I recently turned it into a laptop sleeve, using fabric from Joann's remnant bin as the inside and the T-shirt graphic as the outside pocket. It turned out really nice and I get to still enjoy that old t-shirt!
(though the decluttering hasn't quite spread to the dearly beloved kitchen implements yet).
We're using it as practice for a life of moving to lots of interesting places and not being owned by lots of hard-to-move stuff
(though the decluttering hasn't quite spread to the dearly beloved kitchen implements yet).
My dh pays the bills. I wanted to track our yearly expenses and WOW was I shocked to find 20 yrs of credit card statements, home owners statements and other such nonsense paperwork stuffed in the basement filing cabinet! My dh insisted that he was NOT going to deal with it, Well I pulled it all out and we did deal with it. We found his birth certificate & our marriage license too (good thing we didn't just toss the whole thing)!
He did the same thing to me last year when I asked him to clean his side of the garage - I'm not going to deal with it. I pulled it all outside and told him he WILL help me or I will toss whatever I think needs to go. Yup, he did it with me.
I consider myself a well organized person too. Yikes, look what happens when you're not looking (20 yrs in the same home)!
As a side note, do you collective "peoplez of teh interwebz" think minimizing kids' stuff is best done with, or without their knowledge? If they haven't touched something in 6 months, do you make it disappear? With #4 (our problem child) she generally takes change very badly... with her, it's better to put it away, and hope she doesn't notice it's gone. So far, that's worked pretty well. if I tell her "We're going to throw away this empty package" she freaks out, but if it just vanishes, she's like "Where's the package? It's gone? But I wanted to keep it!" and we just say "Sorry, it's gone." She just moves on, living in the moment like she always does.I have read several minimalist/organizing/decluttering blogs, and it seems people are pretty evenly split on the best course of action. So, I'm led to believe that it probably depends on the individual family/children involved. Seems like if asking causes trauma and grief for your daughter, while doing does not, then you should do what's working best for you. The Mr. is this way about things. If I get rid of an item from the house, he rarely notices/cares. If I ask him about getting rid of an item from the house, he worries we might use it again and suddenly is very sentimentally attached to it. So he prefers I just not tell him, and it works out pretty well.
oh dear....paper nightmare
oh dear....paper nightmare
So much of my paper nightmare (mostly stored under my bed) is financial stuff: bank statements and share transaction records etc. too old to need to be kept any longer for tax purposes, but as I still use the same bank account and broker, I feel I should shred this stuff rather than just chuck it in the recycling bin.
I noticed a "hand shredder" (1 page at a time, that would be very tedious, I think) for $99 and an "up to 50 sheets" at a time one for $159 at OfficeWorks this morning when I went in to do photocopying. It was the size as much as the cost that put me off: wherever would I store that monster? It wouldn't fit under the bed and would certainly take up more space than even a very large stack of papers.
Do other people here bother to shred such stuff?
We took the last big load of donation items to goodwill over the weekend. I didn't even count how many carfuls of stuff went. It makes me embarrassed and pretty confused! Our living spaces have always been organized and not cluttered... Yet we had SO MUCH STUFF. Moving really makes you aware of how much junk you have crammed in those closets and nooks and cubbies. It's finally gone though and I'm very happy to feel comfortable in our new small house.
They aren't particularly valuable, aren't even worth donatingUseful but inexpensive items are definitely worth donating. The paperwork, maybe not, but everything else could be nice to donate.
I feel paranoid that I'm throwing out important information that I may need again one day in the future.
QuoteI feel paranoid that I'm throwing out important information that I may need again one day in the future.
Yes deep down I have this irrational fear that I will need some particular informationfrom 2 decades ago to prove something some day to some one without knowing now what that might be.
Im struggling with items that my mother gave me or that I got from her house after she passed away. Some of them I really dont like or use, but its still hard to get rid of them.One thing that has helped me in the past is thinking of the items as a group instead of considering each individual item. Since they are all sentimental because they remind you of a specific person or place, I was able to say 'Okay do I really need 10 (or however many) things to remind me of that one time? Or does that one item I really love serve the same purpose of these other items.' It helped me to let go of some of the pieces that I really didn't care about other than their place of origin. I definitely struggle with sentimental items, you just have to find the sweet spot.
Well I 've started decluttering again. It must be a New Year thing. Bags of clothes, a few boxes of miscellaneous household items...and finally have started on my study: oh dear....paper nightmare. But now I'm started its gonna get better.
You know, I remember a few years ago reading a blog (my efforts at googling it have failed) where the writer basically said the easiest way she could get out of the clutter in her life was to get rid of everything, including the sentimental stuff. And years later, if at some point she thought "What did I ever do with that such-and-such?" she'd just think "Oh yeah, we lost that in the house fire" and move on with life. It was a way to mentally separate those things from herself as a person... they weren't her identity... and she was able to deeply minimize and move on with life with no regrets.
Sometimes (quite often) I think about getting rid of everything I have and just starting over after an "imaginary house fire." I probably won't ever do it, but it makes me realize what a stronghold material possessions can take in your life.
oh dear....paper nightmare
So much of my paper nightmare (mostly stored under my bed) is financial stuff: bank statements and share transaction records etc. too old to need to be kept any longer for tax purposes, but as I still use the same bank account and broker, I feel I should shred this stuff rather than just chuck it in the recycling bin.
I noticed a "hand shredder" (1 page at a time, that would be very tedious, I think) for $99 and an "up to 50 sheets" at a time one for $159 at OfficeWorks this morning when I went in to do photocopying. It was the size as much as the cost that put me off: wherever would I store that monster? It wouldn't fit under the bed and would certainly take up more space than even a very large stack of papers.
Do other people here bother to shred such stuff?
Look for a paper shredding event by a bank or village. They bring in industrial size shredders. We had two boxes done last year. Felt great!
Do other people here bother to shred such stuff?
Look for a paper shredding event by a bank or village. They bring in industrial size shredders. We had two boxes done last year. Felt great!
I have a fireplace for paper stuff. Works better for me than a shredder. Before current house used a charcoal grill.
You know, I remember a few years ago reading a blog (my efforts at googling it have failed) where the writer basically said the easiest way she could get out of the clutter in her life was to get rid of everything, including the sentimental stuff. And years later, if at some point she thought "What did I ever do with that such-and-such?" she'd just think "Oh yeah, we lost that in the house fire" and move on with life. It was a way to mentally separate those things from herself as a person... they weren't her identity... and she was able to deeply minimize and move on with life with no regrets.
Sometimes (quite often) I think about getting rid of everything I have and just starting over after an "imaginary house fire." I probably won't ever do it, but it makes me realize what a stronghold material possessions can take in your life.
I need to get on this, too! My situation isn't too bad, more annoying than anything else. If anyone has recommendations for places other than Amazon and Ebay to sell things in Canada, I would love to here them! Mostly books, CDs and DVDs, I got rid of electronics, etc. before moving.
DW is pretty much all set for the consignment sale drop off this Tuesday. I wish we were getting rid of more, but at least it is something. I actually kind of hate these sales. They are only twice a year (she takes things occasionally to a consignment shop other times), but will store things. I'd much rather donate stuff and get it out of the house quicker. She has done well at the sales, so there is that.
Anyone know a good place to sell slightly used computer equipment? (motherboard/cpu, ram, power supply, etc.)
Anyone know a good place to sell slightly used computer equipment? (motherboard/cpu, ram, power supply, etc.)
What kind of motherboard/cpu are you looking to sell? I need to replace one in a tower case.
Anyone know a good place to sell slightly used computer equipment? (motherboard/cpu, ram, power supply, etc.)
What kind of motherboard/cpu are you looking to sell? I need to replace one in a tower case.
Here's the ad I put on craigslist:
Computer Equipment - MB, HD, Power supply, etc - $120
I'm selling several pieces of very gently used computer equipment including:
an 80GB Western Digital HD ($17)
a 600W CORSAIR Power Supply ($70)
a 770 ATX AMD Motherboard ($75)
a 2GB DDR3 stick of RAM ($18)
an AMD Sempron 140 Single-Core Processor ($38)
Subtotal = $218
All of the items are in excellent condition and I have the original packaging. If you buy all of them, I will sell them for $120 and I will throw in a free ANTEC 3-speed fan.
*Please note: The processor and the motherboard must be bought together.
I'm looking about my house now for all the invisible stuff that makes me feel stressed and disorganized. For me, it's paper...OH! and my pantry full of food that should be eaten! Agh!
I've been steadily decluttering for the past few years, it's bizarre how much stuff you can store "just in case" you need it for something.I keep a lot of "just in case" stuff for two reasons. First, a lot of that stuff would be relatively difficult/expensive to obtain if I did need it, versus keeping it in case I need it. The second reason is that I hate to throw away anything, so I always try to find someone who can use something. I make so little trash that I use produce bags as trash bags. I've had people tell me there's no way they could live with a trash can that small, but I honestly can't comprehend what they need to throw away that's bigger than that.
QuoteI've been steadily decluttering for the past few years, it's bizarre how much stuff you can store "just in case" you need it for something.I keep a lot of "just in case" stuff for two reasons. First, a lot of that stuff would be relatively difficult/expensive to obtain if I did need it, versus keeping it in case I need it. The second reason is that I hate to throw away anything, so I always try to find someone who can use something. I make so little trash that I use produce bags as trash bags. I've had people tell me there's no way they could live with a trash can that small, but I honestly can't comprehend what they need to throw away that's bigger than that.
QuoteI've been steadily decluttering for the past few years, it's bizarre how much stuff you can store "just in case" you need it for something.I keep a lot of "just in case" stuff for two reasons. First, a lot of that stuff would be relatively difficult/expensive to obtain if I did need it, versus keeping it in case I need it. The second reason is that I hate to throw away anything, so I always try to find someone who can use something. I make so little trash that I use produce bags as trash bags. I've had people tell me there's no way they could live with a trash can that small, but I honestly can't comprehend what they need to throw away that's bigger than that.
It probably is a good idea to have a backup for some stuff and we do have an extra vacuum cleaner in case one breaks. We have a very small house though so we can't keep a lot of stuff stored and I'm not going pay for storage either. :)
Great thread. Does anyone have tips for helping someone else get rid of their stuff? Mr Osprey is a hoarder and I am a minimalist. This causes is a great deal of marital strife! We recently moved apartments and I am itching to sell or donate the following:
- Kilograms and kilograms of clothes that are in good condition but far too big and completely against his current aesthetic
- A cupboard filled with electronic equipment and outdated "boys' toys" that he never uses, or that we have duplicates of (e.g. binoculars, old consoles). This cupboard has an imaginary "KEEP OUT NO GIRLS ALLOWED" sign on it.
- Piles of trading cards that keep on multiplying (Magic, The Gathering) - I play just as much as he does but I want to sell what we don't use
- Old textbooks that nobody has read in years... going all the way back to primary school!
Great thread. Does anyone have tips for helping someone else get rid of their stuff? Mr Osprey is a hoarder and I am a minimalist. This causes is a great deal of marital strife! We recently moved apartments and I am itching to sell or donate the following:
- Kilograms and kilograms of clothes that are in good condition but far too big and completely against his current aesthetic
- A cupboard filled with electronic equipment and outdated "boys' toys" that he never uses, or that we have duplicates of (e.g. binoculars, old consoles). This cupboard has an imaginary "KEEP OUT NO GIRLS ALLOWED" sign on it.
- Piles of trading cards that keep on multiplying (Magic, The Gathering) - I play just as much as he does but I want to sell what we don't use
- Old textbooks that nobody has read in years... going all the way back to primary school!
I have the same issue! My husband doesn't seem to see his old electronics as clutter, and his Magic cards have a semi-permanent place on our (broken and unrepairable, but he refuses to take it to the dump) coffee table. This stuff drives me NUTS! Especially since he parked an old computer by my desk over a year ago, "just until I can get rid of it". Now when I bring it up and remind him that it's taking up MY space, he gets irritated. !!
For my own part, I am having trouble with baby blankets. We were given roughly 8000 baby blankets for our daughter. Even worse, my MIL gave us all of my husband's old baby quilts that family had made. So we've got way, way more blankets than any baby could ever possibly need, even in our cold climate. But....many of them were actually made by family members. I feel really, really bad about wanting to get rid of them, but I also know that there are people out there who would love to have them. A friend of mine works for a counseling/adoption agency, and she said about 10 of her clients are supposed to give birth in the next few months. (I already donated the disposable newborn diapers we were given, and the wipes. Yay for removing that clutter!) Would it really be so terrible to purge a few blankets and give them to a new (usually very, very young and poor) mother? The only issue I see is that some of these family members do visit regularly, and would notice if some of the blankets were suddenly not there. Perhaps I should just wait until our girl is out of the age when baby blankets seem "necessary"?
Im struggling with items that my mother gave me or that I got from her house after she passed away. Some of them I really dont like or use, but its still hard to get rid of them.
Read "everything that remains" a memoir by the minimalists. It will forever change how you feel about those things.
Great thread. Does anyone have tips for helping someone else get rid of their stuff? Mr Osprey is a hoarder and I am a minimalist. This causes is a great deal of marital strife! We recently moved apartments and I am itching to sell or donate the following:
- Kilograms and kilograms of clothes that are in good condition but far too big and completely against his current aesthetic
- A cupboard filled with electronic equipment and outdated "boys' toys" that he never uses, or that we have duplicates of (e.g. binoculars, old consoles). This cupboard has an imaginary "KEEP OUT NO GIRLS ALLOWED" sign on it.
- Piles of trading cards that keep on multiplying (Magic, The Gathering) - I play just as much as he does but I want to sell what we don't use
- Old textbooks that nobody has read in years... going all the way back to primary school!
I have the same issue! My husband doesn't seem to see his old electronics as clutter, and his Magic cards have a semi-permanent place on our (broken and unrepairable, but he refuses to take it to the dump) coffee table. This stuff drives me NUTS! Especially since he parked an old computer by my desk over a year ago, "just until I can get rid of it". Now when I bring it up and remind him that it's taking up MY space, he gets irritated. !!
For my own part, I am having trouble with baby blankets. We were given roughly 8000 baby blankets for our daughter. Even worse, my MIL gave us all of my husband's old baby quilts that family had made. So we've got way, way more blankets than any baby could ever possibly need, even in our cold climate. But....many of them were actually made by family members. I feel really, really bad about wanting to get rid of them, but I also know that there are people out there who would love to have them. A friend of mine works for a counseling/adoption agency, and she said about 10 of her clients are supposed to give birth in the next few months. (I already donated the disposable newborn diapers we were given, and the wipes. Yay for removing that clutter!) Would it really be so terrible to purge a few blankets and give them to a new (usually very, very young and poor) mother? The only issue I see is that some of these family members do visit regularly, and would notice if some of the blankets were suddenly not there. Perhaps I should just wait until our girl is out of the age when baby blankets seem "necessary"?
Yeah that's a tough one. There will be more women in need, so to avoid hurting feelings, I'd wait until the blanket season of life is closing before getting rid of them. Then, I'd write the gifters a note, thanking them again for their gift and telling them you plan to plan it on to a young woman in great need, as described above, but if for some reason they would like it back to let you know within the week.
Something about spring finally arriving has made me a woman with a mission. I want to get rid of like half the stuff in our house. We just moved last year so we don't actually have a TON more than we need (and some of it is not worth fighting the DH for), so I am currently focusing on my closet. I am so motivated but it is still so hard to get rid of clothes!!!! I keep thinking, 'wait, I never wear this but I should!'. I really don't have many clothes but I just want LESS in my life right now. I'm sick of having a hard time picking out outfits.
My stretch-goal is having everything I could reasonably wear to work fit in one closet, but my closet is a small reach-in -- maybe just 2-2.5 feet across? I haven't measured -- I currently keep some work t-shirts in my dresser and all my (many) dresses in their own closet (and since they are separate, I rarely wear them, which is dumb. I want to wear them more). So I'm not sure if that goal is attainable but I am culling and organizing and seeing where I end up.
Something about spring finally arriving has made me a woman with a mission. I want to get rid of like half the stuff in our house. We just moved last year so we don't actually have a TON more than we need (and some of it is not worth fighting the DH for), so I am currently focusing on my closet. I am so motivated but it is still so hard to get rid of clothes!!!! I keep thinking, 'wait, I never wear this but I should!'. I really don't have many clothes but I just want LESS in my life right now. I'm sick of having a hard time picking out outfits.
My stretch-goal is having everything I could reasonably wear to work fit in one closet, but my closet is a small reach-in -- maybe just 2-2.5 feet across? I haven't measured -- I currently keep some work t-shirts in my dresser and all my (many) dresses in their own closet (and since they are separate, I rarely wear them, which is dumb. I want to wear them more). So I'm not sure if that goal is attainable but I am culling and organizing and seeing where I end up.
My closet is an 18in rod and everything in a given season fits there. Granted, I loosely follow Project 333 but I only ever have 5-6 out of "rotation" at a given point in time. Just wanted to let you know it's possible! Having fewer options also helps with choice-overload.
Something about spring finally arriving has made me a woman with a mission. I want to get rid of like half the stuff in our house. We just moved last year so we don't actually have a TON more than we need (and some of it is not worth fighting the DH for), so I am currently focusing on my closet. I am so motivated but it is still so hard to get rid of clothes!!!! I keep thinking, 'wait, I never wear this but I should!'. I really don't have many clothes but I just want LESS in my life right now. I'm sick of having a hard time picking out outfits.
My stretch-goal is having everything I could reasonably wear to work fit in one closet, but my closet is a small reach-in -- maybe just 2-2.5 feet across? I haven't measured -- I currently keep some work t-shirts in my dresser and all my (many) dresses in their own closet (and since they are separate, I rarely wear them, which is dumb. I want to wear them more). So I'm not sure if that goal is attainable but I am culling and organizing and seeing where I end up.
My closet is an 18in rod and everything in a given season fits there. Granted, I loosely follow Project 333 but I only ever have 5-6 out of "rotation" at a given point in time. Just wanted to let you know it's possible! Having fewer options also helps with choice-overload.
Yeah. I think my real problem is that I am completely unwilling to get rid of my ~15 dresses. I am (trying to) ruthlessly cull tops, I have a ton of tops that I hate, but every dress I own is perfect for SOME circumstance. Also work pants (~5 pair) take up a lot of space hanging, I want to fold them but I'm told you should hang nice pants?
Lol I don't think I understand how to hang pants in order to keep the seam, but since I usually stuff my pants in a pannier anyway it's probably a lost cause.In case you're interested, youtube to the rescue. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_YdPNWvXOI
My house is small, about 600 sq feet I think, so everything needs to be put away to look tidy.
I think I'll be moving to a cheaper place this year and I want to have as little junk to carry as possible!
Hi! Are you moving Melbourne to Perth? A friend of mine moved over there for work and earns a nice 1.5x what he was earning here. Good luck there!
I am moving out of my childhood home into a tiny apartment soon! Meaning I have a lifetime's worth of stuff in this room and need to pare it down dramatically. I'm thinking of dedicating an entire day to boxing up "the essentials" and then being violent and unforgiving in donating/dumping the remainder. Does anybody have suggestions from their experience moving out?
I'm thinking about selling off a bunch of clothing on Gumtree (sort of Australian's version of Craigslist). These are pretty good brands and still in like new condition. Is it better, for example, to just price everything at $5 and see if people snap them up? Or should I price everything at $10 but say that the price is negotiable (and in the end they might still end up paying $5, which I don't mind but it has the bonus effect that they'll be happier to negotiate and then think they got a bargain)? Just trying to suss out what sort of tactic works better to get buyers.
Depends - what are others pricing it at? You want to price at the average of everyone else or a bit below others, in order to get interest. Keep in mind clothing is traditionally harder to sell than things like desks or bureaus. I'd also avoid saying price is negotiable - if people want to bargain, they will ask you if that's the case. No need to offer it up in advance.
Well, with the exception of the purple and yellow heels, most my shoes are black or brown. Isn't that normal? I'm not great with base colors but I have found life simpler when I have both black and brown shoe options -- I got really frustrated not having work appropriate black boots, and was frustrated before I had the brown sandals.
It's ok to keep 2 that do the same job as long as you wear both (and you don't want to throw away a pair and then buy another later to replace the wornout first). Mostly I'd advice mindful buying in the future.
I just counted and I have 25 pairs of shoes. 25!!!!! Embarrassingly, this is after getting rid of several pairs, as well.
Problem is that some of the stuff is hard to sell. There's only so many people after a USB DAC or old hi-fi equipment :(
Problem is that some of the stuff is hard to sell. There's only so many people after a USB DAC or old hi-fi equipment :(
You might have to sell them for very cheap or even give them away for free. I would love to make more money out of my stuff but I'm beginning to come to terms with the fact that sometimes it's just easier to donate or freecycle, especially if you just really want to get rid of them.
List them a few times on eBay or Gumtree first, and if it doesn't sell after a while and you get tired of putting up the ads over and over again, then you can give it away. The other thing I've heard some people do is get a stall at Camberwell Market, you can share a stall with a friend to split the stall rental cost, though I don't know what kind of stuff sells well there.
Made some more ground last week! Donated and setup 4 pcs for a local NFP daycare. 3 full boxes of cloths to donation bin.
Sadly I still got TONS more stuff to shuffle through.
I have a small fridge, the freezer seems to work fine but the fridge is a bit inconclusive. Reckon there's any chance of getting money from it? I'm thinking there may be handy people who won't mind getting it for a super cheap price and fixing it up, but then again they might just only want to pick up the ones that are completely free.I have been offered several like this for free in the past, so I guess completely free.
I have a small fridge, the freezer seems to work fine but the fridge is a bit inconclusive. Reckon there's any chance of getting money from it? I'm thinking there may be handy people who won't mind getting it for a super cheap price and fixing it up, but then again they might just only want to pick up the ones that are completely free.Put it at the end of your driveway (if you live someplace that people drive past of course) with a sign on it that says $20. It will disappear :-)
Put it at the end of your driveway (if you live someplace that people drive past of course) with a sign on it that says $20. It will disappear :-)
Cleaned out the bathroom today, we've been steadily working through our excess stuff and I've been keeping a close eye on what we actually use so we don't buy stuff that will just sit around. It's so much easier to clean with less clutter!
It often takes me several times through to really clean excess clutter out. I take solace from having even one drawer, or table top or closet shelf that I have cleaned off and can look at as the glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.Cleaned out the bathroom today, we've been steadily working through our excess stuff and I've been keeping a close eye on what we actually use so we don't buy stuff that will just sit around. It's so much easier to clean with less clutter!
Good job, I'm hoping to reach that stage. Right now my bedroom looks like it has been hit by a tornado. I'm just telling myself that things have to get worse before they get better, it's always darkest before dawn, etc.
Lol, no, that's the point! If you put a sign that says free people think it is broken and won't take it, but if you put a price on it then they will just take it.Put it at the end of your driveway (if you live someplace that people drive past of course) with a sign on it that says $20. It will disappear :-)
Haha, and will there be a $20 note in its place or not?
Recently moved so sold the bedframe, mattress, boxspring, dresser, desk, sofa, dining table, bookcases, carpets and lamps. Working on reducing some clothes that have outlived me (suits in particular). Also discovered some of the childhood items command a nice premium, so it is time for them to find new homes. Oh, finally pulling the trigger and selling the electronics (dvds and phones) and books (oh boy, really amassed a good collection) too. Once these are gone anywhere I live will become a spacious castle! Yippie! Minimalism certainly has its benefits. :)
How are you getting rid of your stuff? I have books, DVDs and CDs I'm trying to sell. I've used Amazon, Ebay, Craigslist, Half.com, and Ecrater. Nobody is buying, even at $1 per book, $1-2 for CDs and $2-5 for DVDs...
Any advice in getting rid of burned DVD's and CD's? We have hundreds and I do not want to buy anything to shred them. Also, I need a way to destroy them in bulk not individually. I don't want any legality issues of throwing them directly in the trash due to their content.Can you just break them in half, then toss them? Or scratch up the backs? I've also heard that a few seconds in the microwave totally destroys cd's, but that sounds potentially dangerous.
Any advice in getting rid of burned DVD's and CD's? We have hundreds and I do not want to buy anything to shred them. Also, I need a way to destroy them in bulk not individually. I don't want any legality issues of throwing them directly in the trash due to their content.Can you just break them in half, then toss them? Or scratch up the backs? I've also heard that a few seconds in the microwave totally destroys cd's, but that sounds potentially dangerous.
Invite your friends over to smash stuff!Any advice in getting rid of burned DVD's and CD's? We have hundreds and I do not want to buy anything to shred them. Also, I need a way to destroy them in bulk not individually. I don't want any legality issues of throwing them directly in the trash due to their content.Can you just break them in half, then toss them? Or scratch up the backs? I've also heard that a few seconds in the microwave totally destroys cd's, but that sounds potentially dangerous.
I wouldn't do hundreds of them in a microwave. Unless it isn't your microwave and no one will know it was you.
You could just break them with a hammer, I have done that. A lot easier than scratching them up.
I was lying in bed last night tossing and turning and thinking about the things I had just purged that day (mostly costume jewelery) when I realized I have way too many towels, many of which are old and I don't use. I also have a bag (paper, plastic and cloth) hoarding problem. So this morning I got rid of tons of bags and put aside 3 or 4 towels for Goodwill (have to see if they take them). I love purging!Our local animal shelter is always looking for towels or other linens and bedding items. That might be a good place to offer them (they are not picky about condition.)
I was lying in bed last night tossing and turning and thinking about the things I had just purged that day (mostly costume jewelery) when I realized I have way too many towels, many of which are old and I don't use. I also have a bag (paper, plastic and cloth) hoarding problem. So this morning I got rid of tons of bags and put aside 3 or 4 towels for Goodwill (have to see if they take them). I love purging!Our local animal shelter is always looking for towels or other linens and bedding items. That might be a good place to offer them (they are not picky about condition.)
Thanks, Dr.Viebrissae! That is a great idea.
Yesterday I cleaned out the pantry and took items that I don't eat regularly to a family party where different members were happy to receive my panko breadcrumbs, Quaker Oats, jasmine rice, etc. I really should get rid of all of my baking supplies. I haven't baked in more than two years. Think those items are up next for disposal.
I have a small fridge, the freezer seems to work fine but the fridge is a bit inconclusive. Reckon there's any chance of getting money from it? I'm thinking there may be handy people who won't mind getting it for a super cheap price and fixing it up, but then again they might just only want to pick up the ones that are completely free.Put it at the end of your driveway (if you live someplace that people drive past of course) with a sign on it that says $20. It will disappear :-)
Tomorrow, someone is coming over to pick up my kick scooter for $100.
I have some rather embarrassing luxury clothing items (they were gifts!!) that I just never wear, but have felt bad about selling them because they were gifts and SO EXPENSIVE. I need to be realistic about my lifestyle go and think about saying goodbye to these things.
TV stand, bedside table and lamp haven't received any promising responses yet. Might have to re-post.
I've finished the big donation runs but find a couple things about every other day or so to add to another slowly-growing donation pile. I am definitely one who feels tied down by stuff and I am finding it so freeing to be offloading, even though we have plenty of space for things.
Does anyone have any advice for stopping inlaws from getting us junk? I know I should probably just have a frank talk with them, but my mother in law LOVES shopping at craft shows and will be so disappointed when we tell her we don't want that crap anymore....
Any advice in getting rid of burned DVD's and CD's? We have hundreds and I do not want to buy anything to shred them. Also, I need a way to destroy them in bulk not individually. I don't want any legality issues of throwing them directly in the trash due to their content.
Keep it going, folks... don't give up!Wow! I was just about to brag about getting rid of a box of clothing items, but I've been outdone. Bravo!
This week we got rid of an armchair (that we had rescued from a trash pile, so back in it goes). Also cleaned out our kid's bookshelf and got rid of 2 big boxes of books (going to a friend with little kids). Eliminated a dresser from the 3 girls' room, used that as an entertainment center and was able to eliminate our DVD shelf and 2 buckets of game controllers by repurposing the existing one. Also got rid of a small table we used to hold our printer.
On the down side, I did get a new writing desk, but it has hidden compartments, so I can store all my little computer-y things in it without them being out in the open. It's also the smallest writing desk I could find.
Son's room had two shelves of toys, we eliminated those and had him thin his stash of big toys that he's mostly outgrown. They will be going to another family.
So, progress! Was a busy week.
We're currently looking at replacing our kitchen cabinets... probably will do away with the dishwasher, since it doesn't work well and just takes up space. More cabinet space, and we can eliminate the 2 ugly pantry cabinets we're using.
I spent last night heavily weeding and reorganizing our file cabinet!! That job had been looming for ages, and it felt great to tick it off. It was a big job- our files were a complete disaster. I also hung up some pictures that were blocking easy access to the file cabinet, so now we can have a pleasant experience whenever we need to retrieve something or file something away!
Anyone have any recommendations on how to digitize physical photo books? My mom mailed me THREE APPLE BOXES of photo albums! O.oIf they're photographs within albums, you should be able to take it to office works or your local equivalent and pay for them to scan the lot for you.
Anyone have any recommendations on how to digitize physical photo books? My mom mailed me THREE APPLE BOXES of photo albums! O.o
Went through a box and a half of the latest pile my mom dropped off. Sorted clothing and items into trash (bathing suits from 20 years ago do not hold their elasticity...), goodwill and keep. Went through a big folder of papers, tossing most.
My decluttering game of the moment is to declutter by date. For example, since today is the 23rd, I have to find 23 things to get rid of. For some reason that is more motivational to me than decluttering 15 minutes/day, or the same number of things/day. Weird, but I'll take any motivation I can get. I started this game on the 20th, so I have gotten rid of 86 things so far. Mostly I got rid of small things so I don't see much progress yet, but I will soon.
I've spent a good amount of time this summer trying to help a relative that is a hoarder clean out her house and yesterday we hit the 20,000 pound mark at the dump. And I'd estimate that that much if not more has gone to the recycle and donate centers as well. The sad thing is we've only managed to clear out maybe 20% of the hoard. So keep up the decluttering everyone.
How do you guys deal with greeting cards with really nice thoughtful messages written in them? The generic ones I can easily throw away, but these are way more difficult.
How do you guys deal with greeting cards with really nice thoughtful messages written in them? The generic ones I can easily throw away, but these are way more difficult.
Gather them together, cut out the important messages and turn them into a piece of art, or scan them and let the physical copies go.
Bought our first house back in January and still have tonnes of boxes stashed away which havnt been opened since. Im of the opinion that if it hasnt been needed in the past 6 months, its unlikely to be needed much at all so better to get rid of most of it!
I have 197 children's books in the trunk to take to work for the book drive.That is seriously cool! We have too many soft toys (sentimental no-kids-yet couple), and I have just started thinking they would do better for kids who don't have toys than hanging around our house.
Our entire company's goal was 2,000 books. I think they will be surprised when I show up with 10% of the book drive myself. We LOVE books, but now that the kids have graduated to Nook and iPad paper books are just clutter. I was trying so hard to get to 200, but I am keeping a few signed/sentimental books. Bernie's Books will be reallocating these books to low-income children.
I've spent a good amount of time this summer trying to help a relative that is a hoarder clean out her house and yesterday we hit the 20,000 pound mark at the dump. And I'd estimate that that much if not more has gone to the recycle and donate centers as well. The sad thing is we've only managed to clear out maybe 20% of the hoard. So keep up the decluttering everyone.
That sounds like a nightmare. How is your relative dealing with letting things go?
Question: do I need to hang on to my navy blue strappy sandals with the really uncomfortable heel? The ONLY time I wear these shoes is to weddings, however, they are kind of my only wedding-appropriate shoe. (Typically I hobble in these shoes for the ceremony and then after dinner switch into flats that don't quite match my outfit, but at that point I'm a little tipsy so I don't care!). It does seem like I should have one pair of wedding-appropriate shoes, but only wearing these stupid shoes a couple times a year seems silly.
I do have 2 pairs of businessy closed-toe heels (purple and black) that would work with some of my formal wear dresses, but probably not the salmon/pink one and definitely not the brown dress....
If you only go to a couple weddings a year, how many formal wear dresses do you need? Can you get rid of the pink one and the brown one and the uncomfortable shoes and then just wear the businessy heels with the remaining dresses to your couple weddings a year?
I would recommend keeping them because they're expensive to replace. I have too many formal dresses that I rarely wear. However the replacement cost (time and money) is too high for me to purge them. I focus on getting rid of excess t-shirts, worn out items, and items that I will NEVER wear again.If you only go to a couple weddings a year, how many formal wear dresses do you need? Can you get rid of the pink one and the brown one and the uncomfortable shoes and then just wear the businessy heels with the remaining dresses to your couple weddings a year?
But the pink one and the brown one are the prettiest ones!! I have a hard time letting go of formal wear dresses, because when I'm a few pounds up they tend to be forgiving in different ways. I think for now I'll just hold on to all of them, it's not like this is clutter really. I'll let this advice set for a while and reassess when the fall wedding season is over.
For those of you getting rid of clothing and accessories, you might want to check out liketwice.com and thredup.com. They are used clothing websites and they will send you a pre-paid shipping bag. Send them your sellable stuff, and they'll make an offer on the whole lot. I sent a giant bag to liketwice a few months ago and got $125! It's much, much easier than trying to sell on ebay or to an individual buyer. Liketwice is women's clothing only, thredup is women's , boys, girls, and baby as well as shoes and accessories.
Here are some referral links that give you and me a bonus but you certainly don't need to use them: www.liketwice.com/GLdQ9 (http://www.liketwice.com/GLdQ9) and http://www.thredup.com/r/XYUOUP (http://www.thredup.com/r/XYUOUP)
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!
Or here, if they are still in new condition.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 (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.
I am about halfway through The Joy of Less (borrowed from the library, of course).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.
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.
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.
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?
Could you still clean out and declutter small areas while you are seated like junk drawers?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!! :)
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.
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.
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.
I had the idea that every time a box comes into the house, I need to fill it up with things to donate!
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?
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?One more big and easy thing to add to this list:
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.
Are you a flagrant offender of any of these?One more big and easy thing to add to this list:
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.
Any expired medicines, prescription or otherwise.
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.
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!
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.
Today I'm sorting Lego while breakfast cooks.
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.
I think I am going to pare down our coffee mugs to just the ones I love, I have really ridiculous and specific standards for mugs and about half of our collection bums me out when I have to use it.I dream of a swept clear garage and cellar floor, visible floors in the house with nary a pile, a place for everything and everything in its place, all paper dealt with at the door and everything in good order.
I dream of a swept clear garage and cellar floor, visible floors in the house with nary a pile, a place for everything and everything in its place, all paper dealt with at the door and everything in good order.Sounds like heaven :)
I despise clutter but I live in a too-big house with an ridiculous amount of built in storage so it manages to hide in ways that wouldn't bother a normal person but makes me crazy when I do stumble across it
I think I am going to pare down our coffee mugs to just the ones I love, I have really ridiculous and specific standards for mugs and about half of our collection bums me out when I have to use it.I dream of a swept clear garage and cellar floor, visible floors in the house with nary a pile, a place for everything and everything in its place, all paper dealt with at the door and everything in good order.
I love both these lines. Feels like therapy to read things like these on this particular post. I live in a terribly cluttered house with many children and I'm quite overwhelmed with our stuff.
But I got a good start with some Amazon boxes the other day. They are all 1/2 full on my dining room table. Maybe I can get them done by the end of the weekend?
One way to think of "letting go"/"getting rid" of stuff may be to reframe it as "sharing" it with/"gifting" it to others who need it. At least that's what I suggested to my dad who is trying to get my hoarder mom to let go of some things so they have enough room to get in the door of their house...
...I think I've come upon a "foolproof" method. Essentially deciding what to keep, rather than what to get rid of.
fallstoclimb: I agree about the mugs. I am very fussy and certain mugs only get touched when we have a big potluck. Let us know when they bite the dust.
Next Up: A gentle request for consumable presents such as veggies seedlings, massage certificates, food and manure.
Next Up: A gentle request for consumable presents such as veggies seedlings, massage certificates, food and manure.Please ensure manure and food are properly labelled. :-)
Unfortunately I just brought a new thing into the house to fulfil my doctor's orders: a bike trainer thing to turn my bicycle into a stationary bike - so I can do doctor prescribed spinning exercises. It cost less than three months at the gym and then I can sell it once my leg is better. I figure I can get half the price back.
Please ensure manure and food are properly labelled. :-)
These are actually nice to have when the weather is bad and you want a cardio workout. I often use mine in the winter.
Today I delivered things that needed servicing:[...]irregular foam cushions that need to be recovered (I am not quite up to that with my sewing yet).
[...]
I just came across this great article:
http://www.everynothingwonderful.com/2011/01/5-tips-to-innovate-your-organization.html
I just came across this great article:
http://www.everynothingwonderful.com/2011/01/5-tips-to-innovate-your-organization.html
That was a great article, thanks for sharing! After reading it I promptly went to the kitchen and pulled out the two spatulas that I hate to cook with and put them in the donate box.
Astatine, I have excess photos too. Do you scan them at all? I need to set and toss and then decide what to do with what is left.
Astatine, great article!
I love this quote:
"Anything that takes up space in your home, in your drawers, or on your computer takes up a space in your mind, your vision, and your emotions: do you really want to waste time, emotions, or space on a bottle you kept simply because it might be useful again? Or would you rather be rid of it and leave more space for creativity?"
My mind feels so free today after emptying the house of 90% of the excess! Woohoo! I felt such wonder looking in at the newly cleared space when I got up.
I am making real progress! This Saturday I am taking boxes and boxes and boxes of crafting, knitting, and quilting supplies to a flea market to sell them. Whatever I can't sell, I am donating. It's NOT coming back into the house.
So excited.
I am making real progress! This Saturday I am taking boxes and boxes and boxes of crafting, knitting, and quilting supplies to a flea market to sell them. Whatever I can't sell, I am donating. It's NOT coming back into the house.
So excited.
CU Tiger, how did it go at the flea market?
I am making real progress! This Saturday I am taking boxes and boxes and boxes of crafting, knitting, and quilting supplies to a flea market to sell them. Whatever I can't sell, I am donating. It's NOT coming back into the house.
So excited.
CU Tiger, how did it go at the flea market?
It was great. I came home with $32 - which does not sound all that impressive until you consider I made it in sales that averaged 50 cents to one dollar. I paid for half the spot and got rid of so much stuff! At the end a woman asked me how much for all the remaining fabric and bought it for $8.
Today someone was talking about getting something new and I practically shuddered.
Are you all feeling the revulsion at the thought of bringing anything in?
Today someone was talking about getting something new and I practically shuddered.
Are you all feeling the revulsion at the thought of bringing anything in?
Hell yes. Tupperware is the exception but yes. Do not want more stuff ever again. Getting rid of stuff is such a huge motivator for consuming less and spending less. It's one of the best ways IMO to deprogram from the consumerist mindset.
.....
Keeping in mind that amazing quote "Procrastination is clutter" .....
I will have to watch Consumed, I watch Hoarding: Buried Alive all the time and that motivates me too.
I offered the following deal to my boyfriend, who also has a ton of video games: if he lets me sell the games, we'll use the profit to buy him a Spanish guitar (which he has been begging to buy). I told him in order to take the deal, he has agree to pare down his collection to a dozen games. He's still mulling it over, ... ^,<
There's a gauntlet that's like this - http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/sell-your-junk-to-buy-something-nice/ - It's not very active but I love the idea.
My opinion about this is 2 sets per bed that you use daily, and one set per bed that is used only occasionally. Then I keep a good sized stack of pillow cases.
I've also cleaned out our linen closet this weekend. Undecided what to do with the excess hand towels and sheet sets we seem to have. What's a reasonable number to keep?
My opinion about this is 2 sets per bed that you use daily, and one set per bed that is used only occasionally. Then I keep a good sized stack of pillow cases.
I've also cleaned out our linen closet this weekend. Undecided what to do with the excess hand towels and sheet sets we seem to have. What's a reasonable number to keep?
My opinion about this is 2 sets per bed that you use daily, and one set per bed that is used only occasionally. Then I keep a good sized stack of pillow cases.
I've also cleaned out our linen closet this weekend. Undecided what to do with the excess hand towels and sheet sets we seem to have. What's a reasonable number to keep?
My opinion about this is 2 sets per bed that you use daily, and one set per bed that is used only occasionally. Then I keep a good sized stack of pillow cases.
I've also cleaned out our linen closet this weekend. Undecided what to do with the excess hand towels and sheet sets we seem to have. What's a reasonable number to keep?
I have kids and with flu season approaching, I'm hesitant to part with sheets! haha
Speaking of sheets -- I have a super-organized friend who puts the following in a pillowcase:
1 fitted sheet
1 flat sheet
1 more pillowcase
Genius, I say! Her linen closet is impeccably neat and tidy <sigh>.
I'm not having much luck with selling things on Gumtree lately, so I've just been donating stuff to the Op Shop. I feel a little bad that we are giving away gifts that people gave us, but then I realise that the are just accumulating dust and it's better for someone to get some use from them.
I'm dealing with abstract clutter - digital photos. Part of me would like to delete nearly all of them! Just keep some wedding ones. But somehow I can't pull the trigger. So I'm doing a half-assed deleting some in each folder. At least I have nothing older than 2009 thanks to the last big electronic decluttering I did. I've never regretted getting rid of/deleting anything so far - why can't I just live in the present?? Ugh. Brains. They overthink things.
I decluttered a bottle of whiskey by drinking the last tiny amount (not sure why it went back in the cupboard with so little in it, but oh well). *feeling virtuous*I'm dealing with abstract clutter - digital photos. Part of me would like to delete nearly all of them! Just keep some wedding ones. But somehow I can't pull the trigger. So I'm doing a half-assed deleting some in each folder. At least I have nothing older than 2009 thanks to the last big electronic decluttering I did. I've never regretted getting rid of/deleting anything so far - why can't I just live in the present?? Ugh. Brains. They overthink things.
Since I wrote this I've been imagining how great it would be if I lost everything on my hard drive (well, I'd regret a few things). So that's probably a sign to be super ruthless.
I got rid of some digital clutter yesterday. I couldn't find what I was looking for in my email inbox so I finally decided to give it a good clean out. Deleted 2000 emails and filed 500 or so. Feels so tidy in my inbox now :)
I don't understand how we haven't run out of clutter yet!
I don't understand how we haven't run out of clutter yet!
This is how I feel. We've been actively decluttering for months, but everywhere I look I see more! It's never ending.
I came up with a trick. Whenever I'm thinking, 'I should spend 20 minutes cleaning up the apartment,' I tell myself that I can get out of it if I can think of one thing to get rid of.
There were several things I needed in a hurry this week and could not find and it was very inconvenient and annoying. I want to know where things are and to have easy access.
....We've learned that traveling with anything but a small suitcase is terrible...
I have given up on trying to sell any of the items I no longer need.
We got hubby's stuff out of storage. The furniture got donated without even coming to our house -yay!!!
Now there are just the boxes and boxes and boxes of stuff. So much stuff. I'm start to feel genuine revulsion to stuff. I suspect I may retch if I get any gifts this year with the exception of consumables like alcohol.
I find it distressing how much people are in the thrall of their Stuff. I used to be. Now minimalism seems to be so deeply appealing.
If you or someone you know sews, old sheets can make great fabric for basic costumes, under-dresses, lining for fancy clothes, etc. I make medieval costumes, and save old sheets for under-dresses. They are great because they are so wide without seams. Depends on the fabric though, if it has torn it may be too thin/worn even in the 'good' places to still be usable.My opinion about this is 2 sets per bed that you use daily, and one set per bed that is used only occasionally. Then I keep a good sized stack of pillow cases.
I've also cleaned out our linen closet this weekend. Undecided what to do with the excess hand towels and sheet sets we seem to have. What's a reasonable number to keep?
This seems like a good rule of thumb to me. We upgraded to a King bed a couple years ago and now have all these Queen sheets and really only need one set for the guest bedroom. However, that's a lot of perfectly good fabric, so I'm trying to think of some good uses for it, rather than just carting them all to the thrift store. We actually have four sets for the king bed now; 1 set that kind of sucks and we don't use, 1 good set, 1 OK set, and now some flannel sheets for winter. Should just get rid of that sucky set. I tried repairing the fitted sheet once but the corners keep tearing out.
I just got done listing a couple more things on Ebay and got better photos of an item that wasn't selling. Also used up some scrap wood and leftover foam and batting to make a nice padded seat for my tack trunk. It's nice to see clutter being absorbed into something useful.
What do you guys do with papers that need to be shredded? We don't have enough to justify purchasing a shredder but it gets big enough to be annoying waiting for the bi-annual free days from the library. Burn it as starter paper? Oh! yet another reason to cross off "get/make worm composter" off my to-do list. :-)
What do you guys do with papers that need to be shredded? We don't have enough to justify purchasing a shredder but it gets big enough to be annoying waiting for the bi-annual free days from the library. Burn it as starter paper? Oh! yet another reason to cross off "get/make worm composter" off my to-do list. :-)
If you or someone you know sews, old sheets can make great fabric for basic costumes, under-dresses, lining for fancy clothes, etc. I make medieval costumes, and save old sheets for under-dresses. They are great because they are so wide without seams. Depends on the fabric though, if it has torn it may be too thin/worn even in the 'good' places to still be usable.My opinion about this is 2 sets per bed that you use daily, and one set per bed that is used only occasionally. Then I keep a good sized stack of pillow cases.
I've also cleaned out our linen closet this weekend. Undecided what to do with the excess hand towels and sheet sets we seem to have. What's a reasonable number to keep?
This seems like a good rule of thumb to me. We upgraded to a King bed a couple years ago and now have all these Queen sheets and really only need one set for the guest bedroom. However, that's a lot of perfectly good fabric, so I'm trying to think of some good uses for it, rather than just carting them all to the thrift store. We actually have four sets for the king bed now; 1 set that kind of sucks and we don't use, 1 good set, 1 OK set, and now some flannel sheets for winter. Should just get rid of that sucky set. I tried repairing the fitted sheet once but the corners keep tearing out.
I just got done listing a couple more things on Ebay and got better photos of an item that wasn't selling. Also used up some scrap wood and leftover foam and batting to make a nice padded seat for my tack trunk. It's nice to see clutter being absorbed into something useful.
Followup question: Do people actually use like security deposit boxes? Should I be keeping things like the deed to the house there? Because....I am not. A fire just seems so unlikely, and aren't there probably backups of everything with the relevant companies and government entities?
You guys have inspired me to go through my digital clutter!
Today I went through about 600 pictures and deleted the ones that were blurry. I hope to go through all of my pictures on the computer and sort them into different albums by the end of November. I have the terrible habit of taking a million pictures, uploading them, and then telling myself I'll go through them later. I can't even remember one time where I actually picked through the pictures before throwing them into the abyss of a single photo album.
This will be fun...
I am wanting to delete any excess but cannot locate it. Or I suddenly find a whole bunch and spend time deleting only to find it is still on there. Perhaps i need external help?
How many hangers do women aim to have in their closets? I am thinking of future downsizing and wondering how much is reasonable to keep?
How many hangers do women aim to have in their closets? I am thinking of future downsizing and wondering how much is reasonable to keep?
Depends on how minimal you want to go ;-) I have 24ish hangers, and other than the occasional time where I need to dry non-hanging items AND all the hanging items are clean that is a good number. Big enough for variety, small enough to keep everything visible and meaningful.
I have 35 hangers, but I also have non-hanging clothes folded away in shelves. I'm trying to cull my wardrobe and hang up as many clothes as possible (35 in my case, hah), to visually remind me that I still have those clothes and that I should really wear them. It's really easy to forget you have certain items when they're folded away.
Donating a too-small-pair of bowling shoes.
I came up with a trick. Whenever I'm thinking, 'I should spend 20 minutes cleaning up the apartment,' I tell myself that I can get out of it if I can think of one thing to get rid of.
Jordanread, it's tough. DH doesn't want to spend the time decluttering (thinks we have space so we should just leave it alone) and persists in genuinely believing it's all "my" clutter and not his. (This extends to paperwork. According to him, 85% of the paper that comes in the house is "mine." While disagreeing on that percentage, I point out unsuccessfully that I deal with mine but his just sits there forever, including the envelopes and junk that comes with the statement/bill. I also unsuccessfully point out that as the paperwork is really stressful to me, it would be great if he would help out *even if he thinks it's "mine*. I have yet to get him to recycle any junk mail though so I'm curious how others get it to work.)
So my method is 1) to work hard on my stuff, 2) to deal with joint stuff (particularly as he thinks its all mine regardless) and only then try 3) set up a specific time with him to deal with a specific area of his such as "the box from your old office 4 years ago." I hold up items and ask if I can get rid of them while he plays his computer game. Usually I can get through about half of a single box before he decides he's tired of it. Sessions generally have to be scheduled months apart, not days or weeks.
Thanks for the advice. But how does one deal with someone who has no interest in de-cluttering?
But how does one deal with someone who has no interest in de-cluttering?
Do you have any plans to move? Or people visiting/staying over for Thanksgiving/Christmas?
Is she interested in anything (crafts, yoga, etc)? Can you propose the idea of clearing out space for a hobby area/exercise corner?
If everything is fine as it is and no major changes are coming up, I can see why people will not want to de-clutter. But if you can create a valid reason as to why you need the space (e.g. for visitors or for a home improvement project), that could help with motivation. I would market it as "de-clutter your things and get more space for your hobbies!" (although hopefully she doesn't have too many things required for her hobbies)
Can you make the stuff slowly disappear on its own or would it be missed?
But how does one deal with someone who has no interest in de-cluttering?
Do you have any plans to move? Or people visiting/staying over for Thanksgiving/Christmas?
Is she interested in anything (crafts, yoga, etc)? Can you propose the idea of clearing out space for a hobby area/exercise corner?
If everything is fine as it is and no major changes are coming up, I can see why people will not want to de-clutter. But if you can create a valid reason as to why you need the space (e.g. for visitors or for a home improvement project), that could help with motivation. I would market it as "de-clutter your things and get more space for your hobbies!" (although hopefully she doesn't have too many things required for her hobbies)
That's the frustrating part. Her family is coming out, and we are moving next year (if we can find a place), and we are cleaning every room top to bottom (one day a week). And still no interest in actually getting rid of things. Just straighten the huge pile of boxes. Cleanliness and clutter are two totally different things, where one is nice, and the other is like...gravity or air. It's just something that is. Doesn't make her mad, not anything that bothers her. It's like that is what a spare bedroom is for, boxes of stuff that is never used. I don't let it get to me, so it's not really a point of contention (as long as I don't ask), but it would be nice to actually get more usable space out of the house, and get rid of the clutter.
Had I been born a couple of decades early, I'd have totally been a hippie. One of the things that I didn't learn from MMM was the circle of concern thing. Sometime around age 12, I just realized I was in control of how I felt about things, and damn near overnight I stopped being ticklish and letting other people control how I felt (with a lot of practice since then). I personally prefer the Asian style of super minimalism, but I can live however. I feel like Raymond Reddington sometimes. He had a quote about being in a shipping container for 3 weeks. Something like the first week was absolute hell, but the other two were quite pleasant. :-) I do love a nice minimalist space, but I love my gf more.But how does one deal with someone who has no interest in de-cluttering?
Do you have any plans to move? Or people visiting/staying over for Thanksgiving/Christmas?
Is she interested in anything (crafts, yoga, etc)? Can you propose the idea of clearing out space for a hobby area/exercise corner?
If everything is fine as it is and no major changes are coming up, I can see why people will not want to de-clutter. But if you can create a valid reason as to why you need the space (e.g. for visitors or for a home improvement project), that could help with motivation. I would market it as "de-clutter your things and get more space for your hobbies!" (although hopefully she doesn't have too many things required for her hobbies)
That's the frustrating part. Her family is coming out, and we are moving next year (if we can find a place), and we are cleaning every room top to bottom (one day a week). And still no interest in actually getting rid of things. Just straighten the huge pile of boxes. Cleanliness and clutter are two totally different things, where one is nice, and the other is like...gravity or air. It's just something that is. Doesn't make her mad, not anything that bothers her. It's like that is what a spare bedroom is for, boxes of stuff that is never used. I don't let it get to me, so it's not really a point of contention (as long as I don't ask), but it would be nice to actually get more usable space out of the house, and get rid of the clutter.
Huh, well it's nice that you're laid back about it. They say everyone has a different comfort level with stuff. Personally, it's not something I think about, but I dislike being in a minimalist environment. When I get into a hotel room, I start putting my stuff on all the surfaces :) So it seems like she's on the extreme end. I can see how perfectly nice rooms being used for storage is a bit of a shame, but to her it might feel like if they're empty then it's space that needs to be filled. I would think being really insistent that you need a room for an alternative use would eventually work. It might just mean she's okay with moving stuff to the basement or something, but at least having full storage areas could be used as an argument against getting any more stuff. And then when you talk about moving to a new place, discuss wanting each space to be optimized and usable for a particular purpose to avoid buying more space than you need.
And I do not want to hold onto things because they were a gift years ago and no longer appeal to me (which is still going on with me).
I'm really focusing my efforts on the stuff that takes time to declutter.
I see my mother getting ready for her death by clearing the decks and I sort of want to clear the decks now.
Wife and I have been struggling with stuff lately. Specifically, the kids' mounds upon mounds of stuff they don't pick up. I'm personally sick of it (as is she) but when I suggest just getting rid of stuff until they can manage, she gets very defensive about taking their "stuff" away.Why not pack them away and see if they notice. If they don't notice, offer to find a consignment shop and trade them in and say any profits, they can buy more toys with?
I'm personally of the thought that they're spoiled (mostly by grandparents) and they could use to do without. We have plenty of things for them to play with, it won't hurt my feelings to get rid of 3 GARBAGE BAGS of stuffed animals for my girls and a WHOLE BOOKSHELF of toys my teenage son doesn't play with any more.
Ugh. I could just scream. She's constantly going on about how cluttered the house is and how she never stops cleaning, but she won't do what it takes to fix the problem!
I need an "Easy" button.
There’s this mild but always-present feeling that something is unresolved, because we only leave things lying around under the pretense that they’re only going to be there temporarily. But the resolution never comes, because the homeless objects have no place to go. I don’t want to beat this point to death but it’s unbelievable what a huge mental weight is released when there are no more “fish out of water” like this.
Wife and I have been struggling with stuff lately. Specifically, the kids' mounds upon mounds of stuff they don't pick up. I'm personally sick of it (as is she) but when I suggest just getting rid of stuff until they can manage, she gets very defensive about taking their "stuff" away.If you don't teach your kids how to get rid of stuff now, they will grow up to not be able to get rid of stuff. If you have a teenage son, he's more than old enough to go through his things and give you a few boxes that he doesn't want anymore. Heck, anyone over the age of 6 should be able to manage that with prompting from a parent.
I'm personally of the thought that they're spoiled (mostly by grandparents) and they could use to do without. We have plenty of things for them to play with, it won't hurt my feelings to get rid of 3 GARBAGE BAGS of stuffed animals for my girls and a WHOLE BOOKSHELF of toys my teenage son doesn't play with any more.
Ugh. I could just scream. She's constantly going on about how cluttered the house is and how she never stops cleaning, but she won't do what it takes to fix the problem!
I need an "Easy" button.
Wife and I have been struggling with stuff lately. Specifically, the kids' mounds upon mounds of stuff they don't pick up. I'm personally sick of it (as is she) but when I suggest just getting rid of stuff until they can manage, she gets very defensive about taking their "stuff" away.If you don't teach your kids how to get rid of stuff now, they will grow up to not be able to get rid of stuff. If you have a teenage son, he's more than old enough to go through his things and give you a few boxes that he doesn't want anymore. Heck, anyone over the age of 6 should be able to manage that with prompting from a parent.
I'm personally of the thought that they're spoiled (mostly by grandparents) and they could use to do without. We have plenty of things for them to play with, it won't hurt my feelings to get rid of 3 GARBAGE BAGS of stuffed animals for my girls and a WHOLE BOOKSHELF of toys my teenage son doesn't play with any more.
Ugh. I could just scream. She's constantly going on about how cluttered the house is and how she never stops cleaning, but she won't do what it takes to fix the problem!
I need an "Easy" button.
I think that it is so much better (for most kids) to go through the process themselves and learn how to make decisions on what to keep and what to get rid of.
Oh no! And now when she passes away many years from now you'll have to get rid of that crap *again*!Wife and I have been struggling with stuff lately. Specifically, the kids' mounds upon mounds of stuff they don't pick up. I'm personally sick of it (as is she) but when I suggest just getting rid of stuff until they can manage, she gets very defensive about taking their "stuff" away.If you don't teach your kids how to get rid of stuff now, they will grow up to not be able to get rid of stuff. If you have a teenage son, he's more than old enough to go through his things and give you a few boxes that he doesn't want anymore. Heck, anyone over the age of 6 should be able to manage that with prompting from a parent.
I'm personally of the thought that they're spoiled (mostly by grandparents) and they could use to do without. We have plenty of things for them to play with, it won't hurt my feelings to get rid of 3 GARBAGE BAGS of stuffed animals for my girls and a WHOLE BOOKSHELF of toys my teenage son doesn't play with any more.
Ugh. I could just scream. She's constantly going on about how cluttered the house is and how she never stops cleaning, but she won't do what it takes to fix the problem!
I need an "Easy" button.
I think that it is so much better (for most kids) to go through the process themselves and learn how to make decisions on what to keep and what to get rid of.
Fun side story: in the days before I could drive myself to Goodwill I was always carrying piles of things to my mom to take to Goodwill because the minimalist streak is ingrained. I found out last year that she just squirreled them away in the attic . . . .
Fun side story: in the days before I could drive myself to Goodwill I was always carrying piles of things to my mom to take to Goodwill because the minimalist streak is ingrained. I found out last year that she just squirreled them away in the attic . . . .
Wife and I have been struggling with stuff lately. Specifically, the kids' mounds upon mounds of stuff they don't pick up. I'm personally sick of it (as is she) but when I suggest just getting rid of stuff until they can manage, she gets very defensive about taking their "stuff" away.If you don't teach your kids how to get rid of stuff now, they will grow up to not be able to get rid of stuff. If you have a teenage son, he's more than old enough to go through his things and give you a few boxes that he doesn't want anymore. Heck, anyone over the age of 6 should be able to manage that with prompting from a parent.
I'm personally of the thought that they're spoiled (mostly by grandparents) and they could use to do without. We have plenty of things for them to play with, it won't hurt my feelings to get rid of 3 GARBAGE BAGS of stuffed animals for my girls and a WHOLE BOOKSHELF of toys my teenage son doesn't play with any more.
Ugh. I could just scream. She's constantly going on about how cluttered the house is and how she never stops cleaning, but she won't do what it takes to fix the problem!
I need an "Easy" button.
I think that it is so much better (for most kids) to go through the process themselves and learn how to make decisions on what to keep and what to get rid of.
Fun side story: in the days before I could drive myself to Goodwill I was always carrying piles of things to my mom to take to Goodwill because the minimalist streak is ingrained. I found out last year that she just squirreled them away in the attic . . . .
Wife and I have been struggling with stuff lately. Specifically, the kids' mounds upon mounds of stuff they don't pick up. I'm personally sick of it (as is she) but when I suggest just getting rid of stuff until they can manage, she gets very defensive about taking their "stuff" away.If you don't teach your kids how to get rid of stuff now, they will grow up to not be able to get rid of stuff. If you have a teenage son, he's more than old enough to go through his things and give you a few boxes that he doesn't want anymore. Heck, anyone over the age of 6 should be able to manage that with prompting from a parent.
I'm personally of the thought that they're spoiled (mostly by grandparents) and they could use to do without. We have plenty of things for them to play with, it won't hurt my feelings to get rid of 3 GARBAGE BAGS of stuffed animals for my girls and a WHOLE BOOKSHELF of toys my teenage son doesn't play with any more.
Ugh. I could just scream. She's constantly going on about how cluttered the house is and how she never stops cleaning, but she won't do what it takes to fix the problem!
I need an "Easy" button.
I think that it is so much better (for most kids) to go through the process themselves and learn how to make decisions on what to keep and what to get rid of.
Fun side story: in the days before I could drive myself to Goodwill I was always carrying piles of things to my mom to take to Goodwill because the minimalist streak is ingrained. I found out last year that she just squirreled them away in the attic . . . .
Ugh!! My mom did the very same thing when I went through all my stuff after college and before moving out of state in the mid 80s. Turns out she's had it all this time.
"Today is USE LESS STUFF DAY! Before Ava passed away, she arranged for an auction to take place at Sotheby's- which inevitably happened after her death in 1990. Over time, Ava preferred to have less clutter and more cash for the quality of her lifestyle...."
Can you make the stuff slowly disappear on its own or would it be missed?
I wish I would have asked before cleaning...I probably could have gotten at least a few things out of there. Unfortunately, she is becoming aware of most of the stuff now. I might have to be sneaky about some of it, but the main opportunity has passed. I might just have to wait until we move and 'lose' stuff.
I'm really focusing my efforts on the stuff that takes time to declutter. What I realized is that in a move, it's easy to throw stuff I don't care about or that isn't worth much into a box to donate to Goodwill. But stuff that I would prefer to resell, or sentimental stuff that takes some time or effort to go through, there just isn't time to deal with it during a move so I end up taking it with me to deal with at another date.
That date is now. We are planning to sell the house and move to an apartment in a couple of years so this is the time to tackle the long-ish project of dealing with the stuff that takes time to deal with. I'm selling stuff on eBay and Craigslist bit by bit, digitizing my decades-old photos, and vowing not to buy much in the way of clothes or shoes so that my wardrobe will gradually get a little bit smaller as things wear out but aren't replaced. For the other stuff, we have been taking a few boxes of household miscellany to Goodwill every other week or so.
One thing I find a little funny and a little annoying is that the eBay project has actually led to more clutter because I am saving boxes and bubble envelopes when things come into the house (at this point mostly consumables like toiletries and cat food that's cheaper to buy online) to reuse them for shipping. I've at least managed to organize the boxes into a little shipping center on some wire shelving, but I'm looking forward to being mostly done with the eBay sales and being able to recycle boxes again (and maybe sell the shelving!).
I'm going to box up some of the kitchen items we won't be bringing (some pots, a pan, a few dishes) and sell them on Craigslist as a "kitchen starter kit". It'll make some poor college student moving out of the dorms really happy to get all that on the cheap, and we'll have less stuff to move. Win-win!
I'm going to box up some of the kitchen items we won't be bringing (some pots, a pan, a few dishes) and sell them on Craigslist as a "kitchen starter kit". It'll make some poor college student moving out of the dorms really happy to get all that on the cheap, and we'll have less stuff to move. Win-win!
This is a great idea to put together a "kitchen starter kit"! I did the same not long ago for a friend getting his first place away from the parents. We had so many duplicates that had somehow accumulated that we were able to get him started plus donate even more extras. I do not buy new kitchen stuff - but many of my family and friends are constant upgraders and the still great cast-offs end up coming our way to the point that we also have excess and just keep the best.
When I was starting out, I would have been grateful for that.I'm going to box up some of the kitchen items we won't be bringing (some pots, a pan, a few dishes) and sell them on Craigslist as a "kitchen starter kit". It'll make some poor college student moving out of the dorms really happy to get all that on the cheap, and we'll have less stuff to move. Win-win!
This is a great idea to put together a "kitchen starter kit"! I did the same not long ago for a friend getting his first place away from the parents. We had so many duplicates that had somehow accumulated that we were able to get him started plus donate even more extras. I do not buy new kitchen stuff - but many of my family and friends are constant upgraders and the still great cast-offs end up coming our way to the point that we also have excess and just keep the best.
That's awesome! Pretty much all of the stuff we're getting rid of were our own cheap starter pots and pans, things like that. We've since gotten nicer ones, either as gifts for our wedding or as Christmas gifts.
I'm starting to get really excited for our move, if only because we're being forced to de-clutter and get rid of stuff we no longer use!
There does seem to be some sort of virus involved in decluttering. Like many of you, once I started to declutter my DH suddenly joined in. Recently he is talking about getting rid of his dad's books that he never looks at…wow! Before this his office was full of stuff and the floor was only visible in the middle. Now he even wants to empty the top of his bedside table which is making me do twirls of joy, I like a minimalist bedroom.
Somehow having less STUFF is making it easier for us to do home repairs and to maintain things more regularly, who would have thunk it?
I think it is related to feeling clearer and less weighed down.
Yeah, I was a bit impressed by how it turned out on my end. My GF still gets super defensive, and absolutely refuses to de-clutter or have a conversation about it. Turns into an argument every time. That being said, every time I get more of my stuff ready to throw away, cleared out, or ready to go to goodwill, some other stuff magically appears, and some of the rooms are getting a bit cleaner outside of what I do, and things start to have a permanent place where they are put away. Maybe it is like a virus. :-)
It's too bad my GF hates de-cluttering. ;-)
Yeah, I was a bit impressed by how it turned out on my end. My GF still gets super defensive, and absolutely refuses to de-clutter or have a conversation about it. Turns into an argument every time. That being said, every time I get more of my stuff ready to throw away, cleared out, or ready to go to goodwill, some other stuff magically appears, and some of the rooms are getting a bit cleaner outside of what I do, and things start to have a permanent place where they are put away. Maybe it is like a virus. :-)
It's too bad my GF hates de-cluttering. ;-)
Sounds like she doesn't hate it; she just hates agreeing to it with you. So she comes around when she's not feeling pressured. Win-win. :)
When I was starting out, I would have been grateful for that.I'm going to box up some of the kitchen items we won't be bringing (some pots, a pan, a few dishes) and sell them on Craigslist as a "kitchen starter kit". It'll make some poor college student moving out of the dorms really happy to get all that on the cheap, and we'll have less stuff to move. Win-win!
This is a great idea to put together a "kitchen starter kit"! I did the same not long ago for a friend getting his first place away from the parents. We had so many duplicates that had somehow accumulated that we were able to get him started plus donate even more extras. I do not buy new kitchen stuff - but many of my family and friends are constant upgraders and the still great cast-offs end up coming our way to the point that we also have excess and just keep the best.
That's awesome! Pretty much all of the stuff we're getting rid of were our own cheap starter pots and pans, things like that. We've since gotten nicer ones, either as gifts for our wedding or as Christmas gifts.
I'm starting to get really excited for our move, if only because we're being forced to de-clutter and get rid of stuff we no longer use!
Yeah, I was a bit impressed by how it turned out on my end. My GF still gets super defensive, and absolutely refuses to de-clutter or have a conversation about it. Turns into an argument every time. That being said, every time I get more of my stuff ready to throw away, cleared out, or ready to go to goodwill, some other stuff magically appears, and some of the rooms are getting a bit cleaner outside of what I do, and things start to have a permanent place where they are put away. Maybe it is like a virus. :-)
It's too bad my GF hates de-cluttering. ;-)
Sounds like she doesn't hate it; she just hates agreeing to it with you. So she comes around when she's not feeling pressured. Win-win. :)
Yeah. I'm realizing that's kind of the deal. Seems useless to me. I either need to figure out how to fake argue so she gets the point and I don't get worked up, or find a new GF.
Yeah, I was a bit impressed by how it turned out on my end. My GF still gets super defensive, and absolutely refuses to de-clutter or have a conversation about it. Turns into an argument every time. That being said, every time I get more of my stuff ready to throw away, cleared out, or ready to go to goodwill, some other stuff magically appears, and some of the rooms are getting a bit cleaner outside of what I do, and things start to have a permanent place where they are put away. Maybe it is like a virus. :-)
It's too bad my GF hates de-cluttering. ;-)
Sounds like she doesn't hate it; she just hates agreeing to it with you. So she comes around when she's not feeling pressured. Win-win. :)
Yeah. I'm realizing that's kind of the deal. Seems useless to me. I either need to figure out how to fake argue so she gets the point and I don't get worked up, or find a new GF.
But maybe you're being mean or bossypants in the course of arguing and that's what she's resisting? I mean, I wouldn't assume that from how you talk about it, but it's a possibility to consider.
As you say, you do get 'worked up' and if she gets stressed out about the idea of getting rid of things, your emotional state adds more stress on top of that. She may just not feel capable of making decisions under those conditions so she withdraws and does it on her own later.
People who don't like to get rid of stuff are fearful of the huge feelings of regret they get from losing or getting rid of something that they find they want later and they'll go to great lengths to avoid that feeling. So no matter what small amount of well-meaning pressure you apply may be too much for her to feel she can make decisions in that moment.
Signed,
The secret hoarder on the thread
Today someone finally bought one of the two Levi's sherpa jackets from my husband's teenage years, which my MIL foisted upon us....
But maybe you're being mean or bossypants in the course of arguing and that's what she's resisting? I mean, I wouldn't assume that from how you talk about it, but it's a possibility to consider.
As you say, you do get 'worked up' and if she gets stressed out about the idea of getting rid of things, your emotional state adds more stress on top of that. She may just not feel capable of making decisions under those conditions so she withdraws and does it on her own later.
People who don't like to get rid of stuff are fearful of the huge feelings of regret they get from losing or getting rid of something that they find they want later and they'll go to great lengths to avoid that feeling. So no matter what small amount of well-meaning pressure you apply may be too much for her to feel she can make decisions in that moment.
Signed,
The secret hoarder on the thread
I will out myself here as a non-secret hoarder. And what Sheepstache is saying is absolutely true. I can't stand to talk about decluttering with my husband. I know that I need to get rid of lots of stuff, and I actually am making progress on my own, but my husband has a tendency to approach it in a very one size fits all way, for example: "You haven't opened that box since we moved in, so we should just recycle it all because you clearly don't need anything in it." That makes me run to the other extreme and dig in my heels: "No I'm sure everything in it is valuable and important. Even if I haven't needed it recently I am sure I will need it soon." In reality it's somewhere in the middle: Probably 95% of the box can be recycled, but there are some things in there that are worth hanging on to (like my college diploma), so it does need to be sorted through. But it's hard for me to acknowledge that when he's in full-on THROW AWAY ALL THE THINGS mode, because it just puts me into "keep the broken fragment of china in case I ever buy a broken plate that has exactly that piece missing" mode.
I also tend to declutter in layers in a way that my husband doesn't. He takes a category and is ruthless about getting rid of lots of stuff. I'm much more likely to get rid of a few things from multiple categories every few months. In the fall, I sorted through my clothes and my kitchen stuff, and now I'm thinking that there are still some things in my dresser and in my cabinets that I don't really use and could get rid of. I'll probably sort through them before Christmas and then do the whole thing again next spring. My husband will probably say something like "Why haven't you gotten rid of that before if you've never used it?" but it's because it really has taken me six months of marriage to realize that I don't make shortbread and don't need the special shortbread baking dish. (Actually, he will probably say, "What is that? I didn't even know we had it." LOL)
While cleaning a room, I asked (very nonchalantly): "Hey, I didn't know you had this! Is there a reason you are keeping it?".
When going through some of DH's stuff I found out he keeps sentimental crap. How did you manage to help someone get rid of it? I tried saying that keeping his old sneakers or robe will not get rid of the memories, but they never managed to leave the closet.
We currently have a grocery bag by the kitchen island that we continually add stuff to donate whenever we see it. It's unsightly, but helpful to have someplace to put things before you have time to change your mind.
I wouldn't car sneakers or a robe sentimental, so I think you have a different issue going on here (fear of releasing items rather than sentimentality).They are from high school and remind him of riding bikes and hanging out with friends. I wouldn't have guessed old sneakers would be something sentimental, but they are. I'll let a couple months pass and then go through the closet again with him, maybe then he can part with the old shoes.
QuoteI wouldn't car sneakers or a robe sentimental, so I think you have a different issue going on here (fear of releasing items rather than sentimentality).They are from high school and remind him of riding bikes and hanging out with friends. I wouldn't have guessed old sneakers would be something sentimental, but they are. I'll let a couple months pass and then go through the closet again with him, maybe then he can part with the old shoes.
I don't know why I thought I needed to have 100 different pot plants on my balcony.
I don't know why I thought I needed to have 100 different pot plants on my balcony.
Impressive!! Legal??
;-)
Oh--thank you for that translation! I was beginning to wonder if Happier had a nice little side gig, as many folks here in Colorado now do!
Oh--thank you for that translation! I was beginning to wonder if Happier had a nice little side gig, as many folks here in Colorado now do!
That might be why she's happier at home. :D
Oh--thank you for that translation! I was beginning to wonder if Happier had a nice little side gig, as many folks here in Colorado now do!
That might be why she's happier at home. :D
Love it!!
But yeah, other posters are correct. Aussies call plants that grow in pots "pot plants". NinetyFour, you'd better file that away for when you visit us down under.
Cookie and Funkystickman,
how are you doing with your digital organising? I have not begun the photo thing yet. To be honest I barely know how the iPhoto software works. I just put things in there. This winter I am determined to deal with the photos and the excess paper that I held onto in the big purge.
Yesterday, I dropped off a bag full of various items at Goodwill. Then last night, I decluttered our sock drawers, which had become ridiculous. I could still cut back more. I find that the first pass of decluttering is the hardest for me. I keep a lot more stuff than I need. By the second and third pass, I'm better at letting go of stuff that I don't use. Does anyone else go through this or are you better at culling the first time around (which saves time).
I find that the first pass of decluttering is the hardest for me. I keep a lot more stuff than I need. By the second and third pass, I'm better at letting go of stuff that I don't use. Does anyone else go through this or are you better at culling the first time around (which saves time).
I think that this is the best way to do it - get rid of things that you absolutely don't need in a quick first pass; then get rid of things you really don't need in a second pass; then really get stuck into it and get rid of things you don't use. In between you have been subconsciously monitoring how often you actually use things, and have also been subconsciously changing habits, so you realise how little some things are used.I find that the first pass of decluttering is the hardest for me. I keep a lot more stuff than I need. By the second and third pass, I'm better at letting go of stuff that I don't use. Does anyone else go through this or are you better at culling the first time around (which saves time).
Yes, thats how it works for me too. And sometimes at random times an item I've visited and kept on a previous declutter will pop into my mind and I think, "I could let that go".
Cookie and Funkystickman,
how are you doing with your digital organising? I have not begun the photo thing yet. To be honest I barely know how the iPhoto software works. I just put things in there. This winter I am determined to deal with the photos and the excess paper that I held onto in the big purge.
Has anyone read "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo?
Has anyone read "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo?
You might be interested in this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/garden/home-organization-advice-from-marie-kondo.html?_r=0
We have been getting ready to downsize in 2014, and have lost 40-45 m3 of stuff. Most of it junk, a lot has been donated, and some has been sold. In a week, a 32 m3 moving van will try to take the rest of our stuff to the new house. According to my calculations, we have 30 m3 of stuff left, I hope I'm right.
We will be buying new beds for the new house, and we might need some appliances (washing machine and fridge). But otherwise, I whink we are well covered.
Will try to
There's one broken one to go which is tricky cos he wants to delete/rewrite the hard drive before disposal. But, big progress!
Magnet? I found a bunch of old floppy disks while I was decluttering my home office - I ran a heavy duty (rare earth) fridge magnet over all of them, one at a time, both sides - not that anyone has a floppy disk drive any more. They are in the recycling box now.
There's one broken one to go which is tricky cos he wants to delete/rewrite the hard drive before disposal. But, big progress!
Sorted through about 1/2 of a junky cupboard today. Got rid of some stuff but gave up after a while. So frustrating. Nothing has a "home." Junky, junky, junky.
Awesome work, everybody!
Successfully convinced DH to get rid of a few old computers (a few had been in his long term storage and one in the carport). Yay!! There's one broken one to go which is tricky cos he wants to delete/rewrite the hard drive before disposal. But, big progress!
Has anyone read "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo? It's really helpful in learning how to organize your house. A brief summary: start with clothes, then books, then papers, then personal items, then mementos. (From easy to more difficult.) And don't organize by room, but by subject, so that you take everything out of its place and examine one item at a time, while the group of items is all out in front of you. This way you can see at a glance what you have (usually a lot!), and eliminate one thing at a time. This is important because she advises that you assess for yourself whether each item sparks joy in you -- that is the one and only determining factor on whether or not to keep the item.
This cuts through all the excuses. "Oh but when I'm thinner maybe I can wear that again... or my sister bought me this so I can't throw it away." The idea is that the item has served its purpose -- either in the past, or if it's a gift, then the gift was a symbol of love and thoughtfulness that we can be grateful for, and then let it go. If you don't think too much about it, or give yourself time to come up with an excuse on why you are keeping the item, then you can assess how you feel about it intuitively. If you clear things out this way, in theory, you'll be surrounded only by things that give you joy!
I'm on a mission to sort through my household of stuff using this method over this next year. Maybe I'll do a little each month. Just cleaning out all the paperwork in my office took about 3 days over the holidays.
I'm pleased to report I have decluttered paper in my study two days in a row for about 45mins each day. No visible sign of improvement but its a hell of a mess.
I just must keep telling myself:
1. " an elephant is eaten one bite at a time" : thanks Astatine :)
2. I'll be retired in 3-4 years, time to start culling, only keeping what is needed in the short term.
I just read this on your recommendation. It is the best decluttering/minimalist/etc book I've read. I'm tidying in a haphazard way at the moment instead of the correct way she suggests, but I now have a gorgeously clear and prettily decorated bookshelf, and what looks like 100 books that ware "to-read" to be reviewed. I only pulled out the ones we haven't read yet, to give us a chance before they go.Has anyone read "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo?
You might be interested in this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/garden/home-organization-advice-from-marie-kondo.html?_r=0
Thanks, NinetyFour... I had heard of the book via this NYT article, and then took it out from the library. Worth the read. It's like a how-to for becoming a minimalist, in a very human way. Most minimalism ideas I find a bit preachy and cold, but this book is totally heartfelt and down to earth. It's like working at minimalism from the inside out, rather than taking a bunch of rules and applying them.
I just read this on your recommendation. It is the best decluttering/minimalist/etc book I've read. I'm tidying in a haphazard way at the moment instead of the correct way she suggests, but I now have a gorgeously clear and prettily decorated bookshelf, and what looks like 100 books that ware "to-read" to be reviewed. I only pulled out the ones we haven't read yet, to give us a chance before they go.Has anyone read "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo?
You might be interested in this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/garden/home-organization-advice-from-marie-kondo.html?_r=0
Thanks, NinetyFour... I had heard of the book via this NYT article, and then took it out from the library. Worth the read. It's like a how-to for becoming a minimalist, in a very human way. Most minimalism ideas I find a bit preachy and cold, but this book is totally heartfelt and down to earth. It's like working at minimalism from the inside out, rather than taking a bunch of rules and applying them.
I love "get rid of paper as it never brings joy"! YES! I got rid of about 18inches of documentation I no longer need this week as well as some samples I received as gifts for buying certain products if I had not used them. Tomorrow is recycle day so I keep stalking through the house looking for more candidates for the bin.
Has anyone read "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo?
You might be interested in this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/garden/home-organization-advice-from-marie-kondo.html?_r=0
Thanks, NinetyFour... I had heard of the book via this NYT article, and then took it out from the library. Worth the read. It's like a how-to for becoming a minimalist, in a very human way. Most minimalism ideas I find a bit preachy and cold, but this book is totally heartfelt and down to earth. It's like working at minimalism from the inside out, rather than taking a bunch of rules and applying them.
I used the 40 minutes cleaning, 20 minutes break and new shows on tv to get me through several large piles of paper yesterday and today. Tons of old receipts (from up to 7 years ago!) were tossed. Our recycling bin is now full, so probably up to 1.5 m3 of paper was removed. I then rearranged the dining area to fit our bikes better so we can get them in and out easier.I love "get rid of paper as it never brings joy"! YES! I got rid of about 18inches of documentation I no longer need this week as well as some samples I received as gifts for buying certain products if I had not used them. Tomorrow is recycle day so I keep stalking through the house looking for more candidates for the bin.
I get joy from the occasional bill that shows how we're doing with our use of electricity etc :)
I just listed our couches and two armchairs on Gumtree, because the couches certainly don't give us joy! The armchairs might, but I re-covered them with the intention of selling them, so I'll try that before we use them ourselves. If it works, we'll be a couch-less household for a little while - I'm really excited about the space!
My sweetie cleaned off the top of his dresser today <3
It's funny how I think I've gone through and cleared out every nook and cranny, and several years into serious decluttering, I'm STILL finding stuff to get rid of. Yikes.
It's funny how I think I've gone through and cleared out every nook and cranny, and several years into serious decluttering, I'm STILL finding stuff to get rid of. Yikes.
Yes, I am in the same boat. It simply amazes me.
It was sort of accidental. We were flipping the mattress (king sized, extra deep, pillow-top on both sides so it's extremely heavy), which involves propping the one end of it on his dresser and using the dresser as a lever while we pick up the other end. There was just too much crap on his dresser for it to work, so we shoved everything out of the way and flipped the mattress. Then he went ahead and cleaned it up so it wasn't a problem area anymore!My sweetie cleaned off the top of his dresser today <3
Share your secret! :)
I am ready to do another round of clothes though. I still have too much and nothing to wear at the same time. How does that happen.
I am ready to do another round of clothes though. I still have too much and nothing to wear at the same time. How does that happen.
Because your wardrobe contains items that you do not love. I don't have many clothes (about 60 odd items, including jackets and leggings but excluding shoes, socks, undies, bras and hats), but last year was the first year I felt like I have heaps of clothes to wear. I was ruthless with my wardrobe and only keep clothes that I love to wear. The high rotation clothes, stuff that you find yourself grabbing to wear without thinking cos you know you like wearing it. I still get rid of an item or two of clothes every 6 months or so as my tastes shift gradually over time, or my shape/size does. Most of my clothes go well with each other, so I can make many different outfits from not many clothes.
The method I used was to take each piece of clothing and ask myself (or got DH to ask me out loud - that works better for me), "do I love and want to keep this item?" If the answer was a resounding yes, then I kept the item. Any other response = get rid of it to charity.
Edit: Following up on your waste comment: doing this with my wardrobe REALLY helped with not contributing to more waste of money and environmental resources. It made me super concious of how bad I had been at buying clothes for myself. So now if I am in need of a new item of clothing, I ONLY buy it (whether from the op shop or new) if I really love it in the fitting room and can't wait to take it home and start wearing it. So yes, I do ask myself when trying on clothes, do I love and want to keep this, and I listen carefully to my gut feel. It's amazing how easy it is to try to justify something to yourself, when all that matters is if you love and want to keep it and use it.
Edit: Following up on your waste comment: doing this with my wardrobe REALLY helped with not contributing to more waste of money and environmental resources. It made me super concious of how bad I had been at buying clothes for myself. So now if I am in need of a new item of clothing, I ONLY buy it (whether from the op shop or new) if I really love it in the fitting room and can't wait to take it home and start wearing it. So yes, I do ask myself when trying on clothes, do I love and want to keep this, and I listen carefully to my gut feel. It's amazing how easy it is to try to justify something to yourself, when all that matters is if you love and want to keep it and use it.
Enjoy my stacks of discarded stuff and my now incredibly roomy closet.Oh yeah! Beautiful. Thanks for putting up the piccies.
Next on my list is the vinyl record albums; we haven't listened to them in 10+ years!
Next on my list is the vinyl record albums; we haven't listened to them in 10+ years!
Put those suckers on eBay. I think you'd be surprised.
Next on my list is the vinyl record albums; we haven't listened to them in 10+ years!
Put those suckers on eBay. I think you'd be surprised.
I was considering that, but they are not all in "like new" condition, although they all play fine as far as I know. I guess I could just say that in the listing. There are too many to sell individually, not sure if I'm better off selling them in one large group (would take multiple shipping boxes) or in groups that would fit in one shipping box together.
Next on my list is the vinyl record albums; we haven't listened to them in 10+ years!
Put those suckers on eBay. I think you'd be surprised.
I was considering that, but they are not all in "like new" condition, although they all play fine as far as I know. I guess I could just say that in the listing. There are too many to sell individually, not sure if I'm better off selling them in one large group (would take multiple shipping boxes) or in groups that would fit in one shipping box together.
Money more impt:
Look through them and sell the more valuable ones (e.g. like new condition, more famous bands) individually on ebay. You'll get more money back this way, but you'll need to put in more effort and be patient since they'll take a while to sell. The rest can be sold in bulk.
Time more impt:
Sell in bulk on craigslist for buyers to pick up locally, there will be people who are interested in flipping them. Gets rid of them fast, without having to bother about shipping. If you're living in the sticks, and craigslist is not an option, sell in bulk on ebay.
Well, I had taken over 100 items to a consignment shop that sells furniture, household stuff, dolls, etc. I made less than 100 bucks, which was fine. However, I didn't realize if I want my stuff I would have to go through the store and pick it all out, which is all over the place. It would be one thing to be able to find it but that store is a mess. I cant believe it. They dont even give you an idea of how many pieces were sold. Had I known that, I would not have taken some stuff in. I am shocked and a little frustrated. On the other hand, I dont have to deal with the stuff any longer and the peace of that is great.
It's amazing how there's always, eventually, room for another round of purging as my mentality keeps changing so that letting go becomes easier. I don't have an urgent deadline for paring down, but I have it in the back of my mind that I might move in five years or so and it would be nice to have a light footprint. I guess I have the old dream too of taking off and traveling the world and I don't want stuff to hold me back. It feels good too to get to a place where I don't have things just in case, but because I wear and use them frequently.
....
Sadly, as I've heard reported many times before, the amount of money doesn't get near what we spent on things that have essentially gone unused - sort of sad, humiliating, depressing...whatever...
...
I'll likely be moving in 4 months so I have to start decluttering for real! I cleaned out/reorganized my kitchen cabinets today.
Everyone making money on ebay and craigslist, what non-furniture items have you been selling? I've just been donating everything because I figured I wouldn't get anything for my clothes (5-15 years old), kitchen odds and ends, etc. and it'd cost too much to ship via craigslist.
Everyone making money on ebay and craigslist, what non-furniture items have you been selling? I've just been donating everything because I figured I wouldn't get anything for my clothes (5-15 years old), kitchen odds and ends, etc. and it'd cost too much to ship via craigslist.
I'll likely be moving in 4 months so I have to start decluttering for real! I cleaned out/reorganized my kitchen cabinets today.
That is what has motivated us, we aren't paying to move anything that isn't something we love, which means we are getting rid of most of it. But we are kind of doing it in reverse, I'm getting rid of all the big storage items (bookcases, a stand alone pantry, shelving, etc) and it is leaving us with piles of stuff to go through that were stored in these places. When you look at that stuff in piles instead in a neatly stored place it is really easy to see it for what it is. I'm excited to count up the amount of cash I've been accumulating from these Craigslist sales, I've had a person or two a day coming by the house for major items. Woot!
I'll likely be moving in 4 months so I have to start decluttering for real! I cleaned out/reorganized my kitchen cabinets today.
That is what has motivated us, we aren't paying to move anything that isn't something we love, which means we are getting rid of most of it. But we are kind of doing it in reverse, I'm getting rid of all the big storage items (bookcases, a stand alone pantry, shelving, etc) and it is leaving us with piles of stuff to go through that were stored in these places. When you look at that stuff in piles instead in a neatly stored place it is really easy to see it for what it is. I'm excited to count up the amount of cash I've been accumulating from these Craigslist sales, I've had a person or two a day coming by the house for major items. Woot!
Nice job on the sales! I've yet to try the put everything in a big pile and then declutter method. It makes a lot of sense (actually being able to see the massive amount of stuff). I was always afraid that I'd get halfway through and then have a monster pile of junk to climb over for the rest of my life. Of course, now that I've written that, it sounds ridiculous and unfounded (I know I'd just put it away). Off I go to give it a try.
Why am I so attached to books? They're just dumb books. Grrr.
Kids books, and my non-fiction stuff mostly. Shelves, and shelves, and shelves of books.
Maybe they define a season of life for me? Maybe my memories lie in those books?
I don't know ... but I'm sure having a hard time parting with books. This is going to be a slow process.
Why am I so attached to books? They're just dumb books. Grrr.
Kids books, and my non-fiction stuff mostly. Shelves, and shelves, and shelves of books.
Maybe they define a season of life for me? Maybe my memories lie in those books?
I don't know ... but I'm sure having a hard time parting with books. This is going to be a slow process.
Why am I so attached to books? They're just dumb books. Grrr.
Kids books, and my non-fiction stuff mostly. Shelves, and shelves, and shelves of books.
Maybe they define a season of life for me? Maybe my memories lie in those books?
I don't know ... but I'm sure having a hard time parting with books. This is going to be a slow process.
Books are hard for a lot of people. I was only able to finally get rid of (to charity) the bulk of my books after I read this blog post on the Fantasy Self:
http://www.missminimalist.com/2011/08/declutter-your-fantasy-self/
My Fantasy Self with my books was multi-faceted. Stuff like, look how much stuff I know! Look at how intellectual I am! (not proud of any of these, btw, but it is what it is) I loved reading a book a day in the past, one day I will do that again, even though it's been years since I did that. My textbooks from uni are still useful! (they were to a job I had 10 years ago but now so much stuff is available online) etc etc.
Why am I so attached to books? They're just dumb books. Grrr.
Kids books, and my non-fiction stuff mostly. Shelves, and shelves, and shelves of books.
Maybe they define a season of life for me? Maybe my memories lie in those books?
I don't know ... but I'm sure having a hard time parting with books. This is going to be a slow process.
Books are hard for a lot of people. I was only able to finally get rid of (to charity) the bulk of my books after I read this blog post on the Fantasy Self:
http://www.missminimalist.com/2011/08/declutter-your-fantasy-self/
My Fantasy Self with my books was multi-faceted. Stuff like, look how much stuff I know! Look at how intellectual I am! (not proud of any of these, btw, but it is what it is) I loved reading a book a day in the past, one day I will do that again, even though it's been years since I did that. My textbooks from uni are still useful! (they were to a job I had 10 years ago but now so much stuff is available online) etc etc.
I have a growing stack of magazines (thanks to free subscriptions) that I haven't read yet. I decided that I am not going to read them so I'm going to recycle them all in one go.
I have a growing stack of magazines (thanks to free subscriptions) that I haven't read yet. I decided that I am not going to read them so I'm going to recycle them all in one go.
unsubscribe! I used to sign up for free stuff, because they're free right?? but then I've come to realize that 1) I'm happier without all that junk 2) someone else can probably get more use out of it 3) if enough people reject these things, maybe they'll eventually stop making them, which would be better for the environment. now I'm more conscious of what I bring home with me, no matter the original price.
Today I feel like the clutter is everywhere :( Don't know where to start :( The clutter takes so much energy and viltality away... Does anyone feel the same way?!
Thanks for the reactions.
The problem is that I constantly moving back and forth with stuff. I find it hard to throw things away so I'm moving the stuff from one room to the other. From the living room, then in the bedroom, etc etc. We even have a room that we call the "clutterroom" (in Dutch: rommelkamer). How sad is that?
Thanks for the reactions.
The problem is that I constantly moving back and forth with stuff. I find it hard to throw things away so I'm moving the stuff from one room to the other. From the living room, then in the bedroom, etc etc. We even have a room that we call the "clutterroom" (in Dutch: rommelkamer). How sad is that?
I just found a box of books and CDs that I packed up to get rid of years ago, still sitting in my spare room. Gone, gone, gone! But I'm not sure the best way to get rid of CDs these days. Garbage?
Sold a stamp book last night for $50, and put a couple other things for sale online today.
I just found a box of books and CDs that I packed up to get rid of years ago, still sitting in my spare room. Gone, gone, gone! But I'm not sure the best way to get rid of CDs these days. Garbage?
Sold a stamp book last night for $50, and put a couple other things for sale online today.
By stamp book do you mean one of those albums that have pages for each stamp from each country? I have a large one I need to get rid of; where do you sell that sort of thing and not get cheated for the stamps that might be worth something?
Rant:
When I post a Freecycle item or a Facebook yard sale item and NO ONE says please or thank you in the communication! Like, if I am giving you something for free, say THANK YOU, for fuck's sake!
Thanks for listening!
I think DVD is a dying medium. Sell them while they're still worth something.
Why am I so attached to books? They're just dumb books. Grrr.
Kids books, and my non-fiction stuff mostly. Shelves, and shelves, and shelves of books.
Maybe they define a season of life for me? Maybe my memories lie in those books?
I don't know ... but I'm sure having a hard time parting with books. This is going to be a slow process.
Same here, although I purge periodically so that they will fix in existing bookshelves and have otherwise switched to e-books or the library. That said, I'm not going to guilt myself over those books I do have. I like them, and I re-read a large number of them. I'm minimal enough in the rest of the house.
Same here!! Good luck with the books, I'm waiting with that part of my clutter untill everything else is done ;)
I finished going through everything! Donated about 5 bags ( really only had about a carload to begin with) . And a couple bags of things to sell (mostly antiques). So happy about this!
I think you did the right thing. I sold / gave away almost all my DVD's too.I think DVD is a dying medium. Sell them while they're still worth something.
Thanks. I've put them on Marktplaats (Dutch) to sell them! Also put some DVDs of House MD on it.
I think you did the right thing. I sold / gave away almost all my DVD's too.I think DVD is a dying medium. Sell them while they're still worth something.
Thanks. I've put them on Marktplaats (Dutch) to sell them! Also put some DVDs of House MD on it.
Did the same with my cd's some years ago. Still to do: get rid of the cassette tapes that are still stored at my parents' house.
Hey Kander - nice job decluttering. Have you thought about renaming the junkroom to something else? Perhaps that's what is causing people in your home to put 'junk' in there?
I have to keep reminding my family that my desk is not for their junk/stuff/paperwork. Not my monkey, not my circus!!
Got rid of:
- Eye shadow of Chanel. Mega expensive and I've used it only 5 times :( I gave it to my sister, she was very happy with it
- Make-up remover (I never use make-up, so I don't need it anymore) Also gave this to my sister
- Hairstuff - don't know how it's called in English, but it is to untangle your hair (not conditioner ;) )
Almost got rid of:
- A teapot with a cup underneath it. I wanted to give it to my sister but then I decided I wanted to keep it. BUT with one rule: I HAVE to use it!!
Got rid of:
- Eye shadow of Chanel. Mega expensive and I've used it only 5 times :( I gave it to my sister, she was very happy with it
- Make-up remover (I never use make-up, so I don't need it anymore) Also gave this to my sister
- Hairstuff - don't know how it's called in English, but it is to untangle your hair (not conditioner ;) )
Almost got rid of:
- A teapot with a cup underneath it. I wanted to give it to my sister but then I decided I wanted to keep it. BUT with one rule: I HAVE to use it!!
Detangler? That's what I'd call it if it's a bottle of stuff you spray in your hair and comb through...
Decluttered my desk! Much better.Me too! I got a new computer at work to replace the two old computers I was using, and gave my desk and drawers a clean out at the same time.
Today I did a task I can only do when my husband is at home: the cutlery. My husband is very strict with the knives and he has a knife for every occasion ;) So I need to take it slow on him in this case.
Got rid of:
- One cooks knife (he has 3 of them)
- One meat knife (we are vegetarians, so we don't need those)
- 2 baby spoons (still got plenty of them!!)
- Thing to get the pizzaplate out of the oven without using oven mitts (completely useless)
It all went in the bag for recycling at the second hand shop
Today I did a task I can only do when my husband is at home: the cutlery. My husband is very strict with the knives and he has a knife for every occasion ;) So I need to take it slow on him in this case.
Got rid of:
- One cooks knife (he has 3 of them)
- One meat knife (we are vegetarians, so we don't need those)
- 2 baby spoons (still got plenty of them!!)
- Thing to get the pizzaplate out of the oven without using oven mitts (completely useless)
It all went in the bag for recycling at the second hand shop
Oh, we totally have multiples of some favorite knives we often use, so I'm with your husband on that one! But what is it that gets a pizza stone out of the oven w/o mitts? I can't even imagine this device.
Can't wait for weekend to come - I'm setting my eyes on our tax documents. Will try yo get majority of our taxes done and paperwork completed. They are cluttering up my mental space. Does clearing mental clutter count?YES!!
Midway through clearing out my old room. Old clothes/books are easy to toss, but looking through old school yearbooks/mementos sure bring back memories. No matter, they're all getting decluttered too!
got rid of a carful of crap over the weekend. it's like peeling an onion -- i keep finding new levels of shit to get rid of.
all of this de-cluttering is making the process of packing for our upcoming move MUCH easier.
@LadyDriver - have you considered giving those cleaning supplies to perhaps a mission or women's shelter that could possibly use them?
ahhh LadyDriver, I see what you mean. The metro area we used to live in had a 'toxic dump' kind of day where you could bring in half cans of paint, oil, cleaning, pharmaceuticals, etc. to be disposed of properly. Anything like that in a city near you?
Problem -- not enough receptacles in which to store my give-away items!
I don't like using garbage bags because once, my ever so helpful husband threw away a full bag of beautiful sweaters that were like new.
Any suggestions?
After cleaning out my inlaw's home and my brother's home after they passed? We BUMPED our donations up and our buying down so as to not have our children E.V.E.R. having to go thru so much stuff if something were to happen to us.
We've sold 3,000 dollars worth of random furniture, bike stuff, electronics, etc. in the past month
onemorebike,Wintersun, cl can be a hassle, but also can be real easy. I installed the cl app on my phone so when I walked by something and thought "we should get rid of that" I just pulled out my phone took a pic and quickly listed it.QuoteWe've sold 3,000 dollars worth of random furniture, bike stuff, electronics, etc. in the past month
That is inspiring. Not only have you decluttered but you have had the energy to deal with putting all that stuff on sale and dealing with the buyers…Congratulations!!!!
onemorebike,Wintersun, cl can be a hassle, but also can be real easy. I installed the cl app on my phone so when I walked by something and thought "we should get rid of that" I just pulled out my phone took a pic and quickly listed it.QuoteWe've sold 3,000 dollars worth of random furniture, bike stuff, electronics, etc. in the past month
That is inspiring. Not only have you decluttered but you have had the energy to deal with putting all that stuff on sale and dealing with the buyers…Congratulations!!!!
onemorebike,Wintersun, cl can be a hassle, but also can be real easy. I installed the cl app on my phone so when I walked by something and thought "we should get rid of that" I just pulled out my phone took a pic and quickly listed it.QuoteWe've sold 3,000 dollars worth of random furniture, bike stuff, electronics, etc. in the past month
That is inspiring. Not only have you decluttered but you have had the energy to deal with putting all that stuff on sale and dealing with the buyers…Congratulations!!!!
I bought the stuff for $75 and am selling for $45.Recovering 60% of the purchase price for obsolete stuff is actually really good imo.
Stuff you don't use = sunk costs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunk_costs) anyway.
Don't let the sunk cost fallacy keep you from getting rid of stuff that clutters your life.I bought the stuff for $75 and am selling for $45.Recovering 60% of the purchase price for obsolete stuff is actually really good imo.
Gained 12 square feet of floor space and $100 by selling a piece of exercise equipment that was not being used. Turns out I like body-weight exercising at home it's more quiet and there is nothing to dust!
This week during decluttering I was wondering about one item in my closet: my weddingdress. I will never wear it again and it's a big impediment, so I am thinking about selling it. But on the other hand it has emotional value. I'm not sure about it, it's difficult. What would you do? I have many pictures of me in the dress and I won't wear it again with my after-pregnancy body that is very differentthenthan when we got married......
This week during decluttering I was wondering about one item in my closet: my weddingdress. I will never wear it again and it's a big impediment, so I am thinking about selling it. But on the other hand it has emotional value. I'm not sure about it, it's difficult. What would you do? I have many pictures of me in the dress and I won't wear it again with my after-pregnancy body that is very differentthenthan when we got married......
I think she thinks I won't look after it….
My wedding dress was not traditional, and I still wear it from time to time. So, I'll be keeping that!
Books and DVD's traded for good local beers.
Does it count that I have shredded loads of old documents recently?
Throwing them all out and getting 30 pairs of identical black socks for the cheap.I like my diamond pattern / Kermit / Homer Simpson / Mickey Mouse / Garfield socks.
Zikoris, your post reminded me to claim counter space in my kitchen. I have the essentials that I use almost every day on the counter (toaster, food processor) but I also have a ton of baby bottle parts. We need it easily accessible and easily dryable but it is an eye sore on an otherwise clean counter. Any ideas as to how to store it?hanging wire vegetable basket?
Do you think I should declutter quickly or take my time selling stuff on eBay for more profit?
I can't seem to decide: money vs clean house immediately
Do you think I should declutter quickly or take my time selling stuff on eBay for more profit?
I can't seem to decide: money vs clean house immediately
I got rid of a good chunk of my books (except for a few reference ones), but due to some extra wood and free time, I thought about doing a little free library on my corner. Since I live in the ghetto, there isn't one near me, and it might even help with our stray kid problem. Give them a book, and they might read it as opposed to random acts of vandalism.
I got rid of a good chunk of my books (except for a few reference ones), but due to some extra wood and free time, I thought about doing a little free library on my corner. Since I live in the ghetto, there isn't one near me, and it might even help with our stray kid problem. Give them a book, and they might read it as opposed to random acts of vandalism.
Yes! This is a great idea. I live in the ghetto too. At my complex, we all put out all our donations for each other. And before the end of the day, its all been grabbed, every time.
One sweater out the door, one dress dropped off to a friend who is thrilled. Yes!
I'm new, so maybe this has been said, but I have a de-cluttering strategy to share. My husband has trouble parting with things. So I created a box that serves as a staging area. If we aren't sure if we should keep something we put it in the box. If we end up needing it, it can be retrieved from the box. The box gets looked at once a year or so, and all things that have been in the box since the last clean out that haven't been needed get tossed/sold/donated. This two step process is easier, because usually once things are in the box we've completely forgotten they exist, indicating we probably don't really need them.
Saw some things that my husband had cleaned out of our kids cupboards in the trash. This included a set of rubber stamps that I had used when they were really little and I pulled out 3 to keep for memories. But then I thought of this thread and .... I let them go!
Today I will visit with my mom & help her do ALOT more decluttering. Last time we did clothes,purses,etc. This time we will do books.
Saw some things that my husband had cleaned out of our kids cupboards in the trash. This included a set of rubber stamps that I had used when they were really little and I pulled out 3 to keep for memories. But then I thought of this thread and .... I let them go!
I had a hard time with mementos too. For most of them I took photos and organized them into a folder in my computer so I can look at them if I ever feel like taking a trip down memory lane. Since everything is digital and labeled in a folder, it kind of works out better too (more space efficient, less likely to lose it somewhere). There are still a few mementos that I can't part with, but having them physically makes me so much happier that I don't consider them as clutter.
I've also been using up toiletries I don't like and not buying any more.
Accepting that there are plenty of hobbies that I would like to do, but won't, has been freeing. I've got rid of so much jewellery making stuff. I have the time for hobbies, because I've got plenty. If I've never yet actually made any jewellery, I clearly don't want to do it that badly - it's the IDEA I like, not the actual craft.
Ditto. I've been "using up" for 2 years now. Who'd have thought I had that much stuff to use? My bathroom cabinet is much clearer now, just a few key products, some with duplicates bought on sale. But I'm starting to get to the bottom of it and will replace with simple natural products without chemicals wherever possible. I tossed some products I was keeping just in case, but I never use those particular items so out they went.QuoteI've also been using up toiletries I don't like and not buying any more.
Me too! I just today finished up my second container of face cream since a move in August! I have so many moisturizers sitting around, and it's a goal of mine to start using them more regularly (especially since it's dry in winter), so I'm very proud of this small incremental thing. I have a whole little basket of extra moisturizer on top of my dresser that I've had for years without *using* it. Senseless to throw it out as it's contained space wise, but senseless to not use it up either. So now I'm slowly making my way through. Once it's all gone (so in...oh, four years), I'll buy a good daily SPF lotion and be done with it.
Wondering if I should sell/give away my digital camera too. (€70 5 years ago, simple 8Mpix Olympus consumer camera)
I've made progress in the study. Its so messy I can hardly tell the difference, but I'm making progress. A box of paper off the floor and combined with another on the shelf - another bit of free floor space :). A little pile of stuff sorted to take into work. A shelf cleared off the bookcase, now with some nicely arranged books. 2 ugly knick-knacks I hated, out! And I've figured out a new system for papers which will reduce the piles decorating my desk chaotically….Just need to clear 1 more smallish draw of old papers and I can enact this.
There seems to be a theme of helping parents divest this week.
OK, I'm pretty good at finding new homes for clothes and general household stuff, but I'm stuck on jars of 5 and 10c coins. Help!
Another box full of stuff gone (to someone who was collecting stuff for a flea market), yeah!
And remembering again WHY I'm doing this:
Less stuff = no need for big house and a car* = lower expenses = freedom to work part time and enjoy life NOW**
*I found out I'd rather live in a tiny apartment in an area I truly love than in a bigger one in an area I don't like.
*small house in cool area = easier to live car-free. It's been 7 weeks since I sold my car and I haven't missed it for one second.
**applied for a part time side job as a bike messenger! Secretly I'm totally stoked about this. Minimum wages but it is something I would love to do. If I had a fancy house and high mortgage I could never do something like this.
OK, I'm pretty good at finding new homes for clothes and general household stuff, but I'm stuck on jars of 5 and 10c coins. Help!
Any collectible coins in there? In the US, 10c coins used to be made of silver and you occasionally still find them in circulation. Maybe there are coins that are worth more than their face value in your jars.
If the idea of looking through coins makes you want to huddle in the corner and rock, then I second donation.
Giggle, I just had an image of you trying to stuff hundreds of 5/10c coins into a little Salvation Army ladies box. And a surprised look on her face when it was too heavy to hold…..
Seriously though, why not give them to a charity collector ( of course there won't be any now you're looking), or take them into Vinnies or something?
OK, I'm pretty good at finding new homes for clothes and general household stuff, but I'm stuck on jars of 5 and 10c coins. Help!
Any collectible coins in there? In the US, 10c coins used to be made of silver and you occasionally still find them in circulation. Maybe there are coins that are worth more than their face value in your jars.
If the idea of looking through coins makes you want to huddle in the corner and rock, then I second donation.
A bank will give you wrappers. Tally them up while watching a redbox or hulu/amazon movie. And then drop them off at your bank. :)
Decluttered my iPad and pc as well: deleted a number of apps, put all the Apple apps I don't use in one folder, and reduced the number of desktop icons on my pc too.Smartphone homescreen decluttered as well: 8 less icons on my homescreen.
I always accumulate a stack of papers ( pamphlets, receipts, clippings, etc) to look at "later". Went thru and recycled 90%. Like to take care of papers when I get them to avoid the pile . donated a dress, nightgown, pants. Tossed several worn socks.
Paper question - especially for Canadians (things vary by country). Has anyone found a site that tells how long to keep documentation?
Background: I figure I can start shredding old CC statements (unless I need one for proof of purchase) and things like that. Fortunately a lot of my billing is online now,which has cut down on the paper. But I am thinking of paperwork for houses I no longer own - how long do the major documents have to be kept? Plus now that the divorce is done, I have put most of the paperwork in a box for storage - but I hope in a year or so to go back and shred 98% of it. And is there anything that qualifies for "keep for almost forever" besides income taxes?
OK, I'm pretty good at finding new homes for clothes and general household stuff, but I'm stuck on jars of 5 and 10c coins. Help!
OK, I'm pretty good at finding new homes for clothes and general household stuff, but I'm stuck on jars of 5 and 10c coins. Help!
Commonwealth (and probably others) has machines you can dump your change into and they'll convert it to electronic money. You can look on your bank's website and see if they do it. Last time I took my bucket in, it was over $200!
I also have some laptops which are no longer at all useable / re-sellable, but which I've hung on to as I didn't know how to clear my personal information from them before recycling. I know I need to remove the hard drive, but how?? I have no computer knowledge at all. Suspect the BF has at least one old computer for which he needs to do the same. Maybe I should make friends with somebody with IT expertise (or even basic general IT knowledge...).Open laptop.
Practical magic, maybe store it in craigslist?
I did it. moved four months ago to a 560 sq ft place with carport from my 1300 ft house with double garage. I just took what I really needed, then for three months I went back for things I discovered I needed. There was a huge amount remaining.
I invited friends to come and take whatever they wanted. I took some things to donate, and I sold the few things of significant value. Then I had a huge sale. Didn't make much money but the stuff found a home. Everything left went out on the driveway with a free sign. Then I had the trash people pick up the rest. Had painters and handyman and carpet installers and cleaners spend a busy week.
Put it on the market and sold it in four days. Escrow closes April ten.
Hooray.
MMM wrote about this (of course) (http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/08/11/get-rich-with-craigslist/)
I did it. moved four months ago to a 560 sq ft place with carport from my 1300 ft house with double garage. I just took what I really needed, then for three months I went back for things I discovered I needed. There was a huge amount remaining.Awesome! You are inspiring us to do something similar though at a smaller scale. We are going from 1200+ sqft to 900 sqft. Your idea of moving the must haves and then decluttering is brilliant. Going to run it by the husband!
I invited friends to come and take whatever they wanted. I took some things to donate, and I sold the few things of significant value. Then I had a huge sale. Didn't make much money but the stuff found a home. Everything left went out on the driveway with a free sign. Then I had the trash people pick up the rest. Had painters and handyman and carpet installers and cleaners spend a busy week.
Put it on the market and sold it in four days. Escrow closes April ten.
Hooray.
OK, I'm pretty good at finding new homes for clothes and general household stuff, but I'm stuck on jars of 5 and 10c coins. Help!
Long story short, when we got DH's stuff out of storage last year, there were 3 or 4 jars of coins, ie loose change. We've picked out all the high value coins and spent them, but now we're down to 5 and 10c coins - 3 jars worth. We can't use them up on parking, cos the meters are all restricted to a maximum number of coins (although we could probably get through a few 10c coings) plus they don't accept 5c coins these days. I'm guessing there's maybe $10 worth of shrapnel, give or take a bit.
What's the best way to get rid of it? I'm happy to give it away to charity. I've even considered dumping the coins on a footpath near a school for kids to find. I could possibly take it to a bank and see if they'll count it for us, but neither of us have done it in 6 months, so unlikely to happen any time soon - we just never go to a bank, and dunno which ones will accept piles of coins from non-business customers. (I've read that the US has Coinstar which would be awesome, but I don't think such a thing exists here)
Feels like such a stupid thing to be stuck on, but I just want them gone now.
What do you do with things you know u'll need in a year or two? We have a ton of baby stuff that we know we'll use for baby#2. We are also moving from a two bedroom apartment to a one bed one and have extra furniture. We are planning to move back to a two bed apartment next year. Should I keep them in storage or just sell and rebuy?
What do you do with things you know u'll need in a year or two? We have a ton of baby stuff that we know we'll use for baby#2. We are also moving from a two bedroom apartment to a one bed one and have extra furniture. We are planning to move back to a two bed apartment next year. Should I keep them in storage or just sell and rebuy?
This is cool.
The other day I was going through my cupboards, and noticed I had plenty of empty space in them. Looked around the apartment, on the table, on my desk etc, and there just wasn't any stuff to store in the cupboards!
So next step: ditch a cupboard.?
(please forgive me if I use the wrong word for closet/cupboard/cabinet ;) )
To all the declutterers on this thread, I am curious to know…with all of this de-cluttering are you finding that you are no longer bringing much into the house? Is the act of getting rid of so much stuff that once cost money and now has no use to you causing you to shift your shopping mindset?
What habits have you changed since you started on this quest?
To all the declutterers on this thread, I am curious to know…with all of this de-cluttering are you finding that you are no longer bringing much into the house? Is the act of getting rid of so much stuff that once cost money and now has no use to you causing you to shift your shopping mindset?
What habits have you changed since you started on this quest?
To all the declutterers on this thread, I am curious to know…with all of this de-cluttering are you finding that you are no longer bringing much into the house? Is the act of getting rid of so much stuff that once cost money and now has no use to you causing you to shift your shopping mindset?
What habits have you changed since you started on this quest?
To all the declutterers on this thread, I am curious to know…with all of this de-cluttering are you finding that you are no longer bringing much into the house? Is the act of getting rid of so much stuff that once cost money and now has no use to you causing you to shift your shopping mindset?
What habits have you changed since you started on this quest?
I think decluttering has changed my procrastination habit.
To all the declutterers on this thread, I am curious to know…with all of this de-cluttering are you finding that you are no longer bringing much into the house? Is the act of getting rid of so much stuff that once cost money and now has no use to you causing you to shift your shopping mindset?
What habits have you changed since you started on this quest?
Went through a garbage bag of teddy bears that my adult daughter had collected out of her little siblings bedrooms. Only kept out 3 for sentimental value. I should really start a box for each child with a few special things from their childhood. Does anyone else do this?
Wow, there is some serious decluttering going on on this thread. I do not have any to report per se, however the feeling of ease and enjoyment in our uncluttered spaces continues unabated. My uncle came over the other day and could not stop talking about how beautifully we had fixed the house up and how great the new paint job looks. Of course nothing has been painted, or fixed up, I simply decluttered and am keeping each room clutter-free.
I still have a lot of papers in storage right now which need to be tossed/scanned/filed but they can wait until after Christmas.
I am working on how to declutter my Christmas preparation which still includes loads of presents, mailing cards and having a big messy wrapping station on the dining room table. I have managed to use almost every gift in my gift drawer and do not plan to continue to have one. I am using up all the old wrapping and ribbon and cards (I am ashamed to say that I am actually using some that someone else was tossing out). I find the mess created by having the wrapping stuff out for more than one day is messing with my serenity. Note to self…not doing that next year.
Next year I want to cut back on the number of kids we give gifts to and put the Christmas card info into a database so I can print labels. I know the card thing is outdated but it is an old fashioned thing I like and it is a way of keeping in touch with elderly friends abroad.
I aslo want to move more and more into baking gifts instead of buying them.
One final part, we have always driven around delivering to houses, and it takes a lot of time and energy. When we were younger it was like an all day party but now it is a slog. I definitely want to examine this for next year.
Do any of you guys make this time of year too complicated?
Does anyone else have "guilt" over donating? I feel guilty giving away stuff that is still good, that could be sold for at least a little $ back. Even though I know the items help others in need (well, it goes to a store, is sold and part of the profit goes toward helping others), it feels wasteful. And hence why i have TOO MUCH STUFF.
I have been struggling with this. For example, i have a plastic bin FULL of shoes of my daughters. Some are new but most are lightly used (from infant to age 6). It's a bin that if i donated them all, would give me an extra bin to used to pack the house for our (possible) move this summer. And yet, i haven't been able to do it yet....
I know it's weird, in a rummage sale i MIGHT get .25 - $1.00 per pair. It would likely add up to < $20 IF i sold every pair in the bin. Lots of extra work for maybe $20 or a 2 minute decision to put them in the donate bag and reclaim that bin.
With a LOT of time and effort you could make a tiny bit of money by selling them.
Just do the math and decide how much your time is worth to you.
Does anyone else have "guilt" over donating? I feel guilty giving away stuff that is still good, that could be sold for at least a little $ back. Even though I know the items help others in need (well, it goes to a store, is sold and part of the profit goes toward helping others), it feels wasteful. And hence why i have TOO MUCH STUFF.
I have been struggling with this. For example, i have a plastic bin FULL of shoes of my daughters. Some are new but most are lightly used (from infant to age 6). It's a bin that if i donated them all, would give me an extra bin to used to pack the house for our (possible) move this summer. And yet, i haven't been able to do it yet....
I know it's weird, in a rummage sale i MIGHT get .25 - $1.00 per pair. It would likely add up to < $20 IF i sold every pair in the bin. Lots of extra work for maybe $20 or a 2 minute decision to put them in the donate bag and reclaim that bin.
"these things I had weren't bringing me any pleasure, they were a burden. Acquiring them was fun, but in a weird way, that meant they had fulfilled their purpose. Using them up was not fun, and it has put me off buying anything else, and encouraged me to unload those things I don't use and want anymore."
since I started decluttering plm 3 months ago I hardly bought anything apart from food, but I doubt I would have if I hadn't been decluttering
Theadvicist,
What you said really resonates with me:Quote"these things I had weren't bringing me any pleasure, they were a burden. Acquiring them was fun, but in a weird way, that meant they had fulfilled their purpose. Using them up was not fun, and it has put me off buying anything else, and encouraged me to unload those things I don't use and want anymore."
I have heard of people who buy things and then return them the next day and also people who have dozens of brand new clothes in the closet with tags still on and I suspect that the fun was only in the shopping for those people as well.
Shopping can really bring my spirits up and can be an unhealthy way to fill a hole inside, and I am not even much of a shopper compared to the average Joe.
After clearing out on and off over the last nine months I still feel weighed down by the burden of stuff.
The other day I said to my dh: Imagine living in a house where everything is in good working order, is easy to reach when you need it, where everything has its place and you know where it is; imagine having no huge list of chores involving tossing out, repairing, darning, cleaning things; imagine being in a house with every closet space neatly organised with lots of empty space; imagine going outside and all the tools for gardening are within reach and properly maintained; imagine only having clothes you use and love in your closet...
I realise that I have been overwhelmed by the excess of stuff for years. I would love to move to a small house with a small garden and fewer things AND I still enjoy the beauty of where we live now, I just need to simplify a LOT more in order to enjoy it more fully, especially since my dh is not intending to move.
The other day I said to my dh: Imagine living in a house where everything is in good working order, is easy to reach when you need it, where everything has its place and you know where it is; imagine having no huge list of chores involving tossing out, repairing, darning, cleaning things; imagine being in a house with every closet space neatly organised with lots of empty space; imagine going outside and all the tools for gardening are within reach and properly maintained; imagine only having clothes you use and love in your closet...
Once I read a thing (sorry, no reference) that said, "If the power was out at night, could you find a pair of scissors?" For myself, I just laugh at that thought but I have two friends who answered, "Yes" without hesitation. Astounding!
It seems that several things are interlinked for me. Too much stuff, to do lists that are never tackled and involve said stuff, being drained by all the undone things, gaining and losing weight so that I have several wardrobes of clothes leading to more feelings of overwhelm, etc etc etc.
One day at a time.
It seems that several things are interlinked for me. Too much stuff, to do lists that are never tackled and involve said stuff, being drained by all the undone things, gaining and losing weight so that I have several wardrobes of clothes leading to more feelings of overwhelm, etc etc etc.
One day at a time.
Sibley,
That sounds good. I did not send Christmas cards for years and am really enjoying the exchange. I just need to make it simpler like you have. I was going to take a photo and have cards made but I suspect that would be pretty pricey. I was thinking of sending a picture to some website for that-does anyone know a good economical site for that?
Often, I would know I didn't want something, but I had to get rid of it in the 'best' way possible - by using it up, or donating it, or recycling it. Things that could not be donated (such as part used toiletries) gave me the most grief.
Often, I would know I didn't want something, but I had to get rid of it in the 'best' way possible - by using it up, or donating it, or recycling it. Things that could not be donated (such as part used toiletries) gave me the most grief.
Sounds like me. I'm pretty good at going through the to-do list but theses little things just throw me off! I don't want to waste! things are worth something! And so many websites just say "throw it out," but I feel bad. I guess I feel bad either way, but sometimes the guilt is enough to motivate me to just use it up at a slightly accelerated rate. advicist what did you end up doing with those toiletries, may I ask?
Once we had 14+ baby blankets and my husband was having a hard time convincing me to put them in the give-away box. He said, "Think of all the cold babies..." That was all it took!
Sometimes, for me, picturing someone else finding usefulness in my discarded item (which still has plenty of good use left in it!) makes it easier to give it away.
I still have this little corner filled with some things I'd like to sell. Obviously sellings not my thing,,, I wouldn't bother except these things are worth something. Ill need to ask a friend/family for help with this, as I've never done this before. I'm such a procrastinator jeez.. I think its a fear of getting ripped off, feeling like I messed up because I don't know any better. Of course if I ask for help & do research of values that would likely solve that .
<SNIP>
Wow, that was an essay, sorry.
I love this thread. I too feel "guilty" about getting rid of items not the "right way." or I think "someday I will use it!!" so I still have school supplies from high school in a drawer... and I graduated almost ten years ago.
ok y'all are inspiring me to get at it again this weekend. wish me luck!
I still have this little corner filled with some things I'd like to sell. Obviously sellings not my thing,,, I wouldn't bother except these things are worth something. Ill need to ask a friend/family for help with this, as I've never done this before. I'm such a procrastinator jeez.. I think its a fear of getting ripped off, feeling like I messed up because I don't know any better. Of course if I ask for help & do research of values that would likely solve that .
This was how I felt when I started too. I was afraid of screwing up, or getting ripped off because I'd never done it before. I still have a pile in the corner, but I'm working through it one at a time. The first time someone responded to my ad and came over and gave me money for something I just wanted to be rid of it was very exciting. I used that excitement to motivate me to put up more items for sale.
My advice is to just pick one thing in your pile that is likely to sell. Take a look and see what other people are selling it for in your area, or another city. Take some pics and post it for sale. One thing is not as overwhelming as an entire pile. You'll learn as you go and it'll get easier. If you are anything like me, you'll never learn by procrastinating.
That said, some things sell quickly, others take some time. If you don't get any responses right away don't worry about it, just move on to the next thing. I put up a few things over a month ago and stopped thinking about them. Just got an email today asking if one of them is still available.
One thing that still does help me with the eco-guilt is to tell myself the resources have already been used. The stuff that went into making that product is used up, committed, even if I never throw it away the result is the same. I feel better about washing 'perfectly good' cleanser or something down the sink when I think of this because I am freeing up the bottle to be recycled into something useful.
The money is gone, and there is no point crying over spilt milk. Instead, I remind myself that if getting rid of stuff is so hard for me the easiest thing is not to accumulate stuff in the first place. So now, if I am even slightly unsure or hesitant about a purchase the answer is always NO.
.
Today, we went to the zoo. I have 2 old sunscreens that are now a bit chuncky (zinc oxide), but they still work fine. I would rather use the brand new one, but I used the older ones. I think however I will now start using the old ones on the body and the new one on the face. That might be the best of both worlds. Or should I just throw them out?
.
Today, we went to the zoo. I have 2 old sunscreens that are now a bit chuncky (zinc oxide), but they still work fine. I would rather use the brand new one, but I used the older ones. I think however I will now start using the old ones on the body and the new one on the face. That might be the best of both worlds. Or should I just throw them out?
You could try and melt them down, adding a little neutral carrier oil if you need to and reusing. When doing things like this, I reuse old glass jars to melt in as it will probably leave a film that is a royal PITA to clean out afterwards.
School supplies: once our neighbour gave us a big ziploc full of pens, pencils and pencil crayons. It was such a blessing to us at the time because we were homeschooling and quite broke with our young, large family. The kids were over the moon excited about getting that gift, so don't underestimate how valuable those school supplies might be to someone if you give them away! :-)
I realised an awful to of my stuff I kept out of a sense of obligation or commitment to the item: "you bought it, so you have to use it", or the item had been gifted to me and somehow I was obligated to use it out of respect to the giver. "Waste not, want not" is also lingering around somewhere in my brain too.
With clothes, I do have a few favourites that spark joy, but an awful lot of dross. It did help me release quite a lot of clothes: ones that I actually actively disliked but kept because they were still good. Most of the ones I wear now I am at least neutral about. I didn't want to throw everything out as I would have nothing left and am on the no buy clothes challenge. So I just shelled out the worst, and kept a smaller amount
I still have this little corner filled with some things I'd like to sell. Obviously sellings not my thing,,, I wouldn't bother except these things are worth something. Ill need to ask a friend/family for help with this, as I've never done this before. I'm such a procrastinator jeez.. I think its a fear of getting ripped off, feeling like I messed up because I don't know any better. Of course if I ask for help & do research of values that would likely solve that .
This was how I felt when I started too. I was afraid of screwing up, or getting ripped off because I'd never done it before. I still have a pile in the corner, but I'm working through it one at a time. The first time someone responded to my ad and came over and gave me money for something I just wanted to be rid of it was very exciting. I used that excitement to motivate me to put up more items for sale.
My advice is to just pick one thing in your pile that is likely to sell. Take a look and see what other people are selling it for in your area, or another city. Take some pics and post it for sale. One thing is not as overwhelming as an entire pile. You'll learn as you go and it'll get easier. If you are anything like me, you'll never learn by procrastinating.
That said, some things sell quickly, others take some time. If you don't get any responses right away don't worry about it, just move on to the next thing. I put up a few things over a month ago and stopped thinking about them. Just got an email today asking if one of them is still available.
What do you do with clothing which you know you'll get into but have no idea how it'll fit? I'm getting back into shape after pregnancy this year and still have some baby fat to burn off. I'm starting to fit into some of my old clothes but have a long way to go with the rest. Even before baby, I usually go from 130 to 150 and back pretty easily. As a result, my closet is a hodge podge of sizes :( though I wish I can be 130 and stick to it all the time, I know I'd gain weight again and need the larger clothes.
Now I have my maternity wear to consider too (we'll be having another kid in one-three years). 75% of my clothes don't spark any joy since they are not the right fit for my current size (can fit and give joy at another weight point of mine) or because they can't be worn daily (I have a lot of cultural dresses that are very beautiful but I won't wear them more than maybe once a year!).
As a result, my closet is a mess with so many clothes but nothing to wear :( any ideas how to tackle this issue?
Most of the ones I wear now I am at least neutral about. I didn't want to throw everything out as I would have nothing left and am on the no buy clothes challenge. So I just shelled out the worst, and kept a smaller amount
What do you do with clothing which you know you'll get into but have no idea how it'll fit? I'm getting back into shape after pregnancy this year and still have some baby fat to burn off. I'm starting to fit into some of my old clothes but have a long way to go with the rest. Even before baby, I usually go from 130 to 150 and back pretty easily. As a result, my closet is a hodge podge of sizes :( though I wish I can be 130 and stick to it all the time, I know I'd gain weight again and need the larger clothes.
Now I have my maternity wear to consider too (we'll be having another kid in one-three years). 75% of my clothes don't spark any joy since they are not the right fit for my current size (can fit and give joy at another weight point of mine) or because they can't be worn daily (I have a lot of cultural dresses that are very beautiful but I won't wear them more than maybe once a year!).
As a result, my closet is a mess with so many clothes but nothing to wear :( any ideas how to tackle this issue?
What do you do with clothing which you know you'll get into but have no idea how it'll fit? I'm getting back into shape after pregnancy this year and still have some baby fat to burn off. I'm starting to fit into some of my old clothes but have a long way to go with the rest. Even before baby, I usually go from 130 to 150 and back pretty easily. As a result, my closet is a hodge podge of sizes :( though I wish I can be 130 and stick to it all the time, I know I'd gain weight again and need the larger clothes.
Now I have my maternity wear to consider too (we'll be having another kid in one-three years). 75% of my clothes don't spark any joy since they are not the right fit for my current size (can fit and give joy at another weight point of mine) or because they can't be worn daily (I have a lot of cultural dresses that are very beautiful but I won't wear them more than maybe once a year!).
As a result, my closet is a mess with so many clothes but nothing to wear :( any ideas how to tackle this issue?
Mmmm, that sounds tough. Can you set a max on the amount of clothes you have for each size? Like, 1 or 2 cardboard boxes for 130 lbs, 1-2 for 140, and so on? Then keep your current size in your closet and swap out as you change.
I open the closet to get dressed sometimes and think I would love to just get rid of most everything. Of course that is crazy and I would never do that.
This thread is inspiring. Cleaning out jackets, shoes and baby clothes today.
Also finally using up the last of free samples of soap - took six months to work thru my stash. I still have a small amount left but will keep it for camping. Way easier than lugging around bigger ones or buying new travel sized ones. Next on list is samples of moisturizers and body lotions.
Thanks everyone! Boxing up clothes based on weight it's a brilliant idea!! Will report back how it goes.
Sibley, the cause for my weight loss and gain are poor diet and exercise. When I'm busy, I tend to slack in diet and exercise and hit 150 quickly. When I have time, I concentrate in these two and my weight comes down to 130. Can't wait to fire so I have enough time to keep my weight at 130.
Just a few suggestions on places which might accept your unwanted that you might not have thought of, and which will keep this stuff out of the landfill:
Women's emergency shelters: mini-toiletries from hotels, cosmetics/lotions etc in 'nearly-new' condition.
Youth shelters/Boys and Girls clubs: anything school related including backpacks, school supplies or general art/craft supplies. Socks and winter clothes are needed at most shelters.
Animal shelters: old towels and blankets to make institutional steel cages a little more comfortable and less stressful, grocery bags for litter disposal.
Habitat for Humanity 'Restore' outlets: building supplies in reusable condition such as lumber, drywall, plumbing or electrical fixtures and even furniture and artwork.
Most places have lists of needed 'donations in kind' right on their websites. I had two boxes of random leftover skeins of wool that went to the YWCA. The 'Y-Knit' program distributes it to knitting programs in senior's lodges, where the knitters make booties and caps to keep premature babies warm in hospital incubators. Double win!
Over the weekend I went through my closet, which I thought I had pretty much been through a few months ago. I used the Konmari method of touching each item and seeing how I felt about it, along with thanking the items I chose to release. It was very easy and relaxing, and I have 3 big plastic bins full of things to let go of. I'm not set up to do her style of folding -- I don't have a dresser and all my shelves are above eye level, so I need to hang things and stack them flat rather than vertically -- but everything is very tidy in my closet right now.
I'm trying to organize a clothing swap with some of my pals. Hopefully we can do it in the month of April. My goal will be to bring almost nothing out of the swap though -- only if something is perfect and I love it (not just think it might be useful someday or something). We're moving this summer so I need to vastly reduce the size of my junkload, not add it to it.
Another good article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/boomers-unwanted-inheritance/2015/03/27/0e75ff6e-45c4-11e4-b437-1a7368204804_story.html
Stuff it: Millenials nix their parents' treasures.
Millennials dont' want all the things their Baby Boomer parents want to pass down to them. There is a lot of stuff now that nobody seems to want.
I'm still tallying everything up for my 2015 things out of the house in 2015 personal challenge. Just broke 750 items! And still, I have not missed a single one!
Just broke 750 items! And still, I have not missed a single one!I didn't keep count, but I haven't missed one thing, too. (Not even my car)
Well done cookie!
That's awesome! I'm around 310 items now, but same thing as you, haven't missed a single thing! I was amazed going through the garage this weekend at the stuff I found that I'd forgotten completely about.
I didn't keep count, but I haven't missed one thing, too. (Not even my car)
Found this article in an other thread. Pretty much nails it imo.Another good article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/boomers-unwanted-inheritance/2015/03/27/0e75ff6e-45c4-11e4-b437-1a7368204804_story.html
Stuff it: Millenials nix their parents' treasures.
Millennials dont' want all the things their Baby Boomer parents want to pass down to them. There is a lot of stuff now that nobody seems to want.
Found this article in an other thread. Pretty much nails it imo.Another good article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/boomers-unwanted-inheritance/2015/03/27/0e75ff6e-45c4-11e4-b437-1a7368204804_story.html
Stuff it: Millenials nix their parents' treasures.
Millennials dont' want all the things their Baby Boomer parents want to pass down to them. There is a lot of stuff now that nobody seems to want.
Yeah, I'll be dealing with this. My mom has a lot of things that were passed on by family, plus whatever else she's accumulated. Some things I want, I'm sure my sister wants some things, but the majority we do not want. Luckily, mom isn't a pack rat and is working on clearing out. I suspect that what will happen eventually is we'll offer things to family/friends, then sell or donate whatever's left.
Though the really hard part will be I know there's a few things that both my sister and I want!
@theadvicist, My son needs a wallet! Haha! Am I the only one here who reads other people's lists and thinks, "Oh my gosh, I totally would have taken that!"? (Not sure if I've punctuated that correctly, but you get my drift)
@theadvicist, My son needs a wallet! Haha! Am I the only one here who reads other people's lists and thinks, "Oh my gosh, I totally would have taken that!"? (Not sure if I've punctuated that correctly, but you get my drift)
Yep, I do too! Don't worry though, he can go and pick it up at the charity shop now!
@theadvicist, My son needs a wallet! Haha! Am I the only one here who reads other people's lists and thinks, "Oh my gosh, I totally would have taken that!"? (Not sure if I've punctuated that correctly, but you get my drift)
Yep, I do too! Don't worry though, he can go and pick it up at the charity shop now!
@theadvicist, My son needs a wallet! Haha! Am I the only one here who reads other people's lists and thinks, "Oh my gosh, I totally would have taken that!"? (Not sure if I've punctuated that correctly, but you get my drift)
Yep, I do too! Don't worry though, he can go and pick it up at the charity shop now!
Maybe instead of just meet ups, we should have item swap meet ups?
Found this article in an other thread. Pretty much nails it imo.Another good article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/boomers-unwanted-inheritance/2015/03/27/0e75ff6e-45c4-11e4-b437-1a7368204804_story.html
Stuff it: Millenials nix their parents' treasures.
Millennials dont' want all the things their Baby Boomer parents want to pass down to them. There is a lot of stuff now that nobody seems to want.
Yeah, I'll be dealing with this. My mom has a lot of things that were passed on by family, plus whatever else she's accumulated. Some things I want, I'm sure my sister wants some things, but the majority we do not want. Luckily, mom isn't a pack rat and is working on clearing out. I suspect that what will happen eventually is we'll offer things to family/friends, then sell or donate whatever's left.
Though the really hard part will be I know there's a few things that both my sister and I want!
Great article! This was the mindset I had when I was decluttering. Deal with things now instead of 10/20/30 years later - I never want to be a situation where other people have to clean out massive piles of stuff on my behalf (upon death, etc).
Should I just donate it all and be free and happy? Or try to wring some money out of these things that are owning me? Is it ok to just let it go?
I know, I have problems...
That's good to hear! So did you do as she suggests, and put out ALL your clothes (on the floor or on the bed) to go through them all at once? I haven't taken that big step yet, but I am close to doing it!
That's good to hear! So did you do as she suggests, and put out ALL your clothes (on the floor or on the bed) to go through them all at once? I haven't taken that big step yet, but I am close to doing it!
I just took everything out of one drawer and didn't let myself stop until I had gone through each item. Many were maybes, so I tried them all on. I realized that some shirts I was keeping because they 'fit' but they were mostly from a spending spree 3 years ago (at the beginning of my pregnancy) and they all had the elastic band at the bottom that was the style at the time. Which BTW is the worst possible style for a pear shaped gal like myself. But to really acknowledge the usefulness I had gained and respectfully thank the item before letting it go, really helped me let go of many more things. I'm going to try and keep going today, but it is Easter too.
That's good to hear! So did you do as she suggests, and put out ALL your clothes (on the floor or on the bed) to go through them all at once? I haven't taken that big step yet, but I am close to doing it!
Everything hanging in my closet, I shoved way to one side. Then I took each item off the bar, considered it, and either hung it back up in the empty part of the closet or said goodbye and put it in the bin.
Folded items, I took down and put on the bed, then made me decisions and chose what I wanted to keep and recorded each item. Some of the, went in tht bin, others went back on the shelf ...
OTOH, it's surprising that some simple pieces like a gray v-neck t that fits me perfectly does spark joy, and obviously gets to stay.
That's good to hear! So did you do as she suggests, and put out ALL your clothes (on the floor or on the bed) to go through them all at once? I haven't taken that big step yet, but I am close to doing it!
Everything hanging in my closet, I shoved way to one side. Then I took each item off the bar, considered it, and either hung it back up in the empty part of the closet or said goodbye and put it in the bin.
Folded items, I took down and put on the bed, then made me decisions and chose what I wanted to keep and recorded each item. Some of the, went in tht bin, others went back on the shelf ...
That's great, Miss Madge! Yesterday I decided to go for it, and started with tank/sleeveless tops. Placing them all on the bed, there were over 50! It got easier as I went along. Like Handsnhearts did, I held up the item or tried it on to decide if it sparked joy, then thanked the discards for their years of service. I would never have thought to do that and it was like free therapy! Marie Kondo points out that some items had served their purpose just by giving you excitement when you first saw them at the store, or by showing you what styles work and don't work for you. This was incredibly liberating for me. I did the KonMari fold on my tops and am enjoying the "crayons in a box" feeling of the drawers!
That's good to hear! So did you do as she suggests, and put out ALL your clothes (on the floor or on the bed) to go through them all at once? I haven't taken that big step yet, but I am close to doing it!
Everything hanging in my closet, I shoved way to one side. Then I took each item off the bar, considered it, and either hung it back up in the empty part of the closet or said goodbye and put it in the bin.
Folded items, I took down and put on the bed, then made me decisions and chose what I wanted to keep and recorded each item. Some of the, went in tht bin, others went back on the shelf ...
That's great, Miss Madge! Yesterday I decided to go for it, and started with tank/sleeveless tops. Placing them all on the bed, there were over 50! It got easier as I went along. Like Handsnhearts did, I held up the item or tried it on to decide if it sparked joy, then thanked the discards for their years of service. I would never have thought to do that and it was like free therapy! Marie Kondo points out that some items had served their purpose just by giving you excitement when you first saw them at the store, or by showing you what styles work and don't work for you. This was incredibly liberating for me. I did the KonMari fold on my tops and am enjoying the "crayons in a box" feeling of the drawers!
Practical Magic That drawer is beautiful! Does KonMari call it 'crayons in a box' or is that yours? It is both beautiful and exciting like opening a fresh box of unused, brand-new crayons. Oh the possibilities!
I'm a bit sad. I've been clearing out my parents' attic and found a lot of my old toys. Most of them aren't worth keeping or donating, and some are borderline. (As in, could be donated or maybe sold, but really likely not due to too much wear and tear.) But I'm just kind of sad to dump them in the trash. I mean, I'm 43 w/no kids, so it's not like I'm going to be playing with them, but it's still sad saying goodbye to things that were good friends when I was a kid (only child, so toys were kind of friends at times). I know I have no room or need for them, but it's just a tearjerker. I'm reminded again that growing up kind of sucks.
I'm a bit sad. I've been clearing out my parents' attic and found a lot of my old toys. Most of them aren't worth keeping or donating, and some are borderline. (As in, could be donated or maybe sold, but really likely not due to too much wear and tear.) But I'm just kind of sad to dump them in the trash. I mean, I'm 43 w/no kids, so it's not like I'm going to be playing with them, but it's still sad saying goodbye to things that were good friends when I was a kid (only child, so toys were kind of friends at times). I know I have no room or need for them, but it's just a tearjerker. I'm reminded again that growing up kind of sucks.
Do you have any friends with kids that might appreciate vintage toys? I know I sure would, especially if they came from a friend.
I have a couple of things listed in eBay. I started at a fairly low price and looks like it would sell for that price. However I have this mental block that I should be getting more money for that stuff. I listed at $60 and the electronic item is worth $200. I had earlier listed it at $100 and no one bid.Stuff is worth what someone will pay. Your marketing approach can influence that price, but you have to know the market ( best venue for selling, righ time of year, right key words, photos, etc.). Some items I just list as Buy it Now on eBay and bide my time until someone buys. Other items are always in demand and those work better for an auction format sale.
On one hand I just want it off my house. On the other, I know the actual value is higher and I feel bad for giving away the item. How do I convince myself its OK to let go of the (perceived) value of the item?
I have a couple of things listed in eBay. I started at a fairly low price and looks like it would sell for that price. However I have this mental block that I should be getting more money for that stuff. I listed at $60 and the electronic item is worth $200. I had earlier listed it at $100 and no one bid.Stuff is worth what someone will pay. Your marketing approach can influence that price, but you have to know the market ( best venue for selling, righ time of year, right key words, photos, etc.). Some items I just list as Buy it Now on eBay and bide my time until someone buys. Other items are always in demand and those work better for an auction format sale.
On one hand I just want it off my house. On the other, I know the actual value is higher and I feel bad for giving away the item. How do I convince myself its OK to let go of the (perceived) value of the item?
I did buy some fabric at the weekend though, so I need to concentrate on making up some things before I buy any more. I worked on a top yesterday, but it's a finicky fabric and I wasn't enjoying myself. Hope to cut out a few more things at the weekend, concentrating on using up large scraps so they are out of my life once and for all. I see a few new tank tops in my future!
Still trying to convince my wife and youngest 2 daughters to get on board with minimizing. My youngest is borderline Asperger's... she hangs on to every little piece of cardboard and junk.
Last night, wife told them "You either clean the room or I'm going to get a big bucket and do it myself!" which she's threatened numerous times, and never follows through on. I said "I have a big plastic tub available, would you like me to go get it right now??"
I'm going to bring the tub in today, and it's not moving from the center of the room till it's full. My girls are absolute hoarders, I won't even go in their room any more, my oldest daughter can't even stand it. My wife is so flustered with all the housework of cleaning up after the pack rats that she doesn't know what to do.
Plastic Tub is my new best friend. And he's hungry.
I have a couple of things listed in eBay. I started at a fairly low price and looks like it would sell for that price. However I have this mental block that I should be getting more money for that stuff. I listed at $60 and the electronic item is worth $200. I had earlier listed it at $100 and no one bid.It's only actually worth what someone will pay you for it. Regardless of what you think it is worth. If it is worth more, find someone to pay more. If said person is not to be found, they don't exist. :) it's OK to let it go.
On one hand I just want it off my house. On the other, I know the actual value is higher and I feel bad for giving away the item. How do I convince myself its OK to let go of the (perceived) value of the item?
If the reasons were "I like it and I use it" that would be fine. My aim is a house that only contains things I enjoy (and by that I mean enjoy seeing and/or using). But those aren't the reasons. The main ones seem to be 'That cost me a lot of money!', yet I have researched Ebay and now know it to be basically worthless. I need to let this stuff go. The money is gone. Holding onto the item when I don't use it is just a kind of punishment.
I don't want to give it to friends/family because that just feels like giving them a burden. And in the UK, charity shops don't sell electricals. I think Freecycle is my next stop.
Get rid of the phone book for good by opting out. Saves you time by never having to recycle it again and is environmentally friendly. https://www.yellowpagesoptout.com/
in the UK, charity shops don't sell electricals. I think Freecycle is my next stop.
I'm a bit sad. I've been clearing out my parents' attic and found a lot of my old toys. Most of them aren't worth keeping or donating, and some are borderline. (As in, could be donated or maybe sold, but really likely not due to too much wear and tear.) But I'm just kind of sad to dump them in the trash. I mean, I'm 43 w/no kids, so it's not like I'm going to be playing with them, but it's still sad saying goodbye to things that were good friends when I was a kid (only child, so toys were kind of friends at times). I know I have no room or need for them, but it's just a tearjerker. I'm reminded again that growing up kind of sucks.
I have a couple of things listed in eBay. I started at a fairly low price and looks like it would sell for that price. However I have this mental block that I should be getting more money for that stuff. I listed at $60 and the electronic item is worth $200. I had earlier listed it at $100 and no one bid.
On one hand I just want it off my house. On the other, I know the actual value is higher and I feel bad for giving away the item. How do I convince myself its OK to let go of the (perceived) value of the item?
If my life was an old-fashioned novel this chapter would be entitled, "In Which They Discover That the Kitchen is Not Too Small".
So true.
I like the concept with Freecycle, but I have a problem with people not picking things up as agreed. I was trying to give away binders and after several people wanted them and then flaked on me, I gave up and took them away to the dump instead.
in the UK, charity shops don't sell electricals. I think Freecycle is my next stop.
British Heart Foundation. They have some shops which are clothes etc. but others which are furniture and electricals.
You may also have a local auction which sells electricals (usually the auctions at the lower end of the market, which also means cheaper - I have a reasonably local one that charges £1 per item plus commission, so I can give something one go pretty cheaply ), although they will need a safety check before hand (the auction may do this for you).
If my life was an old-fashioned novel this chapter would be entitled, "In Which They Discover That the Kitchen is Not Too Small". I finally cleared out all of the stuff we don't need or want to move and it's taking up half the dining room table. Trying to sell it, but if no one wants it we'll give it to the charity shop and see if they can find any takers.
Our kitchen now is not only cleaner, it's downright spacious! Who knew?
So true.
I like the concept with Freecycle, but I have a problem with people not picking things up as agreed. I was trying to give away binders and after several people wanted them and then flaked on me, I gave up and took them away to the dump instead.
CommonCents, you had reminded me exactly why I let my group membership lapse... when people are picking things up for free they seem less committed to turning up. I wish the dump had a room you could just leave interesting stuff for others to look through and take for free. Each bay could be dated with a week commencing date when it will just be landfilled if no-one has taken it.
I'm looking forward to the chapter in my book titled " In Which The Craft Room Can Be Used Again"If my life was an old-fashioned novel this chapter would be entitled, "In Which They Discover That the Kitchen is Not Too Small". I finally cleared out all of the stuff we don't need or want to move and it's taking up half the dining room table. Trying to sell it, but if no one wants it we'll give it to the charity shop and see if they can find any takers.
Our kitchen now is not only cleaner, it's downright spacious! Who knew?
I feel this way about my garage, and I've only just begun! :D
I'm looking forward to the chapter in my book titled " In Which The Craft Room Can Be Used Again"If my life was an old-fashioned novel this chapter would be entitled, "In Which They Discover That the Kitchen is Not Too Small". I finally cleared out all of the stuff we don't need or want to move and it's taking up half the dining room table. Trying to sell it, but if no one wants it we'll give it to the charity shop and see if they can find any takers.
Our kitchen now is not only cleaner, it's downright spacious! Who knew?
I feel this way about my garage, and I've only just begun! :D
I am wavering on paper, it seems overwhelming to tackle. I already went through it all and this is the stuff I chose to keep. Now what to do with it? Most of it needs scanning. Scanning cannot be that hard right?
I'm looking forward to the chapter in my book titled " In Which The Craft Room Can Be Used Again"If my life was an old-fashioned novel this chapter would be entitled, "In Which They Discover That the Kitchen is Not Too Small". I finally cleared out all of the stuff we don't need or want to move and it's taking up half the dining room table. Trying to sell it, but if no one wants it we'll give it to the charity shop and see if they can find any takers.
Our kitchen now is not only cleaner, it's downright spacious! Who knew?
I feel this way about my garage, and I've only just begun! :D
I quite enjoyed my own 'Hey I Can Actually Enter The Spare Bedroom Without Tripping Over".
Sold my PS4 (was being used only as a blu-ray player), two autographed hockey jerseys which had been sitting in a box, several appliances, a large massaging chair, some old unused toys and a mass of baby clothes which we were holding in case someone in our family has a baby(we held onto one large container worth). All told about 1300$ added to my boys RESP accounts by getting rid of some items which we will not even notice has left the house.
Well, a few weeks ago, my house felt amazing! So much less stuff! Nothing on the floor under the shelves, just space, and the shelves themselves no longer crammed full! Chests of drawers that closed all the way and nothing living on top of them! Just gorgeous empty space!
Well, I've clearly got used to it. I was doing a double take every time I saw an empty surface. Now I just see all the other stuff I haven't got rid of.
I need to redouble my efforts, and hope that, eventually, I will appreciate the space permanently, and not just see what's wrong with it.
I have a TON of fabric I want to use up, and figured I could use a bunch of it to make camisoles/tank tops for summer and to wear under things. Anyone have any super simple sewing patterns for that?
This weekend was a big weekend for me. I freecycled an old sewing cabinet and a big bag of bubble wrap plus a box of packing materials. I donated an old suitcase plus a duffel bag to a foster home. I was also able to donate 28 pairs of shoes. I got rid of a broken electronic scale plus some old cell phone batteries and chargers at work as a part of the e-recycling that is available this week. I also recycled about 8 bags of plastic bags, it's amazing how they pile up.
I'm on the last stretch of moving and it feels great to get rid of this stuff! I can't wait to go through everything again to really get down to just what I *actually* need.
I have a TON of fabric I want to use up, and figured I could use a bunch of it to make camisoles/tank tops for summer and to wear under things. Anyone have any super simple sewing patterns for that?
Have gone through closet a little bit, and I have 4 bags full of things to donate. And I just noticed another shirt that I will add to that today.Success, having things bagged up feels good, but actually finding a good local charity and dropping them off feels great! I added 3 more shirts and also grabbed a big box of things from my brother's house that his kids had outgrown and took that in as well.
Love the idea of a rental house as "clutter".
I "declutter" every six months or so but after finishing The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up this weekend, I felt itchy to take another pass at it.
Wow! Very inspiring. I agree with your thoughts on the "Konmarie" method - putting everything in piles really helps !
Whoa.
There really is something to the idea of putting all like items in a pile and then determining which ones really matter. Things look different when they aren't on a shelf. I boxed up 72 volumes! (Would have boxed up many, many more except that the SO is not on board with decluttering, so I could only donate books that are 100% mine.) I was so excited that I tackled the craft closet and gathered two big bags of miscellany that were meant to be projects "someday." It didn't hurt as much as I thought it would.
We made more progress at home this past weekend. I spent a lot of time talking with the wife about the growing clutter in our house, most of which is from our three youngest kids leaving stuff everywhere.
She basically had a nervous breakdown because of the clutter, so we sat and discussed.
I basically described how our kids have unlimited stuff and free time (to them). When you have unlimited money, it doesn't matter how you spend it... and our kids have more stuff and time than they know how to manage. Just like giving a 13-year-old a million dollars, they waste it and don't manage it well. They have to start with nothing and work their way up. They don't work as a team, and are constantly sloughing off responsibilities, too.
I suggested we remove everything that's not essential to their school (and my wife's sanity) and as they learn to manage, slowly give some of it back. They would have to show us they can manage small things before they moved on to bigger and better things.
I'm not sure we're out of the woods yet, but I will push it some more and see what I can get away with. As far as I'm concerned, they can ditch everything and it wouldn't hurt my feelings.
This is so inspiring, but I need to do it for me. DD stuff is still pretty manageable, but it could be cut back. If people would stop giving her the damn stuffed animals! If it is special, great, but factory made from polyester in China by little kids fingers is not special IMO.
I just read this blog post
http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2012/09/14/why-i-took-all-my-kids-toys-away-why-they-wont-get-them-back/ (http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2012/09/14/why-i-took-all-my-kids-toys-away-why-they-wont-get-them-back/)
(and this one) about getting rid of kids stuff
http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2013/09/13/why-i-took-my-kids-toys-away-one-year-later/ (http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2013/09/13/why-i-took-my-kids-toys-away-one-year-later/)
Tomorrow it's kingsday, a day that the Dutch people celebrate the birthday of our king. At this day it's allowed to sell your clutter in parks. So I have collected al my clutter.... Let's hope it will find a new owner tomorrow ;)
My daughter is looking forward to "In Which The Bedroom Is No Longer A Fiber Storage Room".I haven't reached the craft room but this weekend we got through the chapter "In which they discover their house has a gym". It was lovely when the floor was clear and the recycling bin was full. Now my mat's on the floor and I don't have to move it! Exercise equipment can now live next to it as well.I'm looking forward to the chapter in my book titled " In Which The Craft Room Can Be Used Again"If my life was an old-fashioned novel this chapter would be entitled, "In Which They Discover That the Kitchen is Not Too Small". I finally cleared out all of the stuff we don't need or want to move and it's taking up half the dining room table. Trying to sell it, but if no one wants it we'll give it to the charity shop and see if they can find any takers.
Our kitchen now is not only cleaner, it's downright spacious! Who knew?
I feel this way about my garage, and I've only just begun! :D
I quite enjoyed my own 'Hey I Can Actually Enter The Spare Bedroom Without Tripping Over".
Tomorrow it's kingsday, a day that the Dutch people celebrate the birthday of our king. At this day it's allowed to sell your clutter in parks. So I have collected al my clutter.... Let's hope it will find a new owner tomorrow ;)
That's a fun thing to know about, Kander. Hope you do well at your King's Day sale!!
And... confession... I've been holding on to some "smaller" clothes for years now with the hopes of getting back in them. Post cancer (tamoxifen) i gained 30lbs and then i had a baby on top of that. I'm not getting in those clothes. As hard as it was, I put all of them in the donate bag last night. Will be making another pickup load donation this weekend.
@Erica, Maybe the "Life Changing Joy" will come in a few days when you don't have a messy house to cleanup? I would love to be have a non-messy house <sigh>.I don't know....the promise is a house decluttered, and the book delivers on that 110%. But as I was mopping and vacuuming last night I was kinda facing that less stuff =/= less cleaning. Maybe less dusting with knick-nacks and things, but I didn't have so many of those anyway. But my home still has the same square footage to wipe, scrub, vacuum, mop and dust. We will use and dirty the same number of pots and they will have to be washed. I don't want to suggest it's a letdown....because this book made an incredible impact on me, but it's almost one of those, "wherever you go, there you are" kind of realizations. Living vibrantly is messy. Less stuff only marginally changes that.
@Erica, Maybe the "Life Changing Joy" will come in a few days when you don't have a messy house to cleanup? I would love to be have a non-messy house <sigh>.I don't know....the promise is a house decluttered, and the book delivers on that 110%. But as I was mopping and vacuuming last night I was kinda facing that less stuff =/= less cleaning. Maybe less dusting with knick-nacks and things, but I didn't have so many of those anyway. But my home still has the same square footage to wipe, scrub, vacuum, mop and dust. We will use and dirty the same number of pots and they will have to be washed. I don't want to suggest it's a letdown....because this book made an incredible impact on me, but it's almost one of those, "wherever you go, there you are" kind of realizations. Living vibrantly is messy. Less stuff only marginally changes that.
So I did a huge KonMari style purge all last week and was so happy thru the process. I mean, like, giddy with joy at getting rid of all that stuff I don't need.
But now....I'm sad. I can't really explain it other than, I just feel kinda sad. Not specifically about my stuff, and not in any way that makes me want my decluttered possessions back. I just feel rather empty, like maybe I was looking for more life changing and what I got was....just a tidier house? Or maybe it's just a natural comedown after the mission-like focus of the decluttering? I don't know.
Has anyone else ever experience post-tidying melancholy? Is this a normal thing?
An add-on to Erica's comment about feeling a letdown post decluttering...What I have felt is an incredulousness, like 'WTH, there is still more stuff??" I've felt this mostly in the areas of decorative, paperwork, and sentimental items. It's unbelievable how much stuff there still is, after all my efforts! So when I discover more stuff, I take a deep breath, let it out and then tackle it. More papers to scan, items to list on ebay or amazon? Well okay, here we go. I will not let the stuff beat me. GrrrrFor sure. I have that too. "I got rid of all this and ALL THIS is still here?" And once you start the letting go process you realize how little of the stuff actually brings value to you.
An add-on to Erica's comment about feeling a letdown post decluttering...What I have felt is an incredulousness, like 'WTH, there is still more stuff??" I've felt this mostly in the areas of decorative, paperwork, and sentimental items. It's unbelievable how much stuff there still is, after all my efforts! So when I discover more stuff, I take a deep breath, let it out and then tackle it. More papers to scan, items to list on ebay or amazon? Well okay, here we go. I will not let the stuff beat me. GrrrrFor sure. I have that too. "I got rid of all this and ALL THIS is still here?" And once you start the letting go process you realize how little of the stuff actually brings value to you.
But with a few more hours to process this feeling, I think where I am is the conflicting feeling that our home is more than we need. It's just too much. I love my home. We built it, it's in the (to me) perfect location, and it's (most importantly) attached to my garden. But the house itself is 30% too large. I can't ignore that now. The many now-empty drawers, shelves, storage areas, etc. are witness to a life designed to a scale larger than I need.
I don't know how to deal with that. It's an internal conflict. Eventually, I will make peace with it, but for now the in-between space is uncomfortable.
Yup, me too. Our house is at least 30%, possibly 50%, too big. I am mad decluttering, but then I just have empty space that reminds me that we have too much space.Hey, thanks!
We're planning on down-sizing in the next couple of years. And while I don't love the location of our house too much (rural farm house in fields), we've really fixed the inside up to a point I love, it has character, it's in very good condition, and it's still really not expensive. We could probably save a little by down-sizing, but especially considering the risk of the unknown problems of a new house, I think the margin's too small to probably shave off much.
So, I'm torn between wanting the efficiency of smaller and hating the excess of bigger, but not looking forward to all of the work and hassle of moving with little financial benefit and added new risk.
But, in the mean-time I can't stand the clutter, so it's going anyway. Maybe I'll grow to love the empty space (just in time to down size and not have it anymore ;) )
BTW, I love your blog.
Yup, me too. Our house is at least 30%, possibly 50%, too big. I am mad decluttering, but then I just have empty space that reminds me that we have too much space.Hey, thanks!
We're planning on down-sizing in the next couple of years. And while I don't love the location of our house too much (rural farm house in fields), we've really fixed the inside up to a point I love, it has character, it's in very good condition, and it's still really not expensive. We could probably save a little by down-sizing, but especially considering the risk of the unknown problems of a new house, I think the margin's too small to probably shave off much.
So, I'm torn between wanting the efficiency of smaller and hating the excess of bigger, but not looking forward to all of the work and hassle of moving with little financial benefit and added new risk.
But, in the mean-time I can't stand the clutter, so it's going anyway. Maybe I'll grow to love the empty space (just in time to down size and not have it anymore ;) )
BTW, I love your blog.
It's actually really valuable to hear other MMM folks in this conflict. It's like, we're supposed to go for the BIG WINS, right? And housing is the biggest win there is. But for me at least, our house is, for the deep joy and value it gives us, not so expensive on an ongoing basis. I feel this deep emotional connection to my place and space, and there's the practical aspect of moving being a pain in the ass. So I doubt I'd be actively happier in any other space.
And yet I'm aware that in mustachian terms, I am not optimized. So that's this nagging irritating burr in my side - that I could do better. At the end of the day, I just need to make peace with being under-optimized. Basically, I think I need to tell the perfectionist in me to shut the hell up.
Thanks for letting me talk this out. I can't even tell you how valuable it is. One thing about that KonMari method is it DOES lead to some introspection. Whether you want it to or not. :D
Our house is at least 30%, possibly 50%, too big.
Hey, thanks!
It's actually really valuable to hear other MMM folks in this conflict. It's like, we're supposed to go for the BIG WINS, right? And housing is the biggest win there is. But for me at least, our house is, for the deep joy and value it gives us, not so expensive on an ongoing basis. I feel this deep emotional connection to my place and space, and there's the practical aspect of moving being a pain in the ass. So I doubt I'd be actively happier in any other space.
And yet I'm aware that in mustachian terms, I am not optimized. So that's this nagging irritating burr in my side - that I could do better. At the end of the day, I just need to make peace with being under-optimized. Basically, I think I need to tell the perfectionist in me to shut the hell up.
Thanks for letting me talk this out. I can't even tell you how valuable it is. One thing about that KonMari method is it DOES lead to some introspection. Whether you want it to or not. :D
She does say the process helps define your identity, values etc….I'm still a work in progress I guess.Aren't we all! :)
I have had a combo of the joy of less clutter with the sadness of realising I have signed on for more than I want in the way of house size. The feeling of clearing the clutter is incredible, I still feel such a lift when I look into certain rooms and see clear space instead of piles, but, now that I do not have that hanging over me, I realise that underneath all of it was an overwhelm at maintaining too much house. It is as though I have glimpsed freedom and it is still beyond my reach.
Without the stress of stuff to occupy a chunk of my mind the stark reality of extra cleaning, repairs, etc is more apparent. I think that is why decluttering is such a big deal, because once you have done it you are left with what is left, and it may not be what you want.
When people talk about shopping and acquiring being an addiction to fill an empty hole inside us it is partly about this. If we are paring down in every way, that can mean paring down rental houses that require too much time spent repairing, etc, it can mean losing extra weight and the clothes that went with it, it can mean clearing out toxic relationships or people, it can mean clearing calendars and diaries and, suddenly, coming face to face with ourselves and our real values. And it can be raw.
I am finding this. What do I want in life? If I am not overwhelmed by a never ending list of things to do (such as decluttering that never gets done) then my mind opens and there is space ahead, and that can mean change.
As Mary Oliver says 'Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?'
As I put into effect some MMM style changes I am finding there was mental clutter in places I was unaware of. Each of the following has cleared a section of my brain:You are inspiring! The point about the To Do List is well, well taken. I tell people "it's on my list, but it's a long list."
Tracking our spending rather than stressing about the unknown and being freaked by unexpected bills
Losing weight and therefore getting rid of clothes and also working to accomplish an old, old goal
Getting rid of piles of paper (still recurring but getting there)
Emptying 90% of my computer files, emptying my email folders, having an empty email inbox most of the time, unsubscribing from email lists
No longer receiving junk mail and credit card offers, in fact rarely getting mail now
Changing to online bills instead of physical mail
Choosing to not engage with toxic folk
Belonging to fewer organisations which require attendance at regular functions
Keeping less food on hand, fewer clothes, fewer books, fewer cleaning supplies, fewer crafting things, fewer tools, fewer shoes
Unconscious Living:
Living without attention to the details of my life was stressful.
Living with constant clutter is mentally enervating and can numb me to the rest of my life, sort of like an addiction.
Things that stay on the To Do list for years suck me dry.
Conscious Living:
Awareness ( I know where our money goes and what is in the house and where things are and what state my health is in)
Choosing rather than reacting
Keeping things clear and simple with nothing hanging over me for more than a brief time
Clearing out the tumbleweeds of years means I can get on with actual living and conscious decisions in every area.
And even though I am not there yet, and still have areas to deal with, the question is arising: 'Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?'
Who knew that the simple act of committing to clearing some papers would lead to this?
As Erica said, writing about this is helping me to see some things, thank-you Erica for this discussion.
De-cluttering for me brings to light the broken, the undone, the never used, the abandoned, the things that were purchased but were not quite right. It brings to light the years of depression and overwhelm when everything was too much.
The main thing that is evident to me now is that clutter in the form of physical objects, unmanaged finances, longterm unaddressed goals, broken things staying broken, no longer needed computer files, etc. seems to fill the conscious part of my mind 24/7 and stops me from being aware of or addressing the real issues in my life.
What will my life be:
Without a million household repairs and jewellery repairs and clothes darnings and more hanging over me?
Without every surface heaving with yet to be attacked clutter?
Without all that unused fabric shouting at me?
Without the decades old goal of losing weight and all the attendant anxiety and drama?
Without invisible stress as I see piles and files and miles of the great undone at every turn?
Without feeling guilty about not doing the things I promised?
Without feeling bad about never getting things done?
Without the self recriminations this all brings?
What will it be when my future is clear and...? I started to add to that sentence but it felt to scary. A work in progress.
...truly yours.
...free.
...lighter.
...open.
...filled with love and not fear, regret and guilt.
Wow, I have written a lot this morning. Food for thought for me.
Erica, I had the same epiphany about my house the other night while reading the book. My house is just way too big. I have two large rooms that I never use, two more that I seldom use, and another one that could be half the size. Selling and moving is a depressing prospect as I hadn't planned on doing that for at least a half dozen more years.
And another thing struck me that I had to really pause and process: I do not want most of the furniture in my house. Pretty much all furniture I own falls into three categories:
1) My ex- got to pick it after a drawn out disagreement about what style to get in which I finally gave up (in one case it took us an entire year to finally purchase a kitchen table and chairs.) All of this furniture is large and was extremely expensive; not just something I should haul down to the junk yard, although part of me wishes I had the truck and manpower to do just that.
2) Family gave it to me (old, not in very good condition) with the stipulation that I can never get rid of it or sell it, or
3) I needed something after the divorce (couch, chairs), so I just got whatever I could get that week on Craigslist.
I really don't like the style at all of any of the furniture. I never have. It seems like such a minor, petty thing, but now it is really bothering me. The divorce was years ago, but I still have these things I don't want for lack of an easy substitute. I do know what I would like instead, but the thrifty in me resists spending the money.
The side conversations were enlightening. I'm still in the process of decluttering (and still can't see the light at the end of the tunnel) but I'm glad to have a peek at the next stage of decluttering.
Btw we have a two bed apartment and that feels big since we use the second bedroom more for guests (and junk!! Ugh!) than for everyday use. When I'm done, I'm hoping it just remains a guest room and not a junk room.
Erica, I had the same epiphany about my house the other night while reading the book. My house is just way too big. I have two large rooms that I never use, two more that I seldom use, and another one that could be half the size. Selling and moving is a depressing prospect as I hadn't planned on doing that for at least a half dozen more years.
And another thing struck me that I had to really pause and process: I do not want most of the furniture in my house. Pretty much all furniture I own falls into three categories:
1) My ex- got to pick it after a drawn out disagreement about what style to get in which I finally gave up (in one case it took us an entire year to finally purchase a kitchen table and chairs.) All of this furniture is large and was extremely expensive; not just something I should haul down to the junk yard, although part of me wishes I had the truck and manpower to do just that.
2) Family gave it to me (old, not in very good condition) with the stipulation that I can never get rid of it or sell it, or
3) I needed something after the divorce (couch, chairs), so I just got whatever I could get that week on Craigslist.
I really don't like the style at all of any of the furniture. I never have. It seems like such a minor, petty thing, but now it is really bothering me. The divorce was years ago, but I still have these things I don't want for lack of an easy substitute. I do know what I would like instead, but the thrifty in me resists spending the money.
My responses to your furniture problem:
1. Sell the ex-purchased furniture. Replace as needed with furniture you like.
2. If you like it, fix it up. If you don't like it, tell the family that unless they take it back by x date, you will dispose of it as you see fit. You're not keeping it.
3. Sell on Craigslist, replace as needed with furniture you like.
Take money earned from selling said furniture and use it to buy stuff that you like and need.
I also deal with the family piece. In my case, I don't take anything from family that I don't actually want, so I head it off at the beginning. However, eventually my sister and I will be stuck with a lot of stuff from our parent's house that neither wants. Family will have an opportunity to take what they want. The rest will be disposed of in some manner.
How do you deal with sentimental things, from relatives? I have a lot of random items like delicate handkerchiefs from my deceased grandmother (or great grandmother), which I've had since I was about 10, but never use. I find it very hard to purge sentimental items so those are the things that tend to clutter up my drawers, cabinets and closets.
How do you deal with sentimental things, from relatives? I have a lot of random items like delicate handkerchiefs from my deceased grandmother (or great grandmother), which I've had since I was about 10, but never use. I find it very hard to purge sentimental items so those are the things that tend to clutter up my drawers, cabinets and closets.
I'm struggling with this one too, as I'm currently clearing out my late mother and aunt's house, which contains their things plus things inherited from my father, grandparents (and earlier ancestors) and two predeceased aunts. I'm going to keep the few things I can use or keep with love, and the rest will be donated/sold.
Could your some of your handkerchiefs be beautifully arranged, framed in a case and hung on the wall?
Erica, I had the same epiphany about my house the other night while reading the book. My house is just way too big. I have two large rooms that I never use, two more that I seldom use, and another one that could be half the size. Selling and moving is a depressing prospect as I hadn't planned on doing that for at least a half dozen more years.
And another thing struck me that I had to really pause and process: I do not want most of the furniture in my house. Pretty much all furniture I own falls into three categories:
1) My ex- got to pick it after a drawn out disagreement about what style to get in which I finally gave up (in one case it took us an entire year to finally purchase a kitchen table and chairs.) All of this furniture is large and was extremely expensive; not just something I should haul down to the junk yard, although part of me wishes I had the truck and manpower to do just that.
2) Family gave it to me (old, not in very good condition) with the stipulation that I can never get rid of it or sell it, or
3) I needed something after the divorce (couch, chairs), so I just got whatever I could get that week on Craigslist.
I really don't like the style at all of any of the furniture. I never have. It seems like such a minor, petty thing, but now it is really bothering me. The divorce was years ago, but I still have these things I don't want for lack of an easy substitute. I do know what I would like instead, but the thrifty in me resists spending the money.
My responses to your furniture problem:
1. Sell the ex-purchased furniture. Replace as needed with furniture you like.
2. If you like it, fix it up. If you don't like it, tell the family that unless they take it back by x date, you will dispose of it as you see fit. You're not keeping it.
3. Sell on Craigslist, replace as needed with furniture you like.
Take money earned from selling said furniture and use it to buy stuff that you like and need.
I also deal with the family piece. In my case, I don't take anything from family that I don't actually want, so I head it off at the beginning. However, eventually my sister and I will be stuck with a lot of stuff from our parent's house that neither wants. Family will have an opportunity to take what they want. The rest will be disposed of in some manner.
How do you deal with sentimental things, from relatives? I have a lot of random items like delicate handkerchiefs from my deceased grandmother (or great grandmother), which I've had since I was about 10, but never use. I find it very hard to purge sentimental items so those are the things that tend to clutter up my drawers, cabinets and closets.
And another thing struck me that I had to really pause and process: I do not want most of the furniture in my house. Pretty much all furniture I own falls into three categories:I agree with the other suggestions to just sell/donate/toss these huge, bulky items that surround you. You do not need them. Like, literally, you could sit on the floor until you find something you love at a price you are comfortable with. If people think that's weird, they can take you shopping on their dime. Screw 'em.
1) My ex- got to pick it after a drawn out disagreement about what style to get in which I finally gave up (in one case it took us an entire year to finally purchase a kitchen table and chairs.) All of this furniture is large and was extremely expensive; not just something I should haul down to the junk yard, although part of me wishes I had the truck and manpower to do just that.
2) Family gave it to me (old, not in very good condition) with the stipulation that I can never get rid of it or sell it, or
3) I needed something after the divorce (couch, chairs), so I just got whatever I could get that week on Craigslist.
Last year I tried at a family reunion to get one of her sons, or anyone in the family, to take the large dining room table and chairs. Nobody wanted anything to do with it. I...Please let this be a lesson to all of us not to put the strings of guilt on items we gift to people. If you really don't want someone to ever sell or dispose of something you give them, then just keep it.Your aunt is being unreasonable. She is coercing you with guilt to be her free storage unit so she doesn't have to deal with the guilt over letting these items go. Honestly? Not your problem. I'd give her a deadline to pick the items up, have them packed and delivered to her (on her dime) or have them transferred to a storage unit she pays for. It's unreasonable for these ghosts of family guilt past to take up residence in your home. Time to evict them. Bon courage!!!
And another thing struck me that I had to really pause and process: I do not want most of the furniture in my house. Pretty much all furniture I own falls into three categories:I agree with the other suggestions to just sell/donate/toss these huge, bulky items that surround you. You do not need them. Like, literally, you could sit on the floor until you find something you love at a price you are comfortable with. If people think that's weird, they can take you shopping on their dime. Screw 'em.
1) My ex- got to pick it after a drawn out disagreement about what style to get in which I finally gave up (in one case it took us an entire year to finally purchase a kitchen table and chairs.) All of this furniture is large and was extremely expensive; not just something I should haul down to the junk yard, although part of me wishes I had the truck and manpower to do just that.
2) Family gave it to me (old, not in very good condition) with the stipulation that I can never get rid of it or sell it, or
3) I needed something after the divorce (couch, chairs), so I just got whatever I could get that week on Craigslist.Quote from: ZamboniLast year I tried at a family reunion to get one of her sons, or anyone in the family, to take the large dining room table and chairs. Nobody wanted anything to do with it. I...Please let this be a lesson to all of us not to put the strings of guilt on items we gift to people. If you really don't want someone to ever sell or dispose of something you give them, then just keep it.Your aunt is being unreasonable. She is coercing you with guilt to be her free storage unit so she doesn't have to deal with the guilt over letting these items go. Honestly? Not your problem. I'd give her a deadline to pick the items up, have them packed and delivered to her (on her dime) or have them transferred to a storage unit she pays for. It's unreasonable for these ghosts of family guilt past to take up residence in your home. Time to evict them. Bon courage!!!
Thanks, all, for the selling suggestion. That is what I need to do with the stuff from the ex. It will be a hassle, but it needs to happen. The Craigslist stuff probably just needs to be donated or free-cycled.
The family stuff is another can of worms entirely. My aunt foisted some of this on me and she is the one who has this "it has to stay in the family" mentality. She stored it in her garage for years. She convinced me to take some of it, mostly because we had the room and it "matched" the other gigantic dark antique-looking stuff my ex had picked out. I paid to have these things moved several states and restored (fixed, refinished, reupholstered, etc.) Now I'm realizing it's all just too big, impractical, and not my style. One of the reasons that I have such a big house now is that I had to find a house that had a big enough dining area for the enormous table, for example.
Last year I tried at a family reunion to get one of her sons, or anyone in the family, to take the large dining room table and chairs. Nobody wanted anything to do with it. I said to her that I am moving to a smaller place and just really won't have room for it. I'm happy to keep the stuff in the family, but no one wants any of it. With great exasperation she said "Well I supposed I can take back that table, chairs and the serving dishes and all of the table linens of various sizes that go with it." Those linens were nasty, threadbare, yellowed and stained with at least a hundred years of gravy stains when she gave them to me, and she seriously thinks that I still have them? In any event, she's four states away. I'm not paying to move this stuff back to her. Sibley, I might have to take your advice, but it will not go over well.
Please let this be a lesson to all of us not to put the strings of guilt on items we gift to people. If you really don't want someone to ever sell or dispose of something you give them, then just keep it.
Reading the comments from Erica and others has been eye-opening. I rent an 800 sq. ft. apartment so I don't have the problem of feeling like we have too much space, but it is helping me to realize how little space we need as a family to be happy, when we do finally settle in one place. When we look to buy a house, I will know how much space we realistically want and that is a great feeling.We homebrew too, but wine. It does take up a good bit of space. We have a fruit cellar in the basement and about half of the shelves are full of empty bottles and other supplies. Then the current brewing space is under my sewing table next to the heating vent to keep the yeast warm and happy (for winter only of course). Other than that we have 1 drawer full of things like corks and labels.
You've also been helping me to realize why I've been getting happier and feeling lighter as I declutter. In many ways, I'm letting go of my aspirational self. Am I the kind of person who wears clothes like that? No, I'm not, and I'm just fine with it. I like to knit and crochet, and I've been doing them since I was 9 so I feel like that's part of my personality, to be a crafter. But do I actually make enough time for it to justify all the half-finished projects and the yarns and fabrics waiting for me to get around to them? No, I don't. It's so freeing to let go of those projects which, realistically, I will never get around to. I've given myself permission to let go, and the lightness I feel is the weight of my own self-expectations dropping away.
Because I packed up to give away the projects I realized I'd never do, or the yarn with no specific project in mind to begin with, I actually completed one small project. I turned two stained, ripped old t-shirts into nightgowns for my daughter. :) Non-useful items were turned into useful items, and now I don't need to buy summer jammies for my daughter. Additional bonus: midnight diaper changes are ridiculously easy.
We've reached the chapter entitled "In which we can reach the baby's closet". A couple of items will be headed to the dump next time I need to drive somewhere, but some of the cleaning was simply because I packed up items from that closet. People who brew beer, where do you keep all the stuff? My husband does and he really enjoys it but I'm finding that it's really not a space-efficient hobby. So many bottles need to be kept, and in a small space like ours, it's been taking up most of the space in my daughter's closet. Even with the clearing out of our kitchen, we don't have space there to keep it, nor do we have the right size of shelves for the giant pot and whatnot. So where do you keep your beer-making supplies? I'd like to come up with a better solution for wherever we end up.
Am trying to decide if I should try to get Marie Kondo's book here (we leave the state in about a month, and might be leaving our town before that) or wait until we get to where we're moving. Apply her principles so that we don't move as much, or realize that I probably won't have time to get through the book before we go?
Okay, I have a question for those who've been there. I stupidly saved almost all of my college textbooks, and at this point not only do I not need them but they are badly out of date. I graduated in 2001 in science, lots of things have changed in the biological sciences since then, so these books are for the most part worth nothing.
So, what can I do with them? They are too heavy for the trash bags, I don't think our recycling center takes them...
Ideas please?
Last year I tried at a family reunion to get one of her sons, or anyone in the family, to take the large dining room table and chairs. Nobody wanted anything to do with it. I said to her that I am moving to a smaller place and just really won't have room for it. I'm happy to keep the stuff in the family, but no one wants any of it. With great exasperation she said "Well I supposed I can take back that table, chairs and the serving dishes and all of the table linens of various sizes that go with it." Those linens were nasty, threadbare, yellowed and stained with at least a hundred years of gravy stains when she gave them to me, and she seriously thinks that I still have them? In any event, she's four states away. I'm not paying to move this stuff back to her. Sibley, I might have to take your advice, but it will not go over well.
Please let this be a lesson to all of us not to put the strings of guilt on items we gift to people. If you really don't want someone to ever sell or dispose of something you give them, then just keep it.
They're still probably worth a couple bucks each. Idk if you could compost them but if you brought everything to half-price books you could walk out with $20 or so.The closest one to me is about 45 minutes, but it's near a friend's house so the next time I go see her I'll try taking in the books. I don't really care at this point, just want them out of my house!
They're still probably worth a couple bucks each. Idk if you could compost them but if you brought everything to half-price books you could walk out with $20 or so.The closest one to me is about 45 minutes, but it's near a friend's house so the next time I go see her I'll try taking in the books. I don't really care at this point, just want them out of my house!
CommonCents, I'll also look into local organizations or perhaps homeschool groups. At least the chemistry books should be useful for something like that.
We homebrew too, but wine. It does take up a good bit of space. We have a fruit cellar in the basement and about half of the shelves are full of empty bottles and other supplies. Then the current brewing space is under my sewing table next to the heating vent to keep the yeast warm and happy (for winter only of course). Other than that we have 1 drawer full of things like corks and labels.
If we were in an apartment I could easily see how an entire closet would be taken up with brewing equipment.
To provide hope, despair, and entertainment, I found this blog online about a couple who bought a hoarder's home and their cleanup/renovations. It's a view into a world that is foreign to me, and I find it fascinating. I'm hoping that no one here is dealing with this amount of stuff, so remember, this could be your house!
http://brickhouse319.com/
To provide hope, despair, and entertainment, I found this blog online about a couple who bought a hoarder's home and their cleanup/renovations. It's a view into a world that is foreign to me, and I find it fascinating. I'm hoping that no one here is dealing with this amount of stuff, so remember, this could be your house!
http://brickhouse319.com/
That is insane!
When I was buying my first house I looked at one that was similar, though not as bad and it hadn't expanded outdoors yet. I just assumed whoever was selling the house would take all their stuff. Now I wonder. I didn't buy it for many reasons, but one of them was because I couldn't actually see much of the house due to boxes.
To provide hope, despair, and entertainment, I found this blog online about a couple who bought a hoarder's home and their cleanup/renovations. It's a view into a world that is foreign to me, and I find it fascinating. I'm hoping that no one here is dealing with this amount of stuff, so remember, this could be your house!Ho-leeeeeee shit, man.
http://brickhouse319.com/
The master composter in me just kept thinking of all the worm bins those Rubbermaid bins could be...
@Erica, Maybe the "Life Changing Joy" will come in a few days when you don't have a messy house to cleanup? I would love to be have a non-messy house <sigh>.I don't know....the promise is a house decluttered, and the book delivers on that 110%. But as I was mopping and vacuuming last night I was kinda facing that less stuff =/= less cleaning. Maybe less dusting with knick-nacks and things, but I didn't have so many of those anyway. But my home still has the same square footage to wipe, scrub, vacuum, mop and dust. We will use and dirty the same number of pots and they will have to be washed. I don't want to suggest it's a letdown....because this book made an incredible impact on me, but it's almost one of those, "wherever you go, there you are" kind of realizations. Living vibrantly is messy. Less stuff only marginally changes that.
Dudes. Husband just sold a thing that was literally NEVER USED at our house on ebay for $400. I set up the garage sale stuff and made $30 from people coming by the day before the garage sale.
Will post total Sunday night or Monday AM, but my guess is this "Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" shit will net us at least $1000 before we are done selling our "tidying."
Also I figured its OK to not make a profit (or even get back some of the cost) if it will give me mental peace. I gave away my old PS3 after no one bought it on eBay. Didn't even try craigslist but it felt good to get the console and games out of my house.... Before I changed my mind and they remained in my house unplayed for another year! So clutter out of house is the best solution for me.
How do you decide whether to sell or donate? I have a bunch of stuff I don't need, but have been hanging onto because I intend to sell it. Except, obviously, I haven't. It would feel like a waste of money to just donate it, but listing on eBay or craigslist...well, I'm procrastinating, is all. It's not hard or time-consuming.Usually, I just donate. But because this was a top to bottom purge, we had enough that it was worth it to do the garage sale thing. As we culled books, my husband checked Amazon's buyback price to set aside any that were worth it to trade in. He has a pretty good idea what of his stuff is semi-collectible.
Holy cow, Erica, that's fantastic! My numbers are not nearly as impressive. I got $22 from one consignment shop, $13 from another, and I have one item on eBay right now with a bid of $10. So I'm at $45 so far. I have 2 things on craigslist for a total of $75, but no takers yet, and I've already lowered the prices once. If they don't sell over the weekend I'm going to take them in to the consignment shop (it's baby gear - a swing and a cosleeper). I'll get a lot less that way, but it's something, and they'll be out of the way.It's not that impressive when you think about how much shit I didn't need I was hanging onto from "past lives" of catering, abandoned hobbies, etc. It's, to me, cautionary. Like, I never again want to have so many things surrounding me that I can make almost $500 at a garage sale on a weeks notice. You know what I mean? I'm thrilled to recoup whatever I can of course, but more than that I'm thrilled to just enjoy life with less to maintain, consider, store and worry about.
My to-do list for next week (starting Monday; I work all weekend):
1. take baby gear to consignment
2. sort baby & maternity clothes into lots, post on eBay
3. sort kids' books, sell or donate the ones they don't read
4. take samples to shelter
Goal is to have it all done by the end of Wednesday.
Holy cow, Erica, that's fantastic! My numbers are not nearly as impressive. I got $22 from one consignment shop, $13 from another, and I have one item on eBay right now with a bid of $10. So I'm at $45 so far. I have 2 things on craigslist for a total of $75, but no takers yet, and I've already lowered the prices once. If they don't sell over the weekend I'm going to take them in to the consignment shop (it's baby gear - a swing and a cosleeper). I'll get a lot less that way, but it's something, and they'll be out of the way.It's not that impressive when you think about how much shit I didn't need I was hanging onto from "past lives" of catering, abandoned hobbies, etc. It's, to me, cautionary. Like, I never again want to have so many things surrounding me that I can make almost $500 at a garage sale on a weeks notice. You know what I mean? I'm thrilled to recoup whatever I can of course, but more than that I'm thrilled to just enjoy life with less to maintain, consider, store and worry about.
My to-do list for next week (starting Monday; I work all weekend):
1. take baby gear to consignment
2. sort baby & maternity clothes into lots, post on eBay
3. sort kids' books, sell or donate the ones they don't read
4. take samples to shelter
Goal is to have it all done by the end of Wednesday.
That said, don't give up! Get it out, one way or another. :)
We are moving in a few months and are trying to declutter. I've culled the low hanging fruit and am now starting to reach into closets. However sometimes I wonder if reducing our stuff by one or two boxes is worth the effort. We'd anyway have to haul the furniture - what difference would an extra two boxes make? I know I need to declutter to have less unused stuff but I also am trying to cop out :( major reason: I dont want to spend time indoors decluttering when the weather outside is gorgeous. How do you motivate yourself?
We are moving in a few months and are trying to declutter. I've culled the low hanging fruit and am now starting to reach into closets. However sometimes I wonder if reducing our stuff by one or two boxes is worth the effort. We'd anyway have to haul the furniture - what difference would an extra two boxes make? I know I need to declutter to have less unused stuff but I also am trying to cop out :( major reason: I dont want to spend time indoors decluttering when the weather outside is gorgeous. How do you motivate yourself?
This has totally been my issue too. However, I have had some success with looking at it this way. Everytime I declutter, I am enjoying my house and my things more. Happier me is a good thing. But I go in little spurts, and I often spend time outside (or on the computer) when I should be sorting. Its ok, every bit I do is good and one more thing I don't have to pack, unpack, clean, find a home for, feel burdened by. I guess what I am trying to say is that doing some is fine, it isn't all or nothing. And when I am motivated, it is amazing how much I can do in a short period of time. The I take a break or the rest of the day off. There is no finish line with this. But there is progress.
We are moving in a few months and are trying to declutter. I've culled the low hanging fruit and am now starting to reach into closets. However sometimes I wonder if reducing our stuff by one or two boxes is worth the effort. We'd anyway have to haul the furniture - what difference would an extra two boxes make? I know I need to declutter to have less unused stuff but I also am trying to cop out :( major reason: I dont want to spend time indoors decluttering when the weather outside is gorgeous. How do you motivate yourself?
This has totally been my issue too. However, I have had some success with looking at it this way. Everytime I declutter, I am enjoying my house and my things more. Happier me is a good thing. But I go in little spurts, and I often spend time outside (or on the computer) when I should be sorting. Its ok, every bit I do is good and one more thing I don't have to pack, unpack, clean, find a home for, feel burdened by. I guess what I am trying to say is that doing some is fine, it isn't all or nothing. And when I am motivated, it is amazing how much I can do in a short period of time. The I take a break or the rest of the day off. There is no finish line with this. But there is progress.
Also, once you declutter all the boxed stuff, what's to say you can't declutter a piece of furniture or two? I went from 4 bookcases to 2. Wouldn't have been possible if I hadn't decluttered the books.
We are moving in a few months and are trying to declutter. I've culled the low hanging fruit and am now starting to reach into closets. However sometimes I wonder if reducing our stuff by one or two boxes is worth the effort. We'd anyway have to haul the furniture - what difference would an extra two boxes make? I know I need to declutter to have less unused stuff but I also am trying to cop out :( major reason: I dont want to spend time indoors decluttering when the weather outside is gorgeous. How do you motivate yourself?
There's no need to surround ourselves with items charged with intentions...
What do you think about the time it takes to declutter?
But the other good idea is that you do it ALL AT ONCE. I can't imagine dragging decluttering on for months like some of the frequent posters here. I'd rather rip the bandaid off and carry on with open space and lightness as soon as possible.
Like I said, though, I must have less items to begin with. That surely makes a difference, but it might also just be an excuse for prolonging the decision-making process.
What do you think about the time it takes to declutter?
They're still probably worth a couple bucks each. Idk if you could compost them but if you brought everything to half-price books you could walk out with $20 or so.The closest one to me is about 45 minutes, but it's near a friend's house so the next time I go see her I'll try taking in the books. I don't really care at this point, just want them out of my house!
CommonCents, I'll also look into local organizations or perhaps homeschool groups. At least the chemistry books should be useful for something like that.
Another slow de-clutterer here. I'd love to do it quickly, a la KonMari, but I have a 5-month-old who doesn't give me big blocks of uninterrupted time. ;) So I do a little here and there, as I can, and it adds up.
As Mary Oliver says 'Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?'
Thanks, I'll look into both of those!They're still probably worth a couple bucks each. Idk if you could compost them but if you brought everything to half-price books you could walk out with $20 or so.The closest one to me is about 45 minutes, but it's near a friend's house so the next time I go see her I'll try taking in the books. I don't really care at this point, just want them out of my house!
CommonCents, I'll also look into local organizations or perhaps homeschool groups. At least the chemistry books should be useful for something like that.
Or, next time you are in the Burgh, drop them off at Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse. There are a lot of artists out there who like to cut up books for collage and alter them into art journals. Just make sure you call ahead.
You could also leave them at Red, White, and Blue thrift store (I go to the one right outside the Liberty Tubes but there's one on 65, too).
But the other good idea is that you do it ALL AT ONCE. I can't imagine dragging decluttering on for months like some of the frequent posters here. I'd rather rip the bandaid off and carry on with open space and lightness as soon as possible.
Like I said, though, I must have less items to begin with. That surely makes a difference, but it might also just be an excuse for prolonging the decision-making process.
What do you think about the time it takes to declutter?
I don't think she meant to try to do it all in one day. Rather, to do it over a few months, but don't prolong for a year or two. As with everything, I think YMMV. She readily confesses to strategies that don't work for her, but do for others. I think the speed of decluttering is one that is an individual approach. ...
But the other good idea is that you do it ALL AT ONCE. I can't imagine dragging decluttering on for months like some of the frequent posters here. I'd rather rip the bandaid off and carry on with open space and lightness as soon as possible.
Like I said, though, I must have less items to begin with. That surely makes a difference, but it might also just be an excuse for prolonging the decision-making process.
What do you think about the time it takes to declutter?
I don't think she meant to try to do it all in one day. Rather, to do it over a few months, but don't prolong for a year or two. As with everything, I think YMMV. She readily confesses to strategies that don't work for her, but do for others. I think the speed of decluttering is one that is an individual approach. ...
Oh yes--that's one of the things I like about her writing. She's anecdotal and highlights her quirkiness, acknowledging that not everyone is like her.
But I really did think she means to do it all at once! I got the sense that if it's not in one day, maybe one weekend. She says her clients are not repeat clients because there's no reason--there's no rebound. And she's working in Japan, where apartments are my place's size or smaller.
The thing is, she just doesn't address time as far as I remember. It's an interesting oversight, or my memory's just failing me. Lots of people in this thread are reading or have read it, so maybe someone will find the passage.
I can see where the culture difference of America (for example) vs. Japan might make applying her method more challenging for people who *do* have four bedrooms, a two-car garage, a shed, an attic, a basement, and so on to deal with. I wonder if she has worked with any hoarders before.
Also babies. She doesn't mention babies.
I have this on Kindle and I can't seem to find a page number, but she does say that "From my experience with private individual lessons, "quickly" means about half a year." when she's talking about doing your entire house quickly. It's location 410/2181 I think for my fellow Kindle users.
So holy speediness, batman, if you can do your stuff in a day!!
she ends up running off with the things I wanted to get rid of, and if I don't chase her immediately she hides things in unusual places.
it must have a psychological heaviness which keeps me from dealing with it. The minute I pick up one of the items, I go into zombie mode. I'm pretty sure that's the opposite of sparking joy.
I have the Marie Kondo Kindle edition too and from one paragraph I happened to have open:How do you make tidying a special event that is done only once? I haven't read the book yet but for daily tidying up (every night after dinner - putting away daily use things like toys, shoes, etc) I see it happening every day. Or does she mean decluttering?
"Make tidying a special event, not a daily chore [...] tidying should be done just once. Or, to put it more accurately, the work of tidying should be completed once and for all within a single period of time.[...] the purpose of this book is to inspire you to tackle the 'special event' of putting your house in order as soon as possible."
I have read the whole book, and I definitely have experienced the realization that while before my place was organized, it wasn't tidy. Organized meaning lots of things I didn't need or care for any more were neatly stacked, boxed and sorted.
I can see why the KonMari method includes talking to the items, almost as a way of consciously closing out a segment of our lives that no longer serves us.Quoteit must have a psychological heaviness which keeps me from dealing with it. The minute I pick up one of the items, I go into zombie mode. I'm pretty sure that's the opposite of sparking joy.
Zombie mode is fascinating to me, the way our minds shut down in response to certain things, and the way our limbs become heavy and too tired to deal. I wonder whether de-cluttering can be a way to access our core issues? The next best seller will be "Journal while you de-clutter- a guide to finding your inner self by peeling back layers of materialism".
SisterX, this tickled my funny bone:Quoteshe ends up running off with the things I wanted to get rid of, and if I don't chase her immediately she hides things in unusual places.
Thanks for the laugh. I could see a toddler nefariously stealing bits and bobs and concealing them in secret spots!
Why do you declutter?Because everything you own owns a tiny piece of you back.
Why do you declutter?
Why do you declutter?
Why do you declutter?
What would everyone here answer to thisBecause I hate seeing stuff go to waste. If someone can use it, great!!
Why do you declutter?
My SO just doesn't really understand why I'm doing it.
I told her that I want to concentrate on things that make me happy or give my life value.
DVDs that I will never watch again give me no pleasure and just stand there in the shelf (admittedly not hurting anyone).
Things I haven't used in ages and know I wont be using again any time soon or even ever are all on their way out.
She seems to think we have the space for them so why not keep them‽
She is still of the mindset that her bookshelf looks nice even though she will never again touch 99% of the books in it.
I told her if it makes her happy by all means keep them but I won't be keeping mine.
What would everyone here answer to thisBecause I hate seeing stuff go to waste. If someone can use it, great!!
Why do you declutter?
My SO just doesn't really understand why I'm doing it.
I told her that I want to concentrate on things that make me happy or give my life value.
DVDs that I will never watch again give me no pleasure and just stand there in the shelf (admittedly not hurting anyone).
Things I haven't used in ages and know I wont be using again any time soon or even ever are all on their way out.
She seems to think we have the space for them so why not keep them‽
She is still of the mindset that her bookshelf looks nice even though she will never again touch 99% of the books in it.
I told her if it makes her happy by all means keep them but I won't be keeping mine.
Why do you declutter?
Why do you declutter?I don't want to work 5 days 9-5.
Why do you declutter?
YES! This is my problem. Messes and clutter stress me out.Why do you declutter?
I just hate seeing stuff everywhere. It makes me feel stressed. I prefer the look of a clean space without a lot of clutter - or a lot of storage containers.
Why do you declutter?I don't handle chaos very well so when all the flat surfaces are clear I'm much calmer and more at peace.
As others have said, clutter is generally a pile of to-do's; shirts that need a new button, books that need read, an item that needs repaired, etc. And that mental clutter can cause a lot of stress. When you let it go and say "I don't need to do this it reduces that continuous mental to-do list and lets you focus on the the stuff that you actually want or need to do which makes me a happier person
I feel motivated to clean out tools today. I have two rollarounds and a bunch of other stuff - I want to pull a car out of the garage and empty both tool chests on the floor, then sort everything in a logical manner (and get rid of what I don't need).
Wish me luck. :P
I feel motivated to clean out tools today. I have two rollarounds and a bunch of other stuff - I want to pull a car out of the garage and empty both tool chests on the floor, then sort everything in a logical manner (and get rid of what I don't need).
Wish me luck. :P
Tools, the one thing I will never get rid of or pare down.
Why do you declutter?I don't handle chaos very well so when all the flat surfaces are clear I'm much calmer and more at peace.
As others have said, clutter is generally a pile of to-do's; shirts that need a new button, books that need read, an item that needs repaired, etc. And that mental clutter can cause a lot of stress. When you let it go and say "I don't need to do this it reduces that continuous mental to-do list and lets you focus on the the stuff that you actually want or need to do which makes me a happier person
This!!!!
Decluttering my house is resulting in some life decluttering too! I decided all the books I have been waiting to read must be read, or donated. Well, I started one, and I hate it. But my ex-literature student ego makes me want to plough on and finish it, just so I can know I have read it.
What?! Yeah, I'm going to get over myself and donate it. I don't know why I feel that reading should be hard work. It's fine to read easy novels just for fun! I don't have to have read every classic before I die just to know that I have.
It never ceases to amaze me how clutter continually enters our lives. I have purged many times over the past few years after DH and I moved our 2 households together into 1 condo, whittling our possessions down to what will comfortably fit in 800 sq ft (1 adults, 1 cat). I consider ourselves to be fairly minimalist.
And yet, I still found about 15 more books to get rid of today, as well as a box of assorted dishes / knick knacks. I think my criteria for "should i keep it" is getting stricter and stricter.
...
I have a lot of cosmetics that I haven't used. Should I just throw them all out? Or donate? I don't know if anyone would really appreciate lotions and body washes, makeup, etc.
I feel motivated to clean out tools today. I have two rollarounds and a bunch of other stuff - I want to pull a car out of the garage and empty both tool chests on the floor, then sort everything in a logical manner (and get rid of what I don't need).
Wish me luck. :P
Tools, the one thing I will never get rid of or pare down.
I bought a rollaround that was full of tools for super cheap, but I already had one full - I have some that should probably be thrown away, and many that need to be better organized as well.
I'm trying to let go of some old beauty magazines and am surprisingly having a hard time. They've gone back and forth from throwaway to consider pile. I'm not sure what is making me keep them.... definitely not joy, since once they are in consider pile, I put them out again. But when I see them in clutter pile, I pull them back. :( does anyone else have this issue with anything else? How did you tackle it?Do you EVER go back and reread them?
I'm trying to let go of some old beauty magazines and am surprisingly having a hard time. They've gone back and forth from throwaway to consider pile. I'm not sure what is making me keep them.... definitely not joy, since once they are in consider pile, I put them out again. But when I see them in clutter pile, I pull them back. :( does anyone else have this issue with anything else? How did you tackle it?
I'm trying to let go of some old beauty magazines and am surprisingly having a hard time. They've gone back and forth from throwaway to consider pile. I'm not sure what is making me keep them.... definitely not joy, since once they are in consider pile, I put them out again. But when I see them in clutter pile, I pull them back. :( does anyone else have this issue with anything else? How did you tackle it?
I am having a rough time with this. I did clear out my cupboard of expired food, threw some boxes away, and listed 4 things on Craigslist. Going to keep trying.
I'm trying to let go of some old beauty magazines and am surprisingly having a hard time. They've gone back and forth from throwaway to consider pile. I'm not sure what is making me keep them.... definitely not joy, since once they are in consider pile, I put them out again. But when I see them in clutter pile, I pull them back. :( does anyone else have this issue with anything else? How did you tackle it?
You might be able to trick yourself into getting rid of them if you think they're going to a better after-your-home-life than the dump or recycling center. Do you know any teachers who could use them in class activities? I teach university and still have some activities that require magazines :-)
I'm trying to let go of some old beauty magazines and am surprisingly having a hard time. They've gone back and forth from throwaway to consider pile. I'm not sure what is making me keep them.... definitely not joy, since once they are in consider pile, I put them out again. But when I see them in clutter pile, I pull them back. :( does anyone else have this issue with anything else? How did you tackle it?
You might be able to trick yourself into getting rid of them if you think they're going to a better after-your-home-life than the dump or recycling center. Do you know any teachers who could use them in class activities? I teach university and still have some activities that require magazines :-)
Way to go, letting them go!
I did some soul searching and felt the magazines were too pretty to be discarded. But I didn't want to hold on to them either. So I took pictures of the pages I liked seeing (those that gave me the thrills) and gave the magazines to a teacher friend of mine for her class. I'm pretty sure I won't ever look at those photos again but they are there..... if I need them. Thanks everyone!
Anyone have issues with Step 1 of Your Money or Your Life and the part saying that if you give it away, you can't count it as part of you net worth, but if you still have it, you can? This is problematic for me right now.
http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/most-organized-people/ (http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/most-organized-people/)
I have not posted on this thread before but I do want to say that you are all an inspiration to me. I have been following this thread for a couple of months now and have made really good headway in dealing with my clutter and unneeded possessions. Especially my clothes! As a matter of fact, I have another large batch of clothing in the car going to a consignment store today.
I love reading your reports of decluttering but the discussions on the psychology of clutter and getting rid of things, dealing with your feelings towards your material possessions, etc. are really fascinating and helpful in recognizing and dealing with my own thoughts and feelings.
So keep it up and thank you!
After months of reading the Project 333 blog, Miss Minimalist, and other minimalism/capsule wardrobe blogs, I had whittled down my clothes to a manageable and enjoyable amount. My housemates (DH and two friends) started to get interested the more I talked about it and they kept seeing me drag bags of stuff through the house. So last week we held a house "wardrobe audit." I scheduled it formally and sent an email with a bunch of instructions for thinking about de-cluttering clothes (like "does this fit my lifestyle right now?"). I think that helps people take it seriously and there is some accountability when de-cluttering in a group.sounds so fun!
Everyone brought their entire wardrobe into the living room/dining room and dumped it in a pile. Then we went through each category of clothes (pants, shorts, dress shirts, tops, winter coats), each person going through their own clothes. It was such a fun way to go through stuff! It is way easier to part with things when they are in a pile on your couch then stuffed in the back of a closet. It is also easier to part with things when you stack like things together and realize that you have 5 winter coats, and perhaps that is a bit much. It is also easier and more fun to do a big de-cluttering push together (dance music, cookies, etc.) and you can ask advice on things you are on the edge about. It took about 3 hours, but we ended up donating almost 100 items to Goodwill.
Even though I basically forced my house to participate in de-cluttering with me, they seemed to enjoy it. Afterwards one housemate said, "maybe we can do this again next month in the kitchen!"
SisterX - I totally hear you about the nice furniture thing. Also now with a child, it is so nice to not care if they spill milk or pee on the couch. My FIL, bless his heart, is making us night stands right now. I am thankful for the gift, but it is a burden, to know I have to care for it and lug it around in our next 34 moves...(hopefully not that many, but who knows). He already made us a bed, but they have been keeping it for the last 18 months, knowing we we moving close to them then. It is so lovely, but heavy literally and figuratively!
Awesome job, advicist! Would love your face cream recipe. Sounds delicious!
I'm trying to let go of some old beauty magazines and am surprisingly having a hard time. They've gone back and forth from throwaway to consider pile. I'm not sure what is making me keep them.... definitely not joy, since once they are in consider pile, I put them out again. But when I see them in clutter pile, I pull them back. :( does anyone else have this issue with anything else? How did you tackle it?
Rip out the pages of things you are interested in keeping. Throw away the rest. Later, go through the pile of pages, and realize you don't need any of it :)
I am enjoying reading all the stories on here. Yesterday I got rid of two shirts, two dresses and a fancy skirt and reorganised my closet again.
With the capsule wardrobe are there a winter and summer set of clothes or 33 pieces total?
Awesome job, advicist! Would love your face cream recipe. Sounds delicious!
Hope you like it! It's quite rich, but not greasy. The aloe was the magic ingredient for me. Every other recipe I tried was so greasy I had to wash my hair after applying it! The aloe vera gel makes the greasiness evaporate away somehow.
With the capsule wardrobe are there a winter and summer set of clothes or 33 pieces total?
Got rid of my "fancy" dresses that I don't wear anymore:
- one I wore to my brother's wedding in 2006 and never again
- one I wore to my masters in bioethics graduation in 2007 and never again
- one I wore to my *cough, don't laugh* law school prom in 2007 and a wedding a few months later and...you guessed it, never again. Tried this one on last night and it still fits, but it doesn't look as good on me now. I also noticed it has a stain or yellowing mark on the front somehow that I doubt I'm going to be able get out at this point.
All of these were hidden away in a giant zip up bag to keep away moths. Out of sight, out of mind apparently.
Note to self: Don't buy formal gowns or at least only have one at a time. My only consolation was the last two were fairly cheap.
Thanks. This is a wonderful recipe. Does it turn out fluffy like whipped cream? I just bought some new face cream to replace my old one and I tried something cheaper. I don't like it as much. Your recipe sounds much nicer.
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Thanks. This is a wonderful recipe. Does it turn out fluffy like whipped cream? I just bought some new face cream to replace my old one and I tried something cheaper. I don't like it as much. Your recipe sounds much nicer.
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Whipped cream is an excellent description of the consistency. I like my cream fairly thick as I have dry skin. I think it's one of those things where you have to try it, and then adjust to your liking. So more beeswax = more balm like. More oil = greasier (or slippier, depending on how you look at it!). More aloe = more soothing and evaporates more quickly.
Try half the recipe first and go from there. I had a lot of trial and error at the beginning. I had one big batch that separated, so after a few days water started pooling on top of the oils. Gross. That's why I avoid any recipe with water.
Also, this is very important - write down (or make a computer document) what you use and what you do. Especially if you are substituting things, or altering quantities. I then go back and add my thoughts on how well it turned out. I have a document that says things like:
November 2014 - lists full recipe - too greasy.
February 2015 - full recipe - amazing! Love it! But up next time EO as smell is faint.
When the next time comes I copy and paste the recipe but up the EO amount, as I know I'll forget whether I did it and by how much. This is the only way I made improvements, before each batch was different than the last but unrepeatable, whether it turned out good or bad.
SisterX, how did you get it down to one accordion file of paper? Do you keep any bills, etc?
Any quilters/crafters have tips for decluttering patterns, unfinished projects, and fabric/materials? Sorry if this has already been covered. My issue is a quilt I started for a nephew, who is now nearing 2 years old. I keep saying I'm going to get to it, but I haven't sewn in about two years (other than patching). I just don't want to do it, and I'm not sure if I'm even able to do it, but I feel bad not making him a quilt. Also, I'm hesitant to give away all my other supplies because I have a cyclical pattern with hobbies where I'll do something for years then take a few years off then do it again for years. Anyone else in this boat?
Any quilters/crafters have tips for decluttering patterns, unfinished projects, and fabric/materials? Sorry if this has already been covered. My issue is a quilt I started for a nephew, who is now nearing 2 years old. I keep saying I'm going to get to it, but I haven't sewn in about two years (other than patching). I just don't want to do it, and I'm not sure if I'm even able to do it, but I feel bad not making him a quilt. Also, I'm hesitant to give away all my other supplies because I have a cyclical pattern with hobbies where I'll do something for years then take a few years off then do it again for years. Anyone else in this boat?
Any quilters/crafters have tips for decluttering patterns, unfinished projects, and fabric/materials? Sorry if this has already been covered. My issue is a quilt I started for a nephew, who is now nearing 2 years old. I keep saying I'm going to get to it, but I haven't sewn in about two years (other than patching). I just don't want to do it, and I'm not sure if I'm even able to do it, but I feel bad not making him a quilt. Also, I'm hesitant to give away all my other supplies because I have a cyclical pattern with hobbies where I'll do something for years then take a few years off then do it again for years. Anyone else in this boat?
Worked on the basement today. I tossed a bunch of old gift bags. I reuse them, but living away from family, I mail all our presents. So I've been hauling this bags around for 3 countries and 5 years. Out! A few other odds and ends either tossed or added to Mt. Donate, which is quickly becoming quite the landmark in our basement.
Maybe it's counter-intuitive (or even counter-mustachian), but I find that if I remind myself, "you can always buy another one", it makes it much easier. If I need a wall clock to replace the one I donated today, and which I've had since college and haven't used in 2 years and probably cost $9.99 at target, I can buy one. *When I actually need and will use it.* And that frees me from the "but what if I need it someday? I'll have wasted $9.99" mentality that causes me to hold on to stuff.
Got rid of two eyeliners. I was still using them, but they are the pencil kind and when sharpened the wood was leaving splinters. Not a good idea near eyes, I didn't think! Will not replace them for the time being - I have another one which I will use up.
My efforts last night to declutter were a failure. Round 2 might be harder than I expected, or maybe I just wasn't in a decluttering headspace. I found 3 baby blankets I made about 15 years ago for future babies. Never had kids, and I don't need more blankets, but they are nice and unused and hard to just donate randomly. My brothers are likely done having children. I could wait for some friends to have kids and give to them, but that might be awhile. Or I could just suck it up and donate them, along with half a dozen other small blankets I have taking up space in the closet.
2 bags of clothes going to the consignment store today.
I'm not sure if they will take them, as they are super picky and this isn't high brands, but if not, they just go to Goodwill and I stop trying to consign things at all.
Selling a few pairs of shoes as a lot through craigslist. Such a pain. Had someone who was interested a few weeks ago who then flaked out after a few emails. Then she emailed again last week asking about it and haggled from $50 to $30. I was so tempted to ignore her since she flaked out last time but well maybe she'll show up this time. At least she's picking it up from my place and I'm not wasting time meeting her somewhere. Next time, think I'll just stick to ebay/goodwill, I feel like there are some many flakes and ridiculous hagglers on craigslist.+1 I've stopped selling on Craigslist except for furniture/really large items I can't take to Goodwill without help due to the LARGE number of flakes and the ridiculous bargains they ask for... I get it you want a good deal but asking it for next to nothing when its practically new is a shame.
I brought another large bag of clothes, shoes and bed linens to Goodwill along with a lamp and a magazine holder. It was around noon on Sunday. The guy accepting the donations told me they got so much stuff that they were running out of room and were planning to stop accepting donations in the afternoon!
I guess we are not the only ones cleaning and tidying up!
I went to our local Goodwill this past Saturday too, and the employee taking the donations said he had expected it to be a slow weekend but instead they were swamped with donations. I live in a small town but there were 3 others donating at the same time as me.I brought another large bag of clothes, shoes and bed linens to Goodwill along with a lamp and a magazine holder. It was around noon on Sunday. The guy accepting the donations told me they got so much stuff that they were running out of room and were planning to stop accepting donations in the afternoon!
I guess we are not the only ones cleaning and tidying up!
I brought 2 carloads of stuff to Goodwill this weekend - 1 load on Saturday, the other on Sunday. There were so many people donating on Saturday, I had to park on the street to wait for a place in line! It was nuts! I wonder if Memorial Day weekend is just a convenient time for spring cleaning and decluttering. The donation area had mountains of stuff. I added to the piles and bins and left wondering just how big is the second-hand/used goods retail sector.
I went through the kitchen yesterday. I ended up with a small pile to toss. I'm not sure if that means I'm in a decent spot with how much stuff is in the kitchen, or if I'm too attached with what we have.
Part of the problem is I know my boyfriend won't be completely down with pairing down too much. He saw the pile I set aside and half-jokingly said we can't throw anything out. For each thing he didn't want to throw out, I asked him when the last time he used that item and when the next time he was going to use it. He put up a fight, but when I asked him what he wanted to keep only a couple of items made it back. To be fair, what he put back aren't mine to throw away.
Hahaha! I need to have your sense of humor about my husband's book "hoarding" tendencies.I went through the kitchen yesterday. I ended up with a small pile to toss. I'm not sure if that means I'm in a decent spot with how much stuff is in the kitchen, or if I'm too attached with what we have.
Part of the problem is I know my boyfriend won't be completely down with pairing down too much. He saw the pile I set aside and half-jokingly said we can't throw anything out. For each thing he didn't want to throw out, I asked him when the last time he used that item and when the next time he was going to use it. He put up a fight, but when I asked him what he wanted to keep only a couple of items made it back. To be fair, what he put back aren't mine to throw away.
Partners are tricky waters to navigate. I generally leave his stuff alone, hoping I'm setting a good example, and then after a while when I suggest he clear out his things, he's more willing. But he's got a complete blind spot for books - and this coming from someone who is reluctant in her own right to get rid of many. As far as he's concerned, one should never release books back into the wild.
I'm also struggling with getting our possessions down because most items aren't mine or ours. I moved here in a car. He moved an entire 3,000 sq ft house. While I'm thankful for all of the things we didn't have to buy, I'm also resentful because our 1,000 sq ft house and garage are bursting at the seams. I still have a bit more whittling to do with my clothing, but my husband has at least 4 times the amount of clothing that I have.
Any tips for getting your partner to give up his things?
Thanks! I'm going to try clothing this weekend. I have a few things to get rid of too, so I hope it will be a productive day. Currently our guest bedroom is full of my husband's clothes. To be honest, my clothes are in the guest bedroom closet....because my husband has the closet in our bedroom.Hahaha! I need to have your sense of humor about my husband's book "hoarding" tendencies.I went through the kitchen yesterday. I ended up with a small pile to toss. I'm not sure if that means I'm in a decent spot with how much stuff is in the kitchen, or if I'm too attached with what we have.
Part of the problem is I know my boyfriend won't be completely down with pairing down too much. He saw the pile I set aside and half-jokingly said we can't throw anything out. For each thing he didn't want to throw out, I asked him when the last time he used that item and when the next time he was going to use it. He put up a fight, but when I asked him what he wanted to keep only a couple of items made it back. To be fair, what he put back aren't mine to throw away.
Partners are tricky waters to navigate. I generally leave his stuff alone, hoping I'm setting a good example, and then after a while when I suggest he clear out his things, he's more willing. But he's got a complete blind spot for books - and this coming from someone who is reluctant in her own right to get rid of many. As far as he's concerned, one should never release books back into the wild.
I'm also struggling with getting our possessions down because most items aren't mine or ours. I moved here in a car. He moved an entire 3,000 sq ft house. While I'm thankful for all of the things we didn't have to buy, I'm also resentful because our 1,000 sq ft house and garage are bursting at the seams. I still have a bit more whittling to do with my clothing, but my husband has at least 4 times the amount of clothing that I have.
Any tips for getting your partner to give up his things?
It's a tough one. As they say, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.
There are a variety of successful strategies, which vary based on personality:
Asking. Spouse complies with a simple request. We are all jealous.
Logic. You explain to the spouse (see below for an example) of why decluttering makes sense.
Modeling. Spouse sees the joy of decluttering and free space. Spouse has their "own idea" to also declutter. You never contradict spouse on this point.
Emotional. Spouse is happy to make you happy once you explain how very important it is. Tears may be involved.
Bargaining. You agree to get rid of your ugly broken item if he agrees to get rid of his ugly broken item.
Bribes. You offer favors (chores? NSFW favors? Get out of visiting a mother-in-law card? Remote control privileges?) in exchange for going through and culling items.
Sneak. Desperate, much like you might with children, you hide away unused items and gradually they "disappear" or are "lost" after a time passes with no one noticing.
Threats. You inform your spouse it's you or the [ugly broken item].
Professional. You call in professional help. Optional: Blast issue on a reality tv show.
As you can tell, the list devolves as you go down it. Let's call it the "CommonCents Hierarchy of Decluttering Your Partner"
Logic:
Pick one area (e.g. clothes).
Ask him how much he thinks would be an acceptable amount of clothes (or space to take up). If he won't say, ask if he would agree it is reasonable that you share the closet space for example, 50/50.
Then tell him how much he has. e.g. Did you know you have 104 t-shirts?
Ask him whether you can set aside time on a weekend to go through them together to decide what is too old, worn, stained etc. (Don't phrase it as "culling".)
During this time, make piles of keep, get rid, maybe. (When going through the maybe pile for final disposition, accept he'll keep some for unreasonable sentimental reasons.)
Key to success: Asking questions, getting agreement
Thanks! I'm going to try clothing this weekend. I have a few things to get rid of too, so I hope it will be a productive day. Currently our guest bedroom is full of my husband's clothes. To be honest, my clothes are in the guest bedroom closet....because my husband has the closet in our bedroom.Hahaha! I need to have your sense of humor about my husband's book "hoarding" tendencies.I went through the kitchen yesterday. I ended up with a small pile to toss. I'm not sure if that means I'm in a decent spot with how much stuff is in the kitchen, or if I'm too attached with what we have.
Part of the problem is I know my boyfriend won't be completely down with pairing down too much. He saw the pile I set aside and half-jokingly said we can't throw anything out. For each thing he didn't want to throw out, I asked him when the last time he used that item and when the next time he was going to use it. He put up a fight, but when I asked him what he wanted to keep only a couple of items made it back. To be fair, what he put back aren't mine to throw away.
Partners are tricky waters to navigate. I generally leave his stuff alone, hoping I'm setting a good example, and then after a while when I suggest he clear out his things, he's more willing. But he's got a complete blind spot for books - and this coming from someone who is reluctant in her own right to get rid of many. As far as he's concerned, one should never release books back into the wild.
I'm also struggling with getting our possessions down because most items aren't mine or ours. I moved here in a car. He moved an entire 3,000 sq ft house. While I'm thankful for all of the things we didn't have to buy, I'm also resentful because our 1,000 sq ft house and garage are bursting at the seams. I still have a bit more whittling to do with my clothing, but my husband has at least 4 times the amount of clothing that I have.
Any tips for getting your partner to give up his things?
It's a tough one. As they say, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.
There are a variety of successful strategies, which vary based on personality:
Asking. Spouse complies with a simple request. We are all jealous.
Logic. You explain to the spouse (see below for an example) of why decluttering makes sense.
Modeling. Spouse sees the joy of decluttering and free space. Spouse has their "own idea" to also declutter. You never contradict spouse on this point.
Emotional. Spouse is happy to make you happy once you explain how very important it is. Tears may be involved.
Bargaining. You agree to get rid of your ugly broken item if he agrees to get rid of his ugly broken item.
Bribes. You offer favors (chores? NSFW favors? Get out of visiting a mother-in-law card? Remote control privileges?) in exchange for going through and culling items.
Sneak. Desperate, much like you might with children, you hide away unused items and gradually they "disappear" or are "lost" after a time passes with no one noticing.
Threats. You inform your spouse it's you or the [ugly broken item].
Professional. You call in professional help. Optional: Blast issue on a reality tv show.
As you can tell, the list devolves as you go down it. Let's call it the "CommonCents Hierarchy of Decluttering Your Partner"
Logic:
Pick one area (e.g. clothes).
Ask him how much he thinks would be an acceptable amount of clothes (or space to take up). If he won't say, ask if he would agree it is reasonable that you share the closet space for example, 50/50.
Then tell him how much he has. e.g. Did you know you have 104 t-shirts?
Ask him whether you can set aside time on a weekend to go through them together to decide what is too old, worn, stained etc. (Don't phrase it as "culling".)
During this time, make piles of keep, get rid, maybe. (When going through the maybe pile for final disposition, accept he'll keep some for unreasonable sentimental reasons.)
Key to success: Asking questions, getting agreement
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Plus two large dressers in a small guest bedroom.
I'm pretty sure my husband sometimes just gets rid of things for me. And then either pretends he doesn't know where it went, or begs forgiveness if I notice something is gone (sometimes years later...)Haha! I'm not comfortable with getting rid of my husband's things, but it is tempting.
Any tips for getting your partner to give up his things?
Well, of 28 items I dropped off, the consignment store took 8.
I was surprised they didn't take any of the Lands End polos. They were in great condition. They also didn't take either of the two Banana Republic shirts, which were in season and good condition.
But my old tennis shoes got priced at $20 (they are Nikes, but that is crazy).
If things sell, I'm hoping I will take home between $5 and $15...
Thank you for all of the advice! I've just started reading Marie Kondo's book (http://www.amazon.com/Life-Changing-Magic-Tidying-Decluttering-Organizing-ebook/dp/B00KK0PICK/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1432830113 (http://www.amazon.com/Life-Changing-Magic-Tidying-Decluttering-Organizing-ebook/dp/B00KK0PICK/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1432830113)). After reading the first chapter, I realize that I'm going about this process in the completely wrong way. My husband agreed to read 1 chapter of the book, and we will both sort through our clothes on Saturday. I'm already planning a trip to Goodwill! I'm very excited!
Any tips for getting your partner to give up his things?
Great stuff from CommonCents. The other thing I'd add that I've had success with is to ask which ones he wants to keep, rather than which he wants to get rid of. This is an easier proposition, and can also help them see they don't actually value much of it.
For us, it went like this:
- Having watched me (silently) declutter for about 5 months DH suddenly says, "I think I'll get rid of some t-shirts"
- He lays them all out on the bed.
- I offer a prompt: 'Why don't you pick out the ones you love and put them back in the drawer to start'
- He picks out maybe 4 (out of 20), puts them away
- He looks at the pile and realises, hey, I obviously don't like these much...
- He puts a few more away, and gives me the rest to get rid of.
In my opinion the success, as many others have mentioned, was down to modelling. I tried nagging - not lots, but occassional mentions of 'Why don't you get rid of some t-shirts, and then you're drawer might close' for a few years, it acheived nothing.
In January I resolved to shut up and get my own house in order. He was amazed at how much I got rid of... Worried I wouldn't have anything to wear, and when I said, "But I wasn't wearing any of it anyway" just conversationally, a lightbulb seemed to go off.
We've now had lots of conversations about how we've realised that we didn't have anywhere to put anything because all of our 'storage' spaces (dressers, shelves etc) were neatly storing... things we didn't use.
He's now pretty much totally on board with decluttering, and has since done other areas, though I still wouldn't touch anything of his without checking with him, and I try not to preach.
Whereas before I'd say, "Why don't you get rid of this sock, it's full of holes" (in a judgemental and exasperated tone), now we are on a similar page, I keep all holey socks when I do laundry and say (factually, and without intonation, just as a simple question), "These socks are holey. Is it alright with you if I get rid of them?" and so far, touchwood, he has agreed every time.
The more you both get rid of, the more you realise your life becomes better, not worse, and the easier it is to let go of other stuff. Good luck.
Well, of 28 items I dropped off, the consignment store took 8.
I was surprised they didn't take any of the Lands End polos. They were in great condition. They also didn't take either of the two Banana Republic shirts, which were in season and good condition.
But my old tennis shoes got priced at $20 (they are Nikes, but that is crazy).
If things sell, I'm hoping I will take home between $5 and $15...
Recently I took clothes to a consignment shop - the owner told me button down shirts (ladies) are not a good seller. She took my two almost new banana republic button down shirts but warned me they probably will not sell. Sure enough at the end they did not sell (but I did pick up a cheque for $92.50 for the other items!).
Can't believe I found an actual VCR still in our house this morning in an armoire (that itself needs to go).We have one too, it's been on the floor of our closet for several years! SO doesn't want to get rid of it until we make a list of our VHS tapes so we can, some day, replace the ones we like with DVDs. I hope we get time to do this soon!
Tossed the VCR on the pile of crap I had going to electronics recycling.
I have four days off, so I'm laying out a couple challenges for myself:
- Actually get the latest box o' crap delivered to the thrift store
- Go through and organize file cabinets
- Get rid of two remaining fish and decommission the aquarium
- Hang the curtains in the basement and clean up the hardware/crap that is hanging around there
- List at least 5 items on eBay
- Re-work a broken horse jump that's in the back yard using stuff I have on hand, and take it out to the stable
We have one too, it's been on the floor of our closet for several years! SO doesn't want to get rid of it until we make a list of our VHS tapes so we can, some day, replace the ones we like with DVDs. I hope we get time to do this soon!
I have four days off, so I'm laying out a couple challenges for myself:
- Actually get the latest box o' crap delivered to the thrift store
- Go through and organize file cabinets
- Get rid of two remaining fish and decommission the aquarium
- Hang the curtains in the basement and clean up the hardware/crap that is hanging around there
- List at least 5 items on eBay
- Re-work a broken horse jump that's in the back yard using stuff I have on hand, and take it out to the stable
Dang, I haven't gotten to any of these. The weather has been great, so I've been gardening and riding instead. I was ready to load the boxes into the car and take them to the Goodwill, but I realized that I am missing my gold necklace, so now I need to go through the boxes with a fine toothed comb to make sure I don't accidentally donate actual diamonds. OTOH, I had an unexpected day at home today due to a last minute change of plans at work, so I've been decluttering outdoors. So far I have the truck loaded up with old broken windows I had planned to make into cold frames, some materials that were too weathered to use for anything, a broken screen door and some nasty old Adirondack chairs that aren't worth scraping and re-painting. I've also got an old A/C unit, 6 patio chairs and two plant pots out at the curb with "free" signs on them, and burned up a pile of yard waste that has been visual clutter in my line of sight from the kitchen window since last fall.
I stood in front of the closet, staring at the dresses for about 5 minutes, reordering them, pulling one out and putting it back, etc. Then I gave up and worked on another section of the closet. 20 pants and blazers in a donation bag. Blazers are an area where I'll need at least one more pass (L. Ron, I have so very many clothes!). Not what I intended and I didn't tackle the scary dress project, but not bad for a day's work, either.This is so true! I recently got rid of some fancy handbags and clothes that I used to wear in my prior job (5 years ago!). The hardest part for me was the acknowledgment that that chapter of my life is now irrevocably closed. I almost turned back on my way to the consignment store. But after a day or so I started feeling better about it and now I almost feel ready for the here and now and the next chapter... Almost, because I still have a few dresses I hang on to for sentimental reasons. I need to screw up my courage and let them go. Soon...
I love the idea of setting a number of X items that seems reasonable. How many cardigans/swimsuits/pairs of boots is it reasonable for me to own. If, after a purge, I'm at 150% of that number, clearly there's more work to be done. Thanks for the great suggestion!
Another project is a major shoe purge. When I was working in an office, I wore fancy heals almost daily. I still want that life and imagine it for myself, so getting rid of work clothes is a tough sell mentally. But I need to accept that it isn't my life. If shoes haven't been worn since I move to Japan (5 years ago, and I'm in Germany now), clearly they need to go. If I have the professional life I want again someday, I can buy more shoes. I've acquired a lot more comfy, casual shoes, because they better fit my life, but I never got rid of the ones that fit my old life.
It's amazing to me how much mental baggage gets opened up. They may be just shoes, but to me, they are a symbol of the professional life I sacrificed to move. Getting rid of them means accepting that difficult change a bit more fully. Sometimes, a shirt is just a shirt, but other times, there's so much more meaning behind the Stuff.
Tomorrow I start tackling cocktail and evening gowns. This one will be hard for me. I do wear these things, anywhere from 2-5 times a year, and I'm likely to start wearing them a bit more often. Also, my size varies so I have a range of sizes (normal size and up and down one).
I love these. They are so beautiful. And I do wear them. And I hate wearing the same dress to more than every couple of years to these events. Not entirely rational, but that's where I'm coming from as I tackle this.
This one will be a real struggle. I probably have 25 or more. Uggh. I'm trying to decide what is reasonable. This will be my first big challenge I think.
Tomorrow I start tackling cocktail and evening gowns. This one will be hard for me. I do wear these things, anywhere from 2-5 times a year, and I'm likely to start wearing them a bit more often. Also, my size varies so I have a range of sizes (normal size and up and down one).
I love these. They are so beautiful. And I do wear them. And I hate wearing the same dress to more than every couple of years to these events. Not entirely rational, but that's where I'm coming from as I tackle this.
This one will be a real struggle. I probably have 25 or more. Uggh. I'm trying to decide what is reasonable. This will be my first big challenge I think.
If you wear 2-5 a year, you don't like to repeat except every few years, it seems rational to keep 15, 5 per year, for 3 years.
So I'd combine the advice of the above post, and pare down to at most 15.
Then, I'd do a long term "hanger turn"- rather than move them to storage (do you have a storage building? I'd get rid of that!) Hang them with the hanger the wrong way, when you wear them, turn it around. If after 3 years any are still the wrong way, get rid of them too. Clearly, those weren't your favorites, and you didn't need as many dresses as you thought.
I threw away a bunch of old bathroom stuff. Like old toothpaste, old lotions and creams that were rancid, sunblock that was old and separated and had a tiny bit left, small sample size bottles of stuff that we were never going to use again. Also some plastic cosmetic bags that had seen better days. We also sorted all of our bathroom stuff, and we should have gotten rid of a ton more. We have about 10 travel size toothpastes and the same number of brand new toothbrushes, all from the dentist. We use an electric one! But DH didn't want to part with them (surprisingly since I'm the clutter bug). At least they are all in one place. I still have multiples of things, like 3 hotel shower caps, and too many cleaning items, like old toothbrushes and rags. But now that everything is together and organized, I can try a use things up or get rid of it in another pass. We are still missing a box from the bathroom, and we can't seem to find it.
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I also kept an old organic toothpaste, but I moved it to cleaning supplies and I'm going to try it on my headlights of my car as suggested on the internet.
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I had a clothing swap this weekend which motivated me to go through my closet again. Got rid of about 40 more items which bumped me over my goal for this year of 365 items. I'm going to try to double it, since the year is not even half over. I may need to focus a little harder though, now that the easy stuff is already out the door.
Wife and I went through the "possibly mend" pile of kids' clothes yesterday. Chunked most of it. Anything worthy of Goodwill got bagged, and put with other bags waiting to get donated.
We've found a place that takes clothes donations in a drop-off bin, i.e. no long trips to Goodwill! I can chunk the stuff on the way to work now. I have decided to just chunk anything we can't immediately donate and/or sell.
I cleaned out my closet (mostly organized it, but the floor is clear now) and wife is decluttering the girls' room this morning. I'm getting the itch to organize my workshop too, but that's a long-term undertaking.
Slow. Very slow. But making progress.
I hate to be a downer, but I'd recommend checking out the company associated with the bin;they are often not legit. Just as an FYI: "In 2012, Goodwill officials complained that nationwide donation bins operated by for-profit recycling businesses or nonprofits only giving a fraction of donated items to those who need it most were taking away from donations that would actually benefit the poor, USA Today reported."
I hate to be a downer, but I'd recommend checking out the company associated with the bin;they are often not legit. Just as an FYI: "In 2012, Goodwill officials complained that nationwide donation bins operated by for-profit recycling businesses or nonprofits only giving a fraction of donated items to those who need it most were taking away from donations that would actually benefit the poor, USA Today reported."
Goodwill is a for-profit company, too. I don't care what they do with it once I throw it in the bin: it's either that, or it goes in the dumpster. As long as it's not in my house.
i love playing "the minimalism game" where you get rid of one thing on day 1, two on day 2, all the way up to 30 on day 30.
'get rid of' could be sell, donate, give away, trash, etc.
it's a really painless way to unload 500+ items!
anything counts - a rubber band, a receipt, a bed. :)
i've played it three times (the two months before i moved last october and once again this march.)
figured i'd share, since a) i'm new, and b) it IS june 2nd, so not too late to start...
Still I can see a lot of clutter in the main room and its driving me mad. Any idea how to tackle this?I really really really recommend starting with clothing first, following her method: find all the t-shirts (for example) in the house, and put them in a big pile. Include those that are in your car, closet, dresser, floor, laundry room, wherever. Pick up each and every one and decide if you really love it and it's in wearable condition, in the size you currently wear. Get rid of all the others. Do this for every category of clothing. Doing the clothing first really helped me move on to other categories (I'm not nearly done yet). I found clothing easier because it's so well categorized, and it's obvious when it doesn't fit or is torn/stained, or I just never wear it. Doing this first got me into the groove for moving on to more difficult things.
I keep sporadically looking at housing in the Boston area (our endgame location, and where I grew up) and wanting to kill myself. We'll be moving back in 3 months or 3 years, and considering buying a few years after that. And the prices are horrible. Not going to lie, I really want to have little stuff and be able to happily live in a 2 bedroom with 1 kid in the future. But that's all very far away. In the meantime, I just keep realizing how generally non-necessary and sometimes also crappy the clothes and things I've bought over the years are. That's kinda depressing.
i love playing "the minimalism game" where you get rid of one thing on day 1, two on day 2, all the way up to 30 on day 30.
'get rid of' could be sell, donate, give away, trash, etc.
it's a really painless way to unload 500+ items!
anything counts - a rubber band, a receipt, a bed. :)
i've played it three times (the two months before i moved last october and once again this march.)
figured i'd share, since a) i'm new, and b) it IS june 2nd, so not too late to start...
i love playing "the minimalism game" where you get rid of one thing on day 1, two on day 2, all the way up to 30 on day 30.
'get rid of' could be sell, donate, give away, trash, etc.
it's a really painless way to unload 500+ items!
anything counts - a rubber band, a receipt, a bed. :)
i've played it three times (the two months before i moved last october and once again this march.)
figured i'd share, since a) i'm new, and b) it IS june 2nd, so not too late to start...
Thanks for posting this, honaras! I've read about this game on the minimalists' blog in the past but didn't think I could do it. You inspired me to actually start playing the game last night! ;)
I would just hate to have to rebuy. And so I go round in circles.
I've cleared out a huge pile of kitchen stuff we are getting rid of! and this is after I did a major purge already. This downsizing plan has really motivated me to only keep the essentials.QuoteI would just hate to have to rebuy. And so I go round in circles.
The Minimalists say that they have a $20 rule. If you aren't sure if you will use it in the future and it can be repurchased for $20 or less then you should get rid of it. Chances are you'll never do that though!
My last major house purge was a little less than a year ago and I've only bought one of those metal round steamer things that goes in a pot for about $5. Everything else that I was worried about needing, I can't even remember them now!
Personally, I think the main thing she's selling - to keep only things that give you joy - doesn't make sense. Not everything is made to give you joy. Most tools are just tools. Does this USB cable give me joy? No, but it takes up a small amount of space and I like to have an extra one for certain situations. A bag of screws certainly doesn't give me joy, but that bag has saved me several trips to a hardware store.
The Minimalists say that they have a $20 rule. If you aren't sure if you will use it in the future and it can be repurchased for $20 or less then you should get rid of it. Chances are you'll never do that though!
The Minimalists say that they have a $20 rule. If you aren't sure if you will use it in the future and it can be repurchased for $20 or less then you should get rid of it. Chances are you'll never do that though!Thanks for sharing this rule, it's something I've been having trouble with - deciding whether to get rid of extras I've got in case I need them later if something breaks. This is a big one in our kitchen - excess casserole dishes, cookie sheets, cutting boards and so on that we might need some day when one wears out.
The rule I've read of is the 20/20 rule, which does not only factor in money but also time: any item that you can get within 20 minutes and for less than $20 you don't need to keep 'just in case'
Don't ruin it for me! I live in the country!LOL that was my first thought too, nothing I can get within 20 minutes! I like the rule but will adjust it to anything less than $20 that I can get either online or within an hour drive of home.
You can replace the 20 minute part by 'can be found online' / 'borrowed from neighbours' etc.
I totally understand about the "sparking joy" issue. Very few of my items spark joy, but I do use them a lot.
Personally, I think the main thing she's selling - to keep only things that give you joy - doesn't make sense. Not everything is made to give you joy. Most tools are just tools. Does this USB cable give me joy? No, but it takes up a small amount of space and I like to have an extra one for certain situations. A bag of screws certainly doesn't give me joy, but that bag has saved me several trips to a hardware store.
I think the quirkyness is part culture, though.
And after hearing the whole book I would perhaps sum up my impression of her aproach thus: she puts weight in the fact that tidying is emotional, not logical. Anyone may sit down, make a list of "things I need" and then toss all else. It's as simple as making a grosery list (though more timeconsuming). Yet we don't do that.
She nods to usefull things that doesn't bring "joy", and then debates if that item, be it a screw, cord or box is of use. Do you keep it "in case" and have for 3 years with no use? Is it easy to get your hands on? Pass it on. To get use out of something is a form of joy to her. My pots and pan doesn't "spark joy" when I hold them. They're old and battered. But they DO help me make many culinary joys. That tray I never use on the other hand, never brings me joy of any sort and so I gave that one away. It's a, to me, new yet very effective way to think.
I've taken away that I need to do an entire subsection in a day. I made so much progress with my clothing (which is the only thing I've used for the KonMari method to do) in a short period of time. It was also helpful to have a list, finish the entire process (no breaks), and reap the benefits so quickly. I'm planning to do books with my husband this weekend.
Some of Marie Kondo's terminology and tendencies (greeting houses) is bizarre. However, the bigger picture of reducing possessions and not hoarding them in storage containers speaks to me.
I have a question for those of you selling some of your stuff: what's your go-to answer when someone asks "What's the lowest price you'll take?" I absolutely HATE that question and I get it with almost everything I put up for sale. Someone even asked me that about my house! Luckily I could honestly answer that DH and I hadn't actually talked about our bottom dollar yet so we didn't know.
I don't really care about getting the best price for my stuff, I mostly just want it gone, but that question makes me want to scream and not even deal with the person at all
I have a question for those of you selling some of your stuff: what's your go-to answer when someone asks "What's the lowest price you'll take?" I absolutely HATE that question and I get it with almost everything I put up for sale. Someone even asked me that about my house! Luckily I could honestly answer that DH and I hadn't actually talked about our bottom dollar yet so we didn't know.
I don't really care about getting the best price for my stuff, I mostly just want it gone, but that question makes me want to scream and not even deal with the person at all
I have a question for those of you selling some of your stuff: what's your go-to answer when someone asks "What's the lowest price you'll take?" I absolutely HATE that question and I get it with almost everything I put up for sale. Someone even asked me that about my house! Luckily I could honestly answer that DH and I hadn't actually talked about our bottom dollar yet so we didn't know.
I don't really care about getting the best price for my stuff, I mostly just want it gone, but that question makes me want to scream and not even deal with the person at all
It's quite possibly one of the worst questions to ask. I'm not going to tell you what the lowest I'd take for it. So now how are you going to negotiate me down from this price that's supposed to be the lowest I can go?
I usually am either really firm with these people or don't respond to them at all. The people who try and get the lowest deals are also the people who flake out the most often.
Well put, jordanread!Thanks for letting me know there was an AMA. https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2u7yet/i_am_marie_kondo_international_tidying_expert_and/ (https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2u7yet/i_am_marie_kondo_international_tidying_expert_and/)
From Kondo's AMA:
"What about keeping objects that don't spark joy but that I don't want to spend money or time replacing right now and which are still helpful - for example a computer, a mattress, a toothbrush...
Those things are helping you every single day. So you should appreciate how they are contributing to your life. Change the relationship with those items, by appreciating their contributions to your life."
Oooh, I like this one, thanks! I never wanted to give out an amount so I usually do something along the lines of "I don't know, what's the most you're willing to offer?"I have a question for those of you selling some of your stuff: what's your go-to answer when someone asks "What's the lowest price you'll take?" I absolutely HATE that question and I get it with almost everything I put up for sale. Someone even asked me that about my house! Luckily I could honestly answer that DH and I hadn't actually talked about our bottom dollar yet so we didn't know.
I don't really care about getting the best price for my stuff, I mostly just want it gone, but that question makes me want to scream and not even deal with the person at all
It's quite possibly one of the worst questions to ask. I'm not going to tell you what the lowest I'd take for it. So now how are you going to negotiate me down from this price that's supposed to be the lowest I can go?
I usually am either really firm with these people or don't respond to them at all. The people who try and get the lowest deals are also the people who flake out the most often.
Never negotiate against yourself. "Well, I was looking to get $X (price listed). I'm willing to consider other offers, however, I thought was $X reasonable based on [facts - age, condition of item, interest...]."
Once I (as light heartedly as I could through text) said "I really hate that question. Make me an offer and I'll let you know if it's too low" and she replied "I really hate making offers" and didn't make one (luckily I got full price for the item a couple of days later)
I have a question for those of you selling some of your stuff: what's your go-to answer when someone asks "What's the lowest price you'll take?" I absolutely HATE that question and I get it with almost everything I put up for sale. Someone even asked me that about my house! Luckily I could honestly answer that DH and I hadn't actually talked about our bottom dollar yet so we didn't know.
I don't really care about getting the best price for my stuff, I mostly just want it gone, but that question makes me want to scream and not even deal with the person at all
I have a question for those of you selling some of your stuff: what's your go-to answer when someone asks "What's the lowest price you'll take?" I absolutely HATE that question and I get it with almost everything I put up for sale. Someone even asked me that about my house! Luckily I could honestly answer that DH and I hadn't actually talked about our bottom dollar yet so we didn't know.
I don't really care about getting the best price for my stuff, I mostly just want it gone, but that question makes me want to scream and not even deal with the person at all
I say to those types " make me an offer. "
If it sounds good to me, sold. If not , the haggling begins.
i love playing "the minimalism game" where you get rid of one thing on day 1, two on day 2, all the way up to 30 on day 30.
'get rid of' could be sell, donate, give away, trash, etc.
it's a really painless way to unload 500+ items!
anything counts - a rubber band, a receipt, a bed. :)
i've played it three times (the two months before i moved last october and once again this march.)
figured i'd share, since a) i'm new, and b) it IS june 2nd, so not too late to start...
I went through a ton of my sewing supplies last night and got rid of several bags of junk - weird bits of fabric, crappy thread that people have given to me that's unusable in my machine, patterns I'll never make or made and disliked. It's great - now that it's been pared down to a manageable level, it's way easier to focus on some of the projects I want to do since I know exactly what I have and don't have. I cut out a shirt pattern last night and will sew it today. More fabric gone!
Also my old giant blender that was starting to leak, replaced with a small modern one that's easy to clean.
Hi all--
I've been lurking for a while, but this is my first post. I cleared out 2 garbage bags of clothes from my closet to bring to Savers today. Still a long way to go, but it's a start!
I haven't read all 38 pages of this thread(!) but I wonder if Moustachians are familiar with itsdeductible. It's an offshoot of Turbotax where you can enter your deductions all year long and then import them into TT if you use it (no product kickback for me in this endorsement). I love it because it gives me a value for clothes WAY beyond what I would have estimated, and sometimes even more than what I paid originally (ie a camisole in very good condition is worth 13.00 donated). Knowing that I will get a tax writeoff for my stuff takes away some of the remorse over buying it in the first place. Hope this helps someone!
Cleaned out our book collection using the KonMari Method. We still have way too many books, but we donated over 50 books today. We also cleared out an entire bookshelf! The bookshelf has already been disassembled.
Attended a nice cycling event on saturday, and got the inevitable goody bag.
Some nice items in it, but some I know I will never use.
Put those items on a local giveaway facebook group immediately, they will be picked up tonight. Good riddance!
To do next time: refuse the goody bag.
Acquired several free books- to be donated of course immediately after reading. Heavy reader here
So far this has been a good rule for me: If I'm treating the books as if they are museum treasures, and not reading them, they have to go.
Threw out a bagful of various "stuff" found in my bathroom cabinets that I was holding on to for some reason. Eyelash curler that hasn't been used in at least 7 years, anyone? How about 10 year old skin toner? Or that temporary hair color my DD bought several years ago that I thought I would try (haven't colored my hair in almost 5 years...)??? And this was the second pass through these cabinets and drawers after a purge a couple of months ago. It's almost as if some stuff becomes invisible after sitting there for such a long time - I gloss over it when I open the cabinet. I really need to KonMari these drawers and the cabinet. Take everything out and pick up each item and decide if I still need it. Maybe tonight.Good luck with the drawers and cabinet!
Did another sweep through the bathroom cabinets last night. Threw out a few more items and gathered things that can be used up like half empty bottles of shampoo or body wash. These I put in places where I will use them. I am feeling much better even though I still kept some questionable things that probably should be thrown out eventually.
Also started purging papers this morning while I was transferring some files to a new computer.
Question: how long do I need to hold on to these types of papers:
- confirmation of final student loan payoff from over 10 years ago
- purchase and sale paperwork for a house (bought in 2003 sold in 2012)
- information relating to a 401k that I rolled over to an IRA 5 years ago
- car accident paperwork that ended up in a lawsuit (settled by the insurance co) more than 10 years ago
I've been keeping them in case questions arise relating to them but it seems that at some point they should be thrown out?
Did another sweep through the bathroom cabinets last night. Threw out a few more items and gathered things that can be used up like half empty bottles of shampoo or body wash. These I put in places where I will use them. I am feeling much better even though I still kept some questionable things that probably should be thrown out eventually.
Also started purging papers this morning while I was transferring some files to a new computer.
Question: how long do I need to hold on to these types of papers:
- confirmation of final student loan payoff from over 10 years ago
- purchase and sale paperwork for a house (bought in 2003 sold in 2012)
- information relating to a 401k that I rolled over to an IRA 5 years ago
- car accident paperwork that ended up in a lawsuit (settled by the insurance co) more than 10 years ago
I've been keeping them in case questions arise relating to them but it seems that at some point they should be thrown out?
So far this has been a good rule for me: If I'm treating the books as if they are museum treasures, and not reading them, they have to go.
Love the visuals :)
I agree that's a good rule, except w/r/t one book - an 1800s copy of a Grimm's fairytales I own from my grandfather. Not worthy of selling (as I did actually read it ~age 16-20 when I got it from my grandfather and despite my extreme care, the pages fell apart), but sufficient sentiment that I will keep it!
So far this has been a good rule for me: If I'm treating the books as if they are museum treasures, and not reading them, they have to go.
Love the visuals :)
I agree that's a good rule, except w/r/t one book - an 1800s copy of a Grimm's fairytales I own from my grandfather. Not worthy of selling (as I did actually read it ~age 16-20 when I got it from my grandfather and despite my extreme care, the pages fell apart), but sufficient sentiment that I will keep it!
The pictures remind me of the house I grew up in. I think a lot of people struggle with keeping books. I've been able to keep my book acquisition habit reasonably under control by being limited to three bookcases that were a gift when I was young. Since then I have never gone beyond the bookcase limit, which has meant tossing a lot of books over time as I got new ones. What is left are a lot of ones I look at again and again, and the bookcases aren't full. Also I reread old ones regularly, and now just utilize the library. So while I do still have more books than I might like, I don't feel out-of-control about it either. I'm certainly not going to toss them all just for the sake of it.
Did another sweep through the bathroom cabinets last night. Threw out a few more items and gathered things that can be used up like half empty bottles of shampoo or body wash. These I put in places where I will use them. I am feeling much better even though I still kept some questionable things that probably should be thrown out eventually.
Also started purging papers this morning while I was transferring some files to a new computer.
Question: how long do I need to hold on to these types of papers:
- confirmation of final student loan payoff from over 10 years ago
- purchase and sale paperwork for a house (bought in 2003 sold in 2012)
- information relating to a 401k that I rolled over to an IRA 5 years ago
- car accident paperwork that ended up in a lawsuit (settled by the insurance co) more than 10 years ago
I've been keeping them in case questions arise relating to them but it seems that at some point they should be thrown out?
I'm a third through the Magi of Tidying audio book and I'm not terribly impressed. She is definitely an odd one. I don't think it helps that the audiobook sounds like they're trying to impersonate a computer generated voice. Thnk GLaDOS, but with less personality.
Personally, I think the main thing she's selling - to keep only things that give you joy - doesn't make sense. Not everything is made to give you joy. Most tools are just tools. Does this USB cable give me joy? No, but it takes up a small amount of space and I like to have an extra one for certain situations. A bag of screws certainly doesn't give me joy, but that bag has saved me several trips to a hardware store.
I think a big problem I have is that I'm already pretty minimal and organized so most of her advice doesn't help me. I was hoping for something that would push me to go farther, but this book hasn't. I can't say it hasn't done anything for me, though. It has given me some motivation to go through some more stuff and make another pile for donation.
So far this has been a good rule for me: If I'm treating the books as if they are museum treasures, and not reading them, they have to go.
Love the visuals :)
I agree that's a good rule, except w/r/t one book - an 1800s copy of a Grimm's fairytales I own from my grandfather. Not worthy of selling (as I did actually read it ~age 16-20 when I got it from my grandfather and despite my extreme care, the pages fell apart), but sufficient sentiment that I will keep it!
Did another sweep through the bathroom cabinets last night. Threw out a few more items and gathered things that can be used up like half empty bottles of shampoo or body wash. These I put in places where I will use them. I am feeling much better even though I still kept some questionable things that probably should be thrown out eventually.
Also started purging papers this morning while I was transferring some files to a new computer.
Question: how long do I need to hold on to these types of papers:
- confirmation of final student loan payoff from over 10 years ago
- purchase and sale paperwork for a house (bought in 2003 sold in 2012)
- information relating to a 401k that I rolled over to an IRA 5 years ago
- car accident paperwork that ended up in a lawsuit (settled by the insurance co) more than 10 years ago
I've been keeping them in case questions arise relating to them but it seems that at some point they should be thrown out?
Today I sold 3 baking pans and a fancy food warmer. I also donated a grocery bag worth of clothes and books, three pots, 5 baking pans 4 mixing bowls and a crockpot! I upgraded the pots so not entirely empty cupboards, but I did decide to get rid of most of my baking supplies. We really don't eat desserts, and if I have to buy them instead of easily make them, then we will be encouraged to eat even less.That's about where we are, except SWMBO has celiac disease so buying desserts isn't a real option. Still, we eat dessert like twice a month or something and the baking stuff is by far the least used kitchen equipment we own. And when we do eat dessert it's often pudding that uses the same saucepans as everything else.
I am currently planning for a cross country move. So currently very motivated to declutter and looking at what I own in a different light. I wonder if thinking "would I take it with me if I moved interstate" help any of you guys to make decisions.
Any ideas for what to do with an old letterman jacket? It takes up space and I never wear it but there's still a bit of sentiment attached to it.
Any ideas for what to do with an old letterman jacket? It takes up space and I never wear it but there's still a bit of sentiment attached to it.
Edited to add: will you need a name change now? :p
This question was useless for me until we were actually considering an interstate move. Then all of a sudden a lot of things got earmarked for disposal! Several of those items are ones we won't get rid of unless we make a move because we do use them (couches) and i would simply want to get new ones at the new place. Also because I've tried selling them on Gumtree and I'm not ready to put them up for free until we move, which should be at the end of this year even if its just to a new place in the same city.I am currently planning for a cross country move. So currently very motivated to declutter and looking at what I own in a different light. I wonder if thinking "would I take it with me if I moved interstate" help any of you guys to make decisions.
Absolutely. I consider this question when I am deciding to keep something or not (the answer is almost always 'hell no'). I'm not planning on moving for a couple years, but it's still a great question to ask while decluttering now. :)
Has anyone tracked all of their items in a spreadsheet? I'm kind of interested in doing it. I think it would be a good way to see how much I have and what I can get rid of. I do worry that tracking my items would make me spend more time thinking about them.
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Has anyone tracked all of their items in a spreadsheet? I'm kind of interested in doing it. I think it would be a good way to see how much I have and what I can get rid of. I do worry that tracking my items would make me spend more time thinking about them.
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Has anyone tracked all of their items in a spreadsheet? I'm kind of interested in doing it. I think it would be a good way to see how much I have and what I can get rid of. I do worry that tracking my items would make me spend more time thinking about them.
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Yes, I did when I was trying to get rid of 7 things a day for a month - in part to track, in part to record for donations. I ended up getting rid of 500+ items...but sometimes pushed the envelope on number (e.g. I got rid of say, 7 tubes of travel toothpaste, or chapstick etc and called it 7. Technically correct but a lot of small items released didn't get me far).
They usually use a ton of plastic bags in packing groceries but the neighborhood is gentrifying rapidly and the other night the young woman before me and the young man behind me (and me) all had our own canvas bags. But first the plastic bags had to be unpacked because it's the default. A strange type of culture clash.
Just wondering what other's thoughts are on the issue of 'family heirlooms' or collections or such that are handed down to you. I have received some things that get little use (e.g. actual silver silverware, fancy Delftware, an extensive coin collection), but that have a great deal of sentimental value (and possible monetary value). Some of the items are potentially interesting to my children (e.g. the coins) or their future children. Other items I look at and sort of shrug - like weird tableware (e.g. some sort of fancy pickle bowl that no one ever uses any more). Nothing is taking up much space and it is all tucked away in a drawer that I can spare. I just find myself looking at it and wondering why I am hanging on to it - I can't really put it into use because it isn't the sort of thing that is useful on a daily basis and/or it is too old and fragile to be used regularly.
I have a much easier time decluttering books and clothing and misc. rubble. What do you all do about the sorts of things I've described above?
Just wondering what other's thoughts are on the issue of 'family heirlooms' or collections or such that are handed down to you. I have received some things that get little use (e.g. actual silver silverware, fancy Delftware, an extensive coin collection), but that have a great deal of sentimental value (and possible monetary value). Some of the items are potentially interesting to my children (e.g. the coins) or their future children. Other items I look at and sort of shrug - like weird tableware (e.g. some sort of fancy pickle bowl that no one ever uses any more). Nothing is taking up much space and it is all tucked away in a drawer that I can spare. I just find myself looking at it and wondering why I am hanging on to it - I can't really put it into use because it isn't the sort of thing that is useful on a daily basis and/or it is too old and fragile to be used regularly.
I have a much easier time decluttering books and clothing and misc. rubble. What do you all do about the sorts of things I've described above?
Just wondering what other's thoughts are on the issue of 'family heirlooms' or collections or such that are handed down to you. I have received some things that get little use (e.g. actual silver silverware, fancy Delftware, an extensive coin collection), but that have a great deal of sentimental value (and possible monetary value). Some of the items are potentially interesting to my children (e.g. the coins) or their future children. Other items I look at and sort of shrug - like weird tableware (e.g. some sort of fancy pickle bowl that no one ever uses any more). Nothing is taking up much space and it is all tucked away in a drawer that I can spare. I just find myself looking at it and wondering why I am hanging on to it - I can't really put it into use because it isn't the sort of thing that is useful on a daily basis and/or it is too old and fragile to be used regularly.
I have a much easier time decluttering books and clothing and misc. rubble. What do you all do about the sorts of things I've described above?
I also hav received TONS of heirlooms and I kept what I like & hav a heap I will sell also ( high monetary value) . maybe keep items for your kids that you think of setting aside for them , esp if you hav the space.
I think once someone has died there is no reason for you not to do what you wish with the things which are now yours. Freedom!
Just wondering what other's thoughts are on the issue of 'family heirlooms' or collections or such that are handed down to you. I have received some things that get little use (e.g. actual silver silverware, fancy Delftware, an extensive coin collection), but that have a great deal of sentimental value (and possible monetary value). Some of the items are potentially interesting to my children (e.g. the coins) or their future children. Other items I look at and sort of shrug - like weird tableware (e.g. some sort of fancy pickle bowl that no one ever uses any more). Nothing is taking up much space and it is all tucked away in a drawer that I can spare. I just find myself looking at it and wondering why I am hanging on to it - I can't really put it into use because it isn't the sort of thing that is useful on a daily basis and/or it is too old and fragile to be used regularly.I'm facing a similar dilemma at the moment. I'm offering relatives the opportunity to take things (one cousin is keeper of the family archive on that side, so is taking papers and photos and some artifacts). If there are likely to be disputes, offer the whole lot at once with each family member choosing what they want in turn (draw lots for the order and with people who can't be there in person making a list of preferred items) until everything is gone. If children don't have a home of their own yet and you have room, keep things for them until they are eg 21 or 25, and if they still don't want them pass them on to other family or sell them.
I have a much easier time decluttering books and clothing and misc. rubble. What do you all do about the sorts of things I've described above?
Be careful about offering it to other family members. I know some people may not want it, but could get very upset to learn that you are getting rid of it. I'm not saying don't offer to family, but be able to hold strong against their pressure for you to become the museum.This x1000
Nice work, advicist! I'll give that method a try. I forget about things in drawers so I clearly don't need any of it.
As for impulse purchases, before I buy anything new I try to think of all the resources that went into making it and the route it may have had to travel to get to the store. (Then I take a step back and look at all of the items hanging on the one shelf in the one aisle of this one store, and on and on.) Then I ask if I can justify the purchase. Is the item and my use of it worth those resources?
Nice work, advicist! I'll give that method a try. I forget about things in drawers so I clearly don't need any of it.
As for impulse purchases, before I buy anything new I try to think of all the resources that went into making it and the route it may have had to travel to get to the store. (Then I take a step back and look at all of the items hanging on the one shelf in the one aisle of this one store, and on and on.) Then I ask if I can justify the purchase. Is the item and my use of it worth those resources?
Thanks! It really helped me with things like 'headache balm'. Yes, one day I might get a headache and maybe would have used it. But when it runs out, am I going to buy another, or just deal with the headache?
I love the resource approach. That is one thing that stops me throwing things out - but it's wasteful! Think about the earth! I need to do that further up the chain and see whether the thing is really worth buying in the first place (especially toiletries where results are so varied for me. It's not worth the chance, because the guilt is too much if it doesn't work out).
Oh god, this is me too! I opened the post this morning and received THREE free pads, and THREE free pens! Argggggghhh
I'm relatively good on carefully thinking through purchases. My issue is bringing in free items - things from my mom, a freebie from a site, a giveaway from people at the train, etc. - it comes from every which direction! Just because it's free doesn't mean I should accept it!
Oh god, this is me too! I opened the post this morning and received THREE free pads, and THREE free pens! Argggggghhh
I'm relatively good on carefully thinking through purchases. My issue is bringing in free items - things from my mom, a freebie from a site, a giveaway from people at the train, etc. - it comes from every which direction! Just because it's free doesn't mean I should accept it!
I need to label cords when they come into the house, so years later I know what they go to. I'm always terrified getting rid of cords for fear they go to something I've forgotten about (a not often used but still critical item), as it's happened before. So I have a box of cords I go to when I need one, and hunt until I find something that works for the printer/external hard drive/cell phone I'm donating/device/random thingamabob...
I need to label cords when they come into the house, so years later I know what they go to. I'm always terrified getting rid of cords for fear they go to something I've forgotten about (a not often used but still critical item), as it's happened before. So I have a box of cords I go to when I need one, and hunt until I find something that works for the printer/external hard drive/cell phone I'm donating/device/random thingamabob...
I need to label cords when they come into the house, so years later I know what they go to. I'm always terrified getting rid of cords for fear they go to something I've forgotten about (a not often used but still critical item), as it's happened before. So I have a box of cords I go to when I need one, and hunt until I find something that works for the printer/external hard drive/cell phone I'm donating/device/random thingamabob...
I stow my cords individually in ziplock bags with a 3x5 card indicating which device it belongs to. This makes it easy to find the cord I'm looking for and keeps them from getting tangled up.
I need to label cords when they come into the house, so years later I know what they go to. I'm always terrified getting rid of cords for fear they go to something I've forgotten about (a not often used but still critical item), as it's happened before. So I have a box of cords I go to when I need one, and hunt until I find something that works for the printer/external hard drive/cell phone I'm donating/device/random thingamabob...
I stow my cords individually in ziplock bags with a 3x5 card indicating which device it belongs to. This makes it easy to find the cord I'm looking for and keeps them from getting tangled up.
When I unpack a new thing w/ a cord I used a labeler to identify it. It really helps. I dumped a huge box of mystery cords and chargers about 2 years ago - and nothing happened. Earth did not tilt into the sun, no zombie apocalypse, etc. I figured if they were used infrequently enough to end up in the box chances were I wouldn't miss them.
Be careful about offering it to other family members. I know some people may not want it, but could get very upset to learn that you are getting rid of it. I'm not saying don't offer to family, but be able to hold strong against their pressure for you to become the museum.
I can see the light at the end of decluttering our home but still have a huge pile of things to sell. Every time I see that pile I worry about that clutter. How do you deal with selling pile? Do you keep it somewhere you can't see? Or do you try to sell all at once (like a yard sale) and be done with it?
My husband gathered up some kitchen stuff (including these dessert dishes we got as a wedding gift that we never use...but he didn't want to give up...we've been married 19 years), some kids stuff, and some clothing to give away.
I am giving away our crib/toddler bed (probably leaving the house tomorrow). I thought about selling it (re: the Craigslist thing above), but my research locally was telling me that most of the ads in our local FB group - the cribs didn't really sell at all. Not sure why. So I found a friend of a friend who needs one.
while I'm fairly minimalistic I have a ton of stuff at my parents house.Same here. Should really work on that.
I realised that while I'm fairly minimalistic I have a ton of stuff at my parents house.
We did a good cleaning on Saturday before my parents arrived from out of state. Since we've been decluttering more regularly so far this year, as well as buying less, we noticed it was quite easy to do a top to bottom clean in just a couple hours. DH looked around and said "Wow, this looks great. Can we keep it like this more often?"
Next up: Going through all our clothes. Not looking forward to that.
We did a good cleaning on Saturday before my parents arrived from out of state. Since we've been decluttering more regularly so far this year, as well as buying less, we noticed it was quite easy to do a top to bottom clean in just a couple hours. DH looked around and said "Wow, this looks great. Can we keep it like this more often?"
Next up: Going through all our clothes. Not looking forward to that.
I've noticed the cleaning thing too. On Sunday morning we did laundry, swept, hoovered in what felt like half the time it usually takes. Amazing what a different just 10% less stuff has. (Hmm, I wonder what percentage I have got rid of? 1000 things so far this year. I'd actually be embarrassed if I have 10000 after reading so many people with 100, so hopefully it's more like a 25% reduction? Oh dear, now I want to count!)
while I'm fairly minimalistic I have a ton of stuff at my parents house.Same here. Should really work on that.
[W]hen I posted my own small space manifesto earlier this year, about how happy and peaceful my little 260 square foot apartment made me feel . . . I got an indignant phone call from my mother, who wanted to know if I had admitted to the Apartment Therapy community that the reason my small space was so uncluttered and zen-y was that half of my stuff was still at my parent's house.
I'm very proud of myself here. There is nothing at my parents house that should be in mine.Way to go!
Thus far no regrets, only joy. That is, no regrets at having gotten rid of something, but plenty of regrets at seeing how I used to spend my money.
We both rarely take OTC meds, and it usually expires before it gets used up. Such a waste.
We both rarely take OTC meds, and it usually expires before it gets used up. Such a waste.
This is one area where it is fun to have a medicinal chemist in the house. Expired medication is rarely "bad", it just loses it's efficacy. My husband has actually calculated half-life on some of it, and recalculated dosage based on the age of the medicine.
But that is even with buying the smallest size. I need to be near death to take OTC meds.
We both rarely take OTC meds, and it usually expires before it gets used up. Such a waste.
This is one area where it is fun to have a medicinal chemist in the house. Expired medication is rarely "bad", it just loses it's efficacy. My husband has actually calculated half-life on some of it, and recalculated dosage based on the age of the medicine.
But that is even with buying the smallest size. I need to be near death to take OTC meds.
Buying the smallest size is great advice! I must admit I ignore expiration dates. If I'm in a pickle I'll take old over none any day.
We both rarely take OTC meds, and it usually expires before it gets used up. Such a waste.
This is one area where it is fun to have a medicinal chemist in the house. Expired medication is rarely "bad", it just loses it's efficacy. My husband has actually calculated half-life on some of it, and recalculated dosage based on the age of the medicine.
But that is even with buying the smallest size. I need to be near death to take OTC meds.
Buying the smallest size is great advice! I must admit I ignore expiration dates. If I'm in a pickle I'll take old over none any day.
I usually ignore them too, as long as it's within reason. :)
I donated a whole bunch of first aid stuff to a charity last fall. I need to look at the sell by dates on the remaining pills and tinctures.
I seem to be in a holding zone with a bunch of stuff due to go out the door but it just sits there. I do not recommend this. It takes all the immediate joy out of the act of tossing out. How do you all motivate yourselves at a time like this?
Well after putting in a huge effort for a few months, the BF and I have been slack with decluttering lately. Time to step it up a notch again. We're moving in six weeks and I don't want to move anything I'm not keeping long-term.
We use the nail clippers to also trim our cats' nails - learned this one from our vet!
Well after putting in a huge effort for a few months, the BF and I have been slack with decluttering lately. Time to step it up a notch again. We're moving in six weeks and I don't want to move anything I'm not keeping long-term.
I've found moving is a great time to declutter. If you aren't paying to move it by weight, I actually prefer to move everything and then declutter when I get there. Anything that doesn't find a new home within 1 month of move in gets donated. Has worked for me the past 4 moves :)
I'm actually trying to get in the habit of picking things to sell rather than just donating. Got someone coming around today to pick up a glass desk for half of what I paid for it, but now I can pick up a smaller desk that won't leave my partner scared of it shattering.
I've now told her this is my Dad's stuff, not mine.I know all abouth that. Just with my parent it's my Mom. Old childrens schoolbooks and clothes and toys? I will not touch them because it upsets her so much to toss out even the most simple of things. The things do no harm where they are, so I consentrate on newer items.
Re: stuff left at parents' houses
We did our big move to the Lower 48, and are now temporarily back with my parents until we get jobs and housing organized.
I'm going to try to sell a few things too, particularly things that are easy to ship but could sell for a bit (hello, leather handbags that I bought and have basically never used because they're not in my colour scheme). I've always dismissed it as too hard but I'm thinking of at least dipping my toe in the water, maybe listing one or two things at a time on ebay.
I'm going to try to sell a few things too, particularly things that are easy to ship but could sell for a bit (hello, leather handbags that I bought and have basically never used because they're not in my colour scheme). I've always dismissed it as too hard but I'm thinking of at least dipping my toe in the water, maybe listing one or two things at a time on ebay.
You will get so sick of visiting the post office repeatedly. Better to do it all at once. Make a very clear "pay within 48 hours or I will re-list" warning on your listings and set your promised ship time to 72 hours. This way you should be able to catch everyone in a single post office trip. List everything in one day. It will be annoying, but over with and your total time investment per item will drop drastically.
Although, TBH, I find since Aus Post and Ebay have both put their fees up it's not worth the hassle unless the item will net you at least $20 (You can clear $10 on a low shipping weight item that sells for $20). If it's going to sell for less than $10 you will loose money and if it's going to sell for less than $20 it's probably not worth the hassle, of listing it, communicating with buyers, packaging etc.) And last time I ebayed many of my items fetched far less than normal. Like gumtree, the market is now over saturated with sellers.
So I didn't get any decluttering done this weekend, but we did visit friends, which really reaffirmed my commitment to this! Their house was just so full of stuff. Stacks of mail so old and tall they had fallen over. Something on every single flat surface. Kitchen appliances which were clearly never used taking up the small amount of counter space, making preparing any food very difficult. A huge table squished up against a wall and so covered in junk I couldn't even sit at it to eat!I totally understand your sentiment! I feel this way walking into most people's homes, and some businesses. I think to myself - they never wear those hiddeous green funky frame glasses adorning the bookshelf: toss. That stack of fashion magazines mixed with their books ( when they'd already mentioned they still receive mags that they toss because came for former roommate )- toss. Laundry all over furniture, so many clothes it won't fit in the closets, so many dishes they are all crammed into every inch of the cupboards.... Argh.
I just wanted to say, Argh, why are you even keeping this?! and start throwing stuff out. But I was very good and just played the perfect houseguest. But life is so much harder than it has to be with all that stuff. You have to move something around every time you want to do anything. I honestly couldn't bear it, it was so hard to move about, to find anything. Even making a cup of coffee with no counter space and everything so jumbled up was traumatic.(I'm trying not to sound judgemental and failing, I realise).
Came home to my still too cluttered but with 1/3 the stuff in it house, which is much smaller than their place, and breathed a sigh of relief at all the space.
this weekend I listed 13 board/card games on my local fb virtual garage sale groups. I sold all of them. I first tried them at 3 or 4$ each, but got no bites. After a few days, I edited them and made them all 2$, (except one really nice one I got 10$ for). Made 33$
and now my board game shelves are really tidy, and stocked with games we really do play.
I think Kondo says that if we focus on other people's inability to be tidy, it's because we have some things we need to tidy up ourselves (or something to that effect).
Could someone give me a pep talk that it would be better to get rid of the stamping supplies at even a penny on the dollar I paid for them, then to keep them unused in my closet?
I am having a very hard time clearing them, because I know they cost so much money. And maybe I'll use them against someday...
Could someone give me a pep talk that it would be better to get rid of the stamping supplies at even a penny on the dollar I paid for them, then to keep them unused in my closet?
I am having a very hard time clearing them, because I know they cost so much money. And maybe I'll use them against someday...
When it comes down to clutter that I can't get much value back on, it's easiest for me to give away items than to sell them. Then I feel good about making someone else happy rather than quite so regretful for the lost money. Is there someone who would appreciate them in your life (and not consider it clutter)? If so, give it to them (bonus you can likely "visit" and borrow if you really want.) Save out your favorites if that will make you feel better.
Could someone give me a pep talk that it would be better to get rid of the stamping supplies at even a penny on the dollar I paid for them, then to keep them unused in my closet?
I am having a very hard time clearing them, because I know they cost so much money. And maybe I'll use them against someday...
I'm getting kicked out of my apartment in Dec because they're renovating and converting it to an office building. Good thing I've been decluttering and selling things on ebay/craigslist over the past few months. Time to kick things into high gear for the summer!
Progress for June: $230 (got rid of clothes/shoes/an airbed despite being away for 2 weeks!)
Progress for 2015 (Jan-June): $1510
Plan for July is to sell/give away an old dresser that I got for free but never used, a foot massager that I rarely use and was keeping for my parents' visit (now that they've left I can get rid of everything that I've been keeping for overnight guests), that extra bike I was keeping for visiting guests, and any other bulky things that I think I can get rid of.
Anyone else find that craigslist/ebay are a lot more active in the summer months?
Could someone give me a pep talk that it would be better to get rid of the stamping supplies at even a penny on the dollar I paid for them, then to keep them unused in my closet?The expense was incurred when you purchased them, not when you get rid of them. Keeping them and never using them is as good as not having them at all.
I am having a very hard time clearing them, because I know they cost so much money. And maybe I'll use them against someday...
When does decluttering end?
My closets contain only things I want to keep/spark joy for me and I've given away or cleared over a 1000 items in the past two months. Everything (except my husband's closet) is cleared of clutter. Items to be sold or gifted would be done soon (July 15 to be exact - that is my self imposed deadline to clear out the sell items) and I've started on the digital decluttering.
However, this morning I see that our mail shelf is again full (from past week) and I'm finding a shelf here, a bag there that I didn't catch the first time I decluttered. I'm also starting to take another look at all the stuff we still have.
But I'm starting to feel the fatigue too. I'm not sure when is a good time to stop and just let things be. I sometimes worry I still have too much and sometimes think I'm throwing something that my husband or kid might need. When do you stop decluttering?
So... got the Kondo book from the library last week and am poking through it. So far, so good. I think I've always been a declutterer by nature for quite some time (plus i moved every 2-4 years for 15 years or so - which does reinforce a certain level of decluttering). I've been in the same house now for 7 years and I do feel that stuff is piling up. But some of it is like big furniture things - not just little cluttery things. Like my bedroom added a bookshelf and a wicker laundry basket things over the 7 years. And of course those furniture things are full of little cluttery things! So, today I have a plan in place for the laundry hamper to go (it was holding clean bedding), and some of the bedding to go too (naturally). Struggling with the books and bookshelves (there are many in the house). Eyeing a chair in the living room that I loved the look of but don't find particularly comfortable and it rarely gets used. Thinking if I shred many of the papers I can ditch the file cabinet and at least one desk....
Anyone done the big stuff and not just the little piles of stuff?
We cleared 4 small sets of curved glass corner shelves and sold 3. I've sold a large desk top I had and replaced it with one 2/3 the size. We're currently trying to work out which of our sets of shelves we need, and then sell the ones we don't like after we've been through the stuff they hold. Should get rid of at least 1 bookshelf. We have more drawers in our bedroom than I'd like, but they hold bedding as well as clothes and make everything work much better. Getting rid of the big stuff feels great and is a much more obvious change then the little pieces.So... got the Kondo book from the library last week and am poking through it. So far, so good. I think I've always been a declutterer by nature for quite some time (plus i moved every 2-4 years for 15 years or so - which does reinforce a certain level of decluttering). I've been in the same house now for 7 years and I do feel that stuff is piling up. But some of it is like big furniture things - not just little cluttery things. Like my bedroom added a bookshelf and a wicker laundry basket things over the 7 years. And of course those furniture things are full of little cluttery things! So, today I have a plan in place for the laundry hamper to go (it was holding clean bedding), and some of the bedding to go too (naturally). Struggling with the books and bookshelves (there are many in the house). Eyeing a chair in the living room that I loved the look of but don't find particularly comfortable and it rarely gets used. Thinking if I shred many of the papers I can ditch the file cabinet and at least one desk....
Anyone done the big stuff and not just the little piles of stuff?
Well done.
Yes I hav and the spareness is lovely.
Keep up the good work
I 'fessed to DH that I was feeling overwhelmed with his stuff and kept daydreaming of a near-empty house. He loves his stuff (mostly DVDs, CDs, books and comics) so we're kind of at an impasse. But he did get rid of a small box of DVDs that we will take to charity next week. No point selling stuff here - the secondhand market is oversaturated.
Anyone done the big stuff and not just the little piles of stuff?
Mrs LC, I like your blog!Thanks. Glad you liked it! The blog is just getting started so come back for more and bring your friends!
Today I admitted I needed to give away a shirt that looked great on the hanger and horrible on me. Even though the tags were still on it. I had a whole fight about it.
Mrs LC, I like your blog!Thanks. Glad you liked it! The blog is just getting started so come back for more and bring your friends!
Today I admitted I needed to give away a shirt that looked great on the hanger and horrible on me. Even though the tags were still on it. I had a whole fight about it.
Mrs LC, I like your blog!Thanks. Glad you liked it! The blog is just getting started so come back for more and bring your friends!
Today I admitted I needed to give away a shirt that looked great on the hanger and horrible on me. Even though the tags were still on it. I had a whole fight about it.
I checked it as well and liked it as well!
I finally decluttered the kitchen gadgets! Woot! I'm excited. I knew it wouldn't be hard to get rid of things, but was nervous about the volume. Turns out, we don't have that much stuff, just limited space. I didn't declutter food since I am strongly against food waste (sorry Kondo, on this we part ways), but I'm committed to eating down my dried goods once again.In terms of food decluttering could you take the unwanted/unhealthy items (unopened stuff like cans etc) and put them in one of those donation boxes out the front of the supermarket. We always have them at Christmas but they also appear at other times of the year like homeless week (yes its a thing) and the like. Another alternative is to given the unwanted food to family/friends/neighbours. I gave my mum a bunch of flavoured tea I didn't like... The tea will get used and I don't have to drink it. Win win! I have also gotten rid of food by leaving it in the kitchen at work (stuff like weird powdered iced tea mix) co workers happily consumed it.
We are inching closer and closer to the hobby supplies. I'm actually excited to get to them and get rid of them!
Sunday morning I was in the basement, and finally got around to opening the box and putting the furnace filters in the utility room. Looked at it, thought that I really needed to clean it out, closed the door and went back upstairs.
An hour later roomie and I were frantically removing everything from the utility room because the ejector pump failed and was flooding the basement. Thank god, it's laundry water and not toilet water!
Most of the clutter is paint cans. Some were there when we moved in. 2 gallons of a color that had been tried and rejected by a previous occupant and 9 pint cans of test colors from the living room got put on the free stuff section of Craigslist. One person coming tonight for the gallons, and someone hopefully coming tomorrow for the rest. If they flake out then I'll just put the ad back up.
Need to figure out which can of brown is the right color and use it for some touchups, then dispose of the other can. Also need to go through the rest and figure out what's actually on the walls, then get rid of the rest. Plus, I think the huge container of spackle has dried out and can get tossed. Already tossed the cardboard boxes that got wet.
Looking forward to getting the pump fixed so we can wash everything that got used for mopping up. Still working on the cleanup in the basement, but mostly trying to dry everything asap.
ouch! that sounds like a big mess, hope the pump gets fixed asap and you'll get a sparkling clean and decluttered basement!
I am beginning to declutter again. I had to take a break from it as I have done a major declutter within the last year or so. I have taken out some storage containers and am ready to go through them. I just don't know what to do with my collectibles. They aren't worth much, I checked on ebay and most are not selling at all. I am not ready to take that hit but I don't want them either. What a dilemma.
I just don't know what to do with my collectibles.
I don't want them
Excellent point, Melody! If I left food at work it would get devoured. I'll go through my food with that in mind. Thanks!Happy to help. I am very good at giving things away but not so much to charity where I am sometimes doubtful if the stuff gets used/appreciated and don't have the personal connection to get a warm fuzzy from it. I have never felt the need to de clutter a suit jacket which is too big for me (and I have two more black suit jackets) but as soon as I saw an unemployed friend needed one I was very enthusiastic about decluttering it. So I usually focus on finding more appreciative homes for things which helps me de clutter. I suppose because I then don't feel "omg I wasted how much on this" but I go "yay... I am making someone happy... Warm fuzzy feelings!!!" I am super good about old towels to the cat haven though... Excuse to visit cute kitties and always appreciated.
I have some collectibles too, like Lladro statues that were gifted to me. Not really moving from what I've seen on eBay, not sure how to sell any other way :(
I have some collectibles too, like Lladro statues that were gifted to me. Not really moving from what I've seen on eBay, not sure how to sell any other way :(
I have some collectibles too, like Lladro statues that were gifted to me. Not really moving from what I've seen on eBay, not sure how to sell any other way :(
I have some collectibles too, like Lladro statues that were gifted to me. Not really moving from what I've seen on eBay, not sure how to sell any other way :(
I had a similar issue with an expensive watch that was gifted to me 15 years ago. I decided to give it to a family member, who I know will wear it. Do you know anyone who would appreciate the statues?
I learned something about myself when I decluttered my valuable. I don't like "nice" things. I get tremendous joy from old repurposed items, but fancy/shiny things stress me out. Not sure if it's a fear of breaking them or what, but I prefer used.
So you have some rubbishy statues that were "gifted" to you and that you don't want. Would it really be so wrong just to toss them into the trash and be done with them? If nothing else you would get that quick rush of being done with them and having them out of your sight.
I spent about 20 minutes watching youtube videos before I put my clothes back in the drawers. I save a lot of time finding things because everything is so easily accessible. Organizing my socks was life-changing.Task for the weekend: get the book from the library and do some focused decluttering. I also want to learn the folding tricks as I wear a lot of t-shirts and tank tops and have yet to figure out a way to keep the draw clean.
YouTube videos are great for that. I couldn't figure out how to fold just based on the description in the book.
Here's a link to Marie Kondo folding undies
https://youtu.be/tglp9eWQEhY
There are countless videos of other people (not Marie Kondo) folding T-shirts, I liked this one
https://youtu.be/EIjGlMD0Nz8
I read the Life-changing Magic book a couple of months ago but can't remember - why does she suggest folding all your things rather than hanging them in the closet? It seems much easier and faster to just hang everything, especially when you hang shirts to dry on the hangers and can just pop them in the closet when they're dry.Because when you fold, you check the condition the item is in, as well as folded items taking up much less space than hanging ones.
This week two groups of people came to our house and remarked that it looks different and feels different than the last time they were here. I explained that I had cleared out every drawer, closet, box and bin and they said they could feel a freshness in the house that was not there before.
Made my day!!!!
This week two groups of people came to our house and remarked that it looks different and feels different than the last time they were here. I explained that I had cleared out every drawer, closet, box and bin and they said they could feel a freshness in the house that was not there before.
Made my day!!!!
I read the Life-changing Magic book a couple of months ago but can't remember - why does she suggest folding all your things rather than hanging them in the closet? It seems much easier and faster to just hang everything, especially when you hang shirts to dry on the hangers and can just pop them in the closet when they're dry.Because when you fold, you check the condition the item is in, as well as folded items taking up much less space than hanging ones.
So you have some rubbishy statues that were "gifted" to you and that you don't want. Would it really be so wrong just to toss them into the trash and be done with them? If nothing else you would get that quick rush of being done with them and having them out of your sight.
I at least would give them to a thrift shop or freecycle them. That doesn't take much effort, but produces less waste, as someone might want them, just not for much money.
I think I will have a similar problem with Hummells in just a few years. There are at least 8 family members with significant collections. And they know I'm the one who cares about "family stuff". Except I don't consider mass produced figurines to be family antiques like the trunks my grandparents brought over from Hungary. Totally different category.
Are any of the Hummells valuable at all? If not, just donate them when you end up with them.
Her reasoning is that it's hard on clothes. They don't like being hung up (back to the slightly batty "objects have feelings" mentality)I read the Life-changing Magic book a couple of months ago but can't remember - why does she suggest folding all your things rather than hanging them in the closet? It seems much easier and faster to just hang everything, especially when you hang shirts to dry on the hangers and can just pop them in the closet when they're dry.Because when you fold, you check the condition the item is in, as well as folded items taking up much less space than hanging ones.
Wouldn't you check the condition when you wear it? I'd certainly notice if something I had on had holes in it or something. As far as space, I think it just makes more sense to get rid of enough clothes that you don't need more space than your closet has. But I guess most people probably have more clothes than me...
Are any of the Hummells valuable at all? If not, just donate them when you end up with them.
Expensive to buy ($150-$300!!!). But I can't imagine many (if any) of them have retained their value at all. Way too many people have these things.
Ebay tells me they go for $10-50. Which on the lower end doesn't seem worth the effort of trying to ship something breakable, which can lose the seller money.
So yeah, we will probably donate them. Although, with my parents I suspect we will have to have some sort of estate sale. Are stamp sets from every year since 1950 worth anything? What about coin proof sets? (At the very least I can open those up and have $1.41!) My Dad collects so much crap.
We hang up all of our shirts and pants except for a small stack of old clothes that are worn for tasks like painting where is doesn't matter if you stain them. Hanging keeps them at eye level and unwrinkled. There is also room for air circulation around clothes that are hung up if your closest isn't stuffed full. We can see the condition of the clothes just fine on a hanger. We also have a house rule that you can't throw out anything clean so inspection better be done before the clothes hit the laundry basket!I read the Life-changing Magic book a couple of months ago but can't remember - why does she suggest folding all your things rather than hanging them in the closet? It seems much easier and faster to just hang everything, especially when you hang shirts to dry on the hangers and can just pop them in the closet when they're dry.Because when you fold, you check the condition the item is in, as well as folded items taking up much less space than hanging ones.
The Hummel collection conversation is interesting. My mom collects them. Due to the expense, dad buys them for her, we don't. I'm now wondering if eBay will be my new best friend for presents for my mom...
Re stamps - we took my Dad's collection, and all the associated equipment, to a dealer with online auctions. The dealer was pleasantly surprised by what it brought, two people got into a bidding war for what was a very ordinary collection. They took their 20%, which was totally fair because they did all the work and sold to an interested market, and all I had to do was get the collection to them and wait. I am sure even at the expected sale price that I would have netted more than if I had tried to sell it myself, and I definitely made more because of the bidding war.
Re stamps - we took my Dad's collection, and all the associated equipment, to a dealer with online auctions. The dealer was pleasantly surprised by what it brought, two people got into a bidding war for what was a very ordinary collection. They took their 20%, which was totally fair because they did all the work and sold to an interested market, and all I had to do was get the collection to them and wait. I am sure even at the expected sale price that I would have netted more than if I had tried to sell it myself, and I definitely made more because of the bidding war.
This is a great idea , very inspiring & something I hadn't thought of .
I hav a mink coat that was my great grandmothers .any thoughts of how I couldgo about selling to get the most money for it?
Re stamps - we took my Dad's collection, and all the associated equipment, to a dealer with online auctions. The dealer was pleasantly surprised by what it brought, two people got into a bidding war for what was a very ordinary collection. They took their 20%, which was totally fair because they did all the work and sold to an interested market, and all I had to do was get the collection to them and wait. I am sure even at the expected sale price that I would have netted more than if I had tried to sell it myself, and I definitely made more because of the bidding war.I'm just wondering if your dad's stamp collection was neatly organized in binders or something? I have a bag of loose stamps (and some may even be postmarked) from the 60s-80s. Not sure if a dealer would want to look at my mess of a collection.
Re stamps - we took my Dad's collection, and all the associated equipment, to a dealer with online auctions. The dealer was pleasantly surprised by what it brought, two people got into a bidding war for what was a very ordinary collection. They took their 20%, which was totally fair because they did all the work and sold to an interested market, and all I had to do was get the collection to them and wait. I am sure even at the expected sale price that I would have netted more than if I had tried to sell it myself, and I definitely made more because of the bidding war.I'm just wondering if your dad's stamp collection was neatly organized in binders or something? I have a bag of loose stamps (and some may even be postmarked) from the 60s-80s. Not sure if a dealer would want to look at my mess of a collection.
ETA: of course in one dusty pile I found a forgotten "decluttering" book. Guess I'll read that tonight...
I read the Life-changing Magic book a couple of months ago but can't remember - why does she suggest folding all your things rather than hanging them in the closet? It seems much easier and faster to just hang everything, especially when you hang shirts to dry on the hangers and can just pop them in the closet when they're dry.
I read an article on the book, the Life-changing Magic, but there is still a long waiting list to borrow it from the library.You can find the audio book on YouTube.
I used to move every 2-3 years for about 15 years. I've been in the same house now for 7 years - and a purge is well overdue. This weekend was gangbusters for getting stuff out of the house. I took a giant carload of stuff to Goodwill (excess bedding, more clothing, hamper, storage boxes that now have nothing to hold). Came home and tackled my row of bookshelves (5 full width Billy bookshelves that go to the ceiling). Cut out all the contents from 2 of them. Took some books to the free little library. The rest are boxed up and ready to go to Goodwill or friends of the library. Can't wait to haul the actual bookshelves themselves OUT.
Organized my kitchen junk drawer.
My desk is piled w/ misc. crap right now that I pulled out of drawers and storage cabinets. Getting ready to go through that stuff and sort out what, if any, should stay and what should go.
Books have been a hang-up for me but I really did well - I would guess 200 or so books have been removed. I kept a lot of children's books because I have books that belonged to my grandmother, my parents, me, and now my children's books - and they are so treasured and we still take them down and look at them. I look forward to the 5th generation getting those books one day.
I used to move every 2-3 years for about 15 years. I've been in the same house now for 7 years - and a purge is well overdue. This weekend was gangbusters for getting stuff out of the house. I took a giant carload of stuff to Goodwill (excess bedding, more clothing, hamper, storage boxes that now have nothing to hold). Came home and tackled my row of bookshelves (5 full width Billy bookshelves that go to the ceiling). Cut out all the contents from 2 of them. Took some books to the free little library. The rest are boxed up and ready to go to Goodwill or friends of the library. Can't wait to haul the actual bookshelves themselves OUT.
Organized my kitchen junk drawer.
My desk is piled w/ misc. crap right now that I pulled out of drawers and storage cabinets. Getting ready to go through that stuff and sort out what, if any, should stay and what should go.
Books have been a hang-up for me but I really did well - I would guess 200 or so books have been removed. I kept a lot of children's books because I have books that belonged to my grandmother, my parents, me, and now my children's books - and they are so treasured and we still take them down and look at them. I look forward to the 5th generation getting those books one day.
You could see if a used book store near you has the Kondo book, and get in in exchange for some of your discards.
Books were the best category for me because we were able to get rid of a large, ugly bookshelf out of our dining room. We also reorganized all of our books and media (CDs, DVDs, video games), so our dining room and living room are so much more organized.I used to move every 2-3 years for about 15 years. I've been in the same house now for 7 years - and a purge is well overdue. This weekend was gangbusters for getting stuff out of the house. I took a giant carload of stuff to Goodwill (excess bedding, more clothing, hamper, storage boxes that now have nothing to hold). Came home and tackled my row of bookshelves (5 full width Billy bookshelves that go to the ceiling). Cut out all the contents from 2 of them. Took some books to the free little library. The rest are boxed up and ready to go to Goodwill or friends of the library. Can't wait to haul the actual bookshelves themselves OUT.
Organized my kitchen junk drawer.
My desk is piled w/ misc. crap right now that I pulled out of drawers and storage cabinets. Getting ready to go through that stuff and sort out what, if any, should stay and what should go.
Books have been a hang-up for me but I really did well - I would guess 200 or so books have been removed. I kept a lot of children's books because I have books that belonged to my grandmother, my parents, me, and now my children's books - and they are so treasured and we still take them down and look at them. I look forward to the 5th generation getting those books one day.
You could see if a used book store near you has the Kondo book, and get in in exchange for some of your discards.
Got it from the library a couple weeks ago, read it in the weekend, and returned it. I am aiming to drag two bookshelves out this week - now empty and remove the one from my bedroom (which is 1/2 empty). Feels sooooo good to get rid of this stuff.
I'm just wondering if your dad's stamp collection was neatly organized in binders or something? I have a bag of loose stamps (and some may even be postmarked) from the 60s-80s. Not sure if a dealer would want to look at my mess of a collection.
I'm just wondering if your dad's stamp collection was neatly organized in binders or something? I have a bag of loose stamps (and some may even be postmarked) from the 60s-80s. Not sure if a dealer would want to look at my mess of a collection.
From my research- loose stamps are less likely to see for nearly as much as organized ones. Because finding out if anything in them is worthwhile is a lot of work.
If you have anything still on an envelope DO NOT REMOVE IT. Sometimes that is worth more than just a stamp.
I actually got some push back from my mother this weekend. She thought I was making a mistake getting rid of most of my books because "children need to know that books are valued and important." Well, yes. But they don't need to know that book OWNERSHIP is important. We spend plenty of time worshipping the book gods at the library, thank you very much.
She then joked that she didn't ever have to declutter her own crowded home because I would just do it for her once she was dead. I wanted to remind her that her own mother had cleared out her home in a major purge a couple of years before she died, and how grateful we all were at the time of her death that we didn't have to grieve and spend weeks emptying out her home at the same time. But I didn't. I will next time. I did, however, pull three cardboard boxes from her basement and insist she fill them for me to take to the Goodwill.
Have made progress on the decluttering of old stuff stuck at my parents house.Urgh this pile!!! I had a quick glimpse at it last time I was at my parents, pretty sure it is mostly sewing stuff which should be able to come home now I have decluttered, stuff I use there (a spare sweater and some sports equipment) but I will need to check no junk crept in.
So far 1 box of old paperbacks and 2 boxes of old school papers have made it into paper recycling. 3 boxes of old books will be offered to relatives with children of right age. Tossed some old toys that were broken (plastic doesn't store well) and saved the quality toys for later.
Also brought home a box to look through more thoroughly and found some old dvd's I'm going to enjoy watching on a rainy night. I know the result of the 'decluttering' will be more stuff at my house and less at their. But that's ok, as long as I don't own more than I can comfortably house in my (smal) apartment.
Also took stuff to el-recycling today. For some reason I put that of, sometimes for months...
I actually got some push back from my mother this weekend. She thought I was making a mistake getting rid of most of my books because "children need to know that books are valued and important." Well, yes. But they don't need to know that book OWNERSHIP is important. We spend plenty of time worshipping the book gods at the library, thank you very much.
She then joked that she didn't ever have to declutter her own crowded home because I would just do it for her once she was dead. I wanted to remind her that her own mother had cleared out her home in a major purge a couple of years before she died, and how grateful we all were at the time of her death that we didn't have to grieve and spend weeks emptying out her home at the same time. But I didn't. I will next time. I did, however, pull three cardboard boxes from her basement and insist she fill them for me to take to the Goodwill.
I can relate to this, as I have two parents who are collector-hoarders. My mom has gotten upset when she's heard I'm selling my own childhood stuff on eBay, and years ago when I attempted to declutter a bunch of childhood books, she took them out of the donation pile. So I'm sure she still has them stored in boxes--probably chewed up by mice at this point! To me it feels like emotional bullying when she tells me I HAVE to keep something. It also feels like my (70+ year old) parents are expecting me to continue to carry the burden of their hoards. And that feels like enabling a mental illness. :-/
I am on a (free) vacation & hav packed almost all of my clothing. Because that is how minimal my wardrobe is ! So funny :)
Anyone have any ideas on getting rid of a hooked rug canvas, pattern & yarn? It's not selling on ebay. Just has to go somewhere where it will be appreciated.
I am on a (free) vacation & hav packed almost all of my clothing. Because that is how minimal my wardrobe is ! So funny :)
If there was a badassity prize you'd have my nomination!!!
Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk
Been dipping in and out of this thread but I am about 80% done with getting rid of probably 80% of my belongings. My husband and I are setting out on a months-long road trip, in which we intend to stay in a bunch of different places until we find one where we want to settle down for a while. We have a small storage room and a Honda Fit and that's it!
We've been following the usual course of action ... Craigslist, friends, Goodwill. We've made about $800 selling stuff so far and will probably clear $1500 by the time it's all said and done. Plus we've given a lot of great stuff to our friends and to the thrift stores around here. It's been a lot of schlepping, but it feels awesome to go through literally every item you own and only keep the ones that you have decided to keep.
I keep leaping out of bed at 5 in the morning because I'm so excited! We leave Sunday! Still lots to do but not so much that we will need to go bananas to get it done.
I am on a (free) vacation & hav packed almost all of my clothing. Because that is how minimal my wardrobe is ! So funny :)
If there was a badassity prize you'd have my nomination!!!
Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk
There should be a badassity prize!
And thanks :)
10. Typing: Right now I have a big pile of stuff to type into the computer. Urggggh. I would rather not so I am going to check it all again and see what I can just dump or scan.Can you instead just scan it and then use OCR software? It'll save you a lot of time!
Have any of you noticed connections between the threads that you post in or read? I see that I am mostly into the following:
Losing weight in 2015
Clearing Out Clutter
No Clothes Shopping in 2015
Using up Fabrics, Sewing and Crafting Supplies
Eat All the Food in Your House
I am seeing a connection between being drained of energy and having too much STUFF whether it is stored food, stored fat on my body, too many clothes, too many unfinished projects or too much paper.
I seem to have spent several years blindly stocking up on body fat, spare toilet paper, lotions and toothpastes, crafting supplies, useless boxes of paper, health supplements and broken things. And, I am seeing that as the fridge gets clear I rush out to buy more food so that once again we have an abundance and once again I struggle to eat it all before it rots. With craft supplies, fancy lotions, fancy health supplements and shoes I get them and never use them. It is as though having them is soothing and if I use them up I feel an anxious urgency to restock, not in order to get a good price but to ease my anxiety.
After all these months of on and off de-cluttering and weight loss and regain and loss again I am seeing trends in my feelings when supplies get low.
Having used up so many things this winter and spring, the idea of going to a Costco type place and stocking up on supplies horrifies me, I can't bear the idea of more stuff sitting around. I have spent months using up jars and bottles of spares and would rather rush out when the shampoo has barely a drop left than stock up ever again. And yet...
... At the same time there are things which I am still resisting using up because I don't want to be without them despite never touching them, ever. With some of them it is because buying them is expensive and so I do not want to deplete my stores. Consequently crafting supplies have hardened in their tubes, lotions have separated, supplements are well past their sell by dates…all wasted and ready to be thrown away.
We have quite a few broken things which others would have tossed out but I have held onto for years and years with the idea that I will repair them. I have even bought broken things at yard sales since they are cheaper and I plan to fix them up but don't.
Is this due to growing up with few new things and no expensive things? What is this mentality and how do I let it go?
I am on a (free) vacation & hav packed almost all of my clothing. Because that is how minimal my wardrobe is ! So funny :)
If there was a badassity prize you'd have my nomination!!!
Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk
There should be a badassity prize!
And thanks :)
I think the badassity prize is FIRE. It is for me anyway.
Have any of you noticed connections between the threads that you post in or read? I see that I am mostly into the following:
Losing weight in 2015
Clearing Out Clutter
No Clothes Shopping in 2015
Using up Fabrics, Sewing and Crafting Supplies
Eat All the Food in Your House
I am seeing a connection between being drained of energy and having too much STUFF whether it is stored food, stored fat on my body, too many clothes, too many unfinished projects or too much paper./snip
Grantmeaname, what a terrific idea! I will find out about that. Do you know of one which is good for macs?A lot of scanners have ocr bundled into their basic software. The one I had did a decent job as long as the original was clear.
Okay, I need some help! I'm just starting to KonMari my clothes. What do I do with stuff that brings me joy and would be of the first things I pick if I hadn't put on 20 lbs? I keep telling myself I'm going to lose the weight, but since it's been a year and a half and I haven't taken any action to actually lose, I think I might be lying to myself, or just unable/unwilling to find the headspace and motivation to do it.I have 75 liters of shirts that I put in a backpack. They were from the "shit I'm too fat to wear" section. I figured that by the time I need the backpack, if I can't fit them, I won't. Still haven't needed the pack, but the shirts mostly fit now. The fitness thread helped, as did anw. I have very little attachment to stuff, so I'm possibly the absolute worst person to respond. Still, the deadline I set obviously stuck in the back of my head. Didn't think about it at all, but I've done well with that kind of motivation. It was then like a fun surprise.
Do I keep something because it brings me joy and hope or ditch it because I don't know when/if I'll ever be able to wear it again?
Have any of you noticed connections between the threads that you post in or read? I see that I am mostly into the following:
Losing weight in 2015
Clearing Out Clutter
No Clothes Shopping in 2015
Using up Fabrics, Sewing and Crafting Supplies
Eat All the Food in Your House
I am seeing a connection between being drained of energy and having too much STUFF whether it is stored food, stored fat on my body, too many clothes, too many unfinished projects or too much paper.
I seem to have spent several years blindly stocking up on body fat, spare toilet paper, lotions and toothpastes, crafting supplies, useless boxes of paper, health supplements and broken things. And, I am seeing that as the fridge gets clear I rush out to buy more food so that once again we have an abundance and once again I struggle to eat it all before it rots. With craft supplies, fancy lotions, fancy health supplements and shoes I get them and never use them. It is as though having them is soothing and if I use them up I feel an anxious urgency to restock, not in order to get a good price but to ease my anxiety.
After all these months of on and off de-cluttering and weight loss and regain and loss again I am seeing trends in my feelings when supplies get low.
Having used up so many things this winter and spring, the idea of going to a Costco type place and stocking up on supplies horrifies me, I can't bear the idea of more stuff sitting around. I have spent months using up jars and bottles of spares and would rather rush out when the shampoo has barely a drop left than stock up ever again. And yet...
... At the same time there are things which I am still resisting using up because I don't want to be without them despite never touching them, ever. With some of them it is because buying them is expensive and so I do not want to deplete my stores. Consequently crafting supplies have hardened in their tubes, lotions have separated, supplements are well past their sell by dates…all wasted and ready to be thrown away.
We have quite a few broken things which others would have tossed out but I have held onto for years and years with the idea that I will repair them. I have even bought broken things at yard sales since they are cheaper and I plan to fix them up but don't.
Is this due to growing up with few new things and no expensive things? What is this mentality and how do I let it go?
I think the common denominator (for me at least) is probably taking on too much. I feel like this is endemic among women - the feeling that we should do and be everything. I struggle with it, most of my female friends do as well. It's the fast track to burnout.
... I get better at saying No. No to stuff I don't actually need, no to obligations I can't fulfill, no to food that makes me fat.
But then there are all these ghosts all over my home from when I was less discriminate about taking on everything - when I was proud to be the girl who was trying to do it all, instead of realizing that's a particular sickness in itself. And in throwing out the clutter it's like you have to confront those ghosts all over again, and that in itself is exhausting.
I also have noticed about myself - when I allow my time to be stretched, stretched, stretched by other people - I have way less bandwidth to say no to unhealthy food, impulse purchases, etc. and so I slip back a bit.
And then there's confronting any underlying emotional things that make us want to be surrounded by a bubble of stuff, fat, protection, security, whatever....and all I can say is that's some deep inner child shit right there. But even making these connections like you have - that's got to be half the battle, right?
I love the feeling of order and efficiency that comes from only having what you need and managing resources well. So calming!
I feel anxious if I am running low on stuff
Have any of you noticed connections between the threads that you post in or read? I see that I am mostly into the following:
Losing weight in 2015
Clearing Out Clutter
No Clothes Shopping in 2015
Using up Fabrics, Sewing and Crafting Supplies
Eat All the Food in Your House
I am seeing a connection between being drained of energy and having too much STUFF whether it is stored food, stored fat on my body, too many clothes, too many unfinished projects or too much paper.
Okay, I need some help! I'm just starting to KonMari my clothes. What do I do with stuff that brings me joy and would be of the first things I pick if I hadn't put on 20 lbs? I keep telling myself I'm going to lose the weight, but since it's been a year and a half and I haven't taken any action to actually lose, I think I might be lying to myself, or just unable/unwilling to find the headspace and motivation to do it.
Do I keep something because it brings me joy and hope or ditch it because I don't know when/if I'll ever be able to wear it again?
I love the idea of a backyard studio I bet you can make it a beautiful and inspiring space :-)
He even agreed to part with my grandmother's set of the Harvard ClassicsSacrilege!
I do have a question, though. It may sound a bit odd, but I am serious: With my current buffed-up anti-stuff attitude, how do I justify making art? Where do I put it? We already have too much art and too many photographs to hang on the walls in our house. Even good art doesn't always sell. Isn't art just more stuff, most of which would probably end up in a landfill?
I would love to read what other artists and non-artists think about this.
I'm a knitter and I've struggled with this as well. If you hang around knitting fora a lot, you'll hear people describe themselves as product (I knit to have a sweater) and process (I knit because I like to knit and the sweater is incidental) knitters. Is there something similar for art? If it's the process of making art that you like, do you care if you keep the final product? Could you do something that uses less stuff (sketching)? Could you use waste materials (the back of scratch paper) so you feel like you aren't creating waste?
I do have a question, though. It may sound a bit odd, but I am serious: With my current buffed-up anti-stuff attitude, how do I justify making art? Where do I put it? We already have too much art and too many photographs to hang on the walls in our house. Even good art doesn't always sell. Isn't art just more stuff, most of which would probably end up in a landfill?
I would love to read what other artists and non-artists think about this.
I love the idea of donating to women's shelters and the like. My mum offers her art to local businesses for free (cafes etc) so this is an idea too.
I love the idea of a backyard studio I bet you can make it a beautiful and inspiring space :-)
Melody and Sarah, thank you for the encouragement. I think I can make this work. The cabin does have window AC and electric baseboard heat. The water pipe is broken (and not winterized), so I'll have to wash my brushes up at the house. Not a big problem.
I do have a question, though. It may sound a bit odd, but I am serious: With my current buffed-up anti-stuff attitude, how do I justify making art? Where do I put it? We already have too much art and too many photographs to hang on the walls in our house. Even good art doesn't always sell. Isn't art just more stuff, most of which would probably end up in a landfill?
I would love to read what other artists and non-artists think about this.
I'm a knitter and I've struggled with this as well. If you hang around knitting fora a lot, you'll hear people describe themselves as product (I knit to have a sweater) and process (I knit because I like to knit and the sweater is incidental) knitters. Is there something similar for art? If it's the process of making art that you like, do you care if you keep the final product? Could you do something that uses less stuff (sketching)? Could you use waste materials (the back of scratch paper) so you feel like you aren't creating waste?
He even agreed to part with my grandmother's set of the Harvard ClassicsSacrilege!
So... Do I really need to save old tax records? If for some unforeseen reason I needed them, aren't they available from the IRS? I needed them for my divorce since as a means of harassment the other side asked for my tax returns going back 400 year or so. And I had them. But that is over, and aside from that I've never needed my old taxes.
Thoughts? Getting rid of them allows me to get rid of an entire file cabinets. (I"m also tossing old closing records and such on prior houses that I no longer own, etc.).
I have absolutely been trying to tie together theses aspects of my life! Call it minimizing, optimizing, maximizing efficiency, whatever you like - but I am trying hard to focus on streamlining all of these things to free up mental energy, time and money.
So... Do I really need to save old tax records? If for some unforeseen reason I needed them, aren't they available from the IRS? I needed them for my divorce since as a means of harassment the other side asked for my tax returns going back 400 year or so. And I had them. But that is over, and aside from that I've never needed my old taxes.
Thoughts? Getting rid of them allows me to get rid of an entire file cabinets. (I"m also tossing old closing records and such on prior houses that I no longer own, etc.).
It depends on the statue of limitations set out by your government. In Canada you can amend (and they can reassess) back 7 years, so that is required. If you were to be audited and didn't have your documentation, I'm not sure they are required to provide you with their records? Or if their records are different from yours, you have to be able to provide supporting documentation as to how you came up with your numbers.
So... Do I really need to save old tax records? If for some unforeseen reason I needed them, aren't they available from the IRS? I needed them for my divorce since as a means of harassment the other side asked for my tax returns going back 400 year or so. And I had them. But that is over, and aside from that I've never needed my old taxes.
Thoughts? Getting rid of them allows me to get rid of an entire file cabinets. (I"m also tossing old closing records and such on prior houses that I no longer own, etc.).
It depends on the statue of limitations set out by your government. In Canada you can amend (and they can reassess) back 7 years, so that is required. If you were to be audited and didn't have your documentation, I'm not sure they are required to provide you with their records? Or if their records are different from yours, you have to be able to provide supporting documentation as to how you came up with your numbers.
So that is what I am trying to answer - do I actually need to save them? In the highly unlikely event that I was audited on records from x years ago (lets say 6) - I assume the IRS would have to provide a copy of my filings if I request them. I mean, I can request them *now* so I doubt they could refuse my records to me if I were being audited. I just feel like I could go back and get bank records and pay stubs (which I haven't saved anyhow) if needed and I am trying to see why this would be any different. I really want to toss all this paper!
I have been de-cluttering bit by bit for many months. As I go along I have been separating out things we are not using (that are broken/need scanning or typing) and putting them aside to deal with later. We are nearing that point and I am realising...
Why repair/mend/read/scan/type/photograph all the detritus? Why not just say goodbye instead and feel the benefits now? Why not allow someone else to enjoy sewing that pretty fabric or planting those seeds? Let's face it, I am no longer as enamored of these things as I was when I acquired them.
Toss out/Donate:
All the fabric for sewing into clothing
All the supplies for crafts other than the two I love the most
All the unused health supplements
All the seed packs for flowers
Empty picture frames
Some of the broken furniture
Ripped bags and clothing in the mending pile
Lamps that need wiring but we do not have room for
Jewellery that is broken and will cost more to mend than it is worth to me
Old prints that are in the closet
I see that up until today I was still harboring the idea that I must keep commitments to objects, and that not doing so was wasting the money originally spent. How great will it be to end this burden this week?
Part of my issue is excess clutter in my mind. Those broken things take up a lot of room in my head. I do not love them. In fact today I feel a huge urge to toss them out the window.
Watch this space...
So... Do I really need to save old tax records? If for some unforeseen reason I needed them, aren't they available from the IRS? I needed them for my divorce since as a means of harassment the other side asked for my tax returns going back 400 year or so. And I had them. But that is over, and aside from that I've never needed my old taxes.
Thoughts? Getting rid of them allows me to get rid of an entire file cabinets. (I"m also tossing old closing records and such on prior houses that I no longer own, etc.).
It depends on the statue of limitations set out by your government. In Canada you can amend (and they can reassess) back 7 years, so that is required. If you were to be audited and didn't have your documentation, I'm not sure they are required to provide you with their records? Or if their records are different from yours, you have to be able to provide supporting documentation as to how you came up with your numbers.
So that is what I am trying to answer - do I actually need to save them? In the highly unlikely event that I was audited on records from x years ago (lets say 6) - I assume the IRS would have to provide a copy of my filings if I request them. I mean, I can request them *now* so I doubt they could refuse my records to me if I were being audited. I just feel like I could go back and get bank records and pay stubs (which I haven't saved anyhow) if needed and I am trying to see why this would be any different. I really want to toss all this paper!
I seem to have spent several years blindly stocking up on body fat, spare toilet paper, lotions and toothpastes, crafting supplies, useless boxes of paper, health supplements and broken things. And, I am seeing that as the fridge gets clear I rush out to buy more food so that once again we have an abundance and once again I struggle to eat it all before it rots. With craft supplies, fancy lotions, fancy health supplements and shoes I get them and never use them. It is as though having them is soothing and if I use them up I feel an anxious urgency to restock, not in order to get a good price but to ease my anxiety.
So... Do I really need to save old tax records? If for some unforeseen reason I needed them, aren't they available from the IRS? I needed them for my divorce since as a means of harassment the other side asked for my tax returns going back 400 year or so. And I had them. But that is over, and aside from that I've never needed my old taxes.
Thoughts? Getting rid of them allows me to get rid of an entire file cabinets. (I"m also tossing old closing records and such on prior houses that I no longer own, etc.).
It depends on the statue of limitations set out by your government. In Canada you can amend (and they can reassess) back 7 years, so that is required. If you were to be audited and didn't have your documentation, I'm not sure they are required to provide you with their records? Or if their records are different from yours, you have to be able to provide supporting documentation as to how you came up with your numbers.
So that is what I am trying to answer - do I actually need to save them? In the highly unlikely event that I was audited on records from x years ago (lets say 6) - I assume the IRS would have to provide a copy of my filings if I request them. I mean, I can request them *now* so I doubt they could refuse my records to me if I were being audited. I just feel like I could go back and get bank records and pay stubs (which I haven't saved anyhow) if needed and I am trying to see why this would be any different. I really want to toss all this paper!
It's not just the returns themselves that you'd need in an audit but the receipts and backup (W-2s, 1099s, etc) proving what you claimed on the return. A few months ago I scanned over 20 years of documents and put them on a high capacity thumb drive with a backup clone. But also we have rental properties, so it seemed like a good idea to just scan everything. The shredding or burning afterward is highly cathartic!
Apparently the federal statute of limitations on tax stuff in 3 years. States vary. There would be no reason to save stuff past the statue of limitations. 3 years I can deal with.You need to save documents for three years after the last time they appear on a return. For example, if you buy a house in 2000 and sell it in 2012, you need documents about the house through 2015, not 2003, because the paperwork affects your tax calculation in 2012. It's not safe to just shred all your documents from 2012 or before - you still need some.
Does any of this make sense, or do I sound raving?
Apparently the federal statute of limitations on tax stuff in 3 years. States vary. There would be no reason to save stuff past the statue of limitations. 3 years I can deal with.You need to save documents for three years after the last time they appear on a return. For example, if you buy a house in 2000 and sell it in 2012, you need documents about the house through 2015, not 2003, because the paperwork affects your tax calculation in 2012. It's not safe to just shred all your documents from 2012 or before - you still need some.
My husband told me off for getting out the 'good glasses'. I told him, no, I want to use them. Hell, I want to -break- them all (in time!), because I want to know that I have had the use out of them, enjoyed them fully, and they have served me completely. I want to wear things out, so I can let go of them knowing they've served me well, and I've used up all that joy they contained. Does any of this make sense, or do I sound raving?
My husband told me off for getting out the 'good glasses'. I told him, no, I want to use them. Hell, I want to -break- them all (in time!), because I want to know that I have had the use out of them, enjoyed them fully, and they have served me completely. I want to wear things out, so I can let go of them knowing they've served me well, and I've used up all that joy they contained. Does any of this make sense, or do I sound raving?
Oh hell yeah. +1000
I used to be like that. I would have clothes/bags/shoes/notebooks/insert-random-item that I couldn't bear to use because then they'll get used and no longer be pristine and *gasp* might even break! Then I realized that I was using my B-list things daily while hoarding my A-list things in their pristine conditions. Like. Why am I doing that again??
So I got over it and started using all the good stuff, because they were meant to be used. I get more joy out of using them rather then keeping them in the closet. In fact, now that I'm actively minimizing, I almost want things to wear out so I can get rid of them by attrition.
I love the idea of a backyard studio I bet you can make it a beautiful and inspiring space :-)
Melody and Sarah, thank you for the encouragement. I think I can make this work. The cabin does have window AC and electric baseboard heat. The water pipe is broken (and not winterized), so I'll have to wash my brushes up at the house. Not a big problem.
I do have a question, though. It may sound a bit odd, but I am serious: With my current buffed-up anti-stuff attitude, how do I justify making art? Where do I put it? We already have too much art and too many photographs to hang on the walls in our house. Even good art doesn't always sell. Isn't art just more stuff, most of which would probably end up in a landfill?
I would love to read what other artists and non-artists think about this.
I'm a knitter and I've struggled with this as well. If you hang around knitting fora a lot, you'll hear people describe themselves as product (I knit to have a sweater) and process (I knit because I like to knit and the sweater is incidental) knitters. Is there something similar for art? If it's the process of making art that you like, do you care if you keep the final product? Could you do something that uses less stuff (sketching)? Could you use waste materials (the back of scratch paper) so you feel like you aren't creating waste?
Yes, use the good stuff!Interesting story about your grandmother. We live in our house and use everything. If it's too good to use we don't own it.
I have a story about that. My grandmother had an entire floor on her house that was designated "the good part". She would keep it pristine but never use it. When she had a party she would spend hours cleaning it, then have all her guests in the basement. Never made sense to me at all! Why have it if you're not going to use it!
Extreme example of course, but it does show the silliness of saving the good stuff too long.
Now we have the house. You know what? I use the main living areas, cause it's the nice part!
Decluttering the electronics!Can you list the DVDs in bulk lots? Group them by similar genres (e.g action etc). May not net you the highest price but you would get something for them. Or list everything at on the same day, set yourself a long shipping time frame so you have time for everyone to pay up, then you can do it all with one trip to the post office. Re list only one time before donating.
- Getting rid of my old laptops and a few computer towers we do not use. I kept them for years because I didn't know how to retrieve data left on the hard drives, but my IT/geeky spouse helped me over the weekend. We'll bring everything to an ecocentre.
- I'll also try to sell my VCR and DVD player. My goal is to get rid of all but a few DVDs I particularly enjoy. We mostly use AppleTV to watch movies/series in streaming. After it's done, we'll be able to get rid of/sell our media tower.
I am wondering, though: is it worth trying to sell DVDs and CDs via Amazon or Ebay? I'm thinking about the multiple trips to CanadaPost just to send one $5 item at a time, and it doesn't seem efficient. Thoughts?
Decluttering the electronics!Can you list the DVDs in bulk lots? Group them by similar genres (e.g action etc). May not net you the highest price but you would get something for them. Or list everything at on the same day, set yourself a long shipping time frame so you have time for everyone to pay up, then you can do it all with one trip to the post office. Re list only one time before donating.
- Getting rid of my old laptops and a few computer towers we do not use. I kept them for years because I didn't know how to retrieve data left on the hard drives, but my IT/geeky spouse helped me over the weekend. We'll bring everything to an ecocentre.
- I'll also try to sell my VCR and DVD player. My goal is to get rid of all but a few DVDs I particularly enjoy. We mostly use AppleTV to watch movies/series in streaming. After it's done, we'll be able to get rid of/sell our media tower.
I am wondering, though: is it worth trying to sell DVDs and CDs via Amazon or Ebay? I'm thinking about the multiple trips to CanadaPost just to send one $5 item at a time, and it doesn't seem efficient. Thoughts?
I've been on a decluttering binge for most of the year. It has levelled off a bit now because I've tossed so much, but I'm constantly on the lookout for things that can go.Good for you on the t-shirt! Super soft t-shirts are something special :-)
This morning I tossed a t-shirt. Straight into the bin. Most of my clutter has been donated or sold on eBay, but not this. I bought it on a trip two years ago and quickly discovered it was the softest t-shirt ever made, so I proceeded to sleep in it constantly. It then developed two unfortunately-placed holes that have been getting bigger and bigger, and I could no longer wear it without something underneath it.
This morning I admitted it no longer serves a purpose and threw it out.
Someone else mentioned Project 333, and while I haven't been that brutal, I have slowly been piecing together a quality capsule wardrobe. The stress it has saved me is invaluable and (though it's somewhat un-Mustachian), I have no problem paying a little bit more for a good quality item that I love.
In the past 10 days I've had a wedding and a funeral. I thought about buying a new dress for the wedding just because it is freezing here, but ended up wearing a dress I've had for four years with the good trench coat and dressy black flats I wear to work. To the funeral I wore a black shift dress I wear to work, with the same trench coat and same shoes. No-one noticed, no-one cared, and I was packed for the (unexpected, out-of-town funeral) in five minutes.
Previously I bought clothes because I felt good about myself when I bought them (i.e. they were cheap) but then I hated the clothes/myself when I wore them. Now I am mastering the art of buying clothes I feel good about wearing, and actually feel OK about buying because I know I will have them for years.
I've been the same size since high school (today I wore a skirt that I wore at my fifteenth birthday party).
(http://cdn.meme.am/instances/59853826.jpg)
I dunno, I think the reasons for keeping things are closer to fear of needing it later, sentiment or laziness/inertia (it takes effort to go through things, and stuff constantly seems to flow in rather than out).
Another successful round of uncluttering completed. Persuaded DH to part with 95 DVDs. Removed 2 ikea cabinet towers from our family room. After DVDs and old school papers and unused board games cleared out, DH and the kids conceded that maybe open space was better than mostly empty cabinets!
Also sent 4 more boxes of clothes to donation center. Only 2 closets left to clear. Three hoarders vs one minimalist makes for slow going.
Yes, use the good stuff!Interesting story about your grandmother. We live in our house and use everything. If it's too good to use we don't own it.
I have a story about that. My grandmother had an entire floor on her house that was designated "the good part". She would keep it pristine but never use it. When she had a party she would spend hours cleaning it, then have all her guests in the basement. Never made sense to me at all! Why have it if you're not going to use it!
Extreme example of course, but it does show the silliness of saving the good stuff too long.
Now we have the house. You know what? I use the main living areas, cause it's the nice part!
I hoard consumer goods because my lizard brain thinks we'll all be safer if I have a nice big cache of diapers and dish detergent. It's obviously irrational, but I still get all happy looking at the diaper closet.
Wow, the paper piles are almost gone!Are the investment reports available online? If so then you can burn the paper ones.
I am going to have three binders: one slim one for important docs, one for need-this-year-papers and one in a cupboard for Archived Papers Which I Am Choosing To Keep. I am keeping new computer paper in drawers now that the drawers are so empty.
We have destroyed (by ripping, shredding or burning) two large boxes of personal papers. Phew.
Now to deal with the random bits that are left.
Question: With investment reports, do I need to keep reports from years ago or do I just need this year's reports? I don't actually understand the whole report but can decipher the top two pieces of paper. Is there any reason I need a record? should I keep the top sheet from each quarter?
- Husband used to have about 75 polos, 75 T-shirts, and basically cut it in half.
First major load of eBay stuff gone to the post office today. I have a few more paid items packed up and ready to leave on Monday. So in the last three days, I've sold $2,270.02 worth of crap! OK, not crap, but horse gear I don't need and have not been using. I'm going to relist the stuff that didn't sell, and hopefully double that number. I've sneaked some clutter out with the boxes too, like wrapping the saddle I shipped today in a big wad of quilt batting that's been kicking around for years taking up way too much space. There are some other things around here that I'm motivated to get sold now too, as I watch all this cash pile up in my bank account.
Big win today. Going through a pile of old papers and found $100 of Amazon gift certificates and $200 of LLBean gift certificates!!
My thanks to whoever started this topic.
Wow, the paper piles are almost gone!
I am going to have three binders: one slim one for important docs, one for need-this-year-papers and one in a cupboard for Archived Papers Which I Am Choosing To Keep. I am keeping new computer paper in drawers now that the drawers are so empty.
We have destroyed (by ripping, shredding or burning) two large boxes of personal papers. Phew.
Now to deal with the random bits that are left.
Question: With investment reports, do I need to keep reports from years ago or do I just need this year's reports? I don't actually understand the whole report but can decipher the top two pieces of paper. Is there any reason I need a record? should I keep the top sheet from each quarter?
Ugh. I'll start churning through the rest of the thread and see what I learn...
One book & T-shirt donated. One pair of shorts beyond repair to trash.& one super scratched pair of sunglasses trashed.
I normally don't buy stuff to pour into another, decorative container. I just use the original container. But a few years ago family gave us a jug for olive oil.mimhad been pouring it into the jug. The jug was opaque and I never knew how much was in,it.
Today I just got tired of re pouring, and I tossed the jug. Now I'll use the olive oil in its original bottle. We use it up fairly quickly so there never was a real need to keep it refrigerated.
I use an old honey bottle for my olive oil. Since I buy in Costco sized containers this is a container that's easy to refill, has a flip top lid and spout for easy use, and fits in my hand for easy lifting and storage near the stove.I normally don't buy stuff to pour into another, decorative container. I just use the original container. But a few years ago family gave us a jug for olive oil.mimhad been pouring it into the jug. The jug was opaque and I never knew how much was in,it.
Today I just got tired of re pouring, and I tossed the jug. Now I'll use the olive oil in its original bottle. We use it up fairly quickly so there never was a real need to keep it refrigerated.
Feeling rather embarrassed now. I'd been thinking about asking for one of those bottles for my birthday later in the year!
We buy olive oil in 4L tins (cheaper in bulk), then re-fill a supermarket bottle, but the bottle wasn't designed to be refilled and it's quite an art to detach the plastic pourer.
But, with this in mind, I shall do the mustachian thing and persist!
I normally don't buy stuff to pour into another, decorative container. I just use the original container. But a few years ago family gave us a jug for olive oil.mimhad been pouring it into the jug. The jug was opaque and I never knew how much was in,it.
Today I just got tired of re pouring, and I tossed the jug. Now I'll use the olive oil in its original bottle. We use it up fairly quickly so there never was a real need to keep it refrigerated.
Feeling rather embarrassed now. I'd been thinking about asking for one of those bottles for my birthday later in the year!
We buy olive oil in 4L tins (cheaper in bulk), then re-fill a supermarket bottle, but the bottle wasn't designed to be refilled and it's quite an art to detach the plastic pourer.
But, with this in mind, I shall do the mustachian thing and persist!
I normally don't buy stuff to pour into another, decorative container. I just use the original container. But a few years ago family gave us a jug for olive oil.mimhad been pouring it into the jug. The jug was opaque and I never knew how much was in,it.
Today I just got tired of re pouring, and I tossed the jug. Now I'll use the olive oil in its original bottle. We use it up fairly quickly so there never was a real need to keep it refrigerated.
Feeling rather embarrassed now. I'd been thinking about asking for one of those bottles for my birthday later in the year!
We buy olive oil in 4L tins (cheaper in bulk), then re-fill a supermarket bottle, but the bottle wasn't designed to be refilled and it's quite an art to detach the plastic pourer.
But, with this in mind, I shall do the mustachian thing and persist!
Got rid of a towel due to natural attrition (it tore in the washing machine) which will not be replaced. I have way too many towels still, but struggle with getting rid of them due to the inevitable natural attrition. It's easy to get rid of clothes as you can not like them anymore or they don't fit, but towels never go out of style ;-) ditched a cardigan, I was going to mend it but decided it was in such poor condition it wasn't worth the time to mend it in order to get a few extra wears from it. Also I have enough cardigans.Old towels make great rags so put them to use.
I have way too many towels still, but struggle with getting rid of them due to the inevitable natural attrition. It's easy to get rid of clothes as you can not like them anymore or they don't fit, but towels never go out of style ;-)Old towels make great rags so put them to use.
The Kondo book finally came in at the library so I downloaded it. Forgive me, this lady sounds mildly nuts. Keep only things that spark joy? My spatula does not spark joy. Objectively, I need the spatula. This is kind of silly.
The Kondo book finally came in at the library so I downloaded it. Forgive me, this lady sounds mildly nuts. Keep only things that spark joy? My spatula does not spark joy. Objectively, I need the spatula. This is kind of silly.
Another good weekend decluttering-wise...
And finally a note about getting partners on board... I've told you before I am doing this just with my stuff. 1400 things gone so far, and probably 50 of them have been offered up by my husband (I have not got rid of a single thing of his).
He commented on how we are getting along so well at the moment, and we agreed a lot of it was to do with having less stuff around and more space. 'His' areas of the house (dresser, bedside table etc) are looking incongruously stuffed with items but I am resisting the temptation to mention it, and still just focussing on my stuff. I can feel a change in the mood of the house though as we have both got a lot of me decluttering. So don't think you can't change anything if you're the only one into it.
The idea that everything you have/use can be something you actually like--not just something you happen to have--is like a revelation. You mean all those coffee mugs we've accumulated, I don't HAVE to keep? I could actually have every cup in the house be *pleasing*??
The idea that everything you have/use can be something you actually like--not just something you happen to have--is like a revelation. You mean all those coffee mugs we've accumulated, I don't HAVE to keep? I could actually have every cup in the house be *pleasing*??
It's eye-opening!
Clothes, homewares, everything... if I don't love it, I get rid of it/don't buy it in the first place.
I've been burned too many times in the past by buying the cheaper or not quite right option, then regretting it. It's worth taking the time and buying things once.
The idea that everything you have/use can be something you actually like--not just something you happen to have--is like a revelation. You mean all those coffee mugs we've accumulated, I don't HAVE to keep? I could actually have every cup in the house be *pleasing*??
It's eye-opening!
Clothes, homewares, everything... if I don't love it, I get rid of it/don't buy it in the first place.
I've been burned too many times in the past by buying the cheaper or not quite right option, then regretting it. It's worth taking the time and buying things once.
In the past, I would purchase or even just take castoffs of clothing that wasn't quite right- because I am so picky it's hard to find the right things. So much wasted money & space. Needless to say, no more. And it's all since been donated.
The idea that everything you have/use can be something you actually like--not just something you happen to have--is like a revelation. You mean all those coffee mugs we've accumulated, I don't HAVE to keep? I could actually have every cup in the house be *pleasing*??
It's eye-opening!
Clothes, homewares, everything... if I don't love it, I get rid of it/don't buy it in the first place.
I've been burned too many times in the past by buying the cheaper or not quite right option, then regretting it. It's worth taking the time and buying things once.
In the past, I would purchase or even just take castoffs of clothing that wasn't quite right- because I am so picky it's hard to find the right things. So much wasted money & space. Needless to say, no more. And it's all since been donated.
You know what I've found? I'm getting a clearer picture of what I like and why, especially when it comes to a capsule-ish wardrobe.
I feel like it took me till the of 28 to start learning how to dress myself. :/
I've been used as a repository for stuff no one else wanted. Kondo says in her book that younger sisters often end up with lots of stuff they don't like because they get so many hand-me-downs--that's definitely the case in my family, just with things instead of clothes.
I'm very proud of myself here. There is nothing at my parents house that should be in mine.Way to go!
There's lots of stuff at my parents house that doesn't fit in my current apartment, but even if I had a bigger house, I still wouldn't want it.
Better get rid of it now, or I'll have to sort it all out when my parents die or move to a nursing home.
Okay, I read the Kondo book and then Kondoed our dresser. I blame all of you.
I added a dress to the charity bag today. As part of the selfie challenge I am wearing some clothes I don't wear often as soon as I put it on I knew why... Looks great but so uncomfortable!!!
HOLY CRAP you guys!! Did you know that H&M takes ALL textiles?!? Including clothes, socks, sheets and even flip-flops?? If you want to double check anything the customer service # is 855-466-7467. (Like, I asked about pillows and they said they don't take the stuffing.) They do this at EVERY LOCATION! Sorry for all of the yelling, this is just completely revolutionizing my guilt factor. They might not be the only ones either; its in conjunction with something called I:CO which also has affiliate links for Levi, Puma and some other stores.
I HAD to share. Alright, off to the mall - and not to buy anything either!
Okay, I read the Kondo book and then Kondoed our dresser. I blame all of you.
Doesn't goodwill do that too? I've read before that they take all textiles (even if damaged, etc) and they sort them according to their condition for recycling or for sale at their stores.How did I not know this?? I'm going to check with my Salvation Army. I live close to everything so it's not so much the driving distance as much as will it help a charity or not. Thanks for the tip!
Here's a hangup I have that I'm hoping some of you can help me with:Here's my opinion on this.
What about all my camisoles/shapewear?
I love me some tummy-tucking, lump-smoothing shapewear, although I've had trouble finding ones that work with most outfits that don't have some kind of problem (like rolling up at the ends, or being to difficult to get on/off or not fitting right, or being to painful to deal with etc), so I have lots around. How much shapewear do you allow?
I also have a lot of camisoles, mostly for layering and modesty because I hate having my cleavage showing or worrying about shirts opening up when bending over, not to mention showing my underwear on the back end. I just hate having to worry about adjusting my clothes if I'm living my life outside of standing up straight and sitting at a desk. But I have way too many and I don't really want them as part of my capsule wardrobe. I'm thinking that what I should do is just start having stricter standards for necklines and shirt lengths so camisoles aren't necessary, but I still worry that I won't be able to have a working wardrobe without any. Anyone deal with this?
I've really been struggling lately. I've recently moved, and I got rid of a lot of things, and most everything else was boxed and bagged up. I've been at my new place for a month and most of it still is except for things I've pulled out. My room has a futon and is stacked with all the boxes and bags and now all the stuff I've pulled out has no where to go so it's a real mess.
I've been wanting to de-clutter even more to get rid of stuff (especially since I'm moving again) but every time I start, there's just very little room to pull things out so I just mentally shut down and never started.
This is what helped: Deciding to tackle the clothes first. I decided to use an infographic I had pinned on pinterest as my guide for a capsule wardrobe. I don't usually like other people's formulas (one dress, three skirts, etc) but it's helping me to focus. If I decide my wardrobe should have two dresses and one skirt later, I'll do that.
Before I would look at the clothes and think of how to best convince myself to get rid of it. Now I find it's been much easier for me to process clothes thinking about what I want to keep in the capsule vs what I want to get rid of. I yanked everything out of everywhere I could find and started going through it all. I've filled up some of the categories, but in order to cull things quickly, I'm not making final decisions yet. So in one part of my closet I have the recommended amounts of clothes, but at the other end, I'm hanging up what I call "contenders" to possibly replace the first things I've picked. Once I've gotten rid of the fluff and excess, I'll take a closer look at what works the most with other items and gives me the most flexibility.
I've also decided not to make final decisions on accessories and jewelry and shoes until the other items are decided, so I've put them to the side.
Here's a hangup I have that I'm hoping some of you can help me with:
What about all my camisoles/shapewear?
I love me some tummy-tucking, lump-smoothing shapewear, although I've had trouble finding ones that work with most outfits that don't have some kind of problem (like rolling up at the ends, or being to difficult to get on/off or not fitting right, or being to painful to deal with etc), so I have lots around. How much shapewear do you allow?
I also have a lot of camisoles, mostly for layering and modesty because I hate having my cleavage showing or worrying about shirts opening up when bending over, not to mention showing my underwear on the back end. I just hate having to worry about adjusting my clothes if I'm living my life outside of standing up straight and sitting at a desk. But I have way too many and I don't really want them as part of my capsule wardrobe. I'm thinking that what I should do is just start having stricter standards for necklines and shirt lengths so camisoles aren't necessary, but I still worry that I won't be able to have a working wardrobe without any. Anyone deal with this?
I've really been struggling lately. I've recently moved, and I got rid of a lot of things, and most everything else was boxed and bagged up. I've been at my new place for a month and most of it still is except for things I've pulled out. My room has a futon and is stacked with all the boxes and bags and now all the stuff I've pulled out has no where to go so it's a real mess.
I've been wanting to de-clutter even more to get rid of stuff (especially since I'm moving again) but every time I start, there's just very little room to pull things out so I just mentally shut down and never started.
This is what helped: Deciding to tackle the clothes first. I decided to use an infographic I had pinned on pinterest as my guide for a capsule wardrobe. I don't usually like other people's formulas (one dress, three skirts, etc) but it's helping me to focus. If I decide my wardrobe should have two dresses and one skirt later, I'll do that.
Before I would look at the clothes and think of how to best convince myself to get rid of it. Now I find it's been much easier for me to process clothes thinking about what I want to keep in the capsule vs what I want to get rid of. I yanked everything out of everywhere I could find and started going through it all. I've filled up some of the categories, but in order to cull things quickly, I'm not making final decisions yet. So in one part of my closet I have the recommended amounts of clothes, but at the other end, I'm hanging up what I call "contenders" to possibly replace the first things I've picked. Once I've gotten rid of the fluff and excess, I'll take a closer look at what works the most with other items and gives me the most flexibility.
I've also decided not to make final decisions on accessories and jewelry and shoes until the other items are decided, so I've put them to the side.
Here's a hangup I have that I'm hoping some of you can help me with:
What about all my camisoles/shapewear?
I love me some tummy-tucking, lump-smoothing shapewear, although I've had trouble finding ones that work with most outfits that don't have some kind of problem (like rolling up at the ends, or being to difficult to get on/off or not fitting right, or being to painful to deal with etc), so I have lots around. How much shapewear do you allow?
I also have a lot of camisoles, mostly for layering and modesty because I hate having my cleavage showing or worrying about shirts opening up when bending over, not to mention showing my underwear on the back end. I just hate having to worry about adjusting my clothes if I'm living my life outside of standing up straight and sitting at a desk. But I have way too many and I don't really want them as part of my capsule wardrobe. I'm thinking that what I should do is just start having stricter standards for necklines and shirt lengths so camisoles aren't necessary, but I still worry that I won't be able to have a working wardrobe without any. Anyone deal with this?
I love me some tummy-tucking, lump-smoothing shapewear, although I've had trouble finding ones that work with most outfits that don't have some kind of problem (like rolling up at the ends, or being to difficult to get on/off or not fitting right, or being to painful to deal with etc), so I have lots around. How much shapewear do you allow?
I also have a lot of camisoles, mostly for layering and modesty because I hate having my cleavage showing or worrying about shirts opening up when bending over, not to mention showing my underwear on the back end.
Man. I'm making progress but very slowly.
Sometimes, I feel like my mind has this crystal clear mentality when I go through things. I realize I don't need or want them, and will be unlikely to need it in the future. The clarity is tangible and I can throw away/donate things with little or no detachment that I've previously agonized over.
However, it doesn't last long, and by the end of a clearing session I'll be making much less progress. "I know this is just one black sock and I've folded and put away 20 other pairs, but I'm SURE I'll find another one while I'm cleaning up..."
It's ok, I guess, because it just means I need to keep going and keep making progress. I kind of wish I could have a professional like Peter Walsh or Marie Kondo help me out. I have both of their books on audible. I've listened to Kondo's three different times, and am going through Walsh's now. While listening to these books can be motivating, it's not the same as someone being right there looking at YOUR stuff with you and pushing you as you begin to falter at the tough times.
TL:DR - less is more when grocery shopping
I'm continuing to eat the contents of my cupboard. I've got three weeks until my move.
This effort may shift the way I think about food. I grew up in a large fammily and was very involved in cooking and shopping for 7 to 10 people. I've been living alone or with a room mate for almost ten years. I didn't think I really stockpiled, except a few items that were hard to find rurally. I like to keep around basic ingredients to a few things I enjoy, spices, baking supplies. I've been consciously eating cupboard food for 6 months and I STILL have things left! I have bought some things of course and I've had a productive little bucket garden. I like having a few options around. That makes it easy to cook at home. But this process of having much less in the pantry and buying as needed is blowing my mind.
Perhaps it's even more about having less in the freezer and fridge. I spent 6 months with just a mini fridge. I bought meat when I planned to cook, at the left overs. Always knew what was in the fridge. Didn't have extra condiments hanging around.
Why did I tie hundreds of dollars up in food that I didn't eat? That I didn't even know I had, except that the cupboard was full.
It's ok to have empty space in the cupboard!
Man. I'm making progress but very slowly.
Sometimes, I feel like my mind has this crystal clear mentality when I go through things. I realize I don't need or want them, and will be unlikely to need it in the future. The clarity is tangible and I can throw away/donate things with little or no detachment that I've previously agonized over.
However, it doesn't last long, and by the end of a clearing session I'll be making much less progress. "I know this is just one black sock and I've folded and put away 20 other pairs, but I'm SURE I'll find another one while I'm cleaning up..."
I am doing several other gauntlets & one is to read through my bookshelf. This is really helping to lighten the book load:) . I read through several, but also donated some straight away because they had lost their lure.
Must mention, I did previously go through my books with the konmarie method and decreased by About 50%.
Man. I'm making progress but very slowly.
Sometimes, I feel like my mind has this crystal clear mentality when I go through things. I realize I don't need or want them, and will be unlikely to need it in the future. The clarity is tangible and I can throw away/donate things with little or no detachment that I've previously agonized over.
However, it doesn't last long, and by the end of a clearing session I'll be making much less progress. "I know this is just one black sock and I've folded and put away 20 other pairs, but I'm SURE I'll find another one while I'm cleaning up..."
It's ok, I guess, because it just means I need to keep going and keep making progress. I kind of wish I could have a professional like Peter Walsh or Marie Kondo help me out. I have both of their books on audible. I've listened to Kondo's three different times, and am going through Walsh's now. While listening to these books can be motivating, it's not the same as someone being right there looking at YOUR stuff with you and pushing you as you begin to falter at the tough times.
I don't know where u live, but I'm in NorCal USA and I do organizing & decluttering as a side hustle.
I another note, I think you can do it, it'll get easier to discern over time. And after the major purge of everything, you will see more later , all the time.
Also, it sounds like u are familiar with Marie Kondos method. But hav u done a thourogh and go round with it? If not, I and countless others hav had excellent progress with her method.
Good luck!
I don't know what's stopping me from doing a complete "thorough" go-round with Marie Kondo's method. I think it's because she recommends diving in for a full weekend and getting it completely done, and long bouts of de-cluttering aren't working for me. I am using other tidbits from her book. I think her book has helped with getting me into the right mindset when it comes to having too many things. I don't stay in the mindset, but I at least know what it feels like now.
Maybe you could try one zone at a time. And zone doesn't have to equal bedroom it could equal one box under your bed, one shelf in your wardrobe, all of your shoes etc. This is how I have been approaching my decluttering and it seems to be working well. I do tend to revisit after the initial cull, I think seeing progress spurs me on to get rid of more.I don't know what's stopping me from doing a complete "thorough" go-round with Marie Kondo's method. I think it's because she recommends diving in for a full weekend and getting it completely done, and long bouts of de-cluttering aren't working for me. I am using other tidbits from her book. I think her book has helped with getting me into the right mindset when it comes to having too many things. I don't stay in the mindset, but I at least know what it feels like now.
It's OK, actually, she doesn't say you have to do it in a single weekend. Or at least, that's not my interpretation. She does say to do it all at once, but I take that to mean that the process should have a beginning and an end, not that the time between the beginning and the end should be as short as possible. I think her intent is that decluttering shouldn't be something that's perpetually on your chore list, like cleaning the gutters or changing your oil; rather, it should be something you do only once and not again. But that doesn't mean you can't take whatever time with it that you need.
Good luck!
Great to see how everyone here is tackling their stuff, I am impressed! Having a hard time getting rid of stuff myself, especially clothes and books.Socks: I would try donating to a women's refuge. Some of these women having nothing but the clothes on their backs so the socks would likely be appreciated as it's not normally the sort of thing that would be donated as a used item.
Clothes: I do not outgrow them, they are good quality, and they are still mystyle, and I still like to buy something new every now and again, so my clothes collection just keeps expanding. I still have the same size as 25 years ago and still have some nice quality items from that time that I do not want to get rid of. I am now at the point that I will have to do the "one in, one out" policy if I buy something new, which has prevented me from buying new stuff for the past year. I still wear everything on a regular basis. Also a difficult point: souvenir/band t-shirts that are hardly worn but I want to keep for sentimental reasons but this is one stack of approximately 20 shirts so I am not going to worry over them. Still wondering what to do with 25 pairs of socks given away for free on airlines. Not good quality but good enough for wearing/washing 4 or 5 times before falling apart. Not sure a thrift store would be happy with them, as they are such poor quality. They look lovely stacked the Marie Kondo way but as I never wear them (no socks or high quality hiking socks when hiking), I should absolutely get rid of them. Note to self: leave on airplane in future, even though free socks appeal to my frugal mindset.
Books: I love re-reading books and in the past was very choosy when buying books, so the majority of what I have I do not want to get rid of. However I now have 7 bookcases full and also need to start applying "one in, one out". To soften the blow I will just move a couple of boxes of books to the attic, and decide on them later. Not true de-cluttering but hey, books!
I have a very limited amount of knick-knacks, and most of the ones left I have been given when I was young and they hold sentimental value. Everything without sentimental value has been given away to thrift stores by now so I am quite OK on that front.
I would welcome all tips on how to sort/store DIY tools. I have my electric tools in small cases, neatly labelled and stacked on shelves, but I have a ton of screwdrivers-not-part-of-a-boxed-set, hammers, tape measures, screws, saws, pliers, plugs, hooks, sandpaper, paintbrushes, electric plugs and wiring etc. and I have not yet found the perfect way of sorting them. I have no garage so everything has to fit into Ikea Pax cupboards.
Great to see how everyone here is tackling their stuff, I am impressed! Having a hard time getting rid of stuff myself, especially clothes and books.Socks: I would try donating to a women's refuge. Some of these women having nothing but the clothes on their backs so the socks would likely be appreciated as it's not normally the sort of thing that would be donated as a used item.
Clothes: I do not outgrow them, they are good quality, and they are still mystyle, and I still like to buy something new every now and again, so my clothes collection just keeps expanding. I still have the same size as 25 years ago and still have some nice quality items from that time that I do not want to get rid of. I am now at the point that I will have to do the "one in, one out" policy if I buy something new, which has prevented me from buying new stuff for the past year. I still wear everything on a regular basis. Also a difficult point: souvenir/band t-shirts that are hardly worn but I want to keep for sentimental reasons but this is one stack of approximately 20 shirts so I am not going to worry over them. Still wondering what to do with 25 pairs of socks given away for free on airlines. Not good quality but good enough for wearing/washing 4 or 5 times before falling apart. Not sure a thrift store would be happy with them, as they are such poor quality. They look lovely stacked the Marie Kondo way but as I never wear them (no socks or high quality hiking socks when hiking), I should absolutely get rid of them. Note to self: leave on airplane in future, even though free socks appeal to my frugal mindset.
Books: I love re-reading books and in the past was very choosy when buying books, so the majority of what I have I do not want to get rid of. However I now have 7 bookcases full and also need to start applying "one in, one out". To soften the blow I will just move a couple of boxes of books to the attic, and decide on them later. Not true de-cluttering but hey, books!
I have a very limited amount of knick-knacks, and most of the ones left I have been given when I was young and they hold sentimental value. Everything without sentimental value has been given away to thrift stores by now so I am quite OK on that front.
I would welcome all tips on how to sort/store DIY tools. I have my electric tools in small cases, neatly labelled and stacked on shelves, but I have a ton of screwdrivers-not-part-of-a-boxed-set, hammers, tape measures, screws, saws, pliers, plugs, hooks, sandpaper, paintbrushes, electric plugs and wiring etc. and I have not yet found the perfect way of sorting them. I have no garage so everything has to fit into Ikea Pax cupboards.
Having almost no luck selling stuff. (I think I don't want strangers coming to my house for under $20... so maybe I list too high?)
TL:DR - less is more when grocery shopping
I'm continuing to eat the contents of my cupboard. I've got three weeks until my move.
This effort may shift the way I think about food. I grew up in a large fammily and was very involved in cooking and shopping for 7 to 10 people. I've been living alone or with a room mate for almost ten years. I didn't think I really stockpiled, except a few items that were hard to find rurally. I like to keep around basic ingredients to a few things I enjoy, spices, baking supplies. I've been consciously eating cupboard food for 6 months and I STILL have things left! I have bought some things of course and I've had a productive little bucket garden. I like having a few options around. That makes it easy to cook at home. But this process of having much less in the pantry and buying as needed is blowing my mind.
Perhaps it's even more about having less in the freezer and fridge. I spent 6 months with just a mini fridge. I bought meat when I planned to cook, at the left overs. Always knew what was in the fridge. Didn't have extra condiments hanging around.
Why did I tie hundreds of dollars up in food that I didn't eat? That I didn't even know I had, except that the cupboard was full.
It's ok to have empty space in the cupboard!
For smaller, easily portable items, arrange to meet your buyer in a public place (I usually ask any potential buyer to meet at the parking lot of my local Target - it's always busy and well lit, even after dark) - this way you can list less expensive items and actually sell them without having people come to your house. For bulky items, like furniture, I always make sure that I am not alone in the house when I have someone come in.
Great to see how everyone here is tackling their stuff, I am impressed! Having a hard time getting rid of stuff myself, especially clothes and books.
Clothes: I do not outgrow them, they are good quality, and they are still mystyle, and I still like to buy something new every now and again, so my clothes collection just keeps expanding. I still have the same size as 25 years ago and still have some nice quality items from that time that I do not want to get rid of. I am now at the point that I will have to do the "one in, one out" policy if I buy something new, which has prevented me from buying new stuff for the past year. I still wear everything on a regular basis. Also a difficult point: souvenir/band t-shirts that are hardly worn but I want to keep for sentimental reasons but this is one stack of approximately 20 shirts so I am not going to worry over them. Still wondering what to do with 25 pairs of socks given away for free on airlines. Not good quality but good enough for wearing/washing 4 or 5 times before falling apart. Not sure a thrift store would be happy with them, as they are such poor quality. They look lovely stacked the Marie Kondo way but as I never wear them (no socks or high quality hiking socks when hiking), I should absolutely get rid of them. Note to self: leave on airplane in future, even though free socks appeal to my frugal mindset.
Books: I love re-reading books and in the past was very choosy when buying books, so the majority of what I have I do not want to get rid of. However I now have 7 bookcases full and also need to start applying "one in, one out". To soften the blow I will just move a couple of boxes of books to the attic, and decide on them later. Not true de-cluttering but hey, books!
I have a very limited amount of knick-knacks, and most of the ones left I have been given when I was young and they hold sentimental value. Everything without sentimental value has been given away to thrift stores by now so I am quite OK on that front.
I would welcome all tips on how to sort/store DIY tools. I have my electric tools in small cases, neatly labelled and stacked on shelves, but I have a ton of screwdrivers-not-part-of-a-boxed-set, hammers, tape measures, screws, saws, pliers, plugs, hooks, sandpaper, paintbrushes, electric plugs and wiring etc. and I have not yet found the perfect way of sorting them. I have no garage so everything has to fit into Ikea Pax cupboards.
For smaller, easily portable items, arrange to meet your buyer in a public place (I usually ask any potential buyer to meet at the parking lot of my local Target - it's always busy and well lit, even after dark) - this way you can list less expensive items and actually sell them without having people come to your house. For bulky items, like furniture, I always make sure that I am not alone in the house when I have someone come in.
It isn't worth the gas and time to GET to Target for a $10 item though.
I mean; I've been on the other end of this. I drove to Costco to meet someone to get swaddles for a newborn. It was $10 for 5 of them. But that was $100 worth of swaddles for $10; good deal for me.
But for them? Totally not worth the drive. With the car she was driving and where she was coming from (I know because I balked at driving all the way out to her house) it was probably $5 in gas round trip. And she just met me, I paid, and she left. So it wasn't like she was going to Costco.
There are some things goodwill won't take; and I think I might just stick to freecycle for that. It's easy to say "I'll be in and out all day; I will set the item on the porch". You can't really do that with a sale. (Or maybe I can just say "throw the $5 under the welcome mat". If they don't - it is really no different than if I just donated it... and I bet most honest people would.)
I hear you. My method would not work well if you are in a rural location. I just use Target because it's convenient for me (maybe a mile from where I live), but any other public, well lit place will do (grocery store, the mall, etc.) I always specify my approximate location in my listings so people know how far they would have to drive. Having said that, I generally don't list anything under $15 because I think it's just not worth the effort - stuff like that gets donated. Sometimes I also list things under the "Free" category on Craigslist and just leave them outside on the porch or in front of the garage to be picked up. It works well.
My biggest worry is that I've never been on the selling end of a yard sale before. Any tips from seasoned veterans on this?
Maybe you could try one zone at a time. And zone doesn't have to equal bedroom it could equal one box under your bed, one shelf in your wardrobe, all of your shoes etc. This is how I have been approaching my decluttering and it seems to be working well. I do tend to revisit after the initial cull, I think seeing progress spurs me on to get rid of more.I don't know what's stopping me from doing a complete "thorough" go-round with Marie Kondo's method. I think it's because she recommends diving in for a full weekend and getting it completely done, and long bouts of de-cluttering aren't working for me. I am using other tidbits from her book. I think her book has helped with getting me into the right mindset when it comes to having too many things. I don't stay in the mindset, but I at least know what it feels like now.
It's OK, actually, she doesn't say you have to do it in a single weekend. Or at least, that's not my interpretation. She does say to do it all at once, but I take that to mean that the process should have a beginning and an end, not that the time between the beginning and the end should be as short as possible. I think her intent is that decluttering shouldn't be something that's perpetually on your chore list, like cleaning the gutters or changing your oil; rather, it should be something you do only once and not again. But that doesn't mean you can't take whatever time with it that you need.
Good luck!
My biggest worry is that I've never been on the selling end of a yard sale before. Any tips from seasoned veterans on this?
Put stickers on EVERYTHING. Don't count on "remembering" the price you wanted.
If the multiple families will be all selling together, color code to know whose stuff is what, and peel each sticker off the item and put it onto a ledger, and at the end of the day, you know how much each person gets from the cash box. (Make a note on the ledger if the price of an item was haggled down.)
Be ready at least an hour before your ad says you will open.
And be firm that your house does NOT have public restrooms.
I can't remember if I have posted to this thread or not. But I've just started another month of the "30-day Minimalist Game," as it has been coined by Joshua Fields Milburn and Ryan Nicodemus at theminimalists.com. I call it MinChal, just because that is the shorthand I put at the top of the list in my phone to keep track. I played by myself, unsure of how I'd perform. I updated the little list in my phone with the date and the items that left my home. I was pretty flexible with myself, giving credit for items tossed in excess of that date's number for a future date, and allowing goodwilled items to sit around for up to a week, so I could make the trip less frequently. I counted any little piece of junk I could find, unless it was something like trash created that day to be tossed immediately. (i.e. junk mail did not count.) If I fell behind I'd give myself a day or two to tackle something big and catch up.
http://www.theminimalists.com/game/ (http://www.theminimalists.com/game/)
Riverffashion, how did you get started on this side hustle? It sounds cool and something I'd like to try. I sent you a pm as well.Man. I'm making progress but very slowly.
Sometimes, I feel like my mind has this crystal clear mentality when I go through things. I realize I don't need or want them, and will be unlikely to need it in the future. The clarity is tangible and I can throw away/donate things with little or no detachment that I've previously agonized over.
However, it doesn't last long, and by the end of a clearing session I'll be making much less progress. "I know this is just one black sock and I've folded and put away 20 other pairs, but I'm SURE I'll find another one while I'm cleaning up..."
It's ok, I guess, because it just means I need to keep going and keep making progress. I kind of wish I could have a professional like Peter Walsh or Marie Kondo help me out. I have both of their books on audible. I've listened to Kondo's three different times, and am going through Walsh's now. While listening to these books can be motivating, it's not the same as someone being right there looking at YOUR stuff with you and pushing you as you begin to falter at the tough times.
I don't know where u live, but I'm in NorCal USA and I do organizing & decluttering as a side hustle.
I another note, I think you can do it, it'll get easier to discern over time. And after the major purge of everything, you will see more later , all the time.
Also, it sounds like u are familiar with Marie Kondos method. But hav u done a thourogh and go round with it? If not, I and countless others hav had excellent progress with her method.
Good luck!
I brought another bunch of clothes to the consignment store. They rejected a few items. It is hit or miss with this store: among the rejected items were 3 or 4 that I brought in before and was specifically told to bring back once they start accepting fall clothing which is now! Oh well. They are going straight to Goodwill and not back into my closet ;-) I think I have reduced my closet by 40-50% by now but there are still a few items that need to be weeded out.
The one thing I like about the consignment store I use is that they will donate rejected items for you. Yes, that means they get the tax benefits, not me- but we never remember to take them, so the net result is they are out of my closet.
They have amazing sales though, so I think people only ever shop when things are 50% or 75% off. Which means I usually make 20 or 30 cents an item... with the few items that get accepted...
I brought another bunch of clothes to the consignment store. They rejected a few items. It is hit or miss with this store: among the rejected items were 3 or 4 that I brought in before and was specifically told to bring back once they start accepting fall clothing which is now! Oh well. They are going straight to Goodwill and not back into my closet ;-) I think I have reduced my closet by 40-50% by now but there are still a few items that need to be weeded out.
Ha. Did you point that out to them? What did they say?
The one thing I like about the consignment store I use is that they will donate rejected items for you. Yes, that means they get the tax benefits, not me- but we never remember to take them, so the net result is they are out of my closet.
They have amazing sales though, so I think people only ever shop when things are 50% or 75% off. Which means I usually make 20 or 30 cents an item... with the few items that get accepted...
The one thing I like about the consignment store I use is that they will donate rejected items for you. Yes, that means they get the tax benefits, not me- but we never remember to take them, so the net result is they are out of my closet.
They have amazing sales though, so I think people only ever shop when things are 50% or 75% off. Which means I usually make 20 or 30 cents an item... with the few items that get accepted...
Wouldn't it work out better to donate to Goodwill direct and get the tax benefits? I've only done consignment twice for higher-end things ($200+) but after that I just switched to ebay/craigslist. If I can't get more than $5 out of it, I'd just donate it..
The one thing I like about the consignment store I use is that they will donate rejected items for you. Yes, that means they get the tax benefits, not me- but we never remember to take them, so the net result is they are out of my closet.
They have amazing sales though, so I think people only ever shop when things are 50% or 75% off. Which means I usually make 20 or 30 cents an item... with the few items that get accepted...
Wouldn't it work out better to donate to Goodwill direct and get the tax benefits? I've only done consignment twice for higher-end things ($200+) but after that I just switched to ebay/craigslist. If I can't get more than $5 out of it, I'd just donate it..
Riverffashion, how did you get started on this side hustle? It sounds cool and something I'd like to try. I sent you a pm as well.Man. I'm making progress but very slowly.
Sometimes, I feel like my mind has this crystal clear mentality when I go through things. I realize I don't need or want them, and will be unlikely to need it in the future. The clarity is tangible and I can throw away/donate things with little or no detachment that I've previously agonized over.
However, it doesn't last long, and by the end of a clearing session I'll be making much less progress. "I know this is just one black sock and I've folded and put away 20 other pairs, but I'm SURE I'll find another one while I'm cleaning up..."
It's ok, I guess, because it just means I need to keep going and keep making progress. I kind of wish I could have a professional like Peter Walsh or Marie Kondo help me out. I have both of their books on audible. I've listened to Kondo's three different times, and am going through Walsh's now. While listening to these books can be motivating, it's not the same as someone being right there looking at YOUR stuff with you and pushing you as you begin to falter at the tough times.
I don't know where u live, but I'm in NorCal USA and I do organizing & decluttering as a side hustle.
I another note, I think you can do it, it'll get easier to discern over time. And after the major purge of everything, you will see more later , all the time.
Also, it sounds like u are familiar with Marie Kondos method. But hav u done a thourogh and go round with it? If not, I and countless others hav had excellent progress with her method.
Good luck!
Wouldn't it work out better to donate to Goodwill direct and get the tax benefits? I've only done consignment twice for higher-end things ($200+) but after that I just switched to ebay/craigslist. If I can't get more than $5 out of it, I'd just donate it..
You know, I remember a few years ago reading a blog (my efforts at googling it have failed) where the writer basically said the easiest way she could get out of the clutter in her life was to get rid of everything, including the sentimental stuff. And years later, if at some point she thought "What did I ever do with that such-and-such?" she'd just think "Oh yeah, we lost that in the house fire" and move on with life. It was a way to mentally separate those things from herself as a person... they weren't her identity... and she was able to deeply minimize and move on with life with no regrets.
Sometimes (quite often) I think about getting rid of everything I have and just starting over after an "imaginary house fire." I probably won't ever do it, but it makes me realize what a stronghold material possessions can take in your life.
I actually recently came across what I think is the article you read. It's on a site called Houzz and I think her name is Rachel.
You know, I remember a few years ago reading a blog (my efforts at googling it have failed) where the writer basically said the easiest way she could get out of the clutter in her life was to get rid of everything, including the sentimental stuff. And years later, if at some point she thought "What did I ever do with that such-and-such?" she'd just think "Oh yeah, we lost that in the house fire" and move on with life. It was a way to mentally separate those things from herself as a person... they weren't her identity... and she was able to deeply minimize and move on with life with no regrets.
Sometimes (quite often) I think about getting rid of everything I have and just starting over after an "imaginary house fire." I probably won't ever do it, but it makes me realize what a stronghold material possessions can take in your life.
I actually recently came across what I think is the article you read. It's on a site called Houzz and I think her name is Rachel.
Here's the kicker: it wasn't a mind game she made up. Her house actually DID burn down. She grew and learned from it and she used it for purchases she had wanted to make but didn't at the time. I think one example was a rug. At one point she thought, "I should have bought it when I had the chance" but then would remember it was pre-fire, so if she had, she would have lost it anyway.
I read that too. Puts things into perspective. She said there were a few things she truly missed like pictures.
I read that too. Puts things into perspective. She said there were a few things she truly missed like pictures.
A friend who lost all of his possessions in a flood said pictures were the only thing he regretted losing.
He didn't have anytime to clear anything out because he didn't realize his house was in danger; the city called the zone too late (he lived WELL out of any flood zone, this flood was historic, well past the 500-year flood lines)- and he was out knocking on doors to get people to evacuate from other high risk areas.
I actually started a thread asking what one item people would grab from their home (assuming their family and pets were safe - although a number of people ignored that "rule" and mentioned they'd get their family or pets out). Makes you think about what's important, and how you can preemptively protect it.
I may be the least sentimental person on the planet, but leaving aside living people, there's nothing I'd grab except for convenience reasons: wallet, cell phone, personal documents like birth certificates/marriage licenses.
I like my stuff, it makes my life easier and is useful, but if I lost it all tomorrow, my biggest concern would be the aggravation of replacing it all.
The 20 shirts are a 30 year collection, so I do not think it is too bad, and they were all bought directly from the bands to support them. It is one of three things I do to support the bands I love: buying the music, going to the gig and then buying some merchandise. Probably not mustachian but all to support them. Have to admit that I just crowdfunded the CD for another band I want to help grow and yes, I chose the larger pledge of CD with T-shirt, again... Happy to be facepunched for that :-)Also a difficult point: souvenir/band t-shirts that are hardly worn but I want to keep for sentimental reasons but this is one stack of approximately 20 shirts so I am not going to worry over them.Just a gentle facepunch, I don't even own 20 tshirts even if you count the big ones I stole from DH to be pjs. And DH doesn't own 20 tshirts even if you count his undershirts.
Socks: I would try donating to a women's refuge. Some of these women having nothing but the clothes on their backs so the socks would likely be appreciated as it's not normally the sort of thing that would be donated as a used item.Great idea on the socks, did not think about the fact that this would not be a regularly donated item, but of course people will usually wear socks until threadbare, these are all brand new, even if not good quality.
Band t-shirts: why not wear them??? This is my weekend wardrobe. If you don't like the fit I can post instructions for turning them into cute tank tops. Also the memory of the concert is the sentimental thing, the tshirt only serves to remind you of the memory. If you aren't wearing it it's not serving that purpose.
I recognise this so much! Yesterday evening I just had to grin when I opened my nightwear drawer, which is now folded KonMari style. It is such a change, I am quite surprised about the effect it has.Okay, I read the Kondo book and then Kondoed our dresser. I blame all of you.
Do you love that it looks like a box of jelly beans now? I am ridiculously gleeful every time I open a drawer, post KonMari. :-D
Ok, even for me that's a ridiculous number of books. I too love re-reading books. My suggestion: mark all your books somehow (sticky note, etc). Then make an effort to go through and re-read your books. Remove the sticky note when you do. Those you can keep. After a while, you'll find that there's books you just don't want to read for whatever reason, or ones you don't like anymore. That's your goodbye pile. No guilt needed.No autonomously growing goodbye pile unfortunately, I re-read everything I still have. Even when sorting through the books I want to get rid of, I end up on the couch re-reading them and then deciding I do not want to let go yet. I understand why people would want to chuck out books they do not read, and I do so with books I have been given and/or are not really my style, my issue is that I read and re-read a lot, I cycle through all my books in a period of 4-5 years. The one-in, one-out hopefully works. I have to chuck out books not because I do not like them or because I do not read them, but because there is another book that I like better. I just have to get accustomed to the fact that I like and re-read more books than I am happy to own in paper form. Replacing paper with e-books may be a good way to de-clutter as well. Anyone here who is doing that?
I actually started a thread asking what one item people would grab from their home (assuming their family and pets were safe - although a number of people ignored that "rule" and mentioned they'd get their family or pets out). Makes you think about what's important, and how you can preemptively protect it.
I've got a mental block around jeans. I don't know why. I've cleared out SO many clothes, and yet, I just can't bring myself to tackle the jeans. Is it because they were expensive? Hard to find ones that fit? Remind me of happy times? Please can someone give me a pep talk about why I should go through them and get rid of some (probably got, hmmm, about 10 pairs total). I wear jeans probably 5 times a month.
Ok, even for me that's a ridiculous number of books. I too love re-reading books. My suggestion: mark all your books somehow (sticky note, etc). Then make an effort to go through and re-read your books. Remove the sticky note when you do. Those you can keep. After a while, you'll find that there's books you just don't want to read for whatever reason, or ones you don't like anymore. That's your goodbye pile. No guilt needed.No autonomously growing goodbye pile unfortunately, I re-read everything I still have. Even when sorting through the books I want to get rid of, I end up on the couch re-reading them and then deciding I do not want to let go yet. I understand why people would want to chuck out books they do not read, and I do so with books I have been given and/or are not really my style, my issue is that I read and re-read a lot, I cycle through all my books in a period of 4-5 years. The one-in, one-out hopefully works. I have to chuck out books not because I do not like them or because I do not read them, but because there is another book that I like better. I just have to get accustomed to the fact that I like and re-read more books than I am happy to own in paper form. Replacing paper with e-books may be a good way to de-clutter as well. Anyone here who is doing that?
I've got a mental block around jeans. I don't know why. I've cleared out SO many clothes, and yet, I just can't bring myself to tackle the jeans. Is it because they were expensive? Hard to find ones that fit? Remind me of happy times? Please can someone give me a pep talk about why I should go through them and get rid of some (probably got, hmmm, about 10 pairs total). I wear jeans probably 5 times a month.
I've been in Canada for over two months now - I traveled with what I could carry on plus one checked bag and I am not missing much.
I have a feeling I will have a lot of stuff to declutter once I get home...
I've been in Canada for over two months now - I traveled with what I could carry on plus one checked bag and I am not missing much.
I have a feeling I will have a lot of stuff to declutter once I get home...
Isn't it wonderful how the decluttering mindset is always there now?
I rid myself of several things in my suitcase on vacation, clothing and books mostly. And had a list in mind for when I returned... :)
I am no longer interested in all my home decorating magazines because I'd rather have space to make the pretty things I want, and they're all too full of ads. I might buy myself some new ones if I feel like it later, but these aren't bringing me joy any more. It's nice to see my focus change.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Okay, so there's lots of kondo talk on this thread.
I'm on the waitlist for her book at the library. I've read a very little bit about her "method," and I'm disappointed to see (admittedly in limited searches) that all everyone raves about is folding things up and putting them in the drawers vertically. I've been doing this for years, ever since realizing that baby clothes don't do well in stacks. (My kids are 6 and 4 now.)
Is there anything else that I might find life changing in her book, or is it just all about the damned folding and whether things you own "spark joy?" (I mean, good tips, but a whole book devoted to these two points?)
Okay, so there's lots of kondo talk on this thread.
I'm on the waitlist for her book at the library. I've read a very little bit about her "method," and I'm disappointed to see (admittedly in limited searches) that all everyone raves about is folding things up and putting them in the drawers vertically. I've been doing this for years, ever since realizing that baby clothes don't do well in stacks. (My kids are 6 and 4 now.)
Is there anything else that I might find life changing in her book, or is it just all about the damned folding and whether things you own "spark joy?" (I mean, good tips, but a whole book devoted to these two points?)
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Great zero waste ideas!
I've offloaded like ten books by sending them to friends and relatives. Thank goodness for book rate.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Great zero waste ideas!
When the compost turns to dirt, cup it in your hands every evening and whisper to it how much you appreciate it.
I'm very happy with what I hav now and really there's nothing that I miss and nothing that I need.
I've offloaded like ten books by sending them to friends and relatives. Thank goodness for book rate.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Great zero waste ideas!
When the compost turns to dirt, cup it in your hands every evening and whisper to it how much you appreciate it.
And let the dirt be taken by the wind all across the earth? :)
I've offloaded like ten books by sending them to friends and relatives. Thank goodness for book rate.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Great zero waste ideas!
When the compost turns to dirt, cup it in your hands every evening and whisper to it how much you appreciate it.
And let the dirt be taken by the wind all across the earth? :)
That would be a waste of good compost. Put it in the garden, on the tomato plants. When you eat the tomatoes, the compost will run through your veins.
I've offloaded like ten books by sending them to friends and relatives. Thank goodness for book rate.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Great zero waste ideas!
When the compost turns to dirt, cup it in your hands every evening and whisper to it how much you appreciate it.
And let the dirt be taken by the wind all across the earth? :)
That would be a waste of good compost. Put it in the garden, on the tomato plants. When you eat the tomatoes, the compost will run through your veins.
Right . but the compost would eventually scatter.
And most likely land on some other ground and be of use.
I've offloaded like ten books by sending them to friends and relatives. Thank goodness for book rate.
I don't know if this counts as getting rid of something per se. A pair of khakis got too stained to wear as nice office pants so I rolled up the legs and used them as capris on days I had to paint at work. They wore out on one side of the butt and I used the extra fabric rolled up in one of the legs to patch it. Finally, while exercising at lunch, they split completely. I'm now harvesting most of the fabric to patch up another pair of work pants.
So I haven't so much gotten rid of it as dismantled it to the point of its no longer being an item.
Use the remnants to make rag paper. After you've used both sides of the paper, shred it for lining the hamster cage. When it's dirty, compost it.
Great zero waste ideas!
When the compost turns to dirt, cup it in your hands every evening and whisper to it how much you appreciate it.
And let the dirt be taken by the wind all across the earth? :)
That would be a waste of good compost. Put it in the garden, on the tomato plants. When you eat the tomatoes, the compost will run through your veins.
Right . but the compost would eventually scatter.
And most likely land on some other ground and be of use.
I've got it. I'll use it to grow cotton and make a new pair of pants.
I have done such intense decluttering over the last couple of years that I actually was thinking the other day that there wasn't anything else I wanted to be rid of ( besides books as I read them ) , but now I'm thinking I'll probably come up with more before too long - its just like that :) . but I'm very happy with what I hav now and really there's nothing that I miss and nothing that I need.
Had a sudden realisation today of some cosmetics that went missing last time I moved house and felt sad I dont have them anymore. I managed to nitbthink of them for over a year and now urgh... I hope I don't feel like that about stuff I decluttered, although today I had another regret (namely, why did I toss out my only track pants even though they were threadbare and covered I. Paint stains. It's really cold today**!!) Two steps forward a quarter of an inch back???
DD cleaned out her bathroom cabinet yesterday and tossed some almost empty shampoo bottles, hair products and expired meds. She reorganized the rest of her stuff using an extension shelf I used to have in my closet but didn't need any more.I have had pretty strong success putting my cat's scratching post exactly in front of my $800 couch that she likes to scratch. With the post just there she will use it instead. The second the post moves a metre away she will go for the couch. Cats are weird.
I haven't done any real decluttering lately (although I started another Goodwill bag with the clothes that the consignment store rejected). I'd like to focus on it again but may wait until DD is gone back to university in September.
I have unraveled a cashmere sweater and salvaged the yarn for a future knitting project. I also washed and repaired the slipcovers I have on a couple of chairs in the kitchen. My cat uses the chairs as her scratching posts (ugh, I have tried everything but I don't know how to stop her from doing that!) so there were a lot of pulls, loose threads and small holes on the sides. And lots of cat hair! I was prepared to just throw them out but I thought I would give cleaning them a try first. The instructions said they are dry clean only but I washed them on delicate, hang them up to dry and ironed them. I trimmed all the loose threads and darned the holes. They look good! Now, if I can only train the cat not to scratch them!
Thanks. Yeah, I think the trackies deserve to be replaced after a decade of faithful service. Tossing before replacing may not have been the smartest thing in this particular instance. I am gonna sit on the cosmetics and resist the urge to replace immediately. If I still want them in a week or two I will replace them (I have hit a cycle of swearing louder makeup again). It did send a strong message to me that one you bring something into your life, even though you may view it as a "one time purchase" there can be a hedonic adaptation thing that effectively makes it an ongoing purchase. So this will make more wary of bringing new items into my life.Had a sudden realisation today of some cosmetics that went missing last time I moved house and felt sad I dont have them anymore. I managed to nitbthink of them for over a year and now urgh... I hope I don't feel like that about stuff I decluttered, although today I had another regret (namely, why did I toss out my only track pants even though they were threadbare and covered I. Paint stains. It's really cold today**!!) Two steps forward a quarter of an inch back???
Sounds like the track pants needed to go regardless, and maybe you'll decide that you should replace them. If you replace 2% of what you throw out, you're still ahead. Re the cosmetics, if it took you a year to think about them, I don't think they're truly missed, but if they are, then consider it a learning opportunity to hone your decluttering muscles, in knowing what you will and won't regret tossing.
DD cleaned out her bathroom cabinet yesterday and tossed some almost empty shampoo bottles, hair products and expired meds. She reorganized the rest of her stuff using an extension shelf I used to have in my closet but didn't need any more.I have had pretty strong success putting my cat's scratching post exactly in front of my $800 couch that she likes to scratch. With the post just there she will use it instead. The second the post moves a metre away she will go for the couch. Cats are weird.
I haven't done any real decluttering lately (although I started another Goodwill bag with the clothes that the consignment store rejected). I'd like to focus on it again but may wait until DD is gone back to university in September.
I have unraveled a cashmere sweater and salvaged the yarn for a future knitting project. I also washed and repaired the slipcovers I have on a couple of chairs in the kitchen. My cat uses the chairs as her scratching posts (ugh, I have tried everything but I don't know how to stop her from doing that!) so there were a lot of pulls, loose threads and small holes on the sides. And lots of cat hair! I was prepared to just throw them out but I thought I would give cleaning them a try first. The instructions said they are dry clean only but I washed them on delicate, hang them up to dry and ironed them. I trimmed all the loose threads and darned the holes. They look good! Now, if I can only train the cat not to scratch them!
I have had pretty strong success putting my cat's scratching post exactly in front of my $800 couch that she likes to scratch. With the post just there she will use it instead. The second the post moves a metre away she will go for the couch. Cats are weird.
I just googled Kondo and saw a video of her folding a sock drawer. The fact that all the things in it were not the same height REALLY bothered me.
I guess DH's anal retentive folding has finally got me. Even though laundry has always been my chore, he made me change how I folded things to meet his expectations. To be fair, his way is pretty good. I can't use the exact same folds on men's clothes as women's clothes though, because the end result has to be that all the things are the same dimensions in the drawer.
Now the only thing I won't fold is my underwear. I did for awhile and decided life is too short. I still fold his, I don't think I could get away with just throwing them in the drawer.
This is a great thread! My daughter is moving out in September and my son is 2 years behind her. I want to start decluttering so that we'll be ready to go.
I listened to Marie Kondo's book over the last 2 weeks (audiobook on my commute to work). At first I thought she was nuts - folding underwear and socks? But her other ideas are excellent. If it doesn't 'bring you joy' why are you keeping it? (Well my tools don't really bring me joy, but I keep them so I don't have to pay people to do trivial jobs.)
I donated 4 boxes of books to the library today (8 cubic feet down, how many to go?) I can't believe it feels good! I've had some of those books for 30 years. And I haven't used them for 30 years either. We actually have empty shelf space on 2 of our bookcases now.
I'm finding this change easy because I've always been a little obsessive/compulsive about being organized. DW not so much. Any ideas on how to get her engaged in this process?
DD cleaned out her bathroom cabinet yesterday and tossed some almost empty shampoo bottles, hair products and expired meds. She reorganized the rest of her stuff using an extension shelf I used to have in my closet but didn't need any more.I have had pretty strong success putting my cat's scratching post exactly in front of my $800 couch that she likes to scratch. With the post just there she will use it instead. The second the post moves a metre away she will go for the couch. Cats are weird.
I haven't done any real decluttering lately (although I started another Goodwill bag with the clothes that the consignment store rejected). I'd like to focus on it again but may wait until DD is gone back to university in September.
I have unraveled a cashmere sweater and salvaged the yarn for a future knitting project. I also washed and repaired the slipcovers I have on a couple of chairs in the kitchen. My cat uses the chairs as her scratching posts (ugh, I have tried everything but I don't know how to stop her from doing that!) so there were a lot of pulls, loose threads and small holes on the sides. And lots of cat hair! I was prepared to just throw them out but I thought I would give cleaning them a try first. The instructions said they are dry clean only but I washed them on delicate, hang them up to dry and ironed them. I trimmed all the loose threads and darned the holes. They look good! Now, if I can only train the cat not to scratch them!
NLB, I bet they'll still take it. I'm waiting on a kit now--does it fit a lot?
I had a log sitting on a scrap of carpet for my cat. About 95% of the time she'd go out of her way to use the log and leave my furniture alone. It was a log with bark still on it, completely dried and without pesky bugs. I think I dried it in a garage for a year or so before bringing it inside.DD cleaned out her bathroom cabinet yesterday and tossed some almost empty shampoo bottles, hair products and expired meds. She reorganized the rest of her stuff using an extension shelf I used to have in my closet but didn't need any more.I have had pretty strong success putting my cat's scratching post exactly in front of my $800 couch that she likes to scratch. With the post just there she will use it instead. The second the post moves a metre away she will go for the couch. Cats are weird.
I haven't done any real decluttering lately (although I started another Goodwill bag with the clothes that the consignment store rejected). I'd like to focus on it again but may wait until DD is gone back to university in September.
I have unraveled a cashmere sweater and salvaged the yarn for a future knitting project. I also washed and repaired the slipcovers I have on a couple of chairs in the kitchen. My cat uses the chairs as her scratching posts (ugh, I have tried everything but I don't know how to stop her from doing that!) so there were a lot of pulls, loose threads and small holes on the sides. And lots of cat hair! I was prepared to just throw them out but I thought I would give cleaning them a try first. The instructions said they are dry clean only but I washed them on delicate, hang them up to dry and ironed them. I trimmed all the loose threads and darned the holes. They look good! Now, if I can only train the cat not to scratch them!
I recognise this so much! Yesterday evening I just had to grin when I opened my nightwear drawer, which is now folded KonMari style. It is such a change, I am quite surprised about the effect it has.Okay, I read the Kondo book and then Kondoed our dresser. I blame all of you.
Do you love that it looks like a box of jelly beans now? I am ridiculously gleeful every time I open a drawer, post KonMari. :-D
my only trouble is that a lot of my wardrobe is black (mostly tops) and they can be hard to distinguish from each other at a glance.
Two more books out.
I might add, books are a hard one for me too. But its gotten easier. I bagan reading through my stock ( inspired by another gauntlet ) and I've since read and donated most after . there's others I want to hang onto ( nonfiction type ) , but when I finish the "new" reads ( one more ), I will begin rereading the others and we'll see... :)
I also need to get rid of my Breyer horses. I was embarrassingly obsessed with horses as a kid so I have my collection leftover from that. I'm wondering how well they'll sell on Craigslist.
On a weekender in Melbourne (aka shopping capital of Australia) and noticed the 100 outfits in 100 days challenge (about using what you have) combined with decluttering has made me view shopping very differently. I did purchase two items but they were both items that have been on my want/need list for a long time (a lightweight travel towel, I only have one and need a second one for when I do two consecutive gym days. I could just use a standard towel but as the old one is very close to retirment anyway, this will be primary towel and the old one the backup). And then trail runners. Currently hiking in steel caps (work boots that work bought for me for site visits) so really needed something more suitable. Both were heavily discounted :-)
Question: What do you do with random wires/cables? Can they be recycled or do they go straight to landfill?Anything with metal in it can go into one pile or bin, then periodically call the metal pickers. They will take anything with significant metal content and take it apart for recycling.
Question: What do you do with random wires/cables? Can they be recycled or do they go straight to landfill?
Another three books. Gone. Awesome.
Read Marie Kondo's book last night and whereas I like the principle behind it, I can't relate to the book. First of all, just throwing everything away rather than find a good home for it goes against my nature. She even discourages giving away stuff as you saddle others with it. The option to sell it does not even come up.
The way she treated books before finally deciding on throwing them away is horrendous (tearing out pages to file them???) and she clearly does not understand people who love to re-read books. 30 is a lot and 100 the maximum? I read that every year just in re-reading my favourites.
I do not think she has ever held a hammer in her life so nothing on storing tools or DIY stuff, which is what I badly need some tips on as I have a hard time keeping that stuff sorted.
It is a book about a lady and other ladies with lots of lady stuff (how many handbags do you need?) and as I am not a lady I found it hard to relate. However, the generic principle behind it is OK and her folding/storing of clothes is brilliant.
I'm about to do another declutter weekend. In the Tidying Up book, it mentions that you should never have to declutter again, if you do it properly. Has this been anyone's real experience? I find that I have to purge every three months anyway and I'm mostly bagging up garbage, recyclables, and kid items (for Goodwill).I think if you change your mentality about what comes into the house and your lifestyle stays the same it would be ok. But most people even if they change their mentality about what enters the house, will still be subject to lifestyle changes that make things redundant ( eg an injury, having children, gaining new interests at the expense of old ones) would all serve to make multiple items in the average house change from being useful to being clutter.
I don't mind, really. I make a party of it. But does anyone ever really stop the flow of new clutter coming in?
I find that when it comes to knick-knacks, I have stopped them coming in already over 15 years ago, and since then have been decluttering what I accumulated until that time, so that works well. Once I get my tools sorted I will get better with that, as I will always be able to find what I need I will not end up with duplicate stuff in three different areas of the house. (Why do I never, ever have enough screws of the right size for any given job?)
I don't mind, really. I make a party of it. But does anyone ever really stop the flow of new clutter coming in?
I do enjoy the overall vision she promotes, just need to look past all the handbag stuff :-) and it inspired me to declutter my walk-in closet this weekend.
It now looks pretty enough to go into a magazine after my attempt at a Konmari makeover, and I have three empty shelves. I gave away one small bag of clothes to the local freecycle store, plus 100 clothes hangers and a pair of shoes that did fit, but were just not comfortable. Then I went on to donate a very thick bedspread that is very nice and warm but a pain to wash and therefore did not get used a lot, I donated that to the animal shelter along with a drinking fountain my cats did not like. Then on to the freecycle bookstore where I donated two boxes of books. Mostly not "my" books but hand me downs from others, but I managed to part with some I now have as an ebook. I firmly refused the ladies' offer to have a look around to see if there were any books I wanted...
The only thing I bought were two baskets for my underwear drawer. I have a bra drawer which is now all folded, but I can't bring myself to fold my thongs, it is just not possible to make a sensible package of something with so little fabric. So now I have two baskets, one for nice ones, one for plain ones, the rest of the drawer is for swimwear and other items not deserving a drawer all by themselves.
And I hung up two mirrors on the doors of my my closet that had been standing in the corner for 5 years. One I have had since I was 10, the other I rescued from the trash. So much space now!
I'm about to do another declutter weekend. In the Tidying Up book, it mentions that you should never have to declutter again, if you do it properly. Has this been anyone's real experience? I find that I have to purge every three months anyway and I'm mostly bagging up garbage, recyclables, and kid items (for Goodwill).
I don't mind, really. I make a party of it. But does anyone ever really stop the flow of new clutter coming in?
I think it can work if you just totally stop bringing anything in (except consumables). For a few years now straight after Christmas I've bagged stuff up to be donated straight away (sounds cruel, but honestly, no-one ever notices, and I don't even want stuff I CHOSE to be coming into my house, a lot of what people buy me is not something I need / want / will enjoy). Their -intent- is to give me joy, releasing these items to others who will enjoy them is honouring their intention more than holding onto them out of misplaced guilt.
I ordered a bag for ThredUp today.
Does anyone know if they only take seasonal stuff?
Like, I have a bunch of short sleeve shirts right now, but my local consignment is only taking long sleeves.
Decent progress this week. Took a bag of fall clothes to the consignment shop, sold a few items on eBay, and tidied all my sewing and office supplies, donating or tossing a good portion. My photo scanning project continues...I love the ScanSnap which is a document scanner but you can also feed stacks of photos through it. I've scanned and discarded about 2,500 photos and have a few hundred left to go. One big item left to declutter is a collectible car, but so far no buyer. I'm thinking it might behoove me to have it inspected by a mechanic, to give buyers extra confidence.
I have gotten rid of alot of stuff Before and have a pretty minimalistic household. However one storage was left where we had som boxes that needed sorting. So I did it last night. It felt great. I will be able to sell alot of textbooks from University I will never use again. Some I will discard and a few I will bring into the Bookshelf.
This is a great stoarge with around 10 degrees celcius during the Winter. I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there. Some clothes as well for seasonal storage. I will also move my gun cabinet there, don't really need my shotgun in the house.
I have gotten rid of alot of stuff Before and have a pretty minimalistic household. However one storage was left where we had som boxes that needed sorting. So I did it last night. It felt great. I will be able to sell alot of textbooks from University I will never use again. Some I will discard and a few I will bring into the Bookshelf.
This is a great stoarge with around 10 degrees celcius during the Winter. I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there. Some clothes as well for seasonal storage. I will also move my gun cabinet there, don't really need my shotgun in the house.
"I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there."
This must be a slip;)
I have gotten rid of alot of stuff Before and have a pretty minimalistic household. However one storage was left where we had som boxes that needed sorting. So I did it last night. It felt great. I will be able to sell alot of textbooks from University I will never use again. Some I will discard and a few I will bring into the Bookshelf.
This is a great stoarge with around 10 degrees celcius during the Winter. I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there. Some clothes as well for seasonal storage. I will also move my gun cabinet there, don't really need my shotgun in the house.
"I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there."
This must be a slip;)
I would love to have a storage place to keep my pain. : )
I have gotten rid of alot of stuff Before and have a pretty minimalistic household. However one storage was left where we had som boxes that needed sorting. So I did it last night. It felt great. I will be able to sell alot of textbooks from University I will never use again. Some I will discard and a few I will bring into the Bookshelf.
This is a great stoarge with around 10 degrees celcius during the Winter. I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there. Some clothes as well for seasonal storage. I will also move my gun cabinet there, don't really need my shotgun in the house.
"I keep pain, a freezer, canned items out there."
This must be a slip;)
I would love to have a storage place to keep my pain. : )
I know!
Or better yet, donate? Or acceptable to trash ? Hahaha
Well you never know egen you need pain. Or paint as keep there :)
What was wrong with it?
To bad. I use only few color outside. All the details on my house is black. Windowframes, fence and so on. I just use same paint for all of it, then it wont have time to go bad.
Decent progress this week. Took a bag of fall clothes to the consignment shop, sold a few items on eBay, and tidied all my sewing and office supplies, donating or tossing a good portion. My photo scanning project continues...I love the ScanSnap which is a document scanner but you can also feed stacks of photos through it. I've scanned and discarded about 2,500 photos and have a few hundred left to go. One big item left to declutter is a collectible car, but so far no buyer. I'm thinking it might behoove me to have it inspected by a mechanic, to give buyers extra confidence.
Scanning photos/docs is a Godsend.
Just out of curiosity, what kind of car is it?
My so got rid of two large boxes of DVDs and books, she is seeing the light (at least some of it ;))
My so got rid of two large boxes of DVDs and books, she is seeing the light (at least some of it ;))
Things kept in boxes are very seldom worth saving. I can't really think of something.
I joined a local trading group on Facebook and traded an old foam mattress, a laptop case on wheels that I've never used and a dress that was given to me by a friend that has never fit. In return I now have about 8 blocks of delicious chocolate!
I brought two blocks as my contribution to supper at my choir rehearsal and one block into work as my contribution to the snack jar; saving me money that I would have spent finding something to bring in.
I think I may be getting addicted to trading, soon I'll have no furniture, but I will have a s**tload of chocolate!
BTW, has anyone else noticed how wildly popular this thread is? There are pages and pages and pages of posts! I'd say this gauntlet has been a success.
Oh, I can. I live in a small space and keep my gift-wrapping supplies, winter clothes, future gifts and so on in boxes. Another holds my tools (hammer and screwdrivers can live on your bookshelf if you just put them in a pretty box). I'd say my single most usefull tip for small-space living is this: put all items relating to task/hobby A into a box you can easily lift down when needed and replace on it's shelf in a jiffy. My whole "office" is a box. Same with my "hobby room".My so got rid of two large boxes of DVDs and books, she is seeing the light (at least some of it ;))
Things kept in boxes are very seldom worth saving. I can't really think of something.
Limeandpepper, my goal is to 'graduate' from this thread and never need it again! If you haven't needed to come here, you're doing well :)BTW, has anyone else noticed how wildly popular this thread is? There are pages and pages and pages of posts! I'd say this gauntlet has been a success.
Haha, yes, and I'm rather proud of starting this thread. :p :D
I haven't been active in these parts lately, as I did get rid of quite a lot of stuff when I moved interstate last year, but I'm looking around now and there are definitely still things that I can clear out, so I might try to get back into this!
-one car load (trunk and backseat), packed tetris-style, taken to Salvation Army.
Yeah, if you're not short of space you just stack stuff right way up, leaving empty space between things that aren't perfect squares. I took 'Tetris-style' to mean things in upside down, stuff rotated to make sure every gap is filled. Ie, the car was totally packed full of stuff, as opposed to a 'full' car load, which, with stuff just right way up, would contain a lot of empty space or air.-one car load (trunk and backseat), packed tetris-style, taken to Salvation Army.
Is there another way to pack?
Yeah, if you're not short of space you just stack stuff right way up, leaving empty space between things that aren't perfect squares. I took 'Tetris-style' to mean things in upside down, stuff rotated to make sure every gap is filled. Ie, the car was totally packed full of stuff, as opposed to a 'full' car load, which, with stuff just right way up, would contain a lot of empty space or air.-one car load (trunk and backseat), packed tetris-style, taken to Salvation Army.
Is there another way to pack?
Yeah, if you're not short of space you just stack stuff right way up, leaving empty space between things that aren't perfect squares. I took 'Tetris-style' to mean things in upside down, stuff rotated to make sure every gap is filled. Ie, the car was totally packed full of stuff, as opposed to a 'full' car load, which, with stuff just right way up, would contain a lot of empty space or air.-one car load (trunk and backseat), packed tetris-style, taken to Salvation Army.
Is there another way to pack?
Ah, I've read about this "not short of space" thing. :) Makes sense though. I never actually thought of packing any other method. Thanks for the clarification. Oh, fun fact: I just recently learned that you aren't supposed to do that with refrigerators.
Ah, I've read about this "not short of space" thing. :) Makes sense though. I never actually thought of packing any other method. Thanks for the clarification. Oh, fun fact: I just recently learned that you aren't supposed to do that with refrigerators.
You're welcome :) I didn't know that about refrigerators - is it because you need air flow around items? I've always thought freezers were more efficient when they were full, and obviously transplanted that information and assumed it applied to 'fridges as well.
If you wouldn't buy it today, get rid of it.
Ah, I've read about this "not short of space" thing. :) Makes sense though. I never actually thought of packing any other method. Thanks for the clarification. Oh, fun fact: I just recently learned that you aren't supposed to do that with refrigerators.
You're welcome :) I didn't know that about refrigerators - is it because you need air flow around items? I've always thought freezers were more efficient when they were full, and obviously transplanted that information and assumed it applied to 'fridges as well.
Another batch of clothing is in my car and will be brought to the consignment store at lunch today. I also have a few items to return - I was tempted by a pair of shoes at Nordstrom Rack enough to buy them but when I got home and pulled out all of the other fall/winter shoes I already own, I think I need to return them ;-) Unless I get rid of some of the older pairs that are starting to wear out....
I pulled out 71 books (from our collection of 2500 or so). I love books. But there were quite a few that no longer spoke to me. Also had a lot of books I *ought* to read--I gave myself permission not to read them, ever (unless I want to). I'll take most to the Recycle book store. Anything they don't take gets donated to the library sale.
Plus a 20-volume encyclopedia of gardening that was foisted on me at a yard sale. It's actually worth something. Trying to work up the nerve to sell on eBay for the first time ever.
Posting this to hold myself accountable for actually getting the books out of the house. :)
I pulled out 71 books (from our collection of 2500 or so). I love books. But there were quite a few that no longer spoke to me. Also had a lot of books I *ought* to read--I gave myself permission not to read them, ever (unless I want to). I'll take most to the Recycle book store. Anything they don't take gets donated to the library sale.
Plus a 20-volume encyclopedia of gardening that was foisted on me at a yard sale. It's actually worth something. Trying to work up the nerve to sell on eBay for the first time ever.
Posting this to hold myself accountable for actually getting the books out of the house. :)
Added a few more to the pile, and took them ALL to the library for donation. YEAH. Decided it was not worth the effort (this time) to try to sell them at the bookstore; I just wanted them OUT. Also a box of clothes to Goodwill. Then I dusted and straightened up about half of our remaining ~2000 books. They look much brighter and nicer. Now eyeing a few more that I don't think I really ever want to read.
Culled out some boring glass vases, broken mugs, mugs from the company I used to work for, a mug from the apartment complex I moved to in 1989. A few old family knickknacks that were sent to me because no one else wanted them. Guess what--neither do I. That made room in the display cabinet for some cups I really like but that were hidden away and never got used.
It's like giving away seven bags of bad feelings.
Of course! I meant kept in boxes in storage over a long time. I also have things in boxes. Winter clothing and so on. It is a good idea to invest in really good plastic boxes with snap on lids. Then mice can't get there and it does not smell.Oh, I can. I live in a small space and keep my gift-wrapping supplies, winter clothes, future gifts and so on in boxes. Another holds my tools (hammer and screwdrivers can live on your bookshelf if you just put them in a pretty box). I'd say my single most usefull tip for small-space living is this: put all items relating to task/hobby A into a box you can easily lift down when needed and replace on it's shelf in a jiffy. My whole "office" is a box. Same with my "hobby room".My so got rid of two large boxes of DVDs and books, she is seeing the light (at least some of it ;))
Things kept in boxes are very seldom worth saving. I can't really think of something.
It's like giving away seven bags of bad feelings.
This month was a winner. I ended a relationship and then moved out; got rid of stuff while I was packing (and have been getting rid of stuff for months), have another big box or so for the thrift shop, and have been Freecycling random things out of the donation box. All my books are in one bookshelf now and I've already started reading down the unread ones. By the end of tomorrow, my empty packing boxes and the donation box will all be out of my apartment.
When I put my closet back together I turned all my hangars. Whatever isn't turned again by Christmas gets a new lease in someone else's closet. Hello, August.
Wow, 2,000 is A Lot of books. You cut down from 2,500?
So I'm curious to know more about these books. What sort of books, have you read most of them, how you came to hav them, etc.
I've always been an avid reader (and collecter) as well, but recently cut back to approx 30 ( with a lot of encouragement from this thread and gauntlet called Read your Bookshelves ). A few years ago I must hav had 300+ and steadily dwindling.
I konmaried most of my house and the feeling has been great. I'm now sorting the gift box. This is a box where I keep generic gifts and toys for last minute gifts and toys. Having the box saves me so much time and effort in not having to worry about getting gifts. I regularly use the gifts from the box and replenish them as well. Once this challenge started I've been gifting exclusively from the gift box. Though I've made a dent I've got a long way to go. How do I konmari the gift box? All are good useful things but they don't bring me joy. But since they are not meant for me, do they have to give me joy to be in the house? Seems very confusing to me :(
I konmaried most of my house and the feeling has been great. I'm now sorting the gift box. This is a box where I keep generic gifts and toys for last minute gifts and toys. Having the box saves me so much time and effort in not having to worry about getting gifts. I regularly use the gifts from the box and replenish them as well. Once this challenge started I've been gifting exclusively from the gift box. Though I've made a dent I've got a long way to go. How do I konmari the gift box? All are good useful things but they don't bring me joy. But since they are not meant for me, do they have to give me joy to be in the house? Seems very confusing to me :(I have a gift box as well as the "trimmings": cards, envelopes, gifttags and wrapping paper, on hand at all times. While they do not exactly give me joy they do provide me with calm. I've done the "running around in panic" trying to get gift together for a family who are all of the type to invite me saturday night for a birthday party on sunday afternoon. And backup gifts makes me verry, verry happy when that invite comes.
I konmaried most of my house and the feeling has been great. I'm now sorting the gift box. This is a box where I keep generic gifts and toys for last minute gifts and toys. Having the box saves me so much time and effort in not having to worry about getting gifts. I regularly use the gifts from the box and replenish them as well. Once this challenge started I've been gifting exclusively from the gift box. Though I've made a dent I've got a long way to go. How do I konmari the gift box? All are good useful things but they don't bring me joy. But since they are not meant for me, do they have to give me joy to be in the house? Seems very confusing to me :(
The process isn’t perfect. You find a lot of things that you need to keep, yet spark no joy. To help address this I keep a running list of things I eventually want to replace with a more pleasing version.
[...]
It’s easy to forget about the joy criterion once you’re in the middle of it, and slip back into asking “Should I keep this or not?” which is not the same question as “Does it spark joy?” If you forget what you're doing, you might end up keeping things because you think you should, or because they are “worth something”, or because you “might need it”, and suddenly you're getting nowhere but not realizing it. Trust the process, and don’t forget the purpose. The real benefits are emotional, and so the process is all about assessing your emotional relationship to each thing.
[...]
Probably the most common reason people keep things they’re not using is because they “have value”— meaning they once cost money. But the real value in things is the experience they create for us. Even things with a monetary value can lower the quality of our experience in a lot of ways, by making us feel guilty, taking up space, or keeping us preoccupied with goals we’re not really committed to. And the money is already gone anyway. The important question is always “What does it feel like to own this?”
I konmaried most of my house and the feeling has been great. I'm now sorting the gift box. This is a box where I keep generic gifts and toys for last minute gifts and toys. Having the box saves me so much time and effort in not having to worry about getting gifts. I regularly use the gifts from the box and replenish them as well. Once this challenge started I've been gifting exclusively from the gift box. Though I've made a dent I've got a long way to go. How do I konmari the gift box? All are good useful things but they don't bring me joy. But since they are not meant for me, do they have to give me joy to be in the house? Seems very confusing to me :(
Almost all gifts give the recipients joy. Most of them are toys or books - I try to get educational ones but some kids prefer the noise blasting ones. It definitely saves me time and effort and running around at the last minute. I guess I'll cull out down to a smaller box and stop at that!!I konmaried most of my house and the feeling has been great. I'm now sorting the gift box. This is a box where I keep generic gifts and toys for last minute gifts and toys. Having the box saves me so much time and effort in not having to worry about getting gifts. I regularly use the gifts from the box and replenish them as well. Once this challenge started I've been gifting exclusively from the gift box. Though I've made a dent I've got a long way to go. How do I konmari the gift box? All are good useful things but they don't bring me joy. But since they are not meant for me, do they have to give me joy to be in the house? Seems very confusing to me :(
Do those generic gifts give joy to the recipient? Do they nod a smile politely then put it in their thrift store donation box? Is there a way you can change your gift giving to make less clutter for both you and the recipient?
Consumable gifts? Experiential gifts?
Almost all gifts give the recipients joy. Most of them are toys or books - I try to get educational ones but some kids prefer the noise blasting ones. It definitely saves me time and effort and running around at the last minute. I guess I'll cull out down to a smaller box and stop at that!!I konmaried most of my house and the feeling has been great. I'm now sorting the gift box. This is a box where I keep generic gifts and toys for last minute gifts and toys. Having the box saves me so much time and effort in not having to worry about getting gifts. I regularly use the gifts from the box and replenish them as well. Once this challenge started I've been gifting exclusively from the gift box. Though I've made a dent I've got a long way to go. How do I konmari the gift box? All are good useful things but they don't bring me joy. But since they are not meant for me, do they have to give me joy to be in the house? Seems very confusing to me :(
Do those generic gifts give joy to the recipient? Do they nod a smile politely then put it in their thrift store donation box? Is there a way you can change your gift giving to make less clutter for both you and the recipient?
Consumable gifts? Experiential gifts?
Still plodding on. I cannot believe there is still stuff that needs to go. I am now up to 1500 items out of the house this year.
But I will wait until I am down to two before restocking. Yes, it would be nice to only use one, but I have sensitive skin, and too much of one thing leads to eczema, unfortunately.
This month was a winner. I ended a relationship and then moved out; got rid of stuff while I was packingGood for you. It sounds like you are freeing a lot of blocked energy!
YESTERDAY'S DE-CLUTTERING
UNEXPECTED CASH
1. I de-cluttered the desk in my home office. Found a gift card that is 3 years old and still has cash on it. Used it to pay the cell phone carrier.
NO JUNK MAIL
2. I'm still pretty good at not bringing junk mail to my desk. I sort it near the kitchen trash can. The next best thing would be to have a trash can or recycle bin near the mailbox so that the junk mail never makes it into the house.
REMEMBER THE DEAD, BUT STILL LIVE YOUR LIFE
3. Sorted through a VHS collection and brought 2 bins down to 1 by ridding myself of the ones from a deceased colleague. Nice guy, but the very idea of his belongings in my house... Well, I didn't like that feeling. All of the movies of his that I would want to keep are available on DVD or digital download, so to the donation bin they go.
I hadn't dealt with this in years. Meanwhile, I've packed that collection with my other stuff and moved to a new place... twice! What baggage! You find ways to commemorate your friends other than keeping unwanted possessions.
CHILDHOOD MEMORIES
4. Last year, I knocked down my bins of childhood memorabilia by half. Yesterday, I knocked it down by half again. I opened the last remaining one for the first time in a decade or so. The school papers meant little to me, which was a relief. It was easier than I thought to let them go. I kept a few pages on which an instructor had left a nice note, but otherwise, it is now gone. My storage space is much nicer to see.
THE OUTFIT CONTROLLED MY LIFE TOO MUCH
5. There is this one outfit that I would store with my out-of-season clothes. Twice a year, I'd take it out and think of the great moments I had in it, then put it away again. I no longer wear it and this ritual was depressing. It was as if I was telling myself life cannot get any better in that area than those few moments spent in this ensemble so many years ago. I carefully folded it and placed in the donation bag. You'd think it was the national flag, I was so solemn while folding it. Yes, THE OUTFIT needed to go.
@C.K. that was an amazing way of looking at things. Thank you for that.
That's am interesting perspective of belongings of a deceased friend- which I respect and also of course decluttering is awesome.
I upcycle a substantial amount of old clothing, lace, blankets etc into couture dresses and handbags- much of which were given to me from friends - from there deceased loved ones. So, to each his own . :)
This is my favourite thread on this forum. <3
I've been given a LOT of stuff in the past month (have some health issues, have been given lots and lots of gifts). It's all been a bit overwhelming. So I've set up a new donation box next to the front door which is helping with the feelings of being overwhelmed with stuff. I've been given lots of brochures about the health issues I have too. Also not helping with the feelings of Too Much Stuff. Reading about other people giving stuff away is vicariously calming for some reason.
I heard from ThredUp! For my bag of clothes . . . $9.32. Oh well, $9 beats having unwanted clothes in the closet.
I've had good luck covering cardboard boxes with either cheap fabric or wall paper from the charity shop and strong double sided tape (I think it was carpet tape). I found I had to do the inside as well to give it a finished look. They've held up very well, but it's not stuff I access that often.
Final steps for me will be to finish getting rid of my last "out" pile and then getting rid of the large plastic storage totes I'm no longer using! I also need to ponder is how to reorganize the things I've decided to keep (especially knitting supplies). They currently sit in an ugly, out of place 3 drawer plastic storage unit I got for free, but I have so much shelf space now I'm thinking about just decorating an old amazon cardboard box to be pretty and using that.
MandyM so sorry to hear about the bedbugs. What a pain. Hope you get it all sorted.
This month was a winner. I ended a relationship and then moved out; got rid of stuff while I was packingGood for you. It sounds like you are freeing a lot of blocked energy!
This month was a winner. I ended a relationship and then moved out; got rid of stuff while I was packingGood for you. It sounds like you are freeing a lot of blocked energy!
I hadn't thought of it that way, but yes!! Life is a lot smoother and cleaner this way.
I got a gift this weekend and it came in a pretty box that I would have kept in the past but it went straight into the recycling bin.:)Well done! So tempting to keep the pretty boxes!
I got a gift this weekend and it came in a pretty box that I would have kept in the past but it went straight into the recycling bin.:)Well done! So tempting to keep the pretty boxes!
Sometimes, downsizing means buying something new that does the job of multiple other items.
It doubles as a bug-out-bag, and archery accessory sling, with some first aid gear, hydration pack etc.
Three bags now down to one and it's adaptable for other tasks. (MOLLE webbing allows expansion too)
Sometimes, downsizing means buying something new that does the job of multiple other items.
It doubles as a bug-out-bag, and archery accessory sling, with some first aid gear, hydration pack etc.
Three bags now down to one and it's adaptable for other tasks. (MOLLE webbing allows expansion too)
Ha! I did almost the same thing. I sold most of the old bags although I'm having a hard time with the one that has my initials monogrammed on it. Think school age bookbag. :)
Spent the weekend at my parents, and did oh so much on Saturday. I hurt now, but it's worth it. End results:Two bags kids clothes, fish tank and box of books all out this weekend. Yay!
-30 yr old nonworking fridge out of the garage and into the trash
-gigantic window a/c that came from somewhere and ended up in the attic in the trash
-Bunch of trash from the garage is now in the trash.
-The 20+ containers of various fluids are sorted out. The ones to keep are neat in milk crates, ready to be put on the new shelving once I go back and fix up the garage. There's a giant pile of all sorts of stuff to go to hazardous waste pickup or habitat for humanity
-2 bags of top soil are spread out where they were intended to go, last year.
-1 bag of cobblestones are spread out where they were intended to go, 10 years ago.
-one car load (trunk and backseat), packed tetris-style, taken to Salvation Army.
It was too hot in the attic to work, so the stuff up there can stay until it cools off some.
I wonder if thrift stores are noticing receiving more stuff these days with the popularity of the Marie Kondo tidying up book? Next time I drop by, if I remember to, I will ask someone.In my Puget Sound town, I've noticed a huge increase in donations to our thrift store. Every time I go there to drop things off, the donation room is full to bursting. And I go in there pretty often. ;)
I wonder if thrift stores are noticing receiving more stuff these days with the popularity of the Marie Kondo tidying up book? Next time I drop by, if I remember to, I will ask someone.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
So I decided to get rid of them about 3 or 4 months ago (I got DH to ask me if I love and want to keep them and my spontaneous answer was no). They've been sitting in the lounge room near the front door ever since. I could potentially sell them for $20 but I don't have the energy cos I'm going through some full-on medical treatments for the next 6 months or so.
Help me get rid of them please... Should I just donate them to charity? They are very unusual boots, not at all mainstream.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
So I decided to get rid of them about 3 or 4 months ago (I got DH to ask me if I love and want to keep them and my spontaneous answer was no). They've been sitting in the lounge room near the front door ever since. I could potentially sell them for $20 but I don't have the energy cos I'm going through some full-on medical treatments for the next 6 months or so.
Help me get rid of them please... Should I just donate them to charity? They are very unusual boots, not at all mainstream.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
So I decided to get rid of them about 3 or 4 months ago (I got DH to ask me if I love and want to keep them and my spontaneous answer was no). They've been sitting in the lounge room near the front door ever since. I could potentially sell them for $20 but I don't have the energy cos I'm going through some full-on medical treatments for the next 6 months or so.
Help me get rid of them please... Should I just donate them to charity? They are very unusual boots, not at all mainstream.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
So I decided to get rid of them about 3 or 4 months ago (I got DH to ask me if I love and want to keep them and my spontaneous answer was no). They've been sitting in the lounge room near the front door ever since. I could potentially sell them for $20 but I don't have the energy cos I'm going through some full-on medical treatments for the next 6 months or so.
Help me get rid of them please... Should I just donate them to charity? They are very unusual boots, not at all mainstream.
Donate. It hurts, but the money is gone. Seeing them will just remind you that you feel you misspent it.
I used to work in a charity shop, and non-mainstream stuff went the fastest, and for good money for the charity. People can walk into any high street store to buy mainstream stuff. They often sought us out for the fact we had more 'out there' stock.
Also, sorry to hear about your medical treatments - I wish you all the best.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
So I decided to get rid of them about 3 or 4 months ago (I got DH to ask me if I love and want to keep them and my spontaneous answer was no). They've been sitting in the lounge room near the front door ever since. I could potentially sell them for $20 but I don't have the energy cos I'm going through some full-on medical treatments for the next 6 months or so.
Help me get rid of them please... Should I just donate them to charity? They are very unusual boots, not at all mainstream.
Do you have a consignment store near you? I've had great luck with consignment for clothes and shoes.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
So I decided to get rid of them about 3 or 4 months ago (I got DH to ask me if I love and want to keep them and my spontaneous answer was no). They've been sitting in the lounge room near the front door ever since. I could potentially sell them for $20 but I don't have the energy cos I'm going through some full-on medical treatments for the next 6 months or so.
Help me get rid of them please... Should I just donate them to charity? They are very unusual boots, not at all mainstream.
No advice, but can you post a picture or link? I'm really curious what the unusual boots look like. I bet they're awesome.
Thank you so much. They will go to a charity shop this week. That was the kick up the arse I needed.
The more I look through various drawers and closets, the more I find to get rid of. I really should do a Marie Kondo style purge :-)
This month marks one year since I began my purge. I notice a few things have shifted and a few are still the same.
Most of the house is pretty spotless and tidy. It seems that once an area is dealt with and Kondoed I resist recluttering it. When I walk into our bedroom and there is something out of place I quickly tidy it. It is sort of like being inhabited by an alien: seeing my arms reach out and put things away.
I adore (ADORE!!!) the Mari Kondo style of folding clothes. It has changed how I view my clothes. Taking out a carefully folded packet gives me a lovely feeling. I feel as though I am someone who cares about her possessions, not someone who lets them get all scrunched up. I carefully selected what stays and what went so everything left is loved and appreciated. This feels new to me.
Walking into the kitchen and seeing things on the counters feels icky so I don't let things accumulate much any more. Such a delicious feeling.
I still have a pile of "to be dealt with" stuff. Dealing with that and not having it accumulate again will feel amazing. it is in the same spot it has been in for a year. It all requires more attention such as scanning. Scanning seems to be my bugbear. Only one closet in the house left to do plus the one remaining pile of stuff. I have put this off for some time. I have never lived without clutter and I wonder if I have resistance to getting rid of the final bits?
My new habits seem to be ingrained but time will tell. I am very aware of my love of visual order now and how clutter messes with my serenity (this from someone who used to have piles of paper and clothes next to her bed). I feel a new peace when I am at home. When I survey a room and it is tidy I feel a wave of ease come over me.
How are things with the rest of you? Notice any shifts in behaviour? Are you loving your new life?
This month marks one year since I began my purge. I notice a few things have shifted and a few are still the same.
Most of the house is pretty spotless and tidy. It seems that once an area is dealt with and Kondoed I resist recluttering it. When I walk into our bedroom and there is something out of place I quickly tidy it. It is sort of like being inhabited by an alien: seeing my arms reach out and put things away.
I adore (ADORE!!!) the Mari Kondo style of folding clothes. It has changed how I view my clothes. Taking out a carefully folded packet gives me a lovely feeling. I feel as though I am someone who cares about her possessions, not someone who lets them get all scrunched up. I carefully selected what stays and what went so everything left is loved and appreciated. This feels new to me.
Walking into the kitchen and seeing things on the counters feels icky so I don't let things accumulate much any more. Such a delicious feeling.
I still have a pile of "to be dealt with" stuff. Dealing with that and not having it accumulate again will feel amazing. it is in the same spot it has been in for a year. It all requires more attention such as scanning. Scanning seems to be my bugbear. Only one closet in the house left to do plus the one remaining pile of stuff. I have put this off for some time. I have never lived without clutter and I wonder if I have resistance to getting rid of the final bits?
My new habits seem to be ingrained but time will tell. I am very aware of my love of visual order now and how clutter messes with my serenity (this from someone who used to have piles of paper and clothes next to her bed). I feel a new peace when I am at home. When I survey a room and it is tidy I feel a wave of ease come over me.
How are things with the rest of you? Notice any shifts in behaviour? Are you loving your new life?
I'm so excited, we are having an all city large trash day this weekend. I have plans of getting rid a bunch of the larger things that I can't throw away normally such as the broken screen door and the blue barrel that we made into a horse for an event but haven't used since.This is coming along nicely. I have until tonight to get things out to the curb. I am amazed at the crap we've been ignoring in the picnic shelter and the shed. Just so much crap that we put out there "just for now". Ugh, that's a terrible phrase! I have a significant pile including the screen door, a bunch of styrofoam (that the recycling people won't take despite the recycle symbol on it, pet peeve of mine), several moldy throw rugs, a bunch of completely worn out outdoor cushions, the cardboard boxes that went with the styrofoam, some old iron scrollwork that we tore out years ago, an old table, some plastic lawn furniture that's falling apart...
The only hitch in my plan is my husband has been ordered by a doctor to not lift anything over 5 pounds until the middle of October. So I'm on my own for this. Wish me luck, I'll need it!
What do I do with dusters and mops I don't use? Can they be donated or should I just throw them out?
One amusing thing I "decluttered". While cleaning out the shed I found a 5 foot long snake skin, probably from the black snake I saw in there a few months ago. Well, I think snake skins are cool, so I posted a pic on facebook. A friend said her sister would love that as a christmas present, so I asked her for shipping costs and mailed it to her! Decluttered a snakeskin!
The large trash cleanout went well, everything left on the curb was picked up by either the trash pickers (after the metal, there wasn't anything salvageable other than that) or the borough. I didn't get everything I wanted up there, ran out of steam, but I did get a very large pile gone!
One amusing thing I "decluttered". While cleaning out the shed I found a 5 foot long snake skin, probably from the black snake I saw in there a few months ago. Well, I think snake skins are cool, so I posted a pic on facebook. A friend said her sister would love that as a christmas present, so I asked her for shipping costs and mailed it to her! Decluttered a snakeskin!
This isn't the first time I've found a 5 foot long snake skin in the shed :-) I thought at the time that the first one was from a huge garter snake I had been seeing around. They rarely get to be 5 feet long, it was a beautiful snake! Dark blue with yellow/green stripes down its length.
Don't worry, black snakes are common around here, and I've never heard of anyone being hurt by one. I like having snakes in our shed, it's not vermin tight and that helps keep the mice and chipmunks to a minimum.
Ok, so I'm usually pretty good decluttering and Getting Rid of Stuff. However, I am stuck on a pair of boots. I bought them about a year before I discovered MMM and was in a phase of trying to break free of fear of deprivation and miserliness. DH encouraged me to splurge a little on myself, so I bought some awesome looking boots that were ... wait for it ... $300 (might even have been more). I have never spent so much on a pair of shoes! Not even my expensive runners come close. I love these boots but they hurt my feet and ankles so much. They are full-on chunky so stretching them is not an option.
Still going thru my roommates stuff, another three garbage bags full out - total of 5 now! Two huge bags of recycling out . and she hasn't noticed s thing missing! (She told me to just start throwing things away. Good fun :) .loving an increasingly tidier, more serene environment .
I have been rocking and rolling this week. Settling into my new place. Not much left to purge, though I did toss a few hair ties I don't like and have a book for the thrift shop.
I made a platform bed with storage under it a few weeks ago. Most of what faces out is made from cube storage shelves. I initially bought several half shelves and storage baskets to match it, but when I unpacked the shelf units and saw all the cardboard I realized that I might as well make my own "baskets." The cardboard is double corrugated and very heavy duty, so I doubled it up and made my own half shelves too. I used tools and glue and fabric I already had on hand. The fabric was given to me when a friend cleaned out her closets. It's a pretty neutral but is cheap and not worth putting into a quilt, so it's perfect for a storage container! I put cute little drawer pull handles on them. So far I've made the equivalent of about $100 worth of target storage bins and baskets for free, mine might even be sturdier.
In the process of doing this I've rearranged 3/4 of my possessions and found out I even have some empty storage space in my 290 sq feet. Wha!?!?
These shelves hold my clothing, my sewing supplies, my books, school supplies, extra toilet paper and even some cooking supplies.
I still have a few boxes to make and I'll live with this set up for a month or so and see how it works.
I'm pretty dang pleased.
I've started the decluttering process, because we decided we are going to be RVing full-time next fall.
I am getting rid of my pressure cooker, crockpot, and rice cooker because Instant Pot.
As soon as I get my new and smaller, but much higher quality, block of knives, will be CLing my old knife block.
I really need to get rid of some glasses. I have no idea why we have four cabinet shelf spaces for glasses for three people.
I have some odd multiples of kitchen gadgets like two pasta forks. Got me.
I have two dresses, and pant suit, and some dress shoes I need to get rid of. I also need to clean out the coat closet. Lots of pullovers and coats in there that are just way too big now.
Hard, but I am going to have to pare down my books to the bare minimum.
Awesome! RVing sounds really fun. And a super fantastic motivation to do massive declutter. I suspect you will love the paired down look :).
Awesome! RVing sounds really fun. And a super fantastic motivation to do massive declutter. I suspect you will love the paired down look :).
I'm looking forward to it. I am trying to think in terms of what I need to survive and thrive. I think I'll miss my chest freezer the most. Obviously no way that thing is getting in an RV! Now that I think about it, the huge reason I have the thing in the first place is to store freezer meals, bread dough, etc because I don't have time to cook from scratch meals every night anymore like I did before I went back to work. I have to batch make them on the weekends and freeze them. When we go RVing, I don't think this will be an issue anymore. Problem solved? :p
Another batch of stuff going to consignment today. I also returned 3 clothing items that I bought recently but decided they didn't quite work for me after all. I really don't need more clothes but keep on being tempted by new stuff.... Need to work on that.
I am planning to go through my hall closet and my papers over the weekend. And I have to list my remaining 3 items on Craigslist.
Now the hardest part will be not to allow new stuff into the house ;-)
We have a kerbside pickup this week. I'm considering getting rid of:
- 2 blue couches
- 2 office chairs
- a bookcase
- assorted outdoor chairs
- dining table
This will leave us with room to replace those items in ways that work for us. I've tried selling the old items but no one was interested, and they don't work for us but it is scary to get rid of so much large furniture at once!
I got all psyched up, then realised it's not for 2 more weeks. So, I have time to plan for more stuff to go...We have a kerbside pickup this week. I'm considering getting rid of:
- 2 blue couches
- 2 office chairs
- a bookcase
- assorted outdoor chairs
- dining table
This will leave us with room to replace those items in ways that work for us. I've tried selling the old items but no one was interested, and they don't work for us but it is scary to get rid of so much large furniture at once!
It will be so fabulous to create a space you love!
I am getting rid of my pressure cooker, crockpot, and rice cooker because Instant Pot.
I haven't had much success lately. I did sell my daughter's pack & play for $40. I listed a bunch more baby stuff on a local facebook buy/sell page, but no bites yet, just one lowball attempt. Then tonight I was looking on eBay and found out that the same things are selling there for more than I've been asking, so I'm in the process of listing it there instead.Maybe if you sell the cupcake tower and ice cream maker you can put that $ towards new dishes. Maybe you/DH can send a company wide email at work to see if you can get a hassle free sale.
My kitchen stuff needs to be the next category to konmari. I have a teeny-tiny kitchen and a zillion things that I never use. We have a crock-pot that got used once and then stopped working. A cupcake display thing that was used once, at our wedding 4 years ago, and has been sitting in the box ever since. An ice cream maker that was a wedding present, and I don't want it because I'm no longer friends with the person who gave it, so, y'know, negative associations. Et cetera. I'd love to toss our mismatched dishes and silverware and get a nice basic matching set, but that costs money,
I took a big step last week. I took a leather coat and two cashmere sweaters to the consignment shop. They've been too tight for a few years now, but every fall I'd put them on. Nope, they did not magically grow to fit me over the summer. But I held on to them anyway thinking I will lose those 20 pounds. Now it was time to let them go, but hard because… leather and cashmere! My closets now have some wiggle room which is nice. I've gotten rid of other things too but those three items were hard to let go of.
I got rid of 4 giant trash bags of clothes!
I haven't finished the marie kondo book on audio yet (the waitlist for the library ebook has 29 ppl ahead of me!) lucky for me, i went over to the next county and joined that library (now number 4 on the waitlist)
I also put aside 2 large boxes of boxes to donate to the library.
Decided to keep 1 couch and 1 office chair, but the rest is gone. As well as a large flat piece of plywood (which, if I find a project for such a thing, I will simply ask around/gumtree/buy another one). Also a cute little wheelbarrow garden decoration that went rusty and paint started peeling (not suitable for the outdoors despite the advertising) and a coffee table I picked up off gumtree and was using as a planting bench.I got all psyched up, then realised it's not for 2 more weeks. So, I have time to plan for more stuff to go...We have a kerbside pickup this week. I'm considering getting rid of:
- 2 blue couches
- 2 office chairs
- a bookcase
- assorted outdoor chairs
- dining table
This will leave us with room to replace those items in ways that work for us. I've tried selling the old items but no one was interested, and they don't work for us but it is scary to get rid of so much large furniture at once!
It will be so fabulous to create a space you love!
Edited to add: just real the "rules" and they won't take anything longer than 1.5m, which is several of my items. Will try anyway, and might have to hire something to take them to the tip if they don't :(
Still going thru my roommates stuff, another three garbage bags full out - total of 5 now! Two huge bags of recycling out . and she hasn't noticed s thing missing! (She told me to just start throwing things away. Good fun :) .loving an increasingly tidier, more serene environment .
So the other morning I went into the kitchen and it was in worst ever state ive seen it. Wish u could post the video, but my phone doesn't hav the capability. Mess of food preparing, dirty dishes, cabinets left open, garbage on floor, recycling needed emptying, dishes in dish drain, carpet iin corner as if kicked over.... When I later morning ran into her in the kitchen I said, "I love you but this is ridiculous". Mind you, she's a really peaceful, gentle person with this being her flaw. It was hard to confront her. But when I moved in and get former roommate (with a two year old) moved out, she said she was looking forward to a tidy house. Being tidy myself I was happy to hear this. So as you can imagine I became quickly appalled.
In any case, comment seems to hav had an effect, because when I came home, was spotless- kitchen & dining room. And the next day the laundry area was cleaned up, bathrooms, hallways becoming cleared, book cabinets decuttered and sorted....!
I took a big step last week. I took a leather coat and two cashmere sweaters to the consignment shop. They've been too tight for a few years now, but every fall I'd put them on. Nope, they did not magically grow to fit me over the summer. But I held on to them anyway thinking I will lose those 20 pounds. Now it was time to let them go, but hard because… leather and cashmere! My closets now have some wiggle room which is nice. I've gotten rid of other things too but those three items were hard to let go of.
Hi all, this thread is remarkable. I read the Marie Kondo book a few months ago and then got rid of about six bags of old clothes -- just as the winter stuff was going into the attic, and the summer stuff coming into my bedroom. Now, with this next change of seasons already here, it's time for another purge.
You are motivational; inspiring, even!
For me, the key is being present because I can live in clutter and mess and not consciously notice, though after having read the MK book, I found myself occasionally seeing where I was and saying to myself "Hmm, there's really nothing on this table that needs to be here. I can toss those papertowels I used under last week's iced tea, that folder of our travel papers can be tossed now that the trip is over, and these three books need to go in the give away pile." Amazing both how easy it is to live shut down, and how transformative opening my eyes can be. You all are eye openers!
I got rid of 4 giant trash bags of clothes!
I haven't finished the marie kondo book on audio yet (the waitlist for the library ebook has 29 ppl ahead of me!) lucky for me, i went over to the next county and joined that library (now number 4 on the waitlist)
I also put aside 2 large boxes of boxes to donate to the library.
I need motivation to get on this again. My biggest issue is I don't have a good place to get rid of stuff that really needs to go. No one takes books, and I don't want to drive 45 minutes to the nearest half price books! (And I guess textbooks I just take the cover off and put them into recycling?)
And I have got to get the "baby's room" emptied out. There is an actual deadline on that.
I need motivation to get on this again. My biggest issue is I don't have a good place to get rid of stuff that really needs to go. No one takes books, and I don't want to drive 45 minutes to the nearest half price books! (And I guess textbooks I just take the cover off and put them into recycling?)Libraries usually take books then sell them as a fundraiser.
And I have got to get the "baby's room" emptied out. There is an actual deadline on that.
Libraries usually take books then sell them as a fundraiser.
Still going thru my roommates stuff, another three garbage bags full out - total of 5 now! Two huge bags of recycling out . and she hasn't noticed s thing missing! (She told me to just start throwing things away. Good fun :) .loving an increasingly tidier, more serene environment .
So the other morning I went into the kitchen and it was in worst ever state ive seen it. Wish u could post the video, but my phone doesn't hav the capability. Mess of food preparing, dirty dishes, cabinets left open, garbage on floor, recycling needed emptying, dishes in dish drain, carpet iin corner as if kicked over.... When I later morning ran into her in the kitchen I said, "I love you but this is ridiculous". Mind you, she's a really peaceful, gentle person with this being her flaw. It was hard to confront her. But when I moved in and get former roommate (with a two year old) moved out, she said she was looking forward to a tidy house. Being tidy myself I was happy to hear this. So as you can imagine I became quickly appalled.
In any case, comment seems to hav had an effect, because when I came home, was spotless- kitchen & dining room. And the next day the laundry area was cleaned up, bathrooms, hallways becoming cleared, book cabinets decuttered and sorted....!
I am so happy to say that my roommate has seriously caught the decluttering bug! :). Everyday some new area is clean and tidy or some piece of furniture or stack of books donated. And the kitchen is always spotless.
At my recommendation she has ordered Marie Kondos book from the library.
She says she is really enjoying the process:). As well as the clean & clear space as well. The biggest thing for her was this: she has a lot of stuff passed on from family. I asked her if she likes them. I told her that if she donates or sells the things she doesn't like, it doesn't mean she doesn't love her family. So she has let go of a substantial amount of this type.
Can you donate the books instead? Goodwill and savers takes books, though I haven't seen textbooks in there.
I think the garbage people at my parent's hate it when I visit. This past weekend, did some work on the garage that resulted in a big pile of rotted wood to be picked up.
Then we finished painting the garage earlier than I expected, so I did some things around the house for them, and got one of the old metal kitchen cabinets out of the attic and into the trash. Please don't ask why they have it, never mind the other two. Ran out of energy then, but I I do plan to get the other cabinet out of the attic and toss it.
Maybe I can get rid of a couple of chairs in the attic that mom doesn't want. Those will go to goodwill or somewhere though, she'll never stand for them to be tossed.
The last time I was there, I threw out an old fridge!
Do you have a Free Little Library near you? I have two that I pass when I walk my dog, so I drop off books as soon as I finish reading them.Can you donate the books instead? Goodwill and savers takes books, though I haven't seen textbooks in there.
We don't have a savers. I'll have to call Goodwill again- they told me only children's books.
I think the garbage people at my parent's hate it when I visit. This past weekend, did some work on the garage that resulted in a big pile of rotted wood to be picked up.
Then we finished painting the garage earlier than I expected, so I did some things around the house for them, and got one of the old metal kitchen cabinets out of the attic and into the trash. Please don't ask why they have it, never mind the other two. Ran out of energy then, but I I do plan to get the other cabinet out of the attic and toss it.
Maybe I can get rid of a couple of chairs in the attic that mom doesn't want. Those will go to goodwill or somewhere though, she'll never stand for them to be tossed.
The last time I was there, I threw out an old fridge!
Idk what the rules are in Chicago, but where I live wood is recyclable as long as not covered in creosote. Also, if the mechanic piece of a fridge is removed is also excepted.
And chairs along with just about any functional or decorative item is excepted at goodwill & salvation army. Even fridges as long as they function (obviously).
Anyway, I know the rules and laws for everything are different everywhere.
I think the garbage people at my parent's hate it when I visit. This past weekend, did some work on the garage that resulted in a big pile of rotted wood to be picked up.
Then we finished painting the garage earlier than I expected, so I did some things around the house for them, and got one of the old metal kitchen cabinets out of the attic and into the trash. Please don't ask why they have it, never mind the other two. Ran out of energy then, but I I do plan to get the other cabinet out of the attic and toss it.
Maybe I can get rid of a couple of chairs in the attic that mom doesn't want. Those will go to goodwill or somewhere though, she'll never stand for them to be tossed.
The last time I was there, I threw out an old fridge!
Idk what the rules are in Chicago, but where I live wood is recyclable as long as not covered in creosote. Also, if the mechanic piece of a fridge is removed is also excepted.
And chairs along with just about any functional or decorative item is excepted at goodwill & salvation army. Even fridges as long as they function (obviously).
Anyway, I know the rules and laws for everything are different everywhere.
They're in Michigan, I'm in Chicago. It'd be a lot easier for me if they were here! There are pickers who take things. I know that the metal stuff was picked up by someone before trash day in the past, and the fridge didn't work so whoever took it is welcome to recycle it. A lot of stuff is picked up, and I think that there's something done with wood as well.
The problem with the chairs is that they're big - thus harder to fit into the car. Plus, they're in the attic. Which is reached by the narrow, steep, and twisty back staircase. Not fun. But the point of this is that when they have to move, it's slightly easier to move them. Though I'm sure it'll still be a nightmare. Mom's on board in general, and sis and I had gone through the attic with her so we know what can go without a fight.
I haven't had much success lately. I did sell my daughter's pack & play for $40. I listed a bunch more baby stuff on a local facebook buy/sell page, but no bites yet, just one lowball attempt. Then tonight I was looking on eBay and found out that the same things are selling there for more than I've been asking, so I'm in the process of listing it there instead.Maybe if you sell the cupcake tower and ice cream maker you can put that $ towards new dishes. Maybe you/DH can send a company wide email at work to see if you can get a hassle free sale.
My kitchen stuff needs to be the next category to konmari. I have a teeny-tiny kitchen and a zillion things that I never use. We have a crock-pot that got used once and then stopped working. A cupcake display thing that was used once, at our wedding 4 years ago, and has been sitting in the box ever since. An ice cream maker that was a wedding present, and I don't want it because I'm no longer friends with the person who gave it, so, y'know, negative associations. Et cetera. I'd love to toss our mismatched dishes and silverware and get a nice basic matching set, but that costs money,
I painted my bathroom today. I had de cluttered all my clothes I didn't like. I had to paint naked.
I got rid of 4 giant trash bags of clothes!
I haven't finished the marie kondo book on audio yet (the waitlist for the library ebook has 29 ppl ahead of me!) lucky for me, i went over to the next county and joined that library (now number 4 on the waitlist)
I also put aside 2 large boxes of boxes to donate to the library.
Check to see if your library is connected with Hoopla. I could listen to the book instantly on there, rather than get in the long line waiting for the book. It was all a resource connected to my library card.
I painted my bathroom today. I had de cluttered all my clothes I didn't like. I had to paint naked.
Hi all, I hate to ask this question but I'm going to anyway -anyone have declutters remorse? Thrown out tonnes then wished you hadn't? Not just having to buy another pair of socks because you culled your sock drawer a bit too enthusiastically. But actual lasting regrets? I'm doing KonMarie but honestly I feel like I could throw everything away. I'm struggling to find joy in any of my things. Which of course begs the question why did I buy so much shit in the first place. I'm a Sahm and feel up to my ears in stuff -lots.of it that's not mine. I guess for decades I have mistakenly thought shopping (especially second hand) would make me happy but it didn't but I now have a house load to clear out. Please help reassure me that at the end of the process I will feel better -because doing the clearing out feels pretty draining.
re: remorse.
No. You won't. There might be an occassional item that flits through your mind, but at the same time you'll remember the mess you used to deal with and the clean space you have now and you'll be just fine with having let it go.
Irreplaceable things are worth taking ones time with, they are where regret may happen. But replaceable things can be culled without mercy.
Just today I was talking to a student about a book I sold back decades ago, literally because I needed the money to buy food. I've regretted the loss ever since, though I made the right decision,the only one I could at the time.
It really does seem to be permanent. I was in a gourmet cooking store this week and looked at all the stuff (while a friend shopped) and I got a twinge of acquisitiveness which faded quickly.
After realizing how many blankets we had, I pulled 5 out and gave them away. There are still some more that should go, waiting on DH to talk to his sister about taking the sleeping bags for her kids to camp with.
Also, started recycling my old (worthless) textbooks a few at a time. Pulling off the covers on the hardbacks was easy with a utility knife. I don't want to toss them all at once so the recycle bin doesn't get too heavy.
They are science textbooks from almost 20 years ago, too much has changed in the research for them to be worth anything. I may try selling a few that won't be outdated like the calculus one and "On The Origin Of Species".After realizing how many blankets we had, I pulled 5 out and gave them away. There are still some more that should go, waiting on DH to talk to his sister about taking the sleeping bags for her kids to camp with.
Also, started recycling my old (worthless) textbooks a few at a time. Pulling off the covers on the hardbacks was easy with a utility knife. I don't want to toss them all at once so the recycle bin doesn't get too heavy.
can't sell them online?
I sorted through the bottle cabinet the other day and got rid of several incomplete bottle/nipple sets, pacifiers, and other small things we don't need anymore. It's kind of sad because I was kind of hoping we'd have at least one more baby, and getting rid of baby things means accepting the reality that we almost certainly won't.
Moving halfway across the country into a furnished apartment really helps one declutter. I've reduced all my possessions to fit in about 24 cubic ft or about a closet worth.
I put a picture of my possessions on my blog: http://www.livelikeyou.ca/decluttering-moving-prep/
I sorted through the bottle cabinet the other day and got rid of several incomplete bottle/nipple sets, pacifiers, and other small things we don't need anymore. It's kind of sad because I was kind of hoping we'd have at least one more baby, and getting rid of baby things means accepting the reality that we almost certainly won't.
Sorry to hear you're struggling tofuchampion. Decluttering can be surprisingly upsetting as we let go of idea of who and what we thought we would be as well as the material things.
Moving halfway across the country into a furnished apartment really helps one declutter. I've reduced all my possessions to fit in about 24 cubic ft or about a closet worth.
I put a picture of my possessions on my blog: http://www.livelikeyou.ca/decluttering-moving-prep/
Wow!:)
I did my crafting stuff (er... again again). Why was I keeping half that stuff? Why did I think I needed 15 paintbrushes? Because they came in a set, apparently. I kept 5, one of each general size. The rest went to charity. Lots of things gone. I thought it would get harder to find stuff to cull, but it's almost getting easier as I realise I used to have 4 times that amount and don't miss anything.
Moving halfway across the country into a furnished apartment really helps one declutter. I've reduced all my possessions to fit in about 24 cubic ft or about a closet worth.
I put a picture of my possessions on my blog: http://www.livelikeyou.ca/decluttering-moving-prep/
Wow!:)
It probably isn't very mustachian but I've decided to take everything I need to get rid of to the tip shop 5 mins down the road. Yes, I could probably make money if I invested the time but I really just want to be rid of everything and time spent listing stuff and managing sales is time not spent sorting and getting rid of clutter. I have bought a lot from the tip shop over the years and a lot of people who are hard up shop there, it is run by the local council so is not for profit and they sell stuff cheap so it is affordable for all. I took a whole car boot full of stuff there on the weekend (mostly books), then realised I need an extra sleeping bag for a camping trip this weekend and found one there for $5!
It probably isn't very mustachian but I've decided to take everything I need to get rid of to the tip shop 5 mins down the road. Yes, I could probably make money if I invested the time but I really just want to be rid of everything and time spent listing stuff and managing sales is time not spent sorting and getting rid of clutter. I have bought a lot from the tip shop over the years and a lot of people who are hard up shop there, it is run by the local council so is not for profit and they sell stuff cheap so it is affordable for all. I took a whole car boot full of stuff there on the weekend (mostly books), then realised I need an extra sleeping bag for a camping trip this weekend and found one there for $5!
I think it's quite mustachian. You're keeping stuff out of landfill, reducing your overall impact on the environment. And helping others find stuff they need at affordable prices. It's not just about the money :)
It probably isn't very mustachian but I've decided to take everything I need to get rid of to the tip shop 5 mins down the road. Yes, I could probably make money if I invested the time but I really just want to be rid of everything and time spent listing stuff and managing sales is time not spent sorting and getting rid of clutter. I have bought a lot from the tip shop over the years and a lot of people who are hard up shop there, it is run by the local council so is not for profit and they sell stuff cheap so it is affordable for all. I took a whole car boot full of stuff there on the weekend (mostly books), then realised I need an extra sleeping bag for a camping trip this weekend and found one there for $5!
I think it's quite mustachian. You're keeping stuff out of landfill, reducing your overall impact on the environment. And helping others find stuff they need at affordable prices. It's not just about the money :)
Good point. I will sell stuff on ebay that I barely make any money on. I'd rather do that than throw it in the trash.
It probably isn't very mustachian but I've decided to take everything I need to get rid of to the tip shop 5 mins down the road. Yes, I could probably make money if I invested the time but I really just want to be rid of everything and time spent listing stuff and managing sales is time not spent sorting and getting rid of clutter. I have bought a lot from the tip shop over the years and a lot of people who are hard up shop there, it is run by the local council so is not for profit and they sell stuff cheap so it is affordable for all. I took a whole car boot full of stuff there on the weekend (mostly books), then realised I need an extra sleeping bag for a camping trip this weekend and found one there for $5!
I think it's quite mustachian. You're keeping stuff out of landfill, reducing your overall impact on the environment. And helping others find stuff they need at affordable prices. It's not just about the money :)
Good point. I will sell stuff on ebay that I barely make any money on. I'd rather do that than throw it in the trash.
If you've got the mental/emotional energy for that. :) I don't. But luckily my city also has recycling sheds at the rubbish tips and they take nearly everything, so it's just one trip out there vs dealing with ebay (which I've never used as a buyer or a seller). I also use freecycle, which is less effort than ebay. If I lived somewhere where they weren't options, I suspect I wouldn't bother with trying to sell stuff and things may end up in landfill. I balance mental health vs my personal values.
Wish me luck
Today I've put several water bottles into recycling. (I get a new one every hospital visit and the empties have been accumulating at home)
Threw out some out packaging that's no longer needed. Also threw out some instructions for something I no longer own.
I've also started a new donate box. Nearly full! We'll take it to the recycling shed at the rubbish tip next time we're out that way. So far, the donation box has:
- a children's book (bought from an op shop as a gift but realised it's to tatty to use as a gift)
- 2 of my tops (one looks dowdy, the other is uncomfortable)
- candle plus 2 fake candles that I bought for a party
- old digital camera that I got from freecycle ages ago and never used
- a bag that some medical stuff came in
DH is going through his boxes of memoriabilia/sentimental stuff. A few things have made it into the recycling bin. It's mostly a consolidation exercise so we can fit some work stuff under the bed. (we're working from home for the next 5 or 6 months and there isn't space for some of the work stuff we have to have)Wish me luck
Good luck! On the plus side, I assume you have no emotional attachment to the stuff. Hopefully that means it's just a matter of getting organised and not having to fight with/manage sentimal reactions to the stuff.
I've got some stuff happening in life right now, but the part that is applicable here is that I am going to start putting miscellaneous (unused) items in a box. If it's not missed, I'm getting rid of it one way or another. Now just debating on whether to tell the SO. :) I'll have more details later that I'll post here. Minimalism is becoming a much larger part of my life, and I might even end up taking it to the extreme.Have you read Marie Kondo's book? A few sections helped me when dealing with my husband. First, I don't show him the things I'm getting rid of (that are mine). Second, I don't get rid of his items for him.
I am actually struggling to find work outfits each morning, and yet I'm still wearing loads of things I don't even like. If I got rid of everything except the joy givers I think I'd be nude! And I don't want to spend a fortune buying new joyous items. Anyone else have this problem?
Your help and encouragement needed! Through a roundabout way, I came across someone local who buys music records and albums, and even offered to buy my record player if I have one (which I do). From my youth and being a DJ for a short while, I have over 200 albums, over 50 45s, and 200 cassette tapes. The problem? I don't seem to be ready to sell them. They are organized in the hall closet, and I play the records once a year or so. The cassettes never. What would you do?
Your help and encouragement needed! Through a roundabout way, I came across someone local who buys music records and albums, and even offered to buy my record player if I have one (which I do). From my youth and being a DJ for a short while, I have over 200 albums, over 50 45s, and 200 cassette tapes. The problem? I don't seem to be ready to sell them. They are organized in the hall closet, and I play the records once a year or so. The cassettes never. What would you do?Get rid of the cassettes for sure - you don't listen to them anyway.
TheAdvicist - I'm in the same boat as you with clothes. And for me at least it's not as easy as going out and buying new (or thrift store) ones that I love because I'm so picky I can go shopping and not find one thing I love.My husband made a comment when I went through my clothing that I wouldn't have anything to wear. I struggled for a few weeks, but I bought my favorite items slightly used on eBay. They were more than a thrift shop, but way less than new. Also, they're the exact same year (sometimes things shift season to season) as my favorite pair. It's ridiculous, but true. I also instituted a work uniform and bought 10 of my favorite tops in various colors. Now I don't shop unless I need to replace something.
One thing I'm going to look into doing is creating a "uniform" where I find polo's or something similarly generic and buy a bunch in different colors. While I still won't love my work clothes at least I won't dread wearing the ones I'm keeping just so I'm not going to work nude
Your help and encouragement needed! Through a roundabout way, I came across someone local who buys music records and albums, and even offered to buy my record player if I have one (which I do). From my youth and being a DJ for a short while, I have over 200 albums, over 50 45s, and 200 cassette tapes. The problem? I don't seem to be ready to sell them. They are organized in the hall closet, and I play the records once a year or so. The cassettes never. What would you do?Is the rest of your house decluttered?
Your help and encouragement needed! Through a roundabout way, I came across someone local who buys music records and albums, and even offered to buy my record player if I have one (which I do). From my youth and being a DJ for a short while, I have over 200 albums, over 50 45s, and 200 cassette tapes. The problem? I don't seem to be ready to sell them. They are organized in the hall closet, and I play the records once a year or so. The cassettes never. What would you do?Is the rest of your house decluttered? Things on display, yes.
Have you meticulously gone through, and reflected on, every single thing you own and now you're just left with dealing with the music?
Material detachment is a mental muscle you have to train. Starting with emotionally insignificant stuff is equivalent to the low weights. Getting rid of your sentimentals is the 400 pound deadlift; there is no easy way to do it, you have to do it right, no one can help you, and you have to be freakin' strong to do it.
If you still haven't pared down your stacks of papers; get it done first! Done
If you still haven't pared down your wardrobe; get it done! Working on it
If you still haven't pared down your kitchen; get it done! Done, but can do more
If you still haven't pared down your movies; get it done! Will need DH's assistance, since most are his
If you still haven't pared down your books; get it done! Done
By the time you've gone through that and know why, to great detail why you've kept and especially why you've thrown away all those things again, you are in much better mental shape to handle sentimental items like photographs, letters and music.
I've got some stuff happening in life right now, but the part that is applicable here is that I am going to start putting miscellaneous (unused) items in a box. If it's not missed, I'm getting rid of it one way or another. Now just debating on whether to tell the SO. :) I'll have more details later that I'll post here. Minimalism is becoming a much larger part of my life, and I might even end up taking it to the extreme.Have you read Marie Kondo's book? A few sections helped me when dealing with my husband. First, I don't show him the things I'm getting rid of (that are mine). Second, I don't get rid of his items for him.
Since I've taken a hands-off approach to my husband's things, he's parted with more than when I was pushing him to get rid of things. I do itemize everything and donate it, so he only has to decide that he wants to get rid of an item.
My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
I'm keen to do a declutter though.
Alternatively there's stuff that'd take a long time to find a buyer (hifi kit).
Any tips? Thanks :)
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No. That's why I haven't done it. I'm not sure on all the recycling places that'll take the stuff either.My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
I'm keen to do a declutter though.
Alternatively there's stuff that'd take a long time to find a buyer (hifi kit).
Any tips? Thanks :)
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When you say trashing functional stuff, you mean recycling or donating whenever possible right?
No. That's why I haven't done it. I'm not sure on all the recycling places that'll take the stuff either.My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
I'm keen to do a declutter though.
Alternatively there's stuff that'd take a long time to find a buyer (hifi kit).
Any tips? Thanks :)
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When you say trashing functional stuff, you mean recycling or donating whenever possible right?
Especially if it's items that are only a couple of dollars new and aren't really what you'd donate (like TV/phone cables and packets of envelopes and the like), or outdated tech accessories (I've got about four or five external hard drives).
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My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
I'm keen to do a declutter though.
Alternatively there's stuff that'd take a long time to find a buyer (hifi kit).
Any tips? Thanks :)
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I joined a No Buy Group in my area. I've gotten rid of things. But I've also received a few things that I would have spent money to purchase. Win. Win.My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
I'm keen to do a declutter though.
Alternatively there's stuff that'd take a long time to find a buyer (hifi kit).
Any tips? Thanks :)
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no need to trash it. Goodwill, Craigslist, Freecycle... etc Rinse and repeat
My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
If Craigslist is fairly active in your area, put the functional stuff on the Free section. In my area, anything on Free gets hoovered up, unless it's something like an old mattress full of cat pee.
Your help and encouragement needed! Through a roundabout way, I came across someone local who buys music records and albums, and even offered to buy my record player if I have one (which I do). From my youth and being a DJ for a short while, I have over 200 albums, over 50 45s, and 200 cassette tapes. The problem? I don't seem to be ready to sell them. They are organized in the hall closet, and I play the records once a year or so. The cassettes never. What would you do?
I'm slowly getting used to wearing my favorites more often. I have this irrational fear of wearing out my favorite items and not being able to find something I like to replace them. This causes me to "save" the things I like and wear things I don't really care for. By the time I get back to the favorites, they either don't fit any more or are out of style. Where is the logic in this???
[...] Then I got over it and decided to use all the good stuff, because they're meant to be used. The only downside to this is that I've had a few of my favorite items wear out because I literally used them almost every other day for years. Every now and then I search through eBay in the hopes of finding that specific pair of shoes, and that specific leather jacket that I had because I'm just sad that they're gone forever.
But it was great to open my wardrobe and know that I'm wearing my favorites everyday.
[...] Then I got over it and decided to use all the good stuff, because they're meant to be used. The only downside to this is that I've had a few of my favorite items wear out because I literally used them almost every other day for years. Every now and then I search through eBay in the hopes of finding that specific pair of shoes, and that specific leather jacket that I had because I'm just sad that they're gone forever.
But it was great to open my wardrobe and know that I'm wearing my favorites everyday.
First, I just stumbled across your recipe thread thing you did. That was awesome. Secondly, how the hell do you wear out real leather? I've tried. Never worked.
I am bringing in another batch of stuff to the consignment store today. I realized that I started to get rid of stuff in my closet about a year ago and managed to reduce the clothing by about half! I still have some items that could go. It's a big closet :-)
I'm slowly getting used to wearing my favorites more often. I have this irrational fear of wearing out my favorite items and not being able to find something I like to replace them. This causes me to "save" the things I like and wear things I don't really care for. By the time I get back to the favorites, they either don't fit any more or are out of style. Where is the logic in this???
So I'm trying to focus on wearing my favorites instead, and wearing them more often. Today, I have on a pair of shoes I adore and a cashmere cardigan that I like a lot. I wore them last Friday as well. When I was getting dressed this morning, I had anxious thoughts floating in my head of what I'm going to do when these things wear out and what will people at work think seeing me in the same stuff two Fridays in a row ;-)
Went thru two huge kitchen cabinets with my roommate- she was able to release things like graters, strainers, Tupperware missing tops or bottoms, party supplies like disposable plates and cutlery. Two bags donated, two recycled.
Also tidied my closet, bookshelf, sewing and art supplies, and memento scraps. (It was all rather minimal to begin with, e.g. had been already reduced to ~30 books now is ~25).
I've really become aware that the problem is "new" (read: castoffs -of which I am offered many and regularly!) stuff , I must be more discerning. Also, sometimes I don't take the minute to put my things away, and fr there it continues. Insideous.
So, a few flight stubs out, a hospital pillow, some art supplies, a couple blouses and PJ bottoms, etc., a few books, etc. All donated except stubs which were recycled.
Closet is organized again, jewelry making stuff, currency collection, books, fabrics and art/sewing supplies, makeup & toiletries .
Went thru two huge kitchen cabinets with my roommate- she was able to release things like graters, strainers, Tupperware missing tops or bottoms, party supplies like disposable plates and cutlery. Two bags donated, two recycled.
Also tidied my closet, bookshelf, sewing and art supplies, and memento scraps. (It was all rather minimal to begin with, e.g. had been already reduced to ~30 books now is ~25).
I've really become aware that the problem is "new" (read: castoffs -of which I am offered many and regularly!) stuff , I must be more discerning. Also, sometimes I don't take the minute to put my things away, and fr there it continues. Insideous.
So, a few flight stubs out, a hospital pillow, some art supplies, a couple blouses and PJ bottoms, etc., a few books, etc. All donated except stubs which were recycled.
Closet is organized again, jewelry making stuff, currency collection, books, fabrics and art/sewing supplies, makeup & toiletries .
I deal with the same thing, since my annual trip home usually means an annual closet purge for my very consumptive mother and sister. I get lots of hand-me-downs in excellent condition, but then I get home and think "Did I really need another floral t-shirt?"
One thing I learned this year from my foray into minimalism is that there are actually five "Rs" of being green--and the first one is "refuse"! (As in, I know this cheap-o plastic pen is free, but do I really need another cheap-o plastic pen?) This is not to say hand-me-downs and secondhand options aren't ever good--they absolutely are!--but to refuse means to think long and hard about whether or not the piece, free or not, belongs in our lives. It's a good way to approach decluttering too.
Do you have a one-in, one-out rule for places where you find clutter finding its way back into your life? I have found this incredibly helpful for clothing. (My mom, bless her heart, is currently on a one in, two out in order to rein in her closet.)
I also like that mantra to refuse first - has been slowly helping me to gain control.
Got rid of about 5 boxes of stuff recently. I have decided to eliminate some entire categories and that has really helped. We gave away an entire set of 18 books by the same author, and have not been tempted to buy the newest release by them. I used to have supplies for every craft known, but now I'm deciding on my favorite few and getting rid of the others in batches.
Items recently refused: about 75% of what was offered at a recent travel trade show (I did accept the reusable bag. Plus candy which only lasted me a few days) I am proud I did not bring home any new notebooks, pens, flyers, or memo pads.
Also refused a lot of functional, but not needed by me, stuff from my sister who was down-sizing for a move overseas. I said no to all the cleaning supplies, games, clothes, art supplies I knew I wouldn't use. I did take a box of alcohol, 2 items of clothing that have already seen use, and some blank canvases that have already been given to a friend holding a 'paint nite' this month.
I declutter the crap out of my kitchen today. Got rid of lots of old spices and other ingredients we won't use. The cabinets are so clean and spacious now.
Last week I tried the clothes rolling thing. I don't like the process but it is nice being able to see everything in the drawer. Got rid of enough stuff to fit my hamper in the closet so it doesn't have to be out in the room. Huge box of stuff overflowing ready to go to the thrift store.
I spent part of this week helping a girlfriend clear out her late mother's home. There were three different rooms that were so full of boxes and possessions that you couldn't enter them. I threw away multiple bags of junk mail, catalogs, return address stickers, freebie notepads, business cards and so forth. We didn't even tackle anything that wasn't pure trash, as apparently much of it can be sold in bulk at the estate sale.
Long story short, I don't want to die surrounded by piles of credit card statements from six years ago and clothing I haven't worn in 25 years and junk I don't even remember ordering.
As such, some recent declutter work:
* Packed a bag of weird geegaws for "art tray" at preschool
* Selected three cookbook/garden books to list on Amazon or otherwise release
* Packed a bag for Goodwill including Cuisinart blades, 3 insulated lunchboxes with off-putting logos, a checkbook cover, an extra grater and an extra bottle opener
* Packed up an ugly but ultrawarm blanket for the homeless guy who lives under our nearest freeway overpass
* Poured four expired medications into the worm bin and recycled the plastic containers
* Collected all remaining tampons (I've switched to a menstrual cup) and will drop off in the women's bathroom at the library next time I go
* Tossed out a jar of some unidentifiable, unlabeled spice.
* Recycled 10 or so empty glass jars that I was saving for no particular reason.
* Threw away three Very Special and Important Rocks we'd been saving.
* Tossed gelatin, pectin, coconut milk and condensed milk that has never been used and will presumably not be used in the foreseeable future.
* Composted some frozen food scraps I was saving for smoothies. Let's get through the superexpensive frozen wild blueberries before we start blending up leftover strawberry tops, mmmkay?
Working on:
* I have too many reusable bags. I think I need to release all those with logos (I have a set of 6 or 7 plain black hemp ones that more than suffice for all my grocery needs) but I haven't managed it yet. The ones from Whole Foods have shoulder straps and are organic cotton! Argh. I know better. I'm going to ask my mom if she wants to take them.
* I kept some blackstrap molasses that I think I've had for five years. Added a little to the overnight oatmeal I'm making. It has a lot of iron and nutrients so if I can choke it down in oatmeal I'll let it stay in the house until it's used up.
The struggle is real.
Working on:
* I have too many reusable bags. I think I need to release all those with logos (I have a set of 6 or 7 plain black hemp ones that more than suffice for all my grocery needs) but I haven't managed it yet. The ones from Whole Foods have shoulder straps and are organic cotton! Argh. I know better. I'm going to ask my mom if she wants to take them.
I am bringing in another batch of stuff to the consignment store today. I realized that I started to get rid of stuff in my closet about a year ago and managed to reduce the clothing by about half! I still have some items that could go. It's a big closet :-)
I'm slowly getting used to wearing my favorites more often. I have this irrational fear of wearing out my favorite items and not being able to find something I like to replace them. This causes me to "save" the things I like and wear things I don't really care for. By the time I get back to the favorites, they either don't fit any more or are out of style. Where is the logic in this???
So I'm trying to focus on wearing my favorites instead, and wearing them more often. Today, I have on a pair of shoes I adore and a cashmere cardigan that I like a lot. I wore them last Friday as well. When I was getting dressed this morning, I had anxious thoughts floating in my head of what I'm going to do when these things wear out and what will people at work think seeing me in the same stuff two Fridays in a row ;-)
I've had to fight this as well over the years (thanks, childhood brainwashing from parents). But, who knows, you could be hit by a bus tomorrow. Or what is your favourite today may no longer be your favourite next year, or your tastes change, or you change size or shape. Wear what you love now. Trust that you will find future favourite things later if needed. The only day that matters is today.
Just got Marie Condo's audiobook from the library, after waiting in line..
yesterday (before starting the book) I managed to donate to a youth shelter 2 items that have value but weren't good for me
I've had two buyers on ebay fail to pay recently. Annoying! One item I boxed and packed as soon as it was sold, so though I'm tempted to just donate it, I would have to unwrap it first, and it was glass so it's really well packed. I have relisted. The other I have done a second chance offer.
This never used to happen to me on ebay, but I've had it three times this year, and I've been selling less than before. Interesting trend that I hope does not continue.
I've noticed this unfortunate trend toward flakiness with eBay buyers for the past couple years. One thing you can do is go into your Seller Account and set buyer preferences to the strictest settings possible. In my case, I require buyers to have a PayPal account, and the minimum negative feedback and unpaid items. Also, I block any past deadbeat buyers from bidding on future items. I do think it has helped.
Freecycled a beautiful old oak dresser that wasn't pulling it's weight in my tiny house. Was a storage vessel but then I got rid of the contents! A lovely young woman moving in with her boyfriend collected it. The look of delight in her face to have secured something so lovely on her budget of zero made my day. Sure I could have sold it but then I wouldn't have the warm fuzzies. It's easy to forget in our abundance that there are others starting out who will really appreciate our lightly used hand me downs.
Thanks for the tips on reducing ebay time wasters, I'll change my settings.
What annoys me is that, as a buyer, when I click to buy it says, "you are entering a legally binding agreement" yada yada. I have NEVER backed out on buying something, even if I had buyers remorse immediately. And yet, despite this warning when you click to buy, ebay never makes a buyer go through with a purchase. If someone doesn't pay up... oh well.
I understand from their point of view they don't want to put people off buying through them by aggressively forcing people to pay for stuff they have decided they don't want. But if they're not going to enforce paying, they should at least have a 'Sorry, I changed my mind' button so that sellers know what's going on. As it is I'm sending payment reminders, and waiting for the day I resell something and the original 'buyer' comes back and says, 'But it was promised to me!'.
I feel your frustration, and have never backed out of a sale as a buyer either. I forgot to mention another tactic, which is maybe what you're referring to about payment reminders? If the buyer hasn't paid within 48 hours after the item has been purchased, I open an unpaid item case. It's easy, you just click on the item sold, select Resolve a Problem and Haven't Received Payment from Buyer. (Alternatively, when you list your item for sale, you can select to have an unpaid item case opened automatically if the buyer doesn't pay within 48 hours). In previous years that would've seemed pushy as a seller. Nowadays, not at all. It nudges the slow payers to pay sooner and it exposes the deadbeats sooner as well, so you can relist your item, and eBay will refund you for any fees.
Gave a bottle of hair product back to my hairdresser. I bought it from her several years ago and used it twice. $17 down the drain. :(
My 3 month report back on Konmaring my house - yes, it has pretty much stuck. I was thinking about going through my stuff again to declutter, but I don't have much I can think of. I also have done well for 3 months of implementing bedtime routines and morning routines to keep the house looking good. I've slacked some the last month because I had bronchitis and no energy, but I am back!
I am planning to take another swoop through my house this weekend to find some things I can donate to the refugees that will be arriving in my city soon.
I am planning to take another swoop through my house this weekend to find some things I can donate to the refugees that will be arriving in my city soon. So far I have a brand new set of measuring cups that I bought once because they were nice and colourful, but obviously didn't need because I have never even taken them out of the packaging. Also some random dishes and plastic containers and a brand new quilt that was an impulse buy. Makes me feel good to think that stuff that I have laying around my house not being used can be used by people that will arrive with absolutely nothing.
When I did my socks recently, I finally tossed all the singletons whose mate had been lost, including one of a pair of navy blue socks that I rather liked. So what does my husband find in his sock drawer yesterday? The other navy blue sock. Grr.
When I did my socks recently, I finally tossed all the singletons whose mate had been lost, including one of a pair of navy blue socks that I rather liked. So what does my husband find in his sock drawer yesterday? The other navy blue sock. Grr.
It socks to be you ;)
You know happens when all your socks are black? No more singletons. As soon as you can't find or fix whatever is missing/broken. Toss the one you can't fix and you can pair it with the one left over from last time you tossed something out.
Problem solved.
Capsule wardrobes are excellent.
You know happens when all your socks are black? No more singletons. As soon as you can't find or fix whatever is missing/broken. Toss the one you can't fix and you can pair it with the one left over from last time you tossed something out.
Problem solved.
Capsule wardrobes are excellent.
iowajes I find matching 'similar' socks much harder as well.There is (or was?) a sock store in Pittsburgh that sold sets of 3 color-coordinating patterned socks.
I bought 20 packs or whatever of identical socks, same day, same shop etc. They all aged differently! I know this sounds crazy, but it's true. So you end up with them feeling very different to wear, and therefore you want a pair in the same state of worn-ness (especially the elastic at the top. One tight, one loose is unbearable to me, but both of either is fine).
My friend bought me a pack of crazy coloured socks one birthday, and it made matching socks so much easier! Counter-intuitive, but that's my experience.
You know happens when all your socks are black? No more singletons. As soon as you can't find or fix whatever is missing/broken. Toss the one you can't fix and you can pair it with the one left over from last time you tossed something out.
Problem solved.
Gave a bottle of hair product back to my hairdresser. I bought it from her several years ago and used it twice. $17 down the drain. :(
I would have used it for something else like shaving my legs or using it as laundry detergent.:)
You know happens when all your socks are black? No more singletons. As soon as you can't find or fix whatever is missing/broken. Toss the one you can't fix and you can pair it with the one left over from last time you tossed something out.
Problem solved.
Capsule wardrobes are excellent.
Yes, but this precludes Hello Kitty socks. So far, the primary advantage I have discovered to having tenure is that I get to wear Hello Kitty socks to work anytime I want.
However, all of my husband's socks match exactly. Not only does this solve the problem with singletons, but it means there's no need to fold his socks, ever. Fortunately, he's not particularly fond of Hello Kitty.
You know happens when all your socks are black? No more singletons. As soon as you can't find or fix whatever is missing/broken. Toss the one you can't fix and you can pair it with the one left over from last time you tossed something out.
Problem solved.
Capsule wardrobes are excellent.
Bagged up a bunch of unfinished craft projects from the attic for donation. Am making peace with being a starter not a completer. Included a half made baby quilt for my nephew who just turned 9. Was ruthless culling my cookbooks as I'm living paleo these days and had a bunch of baking books. I wanted to get rid of all except my 3 favorites but hubby has been lobbying me to keep them for 'when a baking phase comes around.' My thinking is that these books (and lots of other things) are like bell bottoms from the 60's. Sure, flared pants have come back since but they're different and you not going to want to use the old ones because the new ones will be significantly different. So if I decide I love baking again I will buy the best baking cookbook of the day and enjoy that. Logical or wasteful? Anyone have thoughts? I just want to be free of all this stuff but he's worried I'm going to pass through the minimalist phase and need to go shopping to buy back the stuff we just got rid of. I disagree as I feel this process has fundamentally changed my relationship with stuff and shopping. Any conflicts like this in your home?
and had a bunch of baking books. I wanted to get rid of all except my 3 favorites but hubby has been lobbying me to keep them for 'when a baking phase comes around.' My thinking is that these books (and lots of other things) are like bell bottoms from the 60's. Sure, flared pants have come back since but they're different and you not going to want to use the old ones because the new ones will be significantly different. So if I decide I love baking again I will buy the best baking cookbook of the day and enjoy that. Logical or wasteful?
We actually just put together a pile of cookbooks to pass on as well. We are first going to scan all the recipes from the that we actually use. I'm never going to make certain recipes, I just have no interest in the flavour/texture/whatever of that dish, no matter how otherwise good the book is. I've kept two baking books, and the rest will go,because I never use them. Recipes do go in and out of style, so if you've picked what you need and saved it somewhere the rest isn't likely to be used and can happily find a new home :)and had a bunch of baking books. I wanted to get rid of all except my 3 favorites but hubby has been lobbying me to keep them for 'when a baking phase comes around.' My thinking is that these books (and lots of other things) are like bell bottoms from the 60's. Sure, flared pants have come back since but they're different and you not going to want to use the old ones because the new ones will be significantly different. So if I decide I love baking again I will buy the best baking cookbook of the day and enjoy that. Logical or wasteful?
If any of the family favourites are in those cookbooks, it would be a good thing to scan them somewhere, or put them into a binder. While you'll be able to find "a recipe" for cranberry scones, it may not be the right recipe for what you're trying to recapture (or it might not include the notes of things you've changed). I have some cookbooks I have been able to throw away with impunity, and a couple that I really wish I had thought to write down a few recipes first. (My thought at the time was that I made the item so often, and the ratio was so easy, of course I'd remember it - this turned out not to be the case - I just remember the justifications.)
Bagged up a bunch of unfinished craft projects from the attic for donation. Am making peace with being a starter not a completer. Included a half made baby quilt for my nephew who just turned 9. Was ruthless culling my cookbooks as I'm living paleo these days and had a bunch of baking books. I wanted to get rid of all except my 3 favorites but hubby has been lobbying me to keep them for 'when a baking phase comes around.' My thinking is that these books (and lots of other things) are like bell bottoms from the 60's. Sure, flared pants have come back since but they're different and you not going to want to use the old ones because the new ones will be significantly different. So if I decide I love baking again I will buy the best baking cookbook of the day and enjoy that. Logical or wasteful? Anyone have thoughts? I just want to be free of all this stuff but he's worried I'm going to pass through the minimalist phase and need to go shopping to buy back the stuff we just got rid of. I disagree as I feel this process has fundamentally changed my relationship with stuff and shopping. Any conflicts like this in your home?
My office is likely going to move by April and I have been slowly going through bookshelves, cabinets, empty desks, etc and thinning out all the STUFF. We have about twice as much space here as we need and so things just accumulate everywhere. There have been a handful of people that have quit in the last few years and their files basically just get shifted to an empty office or shelf. It makes me crazy.
I talked to my boss about it and his approach is just to move it all and deal with it later (i.e. never). I don't exactly take direction well, because I tossed his idea with about 4 bookshelves of garbage.
My office is likely going to move by April and I have been slowly going through bookshelves, cabinets, empty desks, etc and thinning out all the STUFF. We have about twice as much space here as we need and so things just accumulate everywhere. There have been a handful of people that have quit in the last few years and their files basically just get shifted to an empty office or shelf. It makes me crazy.
I talked to my boss about it and his approach is just to move it all and deal with it later (i.e. never). I don't exactly take direction well, because I tossed his idea with about 4 bookshelves of garbage.
I do the same thing around my office. I've been here almost the longest in my group so I know what's need and what's not. My boss is a notorious packrat ( you would all faint if i posted a pic of his office) and wants to keep everything so the key is to toss stuff in small batches. He never notices. Most of it is stuff that can easily be found online.
Threw out some semi broken hockey sticks. Not sure what I was thinking about when I didn't toss them as soon they could no longer be safely used.
At the guitar store they explained that given they have to do inventory at New Year (along with the legally required 18 day hold for resell), they're not taking anymore used stuff in right now. Suggested I Craigslist my bass and amp as plenty of people will be looking for Christmas gifts.I hit "share" on FB on a photo of me playing it, saying if anyone wants "the works" to get started with bass, here's a bass, an amp, cord, strap, tuner, and case. Posted a price, and within a couple hours, one of my husband's high school friends called dibs.
At the guitar store they explained that given they have to do inventory at New Year (along with the legally required 18 day hold for resell), they're not taking anymore used stuff in right now. Suggested I Craigslist my bass and amp as plenty of people will be looking for Christmas gifts.I hit "share" on FB on a photo of me playing it, saying if anyone wants "the works" to get started with bass, here's a bass, an amp, cord, strap, tuner, and case. Posted a price, and within a couple hours, one of my husband's high school friends called dibs.
Did a big sort of my photos. So many of people and places whose names I have now forgotten. Got a big box down to shoe box size. Will eventually scan them and get rid of physical copies but this was a good first step. Am hesitating getting rid of my academic records, perhaps I need to scan first? But is anyone really going to care that I got an A in geography when I was 15 (now 38)? Going through the personal and sentimental has not been as hard as I thought but I'm not the most sentimental person around.
Did a big sort of my photos. So many of people and places whose names I have now forgotten. Got a big box down to shoe box size. Will eventually scan them and get rid of physical copies but this was a good first step. Am hesitating getting rid of my academic records, perhaps I need to scan first? But is anyone really going to care that I got an A in geography when I was 15 (now 38)? Going through the personal and sentimental has not been as hard as I thought but I'm not the most sentimental person around.
Haha, no. No one cares. I've recently had to supply my college transcripts when applying for a job opportunity, and like Astatine says, keeping your high school diploma isn't a bad idea, but there's no need to keep any actual school work or individual report cards.
I really need to get on the family photos thing. Has anyone hired out scanning for that sort of thing? I can't see doing it with my home all-in-one since the quality isn't very for the amount of work it would take. I do have a fancier scanner coming back to live with me at work, so maybe I can come in on a day off over Christmas and get it done, but OTOH, I'm kind of inclined to have someone else do it for me.
I'm really running out of things I feel I can get rid of... But I don't feel as though I am happy with the stuff / space balance as it stands. I need to get more ruthless.
Been downsizing. The biggest recently ditched: "IKEA Hagalund" sofabed in the spare bedroom.
(http://comfort-works.com/234-137-large_default/hagalund-2-seater-sofa-bed.jpg)
Bought: September 2011. Used maybe "twice" by out of town guests.
Took up most of the second bedroom in my 700-square foot apartment.
(https://photos-2.dropbox.com/t/2/AAA8zwKiG0pRBTXWcDKHyrqLCcDTDucpf7h0cLU5ES8iMg/12/9262611/jpeg/32x32/1/_/1/2/CJ_apartment%2010.jpg/EIqi8wYY6q8EIAcoBw/_BfMg_s9c2_tWozsWK_p5V5DdEFxTC-iOhZlY6e46aE?size=800x600&size_mode=3)
(the desk and 90% of the other stuff is long gone)
I'll borrow an air mattress if any guests want to stay over. (otherwise: couch)
I've ditched half a dozen or so backpacks, sling bags, shoulder bags etc and so far replaced them with... one sling bag. (with MOLLE attachments for accessories) Working great so far.
Is that piece of furniture as massive as it looks!?
But, the one thing that neither of us anticipated is how it has changed our perspective. We now think MUCH more about what we bring into the house in the first place. If one of us is considering buying something, one of us will eventually say "how long before it winds up in the box?" It has really forced us to change our thinking and to look at things in a long term perspective.
...
We keep a box in the house that is destined for goodwill (or craigslist/ebay, etc). We each put one thing in the box every day...
...We now think MUCH more about what we bring into the house in the first place. If one of us is considering buying something, one of us will eventually say "how long before it winds up in the box?" It has really forced us to change our thinking and to look at things in a long term perspective...
I wrapped all our Christmas presents this weekend. I stuck with one roll of wrapping paper so that I could finish it, and I did! I still have another roll which is part used. Once that is used up (next year? How ridiculous storing it for YEARS) I will buy simple gold / red / silver paper which can be used year round. No more girls birthday paper, boys birthday paper, and two coordinating Christmas prints.
I also found myself not wanting to give gifts in a nice Christmas gift bag I got from someone else, because then I won't be able to use it another year. Huh, what? Use it! Get it out of the house. If I'm distraught next year that I won't have a pretty bag to use for the gifts, I can buy one. But I certainly won't keep this one to use, because if I'm refusing to use it now, when will I decide the time is right?
I have a tape dispenser on a piece of elastic that distributes one pre-cut length of tape at a time. It's really good, I like using it. But, I only use it once a year (it doesn't seem worth getting it out for a single gift, and this is the only time of year I wrap a bunch), so, when it ran out of tape, instead of adding one more specialised thing to my shopping list, I stuck it in the donate box and used my standard tape dispenser instead.
I tried to use up all my Christmas bows, and resolved not to replace them. I have plenty of real ribbon I save if I want to decorate gifts. If I don't care enough to tie that properly then I don't care enough about nicely decorated gifts to waste the worlds resources on shiny stick on bows (not criticising those who use them, it's just I don't care enough to put real effort into it, so it seems silly to bother at all).
Even though all my Christmas stuff (gift bags, labels, bows, ribbons) was all corralled in one larger gift bag, having that small corner free now feels great. Whatever doesn't get used on the last few gifts I will donate.
Your post really made me think. I am an experimenter. I love trying new things from condiments to hobbies to clothes styles. And I do move on but often the stuff stays. Knowing my tendency for short term infatuation I am trying to get over purchasing lots of stuff to support the latest thing and borrowing kr using other people's stuff (like at a night course). My home and attic are still full of things that I once loved but have moved on from and they need to go. I love that Raptitude article. I have read.it before but it really spoke to me this time. I have things that I don't love but keep because I need them. I was planning to just live with that but now see value in getting rid of those and replacing them with examples I do love (in a gradual and fiscally responsible way of course! )....
We keep a box in the house that is destined for goodwill (or craigslist/ebay, etc). We each put one thing in the box every day...
I love this idea! I'm going to start that tonight. (though I'm pretty minimalist already so I'm not sure how much stuff is going to hit the box)Quote...We now think MUCH more about what we bring into the house in the first place. If one of us is considering buying something, one of us will eventually say "how long before it winds up in the box?" It has really forced us to change our thinking and to look at things in a long term perspective...
Most definitely this. That was a big mindset shift for me.
"Every Thing You Own is a Relationship You’re In (http://www.raptitude.com/2015/08/konmari/)"
Tangentially related: a pedorthist (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedorthist) I know says a lot of "off the shelf" aftermarket insoles (Dr. Scholl's etc) amounted to "expensive experiments" - you buy them, find out they don't work for you, and you've got a $20 piece of junk laying around.
Alotfinite-non-zero-number of "things" like that still come into my life.
My shift in mindset: I ditch those things FAST instead of holding on to them.
I see a lot of people hang on to those "expensive experiments." (my parents' junk drawer and garage being good examples)
Your post really made me think. I am an experimenter. I love trying new things from condiments to hobbies to clothes styles. And I do move on but often the stuff stays. Knowing my tendency for short term infatuation I am trying to get over purchasing lots of stuff to support the latest thing and borrowing kr using other people's stuff (like at a night course). My home and attic are still full of things that I once loved but have moved on from and they need to go. I love that Raptitude article. I have read.it before but it really spoke to me this time. I have things that I don't love but keep because I need them. I was planning to just live with that but now see value in getting rid of those and replacing them with examples I do love (in a gradual and fiscally responsible way of course! )....
We keep a box in the house that is destined for goodwill (or craigslist/ebay, etc). We each put one thing in the box every day...
I love this idea! I'm going to start that tonight. (though I'm pretty minimalist already so I'm not sure how much stuff is going to hit the box)Quote...We now think MUCH more about what we bring into the house in the first place. If one of us is considering buying something, one of us will eventually say "how long before it winds up in the box?" It has really forced us to change our thinking and to look at things in a long term perspective...
Most definitely this. That was a big mindset shift for me.
"Every Thing You Own is a Relationship You’re In (http://www.raptitude.com/2015/08/konmari/)"
Tangentially related: a pedorthist (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedorthist) I know says a lot of "off the shelf" aftermarket insoles (Dr. Scholl's etc) amounted to "expensive experiments" - you buy them, find out they don't work for you, and you've got a $20 piece of junk laying around.
Alotfinite-non-zero-number of "things" like that still come into my life.
My shift in mindset: I ditch those things FAST instead of holding on to them.
I see a lot of people hang on to those "expensive experiments." (my parents' junk drawer and garage being good examples)
Got rid of loads more craft supplies. I've realised I love trying new things, and once I've mastered them to an acceptable (to me) degree, I'm ready to move on to new things. This isn't a failing, it just is. I'm going to focus on the fact it makes me a renaissance woman, rather than flaky. I can let go of the old supplies knowing someone else will enjoy them.
Tackling these last few 'hard to let go of' items seems to be making a huge impact on how my house feels. It's similar to the first few months of the year when I saw a marked difference day to day. These items were things that I couldn't let go of, but always seemed out of place where I kept them (probably because I knew I wasn't going to use them again, so I was keeping tucked in corners in inaccessible places).
I'm slightly behind target on getting rid of 2015 in 2015, but confident that with a big push at the end of the year I can do it. I still can barely remember a single thing I've donated.
Also, I have four huge bags for charity in my car, but finding a time to drop them off when the charity shops are open and I don't have to go out of my way is proving harder than clearing out junk! May try to batch a few errands and get it done today.
Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Last night I reached my goal of decluttering 2 things per day for 2015! I was struggling a bit at the end, but discovered a drawer full of trinkets and crap that I hadn't gone through yet which put me well over the top. I still need to work on paperwork decluttering and photos, but that may be next year's project. :)
Last night I reached my goal of decluttering 2 things per day for 2015! I was struggling a bit at the end, but discovered a drawer full of trinkets and crap that I hadn't gone through yet which put me well over the top. I still need to work on paperwork decluttering and photos, but that may be next year's project. :)
Nice! Slow and steady :)
My wife scanned or shredded 90% of our paper files the other weekend- took her probably 4 hours. The few things we need to keep in paper format (like the deed to our house) fit in a small box. (Photos we haven't touched yet.)
I decluttered 300 emails and 5 regular sources of emails. Down to less than 500 in my normal inbox! Note for my other 3 email addresses (professional, blog and work).Got rid of another 150, down to 350. Yay! I might actually start having time to read then soon :P
Just sold a good chunk of things in the storage unit. Not only am I saving >$200/month, I made $70. Boo yah. Also made some new friends.
Took our jar of coins in to the coinstar machine at the credit union and replaced it with $33 in cash. This is the first money I've made from decluttering, so I'm quite excited. (OK, I didn't actually *make* money, but I converted a pile of metal into liquid cash that takes up much less space. )These sound very satisfying.
Ah, just made a goodwill run. Got rid of one chair, one small bookshelf, an old vacuum cleaner, two giant boxes of books, and two bar stools.
Now, I only need to get rid of a kitchen table, a huge nice entertainment center that I don't want (solid oak and well constructed), a corner desk (that I totally forgot about), and a bigger bookshelf. Once those are gone, my stupid storage unit will be empty. If only I had a fire pit...it is all mostly made of wood, and I could just burn it.
Ah, just made a goodwill run. Got rid of one chair, one small bookshelf, an old vacuum cleaner, two giant boxes of books, and two bar stools.
Now, I only need to get rid of a kitchen table, a huge nice entertainment center that I don't want (solid oak and well constructed), a corner desk (that I totally forgot about), and a bigger bookshelf. Once those are gone, my stupid storage unit will be empty. If only I had a fire pit...it is all mostly made of wood, and I could just burn it.
Those old oak entertainment centers make great raised garden beds. Just flip on the side and fill with dirt.
Good idea, Londoner38. I take my change torhe local fruit and vegetable market so it never seems to accumulate. It seems disrespectful of money to leave it in a box idle and I know our reserve bank has in the past appealed for us to cash in our coins to prevent them having to make more -seems everyone is stashing coins.
I've been working on decluttering my computer CDs. It turns out I have installation CDs for computers I haven't had in many years and software CDs that don't even run on my current computer.
I just wore the only suitable thing, and because I'd been ruthless, it was something I liked. A shallow and ridiculous revelation, but it did blow my mind, just a tiny bit.
About a year ago, I started dealing with the mountain of toiletries that I owned- stuff that I'd bought, stuff from hotels and stuff I'd been given. Its taken a full year to use most of it.
I think I am down to 10-15% of what I had!
About a year ago, I started dealing with the mountain of toiletries that I owned- stuff that I'd bought, stuff from hotels and stuff I'd been given. Its taken a full year to use most of it.
I think I am down to 10-15% of what I had!
I've started to do this just recently. I can't wait to have it all cleared out. Its tempting to just toss it, but I love to use things up even more. I will probably take a moment and just combine all the like products into larger bottles.
[...] For some reason I have way too many bandaids, but I'm not willing to increase my injury rate in order to use them up.
[...]
Quote
I did that too- consolidate and conquer! Almost through most of it. For some reason I have way too many bandaids, but I'm not willing to increase my injury rate in order to use them up.
Hah, yes I also have more Bandaids than any person could expect to use in a lifetime! But they don't have an expiry date so in 20 years, maybe we will be ready to buy a new box!
About a year ago, I started dealing with the mountain of toiletries that I owned- stuff that I'd bought, stuff from hotels and stuff I'd been given. Its taken a full year to use most of it.
I think I am down to 10-15% of what I had!
That's not shallow or ridiculous. It's the magic of tidying up. When you like everything you have, and you don't have stuff that bothers you, getting dressed becomes something you don't have to worry about any more. So far, I've only thoroughly tidied my socks and underwear, but even there, knowing that everything in the drawer works and fits is genuinely gratifying. It's amazing how much energy we (well, some of us) expend dealing with clothing-baggage, and how freeing it feels to discard even a little.
So much this. I have about a third to a quarter of the clothes I used to have but also have zero "don't have anything to wear" syndrome. Basically, I like everything that's in my closet so in the morning I just reach for a shirt and a pair of trousers, scarf, necklace, and I'm done. Zero thinking about what to wear and zero anxiety. Plus, I've basically stopped shopping for clothes because I like everything I have. So liberating.
I like everything that's in my closet so in the morning I just reach for a shirt and a pair of trousers, scarf, necklace, and I'm done. Zero thinking about what to wear and zero anxiety.
I like everything that's in my closet so in the morning I just reach for a shirt and a pair of trousers, scarf, necklace, and I'm done. Zero thinking about what to wear and zero anxiety.
Exactly the same with me.:)
Not counting Wait But Why research, I read about five books a year, so even though it feels like I’ll read an endless number of books in the future, I actually have to choose only 300 of all the books out there to read and accept that I’ll sign off for eternity without knowing what goes on in all the rest.
I came across this Wait But Why post (http://waitbutwhy.com/2015/12/the-tail-end.html) recently (it's a great post), and I was struck by how accurate it was. I'd previously printed out the Life in Weeks chart (http://waitbutwhy.com/2014/05/life-weeks.html) and tracked my life so far, but I hadn't thought about the time that I have left.I have smashed through 4 novels on this vacation already!!! (Less than 10 days in)... And it's been an active vacation with lots of hiking, driving etc, and only an overnight flight (I will typically read over half a novel on a four hour flight) so I never feel bad about leaving something unfinished (as it's pretty rare, when you read this quickly you don't tend to loos interest). You have made the right choice not to waste time on books you don't like, although I really hope you can read more than 600 books in your life time, because there are so many great ones :-)QuoteNot counting Wait But Why research, I read about five books a year, so even though it feels like I’ll read an endless number of books in the future, I actually have to choose only 300 of all the books out there to read and accept that I’ll sign off for eternity without knowing what goes on in all the rest.
I read about 10 books a year, which gives me about 600 books for the rest of my life, although FIRE will boost that number greatly. It definitely puts things into perspective when you have a concrete number. I used to finish reading every single book that I'd started even if I lost interest or didn't like it; I really hated leaving things unfinished (sunk cost fallacy). But as I got older, I realized the time spent slogging through a terrible book could have been better spent doing something else instead. Similarly, I find myself being more and more willing to let go of things (donating old clothes, useless trinkets that were presents from family and friends, etc) as I learn what's important to me.
And on that note, I reorganized the ebooks on my Kindle. It had gotten to the point where I had >30 unread books, and when I turned on my Kindle, I'll get analysis paralysis trying to decide which one I should read first. Now I'm down to 10 books, ordered in a to-read priority list, hopefully I'll get through a few of them during all the holiday traveling.
Finally got rid of a nice chunk of my stuff at my parents' house today.
Lots more to do though...
So I showed the minimalist youtube video to Mr. Meowstache and we talked about how calm and lovely the home tour was. That inspired us to go through lots of our joint stuff and a bit of our individual stuff. I am SHOCKED! My living room is full of piles and piles of stuff and I feel so disgusted that we ever had that in the first place. And this is AFTER We did a massive purge last year.
I have some things that I could sell, but it is so overwhelming I'm donating most items. Madness!
Time to wake DH up so we can go through our clothes :) love the holidays...We got rid of about 25% of his clothes and 10% of mine. He's back at work now, so I'm sorting through things for his approval in the evenings :)
So I finally got rid of my storage unit just before xmas (which I may have mentioned). Found uses or a home for damn near everything, but still wound up with two giant boxes filled with paperwork that must be destroyed. So I borrowed my little brother's fire pit yesterday, and we're going to have a fun little bonfire to get rid of it all!! And before you ask, I did sort through to make sure it's just paper good for burning. No plastic or any of that noxious crap (my neighbor burns enough of that).
So I finally got rid of my storage unit just before xmas (which I may have mentioned). Found uses or a home for damn near everything, but still wound up with two giant boxes filled with paperwork that must be destroyed. So I borrowed my little brother's fire pit yesterday, and we're going to have a fun little bonfire to get rid of it all!! And before you ask, I did sort through to make sure it's just paper good for burning. No plastic or any of that noxious crap (my neighbor burns enough of that).
Congratulations! What an awesome way to begin the New Year!
Getting rid of a storage unit is almost as great as compounding interest. Nice job!
Congratulations! What an awesome way to begin the New Year!Getting rid of a storage unit is almost as great as compounding interest. Nice job!
Thank you both. In my journal, I broke down the 'savings' of not having it. It was ridiculous. $207/month saved.
So I finally got rid of my storage unit just before xmas
So, my final update for 2015 in 2015... did I manage to get rid of 2015 things? Kinda...
I was about 150 items short by Christmas. My husband asked how I was going and I said I didn't think I was going to make it. I'd fallen behind since November, so even with a ruthless push in December I was coming up short, and I really had pared down so much I didn't think I could find enough stuff.
Well, how cute is this, he said, "If I go through my box of electrical cables, I bet I could find you close to that number". I have hated this tangled mess for years, and used to mention it periodically as a source of annoyance for me. Once I woke up to myself at the beginning of 2015, and decided to get my own metaphorical house in order first, I never mentioned it (or anything else I thought my husband could stand to get rid of), again.
Through the year he's shown more and more interest, every so often volunteering and item and telling me I can check it off my list, but I was really touched that he was prepared to go through the dreaded box just so I'd make my goal :)
That said, we kept meaning to go through it together, and we totally forgot until 1st January! So on New Year's Day, we went through the box, got rid of loads of things, and were about 18 items short of my 2015 goal. We went through the house finding an odd pen we could take to work, a leftover Christmas bow we could bin and so on, until we made it!
So I did get rid of 2015, but technically it wasn't all in 2015. I'm calling it a win though!
Thanks so much for all the support through the year. I'm not stopping now, I'm sure as time goes on I'll find more stuff, but it feels odd not to 'count' (yes, I went through the Christmas gifts ruthlessly already). For the time being I'm 'done' but I know full well I haven't reached Marie Kondo's state of happiness with the number of items I own. Good luck everyone for a less cluttery 2016!
Wow, that is an awesome accomplishment. CONGRATS:)
I just started a 90 day challenge to deal with the house and two sheds - if I don't focus on a deadline, 2016 will be over without any progress. I made good progress in 2015, but I'm ready for the finish line.
I donated a carload of stuff to Goodwill, sold some unnecessary furniture and other stuff on Craigslist for over $450, and gave away some old veterinary prescriptions on Buy Nothing. I've got a couple of drawers in my bedroom left to edit (and don't get me started on the storage shed!), but otherwise I am feeling CLEAN. It is so liberating to know exactly what I own, where it is, and that I use or otherwise value all of it. :)
Donated magazines to the VA home this morning. (Someone, we don't know who, has gifted magazine subscriptions to DH for several years now. Each year it's a different magazine. Last year it was Men's Health. The year prior it was Maxim. This year it's ESPN and GQ.) If you knew my DH, you'd know how very un-sporty and GQ he is. Yet, he won't call the magazine to ask who is sending them, LOL.
Donated magazines to the VA home this morning. (Someone, we don't know who, has gifted magazine subscriptions to DH for several years now. Each year it's a different magazine. Last year it was Men's Health. The year prior it was Maxim. This year it's ESPN and GQ.) If you knew my DH, you'd know how very un-sporty and GQ he is. Yet, he won't call the magazine to ask who is sending them, LOL.
New goal once I catch FIRE: Pick some random person, and then subscribe magazines for them. It should be fun. Every now and then, I'll find their weakest spot, and find a corresponding magazine. Oh yes.
Donated magazines to the VA home this morning. (Someone, we don't know who, has gifted magazine subscriptions to DH for several years now. Each year it's a different magazine. Last year it was Men's Health. The year prior it was Maxim. This year it's ESPN and GQ.) If you knew my DH, you'd know how very un-sporty and GQ he is. Yet, he won't call the magazine to ask who is sending them, LOL.
New goal once I catch FIRE: Pick some random person, and then subscribe magazines for them. It should be fun. Every now and then, I'll find their weakest spot, and find a corresponding magazine. Oh yes.
LOL! Put that on the bucket list. Must be something in the Colorado air. ;)
Donated magazines to the VA home this morning. (Someone, we don't know who, has gifted magazine subscriptions to DH for several years now. Each year it's a different magazine. Last year it was Men's Health. The year prior it was Maxim. This year it's ESPN and GQ.) If you knew my DH, you'd know how very un-sporty and GQ he is. Yet, he won't call the magazine to ask who is sending them, LOL.
New goal once I catch FIRE: Pick some random person, and then subscribe magazines for them. It should be fun. Every now and then, I'll find their weakest spot, and find a corresponding magazine. Oh yes.
LOL! Put that on the bucket list. Must be something in the Colorado air. ;)
It certainly isn't oxygen. :)
Maybe I should prioritize decluttering my bicycles and bike parts first. Those are a LOT harder to part with, but they take a lot more space.Spent some time on those yesterday.... man, most of that stuff is OLD! Many items haven't been used in a decade.
Spent 20 minutes on hold with the newspaper; but if that means the delivery of the free paper stops, it was totally worth it.
I shouldn't have to pick up a paper and put it in my recycling bin once a week. It doesn't even have coupons!
Posted several items on Craigslist today - bike, juicer, espresso machine, ski helmet and aquarium. Hopefully at least one will sell this weekend!Nice!
No. That's why I haven't done it. I'm not sure on all the recycling places that'll take the stuff either.My issue is that I'm a bit uncomfortable with putting functional stuff in the trash, but most of it isn't worth selling (or may only get a few bucks if anything).
I'm keen to do a declutter though.
Alternatively there's stuff that'd take a long time to find a buyer (hifi kit).
Any tips? Thanks :)
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When you say trashing functional stuff, you mean recycling or donating whenever possible right?
Especially if it's items that are only a couple of dollars new and aren't really what you'd donate (like TV/phone cables and packets of envelopes and the like), or outdated tech accessories (I've got about four or five external hard drives).
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All the Goodwill stores in my area accept just about anything- including outdated tech stuff/appliances, chords, envelopes.
I've decided on a slightly different method for my decluttering this time. I used to go through the tubs of stuff and drawers and throw out what I didn't want. Now I've decided to go through everything and put aside what I do want to keep. I might be able to fill a shoebox with what I do want to keep.
I have a small bedroom that was absolutely CLOGGED by a humongous dresser and night table, plus tons of clothes, many of which it doesn't occur to me to wear. Yesterday was the Decluttering Jihad. Out went the dresser (with some difficulty, but it's out) and the night table. I cleaned out my minuscule closet--I can see the floor now!--made several large bags of clothes and shoes destined for Goodwill, and got my husband and our unofficial handyman to move my platform bed so I could easily access the storage baskets on the far side. With the exception of a few work blouses that need to be hung up, everything I wear or otherwise own can fit easily into one of the six large baskets in the bed. We had a small table in the living room once used to hold electronics we no longer have, and I've turned that into my night table. In the space freed up by the dresser we moved in a very comfortable wing chair and a small antique table inherited from my father-in-law. With a floor lamp and an ottoman, this will be a cozy reading nook/work space. I'm also storing my clothes in the vertical KonMari method, which saves even more room. I'm not totally done--I have to go through my staggering number of t-shirts--but it's amazing how open and airy my room is now.
http://www.ergodyne.com/products/pages/default.aspx?PCA=89&PRD=162
After getting rid of almost everything we owned in July and hitting the road, my husband and I have landed in a place that we love and that we can afford, and we want to stay a while.
So we are re-crapulating, I guess. We've been sitting on the floor for the last 2 weeks and have an IKEA order arriving tomorrow with a bed, dining table, small sofa bed, etc.
It's a weird place to be in, after just having gotten rid of so much! But we're trying to be thoughtful about it, and only buy stuff that we really need for the running of the household. I have found after staying in many Airbnbs that I tend to like a place more, the less crap there is in it. Trying to remember this and be thoughtful about what we purchase now.
The silver lining is that you can be selective about what you add to your lives, instead of looking at a pile of stuff and wondering what to get rid of.After getting rid of almost everything we owned in July and hitting the road, my husband and I have landed in a place that we love and that we can afford, and we want to stay a while.
So we are re-crapulating, I guess. We've been sitting on the floor for the last 2 weeks and have an IKEA order arriving tomorrow with a bed, dining table, small sofa bed, etc.
It's a weird place to be in, after just having gotten rid of so much! But we're trying to be thoughtful about it, and only buy stuff that we really need for the running of the household. I have found after staying in many Airbnbs that I tend to like a place more, the less crap there is in it. Trying to remember this and be thoughtful about what we purchase now.
Face punches welcome and deserved
Husband, unfortunately, took a few things out of a box. I had a couple of Dave Ramsey books in there, as well as the Financial Peace DVD's. We both read the book ages ago (like, early 2012), and started watching the DVD's but didn't finish them. Now he wants to re-read the book (unlikely), and watch the DVD's (even more unlikely, since we didn't get through them the first time). These things have literally been sitting untouched for nearly 4 years. And the library has the book if he REALLY wanted it. I pointed this out but he doesn't listen to me. He also is insisting on keeping 2 huge computer towers that have been sitting in a closet for as long as the Dave Ramsey stuff has. He says he's going to build a computer one of these days. He also denies telling me that I could go ahead and toss them. They're ancient; even if he did build something (again, very unlikely), he'd probably end up wanting to upgrade. I told him fine, keep them for now, but I'm not moving them again. We've moved them twice now and they haven't been used. We are probably buying a house next year, and none of that crap is coming with us unless it's actually being used. He agreed. We'll see.
Lesson learned: don't let husband see what you've packed for goodwill.
Confession time! I've been slowly cleaning out the storage room downstairs and correcting some un-mustachian accumulation of crap.
Fishing rods: I knew I had a way too many fishing rods, Wife and I got a couple of small collapsible rods for lake fishing, I got a couple cheap ones thrown in when I bought a used aluminum boat a few years ago. I've also bought a few at garage sales when I saw a deal, had a couple damaged rods laying around and just got 2 brand new ones as a gift for Christmas. So I thought I might have 7 or 8, which is obviously already 5 or 6 too many. Turns out I had 17 total! What the actual F@&k! How did this happen? Anyway, I will be selling or throwing out all but the new ones and maybe keep one good used backup rod. Also selling the boat in spring.
Swiss Army Knives: Kind of the same story, just found a 7th one downstairs. I bought one years ago, got one as a gift, and most of the rest I bought at garage sales or got for free. How do you not buy a genuine Victorinox knife when you see it for a $1? Anyway got to start selling the extra ones and make a profit instead of just throwing them in a drawer.
Tools: Same goes here, for some reason I've got 2 stud finders, more than 6 hammers, countless redundant screwdrivers, wrenches etc. I've only got 2 hands and I'm not a contractor, so what the hell, time to thin out the tools too
Face punches welcome and deserved
Husband, unfortunately, took a few things out of a box. I had a couple of Dave Ramsey books in there, as well as the Financial Peace DVD's. We both read the book ages ago (like, early 2012), and started watching the DVD's but didn't finish them. Now he wants to re-read the book (unlikely), and watch the DVD's (even more unlikely, since we didn't get through them the first time). These things have literally been sitting untouched for nearly 4 years. And the library has the book if he REALLY wanted it. I pointed this out but he doesn't listen to me. He also is insisting on keeping 2 huge computer towers that have been sitting in a closet for as long as the Dave Ramsey stuff has. He says he's going to build a computer one of these days. He also denies telling me that I could go ahead and toss them. They're ancient; even if he did build something (again, very unlikely), he'd probably end up wanting to upgrade. I told him fine, keep them for now, but I'm not moving them again. We've moved them twice now and they haven't been used. We are probably buying a house next year, and none of that crap is coming with us unless it's actually being used. He agreed. We'll see.
Lesson learned: don't let husband see what you've packed for goodwill.
Now that I am working part time, I want to go back to making and selling fine art. We had moved most of my art supplies to our cabin in the back yard, but DH ran over the pipe with the key with his lawnmower and broke it, so the water doesn't work, and we don't want to pay to heat the cabin all winter. We moved most of my stuff back to the house. We put my drafting table in a corner of a small room upstairs and I cleared some shelf space for my pastels and a few other supplies. I set up my mat cutter with table and art scanner with its computer and table in the basement. The flat file is in the basement. My main work will be oil painting, and the easel will have to go in the living room. We've cleared out a ton of crap to be able to set these things up so far, but now comes the hardest part: where to store the artwork. I need to make or buy a rack for paintings, etc., and it will have to go in the basement where there is currently a huge pile of old paint cans and supplies, ancient camping gear, tools and other assorted stuff and junk. DH says he's too busy with taxes to help with the sorting and cleanout, although I know he will be supportive about taking stuff to the dump.
Just writing it down now, the whole plan sounds crazy anyway. Is the gallery owner really going to visit my yucky rough basement to view my work? Sometimes we get water in the basement, too. I must be out of my mind! But, I don't see any other options, so, wish me luck. The big cleanout starts today.
I've tended to photograph my work (and include all pertinent information, such as dimensions etc) and brought this in to a gallery or wherever we are meeting. But must be its different depending on where u live or the galleries themselves?
Either way, its wonderful you've decided to get to more into your art & showing . it seems you are really getting creative (ha) with placement! Excellent use of space.
Cheers
Taking photographs is a wonderful idea! Thank you, riverffashion. I am lucky you were reading this thread. I could bring a few canvases in a series to a meeting with the gallery rep and have photos of the rest of the series handy, in case he likes them.
I cleaned out enough junk today to fill up the back of our pickup truck. We also remembered another shelving unit we can move to the basement, so I don't think we will need to purchase another storage unit after all. What a relief that is... it is so much work getting rid of things, as others have mentioned, it makes us less eager to bring more stuff onto the property.
I'm on a roll. I shredded some more old paperwork, put a jacket in the charity shop bag and thrown away a broken dog toy this morning.(http://blog.megankeane.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/onaroll.jpeg) (http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/off-topic/grammar-nazi/)
I've tended to photograph my work (and include all pertinent information, such as dimensions etc) and brought this in to a gallery or wherever we are meeting. But must be its different depending on where u live or the galleries themselves?
Either way, its wonderful you've decided to get to more into your art & showing . it seems you are really getting creative (ha) with placement! Excellent use of space.
Cheers
Taking photographs is a wonderful idea! Thank you, riverffashion. I am lucky you were reading this thread. I could bring a few canvases in a series to a meeting with the gallery rep and have photos of the rest of the series handy, in case he likes them.
I cleaned out enough junk today to fill up the back of our pickup truck. We also remembered another shelving unit we can move to the basement, so I don't think we will need to purchase another storage unit after all. What a relief that is... it is so much work getting rid of things, as others have mentioned, it makes us less eager to bring more stuff onto the property.
Great, glad to hear this might work for you.
Also nice work with the shelving unit! Money & space saved!
Every time I think we're done decluttering, I find there's another layer to peel back.
(http://blog.megankeane.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/onaroll.jpeg) (http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/off-topic/grammar-nazi/)
...Having a large walk in closet really skews my perspective on what is an acceptable (necessary?) amount of clothes. I have a tendency to try and fill the void. I also hold on to things even if I don't wear them, just because I have the room for them. Any suggestions on how to deal with it and how to change my attitude? I did sign up for the 2016 "no clothes shopping" challenge.
...Having a large walk in closet really skews my perspective on what is an acceptable (necessary?) amount of clothes. I have a tendency to try and fill the void. I also hold on to things even if I don't wear them, just because I have the room for them. Any suggestions on how to deal with it and how to change my attitude? I did sign up for the 2016 "no clothes shopping" challenge.
My antidote is Sterilite containers, and using (part of) my closet as storage (http://i.imgur.com/mmRFBsG.jpg) for things like car detailing supplies, steam cleaner etc.
My basement storage is almost empty now except for winter tires.
You may find you don't need as big a space if you start pulling stuff in like that.
How about a storage bench in the closet that doubles as a place to sit to put clothes on? Maybe store sporting equipment in it. Then it's not just "a big empty closet;" you can have open areas that serve a purpose.
Having a large walk in closet really skews my perspective on what is an acceptable (necessary?) amount of clothes. I have a tendency to try and fill the void. I also hold on to things even if I don't wear them, just because I have the room for them. Any suggestions on how to deal with it and how to change my attitude? I did sign up for the 2016 "no clothes shopping" challenge.
This morning my husband took the bag of stuff to donate to the charity shop near his work. Yay.
(http://blog.megankeane.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/onaroll.jpeg) (http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/off-topic/grammar-nazi/)
Lol, after I posted I actually thought what on earth does that expression mean.
Having a large walk in closet really skews my perspective on what is an acceptable (necessary?) amount of clothes. I have a tendency to try and fill the void. I also hold on to things even if I don't wear them, just because I have the room for them. Any suggestions on how to deal with it and how to change my attitude? I did sign up for the 2016 "no clothes shopping" challenge.
I actually turned a small closet into a reading nook. I still have my shoes stored in there, and a purse holding extra wallets hung as decoration on the wall. It's really cozy and cute. IDK if your walk-in might be useful for something similar, but it's a thought. Or you might be able to bring in a dresser or other piece of furniture and a mirror and make it into a nice dressing space? Anything to make it seem less like a hole that ought to be stuffed to the brim with clothing.
Wife and I emptied out the cup/mug/glasses storage cabinet which had overflowed. Packed at least half of it away, and dutifully put it in the van to go to Goodwill.That right there is the story of my life.
A month later, she says "I'm just gonna throw them away, tired of them being in the back of the van."
I'm thinking, on a roll like when a snowball or something travels down a hill and momentum bulilds up.
Future Hub is finally willing to give up his giant ancient and yellowed comforter. He almost renegedftfyreniggedsaying he might need it that night - but I assured him we have two others, plus another two packed away. It's in my car where he can't get at it.
So I think this would be a good thread for me. I don't actually have that much stuff as I live in a small apartment, but I still have more than I need. I am also a bit of a hoarder. I have clothes that are getting seriously worn out which I still wear and can't bring myself to throw away. I also always seem to have snail mail that seems vaguely important so I don't throw it away and eventually it builds up. And forgotten pantry items that I should use up. And a bunch of other things.
If you're anything like me please join me in getting rid of your stuff. Whether this means throwing them out, donating them, giving them to friends/family, eating them, or selling them.
If you have any tips on how to deal with the my-clothes-have-holes-but-are-so-comfy or I-may-need-this-someday syndrome, please share. And also let me know when there are cases where I-may-need-this syndrome actually makes sense, so I can identify what things I should actually keep and what I should throw.
My progress so far:
I recently managed to find some clothes that I donated to a charity bin.
And today I put up an ad on an online board to sell off a kitchen appliance that I don't use. Hopefully I'll get a buyer.
I'm going to try to find more things I can get rid of. I may actually be moving out of my place within a year or so, which provides extra incentive.
Feel free to join me!
I seem to always keep a bag in the entry way to fill with random bits to donate. I'm looking forward to the day when I don't have this.
Or does that day never come?
I am constantly selling old junk laying around on offerup.com and i throw 100% of it on my 3 year mortgage !
Future Hub is finally willing to give up his giant ancient and yellowed comforter. He almost renegedftfyreniggedsaying he might need it that night - but I assured him we have two others, plus another two packed away. It's in my car where he can't get at it.
fixed that for you
I seem to always keep a bag in the entry way to fill with random bits to donate. I'm looking forward to the day when I don't have this.For me it hasn't arrived yet, just because I'm now SO picky about what I let into the house. So though I don't buy things, and I try not to accept freebies wherever possible, gifts are my personal bugbear.
Or does that day never come?
I seem to always keep a bag in the entry way to fill with random bits to donate. I'm looking forward to the day when I don't have this.For me it hasn't arrived yet, just because I'm now SO picky about what I let into the house. So though I don't buy things, and I try not to accept freebies wherever possible, gifts are my personal bugbear.
Or does that day never come?
We enjoy entertaining, and unless it's wine, sorry, I'm going to donate it. Christmas, birthdays, people just visiting for drinks and bringing a pot holder, a cute coffee mug etc. Sorry, none of it is coming in.
So unless I start refusing well-intentioned gifts (can't see that happening) I think I'll always have the 'donate' box ready and waiting. The difference is that I'm not 'finding' things to go in it from around the house, they are being given to me, and I won't let them 'into the house' in the first place.
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
Thanks for the insight! I haven't thought about the random things people give you.
I also tried having the "no gifts" conversation with my mom and I kinda rambled a lot. Who knows how well that went. Maybe I should try sticking to having very specific gift requests instead of absolutely nothing? Thoughts?
I am going to drop off another small batch of stuff at the consignment store at lunchtime today. Hopefully, I have some money in the account so that I can pick up a check from them :-) Done - got a check for $80
Tossed some random old unused greeting cards into recycling this morning.
Plan of attack for this week:
- go through hats and scarves - I have way too many...
- do another sweep through the kitchen cupboards
- go through my knitting supplies, books and yarns and consolidate into two plastic bins
- find room for said bins in the walk in closet
- sort through skiing clothing (there are things there that I'm sure don't fit me any more... and it is another bin that needs to go upstairs)
- organize condo documents - toss anything not needed
- sort through CDs (a good number of them need to go back to my ex) - I'm hoping to reduce the number of CDs I have by half
That should keep me busy enough through the weekend :-)
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
this weekend we're getting rid of the bookshelves (putting them in the storage unit to be precise).
Getting rid of furniture feels good! It only cost $10 on CL in the first place and has served us well.
I am going to drop off another small batch of stuff at the consignment store at lunchtime today. Hopefully, I have some money in the account so that I can pick up a check from them :-) Done - got a check for $80
Tossed some random old unused greeting cards into recycling this morning.
Plan of attack for this week:
- go through hats and scarves - I have way too many...
- do another sweep through the kitchen cupboards Made a half-hearted attempt at this - tossed one plastic container into recycling... Need to do more.
- go through my knitting supplies, books and yarns and consolidate into two plastic bins
- find room for said bins in the walk in closet
- sort through skiing clothing (there are things there that I'm sure don't fit me any more... and it is another bin that needs to go upstairs)
- organize condo documents - toss anything not needed Done. Also went through two drawers that hold office things, stationery, etc. and tossed a bunch of stuff. Made room for the [now organized] condo documents.
- sort through CDs (a good number of them need to go back to my ex) - I'm hoping to reduce the number of CDs I have by half
That should keep me busy enough through the weekend :-)
What do I do with the following??
- photo printing paper
- old but still working iPod player/speakers (does not support an iPhone)
- old but still working small humidifier (needs a new wick - not even sure if they are still made)
Also, can old batteries be tossed into regular garbage or are they considered hazardous waste?
Also, can old batteries be tossed into regular garbage or are they considered hazardous waste?
Old batteries are hazardous waste. Your local electronics store might have a program.
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
I would suggest martial arts or knife fighting. That way, when she tries to kill you, you can hold your own.
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
I would suggest martial arts or knife fighting. That way, when she tries to kill you, you can hold your own.
Noted. But she attacks with words. It's a skillful maneuver I can use on others in extreme circumstances but against her, I am no match.
Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
I would suggest martial arts or knife fighting. That way, when she tries to kill you, you can hold your own.
Noted. But she attacks with words. It's a skillful maneuver I can use on others in extreme circumstances but against her, I am no match.
Laxative then. It's hard to talk shit when...oh yeah. And how would she kill you with words?
I knew what you meant. I was just feeling snarky. Plus the idea of attacking with laxative made me giggle. I'm done now.Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
I would suggest martial arts or knife fighting. That way, when she tries to kill you, you can hold your own.
Noted. But she attacks with words. It's a skillful maneuver I can use on others in extreme circumstances but against her, I am no match.
Laxative then. It's hard to talk shit when...oh yeah. And how would she kill you with words?
Never mind. :) I was just saying, she would't kill me physically, just slay me with words telling me i'm a disappointment and careless if I were to do something like donate all the dolls and then find out the collection was worth well over $1,000 or something.
I appreciate the snark. Now give me some damn ideas on how to unload this stuff! :) But really, I tried eBay a few years ago with some "collector" Holiday Barbies and they went for like 20 to 35 bucks each. Probably about what was paid for them back in the 90s, but then there are eBay fees and PayPal fees and the hassle of shipping. Just doesn't seem worth the effort, but maybe that's why I'm a mustachian in training and not FI yet!I knew what you meant. I was just feeling snarky. Plus the idea of attacking with laxative made me giggle. I'm done now.Going to try tackling my closet this week. It won't be easy, there's stuff in there that's been floating around for decades. Old collector's toys, comic books, game stuff, things like that. Plus it currently houses my (personal) camping gear, all our photo albums, kid's toys, and last but not least, clothes.
I can minimize most if not all of that. The real question is going to be what to do with 30-year-old collector's toys? I'm never going to display them. My son doesn't want them. I guess I could sell them, but that would take work...
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
I would suggest martial arts or knife fighting. That way, when she tries to kill you, you can hold your own.
Noted. But she attacks with words. It's a skillful maneuver I can use on others in extreme circumstances but against her, I am no match.
Laxative then. It's hard to talk shit when...oh yeah. And how would she kill you with words?
Never mind. :) I was just saying, she would't kill me physically, just slay me with words telling me i'm a disappointment and careless if I were to do something like donate all the dolls and then find out the collection was worth well over $1,000 or something.
You can also recycle batteries, light bulbs and plastic bags at Lowe's. There are bins in the Returns area.Also, can old batteries be tossed into regular garbage or are they considered hazardous waste?
Batteries can be recycled. I think Home Depot and Best Buy have battery recycling boxes.
I tried eBay a few years ago with some "collector" Holiday Barbies and they went for like 20 to 35 bucks each. Probably about what was paid for them back in the 90s, but then there are eBay fees and PayPal fees and the hassle of shipping. Just doesn't seem worth the effort, but maybe that's why I'm a mustachian in training and not FI yet!
I appreciate the snark. Now give me some damn ideas on how to unload this stuff! :) But really, I tried eBay a few years ago with some "collector" Holiday Barbies and they went for like 20 to 35 bucks each. Probably about what was paid for them back in the 90s, but then there are eBay fees and PayPal fees and the hassle of shipping. Just doesn't seem worth the effort, but maybe that's why I'm a mustachian in training and not FI yet!
If you figure out what to do with those toys, let me know. I have a collection of dolls from when I was a kid that more or less my mother and grandmother bought and "collected" for me. They were "good" dolls so I never could play with them and they just sat on display in a case. Some may be worth money, many probably aren't, but I don't know. When I bought a house seven years ago, my mother showed up a with a van load of my stuff and that included these dolls. They sit on shelves in the basement because I don't care about them and can't really be bothered to go through much effort to look into selling them. But she would kill me if I just threw them all in a donation bin because what if one of them was worth something??
If you just want to get rid of them, you might be able to sell the lot for $300-500 if it's really worth $1500.
Just quick and gone.
I seem to always keep a bag in the entry way to fill with random bits to donate. I'm looking forward to the day when I don't have this.For me it hasn't arrived yet, just because I'm now SO picky about what I let into the house. So though I don't buy things, and I try not to accept freebies wherever possible, gifts are my personal bugbear.
Or does that day never come?
We enjoy entertaining, and unless it's wine, sorry, I'm going to donate it. Christmas, birthdays, people just visiting for drinks and bringing a pot holder, a cute coffee mug etc. Sorry, none of it is coming in.
So unless I start refusing well-intentioned gifts (can't see that happening) I think I'll always have the 'donate' box ready and waiting. The difference is that I'm not 'finding' things to go in it from around the house, they are being given to me, and I won't let them 'into the house' in the first place.
But parting with things isn't the problem for me, actually loading them up and taking them someplace is. :-P
But parting with things isn't the problem for me, actually loading them up and taking them someplace is. :-P
Get yourself on a list for Goodwill or one of the other organizations that will pick up from your house. I have Amvets coming on the 2nd! I just leave it on the porch and they give me a receipt when they pick up. I too have trouble getting my lazy butt in the car.
I'm counting down the minutes (57) until I can leave work, go home, and continue my closet clear out. Then my goal for Saturday morning is to bring the large bags of stuff I have collected to the thrift store.
I cannot believe I got rid of MANY garbage bags of things this summer and still have a few shopping bags of stuff to go out now.
But parting with things isn't the problem for me, actually loading them up and taking them someplace is. :-P
I am going to drop off another small batch of stuff at the consignment store at lunchtime today. Hopefully, I have some money in the account so that I can pick up a check from them :-) Done - got a check for $80
Tossed some random old unused greeting cards into recycling this morning.
Plan of attack for this week:
- go through hats and scarves - I have way too many... Done - getting rid of 7 scarves and 2 hats. The sad part is that it barely made a dent in my scraf/shawl collection.
- do another sweep through the kitchen cupboards Made a half-hearted attempt at this - tossed one plastic container into recycling... Need to do more. Went through the meds that I keep in one of the kitchen cupboards - got rid of anything expired or not likely to be used again
- go through my knitting supplies, books and yarns and consolidate into two plastic bins Done - tossed a lot of patterns I had printed out. Figured out my next two knitting projects. Bins are ready to go upstairs.
- find room for said bins in the walk in closet
- sort through skiing clothing (there are things there that I'm sure don't fit me any more... and it is another bin that needs to go upstairs)
- organize condo documents - toss anything not needed Done. Also went through two drawers that hold office things, stationery, etc. and tossed a bunch of stuff. Made room for the [now organized] condo documents.
- sort through CDs (a good number of them need to go back to my ex) - I'm hoping to reduce the number of CDs I have by half
That should keep me busy enough through the weekend :-)
Haven't been to this thread before, but DH and I read through "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up" last weekend and started our Marie Kondo inspired clean out this weekend, yesterday beginning with with clothes, subset tops. So far, three bags of tops we are going to donate. Today's task is pants. The whole konmari method seems to really make sense for both DH and I, for a variety of reasons, but the main one for me is that, if something sparks joy for him, I am much happier with him keeping it/storing it. For myself, I am more likely to get rid of things that I don't wear or enjoy anymore, but DH grew up in a household where you didn't throw things away because they might be useful at some point. In our one bedroom apartment and with our savings, I've tried to remind him that we don't have space to store things and if he needs to replace, he can feel free to spend the money, but that hasn't worked in the nearly 8 years we've been married. But he freely gave up a whole bag of shirts yesterday, even thanking some of the more sentimental objects for their service (I think this method is especially charming because my DH did study abroad in Japan so some of the cultural references make sense to him). Magic!
I am going to drop off another small batch of stuff at the consignment store at lunchtime today. Hopefully, I have some money in the account so that I can pick up a check from them :-) Done - got a check for $80
Tossed some random old unused greeting cards into recycling this morning.
Plan of attack for this week:
- go through hats and scarves - I have way too many... Done - getting rid of 7 scarves and 2 hats. The sad part is that it barely made a dent in my scraf/shawl collection.
- do another sweep through the kitchen cupboards Made a half-hearted attempt at this - tossed one plastic container into recycling... Need to do more. Went through the meds that I keep in one of the kitchen cupboards - got rid of anything expired or not likely to be used again
- go through my knitting supplies, books and yarns and consolidate into two plastic bins Done - tossed a lot of patterns I had printed out. Figured out my next two knitting projects. Bins are ready to go upstairs.
- find room for said bins in the walk in closet Done
- sort through skiing clothing (there are things there that I'm sure don't fit me any more... and it is another bin that needs to go upstairs)And done... except that I really didn't get rid of much :-(
- organize condo documents - toss anything not needed Done. Also went through two drawers that hold office things, stationery, etc. and tossed a bunch of stuff. Made room for the [now organized] condo documents.
- sort through CDs (a good number of them need to go back to my ex) - I'm hoping to reduce the number of CDs I have by half
That should keep me busy enough through the weekend :-)
Keeping at it this morning :-) Now I'm going to clean the bathrooms and the kitchen and vacuum. Planning to tackles the rest of the declutter list this afternoon.
Edited to fix the plural of kitchens - I only have one kitchen ;-)
I am going to drop off another small batch of stuff at the consignment store at lunchtime today. Hopefully, I have some money in the account so that I can pick up a check from them :-) Done - got a check for $80
Tossed some random old unused greeting cards into recycling this morning.
Plan of attack for this week:
- go through hats and scarves - I have way too many... Done - getting rid of 7 scarves and 2 hats. The sad part is that it barely made a dent in my scraf/shawl collection.
- do another sweep through the kitchen cupboards Made a half-hearted attempt at this - tossed one plastic container into recycling... Need to do more. Went through the meds that I keep in one of the kitchen cupboards - got rid of anything expired or not likely to be used again
- go through my knitting supplies, books and yarns and consolidate into two plastic bins Done - tossed a lot of patterns I had printed out. Figured out my next two knitting projects. Bins are ready to go upstairs.
- find room for said bins in the walk in closet Done
- sort through skiing clothing (there are things there that I'm sure don't fit me any more... and it is another bin that needs to go upstairs)And done... except that I really didn't get rid of much :-(
- organize condo documents - toss anything not needed Done. Also went through two drawers that hold office things, stationery, etc. and tossed a bunch of stuff. Made room for the [now organized] condo documents.
- sort through CDs (a good number of them need to go back to my ex) - I'm hoping to reduce the number of CDs I have by half
That should keep me busy enough through the weekend :-)
Keeping at it this morning :-) Now I'm going to clean the bathrooms and the kitchen and vacuum. Planning to tackles the rest of the declutter list this afternoon.
Edited to fix the plural of kitchens - I only have one kitchen ;-)
The bins are now in my walk in closet which looks full again. Which I guess is good because it will give me an incentive to get rid of some more things...
Strange thoughts swirling in my head as I was going through various items today.... For example, I have a long black wool coat that has been on the donation list for several years now, yet every time I pull it out, I end up putting it back into the closet. Every time, the thought in my head is "what if I need it to wear it to a funeral?". And some other things that I'm debating getting rid of make me think along the same lines, what if I need these some time in the future? So I'm trying to think through these thoughts logically. I'm telling myself that I have plenty of money to buy anything I need at any point in time for any special occasion (which is absolutely true). However, once I think all this through to the end, it turns out that I am scared that the money will disappear in some catastrophic event, that there will be a war and we will all be cold and hungry, and that my woolen coat (or whatever other item) will be very handy... Seriously?!! I think I have a problem - an irrational fear of becoming a bag lady! Anyone else in the same boat?
Strange thoughts swirling in my head as I was going through various items today.... For example, I have a long black wool coat that has been on the donation list for several years now, yet every time I pull it out, I end up putting it back into the closet. Every time, the thought in my head is "what if I need it to wear it to a funeral?". And some other things that I'm debating getting rid of make me think along the same lines, what if I need these some time in the future? So I'm trying to think through these thoughts logically. I'm telling myself that I have plenty of money to buy anything I need at any point in time for any special occasion (which is absolutely true). However, once I think all this through to the end, it turns out that I am scared that the money will disappear in some catastrophic event, that there will be a war and we will all be cold and hungry, and that my woolen coat (or whatever other item) will be very handy... Seriously?!! I think I have a problem - an irrational fear of becoming a bag lady! Anyone else in the same boat?
Good to know I'm not the only one! I need to work on getting over these fears - any suggestions?
Strange thoughts swirling in my head as I was going through various items today.... For example, I have a long black wool coat that has been on the donation list for several years now, yet every time I pull it out, I end up putting it back into the closet. Every time, the thought in my head is "what if I need it to wear it to a funeral?". And some other things that I'm debating getting rid of make me think along the same lines, what if I need these some time in the future? So I'm trying to think through these thoughts logically. I'm telling myself that I have plenty of money to buy anything I need at any point in time for any special occasion (which is absolutely true). However, once I think all this through to the end, it turns out that I am scared that the money will disappear in some catastrophic event, that there will be a war and we will all be cold and hungry, and that my woolen coat (or whatever other item) will be very handy... Seriously?!! I think I have a problem - an irrational fear of becoming a bag lady! Anyone else in the same boat?
No, I have had the same fears. I've read (a Suze Orman book maybe) that a lot of women have “bag lady syndrome".
Good to know I'm not the only one! I need to work on getting over these fears - any suggestions?
Strange thoughts swirling in my head as I was going through various items today.... For example, I have a long black wool coat that has been on the donation list for several years now, yet every time I pull it out, I end up putting it back into the closet. Every time, the thought in my head is "what if I need it to wear it to a funeral?". And some other things that I'm debating getting rid of make me think along the same lines, what if I need these some time in the future? So I'm trying to think through these thoughts logically. I'm telling myself that I have plenty of money to buy anything I need at any point in time for any special occasion (which is absolutely true). However, once I think all this through to the end, it turns out that I am scared that the money will disappear in some catastrophic event, that there will be a war and we will all be cold and hungry, and that my woolen coat (or whatever other item) will be very handy... Seriously?!! I think I have a problem - an irrational fear of becoming a bag lady! Anyone else in the same boat?
No, I have had the same fears. I've read (a Suze Orman book maybe) that a lot of women have “bag lady syndrome".
Re: bag lady fears, I don't really experience this, so I'm lucky in that regard but I wonder if you could look for the positives in being prepared for a bad situation eg. if there is an economic downturn, you'll be more ready to move for a new job, unencumbered by stuff. You would be able to take opportunities others can't.
By not having much stuff (and bringing no more in) you are saving a lot and therefore less likely to ever be in that situation.
Each thing you get rid of makes you more resourceful and self-sufficient (eg if you only have one hat and it gets a hole, you would darn it), which would be good preparation.
And finally, hanging onto old stuff or not won't affect wether said terrible event is going to happen in the first place. You are not preventing anything bad from happening by keeping it. You are just ensuring that your life up to that point will be more stressful and draining and tiring, worsening your health, which would be the most important thing you could take into a disaster zone. I see is as kind of self-care. Making your life good and happy now puts you in the best stead for later adversity.
Oh, and also, one more moth-eaten old coat isn't going to help much, really.
Thank you, theadvicist. What you are saying is very reasonable and logical. Bag lady fears are totally irrational, however, and are not easily influenced by logical thought :-)
Case in point: I logged into Fidelity yesterday to look at my accounts and for some reason my 401k was not displayed and excluded from the total number. A brief moment of panic - what do I do? How do I prove to anyone that I actually had a 401k? And how can I prove what was in it? What would I ever do if, say, Fidelity told me that they have no record of my accounts? After all, my NW is just a number displayed electronically on the screen. What if it just disappeared one day???
As to the coat, I read a book last year about the siege of Leningrad during WWII and how the inhabitants of the city dealt with the cold and hunger.
This is all tongue in cheek of course, but you see how crazy we can drive ourselves with thoughts like that...
Thank you, theadvicist. What you are saying is very reasonable and logical. Bag lady fears are totally irrational, however, and are not easily influenced by logical thought :-)
Case in point: I logged into Fidelity yesterday to look at my accounts and for some reason my 401k was not displayed and excluded from the total number. A brief moment of panic - what do I do? How do I prove to anyone that I actually had a 401k? And how can I prove what was in it? What would I ever do if, say, Fidelity told me that they have no record of my accounts? After all, my NW is just a number displayed electronically on the screen. What if it just disappeared one day???
As to the coat, I read a book last year about the siege of Leningrad during WWII and how the inhabitants of the city dealt with the cold and hunger.
This is all tongue in cheek of course, but you see how crazy we can drive ourselves with thoughts like that...
I get what you're saying about how irrational it all is, but... the only think you can counter that with is being rational. Or maybe therapy. I'm not being facetious - I had therapy for something unrelated, and we touched on how I held onto things (for other reasons). It took some work but we reprogrammed my thinking from, "This might be useful some day!" to, "the space and the peace of mind is useful TODAY". So I was just throwing some ideas out there to see if they might hold any sway with you.
When it comes to the markets all crashing etc (and to some extent Fidelity losing all their records) I tend to think, "we're all in the sh*t anyway, so it won't make any difference", but I understand others might find that more scary than comforting! If it's just a small computer glitch, no need to worry because they will have that covered with backups etc.
Am I helping or should I shush?
And finally, hanging onto old stuff or not won't affect wether said terrible event is going to happen in the first place. You are not preventing anything bad from happening by keeping it. You are just ensuring that your life up to that point will be more stressful and draining and tiring,
Strange thoughts swirling in my head as I was going through various items today.... For example, I have a long black wool coat that has been on the donation list for several years now, yet every time I pull it out, I end up putting it back into the closet. Every time, the thought in my head is "what if I need it to wear it to a funeral?". And some other things that I'm debating getting rid of make me think along the same lines, what if I need these some time in the future? So I'm trying to think through these thoughts logically. I'm telling myself that I have plenty of money to buy anything I need at any point in time for any special occasion (which is absolutely true). However, once I think all this through to the end, it turns out that I am scared that the money will disappear in some catastrophic event, that there will be a war and we will all be cold and hungry, and that my woolen coat (or whatever other item) will be very handy... Seriously?!! I think I have a problem - an irrational fear of becoming a bag lady! Anyone else in the same boat?
What helped me get over the worst of these fears was:
- work out why I have this fear (for me, it's a combination of being estranged from family = no family safety net, being brought up with a feeling of scarcity not abundance)
These are such good points, Astatine. Thank you. I am not estranged from my family but I do live on a different continent from them, so effectively, I do not have a safety net here. And since my divorce, I only have only myself to rely on. Thank goodness my FIRE plan is to move back to the town where I grew up and where my family is - I'm sure it will help a lot! And yes, growing up, we didn't have much. We were never hungry or cold but we lived in a communist country where there wasn't much stuff overall.
Strange thoughts swirling in my head as I was going through various items today.... For example, I have a long black wool coat that has been on the donation list for several years now, yet every time I pull it out, I end up putting it back into the closet. Every time, the thought in my head is "what if I need it to wear it to a funeral?". And some other things that I'm debating getting rid of make me think along the same lines, what if I need these some time in the future? So I'm trying to think through these thoughts logically. I'm telling myself that I have plenty of money to buy anything I need at any point in time for any special occasion (which is absolutely true). However, once I think all this through to the end, it turns out that I am scared that the money will disappear in some catastrophic event, that there will be a war and we will all be cold and hungry, and that my woolen coat (or whatever other item) will be very handy... Seriously?!! I think I have a problem - an irrational fear of becoming a bag lady! Anyone else in the same boat?
I'm late to this discussion but, yes, I've struggled with these thoughts too. What helped me get over the worst of these fears was:
- work out why I have this fear (for me, it's a combination of being estranged from family = no family safety net, being brought up with a feeling of scarcity not abundance)
- realise that my city is DROWNING in secondhand stuff, to the point where the recycle shed at the rubbish tip gives away clothes for free, the op shops sometimes say no to donations because there is so much stuff and so much stuff is given away on freecycle, so I can always get stuff cheaply or for free if the worst happened
- this is the most important one for me - building connections and community. I learnt to be more giving and generous (feelings of abundance, not scarcity) to my friends, acquaintances and to the general community. And learnt to accept things from my friends and acquaintances (this is HARD and a work in progress but I am improving :)). And then I realised, if the worst happened, I do have people to lean on and people do care about me.
Not sure if any of that is relevant to you but it helped me a lot.
I just read this on Rockstar Finance and thought it was relevant considering the discussion we were having about feeling anxious about having enough money or worrying about becoming homeless one day.
http://www.moneyaftergraduation.com/2016/01/04/why-you-should-practice-poverty/
I just read this on Rockstar Finance and thought it was relevant considering the discussion we were having about feeling anxious about having enough money or worrying about becoming homeless one day.
http://www.moneyaftergraduation.com/2016/01/04/why-you-should-practice-poverty/
Interesting but I'm not really sure that this experiment is really that helpful or realistic. After all, I would still be sleeping in my very comfortable bed, living in my lovely house with all the mod cons, and not really worrying whether I have enough money to pay my next electric bill... And as a somewhat mustachian individual, I only read library books anyway, I don't eat out or buy coffee at Starbucks and my food budget IS about $50 per week so rice and beans are my staple :-)
If you practice poverty through this poverty simulation you might not be as comforted:
http://www.citylab.com/cityfixer/2015/02/what-i-learned-from-a-poverty-simulation/385190/
DH and I decided we will do a run to the recycle shed at the tip and the book donation spot tomorrow. So that's prompted a bit of decluttering beyond the box of stuff that's been sitting next to the front door for ages.
So far:
- dead modem, will get dropped off at the e-waste recycling spot at the tip
- cat tunnel (takes up space in the lounge room, one cat uses it every few months or so)
- 4 small plastic containers (bought a lot of cheap Tupperware late last year at a fundraiser - the actual Tupperware, not the generic name for plasticware that Americans seem to use - so the old cheap and nasty stuff can go)
- magazine and word puzzle book (will go to medical waiting room at my next appt)
- 2 literary magazines
- a craft book I won in a raffle (very pretty but I will never use it to make stuff)
- metal water bottle (used it throughout chemo, now has nausea associations)
- clothes from a clothes swap that I didn't end up wanting to wear
- weird spatula thing that came free with our silicon bake sheets from Ikea
The kitchen plasticware cupboards also got rearranged a bit so it's a) easier to find stuff and b) less likely to trigger a plastic-landslide-of-doom when we reach in to get something.
Edit: I also threw out a few Christmas cards, a couple of prescriptions that went out of date last month and a few pieces of paper. Plus some paper that's been on the lounge room floor solely because the cats like sitting on them.
I'm curious what you're referring to as what Americans typically use - are you saying there's a brand called "Tupperware " that's different than what we have he or that we use entirely different plastic wear that we call Tupperware?
I'm curious what you're referring to as what Americans typically use - are you saying there's a brand called "Tupperware " that's different than what we have he or that we use entirely different plastic wear that we call Tupperware?
Tupperware is a brand name that's commonly used as a product name, kind of like Velcro, Post-its. There are a lot of them actually. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_generic_and_genericized_trademarks#List_of_protected_trademarks_frequently_used_as_generic_terms)
You guys have made so much progress, I love reading this thread and you've motivated me to clean a few things around my place :)
I'd love to hear how you all handle clutter-attracting hobbies. My SO is an engineer and tinkerer, who likes to build his own electronics. It requires a lot of measurement gear, tools, and parts, so a lot of flat surfaces got covered - especially if a project is in progress (which can last for months). We live in a 600 sqft condo, so there are no places like a basement or garage to banish him to. The clutter also seems to turn invisible to him after a time and if he decides to drop the project, tons of parts, drawings, and half-done work gets added on top.
Anyone have their own rules, approaches, or thoughts on how to sort through this mess? What do you do if you decide not to complete a project? How do you keep clutter from turning invisible? It's probably already been covered, but how do you get the SO on board? (He knows it's a mess, but he gets overwhelmed by the amount of effort it would take to dive in. Too bad he's the only one who knows what's important to keep.)
I'm curious what you're referring to as what Americans typically use - are you saying there's a brand called "Tupperware " that's different than what we have he or that we use entirely different plastic wear that we call Tupperware?
Tupperware is a brand name that's commonly used as a product name, kind of like Velcro, Post-its. There are a lot of them actually. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_generic_and_genericized_trademarks#List_of_protected_trademarks_frequently_used_as_generic_terms)
Just sorted through a giant pile of paper clutter. I swear this stuff breeds when I'm not looking.
Can you section off an area in the condo to give him an office/workroom to contain his clutter?
Can you section off an area in the condo to give him an office/workroom to contain his clutter?
It was a table, but the table became so cluttered, it couldn't be a workspace.
Actually, today he cleaned it up significantly because I told him that if he wanted to move to the next project, we needed a place to put it. He wants to build floor standing speakers, so we need floor space if we'll ever use them! I hope this '1 for 1' project idea sticks :)
I shred anything that looks even remotely like personal information - the shredded paper is used either as packing for fragile eBay items
I suppose another problem is the loads of guilt and grief I have about "disappointing" people (mostly my mother) if/when I throw/sell it all.
Now that I am working part time, I want to go back to making and selling fine art. We had moved most of my art supplies to our cabin in the back yard, but DH ran over the pipe with the key with his lawnmower and broke it, so the water doesn't work, and we don't want to pay to heat the cabin all winter. We moved most of my stuff back to the house. We put my drafting table in a corner of a small room upstairs and I cleared some shelf space for my pastels and a few other supplies. I set up my mat cutter with table and art scanner with its computer and table in the basement. The flat file is in the basement. My main work will be oil painting, and the easel will have to go in the living room. We've cleared out a ton of crap to be able to set these things up so far, but now comes the hardest part: where to store the artwork. I need to make or buy a rack for paintings, etc., and it will have to go in the basement where there is currently a huge pile of old paint cans and supplies, ancient camping gear, tools and other assorted stuff and junk. DH says he's too busy with taxes to help with the sorting and cleanout, although I know he will be supportive about taking stuff to the dump.
Just writing it down now, the whole plan sounds crazy anyway. Is the gallery owner really going to visit my yucky rough basement to view my work? Sometimes we get water in the basement, too. I must be out of my mind! But, I don't see any other options, so, wish me luck. The big cleanout starts today.
Confession time! I've been slowly cleaning out the storage room downstairs and correcting some un-mustachian accumulation of crap.
Fishing rods: I knew I had a way too many fishing rods, Wife and I got a couple of small collapsible rods for lake fishing, I got a couple cheap ones thrown in when I bought a used aluminum boat a few years ago. I've also bought a few at garage sales when I saw a deal, had a couple damaged rods laying around and just got 2 brand new ones as a gift for Christmas. So I thought I might have 7 or 8, which is obviously already 5 or 6 too many. Turns out I had 17 total! What the actual F@&k! How did this happen? Anyway, I will be selling or throwing out all but the new ones and maybe keep one good used backup rod. Also selling the boat in spring.
Swiss Army Knives: Kind of the same story, just found a 7th one downstairs. I bought one years ago, got one as a gift, and most of the rest I bought at garage sales or got for free. How do you not buy a genuine Victorinox knife when you see it for a $1? Anyway got to start selling the extra ones and make a profit instead of just throwing them in a drawer.
Tools: Same goes here, for some reason I've got 2 stud finders, more than 6 hammers, countless redundant screwdrivers, wrenches etc. I've only got 2 hands and I'm not a contractor, so what the hell, time to thin out the tools too
Face punches welcome and deserved
Whomever mentioned KonMari method earlier....I love you. I have begun KonMari'ng the heck out of the family clothing, and I started with myself.
Whomever mentioned KonMari method earlier....I love you. I have begun KonMari'ng the heck out of the family clothing, and I started with myself.
There is a thread on here just about that book.:)
Cleared a heap of old junk out of my personal email inbox, and completely emptied the inbox and folders for an old email address. I guess I should wait another month or so to make sure nothing important is coming through to that one.I should probably do this. I have 36 items on hangers. 1 wedding dress, 3 fancy dresses, 4(!) Dressing gowns/robes, then shirts/shirts/dresses/jackets. Not because I think I should get rid of any, but just to remind me to mix it up!
Mr Happier agreed to turn his hangers around the wrong way to see what he never wears. He has 50 hangers of clothes; I think he could release half and still have everything he needs. I get through more clothes than he does (sweatier; more active) and I think I could release 20 of my 55 without an issue. I'm getting there slowly :-)
Cleared a heap of old junk out of my personal email inbox, and completely emptied the inbox and folders for an old email address. I guess I should wait another month or so to make sure nothing important is coming through to that one.I should probably do this. I have 36 items on hangers. 1 wedding dress, 3 fancy dresses, 4(!) Dressing gowns/robes, then shirts/shirts/dresses/jackets. Not because I think I should get rid of any, but just to remind me to mix it up!
Mr Happier agreed to turn his hangers around the wrong way to see what he never wears. He has 50 hangers of clothes; I think he could release half and still have everything he needs. I get through more clothes than he does (sweatier; more active) and I think I could release 20 of my 55 without an issue. I'm getting there slowly :-)
I finally tackled the CDs today only to realize that I have sorted them when I moved during the divorce and only kept the ones I wanted :-( They are now sitting in a big pile on the floor in the living room and I'm too bummed to even put them back.
So what should I do with them??? There are 2 large drawerfuls. Most of them are music I really like.
Whomever mentioned KonMari method earlier....I love you. I have begun KonMari'ng the heck out of the family clothing, and I started with myself.
There is a thread on here just about that book.:)
Link: http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/mustachian-book-club/the-life-changing-art-of-tidying-up/
Yes, that would be the sensible thing to do... It's going to be an overwhelming task given the number of them. Plus, it seems I have quite an emotional attachment to a lot of them.I finally tackled the CDs today only to realize that I have sorted them when I moved during the divorce and only kept the ones I wanted :-( They are now sitting in a big pile on the floor in the living room and I'm too bummed to even put them back.
So what should I do with them??? There are 2 large drawerfuls. Most of them are music I really like.
I would save the songs you like to your computer or ipod or whatever in digital form an get rid of the physical copies.
My slippers split so I threw them out. Then I had no slippers... except we have a pile of fancy hotel slippers (many still in the wrappers) WHY? Free stuff is not free when you have to store it! I wanted to get rid of them last year, but DH wanted to keep them (and I have enough of my own stuff to work on without creating conflict).
Anyway, I started wearing the hotel slippers, as I can't throw out perfectly good stuff, and i need slippers. DH borrow my slippers a lot, and after a couple of days said, "I don't know how you can wear those, they just slide off!".
So hang on, we were keeping slippers I didn't want, and he doesn't like. Argh.
I am wearing them out (which doesn't take long since they are flimsy) and I will NEVER take free slippers again because it is a horrible waste of the worlds resources to make such 'disposable' items.
Good call on the hotel items. I used to take everything, but now only the soaps, the one thing I can always make use of.
Yes, that would be the sensible thing to do... It's going to be an overwhelming task given the number of them. Plus, it seems I have quite an emotional attachment to a lot of them.I finally tackled the CDs today only to realize that I have sorted them when I moved during the divorce and only kept the ones I wanted :-( They are now sitting in a big pile on the floor in the living room and I'm too bummed to even put them back.
So what should I do with them??? There are 2 large drawerfuls. Most of them are music I really like.
I would save the songs you like to your computer or ipod or whatever in digital form an get rid of the physical copies.
Good call on the hotel items. I used to take everything, but now only the soaps, the one thing I can always make use of.
Good call on the hotel items. I used to take everything, but now only the soaps, the one thing I can always make use of.
Even those, only if I like them as much as my own stuff at home. Sometimes I think "now I know a brand to avoid".
Good call on the hotel items. I used to take everything, but now only the soaps, the one thing I can always make use of.
Even those, only if I like them as much as my own stuff at home. Sometimes I think "now I know a brand to avoid".
Yeah, I used to take everything. I always thought, "it's good for travel!" but you know what? Everyplace we go has free toiletries if we need them. Actually, now I don't like to think of all the wasted bottles etc (even if they are recycled, it's a lot of energy), so I take small containers with the very few products I have kept.
My bathroom has benefitted the most from my purging. I use a moisturiser and facewipes, and water. Deodrant, toothpaste, lipbalm. Done. I used to buy so many lotions and potions. The simplicity is amazing, and my bathroom looks like it's out of a martha stewart magazine because it's free of all the labelled ugliness that is most toiletry packaging.
My ultimate goal is to buy matching labeled fabric storage cubes for the closet to hold items in a unified neat manner: Light bulbs, ATV gear, gloves/scarves/hats, errand items, and small misc (extra candles, sunglasses, etc).
My ultimate goal is to buy matching labeled fabric storage cubes for the closet to hold items in a unified neat manner: Light bulbs, ATV gear, gloves/scarves/hats, errand items, and small misc (extra candles, sunglasses, etc).
By all means buy what you want... But I recently made myself half a dozen or so cube storage boxes. I took cardboard from the neighbors recycling when I ran out of Amazon boxes and covered them with fabric I had around. It was shockingly simple to get something that looks nice. I just used a glue stick to attach the fabric. I added a couple handles I had to some. This fabric was pretty to look at but cheap and not good enough for quilting. They won't last more than a few years and won't fold flat to move but they were almost free.
Decided to donate the ice cream/fro yo/sorbet maker and helmet mentioned on a prior page, a toaster oven, and printer with toner to a local Boy Scout fundraiser yard sale. Perhaps they'll have better luck selling the items than I did online. DH insists on keeping a 4 slice toaster, because "he likes toast". The problem is, we don't usually buy bread, and we haven't used the toaster in years. Oh, well. Baby steps.
Last weekend I started focusing on the hall closet: Threw away two pairs of gloves, put one pair in the donate pile, washed two jackets to drop off at the thrift store, folded up to snail mail a vest back to a certain volunteer group I quit years ago. Space clearing is my new cardio, LOL.
My ultimate goal is to buy matching labeled fabric storage cubes for the closet to hold items in a unified neat manner: Light bulbs, ATV gear, gloves/scarves/hats, errand items, and small misc (extra candles, sunglasses, etc).
Today I moved DH's entire filing cabinet full of 2007-2008 information to two file boxes in the basement. He's "not ready" to go through them yet, and I know there is nothing in there I need/want. In my mind, they are just waiting to be put in the trash. These boxes are now labeled with his name and the information of what is inside. I keep saying if he dies first, I'm not opening any boxes that have his name in front of them - I will just throw them out! If I die first, it's his problem! If we both die together, the kids know what I'm doing and they'll throw all them out. Really he's a packrat.
With the rest of the filing cabinet drawers, I went through every receipt from 2015 and all the files. I got it down to house improvement receipts, health savings account reimbursement receipts, and tax receipts. Each child has a medical file I pared down significantly. I have another white trash bag of shredding. Now the 4 filing cabinet drawers have been reduced to 1/2 of a filing cabinet drawer. I am amazed that I was keeping so much excess paperwork. Why was I doing that to myself??? Mind you there are 10 years worth of annual files in the basement still to go.....This will be the never ending paper project.
Today I moved DH's entire filing cabinet full of 2007-2008 information to two file boxes in the basement. He's "not ready" to go through them yet, and I know there is nothing in there I need/want. In my mind, they are just waiting to be put in the trash. These boxes are now labeled with his name and the information of what is inside. I keep saying if he dies first, I'm not opening any boxes that have his name in front of them - I will just throw them out! If I die first, it's his problem! If we both die together, the kids know what I'm doing and they'll throw all them out. Really he's a packrat.
With the rest of the filing cabinet drawers, I went through every receipt from 2015 and all the files. I got it down to house improvement receipts, health savings account reimbursement receipts, and tax receipts. Each child has a medical file I pared down significantly. I have another white trash bag of shredding. Now the 4 filing cabinet drawers have been reduced to 1/2 of a filing cabinet drawer. I am amazed that I was keeping so much excess paperwork. Why was I doing that to myself??? Mind you there are 10 years worth of annual files in the basement still to go.....This will be the never ending paper project.
My husband has scads of work generated paper, and what really helped him was this: Every time I found paper, I'd throw it into a laundry basket. A couple inches would accumulate (no more) and I'd hand it to him when he had a free moment and ask him to sort through it right then. It would take like 10 minutes, wasn't overwhelming, and he threw away nearly all of it. It took longer than I would have liked, but it all got done and I don't have random piles around the apartment now.
Something similar to serpentstooth strategy solved my problem with DH accumulating papers. Once he realised I was regularly going to get him to go through them, suddenly picking up a catalogue at the hardware store no longer seemed like such a good idea. He's also stopped bringing home work paperwork (though I never understood why he did! Surely you either need it at the office... or you don't need it. He never worked from home).
So I was trying to sort the piles, but it's actually stopped the piles coming in now. I hadn't really noticed until I thought about it just now; I must remember to thank him tonight.
I also went through old credit card statements and set them aside for burning. It worked well when we ran out of firelights, so I used the statements instead :)
Today I moved DH's entire filing cabinet full of 2007-2008 information to two file boxes in the basement. He's "not ready" to go through them yet, and I know there is nothing in there I need/want. In my mind, they are just waiting to be put in the trash. These boxes are now labeled with his name and the information of what is inside. I keep saying if he dies first, I'm not opening any boxes that have his name in front of them - I will just throw them out! If I die first, it's his problem! If we both die together, the kids know what I'm doing and they'll throw all them out. Really he's a packrat.
With the rest of the filing cabinet drawers, I went through every receipt from 2015 and all the files. I got it down to house improvement receipts, health savings account reimbursement receipts, and tax receipts. Each child has a medical file I pared down significantly. I have another white trash bag of shredding. Now the 4 filing cabinet drawers have been reduced to 1/2 of a filing cabinet drawer. I am amazed that I was keeping so much excess paperwork. Why was I doing that to myself??? Mind you there are 10 years worth of annual files in the basement still to go.....This will be the never ending paper project.
My husband has scads of work generated paper, and what really helped him was this: Every time I found paper, I'd throw it into a laundry basket. A couple inches would accumulate (no more) and I'd hand it to him when he had a free moment and ask him to sort through it right then. It would take like 10 minutes, wasn't overwhelming, and he threw away nearly all of it. It took longer than I would have liked, but it all got done and I don't have random piles around the apartment now.
Good idea! I have to remember that, although I'll bet he will balk. We tried that with his office downstairs when we moved it upstairs. I gave up and just boxed it up. You are right that whole box is overwhelming, but a few inches at a time might be doable. Maybe 3 folders at a time? I'll have to think about that once I get through my OWN piles of waste and paper. Insert embarrassed face.Something similar to serpentstooth strategy solved my problem with DH accumulating papers. Once he realised I was regularly going to get him to go through them, suddenly picking up a catalogue at the hardware store no longer seemed like such a good idea. He's also stopped bringing home work paperwork (though I never understood why he did! Surely you either need it at the office... or you don't need it. He never worked from home).
So I was trying to sort the piles, but it's actually stopped the piles coming in now. I hadn't really noticed until I thought about it just now; I must remember to thank him tonight.
I also went through old credit card statements and set them aside for burning. It worked well when we ran out of firelights, so I used the statements instead :)
My DH is in avoidance mode....And he tends to bring in papers in chunks - usually with job changes. He hasn't had a job change in 8 years, and all the old paperwork from his old job is still here in the house. He might "need" it someday.
I have seen this thread in my "recent new posts" view for a long time and always felt guilty since I love the idea but am apparently a complete hypocrite about actually doing anything about it.
We now have a pile of goodwill clothes from my closet! And I sold my old computer and a pair of headphones on Craigslist last week.
We're moving this summer (from a 1BR so not that crazy) and got married right before moving here, so we have a lot of stuff we should purge.
Today I moved DH's entire filing cabinet full of 2007-2008 information to two file boxes in the basement. He's "not ready" to go through them yet, and I know there is nothing in there I need/want. In my mind, they are just waiting to be put in the trash. These boxes are now labeled with his name and the information of what is inside. I keep saying if he dies first, I'm not opening any boxes that have his name in front of them - I will just throw them out! If I die first, it's his problem! If we both die together, the kids know what I'm doing and they'll throw all them out. Really he's a packrat.
With the rest of the filing cabinet drawers, I went through every receipt from 2015 and all the files. I got it down to house improvement receipts, health savings account reimbursement receipts, and tax receipts. Each child has a medical file I pared down significantly. I have another white trash bag of shredding. Now the 4 filing cabinet drawers have been reduced to 1/2 of a filing cabinet drawer. I am amazed that I was keeping so much excess paperwork. Why was I doing that to myself??? Mind you there are 10 years worth of annual files in the basement still to go.....This will be the never ending paper project.
My husband has scads of work generated paper, and what really helped him was this: Every time I found paper, I'd throw it into a laundry basket. A couple inches would accumulate (no more) and I'd hand it to him when he had a free moment and ask him to sort through it right then. It would take like 10 minutes, wasn't overwhelming, and he threw away nearly all of it. It took longer than I would have liked, but it all got done and I don't have random piles around the apartment now.
Good idea! I have to remember that, although I'll bet he will balk. We tried that with his office downstairs when we moved it upstairs. I gave up and just boxed it up. You are right that whole box is overwhelming, but a few inches at a time might be doable. Maybe 3 folders at a time? I'll have to think about that once I get through my OWN piles of waste and paper. Insert embarrassed face.Something similar to serpentstooth strategy solved my problem with DH accumulating papers. Once he realised I was regularly going to get him to go through them, suddenly picking up a catalogue at the hardware store no longer seemed like such a good idea. He's also stopped bringing home work paperwork (though I never understood why he did! Surely you either need it at the office... or you don't need it. He never worked from home).
So I was trying to sort the piles, but it's actually stopped the piles coming in now. I hadn't really noticed until I thought about it just now; I must remember to thank him tonight.
I also went through old credit card statements and set them aside for burning. It worked well when we ran out of firelights, so I used the statements instead :)
My DH is in avoidance mode....And he tends to bring in papers in chunks - usually with job changes. He hasn't had a job change in 8 years, and all the old paperwork from his old job is still here in the house. He might "need" it someday.
I know you know this from the 'embarrassed face' but I've got to say, that whilst I have got my DH on board as I said, it only happened -after- I'd take care of my own cr*p. Sorry. Marie Kondo was right when she said if you're focussing on other people you've got stuff to take care of - for me, at least.
I worked on ONLY my own stuff for a year, and I realised actually, DH's two tiny piles were nothing. Getting my stuff down made a huge difference, and then he naturally wanted to follow suit when he saw how much nicer our house looked and how much easier our lives were.
It was easy for me to focus on, "There's no point! DH just leaves catalogues everywhere anyway!", but when I decided just to do my stuff, and did it, the whole house changed. It got so tidy and organised the papers stuck out like a sore thumb and he was happy to tackle them. He was probably thinking, "there's no point! DW has crap everywhere!" all along!
Maybe I should prioritize decluttering my bicycles and bike parts first.Spent some time on those yesterday....
I have seen this thread in my "recent new posts" view for a long time and always felt guilty since I love the idea but am apparently a complete hypocrite about actually doing anything about it.
We now have a pile of goodwill clothes from my closet! And I sold my old computer and a pair of headphones on Craigslist last week.
We're moving this summer (from a 1BR so not that crazy) and got married right before moving here, so we have a lot of stuff we should purge.
We're doing this in our household, ongoing. It's really a liberating feeling as you empty out. Here's the list of things we're liquidating:
Sell List
Pool table(+$800)
I have a pool table in my basement, because the previous owners left it. They are a glut here, people bought them years ago, and then just leave them because it is not worth it to them to move them. So, HOW DID YOU SELL YOURS??? Sorry for the yell, but here I am more likely to have to pay someone to take mine away (so that means I will probably leave it for the next owner)We're doing this in our household, ongoing. It's really a liberating feeling as you empty out. Here's the list of things we're liquidating:
Sell List
Pool table(+$800)
It's surprisingly hard to donate magazines though. I have a pile of clean, recent ones (gift subscriptions) but our library and local thrift stores don't accept them.
If it isn't gone by tonight, I'm going to have to haul it to the garage until I can borrow a truck to take it to the dump.In my area you can put a sofa out with the normal trash, and as long as you submit a request at least 24h in advance online, it'll be taken with the regular trash pickup. They don't normally have the capacity for furniture pickups, but if you give them a heads up, they'll do it for free.
It's surprisingly hard to donate magazines though. I have a pile of clean, recent ones (gift subscriptions) but our library and local thrift stores don't accept them.
Depending on the magazine topic and number of pictures, schools and after school activities can use them for crafts.
I have seen this thread in my "recent new posts" view for a long time and always felt guilty since I love the idea but am apparently a complete hypocrite about actually doing anything about it.I know how you feel! I was doing really well cleaning out our house last year, but I've stalled out. I did bag up a bunch of stuff a few weekends ago, but the bag is still in the guest bedroom. My goal for March is to clean out the guest bedroom. This will take getting my DH on board too.
We now have a pile of goodwill clothes from my closet! And I sold my old computer and a pair of headphones on Craigslist last week.
We're moving this summer (from a 1BR so not that crazy) and got married right before moving here, so we have a lot of stuff we should purge.
Decluttering fail. I sold a foot massager on Craigslist, but the buyer decided it was too noisy after she'd gone home with it, even though she was perfectly happy with it when she tested it out at my place. So now she's going to drive back on Friday to return it. I don't really mind, since she's the one doing the driving, but that's a lot of 40min drives for a $60 machine....
I donated my wedding dress today!
...
I need a face punch, kick in the pants, or something... please tell me to unload this stuff: I'm a runner and have collected probably dozens of shirts from races as well as purchases (mostly clearance or thrift-store, so not a lot of $ spent at least). I have an entire small roll-aboard suitcase on the top shelf of my closet stuffed with them! I've kept them because I have actually taken some of these excess shirts when I travel and after wearing, I toss them instead of carrying home wet stinky running clothes. But seriously, how many throw-aways do I need? (We travel a lot but I think I've done that exactly 3 times). Also, the suitcase is a small old extra one that someone gave us that I'd like to toss.
These past weeks I've been reading Marie Kondo's (e-)book and though I am not aggressively throwing stuff in bags, I've progressed a lot in my decluttering. I've emptied a book shelf, a DVD shelf and a 2-drawers filing cabinet (I've kept 5 files, which will move to my spouse's cabinet and we will sell this one). I've already prepared donation boxes and ads on Kijiji.
Which brings me to my next question. Maybe it's weird, but do you even respond to people who answer your ads let's say, more than casually? I don't know if I over-analyze things, but even though I ask for people to please contact me by email, most often than not, I don't even get a ''hello'', ''please'' and ''thanks''. I find it so rude! It makes me want to hit ''delete''. I don't know... I feel insecure about giving my email adress, phone number or address to people I don't know. When they don't act at least a bit polite/civilized, I feel... I don't know, threatened in a way? Like they're being aggressive towards me. I don't know how to explain.
Maybe I should just donate stuff and be done with it. :/
These past weeks I've been reading Marie Kondo's (e-)book and though I am not aggressively throwing stuff in bags, I've progressed a lot in my decluttering. I've emptied a book shelf, a DVD shelf and a 2-drawers filing cabinet (I've kept 5 files, which will move to my spouse's cabinet and we will sell this one). I've already prepared donation boxes and ads on Kijiji.
Which brings me to my next question. Maybe it's weird, but do you even respond to people who answer your ads let's say, more than casually? I don't know if I over-analyze things, but even though I ask for people to please contact me by email, most often than not, I don't even get a ''hello'', ''please'' and ''thanks''. I find it so rude! It makes me want to hit ''delete''. I don't know... I feel insecure about giving my email adress, phone number or address to people I don't know. When they don't act at least a bit polite/civilized, I feel... I don't know, threatened in a way? Like they're being aggressive towards me. I don't know how to explain.
Maybe I should just donate stuff and be done with it. :/
I have come very close to sort every inch of the house. In fact I have done one go through completely and that feels amazing.I moved into my house 3 years ago. At the time, I cut some fabric off a bolt and put it on clippy curtain rings as drapes, but I didn't hem it or put anything to cover the electrical conduit I used as curtain rods.
However my last frontier is not specific areas but projects such as darning, mending, glueing and upholstering. So the garage has furniture to glue, the linen closet has fabric to use, the closet has mending projects. Now they hang over me as a specialized form of clutter.
Help!
I have come very close to sort every inch of the house. In fact I have done one go through completely and that feels amazing.
However my last frontier is not specific areas but projects such as darning, mending, glueing and upholstering. So the garage has furniture to glue, the linen closet has fabric to use, the closet has mending projects. Now they hang over me as a specialized form of clutter.
Help!
I need a face punch, kick in the pants, or something... please tell me to unload this stuff: I'm a runner and have collected probably dozens of shirts from races as well as purchases (mostly clearance or thrift-store, so not a lot of $ spent at least). I have an entire small roll-aboard suitcase on the top shelf of my closet stuffed with them! I've kept them because I have actually taken some of these excess shirts when I travel and after wearing, I toss them instead of carrying home wet stinky running clothes. But seriously, how many throw-aways do I need? (We travel a lot but I think I've done that exactly 3 times). Also, the suitcase is a small old extra one that someone gave us that I'd like to toss.
Busted - DH noticed I was shredding folders today from 2001....Yes 2001. I have been issued a cease and desist order from my DH attorney. ;-) ( Shredding shall only continue during hours when he is away.) Seriously he tried to tell me he will refer to our 1999 original house closing paperwork and 2001 flip paperwork if we ever purchase a new construction home again and flip it in 2 years....a) we live in a completely different state, and 2) Really?
This will make going much slower. We have SO MUCH PAPER....
The stuff about baby gifts above spurs me to share that I finally gifted two items I've had for literally years-- a beautiful children's book by a modernist author which I bought on a whim because it was lovely and then never managed to gift (think it found the perfect home), and a pair of little baby boots for newborns. I gave it to an expectant mother because whenever I tried to give it to a baby, the baby was past newborn age when I saw it! Glad these have found appropriate homes.I imagine that's because they don't stay newborns for long, and the new parents are probably overwhelmed :) Good call on giving it to an expectant mother!
Busted - DH noticed I was shredding folders today from 2001....Yes 2001. I have been issued a cease and desist order from my DH attorney. ;-) ( Shredding shall only continue during hours when he is away.) Seriously he tried to tell me he will refer to our 1999 original house closing paperwork and 2001 flip paperwork if we ever purchase a new construction home again and flip it in 2 years....a) we live in a completely different state, and 2) Really?
This will make going much slower. We have SO MUCH PAPER....
My parents had EVERY SINGLE tax return in their attic, going back to the 60s/70s, whenever they first started filing taxes. Last summer, I made them shred all but the last 10 years. Mom was arguing with me about the paperwork for the house they sold when I was 10 (I'm 30!), and the house they tried to buy but it fell through, and the purchase papers for cars they don't own anymore and haven't for years. I put them in a pile, waited until she walked away, and put it in the pile to be shredded. Gone :)
Busted - DH noticed I was shredding folders today from 2001....Yes 2001. I have been issued a cease and desist order from my DH attorney. ;-) ( Shredding shall only continue during hours when he is away.) Seriously he tried to tell me he will refer to our 1999 original house closing paperwork and 2001 flip paperwork if we ever purchase a new construction home again and flip it in 2 years....a) we live in a completely different state, and 2) Really?
This will make going much slower. We have SO MUCH PAPER....
My parents had EVERY SINGLE tax return in their attic, going back to the 60s/70s, whenever they first started filing taxes. Last summer, I made them shred all but the last 10 years. Mom was arguing with me about the paperwork for the house they sold when I was 10 (I'm 30!), and the house they tried to buy but it fell through, and the purchase papers for cars they don't own anymore and haven't for years. I put them in a pile, waited until she walked away, and put it in the pile to be shredded. Gone :)
In the 1980s, we found a tax return from 1925 that my grandfather had saved. In the early 2000s, my father found his tax return from 1952. It was quite amusing to see the numbers and hear them talk about what they could afford in those days on $5,000 a year. (Both returns had the same income.) I'm glad they saved those returns. But I come from a family of accountants, who are amused by such things.
I've been listening to The Minimalists Podcast while decluttering: http://www.theminimalists.com/podcast/
It helps me build momentum. I don't own much but I still find myself with excess.
Things I've sold on cragslist / freecycled / dropped off at salvation army over the last 4+ weeks:
Nintendo 64 + Super Nintendo(this was a hard one but it was sitting in my closet unused for years)
Video games for various consoles I don't even own anymore
Dropped off a bag of various electronic cables, headphones, alarm clock at BestBuy's recycling center
Huge bag of clothes that never fit me or barely wore. I only kept what I actually like wearing.
Sent 3 graduation gowns (elementary, high school and college) to GreenerGrads: https://www.greenergrads.org/
Collected every old CD/DVD/PC software/jewel cases and sent it to CD recycling center: http://www.cdrecyclingcenter.com/
Some things I am working on right now or will be:
- Currently shredding paper that is no longer needed. Does anyone have tips for letting go of old college notebooks? I'm having trouble with this one. I was thinking of scanning but that might take a while :(
- I have a collection of 50 blu rays. I no longer buy movies since I rent them from the library now. I've been thinking of only keeping my favorite 10 and selling the rest.
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- Selling a small AC unit that I haven't put up in the last two summers
- I still have a Wii and 3DS that I never really use anymore. It's just sitting there. I could probably get $250-$300 for this and get myself an acoustic guitar that I'll play everyday.
- Small annoying items and trinkets (key chains, souvenirs, etc.). What do you guys do with these things?
With the key chains etc, if they are in as new condition and usable, I donate those to charity. You can always duck into a couple of thrift shops and see if they sell that sort of thing. Some people collect certain types of souvenirs and I know some of the local op shops here sell stuff like souvenir spoons or unused postcards.
I bet if you hold off on selling the AC for another month, you'll get a higher price for it!
We are moving countries, so its become a massive purge. When you keep moving from country to country (like we do-5th time in our 11 years together!), there is sometimes a tendency not to deal with some of the harder to sort through items because they will just get boxed up and shipped to the next location.
But this time is the first time we have moved, since trying to get more minimalist and it has been epic and kind of freeing.
Boxes of CDs have been copied to our hard drives. The majority of our books have gone. DVDS gone. We don't really buy stuff like this anymore, it is all legacy stuff, that we have been carting around the world.
Boxes of paperwork shredded. Some furniture donated. Bags of clothes donated or chucked out.
Yay!!! Our machine is totally lean and we love it. One thing still to work on is digitizing old photos. It was a bridge too far this time but we will get it done in our next country.
Have you ever used these notebooks for your work/hobbies since you graduated? Is the material still relevant to what you do? If so, then it may be worth your time to scan them. Factor in how much you are paid per hour by how many hours it would take to scan them in, then see if it's worth your time and effort. It very well may not be. Best of luck to you.
- Currently shredding paper that is no longer needed. Does anyone have tips for letting go of old college notebooks? I'm having trouble with this one. I was thinking of scanning but that might take a while :(
Does anyone have tips for letting go of old college notebooks? I'm having trouble with this one. I was thinking of scanning but that might take a while
Does anyone have tips for letting go of old college notebooks? I'm having trouble with this one. I was thinking of scanning but that might take a while
When was the last time you looked at any of these notebooks?
I got rid of all my syllabi and tests 8 years after graduation. I had kept them because some of the classes had weird names and it was useful to be able to defend what information I had learned in that class if an employer or grad school asked me about them. (My first job, I actually did this. But once I had established myself in my field, I no longer needed them.)
I hung onto them way too long.
Chances are, your notebooks never get looked at. I would just get rid of them.
What happens if you get rid of them and you need the information. Don't you think there is a book or webpage out there where you could find it?
Does anyone have tips for letting go of old college notebooks? I'm having trouble with this one. I was thinking of scanning but that might take a while
When was the last time you looked at any of these notebooks?
I got rid of all my syllabi and tests 8 years after graduation. I had kept them because some of the classes had weird names and it was useful to be able to defend what information I had learned in that class if an employer or grad school asked me about them. (My first job, I actually did this. But once I had established myself in my field, I no longer needed them.)
I hung onto them way too long.
Chances are, your notebooks never get looked at. I would just get rid of them.
What happens if you get rid of them and you need the information. Don't you think there is a book or webpage out there where you could find it?
Unless you're an academic. Then keep them in hard copy or scanned copy, but keep them. Currently getting a lot of mileage out of notebooks that are decades old from my own grad school days. The professor from those old classes is dead, I'm teaching a new course for the first time in the fall, and it's giving me real insight into how to do it on a daily basis, more than I could get from a syllabus or course outline.
Does anyone have tips for letting go of old college notebooks? I'm having trouble with this one. I was thinking of scanning but that might take a while
Why not just keep them for now, more than likely you'll recycle them next go round if not before.
This weekend I took a pair of pants that were too small, and a blouse that was too big to the consignment store. It's not big money, but it helps a little bit.
I have given away 50 liters of "Stuff",
a box of books (which is practically a first- I have 4 bookshelves and a Kindle), donated 5 bags of clothes, and donated 1 bag of textiles to H&M's Close the Loop initiative.
This weekend I took a pair of pants that were too small, and a blouse that was too big to the consignment store. It's not big money, but it helps a little bit.
Money in your pocket is better than something sitting in your closet that just takes up space.
a box of books (which is practically a first- I have 4 bookshelves and a Kindle), donated 5 bags of clothes, and donated 1 bag of textiles to H&M's Close the Loop initiative.
I googled this but it wasn't obvious to me how it works. What exactly did you do? Sounds like a great idea.
wow, wonder if someone was getting kicked out. You might want to check on that somehow.
wow, wonder if someone was getting kicked out. You might want to check on that somehow.
It's been going on for months. All winter, at least. Now, a hoarder, I can see - except this stuff is in good shape.
Does anyone know if old prescription eyeglasses can be donated? Googling tells me that they are best recycled or thrown away, since they're not easily reusable, but I wanted to double-check before throwing them out. If it helps, I'm in California. I've also got some disposable daily-use contact lenses, but I don't know if those can be donated either.
Does anyone know if old prescription eyeglasses can be donated? Googling tells me that they are best recycled or thrown away, since they're not easily reusable, but I wanted to double-check before throwing them out. If it helps, I'm in California. I've also got some disposable daily-use contact lenses, but I don't know if those can be donated either.
Does anyone know if old prescription eyeglasses can be donated? Googling tells me that they are best recycled or thrown away, since they're not easily reusable, but I wanted to double-check before throwing them out. If it helps, I'm in California. I've also got some disposable daily-use contact lenses, but I don't know if those can be donated either.
The Lions Club here keeps a donation box out at the public library specifically for prescription glasses. Definitely they can be reused unless there's some California law or something?
wow, wonder if someone was getting kicked out. You might want to check on that somehow.
It's been going on for months. All winter, at least. Now, a hoarder, I can see - except this stuff is in good shape.
That's super strange.
Glad you're profiting at least.
They don't have the cash to store it in a storage unit over summer or any way to transport it back home on the plane/train. They might make an attempt at Craigslist, but when you absolutely have to be gone within 24 hours of your last exam, waiting around for several weeks for someone to finally bite isn't really an option.wow, wonder if someone was getting kicked out. You might want to check on that somehow.
It's been going on for months. All winter, at least. Now, a hoarder, I can see - except this stuff is in good shape.
That's super strange.
Glad you're profiting at least.
I live in a college town, and some of the students are super wasteful and fill the curbs with decent furniture and household items every July. We have lots of "pickers" in town, so you have to be on top of it & have a truck!
I bagged up 6 bags of clothes and shoes and Kondo'd my closet and dresser. I do have to say opening my drawers now is amazing every time.
I also boxed up books, but I don't know where to take them? Any recommendations?
They don't have the cash to store it in a storage unit over summer or any way to transport it back home on the plane/train. They might make an attempt at Craigslist, but when you absolutely have to be gone within 24 hours of your last exam, waiting around for several weeks for someone to finally bite isn't really an option.
I live in a college town, and some of the students are super wasteful and fill the curbs with decent furniture and household items every July. We have lots of "pickers" in town, so you have to be on top of it & have a truck!
Took six boxes of stuff to church garage sale. Mostly my stuff - but some kids toys they have outgrown.
I realized that I couldn't de-clutter all by myself, I live with three other pack rats. I read The Magic Art... from the library a couple of months ago and had a revelation, if the other pack rats read this book too, it might be easier. I was going away for a conference so I bought the book and left it on hubbies pillow. He was on page 22 when I got back and he is continuing to read it. It has become a source of good material to mock me with but he went into DD's room last night and told her she must read the book when he is finished (I didn't think he would read as much as he has - and he plans on finishing it!!!!!!) My DH is not a big reader so this is epic. My son is just observing from the sidelines at this point but he is the tidiest of us all so no big deal. This morning while getting some laundry my hubby says "this room would be huge without all those toys' I am dreaming of spaciousness!
I bagged up 6 bags of clothes and shoes and Kondo'd my closet and dresser.
Yes Frugal Lizard - it is amazing how much stuff we all have. I went through one bookshelf and found a book I distinctly remember buying at the bookstore. It was 21 years old. I never read it, but just hauled it around and dusted it for 21 YEARS!! Read it in one night and donated it. Goodbye forever.
When I don't have time, I put things out on the curb on Saturday morning with a 'Free' sign, and they're usually gone by mid-afternoon.
Spring has arrived! Woot!
Yesterday:
Returned two Mason jars from last year's canning season to a chicken owning friend. I also gave her a stack of egg cartons.
Up-cycled two magazines and a catalog to my sister.
I neglected to bring used toner and ink cartridges for recycling. Bummed.
This weekend I'm (finally!) going to go through old (clean!) towels and sheets to donate to the local animal shelter.
I also threw away a skirt and shirt I've had for about as long. The skirt had carefully placed safety pins, and the shirt had at least two pin sized holes. Apparently I find it difficult to spend money on myself.
I also threw away a skirt and shirt I've had for about as long. The skirt had carefully placed safety pins, and the shirt had at least two pin sized holes. Apparently I find it difficult to spend money on myself.
haha, me too. Last week I was at work, happened to look down, and realized the top I was wearing had 3 little holes, each about the width of a pencil tip, down the front. I have no idea how old it was. It got tossed - as I told Boyfriend, we are not so destitute that I have to hang onto holey clothing that never fit me properly in the first place!
I finally took a huge bag of stuff to the Salvation Army. It's been too long since my last trip. BUT I'm motivated to start purging again!It's hit me too - I think it might be the changing seasons.
I finally took a huge bag of stuff to the Salvation Army. It's been too long since my last trip. BUT I'm motivated to start purging again!It's hit me too - I think it might be the changing seasons.
I unpacked my summer stuff and prepped winter things for storage yesterday. I know Marie Kondo says to keep everything out year round, but there is stuff I really couldn't wear from either season, and I prefer having fewer 'options' hanging in my wardrobe.
Took the opportunity to weed out a few things - I was surprised to find about 10 things to go to the charity shop. I got rid of three belts, which made me realise I have way too many if I won't even miss those. Whilst I don't feel like I'm in decluttering mode anymore, the constant maintenance is surprising me, even though I am so strict about bringing things into the house.
I'm torn. I have a broken necklace. I never especially loved it, but I wore it occasionally. It is probably gold - it was about $100 (I returned a wedding present and there was nothing else in the store I liked and I didn't have a receipt). There is a store that I know does repairs on jewelry, and it looks like a quick solder is all it needs.
Do I just throw out the necklace? Get it repaired and donate it? Get it repaired and keep it? Put it up broken on Craig's List as a freebie? Other idea?
It takes up very little physical space, but a surprising amount of mental space.
Cleared out another square of an expedit. They are great for being able to see progress! I've got 5 free spaces in expedite in different rooms, but also stuff in piles on the floor. New, easily trackable goal: no more piles and 3 more free spaces. Then I can rearrange the storage in the house again and get rid of a piece of furniture (bookshelf or an expedit).What is an expedit?
Are we speaking Ikea Swedish?
We are, my apologies. They're shelving with square spaces, and are in 90% of homes here, pretty sure. The square spaces are about 13" by 13" by 13".Cleared out another square of an expedit. They are great for being able to see progress! I've got 5 free spaces in expedite in different rooms, but also stuff in piles on the floor. New, easily trackable goal: no more piles and 3 more free spaces. Then I can rearrange the storage in the house again and get rid of a piece of furniture (bookshelf or an expedit).What is an expedit?
I feel like we've been purging for months! Actually, I think we have, but we're slow.
We really needed new carpet (existing was approaching 3 decades old), which meant the "catch all" room had to get cleared out, along with all the closets. We got the carpet last week (ooooh, cushy!) and as we slowly put stuff back in an orderly manner, lots more is getting donated.
But where does it all come from?!?
Last night we emptied the attic. ACK! What a disaster. It ended up a mountain of old sports equipment. Were talking skis, more skis, lacrosse equipment, vollyballs, tennis balls, baseballs, footballs. OMG I think hubby kept every single sporting item he has owned for the last 30 years!
On holiday and living out of a suitcase right now which is giving me renewed motivation to go home and declutter. I clearly don't need all those clothes I never wear!
Set up DH in the study with box of his paperwork and instructions on a whiteboard. YAY. Only un-reproducable records will be kept, everything else is getting recyled with a few documents to be selected for scanning. That's 1/4 m3 I'm happy to see go.So much went out! The recycling bin is full this week.
Off to enjoy the sunshine and pull weeds.
It was travelling with only carry on that started me on this journey! It is so great not to have to drop bags off, and leave them with reception, or worry about where they are being unable to leave the car places because there's stuff on the backseat or whatever. I've done this on various lengths and types of trip now, including large temperature variations, and city / hiking stops on the same trip, and I'm never going back.On holiday and living out of a suitcase right now which is giving me renewed motivation to go home and declutter. I clearly don't need all those clothes I never wear!
+1 Just went on holiday with only hand luggage and it was so liberating to have so few possessions to think about. Of course, mentioning this made DH a very nervous man.
It was travelling with only carry on that started me on this journey! It is so great not to have to drop bags off, and leave them with reception, or worry about where they are being unable to leave the car places because there's stuff on the backseat or whatever. I've done this on various lengths and types of trip now, including large temperature variations, and city / hiking stops on the same trip, and I'm never going back.On holiday and living out of a suitcase right now which is giving me renewed motivation to go home and declutter. I clearly don't need all those clothes I never wear!
+1 Just went on holiday with only hand luggage and it was so liberating to have so few possessions to think about. Of course, mentioning this made DH a very nervous man.
I know it's annoying for other passengers when everyone has their luggage on board, but no frills airlines have given mustachians only one option!
Any tips or resources? I'm the girl who can pack a 50.5lb bag (the max SW airlines allowed for free) for a 3 day trip... and we're going to Italy for 2 weeks and planning to do it in a 50L backpack (one for me, one for him at least).
It was travelling with only carry on that started me on this journey! It is so great not to have to drop bags off, and leave them with reception, or worry about where they are being unable to leave the car places because there's stuff on the backseat or whatever. I've done this on various lengths and types of trip now, including large temperature variations, and city / hiking stops on the same trip, and I'm never going back.On holiday and living out of a suitcase right now which is giving me renewed motivation to go home and declutter. I clearly don't need all those clothes I never wear!
+1 Just went on holiday with only hand luggage and it was so liberating to have so few possessions to think about. Of course, mentioning this made DH a very nervous man.
I know it's annoying for other passengers when everyone has their luggage on board, but no frills airlines have given mustachians only one option!
Any tips or resources? I'm the girl who can pack a 50.5lb bag (the max SW airlines allowed for free) for a 3 day trip... and we're going to Italy for 2 weeks and planning to do it in a 50L backpack (one for me, one for him at least).
It was travelling with only carry on that started me on this journey! It is so great not to have to drop bags off, and leave them with reception, or worry about where they are being unable to leave the car places because there's stuff on the backseat or whatever. I've done this on various lengths and types of trip now, including large temperature variations, and city / hiking stops on the same trip, and I'm never going back.On holiday and living out of a suitcase right now which is giving me renewed motivation to go home and declutter. I clearly don't need all those clothes I never wear!
+1 Just went on holiday with only hand luggage and it was so liberating to have so few possessions to think about. Of course, mentioning this made DH a very nervous man.
I know it's annoying for other passengers when everyone has their luggage on board, but no frills airlines have given mustachians only one option!
Any tips or resources? I'm the girl who can pack a 50.5lb bag (the max SW airlines allowed for free) for a 3 day trip... and we're going to Italy for 2 weeks and planning to do it in a 50L backpack (one for me, one for him at least).
http://www.onebag.com/ All you need to know about traveling with only carry-on. Also links to other sites available in case, like me, you get facinated with this.
Any tips or resources? I'm the girl who can pack a 50.5lb bag (the max SW airlines allowed for free) for a 3 day trip... and we're going to Italy for 2 weeks and planning to do it in a 50L backpack (one for me, one for him at least).
Any tips or resources? I'm the girl who can pack a 50.5lb bag (the max SW airlines allowed for free) for a 3 day trip... and we're going to Italy for 2 weeks and planning to do it in a 50L backpack (one for me, one for him at least).
This is really nerdy but I made myself a spreadsheet. It lists where we are staying, the average temperature for the time of year (av. high and low), and what kind of activity we might do during the day and evening.
It was plenty and I had loads of choice. You just add layers for colder weather, and take them off for warmer. I stick to navy / white as the 'base' colour for bottoms and cardigans, and tops / scarves etc in bright colours all mix in nicely.
Also: I don't have kids and am generally not a messy person. Also, planning my vacation, down to packing, is a lot of the fun of it for me. I know this system will not work for people who hate organising and spill stuff constantly.
Any tips or resources? I'm the girl who can pack a 50.5lb bag (the max SW airlines allowed for free) for a 3 day trip... and we're going to Italy for 2 weeks and planning to do it in a 50L backpack (one for me, one for him at least).
This is really nerdy but I made myself a spreadsheet. It lists where we are staying, the average temperature for the time of year (av. high and low), and what kind of activity we might do during the day and evening.
[...]
On the 'day planner' tab I select the clothes from a drop down linked to the second tab showing me what clothes I think I will take. I then use a 'count-if' function to tell me how many times I plan to wear each item on the trip. For a trip of 10 days + if something is not being worn 3 times MINIMUM I remove it, and reallocate something else those days.
As a fellow de-clutterer this NHK TV programme appeared in my Facebook feed this morning; Marie Kondo, KonMari, 'The Life Changing Magic of Tidying':
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/vod/konmari/20160507.html
I have make up. It's all out of date according to "use by" guidelines. It's surprisingly hard to part with, because what if I want to do my makeup for some event in the future?...
...well, I'll have to buy new makeup anyway because it's unhygenic to use old stuff on your face. Does infrequently used makeup have a longer use-by date?
I have make up. It's all out of date according to "use by" guidelines. It's surprisingly hard to part with, because what if I want to do my makeup for some event in the future?...
...well, I'll have to buy new makeup anyway because it's unhygenic to use old stuff on your face. Does infrequently used makeup have a longer use-by date?
I'm no expert but what I do is: throw out mascara 3-6 months after opening, throw out eyeshadow that's more than a couple of years old and the rest I keep until i use it up or if I'm a bit suspicious about it for whatever reason. I'm a lot more careful about makeup for the eyes than anywhere else because infections can be dangerous.
I have make up. It's all out of date according to "use by" guidelines. It's surprisingly hard to part with, because what if I want to do my makeup for some event in the future?...
...well, I'll have to buy new makeup anyway because it's unhygenic to use old stuff on your face. Does infrequently used makeup have a longer use-by date?
I'm no expert but what I do is: throw out mascara 3-6 months after opening, throw out eyeshadow that's more than a couple of years old and the rest I keep until i use it up or if I'm a bit suspicious about it for whatever reason. I'm a lot more careful about makeup for the eyes than anywhere else because infections can be dangerous.
+1. Be careful with eye stuff. Otherwise: I'm fairly sure powder products (powder blush and foundation) stay good for years whereas liquid products really do 'turn' in my limited experience.
Makeup / bathroom products are on my list to purge within the next few weeks!
I have make up. It's all out of date according to "use by" guidelines. It's surprisingly hard to part with, because what if I want to do my makeup for some event in the future?...
...well, I'll have to buy new makeup anyway because it's unhygenic to use old stuff on your face. Does infrequently used makeup have a longer use-by date?
I'm no expert but what I do is: throw out mascara 3-6 months after opening, throw out eyeshadow that's more than a couple of years old and the rest I keep until i use it up or if I'm a bit suspicious about it for whatever reason. I'm a lot more careful about makeup for the eyes than anywhere else because infections can be dangerous.
+1. Be careful with eye stuff. Otherwise: I'm fairly sure powder products (powder blush and foundation) stay good for years whereas liquid products really do 'turn' in my limited experience.
Makeup / bathroom products are on my list to purge within the next few weeks!
I have make up. It's all out of date according to "use by" guidelines. It's surprisingly hard to part with, because what if I want to do my makeup for some event in the future?...
...well, I'll have to buy new makeup anyway because it's unhygenic to use old stuff on your face. Does infrequently used makeup have a longer use-by date?
The last three weeks we have sold or thrown away about 30,000 pounds of stuff (no joke) downsizing from a 5000 sqft house with 5 car garage to a 200 sqft RV+sailboat
A massive decluttering. Still have about 5,000 pounds to go though.
The last three weeks we have sold or thrown away about 30,000 pounds of stuff (no joke) downsizing from a 5000 sqft house with 5 car garage to a 200 sqft RV+sailboat
A massive decluttering. Still have about 5,000 pounds to go though.
Good god. :)
The last three weeks we have sold or thrown away about 30,000 pounds of stuff (no joke) downsizing from a 5000 sqft house with 5 car garage to a 200 sqft RV+sailboat
A massive decluttering. Still have about 5,000 pounds to go though.
Good god. :)
Yeah! Holy cow, how did I miss that!? That is a serious change in lifestyle. Any reason things are happening that drastically?
The last three weeks we have sold or thrown away about 30,000 pounds of stuff (no joke) downsizing from a 5000 sqft house with 5 car garage to a 200 sqft RV+sailboat
A massive decluttering. Still have about 5,000 pounds to go though.
Good god. :)
Yeah! Holy cow, how did I miss that!? That is a serious change in lifestyle. Any reason things are happening that drastically?
Because Roland is a bad ass who built his own RV (http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/homeless-in-30-days!) (with workshop).
Oh wow! That's amazing.
On a slight different note, I've found that it's a LOT easier to pack with a decluttered wardrobe. If you only have clothes that you love and wear a lot, then packing is simple - anything you pack is something you love.
Super helpful! Thank you so much.
I cleared out all the cables I had lying around. This wasn't even hard-core decluttering, just throwing out stuff that I could say with 100% certainty that I would never need again.Getting rid of that pile looks satisfying!
I cleared out all the cables I had lying around. This wasn't even hard-core decluttering, just throwing out stuff that I could say with 100% certainty that I would never need again.
If in the US, Best Buy accepts cables for recycling. They have drop off boxes right by the entrance to the store.I cleared out all the cables I had lying around. This wasn't even hard-core decluttering, just throwing out stuff that I could say with 100% certainty that I would never need again.
I'm not sure about where you are, but here we can take old power cables to the scrap metal dealers. They are keen on the copper etc in the cables so will recycle them.
I cleared out all the cables I had lying around. This wasn't even hard-core decluttering, just throwing out stuff that I could say with 100% certainty that I would never need again.
I'm not sure about where you are, but here we can take old power cables to the scrap metal dealers. They are keen on the copper etc in the cables so will recycle them.
Who has actually sold or donated a piano recently? We've exhausted our friends and co-workers with offers to give our piano (a nice petite grand) away as long as they pay the moving costs (to no avail). Seems to be a glut of pianos on the market, and eBay and craigslist have proven to only attract dead end offers.
Thoughts?
Who has actually sold or donated a piano recently? We've exhausted our friends and co-workers with offers to give our piano (a nice petite grand) away as long as they pay the moving costs (to no avail). Seems to be a glut of pianos on the market, and eBay and craigslist have proven to only attract dead end offers.
Thoughts?
Who has actually sold or donated a piano recently? We've exhausted our friends and co-workers with offers to give our piano (a nice petite grand) away as long as they pay the moving costs (to no avail). Seems to be a glut of pianos on the market, and eBay and craigslist have proven to only attract dead end offers.
Thoughts?
Who has actually sold or donated a piano recently? We've exhausted our friends and co-workers with offers to give our piano (a nice petite grand) away as long as they pay the moving costs (to no avail). Seems to be a glut of pianos on the market, and eBay and craigslist have proven to only attract dead end offers.
Thoughts?
I'd almost suggest painting "Play Me, I'm Yours" and just putting it in a park. :-)
The problem is usually getting it out of the house in one piece, especially if it is not on the main floor. I had a pool table to sell/give away and ended up demolishing it to get my space back. No-one wanted it.Any schools around you can offer it to?Who has actually sold or donated a piano recently? We've exhausted our friends and co-workers with offers to give our piano (a nice petite grand) away as long as they pay the moving costs (to no avail). Seems to be a glut of pianos on the market, and eBay and craigslist have proven to only attract dead end offers.
Thoughts?
I'd almost suggest painting "Play Me, I'm Yours" and just putting it in a park. :-)
Who has actually sold or donated a piano recently? We've exhausted our friends and co-workers with offers to give our piano (a nice petite grand) away as long as they pay the moving costs (to no avail). Seems to be a glut of pianos on the market, and eBay and craigslist have proven to only attract dead end offers.
Thoughts?
I'd almost suggest painting "Play Me, I'm Yours" and just putting it in a park. :-)
Sorted out all the rags we keep for messy jobs and home improvement work. I designated an ikea bin and decided we could have whatever would fit in there. Went through every rag and it really made me see which were the most useful types. The rest are going to recycling.What a great result! I am pretty much in the same situation as you are. Cleaning is a breeze now! And the peaceful feeling in the house is priceless...
Yesterday I had a day off. I was looking forward to pottering round the house, doing jobs, tidying, a bit of cleaning, just generally making things look nice. I was struck - not for the first time since my major decluttering last year - by how easy my life is now. I looked around and there was literally nothing to do.
Nothing to put back in its place (except for one remote control). No piles that needed to be taken upstairs, or from one room to another. No papers piled high that needed to be dealt with. Nothing to repair or mend or procrastinate over. Just a peaceful house.
I had a lovely day, but I had unused house-cleaning energy, so I dusted. Now I don't have anything blocking my way, it took, and I am not exaggerating, 2 mins to do every surface in my living room. DH had done upstairs at the weekend as it is so easy now we just do it without thinking.
Previously, cleaning was a big onerous job, because you had to move so much stuff, find somewhere to put it, put it all back etc. The dust was worse because we did it less often, and it got spread about by moving things back and forth.
Thank you for this thread!
Us too! We've got a quarterly rent inspection, and instead of spending evenings tidying so we could get to stuff to clean it, we just started cleaning! I even washed the windows and the inside of the oven.Sorted out all the rags we keep for messy jobs and home improvement work. I designated an ikea bin and decided we could have whatever would fit in there. Went through every rag and it really made me see which were the most useful types. The rest are going to recycling.What a great result! I am pretty much in the same situation as you are. Cleaning is a breeze now! And the peaceful feeling in the house is priceless...
Yesterday I had a day off. I was looking forward to pottering round the house, doing jobs, tidying, a bit of cleaning, just generally making things look nice. I was struck - not for the first time since my major decluttering last year - by how easy my life is now. I looked around and there was literally nothing to do.
Nothing to put back in its place (except for one remote control). No piles that needed to be taken upstairs, or from one room to another. No papers piled high that needed to be dealt with. Nothing to repair or mend or procrastinate over. Just a peaceful house.
I had a lovely day, but I had unused house-cleaning energy, so I dusted. Now I don't have anything blocking my way, it took, and I am not exaggerating, 2 mins to do every surface in my living room. DH had done upstairs at the weekend as it is so easy now we just do it without thinking.
Previously, cleaning was a big onerous job, because you had to move so much stuff, find somewhere to put it, put it all back etc. The dust was worse because we did it less often, and it got spread about by moving things back and forth.
Thank you for this thread!
What a great result! I am pretty much in the same situation as you are. Cleaning is a breeze now! And the peaceful feeling in the house is priceless...
I am taking a couple of items to consignment this afternoon. I have also packed a large tote bag with clothes and stuff for donation. DD has gone through her closet and added a few items too.
I've noticed that life is much easier when my choices are limited. Sure it's nice to have lots of options, but mentally I am a lot calmer and less anxious if I have to make fewer choices: clothes, shoes, etc. So I will continue simplifying my surroundings to achieve as much of that as I can.
Got a check for $76 for consignment items sold over the last month.
I've been reading up on Project 333 and am really tempted to give it a try. Now would be a good time, I guess, since it's a start of a new season. Hmmm...
I try to cash out - if I see something I want to buy, I pay for it separately. Having to pull out my credit card makes me think harder about the purchases I am making and avoid temptation :-)
Got a check for $76 for consignment items sold over the last month.
I've been reading up on Project 333 and am really tempted to give it a try. Now would be a good time, I guess, since it's a start of a new season. Hmmm...
I don't usually cash out at the consignment, but use it to buy more stuff. I think I'll try asking for the cash this time! Taking my own bag of stuff in later today, so perfect time to read this post. :)
leaving the apartment for 2 months travel. Only had to throw out 1.5 cups plain yogurt, 3 flour tortillas and half a cup of milk. Boyfriend took a block of cream cheese and a head of garlic. That's pretty dang good. Had the last of the eggs, cheese and black beans for breakfast.
A friend asked what I wanted for my birthday. Obviously couldn't think of anything. I said I'm trying to cut down on possessions (and gave a plausible reason that didn't come across as "I don't like material things and I think I'm better than you", I hope).
I suggested getting my nails done or something as I really really don't want any stuff, and I couldn't think of anything I did want experience-wise except a massage, which is really too expensive. We always treat each other to a cheap dinner out, so I couldn't ask for that!
I hope she didn't mind this suggestion. She did ask after all. Well, we'll see. I'll be genuinely happy with anything, I just felt on the spot and it was all I could think of!
I have a good friend that has a birthday in June. We both have enough stuff, and don't really need anything. I've started buying flowers for her gift. Sometimes it's a planter with everything already in bloom, or plants for her garden. This year she will get 2 pots of dayliles to plant at the cottage. Dig a hole, plunk them in - done in 5 minutes. Nothing to store, nothing to look after, but something she can look at, and remember her birthday and friend. Could you just ask for a small bouquet of your favourite flowers?
I seriously weeded before I moved--but what I do have I can actually find now.I have to do this, and it hurts, I don't want to get rid of any of them! I often want to reread a book, and it is great having it in the house. Can you describe your thought processes? How you decided what to keep and what to get rid of?
Noodle, it may be TMI to share, but who is your comfort fantasy author? I have several favourites, but one is the one whose collected works would keep me sane on a desert island.
Well, if I can find value (hard for some of them, they are so old) the insurance is paying replacement cost. Most of them are still on amazon.ca if not an actual bookstore - most were non-fiction.Noodle, it may be TMI to share, but who is your comfort fantasy author? I have several favourites, but one is the one whose collected works would keep me sane on a desert island.
I am sorry for the loss of your books!
Terry Pratchett...and honestly, a big reason I keep all his books is that he is so beloved it can be difficult to lay hands on the books through the library--a long wait, or their copies have been worn out or lost and not replaced. I rarely even see them in used book stores and the used price + shipping on Amazon is not much less than buying a new copy.
For books I wasn't sure about, it was helpful to remember that between inter-library loan and Amazon used books, a lot of books could be revisited or reacquired fairly cheaply. I haven't actually wanted to get any of them back, but knowing I could helped me let go.
Actually, does anyone know an easy way to cut and paste excerpts from a Kindle or Kobo book to Word or WordPerfect?
I believe that you should be able to use the Kindle Desktop app (maybe even the cloud app where you read it in a browser), and you should be able to just highlight the relevant parts, ctrl+C and ctrl+V (to paste) into Word. If that doesn't work, feel free to PM me. I know for sure a way to make it work, but set up is a bit more involved.And my Kindle for PC is outdated (and do is my actual Kindle). Now i have to update it before I can try anything.
I seriously weeded before I moved--but what I do have I can actually find now.I have to do this, and it hurts, I don't want to get rid of any of them! I often want to reread a book, and it is great having it in the house. Can you describe your thought processes? How you decided what to keep and what to get rid of?
Oooh, I totally have a wrapping paper storage bin! Not ready to get rid of that as I love wrapping presents nicely - although there are fewer since I decided that gift cards were totally acceptable for certain gifts. Good idea about more generic paper though.
This morning, I threw away *almost* all of my notes from the MA I completed over a decade ago. Ruthless doesn't come easily to me.
Oooh, I totally have a wrapping paper storage bin! Not ready to get rid of that as I love wrapping presents nicely - although there are fewer since I decided that gift cards were totally acceptable for certain gifts. Good idea about more generic paper though.
This morning, I threw away *almost* all of my notes from the MA I completed over a decade ago. Ruthless doesn't come easily to me.
Yeah I enjoy the art of wrapping too! I've decided plain paper + lovely ribbons will have to be sufficient. Otherwise I just have 10 half empty rolls of very specific paper and since our place is so small it was too much. I always save ribbons and they tuck away nicely.
From now on I am only buying generic paper which can be used for birthday / Christmas and any gender or age. Simplicity! I tucked the one silver roll and the brown paper used for parcels in with the packing supplies. Feels great.
I like stamps, so I have some ink and a few stamps :) so many nice ways to personalise plain paper!From now on I am only buying generic paper which can be used for birthday / Christmas and any gender or age. Simplicity! I tucked the one silver roll and the brown paper used for parcels in with the packing supplies. Feels great.
I've also decided to only use unbleached kraft paper from now on. I personalize the wrapping with a couple of stickers (butterflies, dinosaurs, flowers,...) depending on the interests of the recipient.
Sticker sheets take so less space than wrapping rolls!
Cousin from CA is here visiting....She said "how do you have so little clutter"....1) I've been reading this thread, 2) I did some KonMari method, and 3) I have a basement hiding place for crap - no one in CA has a basement....
Must clean out basement, must clean out basement....
Cousin from CA is here visiting....She said "how do you have so little clutter"....1) I've been reading this thread, 2) I did some KonMari method, and 3) I have a basement hiding place for crap - no one in CA has a basement....
Must clean out basement, must clean out basement....
UPDATING to "almost no one has a basement in CA...." ;-)
I have a basement in CA :P
Epic decluttering in the Fig house lately. Posting here to remind me how far we've come!
Given to charity shop: lots of stationery, folders and notebooks, wooden box, chair support, other sundry items.
Taken by people in our building: noticeboard, unused calendar, coathangers, large and frankly unattractive plant I've kept for 12 years
Binned/shredded/recycled: unfinished sewing project, unused fabric, more stationery, old wrapping paper, gift bags and ribbons*, beloved but decrepit Doc Martens, about 30 pens/pencils, old jars, old candles and many, many papers. Also a tippy-over vase which broke during whilst awaiting donation; the world is better off without it.
Electronics recycling: two computer monitors, toothbrush, old camera, old mp3 player
And yet more things I can't recall. Really enjoying this but still to work through: books (no!), clothes (ugh), sentimental stuff (ouch), kitchen.
* Inspired by theadvicist - thank you!
I definitely identify with the reluctance to put away clothes.
Over the weekend I was staring down two baskets of ironing, with another load of washing on the line, and our sole, small wardrobe is full.
I believe in decluttering over storage solutions, but I think I'm going to have to rearrange things and come up with a better solution.
I definitely identify with the reluctance to put away clothes.
Over the weekend I was staring down two baskets of ironing, with another load of washing on the line, and our sole, small wardrobe is full.
I believe in decluttering over storage solutions, but I think I'm going to have to rearrange things and come up with a better solution.
I agree decluttering > storage solutions. Like you (I think) I'm happy my level of stuff and the choices it affords me, but the place I am keeping it doesn't work for me. As long as you are not creating more storage space to accumulate more, I think reworking it so the space is more in line with your priorities is a good thing. I really don't know how I can go about doing it in my space, but yes, a better solution is necessary.
Pairing down really is leading to living life with 'less resistance'. I owe Marie Kondo a lot!
I had the same issue (except mine never got rid of anything, so he had shirts that were clearly way out of style). I have seen so many couples where the husband uses more of the clothes space than the wife. Where did this myth come from that women have masses of stuff and men have so little?
My husband's clothes are the main cause of the frustration. He travels overseas for work, so he has a whole drawer full of cold weather gear he wears a few times a year. He has a couple of suits for the handful of occasions that require one. He is given branded/promo merchandise through work which isn't even remotely what I would buy for him (most recently an expensive white Gore-Tex jacket).
I've culled my wardrobe, I'm successfully creating a capsule wardrobe, and I still can't enjoy the fruits of my labour because I share the space with things like 25-30 baseball caps.
Apologies for the rant.
I had the same issue (except mine never got rid of anything, so he had shirts that were clearly way out of style). I have seen so many couples where the husband uses more of the clothes space than the wife. Where did this myth come from that women have masses of stuff and men have so little?
My husband's clothes are the main cause of the frustration. He travels overseas for work, so he has a whole drawer full of cold weather gear he wears a few times a year. He has a couple of suits for the handful of occasions that require one. He is given branded/promo merchandise through work which isn't even remotely what I would buy for him (most recently an expensive white Gore-Tex jacket).
I've culled my wardrobe, I'm successfully creating a capsule wardrobe, and I still can't enjoy the fruits of my labour because I share the space with things like 25-30 baseball caps.
Apologies for the rant.
Years ago when I decluttered, I put tape on the bars right in the middle, and told him this half is yours, that half is mine - because otherwise his stuff would have moved into all the nice space I had cleared. Maybe if you claim half, and he has to figure out what to do with his? Things he uses rarely don't deserve prime storage space. Those of us in variable climates know all about shifting the warm weather clothes and the cold weather clothes twice a year. I don't need easy access to my -30C coat and boots right now, when the high is 28C ;-) He doesn't need easy access to the cold weather gear and the suits, as long as they are stored someplace that will keep them in good shape. I can't help with the baseball caps, I had to live with 15-20 visors (golfers love them, I hate them because the top of my head is not protected from the sun).
I don't know if that was any help, but know you have my sympathy. ;-)
I'm another woman whose husband has significantly more clothes.
I'm another woman whose husband has significantly more clothes.
Me too- way more clothes. Though I mostly buy them... it's just easier to find good stuff, inexpensively for him.
I wish I was the only person buying my husband's clothes. He buys things in bulk and holds on to the older items.I'm another woman whose husband has significantly more clothes.
Me too- way more clothes. Though I mostly buy them... it's just easier to find good stuff, inexpensively for him.
I'm another woman whose husband has significantly more clothes.
Oh my God I had such an epic fail today.
Called up a charity to take away my furniture. They sent a truck around this morning to pick up a lounge, recliner, dining table and chairs, and a mattress.
- Lounge and recliner were "too faded" (bullshit)
- Dining table would not fit through the door... I politely asked them how do you think I got it in the door in the first place?
- They won't take the mattress (fair enough, nobody will want a 15 year old mattress, even if it looks ok)
- Since they didn't take the table, they left the chairs and said "book us again when you disassemble the table"
Bugger
I have a little card that says "5 things or 5 minutes" and when I see it I go around and do that. I either get rid of five things - even if they are five pieces of scrap paper! - or I spend five minutes tidying up.
I was looking at my closet last night and realized that, even after packing only what I thought I'd need when I moved cross country (via airline with checked luggage), the majority of clothing occupying my closet never gets worn.
It might be time for another round of clothing disposal!
Hmm feng shui de-cluttering books sound like a neat genre. I just made myself a "5 Things or 5 Minutes" post-it. At some point I'll have to make a pretty card :)
I've been doing really well clearing out but now I'm at my childhood home facing a big struggle. Just found my college, school and undergrad projects and a lot of old notes and cards. This is hard!
I've been doing really well clearing out but now I'm at my childhood home facing a big struggle. Just found my college, school and undergrad projects and a lot of old notes and cards. This is hard!
Have you missed ANY of them? If not, clear sign that you don't actually need them anymore.
I've been doing really well clearing out but now I'm at my childhood home facing a big struggle. Just found my college, school and undergrad projects and a lot of old notes and cards. This is hard!
An opportunity has suddenly presented itself and we might be moving, very soon.I like opportunities presenting themselves, I see it as payback from the universe for all the rest of the crap.
We are still deciding, but while we talk and ponder, I went into full decluttering mode today.
Friends have offered to help us move but I'm intensely uncomfortable with people knowing I have possessions. I mean, obviously they know I own things, but I'm known as the decluttering, anti-stuff girl. My skin crawls at the idea of people helping us move and being ... disappointed in me?
Anyway, I started a new tally (whiteboard marker on a mirror) and I'm down 57 things for the day.
An opportunity has suddenly presented itself and we might be moving, very soon.
We are still deciding, but while we talk and ponder, I went into full decluttering mode today.
Friends have offered to help us move but I'm intensely uncomfortable with people knowing I have possessions. I mean, obviously they know I own things, but I'm known as the decluttering, anti-stuff girl. My skin crawls at the idea of people helping us move and being ... disappointed in me?
Anyway, I started a new tally (whiteboard marker on a mirror) and I'm down 57 things for the day.
Friends have offered to help us move but I'm intensely uncomfortable with people knowing I have possessions. I mean, obviously they know I own things, but I'm known as the decluttering, anti-stuff girl. My skin crawls at the idea of people helping us move and being ... disappointed in me?
Anyway, I started a new tally (whiteboard marker on a mirror) and I'm down 57 things for the day.
I've been doing really well clearing out but now I'm at my childhood home facing a big struggle. Just found my college, school and undergrad projects and a lot of old notes and cards. This is hard!Oh yes. I still have the box of index cards all my references were written on for my thesis. I graduated in '75. I think I have gotten rid of most of my old school stuff - being retired from teaching has ended that "But I could use this in class" feeling. As in, I did use the index cards, just to show the students that the mechanics of research are so much easier now, but that they still have to think!
Friends have offered to help us move but I'm intensely uncomfortable with people knowing I have possessions. I mean, obviously they know I own things, but I'm known as the decluttering, anti-stuff girl. My skin crawls at the idea of people helping us move and being ... disappointed in me?
Anyway, I started a new tally (whiteboard marker on a mirror) and I'm down 57 things for the day.
Having to move ALL your stuff is always the moment you fully realize how much stuff you really own. (The last 2 times I moved it really appalled me)
But don't get demotivated by it, just keep calm. Moving can be a nice opportunity to declutter, but it might be wise to wait a little so you can find out what fits for your new place.
I've been doing really well clearing out but now I'm at my childhood home facing a big struggle. Just found my college, school and undergrad projects and a lot of old notes and cards. This is hard!
Oh, Fig! I recently moved and had to figure out what to do with my college papers. I only went to college at the age of 37, and I'm 44 now. Those papers were SO HARD for me to get rid of.
I had to really sit and think about why.
And for me it was that these papers were proof to me that I was smart. I got excellent marks, and had wonderful comments written on my projects by the profs. So I held those and read those comments out loud to myself and patted my own back lots. And then I took a pic with my phone of any of the comments from the profs that I just couldn't part with.
Then I held those papers to my heart and tried to just imagine all that goodness going right into my skin. Deep, deep. So that I wouldn't need the actual papers to prove it to me, anymore, but would have it inside me, carried around inside.
It was still hard! And I did keep one essay that was particularly pleasing to me. :)
What do those papers represent for you? What is it that makes you want to hold on to them?
I ask that from a curious and very open space - I think those papers have value for us and it's worth thinking about it!
Is it possible to allow yourself to keep one thing that sums that up for you? Or even two or three things?
...However, they were also evidence of myself as a thinking and especially a creative person. It struck me very strongly that creativity is lacking from my life, which I need to think about some more.I very much understand this! And how wonderful that you could see that something you would like more of in your life right now is that creativity! :)
Overall though - I've reduced the volume of stuff by almost half, which feels pretty good. Thanks for your suggestions!
My planned hiking trip this weekend got cancelled so I think I will spend the weekend doing another purge of my closet and house in general. I've been at it for a while but it's amazing how many things I decided to keep over the last year that I now realize I don't need at all...
We're moving soon and my boyfriend suggested going through Every item this weekend to see what we can get rid of. As a minimalist I'm extremely excited about this.
We're moving soon and my boyfriend suggested going through Every item this weekend to see what we can get rid of. As a minimalist I'm extremely excited about this.
SO JEALOUS
Anyone else watch Insight on hoarding and minimalism tonight?Nope, but I'll be checking out tomorrow if I can watch it online.
I never know what to do about art supplies, I'm in the process of redecorating and decluttering my room and I came across all my art materials that I really love but they overwhelm me. The thing is, I know I will use the supplies but they take up so much space! And through the decluttering process I find old objects that I can turn into new art projects. Any suggestions on what I should do? I really want the serenity of a clear space but my creativity is important too.I have done it by working out the categories of things in my craft space:
Is it too late to join in? DH and I are moving in less than a month! Although we're essentially doubling our square footage (970 to 1899!), I would still like to make the move easier, and use it as an opportunity to clear things out that we don't need anymore!This is a rolling thread, never too late to join :)
The funny thing is, I think I need to go through our clothes, but we're going to have a walk in closet... it's going to look comically empty! But that's no reason to keep clothes that are unloved and unworn. I'll just have to get comfortable with white space!
Hey All!
I'm new to this thread -- I started reading at the beginning but there were too many posts :-)
Anyway, DH and I are going to move this fall. We are most likely buying a house and getting more space. However, we've been in our current 800 sf apartment for 5 years and boy do we have a lot of "stuff". I'd like to get rid of anything that we truly don't use to make the move easier. I figure I've going until mid to late September to get through everything.
We got through his clothes and donated/sold about 5 large grocery bags worth. I basically took out all of his non work clothes and made him sort through them. I routinely make sure his work clothes are in decent shape so there was no need to go through them.
I'm onto my clothes but I have a feeling I'll have to do them in stages. I've recently gained a bunch of weight (stress related to moving, an injury cutting down my running a lot) so I have a lot of clothes that don't fit right now, but hopefully will fit again in a couple of months. I'm doing a first pass through for stuff that is just plain worn out or that I don't like at all. When we actually move I'll do another pass through for fit. Hopefully that'll motivate me to get back into shape.
I think the big fight will be over books - DH has quite a collection and really intends to collect them. If I can even get him to cut out 20% of his books that'll be a big accomplishment.
Welcome! Re the books - I'm a bookworm as well. It makes a difference if you know that you personally will be the person to dust, pack, move, unpack, and arrange every single book. Including the bookcases.
Also, designate a set number of bookcases that he has, and inform him that ALL of his books must be on those bookshelves and it has to be semi-neat. No boxes, no stacks nearby, no piles all over the house. Beyond that, leave him to it. Even better if you get him to agree happily to the # of bookcases ahead of time so he can't argue that it's your fault (or really, he could but he'd be in the wrong).
Offloaded my Nintendo Wii to my brother yesterday along with several games.. hadn't played it in a few years.
Not exactly a win for throwing things out because my clutter becomes his but I'll claim it for now :)
Listed an unused TV stand and microwave on CL. If I do't get bites in 1 week, They'll go to Buy Nothing Project, then goodwill if no interest there.
Slow, but starting. Dreading old papers!
I have renewed vigor for this. The baby's room (for the baby that didn't get to come home) had become a junk room, and we just found out we will likely need it again! And I want the office streamlined so the computer can just go into the guest room and we can use the office as a playroom until the little one is big enough to play downstairs unsupervised.
congratulations!
I have renewed vigor for this. The baby's room (for the baby that didn't get to come home) had become a junk room, and we just found out we will likely need it again! And I want the office streamlined so the computer can just go into the guest room and we can use the office as a playroom until the little one is big enough to play downstairs unsupervised.
It's gone! My old furniture! Wa-hoo! (As the infamous Yoshi would say)
There is so much space in my apartment now the walls echo. Room is lighter too!
I have renewed vigor for this. The baby's room (for the baby that didn't get to come home) had become a junk room, and we just found out we will likely need it again! And I want the office streamlined so the computer can just go into the guest room and we can use the office as a playroom until the little one is big enough to play downstairs unsupervised.
I have renewed vigor for this. The baby's room (for the baby that didn't get to come home) had become a junk room, and we just found out we will likely need it again! And I want the office streamlined so the computer can just go into the guest room and we can use the office as a playroom until the little one is big enough to play downstairs unsupervised.
We're moving soon and my boyfriend suggested going through Every item this weekend to see what we can get rid of. As a minimalist I'm extremely excited about this.
SO JEALOUS
I've decided that a few items with residual value, which I was pressuring myself to try to sell on ebay for some $$, are better off being put in a laundry tub as a pile of "things I will offer guests when they come over". As in, maybe one of the girls coming over for dinner this Friday will want an as-new Fossil handbag? Maybe next time my family comes over someone will want this Tupperware flask? etc.This is a nice idea, but beware creating an obligation for friends and family. Why do you need to see that they will use it? I have had this conversation with my husband. He said, "Let's give it to so and so! It will be nice to know they want it!", and I said, "If we donate we can be -sure- they want it, because they have chosen it and paid money for it". You can be sure your stuff will be put to good use, when someone selects it specially, you know? I'm not trying to criticise, just... people have given me things and expected to see me use them, and it creates an expectation, a burden. If you give something away, just give it away.
I think that this will mean things *actually leave the house* whereas "I'm going to list it on ebay someday" meant they never did. And donating is great, but if this plan works out I think it will be more rewarding than donating because I get to SEE that someone wants something and will use it.
I used to buy lots of stuff in bulk. I stopped, oh, over a year ago. I calculated I still have TWO YEARS of tampons in stock. And worst of all, they are not my preferred brand. Ugh.
I used to buy lots of stuff in bulk. I stopped, oh, over a year ago. I calculated I still have TWO YEARS of tampons in stock. And worst of all, they are not my preferred brand. Ugh.
Would you consider donating them to charity?
In Australia, Share the Dignity collects tampons for homeless women, while The Beauty Bank collects cosmetics and toiletries for women escaping domestic violence.
http://www.sharethedignity.com.au/
http://www.thebeautybank.org/
Okay, I see that "sponge puddings" may refer to contraceptives, but you have me stumped with "custard".
the advicist: your local womens' refuge will gladly take the tampons. There will be a phone number available, and you arrange to meet someone in a (central, busy, well lit, car number plates exchanged) car park for the handover, so they don't have to reveal the location of the shelter.
They will also take any household stuff you want to get rid of - bedding, kitchen stuff, etc., as they gift it to women who are leaving to help set up home. They take clothes, too (they are always desperate for knickers in various sizes) and cleaners, washing powder, etc. I bet they would take just the tampons (worth ringing to see), but if not if you have any other spares to donate they would take those too.the advicist: your local womens' refuge will gladly take the tampons. There will be a phone number available, and you arrange to meet someone in a (central, busy, well lit, car number plates exchanged) car park for the handover, so they don't have to reveal the location of the shelter.
Thanks for that info. I don't think it's enough of a donation to warrant someone's time like that in this case. It's only 4 boxes, it's just two years worth at the rate I use them. The foodbank sounds ideal because I donate regularly anyway, and we have a collection point locally, so I can just add them to the bag I'm taking anyway.
But I will definitely bear in mind for the future.
I've got a couple of other things up for sale, but no takers. Thanks to Retired at 63, I've found the online library (Overdrive) which has allowed me to release some of my books.Glad to help with book release. I am also finding that when I get a so-so library book by someone whose books I have, that tells me I can release all my books by that author. So next time I am culling I can search those books out. The second hand bookstore staff at the community center where my library is are getting used to me bringing a bag or two of various books each time I come to the library. I donate there, the money is spent well. My regular second-hand bookstore has switched from cash to credit for books brought in, and they pay 5% of book price (10% on their books) so for a $5 book I might get 25 cents. Or they might not take it at all. I would rather donate. I have always been a book hoarder, this is a 180o change for me.
Regarding books, it helped me to figure out why I didn't want to get rid of my favourites.
The answer was that I was scared I would forget about them.
So I made a spreadsheet. And every single book I read I add it on, with a really short plot synopsis (like one sentence just to jog my memory) and if I loved it I put a star next to it. That way I can still go back and see every book I have ever loved, without them getting musty on my bookshelf.
This might not work for everyone, as I am not a big rereader. But safe in the knowledge that I know exactly what my favourites are, I trust the library and Amazon to store them for me. I can buy secondhand usually for 1p plus postage, and then donate / resell, anytime I was to reread.
theadvicist: have you heard of goodreads.com ? You can put all that information on there, and it tracks how many books you read each year, as well as if you give books star ratings, then it recommends other books based on the books you like!
Thought this might be another good alternative if you're enjoying the tracking of which books you read / like!
I've taken to pouring myself a drink and standing in front of my bookshelves, staring at them while I ponder who is next to go...
Got $400...
I found some disgusting old shoes (my Other Human hates to throw away shoes) and I said, "I think these have mold on them", and bagged them and he didn't even complain.
Any suggestions on what to do with half-used cleaning and laundry products? All purpose cleaner that gives me a headache or a specialized laundry additive that didn't quite work? Pour them down the drain?
Still sorting out things in old apartment while settling into new apartment.
I had hoped to "finish" decluttering before we hand the keys back, but I need to remember from experience that I will adapt to this new normal and then want to start again.
My big problem area is things from my mum. Letters, postcards, gifts, clothes, luggage... I know the money and thought that has gone into it. :(
Any suggestions on what to do with half-used cleaning and laundry products? All purpose cleaner that gives me a headache or a specialized laundry additive that didn't quite work? Pour them down the drain?
Put the luggage on a plane back to mum with a note saying "hi, can you store this in my old room pretty pretty please???"
But, on the off chance this is someone who tends to buy many not-really-required gifts for other people, it could be a great lesson for "actually maybe I should stop buying my kid so many things..." :P
Put the luggage on a plane back to mum with a note saying "hi, can you store this in my old room pretty pretty please???"
You really shouldn't declutter your house by cluttering up someone else's!
Anyone have suggestions on what to do with old laptops? We have *facepunch* 3 or 4 of them. DH broke a perfectly good laptop by tripping over the cord and smashing it to bits. Then others I've just been moving place to place *facepunch* because I didn't know what to do with them when they became obsolete...2 options I can think of right off the bat.
Anyone have suggestions on what to do with old laptops? We have *facepunch* 3 or 4 of them. DH broke a perfectly good laptop by tripping over the cord and smashing it to bits. Then others I've just been moving place to place *facepunch* because I didn't know what to do with them when they became obsolete...
Has anyone on this thread moved from decluttering to minimalism? I've been so pleased with my progress (and my life) since cutting back significantly on stuff that I've been reading a lot and it is very tempting... I know I don't have to go 'full on' one or the other, I can just keep cutting down until it feels 'right'. But would love hear other's experiences if anyone here has come to consider themselves a 'minimalist'.
Not a gift, but my mom was horrified at the idea of me sending my (non-moustashian) wedding dress to a charity after I was done with it. "But what if you have a daughter and she wants to wear it one day!?" Well I still have a bunch of my accessories so she can wear those instead. A hypothetical she, at this point. As a Christmas present I did the chasing around of getting it cleaned and boxed and then gave it to my mom instead of sending it to charity. A few years ago she was moving and asked if I'd have room for it. I told her if she gave it to me I'd send it to charity. She still has it.
All our moving boxes will be going to my in-laws. Good timing on that. Unfortunately, they need to live in the back of my truck a couple weeks first, but at least they're not in the garage and I have a canopy so you can't see them. Sigh.
Started a goodwill box the second we moved in to the new house. In it so far: 4 small curtains, 1 shower curtain, shower curtain rings, old silverware organizer (the pieces slid around and husband hates it, so we replaced it), two forks from unknown sources. We also have the 3 forks we had accidentally brought back from the in-laws back to them.
Also in the "to sell or donate or gift" pile: a wire bathroom shelf, two stools with peeling paint, a crappy ikea coffee table. Once we get a new (to us) dining nook table, we will add to the pile the desk and lawn chair we're currently using. LOL. You have to slide it from side to side to open the back door or the pantry door, so we need to swap for a round one. With real chairs, ideally.
All our moving boxes will be going to my in-laws. Good timing on that. Unfortunately, they need to live in the back of my truck a couple weeks first, but at least they're not in the garage and I have a canopy so you can't see them. Sigh.
Started a goodwill box the second we moved in to the new house. In it so far: 4 small curtains, 1 shower curtain, shower curtain rings, old silverware organizer (the pieces slid around and husband hates it, so we replaced it), two forks from unknown sources. We also have the 3 forks we had accidentally brought back from the in-laws back to them.
Also in the "to sell or donate or gift" pile: a wire bathroom shelf, two stools with peeling paint, a crappy ikea coffee table. Once we get a new (to us) dining nook table, we will add to the pile the desk and lawn chair we're currently using. LOL. You have to slide it from side to side to open the back door or the pantry door, so we need to swap for a round one. With real chairs, ideally.
I repurposed my desk to live in my garage as a nice storage spot. You might be able to do the same?
Unpacked from travelling to a wedding yesterday. Reminded me how much time it is possible to dedicate to 'stuff' - moving all the bags from the car, dumping everything out on the bed, sorting, sorting, sorting.
I was kind of depressed about it. It was a very formal wedding, so there were hat boxes, suit carriers, bottles of nail polish, endless cosmetics, various undergarments etc, just so much stuff!
I decided anything I couldn't put -easily- in it's rightful home was getting thrown out.
I was very surprised when 15 minutes everything (including suitcases, carriers, and hat boxes) was away, or in the linen basket waiting to be washed. Obviously my decluttering efforts have gone a long way to making my life a lot easier.
That said, it reminded me why I like to travel light, and that dressing up, whilst fun once in a while, is not a good default option for me.
YES! This is the very essence of it for me. Everything should be easy to put away, or there is too much stuff there.
My constant goal with organising is to make it easy for the other people who live in my house to be able to use and then put away stuff. If its not easy to get out or put away, likely there is too much stuff in the space it is being stored.
A little testimony...
This weekend, put around $600 of craigslist postings up for various tools (ladders, generator, weed sprayer, etc.) and also took $250 worth of clothing and electronics to Goodwill to shave off next year's taxes... The ladder already sold,,,
Not exactly "clutter" but my fiance spent a few hours tearing down old wiring in the basement that wasn't hooked up to anything. WOW! With open ceilings showing all the floor joists, it looks so much better. Almost all the exposed wiring was from when our house was a rental and they kept running new phone and cable lines for each tenant.
So, good people,of the Internet, what does one do with two superfluous printers? Sell? Donate? Recycle? Is there a market for printers or where can I recycle them?
Next up is the bucket of old bank statements that need shredded. Hey, maybe that one'll be tonight!
instead of shredding I am reducing them to a pulp, by dunking them in the water and mixing a bit
(doing this because I don't have a shredder)
instead of shredding I am reducing them to a pulp, by dunking them in the water and mixing a bit
(doing this because I don't have a shredder)
I am New to the boards so I haven't read many previous posts...forgive me if this has already been suggested. My neighborhood of Boston has a "Buy Nothing *insert name of town or neighborhood here*" Facebook page which is amazing. People post photos of items they want to get rid of, & those who are interested comment & then arrange for pickup. I have gotten rid of so many things that otherwise would have gone into the trash ( half-used bag of charcoal, unwanted packaged food gift from family, once-used bottle of sunscreen that gave me a rash, etc). Conversely, I have seen people post requests for items they want to upborrow or have. I am always surprised at how often those requests are answered. Check it out, there may be one for your town too, or you could start one!I also love our Buy Nothing group. I've given away a few things, and I've received a few things that I would have spent money on otherwise.
Soooo close to selling another $100 pump sprayer... Next, going list another ladder and a yard artsy wheelbarrow that should add $350 or so...
CU Tiger, what's the flea market? I've been looking for a way to get rid of some items in the DC area - is it too late to sign up now? I don't have a yard to hold a garage sale and many items feel like they're not worth listing individually on Craigslist, but I'd love to get *some* money for them if possible.
instead of shredding I am reducing them to a pulp, by dunking them in the water and mixing a bit
(doing this because I don't have a shredder)
What a great idea! And so obvious too ...
I'm off work next week and will be getting rid of the nearly useless tin shed that was on our property when we bought it. Thanks to decluttering, there is plenty of room in the main shed/shop for the few useful items that are still in the tin shed. Hoping someone will haul it off for free.
I also have a big box of items needing to be donated, and need to do a dump run to get rid of yard debris that is too recalcitrant to compost.
Thinking I might take a run at my clothes as well, since it's about time to do some wardrobe rotation.
I'm off work next week and will be getting rid of the nearly useless tin shed that was on our property when we bought it. Thanks to decluttering, there is plenty of room in the main shed/shop for the few useful items that are still in the tin shed. Hoping someone will haul it off for free.
I also have a big box of items needing to be donated, and need to do a dump run to get rid of yard debris that is too recalcitrant to compost.
Thinking I might take a run at my clothes as well, since it's about time to do some wardrobe rotation.
I'm thinking I'd rather be at work than have a week off like that.... :)
Good luck with it, though.
I'm off work next week and will be getting rid of the nearly useless tin shed that was on our property when we bought it. Thanks to decluttering, there is plenty of room in the main shed/shop for the few useful items that are still in the tin shed. Hoping someone will haul it off for free.
I also have a big box of items needing to be donated, and need to do a dump run to get rid of yard debris that is too recalcitrant to compost.
Thinking I might take a run at my clothes as well, since it's about time to do some wardrobe rotation.
I'm thinking I'd rather be at work than have a week off like that.... :)
Good luck with it, though.
I have to do this at least once a year to keep my life running smoothly and preserve my sanity when I am working, since my garden and horse hobbies don't wait around until I have time for them. And vacations are for preserving sanity, right? I've been bumbling around the house most of the day today creating even more work for myself, but getting rid of the shed is still the most onerous task.
I'm off work next week and will be getting rid of the nearly useless tin shed that was on our property when we bought it. Thanks to decluttering, there is plenty of room in the main shed/shop for the few useful items that are still in the tin shed. Hoping someone will haul it off for free.
I also have a big box of items needing to be donated, and need to do a dump run to get rid of yard debris that is too recalcitrant to compost.
Thinking I might take a run at my clothes as well, since it's about time to do some wardrobe rotation.
I'm thinking I'd rather be at work than have a week off like that.... :)
Good luck with it, though.
I have to do this at least once a year to keep my life running smoothly and preserve my sanity when I am working, since my garden and horse hobbies don't wait around until I have time for them. And vacations are for preserving sanity, right? I've been bumbling around the house most of the day today creating even more work for myself, but getting rid of the shed is still the most onerous task.
All the really good hobbies have a huge organizational component to them, I find. Though usually you can see the results pretty quickly, which isn't always true at work. I am just cranky about chores that involve sorting and putting things away.
I'm off work next week and will be getting rid of the nearly useless tin shed that was on our property when we bought it. Thanks to decluttering, there is plenty of room in the main shed/shop for the few useful items that are still in the tin shed. Hoping someone will haul it off for free.
I also have a big box of items needing to be donated, and need to do a dump run to get rid of yard debris that is too recalcitrant to compost.
Thinking I might take a run at my clothes as well, since it's about time to do some wardrobe rotation.
I'm thinking I'd rather be at work than have a week off like that.... :)
Good luck with it, though.
I have to do this at least once a year to keep my life running smoothly and preserve my sanity when I am working, since my garden and horse hobbies don't wait around until I have time for them. And vacations are for preserving sanity, right? I've been bumbling around the house most of the day today creating even more work for myself, but getting rid of the shed is still the most onerous task.
All the really good hobbies have a huge organizational component to them, I find. Though usually you can see the results pretty quickly, which isn't always true at work. I am just cranky about chores that involve sorting and putting things away.
Well, to make you really jealous, I'll just tell you that I also need to purchase, load and stack hay this week. At least it's exercise?
Anyone else dealing with the paper monster?
DH put all of our data from 3 laptops onto Dropbox and we gave one of those laptops back to his sister. The other two will be recycled or donated shortly :) so excited, it's been on our to do list for months!
My life has changed dramatically since I last organized my papers 5 or 6 years ago. Many files are completely unnecessary now. This winter I will take a month to purge things and to determine what new documents are needed, like a new will and personal directive. It is a good project for January.
I have much less paper coming in that needs to be saved, since so much is online, but I needs a regular process for handling it.
Watch this, dont become too crazy, haha!
Next up is the bucket of old bank statements that need shredded. Hey, maybe that one'll be tonight!
instead of shredding I am reducing them to a pulp, by dunking them in the water and mixing a bit
(doing this because I don't have a shredder)
I'm seriously considering parting with my food processor, blender and stick mixer. They were fairly cheap and it shows in their performance, whereas a KitchenAid stick mixer would do the work of all three and take up less space. (Before you jump one me: my birthday is next month, and my grandparents, aunts, and great-aunts are asking for gift ideas.)Mustache, I recently did something similar to this. I donated our rarely used toaster oven (we kept the toaster) and never used ice cream maker to a Boy Scout yard sale, and food processor to charity. All were in good shape and still had their manuals. Cupboard space gained was what, 5 sq ft? And the peace of mind with less stuff is priceless. :D
Mostly I just want time at home to declutter. Away last weekend, away next weekend, sigh...
My daughter, 12, wanted to have a garage sale. She thought it would be fun. We have been postponing getting rid of the stuff she was targeting for her sale. This past weekend she had her sale. After about 45 minutes of waiting for costumers she was so bored. Hubs and I had been telling her that garage sales were a lot of work and not that financially rewarding. Most of the stuff she could part with was really just junk. It was a great learning opportunity for her that took up most of our day (helping her set up, hanging around to make sure all was good and helping her haul it all back in) but it got tons of stuff out of our house and she is completely cured of thinking a garage sale would be fun. She is quite happy to donate stuff. Some of the better items I posted to kijiji but if they don't sell, we will donate them to charity. There is now a big space in the basement and the garage might just be able to hold some cars this winter.
I'm seriously considering parting with my food processor, blender and stick mixer. They were fairly cheap and it shows in their performance, whereas a KitchenAid stick mixer would do the work of all three and take up less space.
I'm seriously considering parting with my food processor, blender and stick mixer. They were fairly cheap and it shows in their performance, whereas a KitchenAid stick mixer would do the work of all three and take up less space.
I was given a KitchenAid stick mixer as a wedding present. It's a beautiful tool.
It definitely outperforms any other stick mixer I've used, and works well for blender functions. I haven't used it for food processor stuff, and I use my food processor for some functions that the stick mixer can't replicate (grating and slicing).
Personally, I think the trend towards buying shit quality, borderline-disposable products such as appliances is part of what's wrong with society. If something is actually useful to you, buy a well-designed, high quality version. You'll use it your whole life, it'll be a joy to use, you won't be buying cheap crap that ends up in landfill, and your heirs can fight over it when you die.
Made a sale on ebay! Yay. I don't know why I hate listing so much. With the mobile app it really isn't very onerous anymore and I get so much joy out of making a sale (totally disproportionate to the effort and income involved). Must hold onto this feeling and list more stuff.
I'm seriously considering parting with my food processor, blender and stick mixer. They were fairly cheap and it shows in their performance, whereas a KitchenAid stick mixer would do the work of all three and take up less space.
I was given a KitchenAid stick mixer as a wedding present. It's a beautiful tool.
It definitely outperforms any other stick mixer I've used, and works well for blender functions. I haven't used it for food processor stuff, and I use my food processor for some functions that the stick mixer can't replicate (grating and slicing).
Personally, I think the trend towards buying shit quality, borderline-disposable products such as appliances is part of what's wrong with society. If something is actually useful to you, buy a well-designed, high quality version. You'll use it your whole life, it'll be a joy to use, you won't be buying cheap crap that ends up in landfill, and your heirs can fight over it when you die.
Glad to hear an endorsement for the KitchenAid.
I agree with you on everything else. I would rather have fewer, good quality appliances.
(The food processor, blender and cheaper stick mixer were all gifts. I've held off on replacing them while I worked out what I would actually use.)
Got rid of a pair of sandals which I loved and have served me well, but are past the point of repair and usefulness.
Also wore out another pair of the hotel slippers which have been the bane of my existence for so long. Three pairs to go! (No, I am NEVER EVER opening up another pair at a hotel because I can't bear for them to be thrown away so I always bring them home).
And some tights / pop socks which had ladders. I'm pleased about this, because thanks to my 'less is more' philosophy, I am now buying exclusively the more expensive shiny tights that I vastly prefer. Yes, they are more money, but really, I only wear through 3 or so pairs a summer. I can afford nicer things when I buy so much less of everything.
New word which I have not quite learned completely: pop socks. Are those tights?
+1 :)Got rid of a pair of sandals which I loved and have served me well, but are past the point of repair and usefulness.
Also wore out another pair of the hotel slippers which have been the bane of my existence for so long. Three pairs to go! (No, I am NEVER EVER opening up another pair at a hotel because I can't bear for them to be thrown away so I always bring them home).
And some tights / pop socks which had ladders. I'm pleased about this, because thanks to my 'less is more' philosophy, I am now buying exclusively the more expensive shiny tights that I vastly prefer. Yes, they are more money, but really, I only wear through 3 or so pairs a summer. I can afford nicer things when I buy so much less of everything.
New word I learned today: ladders, which I believe are the same thing as I call runs in tights or hose.
New word which I have not quite learned completely: pop socks. Are those tights? And do you and I mean the same thing when we say "tights"? When I say tights I mean opaque stretchy things that definitely cannot double as pants (and which have feet), but which are also not the same thing as pantyhose, which are not opaque.
I also tossed my manual toothbrush, and cleaned and stored the holder.
This weekend I went to my dad's house and got Everything that is still mine but was in basement storage (excluding Christmas decorations) and brought it to my house. My formerly empty living room has 11 Rubbermaid totes I am now going through and purging.
Culled books from my childhood book collection for donation. About two totes are school papers I can burn/recycle (I didn't want to leave them behind for my stepmother to take care of) and the rest are either stuff from college or sewing/craft supplies. I also got my art desk and chair and my dressmaker mannequin.
Once upon a time gift bags were not a 'thing'. You begged for pretty boxes at department stores, and saved them up like a squirrel hoarding nuts. Reused them over and over, until they fell apart. Your standing as Christmas gift wrapper was contingent on being able to produce the perfectly sized box for any gift instantly.
I had a foot high stack (at least) of (collapsed) boxes in a little cubby under the stairs, and decided today that it was time for them to go. At least 60 boxes. I can't remember the last time I dug one out of the pile to use for anything. They are now all in the recycling bin, and my Mom may faint when she hears that I purged them all. This is sacrilege as far as she's concerned.
Next up - the cloth diapers that I still have from when my son was a baby. They've been sitting in a box in the garage since we moved into this house 20 years ago. He's 34 now. I think it's safe to cut them up, and use some for rags, and pitch the rest. : D
New word I learned today: ladders, which I believe are the same thing as I call runs in tights or hose.
New word which I have not quite learned completely: pop socks. Are those tights? And do you and I mean the same thing when we say "tights"? When I say tights I mean opaque stretchy things that definitely cannot double as pants (and which have feet), but which are also not the same thing as pantyhose, which are not opaque.
Took care of socks, lets move on to shoes.
New word I learned today: ladders, which I believe are the same thing as I call runs in tights or hose.
New word which I have not quite learned completely: pop socks. Are those tights? And do you and I mean the same thing when we say "tights"? When I say tights I mean opaque stretchy things that definitely cannot double as pants (and which have feet), but which are also not the same thing as pantyhose, which are not opaque.
Yes, ladders are 'runs' so named because that's what they look like!
Tights here are:
1) Sheer 'nude' things (or 'barely black if you live in the 1990s), of approx 8-80 denier, such as The Duchess of Cornwall wears under a dress. I think you may call these hose?
2) the thickers ones to which you refer - definitely not pants, opaque. We just call those, "thick tights" or "Winter tights".
I just reread what you said. Yes, what you call tights and pantyhose, we just call them all 'tights'.
Pop socks are ankle high, and I would wear them with a business suit and court shoes, made of the thinner pantyhose material. Different from 'knee highs', which are the same thing, only longer - they, as the name suggests, come up to your knees.
A relatively new product is the 'trouser sock', pop sock height (ie ankle), but made of the thicker 'tights' material. Designed to be worn instead of traditional cotton socks when your shoes reveal sock to the world.
Wow, that was complex!
And just to keep this on topic, I managed to purge... absolutely nothing over the weekend. Must do better!
Once upon a time gift bags were not a 'thing'. You begged for pretty boxes at department stores, and saved them up like a squirrel hoarding nuts. Reused them over and over, until they fell apart. Your standing as Christmas gift wrapper was contingent on being able to produce the perfectly sized box for any gift instantly.
I had a foot high stack (at least) of (collapsed) boxes in a little cubby under the stairs, and decided today that it was time for them to go. At least 60 boxes. I can't remember the last time I dug one out of the pile to use for anything. They are now all in the recycling bin, and my Mom may faint when she hears that I purged them all. This is sacrilege as far as she's concerned.
Next up - the cloth diapers that I still have from when my son was a baby. They've been sitting in a box in the garage since we moved into this house 20 years ago. He's 34 now. I think it's safe to cut them up, and use some for rags, and pitch the rest. : D
Oh dear. You are being very brave.
Next up - the cloth diapers that I still have from when my son was a baby. They've been sitting in a box in the garage since we moved into this house 20 years ago. He's 34 now. I think it's safe to cut them up, and use some for rags, and pitch the rest. : D
Next up - the cloth diapers that I still have from when my son was a baby. They've been sitting in a box in the garage since we moved into this house 20 years ago. He's 34 now. I think it's safe to cut them up, and use some for rags, and pitch the rest. : D
Congrats on knowing that your son's potty training has "stuck" after all these years! ;)
Cloth diapers make amazing burp cloths!
Once upon a time gift bags were not a 'thing'. You begged for pretty boxes at department stores, and saved them up like a squirrel hoarding nuts. Reused them over and over, until they fell apart. Your standing as Christmas gift wrapper was contingent on being able to produce the perfectly sized box for any gift instantly.
I had a foot high stack (at least) of (collapsed) boxes in a little cubby under the stairs, and decided today that it was time for them to go. At least 60 boxes. I can't remember the last time I dug one out of the pile to use for anything. They are now all in the recycling bin, and my Mom may faint when she hears that I purged them all. This is sacrilege as far as she's concerned.
Next up - the cloth diapers that I still have from when my son was a baby. They've been sitting in a box in the garage since we moved into this house 20 years ago. He's 34 now. I think it's safe to cut them up, and use some for rags, and pitch the rest. : D
Oh dear. You are being very brave.
What your mom doesn't know won't hurt her.
Cloth diapers make amazing burp cloths!
So shirts, don't they?*
*I don't have kids. I have no freaking idea.
Cloth diapers make amazing burp cloths!
New word I learned today: ladders, which I believe are the same thing as I call runs in tights or hose.
New word which I have not quite learned completely: pop socks. Are those tights? And do you and I mean the same thing when we say "tights"? When I say tights I mean opaque stretchy things that definitely cannot double as pants (and which have feet), but which are also not the same thing as pantyhose, which are not opaque.
Yes, ladders are 'runs' so named because that's what they look like!
Tights here are:
1) Sheer 'nude' things (or 'barely black if you live in the 1990s), of approx 8-80 denier, such as The Duchess of Cornwall wears under a dress. I think you may call these hose?
2) the thickers ones to which you refer - definitely not pants, opaque. We just call those, "thick tights" or "Winter tights".
I just reread what you said. Yes, what you call tights and pantyhose, we just call them all 'tights'.
Pop socks are ankle high, and I would wear them with a business suit and court shoes, made of the thinner pantyhose material. Different from 'knee highs', which are the same thing, only longer - they, as the name suggests, come up to your knees.
A relatively new product is the 'trouser sock', pop sock height (ie ankle), but made of the thicker 'tights' material. Designed to be worn instead of traditional cotton socks when your shoes reveal sock to the world.
Wow, that was complex!
And just to keep this on topic, I managed to purge... absolutely nothing over the weekend. Must do better!
Wow, you kept them? My mum used the nappies on 4 kids and then they went straight into the "awesome cloths for cleaning" bucket. They are all very used up now. Also, I was surprised that there's "prefolds" and things, I almost remember how to fold a flat nappy and I certainly remember pinning them! (I was 9 when the youngest was born, I'm only 27 now).Next up - the cloth diapers that I still have from when my son was a baby. They've been sitting in a box in the garage since we moved into this house 20 years ago. He's 34 now. I think it's safe to cut them up, and use some for rags, and pitch the rest. : D
Congrats on knowing that your son's potty training has "stuck" after all these years! ;)
Well, actually, I could have offered them to said son for HIS newborn son, and put that in the 'how did you save money today thread'. @_@ Except that DIL finds it hilarious that in ancient times (otherwise known as the early 80's) diapers were not prefolded, and you had to use PINS. I had forgotten they were even out there, until we were sorting out the baby books, etc. for our grandson. Sometimes having lots and lots of shelves in the garage is not necessarily a good thing.
Took care of socks, lets move on to shoes.
Court shoes. Trainers.
We dont use those terms here. Your court shows are our pumps, I think. Leather formal shoes with a heel.
Trainers are tennis shoes.
Took care of socks, lets move on to shoes.
Court shoes. Trainers.
We dont use those terms here. Your court shows are our pumps, I think. Leather formal shoes with a heel.
Trainers are tennis shoes.
Yes, court shoes are formal, leather, heel, no straps at all. Quite open at the front.
Interestingly, my mum would describe any FLAT shoes as 'pumps'. I would never use that word myself, it seems to have gone out of fashion here. Interesting to hear that for you pumps have heels.
Yep to the trainers being tennis shoes. This is fascinating!
ETA fascinating, to me. Sorry for the thread hijack!
I started a digitization project of all my old statements and papers which took up 4 boxes of space. I know 7 years is the longest you have to legally keep things but I feel better scanning them first and then throwing them out.I did this with all our tax records (started with old but realized I e-filed new ones, so I only have digital copies). Go ahead with removing the paper! It's so worth it.
Took care of socks, lets move on to shoes.
Court shoes. Trainers.
We dont use those terms here. Your court shows are our pumps, I think. Leather formal shoes with a heel.
Trainers are tennis shoes.
Yes, court shoes are formal, leather, heel, no straps at all. Quite open at the front.
Interestingly, my mum would describe any FLAT shoes as 'pumps'. I would never use that word myself, it seems to have gone out of fashion here. Interesting to hear that for you pumps have heels.
Yep to the trainers being tennis shoes. This is fascinating!
ETA fascinating, to me. Sorry for the thread hijack!
we will have a friend visiting and got active de-cluttering and painting/refreshing the apartment; we got rid ofadding to the discarded list: ski, frames , BBQ, toys,
-ply wood, pieces of countertop, & various bits of wood that we didn't get to use while making cabinets
-1 bad bike
-1 metal shelf
-books/papers/
-Christmas stuff
So I think this would be a good thread for me. I don't actually have that much stuff as I live in a small apartment, but I still have more than I need. I am also a bit of a hoarder. I have clothes that are getting seriously worn out which I still wear and can't bring myself to throw away. I also always seem to have snail mail that seems vaguely important so I don't throw it away and eventually it builds up. And forgotten pantry items that I should use up. And a bunch of other things.Ive been using an app called OFFERUP to get rid of stuff collecting lots of dust over the years that I never use. Ive been putting it all on my mortgage and its been a huge help towards becoming 100% debt free !!!!!! I like OFFERUP because you post it once and forget about it. Unlike craigslist where you have to baby sit your ad.
If you're anything like me please join me in getting rid of your stuff. Whether this means throwing them out, donating them, giving them to friends/family, eating them, or selling them.
If you have any tips on how to deal with the my-clothes-have-holes-but-are-so-comfy or I-may-need-this-someday syndrome, please share. And also let me know when there are cases where I-may-need-this syndrome actually makes sense, so I can identify what things I should actually keep and what I should throw.
My progress so far:
I recently managed to find some clothes that I donated to a charity bin.
And today I put up an ad on an online board to sell off a kitchen appliance that I don't use. Hopefully I'll get a buyer.
I'm going to try to find more things I can get rid of. I may actually be moving out of my place within a year or so, which provides extra incentive.
Feel free to join me!
So I think this would be a good thread for me. I don't actually have that much stuff as I live in a small apartment, but I still have more than I need. I am also a bit of a hoarder. I have clothes that are getting seriously worn out which I still wear and can't bring myself to throw away. I also always seem to have snail mail that seems vaguely important so I don't throw it away and eventually it builds up. And forgotten pantry items that I should use up. And a bunch of other things.I SOLD AN OLD SUBARU BACK RUBBER MAT FOR $90 TODAY AND A SET OF SUBARU SKI RACKS FOR $70 AND 1OO% OF IT IS GOING ONTO MY MORTGAGE !!!! YOOHOO !!!!
If you're anything like me please join me in getting rid of your stuff. Whether this means throwing them out, donating them, giving them to friends/family, eating them, or selling them.
If you have any tips on how to deal with the my-clothes-have-holes-but-are-so-comfy or I-may-need-this-someday syndrome, please share. And also let me know when there are cases where I-may-need-this syndrome actually makes sense, so I can identify what things I should actually keep and what I should throw.
My progress so far:
I recently managed to find some clothes that I donated to a charity bin.
And today I put up an ad on an online board to sell off a kitchen appliance that I don't use. Hopefully I'll get a buyer.
I'm going to try to find more things I can get rid of. I may actually be moving out of my place within a year or so, which provides extra incentive.
Feel free to join me!
I FINALLY did it! I went through my college papers, including love poetry from ex's and photos of dead relatives and ALL that impossibly awful stuff I've put off for years.
Thank you guys.
I FINALLY did it! I went through my college papers, including love poetry from ex's and photos of dead relatives and ALL that impossibly awful stuff I've put off for years.
Thank you guys.
Well done you! That sounds like a huge (and emotionally draining) task. Does it feel good to have it behind you?
I FINALLY did it! I went through my college papers, including love poetry from ex's and photos of dead relatives and ALL that impossibly awful stuff I've put off for years.
Thank you guys.
I FINALLY did it! I went through my college papers, including love poetry from ex's and photos of dead relatives and ALL that impossibly awful stuff I've put off for years.
Thank you guys.
Good job!
Also, I am astounded you received love poetry. I have been married almost 20 years, but never, before or after I was married, have I received a poem. We lean towards the pragmatic, but a small part of me would love for my husband to even say, "I read this poem and thought of you."
It is a lovely thing that you have inspired poetry.
I did the 'switch' yesterday from summer clothes to winter. Well, I took the winter ones out, and put away a few freshly washed summer things, the rest will go away once they've been washed for the final time this year.
I was surprised (and, I admit, disappointed) by how few non-work winter clothes I have. I must have really culled last year, huh? And even worse, I don't -love- any of them, except one top which is now pilling :(
I hope you have copied my birthday in there!
25,000 emails holy crap. Good thing you are able to delete them... once mine get archived by IT we can't purge them. You have to delete them before the 6 week auto archive kicks in.
Of course, I am terrible at it, so I have well over 50,000 emails in there.
I need to put stuff away when I get home. Filing of bills, clothes hung up to dry, gym towels left on ding room chairs. Kitchen bench covered in odds and sods.
Reporting here in advance of actually decluttering doesn't count, does it?
I really do want it gone dammit! Why is this so hard?
I'm sitting here right now staring at a pile of stuff designated for Goodwill piled in a living room chair, and it's been sitting there for the past 3 days. Including my $#% wedding dress I should have never bought (wanted a low key fun wedding with a dress or costume I could wear again. Mother threw a fit about not having a white poofy dress and walking down an aisle and insisted on buying one, so I caved).
I hate the idea of not getting a dime for this dress, and yet I did not spend a single dime of my own money on this dress. It was pretty and I still think so, but I honestly have no use for it and I have plenty of photos of the big day, so I don't know why the stupid thing causes me to freeze up trying to get it out of the house. I lost over 100 lbs., so even if I wanted to wear it as a costume, it would fall off me, and the box is HUGE and no one wants it for even a small amount of $ or as a donation to a "Wedding Gowns for X" since it's over 14 years old now. I am hung up on the stupid sunk cost fallacy and it wasn't even my money!
Sigh. I really hate being borderline cheap and having packrat tendencies sometimes.
I've managed to sell 5 bins full of books for just over $60, camera equipment for $60, Have a long box of comics and a few boxes of miscellaneous toys to go to the comic shop in November (they didn't want anything until after their big sale end of October).
I just went and started trying to look through our front room's closets again to see if there is more stuff to purge, and there actually isn't. It's been taken from full to bursting to about 50% empty, and the stuff in there is all "have a use" stuff.
I really need to tackle my garage, but that's likely next month.
Dress and other crap going out today. Even if I end up breaking down crying driving away, I want it gone, so the stupid emotional attachment to a stupid dress will just have to be dealt with after the fact. I really do want it gone dammit! Why is this so hard?
no one wants it for even a small amount of $ or as a donation to a "Wedding Gowns for X" since it's over 14 years old now.
Dress is gone! Dropped off at goodwill this afternoon and the went to the grocery and bought crap food, came home, ate lots of crap and had a very minor panic attack and the took an epic nap. But it is gone and I think I am just going to pretend it is around here for a while until it doesn't cause me to feel bad thinking about it.
And yes I am happy I did it. But fighting the programming is still hard.
Dress is gone! Dropped off at goodwill this afternoon and the went to the grocery and bought crap food, came home, ate lots of crap and had a very minor panic attack and the took an epic nap. But it is gone and I think I am just going to pretend it is around here for a while until it doesn't cause me to feel bad thinking about it.Totally understood, Frankies Girl. Glad that you were able to do it anyway!
And yes I am happy I did it. But fighting the programming is still hard.
And I could have tried to sell it, but honestly I get weird about dealing with people in general, and if I was lucky I might get $50 for my efforts, and it would be hour or two of dealing with taking photos, writing up the description, getting a throwaway email for listing, fielding questions and wanting to see more photos and then having to travel to meet up if I actually did get anyone interested... the money just wasn't worth the efforts (although it was still a very pretty dress - just not in style at the moment).
And the KonMa method would have caused me to personify the dress and feel awful for abandoning it at a grungy thrift store... I didn't want to even open the box other than to make sure the dress actually was in there because seeing it or handling it would cause me to attach HARD again. I already have to avoid naming my current car and other everyday objects as the last time I had to trade in a vehicle for instance, I bawled like freaking baby because "Aggie" had been with me for 17 years and I felt like I was having her put to sleep like a pet.
So I sent something to charity last week I have just thought of a use for. Argh! However, PSA, the world hasn't stopped turning. It turns out I'm... just fine. A little bummed, but life goes on. The decluttering does get easier!
Wow, you totally just made the leap, Frankies Girl! Awesome job!
Don't feel bad about not selling it -- the key here was decluttering, and you rocked it! The fact that it was hard just makes it that much more meaningful that you DID it!
Dress is gone! Dropped off at goodwill this afternoon and the went to the grocery and bought crap food, came home, ate lots of crap and had a very minor panic attack and the took an epic nap. But it is gone and I think I am just going to pretend it is around here for a while until it doesn't cause me to feel bad thinking about it.
And yes I am happy I did it. But fighting the programming is still hard.
Well done! Someone is going to love it - even if you worry that the style is dated a talented seamstress can turn it into something else entirely. I sure some bride is going to be thrilled.
Today I decluttered 27 dishtowels, dish rags, and hot pads. All were stained, torn, or generally ratty. Even with getting rid of all that, I have a more than adequate supply of kitchen towels, hot pads/mitts, etc.
The more I think about it, I decide that the reason my house has more things than I have storage for, is that this house is like a dammed up lake. Water from above enters the lake, but doesn't leave until it rises above the level of the dam. For years and years I've bought things, my husband has bought things, and we've been given things. The level of stuff in the house went up all the time. Every once in a while I would get tired of clutter and I'd donate or throw a box of stuff away, but since we were always buying/receiving things, the level of crap really never went down.
The last two months (ever since our basement flood) has been the first time I've systematically gone through rooms/drawers/closets and tossed without mercy. If something hasn't been used or worn in a year, or doesn't provide utility or beauty, out it goes. I'm not totally into the Marie Kondo method, but once or twice I have asked myself whether something made me feel good, or was I just keeping it out of guilt, sentiment, or fear.
The more I think about it, I decide that the reason my house has more things than I have storage for, is that this house is like a dammed up lake. Water from above enters the lake, but doesn't leave until it rises above the level of the dam. For years and years I've bought things, my husband has bought things, and we've been given things. The level of stuff in the house went up all the time. Every once in a while I would get tired of clutter and I'd donate or throw a box of stuff away, but since we were always buying/receiving things, the level of crap really never went down.
Makeup remover? I just never bought it again, because actually, I prefer face wipes. I ran out of those, and after a couple of days decided yes, I do want to 'stock' them.
Where is she? Lurking around somewhere. Come on, I know you're online!......
Wishing a very special happy birthday to our resident decluttering expert mustachepungoeshere!
I've always wanted to paint and draw. I have some materials and they are hard to part with. I don't use them but I'm hopeful. :D
I've always wanted to paint and draw. I have some materials and they are hard to part with. I don't use them but I'm hopeful. :D
Listed some items on a local Facebook group that didn't sell at the yard sale. Now I'm going through the no-show reschedule crud that I remember from Craigslist. Next stop Freecycle. You can just leave free stuff on the front steps and be done with it.
Today is a massive eBay listing day for things that were too good for the yard sale.
I recommend checking for a local Buy Nothing Project if you have one in your area. Way less flakey than random internet people, plus you get to know your neighbors which is pretty cool. Way more limited scope of who knows my address, which I prefer!
The craigslist thing is so frustrating though. I've ended up super judgmental about grammar. IME, the better the grammar the less likely to no-show. Which I suppose ends up being classist, but it saves enough aggravation for me I just don't care. One I gave myself permission to do this, my no-show rate dropped substantially.
I recommend checking for a local Buy Nothing Project if you have one in your area. Way less flakey than random internet people, plus you get to know your neighbors which is pretty cool. Way more limited scope of who knows my address, which I prefer!
The craigslist thing is so frustrating though. I've ended up super judgmental about grammar. IME, the better the grammar the less likely to no-show. Which I suppose ends up being classist, but it saves enough aggravation for me I just don't care. One I gave myself permission to do this, my no-show rate dropped substantially.
Yup. The one coming today at 5, supposedly, already bailed once. Perfect grammar. I think she's a flipper. Good luck to her, trying to ship the huge glass punch bowl she's picking up. My local Facebook groups are such a joke. Half the members are not really from the town and a very high percentage are the same people trying to get a flip deal on Craigslist. I don't care about the flipping except that they tend to respond to everything possible immediately and then decide if they are really going to follow through or not.
My 2 best yard sale customers were professional junkers who, between the two of them, almost cleaned me out. Fair on offers, when I could understand them. One guy carried his yard sale quarters in a knotted handkerchief. I'll take that sort of customer any day.
I am lucky to have 2 free groups for my town. We have FreeCycle AND BuyNothing although I haven't listed anything with either yet. You are right. I should just go that route.
I volunteer to relieve you of any surplus board games! Will swap for ... um... not sure. Marmalade?I was gonna donate to the kiddies. We're talking Simpsons themed chess and dr who Monopoly. Still interested? (Obviously DH probably has a say in this...)
I was buying some (much needed) winter running gear, and was given three free pairs of running socks with my purchase. Actually, I do need them, my running socks are worn at the heel so that there are only threads going in one direction.
Please give me permission to get rid of these socks! I don't know why I'm struggling with this so much.
As I've been decluttering I have found some things that just got postponed and postponed because I didn't know what to do with them. Help?!?coin collection plastic sleeves may have pockets the right size for the medals, then you can have a ring binder to flick through instead of the bag.
Medals - DD (and me to a much lesser extent) used to compete in an activity where lots of medals got handed out. I now have a grocery bag full of medals on ribbons, many with little clips. They are from a bunch of different host groups, and do not get reused. I hate to just throw them out, but they are so specific I can't see using them for something else (unless I do Christmas tree ornaments or streamers with them,but that is a desperation move). Any suggestions? Or just throw out? They are not even worth putting in recyclng.
As I've been decluttering I have found some things that just got postponed and postponed because I didn't know what to do with them. Help?!?
Medals - DD (and me to a much lesser extent) used to compete in an activity where lots of medals got handed out. I now have a grocery bag full of medals on ribbons, many with little clips. They are from a bunch of different host groups, and do not get reused. I hate to just throw them out, but they are so specific I can't see using them for something else (unless I do Christmas tree ornaments or streamers with them,but that is a desperation move). Any suggestions? Or just throw out? They are not even worth putting in recyclng.
I've seen breakfast trays covered with coins and a clear sealant, maybe something like that? I don't know that medals really have a use.If the kid that earned the medals were still at home, that would be a fun idea.
I'm sure this list of stuff is going to look pretty random and unusual here. All sold on craigslist or specific car and racing forums:
Pnumatic 20 ton jack on CL. I gave my son my harbor freight gift card one day. He bought this thing for reasons unknown. Didn't keep the box or receipt, so off to a construction guy it went.
Single layer Simpson racing suit and balacava. Some years ago, I used to own a prepared racecar that required this stuff. Sold the car long ago. Someone else can use it now.
Wrangler TJ front spring bag helpers. I used these to help stiffen up the front end of my 02 Wrangler when I put the snow plow on it. I sold that Wrangler well over 10 years ago. Pulled the bags out in case I ever get another. They don't fit my present Wrangler. Mailed them to a guy in Maine.
Kids radio flyer wagon: This had been sitting next to our driveway, in the woods forever. I first put it into my scrap metal pile, then thought someone else might have use for it, so put it at the end of the driveway and a day later, it was gone. Glad it's not just getting me $0.01 for the scrap value.
Bunch of watches: When my dad passed away, I inherited all his watches. Out of all of them, 2 were of any value. A 50 year old Longines, which I kept and a citizen eco titanium. The rest were really novelty junk. I put up the whole lot on eBay and sold them in one fell swoop. I haven't worn a watch myself in 10 years.....my phone tells me the time. Sold the Citizen separately.
I've been slowly going through our bins of toys from our 2 kids. Most are appropriate for 6 year olds. My youngest is 16 so you know these will never be used again. Anything paper or wood is being used for starter for my wood furnace. Plastic into recycling. Legos or Brio is kept in a box because I know I can sell these easily on either craigslist or ebay. I've been known to fill 4 trash barrels with this stuff when the family is gone for a few hours......and nobody even notices any less clutter. There's that much stuff. Grandparents never entered the house without a $10 plastic Wal*Mart piece of junk and both wife and one kid are pack rats.
Cleaned out the fridge - feels like de-cluttering to me. :)
Medals - DD (and me to a much lesser extent) used to compete in an activity where lots of medals got handed out. I now have a grocery bag full of medals on ribbons, many with little clips. They are from a bunch of different host groups, and do not get reused. I hate to just throw them out, but they are so specific I can't see using them for something else (unless I do Christmas tree ornaments or streamers with them,but that is a desperation move). Any suggestions? Or just throw out? They are not even worth putting in recyclng.
Does anyone know if an enameled cast iron pot can be recycled? I just bought a replacement for mine because the enamel started wearing off on the old one but I'm not sure what to do with it? Should I put it in the recycling bin?
As a for instance we had several nearly empty bottles of spirits that people had brought to parties over the years, we didn't like them but kept them in case the original party goers ever wanted their drink of choice at our house again.
As a for instance we had several nearly empty bottles of spirits that people had brought to parties over the years, we didn't like them but kept them in case the original party goers ever wanted their drink of choice at our house again.
Do you make Christmas cakes or home made mincemeat? Those are pretty flexible in terms of the alcohol you can use.
I threw out some plastic and aluminum foil containers that were languishing in the kitchen cupboards. Also an old pair of shoes and a broken nightlight.It's amazing how your tolerance for junk changes as you get used to having less of it around as well!
This is really eye-opening. You just get used to seeing so much CRAP lying around, it becomes part of your world/the landscape. When you really begin to question every single item...wow. It's life changing.
*It's plastic and is supposed to prevent the cut edges browning. They still brown. Also, I not totally anti single-use knives. My tomato knife changed my life.
I bought some drawer dividers yesterday. Usually I balk at buying stuff with which to organise. For two reasons: 1) I can often fashion something out of something I already have and 2) usually I don't need to 'organise' I need to declutter.
But I relented because the kitchen utensil drawer is currently divided up by two shoe box lids, and a few old takeaway containers, and they don't fit well and waste space in between. They are also tatty and battered.
I put the new dividers in, and told myself that anything that didn't fit in the specified place had to go. I have put a lettuce knife (I mean, how single-purpose is that?! A regular knife will do just fine thanks*) and a spatula in the donate box. My drawer looks fab.
*It's plastic and is supposed to prevent the cut edges browning. They still brown. Also, I not totally anti single-use knives. My tomato knife changed my life.
I have resisted Facebook for all these years. Sometimes brag about it, but not often because I have to brag then it means it is still affecting me. But, Buy Nothing may be the thing that breaks me and I join. Still pondering it. And also pondering my 2 large storage units full of stuff. I live in a 23' motor home, but still have the stuff.
On topic: I sold Mom's portable air conditioner/heat pump yesterday that is part of what is in the storage unit. It will be gone Wednesday morning and she will be $275 richer. She moved into an apartment and no longer needs it. Now to get rid of 2 microwaves, a small carpet cleaning machine...
One thing I'm having trouble with: Art supplies. Although I have not embroidered in OMG, six or seven years, I can't seem to part with the fabric, the threads and the books I have. It's like I keep saying, "I did enjoy it. I'm going to do it again sometime." Well, if I enjoyed it so much, why haven't I touched these items since 2010? Yet I'm afraid if I get rid of them, I'll be sorry.
I rip lettuce - but then I don't like iceberg lettuce so rarely have it in the house to need a knife for.
What makes the tomato knife so special? I just use a sharp paring/kitchen knife. Am I missing something? I do have several small kitchen knives, some are better at tiny tasks (hulling strawberries, for instance) and some are heavier duty (slicing cheese).
Duplicates - I found that with the dishwasher and cooking for one, I needed lots of some things because they collected in the dishwasher and I only ran it every second day. If I were hand washing on a regular basis I could cut spatulas and tongs by 2/3. On the other hand I would be using a lot more (expensive) hot water if I did dishes in small numbers.
One thing I'm having trouble with: Art supplies. Although I have not embroidered in OMG, six or seven years, I can't seem to part with the fabric, the threads and the books I have. It's like I keep saying, "I did enjoy it. I'm going to do it again sometime." Well, if I enjoyed it so much, why haven't I touched these items since 2010? Yet I'm afraid if I get rid of them, I'll be sorry.
I had exactly the same struggle. I decided to let them go, and let the craft shop store them for me. If I do want to take up cake decorating / jewellery making / embroidery again I will buy some new supplies, and actually, that will make the whole thing more fun! Looking at them in the corner instead fills me with dread, like they are remonstrating with me for ignoring them, so the supplies somehow suck the joy out of the thought of doing that thing anyway. Does that make sense or help at all?
I rip lettuce - but then I don't like iceberg lettuce so rarely have it in the house to need a knife for.
What makes the tomato knife so special? I just use a sharp paring/kitchen knife. Am I missing something? I do have several small kitchen knives, some are better at tiny tasks (hulling strawberries, for instance) and some are heavier duty (slicing cheese).
Duplicates - I found that with the dishwasher and cooking for one, I needed lots of some things because they collected in the dishwasher and I only ran it every second day. If I were hand washing on a regular basis I could cut spatulas and tongs by 2/3. On the other hand I would be using a lot more (expensive) hot water if I did dishes in small numbers.
Yes, I too rip all lettuce except iceberg, which I only use for fajitas. So it really was the most single-purpose and therefore stupid knife ever. Glad it's gone.
The tomato knife is serated, which makes it easy to make that first cut in the shiny skin without it bouncing off. It's wavy along it's length so that the slice of tomato doesn't stick to it once cut. It's Global brand, and cost the ridiculous price of £70, but it was a birthday gift for my husband and genuinely improves my quality of life every day. We eat a lot of tomatoes!
And my decluttering for the weekend: I went through all the paperwork from our new mortgage we completed on over the summer. There was a huge stack! Got it down to a small folder with just the important legal stuff. I am hopeful that this is our last ever mortgage! I would like to be done with it before DH turns 40.
This also gave me figures and head room for some FIRE calculations. All on track for 48 for DH and 45 for me. Pretty shocked by that as we have never been big earners. The power of MMM and maths!
I don't know if this counts, as I haven't actually got rid of it... but I've downgraded it.
I was hanging up clean laundry when I noticed a series of holes in a bottom sheet. I gave it to DH straight away who needed a dust sheet for a messy job. So it's out of my linen cupboard, but still on the property. Felt good anyway, usually I'd hang onto it but not use it. No more!
Loaded some stuff into the car and drove it to its new home. I'm finding the more I do this, the easier it is getting.
I am trying to compress 6 file drawers into 4 (or fewer). I am doing a lot of shredding. I am at the car paperwork - I am keeping all my maintenance records, and of course registration, but insurance policies - I don't need them going back forever, do I? Same with house insurance, I would assume this year's and last year's is enough?
(I'm in Canada, if that matters).
Like, how long do you keep credit card bills after they're paid.
Like, how long do you keep credit card bills after they're paid.
Get enrolled in online billing. Then my answer is never.
I do pay all my bills online, but I feel better having them mailed to my house. Usually I try to shred them after a year goes by. So maybe that's what I ought to aim for.
Even if you have copies mailed to you, your statements are available on line, I believe. Log in and check how far back they go. And then shred the paper ones.I do pay all my bills online, but I feel better having them mailed to my house. Usually I try to shred them after a year goes by. So maybe that's what I ought to aim for.
What makes you feel better about having them mailed to the house? Security-wise I would think this is riskier as people can get into your mail (and the copies are already in your email presumably, so it's just another point of weakness). Or am I missing something?
Anytime I think I've got rid of the last knickknack, I find another one...
Anytime I think I've got rid of the last knickknack, I find another one...
They have a hidden breeding ground, and the young and reckless venture out into the house where you can find them.
I figured this out when I kept finding more things after I knew I had purged - I think they found where the hangers breed and settled next to them.
I need to join a Buy Nothing group so I can flood them with donations.
I don't know if this counts, as I haven't actually got rid of it... but I've downgraded it.
I was hanging up clean laundry when I noticed a series of holes in a bottom sheet. I gave it to DH straight away who needed a dust sheet for a messy job. So it's out of my linen cupboard, but still on the property. Felt good anyway, usually I'd hang onto it but not use it. No more!
We used old sheets to rake up leaves - rake leaves into pile, rake onto sheet, gather up sheet, dump in woods, repeat. Very efficient. Reuse is the second R in the 3 Rs after all.
I'm stuck on how to get rid of items that are semi-personal, or personalized. For example, we have a blanket that was given to us for our wedding, which is not to my taste. The problem is that it has our names and wedding date on it. We've never used it, so it's in perfect condition, but it feels totally weird to give away something with our names on it. I have other similar items that I don't know what to do with. Thoughts?
I'm stuck on how to get rid of items that are semi-personal, or personalized. For example, we have a blanket that was given to us for our wedding, which is not to my taste. The problem is that it has our names and wedding date on it. We've never used it, so it's in perfect condition, but it feels totally weird to give away something with our names on it. I have other similar items that I don't know what to do with. Thoughts?
I'm stuck on how to get rid of items that are semi-personal, or personalized. For example, we have a blanket that was given to us for our wedding, which is not to my taste. The problem is that it has our names and wedding date on it. We've never used it, so it's in perfect condition, but it feels totally weird to give away something with our names on it. I have other similar items that I don't know what to do with. Thoughts?
I'm stuck on how to get rid of items that are semi-personal, or personalized. For example, we have a blanket that was given to us for our wedding, which is not to my taste. The problem is that it has our names and wedding date on it. We've never used it, so it's in perfect condition, but it feels totally weird to give away something with our names on it. I have other similar items that I don't know what to do with. Thoughts?
Jumping in again. Shredded some papers over the weekend, and recycled some others. I couldn't for the life of me understand why I was holding on to some of them.
I'm going to look into the e-statements thing. I've already done it with two bank accounts. Thanks for being the voice of logic!
I'm in Christmas card mode (yes, I understand that being a hard-core decutterer while sending people something they will almost certainly throw away in three weeks leaves me wide open).
My little nephews are very excited about Christmas, and they're also at an age where they love receiving mail. I have a few stray blank cards leftover from previous years, all in different designs, so I'm sending a few to my nephews. A countdown to Christmas and a little message about some of the the things we will do when I visit (Nerf wars? Oh yes!)
So that declutters the card box.
I'm in Christmas card mode (yes, I understand that being a hard-core decutterer while sending people something they will almost certainly throw away in three weeks leaves me wide open).
As I consider gifts and Christmas this year, I'm finding myself leaning strongly towards Christmas cards instead of gifts because I can make a nice card, write a note about our year and good wishes for them in it, and they can throw it out when Xmas is over! Of course I'd have trouble getting rid of cards if I received them, but shhh.I'm in Christmas card mode (yes, I understand that being a hard-core decutterer while sending people something they will almost certainly throw away in three weeks leaves me wide open).
Getting rid of the guilt ridden things people had given me really opened up my eyes to how I give things! Most of the time it doesn't need to be stated but there have been a few times I made sure to tell family members that they only needed to keep my gift as long as they enjoyed it. I will not be hurt when they let it go.
Cards are really about an experience right? It's about finding something fun in the middle of the junk mail. It's about a joke or a warm sentiment. For your nephews you are really building it into your visit. It doesn't matter what happens with those pieces of paper after they have supplied the experience.
(or that's what I think anyway...)
I'm in Christmas card mode (yes, I understand that being a hard-core decutterer while sending people something they will almost certainly throw away in three weeks leaves me wide open).
Getting rid of the guilt ridden things people had given me really opened up my eyes to how I give things! Most of the time it doesn't need to be stated but there have been a few times I made sure to tell family members that they only needed to keep my gift as long as they enjoyed it. I will not be hurt when they let it go.
Cards are really about an experience right? It's about finding something fun in the middle of the junk mail. It's about a joke or a warm sentiment. For your nephews you are really building it into your visit. It doesn't matter what happens with those pieces of paper after they have supplied the experience.
(or that's what I think anyway...)
Cards are really about an experience right? It's about finding something fun in the middle of the junk mail. It's about a joke or a warm sentiment. For your nephews you are really building it into your visit. It doesn't matter what happens with those pieces of paper after they have supplied the experience.
(or that's what I think anyway...)
Cards are really about an experience right? It's about finding something fun in the middle of the junk mail. It's about a joke or a warm sentiment. For your nephews you are really building it into your visit. It doesn't matter what happens with those pieces of paper after they have supplied the experience.
(or that's what I think anyway...)
All of which I believe. But I also kept all the cards my grandmother sent me that had more than just to & from written. Now that she is gone, it's important to me to have them - the tangible evidence of the effort and care she put into keeping the relationship alive even though we lived in different countries and saw eachother once a year. She always found the perfect card from Hallmark - like "to my granddaughter and her husband on their first anniversary". When she passed away, they found on her kitchen table the cards for the next several months already purchased and in a card holder as to what month they'd be needed.
When they were going through my _other_ grandmother's papers, they found letters I had written to her, with her notes in the margin of when they arrived, little commentaries (written by her, or later by my aunt who read the letters to her). Since she never replied directly, it was very important to me to get those back.
In other words - to everyone else, this is clutter and I should just take photos to remind myself of the memories. But they fit into a small box, and I'm keeping them.
I'm stuck on how to get rid of items that are semi-personal, or personalized. For example, we have a blanket that was given to us for our wedding, which is not to my taste. The problem is that it has our names and wedding date on it. We've never used it, so it's in perfect condition, but it feels totally weird to give away something with our names on it. I have other similar items that I don't know what to do with. Thoughts?
Husband sold the two remaining dead vehicles on the property. This is huge!
Husband sold the two remaining dead vehicles on the property. This is huge!
I'm impressed! This is quite a few vehicles off the property now. It must feel great.
I scanned in almost all my physical photographs made over the decades. Physical DVDs and CDs are next on the list for digitization.
Shredded a LOT of paper on garbage night. I can't believe some of the stuff I've saved. Like credit reports from 2003 and 2008. You're entitled to a free one every year, as far as I know.
Kept old paychecks from my last job. I have no idea why. I guess I just shove things in the file drawer sometimes and forget about them.
I threw out some candles from memorial services. I realized that I will never forget the people or events memorialized (one was 9/11) and I don't need to keep the candles as a reminder.
We've had a hard time getting rid of stuff. We bought our house from my in-laws, who were downsizing to a one-bedroom condo. We moved in as they were moving out, and a few months later we realized that they had stopped taking stuff. Their new place was full, so they just started stashing stuff in our garage, basement and attic.
My MIL has always been a pack rat, and a lot of it stems from growing up in the Philippines during WWII, when people had very little of anything.
A few weeks ago, I decided to clear some attic space so that I could put my weight bench and rollers (for the bicycle) up there. I donated two carloads of clothes, filled the recycling and trash cans two weeks straight, and can finally move around up there without falling over stuff.
We've had a hard time getting rid of stuff. We bought our house from my in-laws, who were downsizing to a one-bedroom condo. We moved in as they were moving out, and a few months later we realized that they had stopped taking stuff. Their new place was full, so they just started stashing stuff in our garage, basement and attic.
My MIL has always been a pack rat, and a lot of it stems from growing up in the Philippines during WWII, when people had very little of anything.
A few weeks ago, I decided to clear some attic space so that I could put my weight bench and rollers (for the bicycle) up there. I donated two carloads of clothes, filled the recycling and trash cans two weeks straight, and can finally move around up there without falling over stuff.
That's a tough situation. How are they responding to you decluttering?
I've been a pack rat myself when it comes to books. I must have at least 5,000 books in the attic. It might be worth trying to sell them online, but we'll see. If it's more trouble than it's worth, they'll end up at Goodwill.
I've been a pack rat myself when it comes to books. I must have at least 5,000 books in the attic. It might be worth trying to sell them online, but we'll see. If it's more trouble than it's worth, they'll end up at Goodwill.
There are some apps you can get that let you use your phone to scan the ISBN from the book and tell you what you can sell it for. If you have any collectible or valuable books you can quickly sort them out and drop the rest off at a local thrift store or school/prison book drive.
Do not discount finding one or two books worth money, I have a set of hard to find paperback novels worth about $240.00.
Funny story - there was a chest freezer in the basement that was last manufactured in 1976 (not sure how old it was) and was still filled with food. I decided to empty it out one day and found a huge fish wrapped in newspaper that my FIL had caught...in 1997. It started to stink after only a few minutes, and my daughter and her friend quickly took it to the creek in the back yard and set it free.
Sold an over-priced pair of boots through the consignment shop. Now I have one less pair of boots and I can finally put that stupid purchase behind me. >.<
\Sold an over-priced pair of boots through the consignment shop. Now I have one less pair of boots and I can finally put that stupid purchase behind me. >.<
It feels so good to stop beating yourself up everytime you see a 'bad' purchase! Yay!
I have a bunch of old paintings painted by my grandfather and mother. Also, my mom bought many paintings i don't care about. I plan on keeping some of their personal paintings but this stuff just takes up so much space. I feel bad if I throw it away but I am not really sure what to do with it? Any ideas would be great.Offer them to other family members first. Then try to sell them (Do you have any local auction houses? Maybe the place your mother bought them from will buy them back?). Then try to give them away (charity shop, secret Santa, raffle prizes). Then use what you can as kindling/firewood and send the rest to the dump.
Not sure what to do with a couple bottles of hairspray; I use it very rarely so I probably have a lifetime supply. Does hairspray go bad?
I have about as much artistic talent as my toddler, but your post inspired me to Google alternative uses for hairspray and apparently there are tons, including removing stains and lint; and helping your nails dry faster. Who knew?Not sure what to do with a couple bottles of hairspray; I use it very rarely so I probably have a lifetime supply. Does hairspray go bad?
Hairspray is useful for fixing drawings in pastels/ pencil if that helps. Do a test patch first I guess.
I saw this message on a local community FB page today. I poked around and found a nice winter coat, a fleece jacket and a pair of snow pants that my daughter outgrew. I'm glad someone will be able to use them in such a sad time.
"Hello Facebook friends I need to ask a huge favor... I was just told by a friend of mine that 2 little girls ages 6 and 8 have just lost there mother today while we were in church service... she died in cooper hospital . The 2 little girls are on there way from Mexico to New Jersey, a week and some days before Christmas day and now have no mother to come home to.. my favor to ask is if you have any little girls winter cloth, coats, shoes ect. Sizes 6 to 10 in kids cloth with shoe size 3y to 4.5y that you can donate to help these little ones out it would be greatly appreciated and I know God will bless you tremendously. Please inbox me for pick up... these cloths are needed asap.. have a blessed night."
I saw this message on a local community FB page today. I poked around and found a nice winter coat, a fleece jacket and a pair of snow pants that my daughter outgrew. I'm glad someone will be able to use them in such a sad time.
"Hello Facebook friends I need to ask a huge favor... I was just told by a friend of mine that 2 little girls ages 6 and 8 have just lost there mother today while we were in church service... she died in cooper hospital . The 2 little girls are on there way from Mexico to New Jersey, a week and some days before Christmas day and now have no mother to come home to.. my favor to ask is if you have any little girls winter cloth, coats, shoes ect. Sizes 6 to 10 in kids cloth with shoe size 3y to 4.5y that you can donate to help these little ones out it would be greatly appreciated and I know God will bless you tremendously. Please inbox me for pick up... these cloths are needed asap.. have a blessed night."
Dave, do you have more info on this? I'm not on Facebook. I'm in north jersey; if its close maybe I can do something to help.
I have a filing cabinet that I've moved as-is, without going through and purging anything that might be in it, through several moves. As we're hoping to move again this spring, this is a winter project for me.
I'm sure there is an EXCELLENT reason why I still have a whole file folder of wedding congratulations cards in there... (Married in 1998, divorced in 2004.)
Out they go!
I have a week off work... I'm talking the craft room.
I'm getting down to the hard stuff. Today I was able to empty half a drawer out of three of a file cabinet of all my undergraduate work. I was feeling like I could get rid of my class notes and just hang on to my writing (which is what I did for some classes I didn't love), but every file brought back such wonderful memories. This is going to be a rough one.
I've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Probably. I think the Fedex stores here do that. I've gotta admit, though, I'm kind of pissed that I have a perfectly good shredder that I now apparently cannot use.
Recycling in Chicago is widely thought of as a joke anyway. We're pretty behind the times compared to other large cities, from what I've read. The city makes it difficult and expensive to recycle; our building doesn't even have a bin because we're 5 units and the city only provides bins for 2-4 unit buildings. Otherwise the landlord has to pay for it, and apparently ours doesn't want to. (so, um, I throw my recycling into the bin of the building next door. Yes, it's illegal, but with no car I can't haul all this stuff to a recycling center.)
Tris, I would give yourself permission to put it in the regular trash. The powers that be have said it doesn't get recycled if you put it in the recycling (wtf I know) so you won't actually be making anything worse. If there's not enought room in your bin, do you have an outdoor area or friends house where you might be able to have a little bonfire and burn it? Huge stack could be gone in 15 minutes and VERY secure :) Again, not the perfect environmental solution but you have tried your best.
Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Yes. Apparently, you can also send other document formats (like Word) and read them in kindle, but sending a PDF with the convert command gives you access to more of the Kindle functions. Here's a link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email (https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email)
There's also an app that will convert various ebook files to other formats. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I'm going to. It's called Calibre.
It worked!
As you said, from a pdf I got full Kindle, text size changes, etc. I never email kindle so I had to find my email address first ;-)
I wish I had done this while I was still working, it would have been nice to take online journal papers and "kindleize" them so they were easy to read on a laptop or tablet.Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Yes. Apparently, you can also send other document formats (like Word) and read them in kindle, but sending a PDF with the convert command gives you access to more of the Kindle functions. Here's a link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email (https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email)
There's also an app that will convert various ebook files to other formats. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I'm going to. It's called Calibre.
I've said it before and I'll say it again ... drinking through my tea stash before I buy any new tea!!
I've said it before and I'll say it again ... drinking through my tea stash before I buy any new tea!!
+1. I have a Serious Tea Problem. And some of it I don't even like. I think I'm taking the stuff I don't like to work; I'll set it out in the lunchroom and someone will drink it.
I'm still working on the filing cabinet. I have tossed more greeting cards, utility bills from three apartments ago, and a whole file folder of bills and statements for my last cat's final illness (he died in 2011).
Not certain about whether I should keep some paperwork. Like, do I need the bill of sale from a car I sold privately more than 15 years ago? I'm thinking not, but is there some reason I'd need to prove I don't own it any more? And, what about certificates of creditable coverage from the health insurance I had at past jobs? I have a whole stack of these, because at most of my past jobs our insurance carrier changed annually since the companies were small and trying to outrun big premium increases. Am I OK with just keeping the most recent of these, or in a Trump presidency am I going to have to prove that I never had a gap in coverage, if I lose my job and have to go on whatever Obamacare is replaced with?
Struggling with what to do with my "attagirl" folder - basically, thank-you notes I got when I was a lifestyle reporter for a tiny newspaper in the suburbs, performance reviews from past jobs, other evidence that I did well at long-ago jobs. There is a lot and the folder is pretty thick. I don't have a scanner or else I'd just scan everything and toss the originals. Phone photos, maybe?
I went through two moving sized boxes of old photos and managed to get rid of one of them. These were photos of people I thought it desperately important to take pictures of when I was in middle school and high school, but now I can't even tell you their names or why I would know them. Still plenty of pictures left to go through, but huge progress.
Took all the unopened Christmas sweets and snacks we don't like into work.
Jumping in. Today, got rid of some old shoes, cosmetics, miscellaneous stuff that wasn't being used. Not a ton of stuff, but you've got to start somewhere, right? I'm aiming to do a little every day until my life is clutter free.
Jumping in. Today, got rid of some old shoes, cosmetics, miscellaneous stuff that wasn't being used. Not a ton of stuff, but you've got to start somewhere, right? I'm aiming to do a little every day until my life is clutter free.
I've now freed up a kitchen drawer which in the long run will mean we can have an under-sink in-cupboard bin. We don't really have floorspace for a bin so it kind of gets in the way.
I kept wearing them around the house. The elastic gave out so much I was using a hair elastic to ratchet them on. Then there was a bleach incident and the holey khaki fabric became white and pink at the ankles.
It was time.
:(
It worked!
As you said, from a pdf I got full Kindle, text size changes, etc. I never email kindle so I had to find my email address first ;-)
I wish I had done this while I was still working, it would have been nice to take online journal papers and "kindleize" them so they were easy to read on a laptop or tablet.Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Yes. Apparently, you can also send other document formats (like Word) and read them in kindle, but sending a PDF with the convert command gives you access to more of the Kindle functions. Here's a link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email (https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email)
There's also an app that will convert various ebook files to other formats. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I'm going to. It's called Calibre.
Fabulous! Yes, I've done it for a lot of things for work.
Does anyone else have parents who keep giving you their (mostly worthless) stuff to sell online? I've got a couple rubbermaid bins of Stuff from my mother. She has expressed to me that she does NOT want it donated or given away; she wants money for it. Ugh.Tell her that you can't sell the stuff and if she doesn't pick it up by [some reasonable date in the future] that you're going to donate it. Then follow through.
I've hauled this Stuff through the last two moves and we're hoping to move again in spring. I do not want to haul it through yet another move. I have had this stuff listed on Craigslist, ebay, Facebook yard sale groups, etc. for literally years and I've now given up. No one wants to pay money for this. Of course, my mother will not believe this because "they're collectibles! They're worth something!" She cannot sell it herself online as she doesn't have a computer, smartphone, or Internet service, and her HOA doesn't allow yard sales so she can't sell it in person.
I only took this stuff from her in the first place because she has hoarding tendencies and I was happy to see her willing to let stuff leave her house. Now it's in MY house and I can't seem to get anyone to buy it!
The way I see it, my options (other than continue hanging onto it, which will piss off Boyfriend) are:
- Give it all back to her. I no longer have a car, and it's too much to haul onto public transport, so this would mean renting (and paying for) a car to get it to her. I would really rather not do this. Her house is full to bursting as it is.
- Donate it and don't tell her. She's got a memory like an elephant, though, and often asks me about stuff she gave me literally decades ago. (and I think it's likely that eventually she'll ask for it back, in which case I'll have to do option 1.....)
- Donate it and tell her. This will result in repeated angry phone calls in which she screams and cries at me for not respecting her things.
- Donate it, tell her I sold it, and give her the money she wants for it. This is sort of what I'm leaning toward, mainly because she's in pretty dire financial straits and I can afford it. But man, it would piss me off to pay her to get rid of this crap. (This would also encourage her to give me yet MORE crap to sell "because you're so good at it!" and I really don't want to do this any more.)
What would you all do? Has anyone dealt with this?
Tell her that you can't sell the stuff and if she doesn't pick it up by [some reasonable date in the future] that you're going to donate it. Then follow through.
Lying will just encourage her to give you more stuff.
...
I've hauled this Stuff through the last two moves and we're hoping to move again in spring. I do not want to haul it through yet another move. I have had this stuff listed on Craigslist, ebay, Facebook yard sale groups, etc. for literally years and I've now given up. No one wants to pay money for this. Of course, my mother will not believe this because "they're collectibles! They're worth something!" She cannot sell it herself online as she doesn't have a computer, smartphone, or Internet service, and her HOA doesn't allow yard sales so she can't sell it in person.
...
What would you all do? Has anyone dealt with this?
I kept wearing them around the house. The elastic gave out so much I was using a hair elastic to ratchet them on. Then there was a bleach incident and the holey khaki fabric became white and pink at the ankles.
It was time.
:(
My husband brought me some trousers to 'mend' yesterday. He was like, "there's a hole here, if you could just patch it. But maybe extend the patch up? It's already thin here". I asked about the other leg, I had already patched it, but where the patch ended it was weak and maybe they needed a further strenghtening patch there. And since I was already at it, this part needs reinforcing too.
In the end I was like, "so basically just make you a new pair of trousers, but inside this pair?". Apparently they are his favourites.
If any of you need assistance with Calibre, I can help. I've been using it and my kindle (and tablets) consistently for over 5 years. I've yet to find anything it can't do. I have over 6000 books in my library.
Spoiler: show
Does anyone else have parents who keep giving you their (mostly worthless) stuff to sell online? I've got a couple rubbermaid bins of Stuff from my mother. She has expressed to me that she does NOT want it donated or given away; she wants money for it. Ugh.If you can afford it, donate and give her some money for it ( less than $50) since she is in dire financial straits. Also make it clear you can't sell any more for her because it's not worth your time (over three years) to sell them. The way I see it, you are paying to get rid of it from your life. While it's true that asking her to pick up by X and donating by Y will work, it'll not help your mom's hoarding tendencies (she'll come pick it up and store it at her place making you deal with it at a later stage). If you give her very little money, she'll atleast realize that most of what she hoards is crap and may be ready to let them go.
I've hauled this Stuff through the last two moves and we're hoping to move again in spring. I do not want to haul it through yet another move. I have had this stuff listed on Craigslist, ebay, Facebook yard sale groups, etc. for literally years and I've now given up. No one wants to pay money for this. Of course, my mother will not believe this because "they're collectibles! They're worth something!" She cannot sell it herself online as she doesn't have a computer, smartphone, or Internet service, and her HOA doesn't allow yard sales so she can't sell it in person.
I only took this stuff from her in the first place because she has hoarding tendencies and I was happy to see her willing to let stuff leave her house. Now it's in MY house and I can't seem to get anyone to buy it!
The way I see it, my options (other than continue hanging onto it, which will piss off Boyfriend) are:
- Give it all back to her. I no longer have a car, and it's too much to haul onto public transport, so this would mean renting (and paying for) a car to get it to her. I would really rather not do this. Her house is full to bursting as it is.
- Donate it and don't tell her. She's got a memory like an elephant, though, and often asks me about stuff she gave me literally decades ago. (and I think it's likely that eventually she'll ask for it back, in which case I'll have to do option 1.....)
- Donate it and tell her. This will result in repeated angry phone calls in which she screams and cries at me for not respecting her things.
- Donate it, tell her I sold it, and give her the money she wants for it. This is sort of what I'm leaning toward, mainly because she's in pretty dire financial straits and I can afford it. But man, it would piss me off to pay her to get rid of this crap. (This would also encourage her to give me yet MORE crap to sell "because you're so good at it!" and I really don't want to do this any more.)
What would you all do? Has anyone dealt with this?
It worked!
As you said, from a pdf I got full Kindle, text size changes, etc. I never email kindle so I had to find my email address first ;-)
I wish I had done this while I was still working, it would have been nice to take online journal papers and "kindleize" them so they were easy to read on a laptop or tablet.Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Yes. Apparently, you can also send other document formats (like Word) and read them in kindle, but sending a PDF with the convert command gives you access to more of the Kindle functions. Here's a link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email (https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email)
There's also an app that will convert various ebook files to other formats. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I'm going to. It's called Calibre.
Fabulous! Yes, I've done it for a lot of things for work.
If any of you need assistance with Calibre, I can help. I've been using it and my kindle (and tablets) consistently for over 5 years. I've yet to find anything it can't do. I have over 6000 books in my library.
Not directly, but it might be. This is iBooks Bookshelf right? I'll check back in the AM.It worked!
As you said, from a pdf I got full Kindle, text size changes, etc. I never email kindle so I had to find my email address first ;-)
I wish I had done this while I was still working, it would have been nice to take online journal papers and "kindleize" them so they were easy to read on a laptop or tablet.Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Yes. Apparently, you can also send other document formats (like Word) and read them in kindle, but sending a PDF with the convert command gives you access to more of the Kindle functions. Here's a link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email (https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email)
There's also an app that will convert various ebook files to other formats. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I'm going to. It's called Calibre.
Fabulous! Yes, I've done it for a lot of things for work.
If any of you need assistance with Calibre, I can help. I've been using it and my kindle (and tablets) consistently for over 5 years. I've yet to find anything it can't do. I have over 6000 books in my library.
Ooh. Yep. I've got a textbook in Bookshelf (iOS) that'd I'd love to convert (to something actually functional; I hate Bookshelf). But I have no clue how to get the file itself; I just get to it in the app (it's a desk copy because I'm teaching with it; the publisher sent it to me through an online service that syncs to the app). But maybe that's not a Calibre question?
Not directly, but it might be. This is iBooks Bookshelf right? I'll check back in the AM.It worked!
As you said, from a pdf I got full Kindle, text size changes, etc. I never email kindle so I had to find my email address first ;-)
I wish I had done this while I was still working, it would have been nice to take online journal papers and "kindleize" them so they were easy to read on a laptop or tablet.Thanks RuralI've been sorting books too. The ones I want to hold on to are old ones that the library doesn't have, but some of them are old enough they are on Gutenberg.ca (I'm in Canada and respecting Canadian copyright limits - Australia has the same limits we do so I may also download from them). If I can have an e-book version I am OK with donating the paper version.
Question: Has anyone downloaded Gutenberg books and if yes, what e-reader did you download to read them with? I will be reading on a desktop (Windows 7) and a tablet (Android).
Related question: Also some slightly more recent ones are now on Kindle, but they cost, and I already own the paper version! A lot are free onAmazonKindle Prime. Canadian Kindle Prime users, how easy is it to download lots and lots of free books and then get off Kindle Prime? It is the only reason I would sign up for it.
On a "gone" note, all my Kathy Reichs and Dana Stabenow mysteries are in the donate pile. A lot of my Tony Hillerman ones too (the ones the library has). Progress.
On Gutenberg books: Kindle is my preferred, and sometimes it's an option (.mobi files). Failing that, usually I'll convert a text or PDF file to kindle (email to your kindle device address with the subject line "convert" - instructions on Amazon if you search). I like that format for readability, for exporting notes – usually for students – and for the ability to pick up and read where I left off on any kind of device. I have the Kindle app for Idevices, Android, and Windows.
A few were mobi files and are now on my Kindle.
Most of the books were html or text - I saved to Word. If I save those Word documents to PDF this should work? I just email to my Kindle address, subject line convert, and send the files as attachments?
Yes. Apparently, you can also send other document formats (like Word) and read them in kindle, but sending a PDF with the convert command gives you access to more of the Kindle functions. Here's a link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email (https://www.amazon.com/gp/sendtokindle/email)
There's also an app that will convert various ebook files to other formats. I haven't tried it yet, but I think I'm going to. It's called Calibre.
Fabulous! Yes, I've done it for a lot of things for work.
If any of you need assistance with Calibre, I can help. I've been using it and my kindle (and tablets) consistently for over 5 years. I've yet to find anything it can't do. I have over 6000 books in my library.
Ooh. Yep. I've got a textbook in Bookshelf (iOS) that'd I'd love to convert (to something actually functional; I hate Bookshelf). But I have no clue how to get the file itself; I just get to it in the app (it's a desk copy because I'm teaching with it; the publisher sent it to me through an online service that syncs to the app). But maybe that's not a Calibre question?
Does anyone else have parents who keep giving you their (mostly worthless) stuff to sell online? I've got a couple rubbermaid bins of Stuff from my mother. She has expressed to me that she does NOT want it donated or given away; she wants money for it. Ugh.
I've hauled this Stuff through the last two moves and we're hoping to move again in spring. I do not want to haul it through yet another move. I have had this stuff listed on Craigslist, ebay, Facebook yard sale groups, etc. for literally years and I've now given up. No one wants to pay money for this. Of course, my mother will not believe this because "they're collectibles! They're worth something!" She cannot sell it herself online as she doesn't have a computer, smartphone, or Internet service, and her HOA doesn't allow yard sales so she can't sell it in person.
I only took this stuff from her in the first place because she has hoarding tendencies and I was happy to see her willing to let stuff leave her house. Now it's in MY house and I can't seem to get anyone to buy it!
The way I see it, my options (other than continue hanging onto it, which will piss off Boyfriend) are:
- Give it all back to her. I no longer have a car, and it's too much to haul onto public transport, so this would mean renting (and paying for) a car to get it to her. I would really rather not do this. Her house is full to bursting as it is.
- Donate it and don't tell her. She's got a memory like an elephant, though, and often asks me about stuff she gave me literally decades ago. (and I think it's likely that eventually she'll ask for it back, in which case I'll have to do option 1.....)
- Donate it and tell her. This will result in repeated angry phone calls in which she screams and cries at me for not respecting her things.
- Donate it, tell her I sold it, and give her the money she wants for it. This is sort of what I'm leaning toward, mainly because she's in pretty dire financial straits and I can afford it. But man, it would piss me off to pay her to get rid of this crap. (This would also encourage her to give me yet MORE crap to sell "because you're so good at it!" and I really don't want to do this any more.)
What would you all do? Has anyone dealt with this?
Is that many books even mustachian?
Not as physical books. But I switched to eBooks before they even had readers. And they take up no physical space. A good chunk were premustachian too. No clutter for me. 😀
The decluttering endeavor has driven home the irreconcilable differences between my husband and me.
Last night. Me: Do I really have to get rid of my Annie Dillard and Dorris Lessing books? I haven't read them since college, but they were so good ... (Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize winners, respectively)
My husband - face lighting up, pointing to one of his books: THIS is the BEST BOOK EVER!
I squint at the title: "Linear Algebra and its Applications."
We seem happy enough together, but this makes me think we aren't compatible at all.
I'm reasonably good at not bring excess into my house...I THOUGHT...but I'm doing the Apartment Therapy cure this January and re-discovered that I have five whisks/egg beaters (one stolen from my mom, four gifted from my mom...ya think she wants the one I stole back?) and three containers of curry powder.
On the upside, today's task (cleaning out the pantry) has me feeling really good about the space. Which still has three things of curry because I will eventually use them, but has less of the stuff I never will.
...anyone have any good recipes for curry powder?
I'm reasonably good at not bring excess into my house...I THOUGHT...but I'm doing the Apartment Therapy cure this January and re-discovered that I have five whisks/egg beaters (one stolen from my mom, four gifted from my mom...ya think she wants the one I stole back?) and three containers of curry powder.
On the upside, today's task (cleaning out the pantry) has me feeling really good about the space. Which still has three things of curry because I will eventually use them, but has less of the stuff I never will.
...anyone have any good recipes for curry powder?
Curried Lentils and chickpeas!
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2016/07/slow-cooker-coconut-curry-lentils/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2016/07/slow-cooker-coconut-curry-lentils/)
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2015/01/curried-lentils/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2015/01/curried-lentils/)
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2011/02/quick-curried-chick-peas/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2011/02/quick-curried-chick-peas/)
and this one doesn't have curry but is delicious lol: https://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/09/dal-nirvana/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/09/dal-nirvana/)
Curried Lentils and chickpeas!
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2016/07/slow-cooker-coconut-curry-lentils/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2016/07/slow-cooker-coconut-curry-lentils/)
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2015/01/curried-lentils/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2015/01/curried-lentils/)
https://www.budgetbytes.com/2011/02/quick-curried-chick-peas/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2011/02/quick-curried-chick-peas/)
and this one doesn't have curry but is delicious lol: https://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/09/dal-nirvana/ (https://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/09/dal-nirvana/)
Oooh, thank you Bracken_Joy! (How did you know I also had an open packet of lentils in there??)
I love adding curry powder to chicken salad. Also, you can use it for roasted crunchy chick peas, or seasoning for pumpkin seeds.
I make chicken curry with leftover chicken - saute onions, garlic, peppers, any other veg, diced apples, add diced chicken, add chicken broth, add curry. Serve over rice. Also good with left-over turkey. I also saw a turkey curry once that added diced canned peaches (syrup well rinsed off) - sounds odd but was very nice.
I love adding curry powder to chicken salad. Also, you can use it for roasted crunchy chick peas, or seasoning for pumpkin seeds.
I love adding curry powder to chicken salad. Also, you can use it for roasted crunchy chick peas, or seasoning for pumpkin seeds.
Also good in potato salad.
"These are good shoes, I paid $300 for them!" "... they're 15 years old. You don't want them because they're dated and they're your shoes. Why would anyone else want them?"
While she can't have a personal garage sale, she could look into community garage sales or car boot sales and sell things that way.
If you are more embroiled in her (what honestly sounds like narcissistic) behaviour you may find that hard / impossible. But I think it's good to start establishing these kind of boundaries (ie you can't ask me to do you an impossible favour, and then berate me for not doing it) because, IMO, people like this tend to get worse as they get older.
I agree that giving her cash and lying, whilst very appealing, will lead you further down this path which you do not want to go on. I know it's great that she's letting things go, and it's good to encourage that, but, honestly (this is going to be direct, sorry if it's harsh) if you are trying to encourage her to let stuff go so that one day it's easier to deal with her estate, it's not working, because, when that sad day comes, you can donate it all without anyone's agreement. Doing it now means you are having to negotiate with her.
Arrrgh, old journals! So embarrassing. I have some travel journals from a 4 month solo trip when I was 18 and I need to read them before I chuck them. They are really the best record of the trip but I have a feeling the records of what boys I kissed and the attempts at being funny may be too cringeworthy.
I just removed about 3 inches of paper from files of bills and statements. My poor 5-page-at-a-time shredder will not cope (gets too hot and shuts down) so it will have to be done gradually over days...! I might be able to consolidate what was in 2 x lever arch file and a paper folder into one lever arch. My overall aim is to convert three shelves of paperwork into one.
Arrrgh, old journals! So embarrassing. I have some travel journals from a 4 month solo trip when I was 18 and I need to read them before I chuck them. They are really the best record of the trip but I have a feeling the records of what boys I kissed and the attempts at being funny may be too cringeworthy.
I just removed about 3 inches of paper from files of bills and statements. My poor 5-page-at-a-time shredder will not cope (gets too hot and shuts down) so it will have to be done gradually over days...! I might be able to consolidate what was in 2 x lever arch file and a paper folder into one lever arch. My overall aim is to convert three shelves of paperwork into one.
PDF them! :-) Digital clutter vs. actual clutter.
Seriously considering if we can ship away some speciality foodstuff to my sister or if it's not worth it, to give them to a cousin who stays close by. We can't use them anymore since my kid is allergic to them and since they are available only in a particular part of India, I ended up bulk buying them when I went. Now I don't want to waste it but can't use it either. Decisions, decisions!
We are slowly eating down the freezer and the pantry. My husband hates this so I'm doing it very gradually but my goal is to have a mostly empty freezer and pantry by the time we move in 8 months (yep! It'll take us that long to eat them up :( )
Ok, this was a big labor declutter for one item. My son's home from college for the break and wanted the old recliner chair that's made it's way out of every room in our house (nobody wanted it so it would move to whatever room didn't have someone currently in it to defend the territory). He asked me if he could trash it and I said yes. Put it in the basement and I'll dismantle it for recycling as much as possible. Well, we heat our house partly with a wood furnace so as I pulled the thing apart, the hardwood frame was thrown piece by piece into the furnace. Free heat, yay! The screws, bolts, nuts all went into the metal recycle bin and the steel recliner mechanism and springs went in with them. There is fabric, foam and padding that's going to be trashed but a good 80% of the weight is now converted to heat or being recycled. Less clutter!
This is a great idea. I'll contact the student org in nearby university. I'm sure there'll be someone who'd love to take these off my hands. Thanks iowajes!Seriously considering if we can ship away some speciality foodstuff to my sister or if it's not worth it, to give them to a cousin who stays close by. We can't use them anymore since my kid is allergic to them and since they are available only in a particular part of India, I ended up bulk buying them when I went. Now I don't want to waste it but can't use it either. Decisions, decisions!
We are slowly eating down the freezer and the pantry. My husband hates this so I'm doing it very gradually but my goal is to have a mostly empty freezer and pantry by the time we move in 8 months (yep! It'll take us that long to eat them up :( )
Do you have a local facebook buy/sell? You may be able to get some money for them.
Or if it's too much in shipping- is there a university nearby? Maybe there are some international students organizations who could help find a home for these foods for a student who really misses them. Or a local buy nothing group if you just want them out of the house.
Someone bought our ladder!Yay! We're about to put a tyre + rim on Gumtree and fingers crossed it goes for a decent price. Otherwise, we'll just drop it slowly.
I condensed a 40cm x 40cm box full of drop files into one-and-a-bit 8cm wide neat box files that fit on a bookshelf. I'm very pleased.Wooh! That is awesome, a huge amount gone!
Someone bought our ladder!
Someone bought our ladder!
Ok, I gotta ask. Why would you get rid of a ladder? Don't get me wrong, I love decluttering but my ladders are neatly hung on the garage wall ready for any task around the house. Given how frequent I use them, it's not the kind of thing I want to make arrangements to borrow.
Dropped a bag off to charity while I walked to the supermarket this morning.
Took cloth bags to slow the influx of plastic bags, then packed up a heap of plastic shopping bags for a friend who uses them for nappies.
How would I go about getting rid of an old pair of skis? I also have an old backpack. Both are in good condition, but they are incredibly outdated compared to what people us today, I don't think any resale store would want them even as a donation. To give you an idea, I haven't skied since 1995, and my last backpacking trip was even longer ago.
I can't do porch pickup for Freecycle - high-crime neighborhood; it'd get immediately stolen. :( I envy people who can do this.
There's your answer. Anything you are happy to give away for free... do so by putting it on your porch.
Have gone through my cook books and got rid of 6. Now I can store the iron in the same cupboard above the fridge without everything falling out on my head when I try to get it out.
Who watched The Simpsons last night? 😀
Your attention please:
THE SWORD HAS LEFT THE BUILDING. :D Picked up this evening. Hooray!
Your attention please:
THE SWORD HAS LEFT THE BUILDING. :D Picked up this evening. Hooray!
I still haven't done the cords and cables cupboard.
Husband went through it last night looking for something and was making very obvious noises of frustration and displeasure.
(Most of it is his stuff or he has been the hold up because we might need that cable one day. *rolls eyes*)
So when I heard him muttering away, I said, 'Yeah, it's awful in there, we really should sort it out. Make it easier to find what we need.'
He thought that was a great idea.
(Part of the problem is that I don't know what some of these cables and cords are for. My new system is to tag any new ones with washi tape to prevent the situation getting worse.)
I still haven't done the cords and cables cupboard.
Husband went through it last night looking for something and was making very obvious noises of frustration and displeasure.
(Most of it is his stuff or he has been the hold up because we might need that cable one day. *rolls eyes*)
So when I heard him muttering away, I said, 'Yeah, it's awful in there, we really should sort it out. Make it easier to find what we need.'
He thought that was a great idea.
(Part of the problem is that I don't know what some of these cables and cords are for. My new system is to tag any new ones with washi tape to prevent the situation getting worse.)
I think the cords and cables drawer is the hardest. I'm insisting hubby and I do it together. We have millions of discs for software but our current laptop has no disc drive... We also have an old laptop that needs clearing off and recycling but it's too painful a job so a year after we bought a new one, still not done.
I have attached tags to a lot of cables, but when you look at them, many fit multiple devices/ purposes. I don't the names of the cables but there is one with a USB one end and a small thingy the other end and it fits both cameras and some phone or other. Maybe I can rid of a couple, but then if one splits...
I still haven't done the cords and cables cupboard.
Husband went through it last night looking for something and was making very obvious noises of frustration and displeasure.
(Most of it is his stuff or he has been the hold up because we might need that cable one day. *rolls eyes*)
So when I heard him muttering away, I said, 'Yeah, it's awful in there, we really should sort it out. Make it easier to find what we need.'
He thought that was a great idea.
(Part of the problem is that I don't know what some of these cables and cords are for. My new system is to tag any new ones with washi tape to prevent the situation getting worse.)
I think the cords and cables drawer is the hardest. I'm insisting hubby and I do it together. We have millions of discs for software but our current laptop has no disc drive... We also have an old laptop that needs clearing off and recycling but it's too painful a job so a year after we bought a new one, still not done.
I have attached tags to a lot of cables, but when you look at them, many fit multiple devices/ purposes. I don't the names of the cables but there is one with a USB one end and a small thingy the other end and it fits both cameras and some phone or other. Maybe I can rid of a couple, but then if one splits...
I give you Michael McIntyre on The Man Drawer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgUpDGAIdds
I still haven't done the cords and cables cupboard.
Husband went through it last night looking for something and was making very obvious noises of frustration and displeasure.
(Most of it is his stuff or he has been the hold up because we might need that cable one day. *rolls eyes*)
So when I heard him muttering away, I said, 'Yeah, it's awful in there, we really should sort it out. Make it easier to find what we need.'
He thought that was a great idea.
(Part of the problem is that I don't know what some of these cables and cords are for. My new system is to tag any new ones with washi tape to prevent the situation getting worse.)
I think the cords and cables drawer is the hardest. I'm insisting hubby and I do it together. We have millions of discs for software but our current laptop has no disc drive... We also have an old laptop that needs clearing off and recycling but it's too painful a job so a year after we bought a new one, still not done.
I have attached tags to a lot of cables, but when you look at them, many fit multiple devices/ purposes. I don't the names of the cables but there is one with a USB one end and a small thingy the other end and it fits both cameras and some phone or other. Maybe I can rid of a couple, but then if one splits...
I still haven't done the cords and cables cupboard.
Husband went through it last night looking for something and was making very obvious noises of frustration and displeasure.
(Most of it is his stuff or he has been the hold up because we might need that cable one day. *rolls eyes*)
So when I heard him muttering away, I said, 'Yeah, it's awful in there, we really should sort it out. Make it easier to find what we need.'
He thought that was a great idea.
(Part of the problem is that I don't know what some of these cables and cords are for. My new system is to tag any new ones with washi tape to prevent the situation getting worse.)
I think the cords and cables drawer is the hardest. I'm insisting hubby and I do it together. We have millions of discs for software but our current laptop has no disc drive... We also have an old laptop that needs clearing off and recycling but it's too painful a job so a year after we bought a new one, still not done.
I have attached tags to a lot of cables, but when you look at them, many fit multiple devices/ purposes. I don't the names of the cables but there is one with a USB one end and a small thingy the other end and it fits both cameras and some phone or other. Maybe I can rid of a couple, but then if one splits...
Funny thing is that decluttering cables have become so much easier over the last few years. I have reduced my cables to basically this bunch:
1. USB Cables - I kept 2 of every type of usb connector.
2. 1 VGA Cable (the blue one) as a backup in case somebody shows up with old stuff
3. 1 DVI Cable (the white) in case somebody show up with not-so-old stuff.
4. 6 standard power cables (may be a bit much)
5. All the HDMI cables I had (about 3-4 extra)
6. All Cat 5E or better network cables
7. 1 roll of loudspeaker cable
8. 5 assorted audio cables (coax, optical...)
9. 4-5 usb sticks of at least 1 gigabyte
This fits nicely in a small drawer and I have never wanted for a second cable. I have also thrown away all old software on cds, I have no machines that can read them anyway so they are effectively useless.
Really at this point everything is USB, network and HDMI if you're dealing with digital stuff. So just dump the rest.
I am proud of myself. I had a bunch of female stuff I have no need for anymore (yay menopause!). I finally gathered it all up today and donated it to a women's shelter.
Doesn't sound like an accomplishment, but knocking on a stranger's door to announce "I have tampons" is not any introvert's ideal activity. I decided getting over it makes more sense than throwing that stuff in a landfill, when the shelter is a half mile from my house.
I am proud of myself. I had a bunch of female stuff I have no need for anymore (yay menopause!). I finally gathered it all up today and donated it to a women's shelter.
Doesn't sound like an accomplishment, but knocking on a stranger's door to announce "I have tampons" is not any introvert's ideal activity. I decided getting over it makes more sense than throwing that stuff in a landfill, when the shelter is a half mile from my house.
Mezzie, Tris Prior, TomTX--thanks for the suggestions!
Mezzie, Tris Prior, TomTX--thanks for the suggestions!
You're welcome!
Now if I could just remember what I suggested....
Anyway, confirmed retention schedule on utility bills with the wife (1 year retention, plus final bill from any former utilties) - and yay, I got to shred!
Need to work out an arrangement on old credit card bills and bank statements next...
Hit the local storage unit hard this weekend. Emptied out another 15+ boxes. Took two loads to local charity, have a box going to a resale shop. Stuck now with the final few boxes that have sentimental items from my deceased parents -- letters, photos, documents etc. I just pulled out my father's wallet out of the last pair of pants he wore. All the coins in his pocket were from the 1990s. My mother just kept it all and now that she is gone I have the task of doing it alone. It sucks to lose both parents so young and this is one case where it also stinks being an only child. My spouse is so supportive, but really can't help because it's paperwork and photos. I just need to stop read through it all and make decisions. I feel like there might be light at the end of this storage unit tunnel and then I realize that I have two more storage unit crates in another state... I'll get there, eventually!
Next Friday is my last work day. I've already cleaned my tiny closet out and kept like 2 nice tops for "dressing up" during FIRE.
I plan to take them up to my mom's house, she can chose what she wants to keep and the rest will GO.
I really, really wanted to have a burning party but that seems a waste for perfectly good clothes.
I am sure I will find something else work related to burn, cut up etc. Like my Badge I will definitely be shredding that the MINUTE I am home on friday!
Next Friday is my last work day.Woohooooo! Congratulations!
I really really enjoy decluttering. I'm supposed to be doing other things but am itching to tackle another area.
I'm a bit worried about the day that I run out of areas / categories to tackle...
Next Friday is my last work day. I've already cleaned my tiny closet out and kept like 2 nice tops for "dressing up" during FIRE.
I plan to take them up to my mom's house, she can chose what she wants to keep and the rest will GO.
I really, really wanted to have a burning party but that seems a waste for perfectly good clothes.
I am sure I will find something else work related to burn, cut up etc. Like my Badge I will definitely be shredding that the MINUTE I am home on friday!
I really really enjoy decluttering. I'm supposed to be doing other things but am itching to tackle another area.
I'm a bit worried about the day that I run out of areas / categories to tackle...
I really really enjoy decluttering. I'm supposed to be doing other things but am itching to tackle another area.
I'm a bit worried about the day that I run out of areas / categories to tackle...
Maybe you could help my wife...
I really really enjoy decluttering. I'm supposed to be doing other things but am itching to tackle another area.
I'm a bit worried about the day that I run out of areas / categories to tackle...
Would you like to experience a Canadian winter? I am sure I will have stuff for you to have fun decluttering when you are done there.
I really really enjoy decluttering. I'm supposed to be doing other things but am itching to tackle another area.
I'm a bit worried about the day that I run out of areas / categories to tackle...
Would you like to experience a Canadian winter? I am sure I will have stuff for you to have fun decluttering when you are done there.
Ooo careful, I might take you up on that. Are you near a ski-field?
Ugh, I really need to destash my makeup. But it is all opened and used so I've got to pitch it. It feels like literally throwing out money.I hear you. This morning, I threw away some facial moisturizers from a costly, well known brand from my preMMM days because they had turned rancid. They might have stayed intact but I had used 1/10th and left the remaining (beats me why I didn't finish one before I started the next) in the jar. Waste of $$$ :(
I have a bunch of skincare stuff too that's meant to address all my skin problems (blotchiness, wrinkles) but never really worked.
SO wasteful! :( Also, how on earth did I end up with this many gray eyeshadows?
Husband bought batteries at the airport because he "couldn't find" them in the cord cupboard. (I wasn't home.)
That's it. I'm going scorched earth on that cupboard this weekend.
Husband bought batteries at the airport because he "couldn't find" them in the cord cupboard. (I wasn't home.)
That's it. I'm going scorched earth on that cupboard this weekend.
Yay!
Husband bought batteries at the airport because he "couldn't find" them in the cord cupboard. (I wasn't home.)
That's it. I'm going scorched earth on that cupboard this weekend.
Yay!
...
Now to condense the contents of (wince) four external hard drives...
I reorganised the shelves to group like with like, and separated some cables into ziplocks to make life easier in the future.I saw someone at work using bull clips to keep cables organised and immediately stole the idea.
It's made my life so much easier with the multiple charging cables I have around the place.
Basically, it looks something like this:
http://www.marciafrancois.com/blog/2011/08/12/how-do-you/
I was planning on replacing some bookcases I'm offloading to siblings with nicer ones, but now I'm wondering if there's a chance I can just declutter or rearrange 2 bookcases worth of stuff. That's the dream...Nope, couldn't decluttered the problem away; needed new bookcases to free up space in a dresser so it can become the baby's. So, technically the only furniture we've had to source for the baby has been the cot; I've wanted to replace those bookshelves for ages regardless.
Decluttered 3 large bags of clothes, 3 boxes of books, and 2 boxes of miscellany to donate, and a few bags of rubbish. DS and DD were enlisted and half of DD wardrobe was wiped out clean and all the clothes tidied, and the floor of half DS's.
The house looks no different : sooner or later it must get better.
I was able to volunteer to house some records at my school since my file cabinets are getting emptier and emptier. I may be able to get rid of a work file cabinet by the end of the year (people are always scrambling for them), freeing up some valuable space in my middle room. I no longer keep anything in bins; everything is in a file drawer or on a shelf (or on my desk, which is still a mess, but I'm getting to that soon!). I have a table and two large awesome teacher desks in my classroom. I'd like to move one of my desks to the middle room and rearrange some things to allow more room for the Chromebook cart that's a fairly new addition and really doesn't fit.
At home I need to do some more culling in the one file drawer in my office for financial records. I had a Cingular contract in there. How many years ago did that company disappear?
Things are going well.
I was able to volunteer to house some records at my school since my file cabinets are getting emptier and emptier. I may be able to get rid of a work file cabinet by the end of the year (people are always scrambling for them), freeing up some valuable space in my middle room. I no longer keep anything in bins; everything is in a file drawer or on a shelf (or on my desk, which is still a mess, but I'm getting to that soon!). I have a table and two large awesome teacher desks in my classroom. I'd like to move one of my desks to the middle room and rearrange some things to allow more room for the Chromebook cart that's a fairly new addition and really doesn't fit.
At home I need to do some more culling in the one file drawer in my office for financial records. I had a Cingular contract in there. How many years ago did that company disappear?
Things are going well.
Cingular bought AT&T Wireless in 2004...
Leading to the Colbert report:
http://www.ebaumsworld.com/videos/colberts-take-on-att/955486/
On a whim, I looked up and tried the Kondo folding on my laundry yesterday, and I think I'm converted. It's space-saving and easier to find things. I'm sure my version was a little less exact than hers, but it worked.
Right now I'm in the middle of shredding some bad writing. I'm taking on the emotional boxes little by little.
Tossed so much on the weekend that I freed up two empty boxes.
One went into the recycling bin this morning, the other is being drafted into helping me declutter the utensil drawer.
We have a freebie table at work, so I brought in four books yesterday. All gone this morning.
I have so much digital clutter it's unreal :( My first digital job is to sort out my email as I've got some POP accounts and multiple devices and it is a total shambles and adding to the clutter daily.
I have so much digital clutter it's unreal :( My first digital job is to sort out my email as I've got some POP accounts and multiple devices and it is a total shambles and adding to the clutter daily.
We may have more emails than we do dollars of net worth. Both are well into 6 figures.
It's a bit of an extended story, but information retained in my email archive very likely saved a child's life - so I am especially loath to dispose of everything wholesale.
Digital decluttering in the past week:
- Deleted 16,000 emails from my husband's work account (with his permission) (and that's just a drop in the bucket)
- Deleted more than 600 from my Gmail
- Deleted a couple of hundred photos from my phone
Digital decluttering in the past week:
- Deleted 16,000 emails from my husband's work account (with his permission) (and that's just a drop in the bucket)
- Deleted more than 600 from my Gmail
- Deleted a couple of hundred photos from my phone
So jealous right now.
Another bottle gone from the drinks shelf - the Pimms. We sound like alcoholics. Tomorrow it's the second bottle of rum with a target on its back. We have limes, mint and fizzy water ready for mojitos.
Another bottle gone from the drinks shelf - the Pimms. We sound like alcoholics. Tomorrow it's the second bottle of rum with a target on its back. We have limes, mint and fizzy water ready for mojitos.
Drinking rum counts as decluttering?
Oh I am IN!
Another bottle gone from the drinks shelf - the Pimms. We sound like alcoholics. Tomorrow it's the second bottle of rum with a target on its back. We have limes, mint and fizzy water ready for mojitos.
Drinking rum counts as decluttering?
Oh I am IN!
Another bottle gone from the drinks shelf - the Pimms. We sound like alcoholics. Tomorrow it's the second bottle of rum with a target on its back. We have limes, mint and fizzy water ready for mojitos.
Drinking rum counts as decluttering?
Oh I am IN!
Woo hoo, party at Freshwater's house!
Deleted more than 500 emails.
Down to <5000 in Gmail.
Deleted more than 500 emails.
Down to <5000 in Gmail.
Hurry up and get to zero... I need to read something from you other than deleting emails!
Deleted more than 500 emails.
Down to <5000 in Gmail.
Hurry up and get to zero... I need to read something from you other than deleting emails!
Not my fault you went to work and left me home alone! :D Had to occupy myself somehow.
I, uh, will probably be taking an annual leave or unpaid leave day when I was actually sick. But that's partly because I have no sick leave (wait, maybe it reset with calendar year?) And also, it just feels wrong to take it as a sick day...Deleted more than 500 emails.
Down to <5000 in Gmail.
Hurry up and get to zero... I need to read something from you other than deleting emails!
Not my fault you went to work and left me home alone! :D Had to occupy myself somehow.
Were you really the only person in Australia to take an annual leave day today when you were actually sick??
Deleted more than 500 emails.
Down to <5000 in Gmail.
Hurry up and get to zero... I need to read something from you other than deleting emails!
Not my fault you went to work and left me home alone! :D Had to occupy myself somehow.
Were you really the only person in Australia to take an annual leave day today when you were actually sick??
Deleted more than 500 emails.
Down to <5000 in Gmail.
Hurry up and get to zero... I need to read something from you other than deleting emails!
Not my fault you went to work and left me home alone! :D Had to occupy myself somehow.
Were you really the only person in Australia to take an annual leave day today when you were actually sick??
I've missed part of this story. Where MPGH was sick and where Marty went to live with her.
I threw out some bandages and other random first aid stuff today. Cleared off the dining table by finishing a project...and then dumped a whole load more stuff on it to sort through.
Oops! Ours is also kept under the spare bed, must be the universal storage space for tripods.The space under spare beds is a great place to lose stuff. I couldn't even tell you what is under mine - no doubt valuable things that I just couldn't throw out.
Oops! Ours is also kept under the spare bed, must be the universal storage space for tripods.The space under spare beds is a great place to lose stuff. I couldn't even tell you what is under mine - no doubt valuable things that I just couldn't throw out.
I've got three plastic tubs on my living room floor. I'd like to consolidate the contents to at least two, if not one. I've already thrown out some stuff.
There's some rather weird and niche electronic stuff that I'm not sure what to do with (for example, a USB DAC). I've got two spare Apple keyboards and a spare Airport Express. An iPad camera connection kit even though I no longer own the iPad in question (I did throw out the iPad box the other day).
I'll jump onto Mazuma Mobile and get rid of my old LG phone (apparently they'll pay a bit of money for it even if it doesn't work).
I'll jump onto Mazuma Mobile and get rid of my old LG phone (apparently they'll pay a bit of money for it even if it doesn't work).
Any suggestions on what to do with what seems like a million pens, pencils, markers, etc. that have all been used to some extent? Couldn't figure out how recyclable they were and would prefer not to just trash them if they are reusable somehow. Have a small (ish) number set aside. The rest is just taking up space.How about your local school? Teachers can hand them out to pupils who need them if they don't need them themselves.
Great idea! Will look into it. Thank you.Any suggestions on what to do with what seems like a million pens, pencils, markers, etc. that have all been used to some extent? Couldn't figure out how recyclable they were and would prefer not to just trash them if they are reusable somehow. Have a small (ish) number set aside. The rest is just taking up space.How about your local school? Teachers can hand them out to pupils who need them if they don't need them themselves.
Any suggestions on what to do with what seems like a million pens, pencils, markers, etc. that have all been used to some extent? Couldn't figure out how recyclable they were and would prefer not to just trash them if they are reusable somehow. Have a small (ish) number set aside. The rest is just taking up space.
I think any preparedness focus from now on will be a focus on myself as my greatest asset (skills learning and practice).
I've had a struggle with balancing minimalism with preparedness/self-reliance. I've hit the point finally where most of my just-in-case things don't get used for years at a time so I'm ready to let them go.
Oops! Ours is also kept under the spare bed, must be the universal storage space for tripods.The space under spare beds is a great place to lose stuff. I couldn't even tell you what is under mine - no doubt valuable things that I just couldn't throw out.
I just did an audit: lots of dust, tripod, easel (never used), 2 beach chairs, a broken sander (forbidden to throw out), shoes that never get worn (ditto) and a broken hi-fi. I was just dragging the hi-fi out to get rid when DH told me I'm an addict. It's true, but...it's broken...?
Still can't convince husband to give up his old textbooks that he hasn't used for the past 10 years. I guess I'll have to do some ground work and then show him their true value so he can just say "OK let it go" rather than him working on selling/donating them.I would just let that one go. It sounds like you made the suggestion already, and that's as far as I'd go with it. In terms of the overall relationship, respecting his boundaries and being clear that you aren't the boss of him is probably more important than the space his books take up.
The hardest part for me is just finding the time to sit down and actually go through all the stuff, create ads to sell it, throw out/donate what cannot be sold, etc, etc.
I passed my ultimate minimalist hurtle to date: I sold my wedding dress. It was a huge box. You couldn't see the pretty parts of it how it was packed anyway (and I never would have unpacked it, I know myself, lol). I got married 1.5yrs ago. Trends won't hold forever, and I don't want to decide down the road I had sold it and basically have to give it away. I like the idea of it being part of another wedding, too. So, $800 in the bank and a big hole in the top part of our closet.
Oh! I totally forgot one. When the lady came to buy my wedding dress, I offered her 6 shirts I was going to goodwill. I said, 'well, I figured we'd be the same size and have similar tastes!' She loved them, took them all.That is so thoughtful!
Took all of my empty alcohol containers back to the Beer Store for a $6.20 refund. It is surprising how many of those can accumulate over a few months! Definitely cleared out some storage space.
However, I've realized that the cost/benefit of holding onto empties is not worth it, so from now on, I will just place them in the recycle bin. It took me an hour to organize them all and carry them down to the local Beer Store, thus making the $6.20 refund I received less than minimum wage.
I've been doing this for a while- our bottle deposit is only $0.05/bottle, and it's one of my least favorite chores. Where I used to live, I would put them in a bag beside the bin so that our neighborhood homeless lady that collected cans and bottles could just 'grab and go'. But where I live now there are no homeless people that check the bins! Not sure what to do now, it seems a shame that *no one* is getting that money.
Re: the bottles with deposits (we don't have these here, AFAIK) aren't the bottles being reused instead of recycled if they're properly returned though? As in, cleaned and refilled and sold again, instead of broken up and made into 'new' glass? If so I think I'd still do it for the environmental benefits. Not trying to chastise anyone, we all have our own causes, so I totally get if it's still not worth it to you. Just thought it was worth a mention (if I am indeed correct that they get reused).
I got rid of some fabrics scraps at the weekend. I made a skirt and the remaining bits were not large nor particuarly useful (a thick tweed which frayed easily, so not a contender for facings or pocket bags etc).
I also tidied up a load of tools and supplies being used in our renovations and was able to weed out lots of empty screw boxes. The ugly pile is now smaller and neater.
I am still loving how much easier it is to clean with so much less stuff!
50 years ago a fair number of glass bottles were being re-used in the USA. Think those heavy classic Coke bottles. Typically now they are not.
Took all of my empty alcohol containers back to the Beer Store for a $6.20 refund. It is surprising how many of those can accumulate over a few months! Definitely cleared out some storage space.
However, I've realized that the cost/benefit of holding onto empties is not worth it, so from now on, I will just place them in the recycle bin. It took me an hour to organize them all and carry them down to the local Beer Store, thus making the $6.20 refund I received less than minimum wage.
I've been doing this for a while- our bottle deposit is only $0.05/bottle, and it's one of my least favorite chores. Where I used to live, I would put them in a bag beside the bin so that our neighborhood homeless lady that collected cans and bottles could just 'grab and go'. But where I live now there are no homeless people that check the bins! Not sure what to do now, it seems a shame that *no one* is getting that money.
I did some real decluttering too:
- Cleaned out enough of my closet that I could fit my sewing machine and board games in there, making more room in the garage. I also have room for my sewing table to come in once I drop off a newly filled box of donations.
- I got some yarn to see if I could crochet, but my arthritis flared up like crazy. That means I can give said yarn, crochet, and knitting stuff to relatives and friends who can use them. I've hung onto that stuff for a loooong time wondering if I could ever use it again.
-Shredded an old diary. Reading the next one and should shred tonight. I kind of like rereading them, but I also am tempted to just shred them all at once. (I have dozens -- I've been an avid diarist since I could write and a near-hoarder just as long).
-I'm seriously loving the Konmari folding style still. It saves a ton of room (part of how I managed to fit the sewing machine in the closet).
Challenge coming up: Stuffed animals. I still have my first teddy bear and some other stuffed animals that are heavy nostalgia triggers for me. Thinking about it....
I'm just curious whether your local thrift store, Goodwill, whatever turns down perfectly good donations because they are full on that item? Didn't happen to me, but to a friend, at the thrift store where we are donating most of our crap.
DH has been claiming for a long time he can make money renovating old electronics and selling them online. He just never got around to the selling part, until this month. Knowing his sales skill, someone got a good deal. But he still got away with about twice as much as he paid for the stuff, including parts. The big question now is whether this counts as getting rid of stuff, or if he'll just buy new stuff to continue the "business". Until then, I'm counting it as a win.Why don't you encourage him to set up a simple webpage describing his services? He may have fixed things that others on this site would like to buy "refurbished" and we most certainly have some items that we'd like to get rid of but don't want to throw in a landfill. Good business opportunity! Plus, he can pick and choose. an easy "nope, not for me" would mean "deal with your own clutter, it's of no use to me". ha!
Put a pair of pants that were itchy in the donation box.
Put a pair of pants that were itchy in the donation box.
Life's too short to wear uncomfortable clothes.
I have a couple of items that I can't wear without demanding, "Feel this! How soft is this fabric?!
I have been on a purging spree lately. I had a ton of stuff just sitting in my closet and basement. I have managed to sell quite a few items.
Last night, I tossed a bunch of old CD ROM's and the spindles I was using to store them. They were mostly 8+ year old Linux distributions.
I also found a bag of old cell phones. I think my wife has every cell phone she has ever bought. I convinced her to let me recycle the old flip phones. We have a few old smart phones laying around too. We just need to wipe the data off of them first. I don't mind keeping the last phone around as a spare if my current phone gets trashed. We certainly don't need 7 year old smart phones laying around.
I'm going to be much choosier about my purchases going forward so I don't have to keep dealing with moving/selling/trashing old crap.
I have been on a purging spree lately. I had a ton of stuff just sitting in my closet and basement. I have managed to sell quite a few items.
Last night, I tossed a bunch of old CD ROM's and the spindles I was using to store them. They were mostly 8+ year old Linux distributions.
I also found a bag of old cell phones. I think my wife has every cell phone she has ever bought. I convinced her to let me recycle the old flip phones. We have a few old smart phones laying around too. We just need to wipe the data off of them first. I don't mind keeping the last phone around as a spare if my current phone gets trashed. We certainly don't need 7 year old smart phones laying around.
I'm going to be much choosier about my purchases going forward so I don't have to keep dealing with moving/selling/trashing old crap.
Ha, that would drive me nuts having all those old phones laying around! I usually have my old phone sold within hours of getting the new one. I don't follow the "I might need this someday" line of thinking. A.) The old phone was already replaced because it wasn't meeting my needs anymore. Why would I ever want to go back to using it? B.) If the new phone does go down, I can probably have a replacement in my hands in 48 hrs or less.
We do this too... We keep one old phone each since we only have smartphones and have run into weird issues all of a sudden. So till we take it to the shop to figure it out and fix it (for free usually), we need another phone. Having two around has saved us $$$ and tension in having to buy a new old phone. And yeah, we've had the unique bad luck where both our main phones died within hours of each other. So two phones it is.I have been on a purging spree lately. I had a ton of stuff just sitting in my closet and basement. I have managed to sell quite a few items.
Last night, I tossed a bunch of old CD ROM's and the spindles I was using to store them. They were mostly 8+ year old Linux distributions.
I also found a bag of old cell phones. I think my wife has every cell phone she has ever bought. I convinced her to let me recycle the old flip phones. We have a few old smart phones laying around too. We just need to wipe the data off of them first. I don't mind keeping the last phone around as a spare if my current phone gets trashed. We certainly don't need 7 year old smart phones laying around.
I'm going to be much choosier about my purchases going forward so I don't have to keep dealing with moving/selling/trashing old crap.
Ha, that would drive me nuts having all those old phones laying around! I usually have my old phone sold within hours of getting the new one. I don't follow the "I might need this someday" line of thinking. A.) The old phone was already replaced because it wasn't meeting my needs anymore. Why would I ever want to go back to using it? B.) If the new phone does go down, I can probably have a replacement in my hands in 48 hrs or less.
The old phones weren't too bad as far as clutter goes. They were all in an old Verizon bag, but they were taking up space that I needed for something else. I think Target does phone recycling, so we will drop them of there the next time we go shopping.
I always just keep my last most recent phone around since the only phone I have is a cell phone. If I had a land line phone, I wouldn't worry about keeping a spare around.
Hubs and I have been on a hardcore purge cycle the last week... Took 3 boxes of books to the library for donation last weekend, and donated a box of random things from our front closet to charity.
Yesterday we got 5 bags of worn out or ill-fitting clothes/shoes out of our lives, which is just crazy to me... It didn't even seem like we had that much to begin with and yet here we are! I also boxed up literally every piece of jewelry that I don't wear, is looking rough, or is just plain cheap. Later this week I'll be paring down unnecessary kitchen stuffs and fabric in my sewing bin that I either will never use or is too small to do anything useful with.
theadvicist--I'm totally weighing my stuff before it leaves the house.
theadvicist--I'm totally weighing my stuff before it leaves the house.
theadvicist--I'm totally weighing my stuff before it leaves the house.
This is awesome!
Wish I had done this when I started decluttering a few years ago.
When I got rid of 2015 things in 2015 I did have a chart and I marked off each item. It was so satisfying and motivating, and I'm sure you feel the same!
Took a box of bits and pieces to the charity shop this lunchtime, and found a hedgehog rescue that will take some unwanted dog food.
theadvicist--I'm totally weighing my stuff before it leaves the house.
This is awesome!
Wish I had done this when I started decluttering a few years ago.
Me too. That would have been interesting.
theadvicist--I'm totally weighing my stuff before it leaves the house.
This is awesome!
Wish I had done this when I started decluttering a few years ago.
Me too. That would have been interesting.
Today I gave away a grocery bag stuffed full of pink packing peanuts. This was a lot of bulk, but the weight was only an ounce or two... *sigh*
I've been on a huge decluttering kick. I've even moved on to the attic, which I was glad to see didn't have as much stuff in it as I thought. I've added a ton to my ebay selling pile, thrown away a fair amount, and even found a few useful items! Best part of decluttering is realizing you already have what you need. The shoulder strap on my duffel bag broke a while back and I've been meaning to get a new one forever (strap, that is). Well, I found a spare! Problem solved, money saved! I also found a brand-new rug pad which I will use with a rug I got for free from a FB garage sale group. Why we had a spare rug pad, I'll never know, but I'm glad to not have to buy one.
This is a big one.
My husband just let me delete 35,790 emails.
In his previous job he was on a mailing list that sent out dozens of updates a day. They were sent to his work email and, because they were time sensitive, also his Gmail.
That was more than four years ago.
I just asked if I could delete everything from that mailing list, and he said yes.
His Gmail is now down to a much more manageable 15,183.
I'll just have to replant the grass in the spring and mowing the front lawn will be smooth sailing :)
I'll just have to replant the grass in the spring and mowing the front lawn will be smooth sailing :)
If it's not a large area I've always found that the grass just grows in from the sides around it in a short amount of time. Might save you work and money.
This is a big one.
My husband just let me delete 35,790 emails.
Paperwork questions (I'm in Canada if it matters).
Old insurance policies for car/house - how far back to keep?
Maintenance records for car, so far I have kept everything. Mustachian problem, car was bought in 2010, if I traded in every few years this would not be such a bulging file ;-) but I have almost 7 years worth of paperwork for it. Keep or ditch oldest records?
Paperwork questions (I'm in Canada if it matters).
Old insurance policies for car/house - how far back to keep?
Maintenance records for car, so far I have kept everything. Mustachian problem, car was bought in 2010, if I traded in every few years this would not be such a bulging file ;-) but I have almost 7 years worth of paperwork for it. Keep or ditch oldest records?
I personally would keep everything on the car, just to show the future owner that you did regular maintenance. As a buyer, I would trust a seller much more if he/she could produce proof instead of just telling me the car was serviced regularly.
Here's an infographic (http://blogs.hrblock.com/2015/01/03/filing-cabinet-clean-up-get-organized-in-the-new-year-infographic/?otppartnerid=9193&campaignid=sm_mcm_9193_1058) from H&R Block on which documents to keep and for how long.
Great motivation from all of you lately! Also in person motivation: A close friend is moving soon and mentioned they only need 10 boxes for their possessions so they don't need to pack until the last week. This led to a ton of questions from me, as I have seen their current place and it is a similar size to where I live (about 1000 square feet). Do they have lots of empty kitchen cabinets? - yes! Does that count all their clothes and her jewellery making business supplies? - no, they will use their few suitcases and tape their dresser drawers for clothes, and the jewellery supplies are already in bins ready for moving. Even though I now know that 10 boxes does not count all of their stuff - I am still so jealous! I came home and immediately found 20 items that I can donate. Even though I just did a big donation run a few days ago. I have a few areas I know I can pare down still and that have been on my radar for awhile - this may be the push that gets them gone!
Tossed eight make-up brushes (never used) and an eyelash curler (used once, five years ago, hated it).
I used to think I needed this stuff, that it was expected, but I'm finding my own tolerance level. I have a low tolerance for stuff, and a high tolerance for living life with uncurled eyelashes.
Also, eyeshadow brushes are redundant since I never wear and no longer own eyeshadow.
Has anyone else noticed that they find more stuff to get rid of after visiting a room, closet, bookcase, or drawer a second or third time? Stuff I was struggling to part with the first time I decluttered were pretty easy to get rid of on subsequent visits.
QuoteHas anyone else noticed that they find more stuff to get rid of after visiting a room, closet, bookcase, or drawer a second or third time? Stuff I was struggling to part with the first time I decluttered were pretty easy to get rid of on subsequent visits.
Ye gods, yes! I can't tell you how much stuff I've tossed on my second and third passes through a clutter spot. Also, got rid of my particle board bookcase today on Buy Nothing! Between that and my posterboard display (which hasn't gone away yet, but will either go away via Buy Nothing or Goodwill), I'm at 1158 lbs donated or tossed! That posterboard display, with all of the shelves, is 300 lbs on its own!
I also found a pretty big framed photo my wife got as a gift. The box is like 2'x3'. We were going to hang it but after looking at the photo subject, I'm not sure I want to bother hanging it. It's a decently composed photo, but I just don't think I want a photo of a bunch of cows grazing around a tree on our walls. I'm going to see if I can convince my wife to let me sell it.
I also found a pretty big framed photo my wife got as a gift. The box is like 2'x3'. We were going to hang it but after looking at the photo subject, I'm not sure I want to bother hanging it. It's a decently composed photo, but I just don't think I want a photo of a bunch of cows grazing around a tree on our walls. I'm going to see if I can convince my wife to let me sell it.
If it's a nice frame another option would be to replace the image with something you actually like.
I also found a pretty big framed photo my wife got as a gift. The box is like 2'x3'. We were going to hang it but after looking at the photo subject, I'm not sure I want to bother hanging it. It's a decently composed photo, but I just don't think I want a photo of a bunch of cows grazing around a tree on our walls. I'm going to see if I can convince my wife to let me sell it.
If it's a nice frame another option would be to replace the image with something you actually like.
That is certainly an option. It would have to be a really big print though. *snip*
We keep talking a big game about hanging pictures and we never do. Our house has no photos hanging. You'd probably think we were Amish by the austerity of our decor :D
We keep talking a big game about hanging pictures and we never do. Our house has no photos hanging. You'd probably think we were Amish by the austerity of our decor :D
We have one photo on display (not of us, not of people), a framed print sitting on a sideboard.
Nothing on the walls. It's only been six months since we moved, don't want to rush into it...
We keep talking a big game about hanging pictures and we never do. Our house has no photos hanging. You'd probably think we were Amish by the austerity of our decor :D
We have one photo on display (not of us, not of people), a framed print sitting on a sideboard.
Nothing on the walls. It's only been six months since we moved, don't want to rush into it...
We've been in our house for a little over 9 years. We still haven't managed to make hanging photos happen. My wife has a couple of framed photos on a shelf, and that's about it.
and two checks for 10$ each (once check from 2007 another from 2010). I was joking with husband that I was going to cash it and he said: "Don't do that! Remember what happened to Jerrys grandma". http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0697756/ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0697756/)
and two checks for 10$ each (once check from 2007 another from 2010). I was joking with husband that I was going to cash it and he said: "Don't do that! Remember what happened to Jerrys grandma". http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0697756/ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0697756/)
Oh darn it. I did tear them up right away! Should have called, they are close relatives/friends. It will make up for a nice conversation piece next time I see them.
You could call the person the check was from and see if they mind you cashing it.
I found an 12 year old check from my Uncle and called him to tell him I was going to tear it up, and he said "Oh- I think of you every time I balance my check register- see if the bank takes it." They did; he finally got to mark it out of his check register, and I got $50 unexpectedly.
I ended up with about eight magazine racks from my old job.
I used them for a while then changed things around and don't use them.
So I'm going to bring them to work, where they will be put to use.
Now to actually bring them with me on the train...
I'm *still* clearing out junk as I pack (closing could be next week!)--where does it all come from??? I have come to the conclusion that I have *WAAAAAYYYYY* too much stuff, and I know I have less than the average American does!
Last of the magazine racks to work today, plus I'm posting half a dozen make-up bags etc to a charity that collects products for women escaping domestic violence.
Donated four old pairs of glasses to charity through my optometrist. And sent a bottle of glasses cleaning solution to work with my husband.
This week's tally:
2 in
25 out
I've been so busy with my work licensing but, am officially done now. I started gathering more donations for goodwill in my fireplace area, have a giant bag of clothes ready to go and a ton of food.
My fiance got a new job so he tried on all his clothes in February and donated a lot if them. I redid our closets and culled my wardrobe that was scattered between two closets and a plastic bin under the spare bed.
Unfortunately there is only one church that accepts food semi nearby.
What do you do if there are no food banks nearby?
What do you do if there are no food banks nearby?
BJ- I actually joined my local BNG and its pretty much inactive. Mrs. frugalwoods posts make me want to live in a more sharing community. I might try the local Facebook yardsale since it's basically 2 large reusable bags worth of food and unopened 10# bag of rice. I haven't had much luck on the yard sale page but- free food is nice, right?
Jordan I moved and only know a few neighbors. Block party is not really a thing in my neck of the woods. :) that is a very wonderful thought though.
Thanks for the ideas!
I'm disappointed to be back at work today instead of de-cluttering some more, but my recycling can is full anyway and doesn't get picked up until Thursday. Ideally I want to touch everything and know everything we have (and where it is). It is a daunting goal.
We had a really productive weekend in the getting rid of stuff/clutter category. I am looking for something that I can't find in the house, and it always spurs me on to downsize the stuff when that happens. I went through multiple drawers/cupboards and, although I still didn't find what I was looking for, I got rid of a TON of old stuff that didn't need to be taking up space, lots of miscellaneous bits of junk I used to save because that's what my mom did and I didn't know any better: old cards, brochures from places I visited, movie ticket stubs, stupid crap like that. Then I cleaned out a box in the garage (more of the same but stuff my mom saved and then gave me as "your stuff"...still have 4 or 5 of those boxes left that I dread) and 1.5 file folder boxes full of old college work.
We also took a stab at the playroom, and managed to remove 64 children's books and some miscellaneous toys to donate. We gave our neighbor all the duplos (kids are onto "real" legos now), nice ski pants, a raincoat, and hiking boots that my youngest has outgrown. My oldest has two bags of clothes to donate that aren't worth saving for his younger brother. I pulled out a pair of pants that I don't like and never wear and 3 shirts.
I'm disappointed to be back at work today instead of de-cluttering some more, but my recycling can is full anyway and doesn't get picked up until Thursday. Ideally I want to touch everything and know everything we have (and where it is). It is a daunting goal.
I'm buying a house!!!!!! (first house, really excited, I'm annoying to be around right now.) Which means I'll be moving soon.Congratulations!!!
I would have shredded seven more journals, but the shredder overheated at four and a half. I'll have to finish those in the morning.
After that, all I have left journal-wise is a few pages I ripped out that I'll scan and journals from the past five years. I'm going to institute a one-filled, one-shredded policy from here on out.
It feels really good to be almost rid of them -- they've been quite a weight.
I've also moved some new-condition stuffed animals (prizes from carnival games) to the donate pile, freeing up most of another closet shelf.
I have old cringe-worthy journals too. I did get rid of one last weekend. I like the consideration that the writing of it served its purpose and I can let them go now.
Won a fridge in a chook raffle a few weeks ago. Handed it off to a cousin who needed it today.
Now I need to declutter a blender :/
What are you doing to me? :D
while we're talking about Marie Kondo, if you follow her motto, throwing out anything that doesn't "spark joy", it means you have the privilege of disposing of excess stuff, safe in the knowledge that there's plenty more where that came from.
As Reductress, the parody women's website, pointed out last month, the advantages of decluttering your life include, "no longer [being] bogged down with all that stuff you don't need … that you can immediately order again on Amazon. Thankfully, you make enough money that owning things feels like a burden!"
Article from the Australian Financial Review:
http://www.afr.com/lifestyle/home-design/interior-design/love-decluttering-and-minimalism-youre-probably-rich-and-showing-off-20170326-gv73n0Quotewhile we're talking about Marie Kondo, if you follow her motto, throwing out anything that doesn't "spark joy", it means you have the privilege of disposing of excess stuff, safe in the knowledge that there's plenty more where that came from.
As Reductress, the parody women's website, pointed out last month, the advantages of decluttering your life include, "no longer [being] bogged down with all that stuff you don't need … that you can immediately order again on Amazon. Thankfully, you make enough money that owning things feels like a burden!"
Interesting theory but this misses the mark for me.
For those dealing with journals, here's something to think about. I've just gone through this and what it came down to for me was, "Would I want anyone to read this after I'm dead?" I'm at the age now where, while I don't think I'm going to die tomorrow, stuff happens and I like to be prepared. Looking back at my journals, I knew that if I died and someone read them (and they most assuredly would as they purged my things) I would be mortified.
There were things in there that, while helpful to me for processing emotions, etc., would be hurtful for some of my loved ones to read. They wouldn't understand. And there are things in there I wouldn't want others to know about my personal struggles, etc. I didn't disclose a variety of things for a reason (mostly to keep people form worrying about me) and I don't want others to read it later and go, "I wish she'd told us," or, "She didn't trust/love us enough to tell us these things."
It was easy, looking at it that way, to destroy them all.
So I'm stepping up the "let people pay for my trash" as I tell my wife and also get rid of things that cause me grief. The grief causing things first:
2005 Polaris trail touring snowmobile: I haven't ridden this in 2 years. This year, I pulled it out of my shed and couldn't get it started. Spent a solid 20 hours working on the stupid thing and got it to where it started and I could ride it a bit around the house. But am I going to ride this up north on the nice groomed trails like the first 2 years I owned it? Nope. Onto craigslist before the snow went away. Sold it to a guy for $2k who had sold his snowmobile for reasons he didn't understand....and he wanted to go again. Good riddance.
Wire Core welder. This is a harbor freight $99 special. I welded up a pipe that had a leak in the exhaust of our Subaru that my son keeps at school. Like the snowmobile, I have to screw around with it for an hour to get it to work. Onto craigslist for $20. Gone.
The wife has wanted new washer/dryer forever. We found what we wanted at Sears, on sale. Came home, used an online coupon, some of my shop your way points and a sears master card to collect free shipping and a bunch of limited time points (used them to buy some on sale craftsman wrenches). Old washer and dryer on craigslist. $20 for the washer, $10 for the dryer. Again.....let people pay to take my trash away.
I kid to my wife that next, I'm going to cut my own hair and advertise "bag of hair, $20".
The garage is way nicer without a long 2 up snowmobile in it and the spot I used in the shed for it now has some hangers for 3 bikes. Will build some kind of racks for another 3 bikes under these.
Almost forgot.....I found a dime in a parking lot the other day. I'm convinced that with my attitude (pick up pennies), I've piled money on top of other money.
- Maybe organize a garage sale to sell/give away things that can be reused. Like a moose that might fit in a children's room and a small grill.
I've gotten rid of a lot so there are now gaps, an empty shelf here, an empty drawer there. Now I'm trying to store like with like. I had linen stored in the linen cupboard and the spare room, gym gear stashed in the linen cupboard and my wardrobe.
I'm coming up to 'clothing changeover' time of year. I know Marie Kondo says not to do this, but honestly, where I live there are certain clothes that are only worn in one half of the year or the other.
I'm coming up to 'clothing changeover' time of year. I know Marie Kondo says not to do this, but honestly, where I live there are certain clothes that are only worn in one half of the year or the other.
I'm with you on this, shorts are for summer and long johns are for winter, why have them handy when they won't be worn? We can go from -40oC (super cold winter night) to mid-30's and super humid (mid-summer) so one set of clothes doesn't work year-round.
I also checked all my sports clothes. I found out that I regularly use most of the sports clothes, but ditched a few things. Some of the clothes thrown away hurt mentally, because some required some effort to buy them. But I didn't wear them for years and couldn't find a good argument to keep them. I also ditched some perfectly good running shirts that are so small that I always choose other shirts to wear. I am still in doubt about 2 long Johns that still fit perfectly, but that I in practice never wear. Maybe because they are not made of wool and I now have 3 woolen ones that I use often.
I tried on all my trousers (normal and hiking ones). Positive thing is that with my current weight I fit into more trousers than I thought and put some back on the "regular" pile. I did however get rid of all trousers that were fitting so tight that there was no hope to fit into them any time soon. Plus a few that I don't like to wear anymore. And all the ugly shorts that I had.
Tuba is awesome. :) Why did you stop playing?
Because mail never ends, today I'm going through yet more mail from the week. I'm going to be calling the groups I give monthly donations to and telling them to take me off their mailing lists. I already have auto-deducted payments and e-mails for major news; I don't need paper reminders as well.
I'm in a lot of physical pain today, so that's probably all I'll be accomplishing.
For those who are donating clothes and itemizing, I'm curious how you value your clothes. I'm never should what would be reasonable -what I paid for it? What I'd get selling it on ebay? Somewhere in between?
For those who are donating clothes and itemizing, I'm curious how you value your clothes. I'm never should what would be reasonable -what I paid for it? What I'd get selling it on ebay? Somewhere in between?
For those who are donating clothes and itemizing, I'm curious how you value your clothes. I'm never should what would be reasonable -what I paid for it? What I'd get selling it on ebay? Somewhere in between?
I use ItsDeductible https://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-taxes/itsdeductible/ (https://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-taxes/itsdeductible/). That way I don't have to worry about justifying my valuation to anyone ;) It's definitely NOT the purchase price though. Goodwill also publishes a guide: https://www.goodwill.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Donation_Valuation_Guide.pdf (https://www.goodwill.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Donation_Valuation_Guide.pdf)
Key points, to deduct their value, they have to be in "good condition or better". For large items that are NOT in good condition, bank rate says: "If you claim a deduction of $500 or more for a used item that's not in good condition, the IRS says you'd better get an appraisal.
http://www.bankrate.com/finance/taxes/valuation-guide-for-donated-goods.aspx#ixzz4dwwHVT9w (http://www.bankrate.com/finance/taxes/valuation-guide-for-donated-goods.aspx#ixzz4dwwHVT9w)"
Hope this helps. Personally, I also opt to snap photos of all my donations and dump them into evernote. Makes it easier to fill out those goodwill donation cards, and if I'm ever audited I'm set. Plus it's a pretty quick step for some peace of mind =)
If your tank and cabinet are in good condition, you could try craigslisting them? For some reason, whenever I post a file cabinet (metro areas) they sell in days.
FINALLY made it to the hazardous waste dropoff day. They rejected a few paint item which I can dry out and put in the trash, and I missed a couple of items, but it's nice to get rid of every CFL I've ever used, broken thermometers, paint, etc. It has been a long time coming -- one of the items I missed is the bathtub paint from our first house's previous owner. We moved into that house in 1999.
Just moved houses. Friends who helped with the move commented that it was the easiest move they ever helped with. That's what happens after a year of decluttering. With pretty much everything in my house I ask, "is this ________ worth the effort of moving?" For sooooooo many things the answer is no.
Also, Moved into a house without a yard. So got rid of a shed full of lawn stuff and now on my days off I can get out and enjoy the city instead of working on the water sucking lawn. Feels like freedom.
I use FB sale groups to give away stuff and the same names keep popping up. One in particular often wants my stuff but is then very flakey about picking up. I had it confirmed from a third person in the group that she's an actual hoarder. Makes sense. The annoying thing is, I don't think there's a way in FB sale groups to block a person from replying.
I am pretty much down to decluttering digital stuff now, although that includes CDs, an old laptop that are storing digital files.
I have to say, my efforts have made a difference. Our house is still a total mess day to day but given 30mins warning of visitors we could completely tidy up and do a good enough clean now everything has a place. If I can just steer DH towards letting go of a few things (he has more shoes than me and there's never quite enough space in the cupboard) it would be good so I don't find things with mould. He has got rid of quite a bit so I think my energies may be best focussed on stopping more stuff coming into the house! Also, we're going to do a massive clean out of the spare room to deal with mildew so once he sees it all and has wasted a weekend he might be inspired.
Sorry to hear you are still battling the mould problem, freshwater.
I think I finally found the energy to go through the laundry stuff and sort out what we don't use, what we can use up (and never bother buying again because something else works fine), and make some proper "cleaning kits" so I can find what I need to clean up the house without searching for it. Mmm yes, I love a neatly organised cupboard!Laundry cupboard is now neat. I don't have "cleaning kits" yet, but I think that will be worked out once I have done a deep clean of the house and can notice what I'm using.
Up for debate: Sheet music? I don't really sing much anymore, though I do occasionally like to pull sometging out and sing it. I've got about a half-shelf worth of bound sheet music and another half of loose sheet music. Some of it would be very hard to replace. Hmmm...
It amazes me how I keep finding stuff to get rid of despite hardly buying anything in the past three years since decluttering became a goal. Right now I have three tall bookshelves full. I think it's possible to get down to one in the next several years. There's no rush, though.
Sold and shipped a couple (small) car parts this week.
Car is also posted, but no bites. Might be priced too high.
Now, I only have about 500 more items to sort through and sell.
HI
may I ask how do you sell car parts, my DH has some new parts from the prior car he bought them before he gave up fixing that car.
Thanks
Finally got my act together and posted stuff on Ebay and craigslist. One item has sold, gotta take it to the post office at lunch to send it off. The rest is packaged, ready to go, just pending a sale.
Also started packing up for the move. Mostly disposed of a bunch of dust. Then, I wanted to watch a movie but decided to sort paper at the same time. File box is much lighter now, and I shredded/recycled about 5 inches of paper. Recycle bin is completely full.
Tonight someone will come to take a look at my racing bike that is for sale.
Sold and shipped a couple (small) car parts this week.
Car is also posted, but no bites. Might be priced too high.
Now, I only have about 500 more items to sort through and sell.
HI
may I ask how do you sell car parts, my DH has some new parts from the prior car he bought them before he gave up fixing that car.
Thanks
Finally got my act together and posted stuff on Ebay and craigslist. One item has sold, gotta take it to the post office at lunch to send it off. The rest is packaged, ready to go, just pending a sale.
Also started packing up for the move. Mostly disposed of a bunch of dust. Then, I wanted to watch a movie but decided to sort paper at the same time. File box is much lighter now, and I shredded/recycled about 5 inches of paper. Recycle bin is completely full.
If you plan on selling more stuff on eBay, get a scale so you can ship stuff from home. The rates are cheaper and it saves you a trip to the PO. Makes the hurdle of selling on eBay that much lower.
For Craigstlist you have to require cash-only and meet up in some kind of public place (I usually go for some kind of store parking lot on a busy street).
Forums and eBay will require a paypal account (they take a 3% fee). You'll also have to keep in mind the cost of shipping.
For Craigstlist you have to require cash-only and meet up in some kind of public place (I usually go for some kind of store parking lot on a busy street).
Forums and eBay will require a paypal account (they take a 3% fee). You'll also have to keep in mind the cost of shipping.
We did that with Craigslist early on, but I stopped the meetup elsewhere thing for the most part. What is coming to my front porch going to risk? Let you see that my cars aren't worth much and you're picking up $15-$20 in baby gear? Going somewhere just wastes my time.
Actually, the last few have been "Okay, (baby gear) is on the porch in a cardboard box, just leave the $15 in the box" - no issues.
If a buyer wants to meet somewhere public, we'll walk to the local park.
For Craigstlist you have to require cash-only and meet up in some kind of public place (I usually go for some kind of store parking lot on a busy street).
Forums and eBay will require a paypal account (they take a 3% fee). You'll also have to keep in mind the cost of shipping.
We did that with Craigslist early on, but I stopped the meetup elsewhere thing for the most part. What is coming to my front porch going to risk? Let you see that my cars aren't worth much and you're picking up $15-$20 in baby gear? Going somewhere just wastes my time.
Actually, the last few have been "Okay, (baby gear) is on the porch in a cardboard box, just leave the $15 in the box" - no issues.
If a buyer wants to meet somewhere public, we'll walk to the local park.
We buy and sell stuff on something like Graigslist, Norwegian variant. We just let people come to our house and we can collect at their house. But in the advertisement I only write the nearest town. They get the actual address when they are the ones that are going to buy. This works fine.
For Craigstlist you have to require cash-only and meet up in some kind of public place (I usually go for some kind of store parking lot on a busy street).
Forums and eBay will require a paypal account (they take a 3% fee). You'll also have to keep in mind the cost of shipping.
We did that with Craigslist early on, but I stopped the meetup elsewhere thing for the most part. What is coming to my front porch going to risk? Let you see that my cars aren't worth much and you're picking up $15-$20 in baby gear? Going somewhere just wastes my time.
Actually, the last few have been "Okay, (baby gear) is on the porch in a cardboard box, just leave the $15 in the box" - no issues.
If a buyer wants to meet somewhere public, we'll walk to the local park.
For Craigstlist you have to require cash-only and meet up in some kind of public place (I usually go for some kind of store parking lot on a busy street).
Forums and eBay will require a paypal account (they take a 3% fee). You'll also have to keep in mind the cost of shipping.
We did that with Craigslist early on, but I stopped the meetup elsewhere thing for the most part. What is coming to my front porch going to risk? Let you see that my cars aren't worth much and you're picking up $15-$20 in baby gear? Going somewhere just wastes my time.
Actually, the last few have been "Okay, (baby gear) is on the porch in a cardboard box, just leave the $15 in the box" - no issues.
If a buyer wants to meet somewhere public, we'll walk to the local park.
I guess I'm only about a block from a Walmart Neighborhood market so never really thought about that. There are some things, such as furniture, that people need to come by the house for anyway. As we get rid of even more things, I guess it makes more sense to not really worry about theft as we don't/won't have much worth stealing anyhow.
*snip*
Most of what needed to be scanned has been scanned. These papers left are not things that I need to scan. They just need to be gone. However, most of it needs to be shredded as it has information that shouldn't get out of my control. So I think. I have a heavy duty paper shredder. I've been doing this for awhile now.
*snip*
Does anyone have any tips for encouraging a reluctant husband to clear some clutter? I have done so much but the house is still full of a lot of his stuff.
Does anyone have any tips for encouraging a reluctant husband to clear some clutter? I have done so much but the house is still full of a lot of his stuff.
Does anyone have any tips for encouraging a reluctant husband to clear some clutter? I have done so much but the house is still full of a lot of his stuff.
I struggle with this one too. My husband is the king of "but I might need it someday".
The only advice I have is to make the process as easy as possible for him because you're the one who truly wants the stuff out. For my husband, I had him make a pile of the stuff and then I itemized and donated everything. I was so happy to have the stuff out of the house!
Rowellen, I was able to help five adult family members to release stuff by offering them cash outright, or to buy a replacement if they were to EVER regret the release. No one has ever taken me up on the latter, and everyone ultimately became minimalists, doing it themselves.
Car is SOLD. Of course I still need to collect payment but buyer is coming to pick it up (and pay) tomorrow.
Now onto listing an item a day. I've been lazy and anxious while trying to sell the car and fielding inquiries about it. I will go into rapid-fire mode over the weekend now that the car will be gone. Also, the nice weather is definitely helping with motivation.
Next up:
- Gas lawn mower
- Manual push mower
- More car parts...
Giant lego collection
I'm at my most difficult level now.
Well, every layer is the most difficult, if we use the approach of culling the low-hanging fruit first.
But today I did some internal processing to see if I could open to letting more go, then felt truly able indeed.
Released some papers I've carried around for a number of years.
Some of it surprised me, as it seemed like it could have easily gone ages ago.
Yeah -- Legos never lose their value, as far as I can tell. Once kids are big enough not to eat them, they all go for the Legos amongst my kid-entertainment options. I've got three bins of them leftover from my childhood, and I haven't even considered getting rid of them.Giant lego collection
Okay, I guess I'm going against the spirit of the thread - but I could really use Lego that anyone would be tossing. I spent hours today building Lego with my 3 (almost 4) year old at an open build event - I do have my old ones he's been playing with a lot, but it's really not that many.
I'm at my most difficult level now.
Well, every layer is the most difficult, if we use the approach of culling the low-hanging fruit first.
But today I did some internal processing to see if I could open to letting more go, then felt truly able indeed.
Released some papers I've carried around for a number of years.
Some of it surprised me, as it seemed like it could have easily gone ages ago.
I sold a car last week. Now I don't have to street park anything. :D
Used up laundry detergent - now down to the last one. We usually have only one but ended up buying three different ones to try out for cloth diapers. The sad part was husband brought the big containers instead of small sizes and it has taken 2+ years to work through the two extra ones. Now down to the last one and I hope we don't have to change detergents anymore.
Also gave a face cream to mom - one more out of my cupboard.
I am paring down which helps as the wedding gifts started arriving 2 weeks ago. I got an instantpot, flannel sheets, an end table, a ninjas blender and oven mitts. So I got rid of a holey sheet, ruined oven mitts and donated my magic bullet and blender. My fiance wants to keep the crock pot and rice cooker for now til we figure out the instant pot. :) it's super exciting to get useful things I was going to need to buy soon.
I love this thread. Thanks to the OP and all the contributors.
What have others done to avoid the cycle of accumulate/declutter?
I love this thread. Thanks to the OP and all the contributors.
In the past we've periodically gone on a decluttering binge when it reached a breaking point, but we always seem to end up in the same situation again after a year or two. What have others done to avoid the cycle of accumulate/declutter?
In the past we've periodically gone on a decluttering binge when it reached a breaking point, but we always seem to end up in the same situation again after a year or two. What have others done to avoid the cycle of accumulate/declutter?
In the past we've periodically gone on a decluttering binge when it reached a breaking point, but we always seem to end up in the same situation again after a year or two. What have others done to avoid the cycle of accumulate/declutter?
...and yup, I'm back on a de-cluttering binge, thinking of throwing up a 30 to 60 day challenge for 2017 - to keep me motivated and tackle some long overdue projects.
Why not use the ebay service where they list it all for you? They take a big cut- but at least it will all be gone.
I've taken my first stab of listing on ebay, but I'm pretty concerned it will cost me more to ship than what I'm making :( Ebay's shipping calculator doesn't seem to take into account the cost of shipping supplies. I will need to buy envelopes. If I use boxes it will cost way more than what was calculated.
Finally, I dug up a pile of ~30 old college textbooks and started trying to assess the value. As expected, most were worthless. But around 10 had values ranging from $10-$40. So I need to figure out whether it's worth it to try selling some or all on half.com, etc. My local library won't take them until the next book sale in ~6 months.
I recycled a bunch of old text books from college earlier in the year. I don't know what I was thinking when I was in college. With the exception of a few books, I should have sold those suckers back to the bookstore the second the semester was over. Everything I had was about 14 years old and worthless.
I recycled a bunch of old text books from college earlier in the year. I don't know what I was thinking when I was in college. With the exception of a few books, I should have sold those suckers back to the bookstore the second the semester was over. Everything I had was about 14 years old and worthless.
Just confirmed plans to meet someone to give a piece of costume jewelry on Tuesday.
Also listed an old computer for free; hope to get some bites soon.
Alas, nothing has actually left the house, but hopefully soon.
Listed:
- Trumpet vases
- Couch & love seat
- Manzanita branches
- Set of spare tires/wheels for 07-15 Civic
- Small weed whacker
- Jug of radiator fluid
- Coffee table
To be listed:
- Queen bed set
- Multiple plate sets
- TSX/Accord calipers, rotors, brake pads
- Random OEM 07-11 Civic parts
- too much stuff...
Decided to get rid of a stereo that my husband won at work .... 23 years ago! The CD player and cassette player haven't worked for at least 15 years and the volume knob is messed up so you have to turn it reallllly slowly to change the volume when listening to the radio. Finally parting with it!
Also listed an old computer for free; hope to get some bites soon.
Yay, the jewelry is gone! Went to a very nice lady.
Also, the shred bin [will be emptied] tomorrow!
...and yup, I'm back on a de-cluttering binge, thinking of throwing up a 30 to 60 day challenge for 2017 - to keep me motivated and tackle some long overdue projects.
If you do, will you please post a link here? I found last year's 90-day challenge thread super-helpful for my own paper tiger. Still fighting the good fight...
Nearly a year ago, I decided to get rid of 1000 items. I hit that goal and decided to up it to 1500 by the one year mark. Now I'm at 1545 and I don't know how I'm going to do it, but new goal is 2000 by June 27! i love how clean and neat everything feels in my house.
Nearly a year ago, I decided to get rid of 1000 items. I hit that goal and decided to up it to 1500 by the one year mark. Now I'm at 1545 and I don't know how I'm going to do it, but new goal is 2000 by June 27! i love how clean and neat everything feels in my house.
Decided to get rid of a stereo that my husband won at work .... 23 years ago! The CD player and cassette player haven't worked for at least 15 years and the volume knob is messed up so you have to turn it reallllly slowly to change the volume when listening to the radio. Finally parting with it!
Wow, this is bizarre: I also won a stereo (at school) 23 years ago this month. The CD player has been broken for a long time, but AFAIK the cassette player still works. Anyway, it's been sitting on my floor near a pile of other things to get rid of, and I've been debating whether to junk it. What a crazy coincidence!
We rented 2 tables at the local flea market last weekend ( $14) and brought all kinds of stuff to sell-- ice skates, brass fittings, books, candlesticks, dishes, some antiques, framed art we don't hang etc-- and netted $350 in a couple of enjoyable hours. Gave away our skis/boots/poles.
I have just started packing things up in my house. I'm not moving, but I'm having all of my floors refinished so everything except the kitchen and bathroom will get moved out for a few days (well, not EVERYTHING, but most). I started with a coat closet that isn't often used and got rid of a coat and some Christmas items.
Its just me living in the house and I really don't have much "stuff" but there is always a little bit to toss. For better or worse, this is the third time in two years that I have been prompted to go through large portions of my possessions. The first was a bed bug situation (courtesy of my then roommate), second was a broken water line and related flood to 1/3 of the house, now the floors (which is the last of the flood related repair). The bed bug situation caused the biggest purge as almost everything had to be either decontaminated or tossed. In the past, my roommate had trouble letting go of things, but her fear of bugs trumped almost any attachment. As much of a headache as it was, I secretly loved the bug purge.
I should also have a look at old papers. I think I still have salary printouts from my first jobs prior to 1998. Also all sorts of insurance papers of insurances we ever have had in the time everything was sent to us in paper.
I recycled a bunch of old text books from college earlier in the year. I don't know what I was thinking when I was in college. With the exception of a few books, I should have sold those suckers back to the bookstore the second the semester was over. Everything I had was about 14 years old and worthless.
Exactly! I fall into the trap of "I might need this someday". Even if I'm right 10% of the time (which I'm probably not), it's still not worth it to have the remaining 90% junk filling up my house meanwhile.
Over the past week or so we filled a very large box with little-used toys to donate.
Finally, I dug up a pile of ~30 old college textbooks and started trying to assess the value. As expected, most were worthless. But around 10 had values ranging from $10-$40. So I need to figure out whether it's worth it to try selling some or all on half.com, etc. My local library won't take them until the next book sale in ~6 months.
Over the past week or so we filled a very large box with little-used toys to donate.
Took us a while, but the big box of toys went to the Goodwill today. Also a couple dozen items of baby clothes, a changing table cushion, and a giant plastic painting easel the kids used just a couple times in several years. It feels awesome to have that stuff out of the house!QuoteFinally, I dug up a pile of ~30 old college textbooks and started trying to assess the value. As expected, most were worthless. But around 10 had values ranging from $10-$40. So I need to figure out whether it's worth it to try selling some or all on half.com, etc. My local library won't take them until the next book sale in ~6 months.
Bah, no progress on this one yet. :(
I've also started sorting through a large box of old computer stuff. Cases, mice, dozens of cords and cables, routers, modems, a laptop with a broken screen...oh my. If I could put it all in a giant box and give it to a someone who could scavenge the useful parts and responsibly recycle the rest, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Does anyone have any ideas about this?
Almost gone:
side table (listed, but no interest yet) - I've got a bite! I hope it pans out.
Do you belong to any Facebook Buy/Sell groups? I would post it on there. I gave away an old laptop that way.
Back in this thread after a long hiatus! I started this thread a few years ago in anticipation of quitting my job to travel and to move interstate. Now I'm here again for the same reason! Apparently there are things that I didn't get rid of the first time around that I'm ready to let go of now. Donated 5 items of clothing today to the local charity shop. Feels great! Going to see what else there is that I can donate or throw away.
Back in this thread after a long hiatus! I started this thread a few years ago in anticipation of quitting my job to travel and to move interstate. Now I'm here again for the same reason! Apparently there are things that I didn't get rid of the first time around that I'm ready to let go of now. Donated 5 items of clothing today to the local charity shop. Feels great! Going to see what else there is that I can donate or throw away.
I wonder if it's the strangest item anyone on this thread has gotten rid of?Not the strangest thing to get rid of myself, but I volunteer at a thrift store and found a lovely little wooden box that had been donated. It rattled - there were baby teeth inside.
Recycled two broken dehumidifiers, and discarded several large bags of junk -- mostly styrofoam, plastic bags, bubble wrap, and expired food from the pantry.
Sold a baby gate, kid's table and chairs, and train table on a local FB group.
Donated 4 more boxes to The Goodwill. Mostly toys, decorations, clothes, and cordless phones.
Listed:
- Trumpet vases
- Couch & love seat
- Manzanita branches
- Coffee table
- Small weed whacker
- TSX/Accord brake calipers, rotors, brake pads
To be listed:
- Queen bed set
- Multiple plate sets
- Random OEM 06-11 Civic parts
- Random tools
- Clothes
- too much stuff...
Welcome back! This thread is your legacy, it will outlive us all ;)
Seems like it never ends. My aim is to become a minimalist ever so slowly, so I get used to the declining amount of stuff along the way. Hoping that will shut up the little voice in my head that tells me its OK to bring home "just this one thing."
PS - did I forgot to say thanks for this thread? Limeandpepper, thanks for this thread! I am really enjoying it!
Waiting for the hazardous waste day in July so I can get rid of the estimated 35-40 cans of paint in the garage.
re: Paint cans. What about identifying the matches now, and just keeping the single page paper record of those?And paint colour changes with exposure to light, so any paint in the can that is still good is probably not going to match the wall colour anyway. I do save codes for colours I like so I can use them if I am repainting.
re: Paint cans. What about identifying the matches now, and just keeping the single page paper record of those?And paint colour changes with exposure to light, so any paint in the can that is still good is probably not going to match the wall colour anyway. I do save codes for colours I like so I can use them if I am repainting.
re: Paint cans. What about identifying the matches now, and just keeping the single page paper record of those?And paint colour changes with exposure to light, so any paint in the can that is still good is probably not going to match the wall colour anyway. I do save codes for colours I like so I can use them if I am repainting.
Heh, and alkyds (oil paint) actually changes color when they don't get enough light. They yellow in the dark.
Waiting for the hazardous waste day in July so I can get rid of the estimated 35-40 cans of paint in the garage.
Careful of this. If you want to keep ANY of the paint colors in the house, keep those cans! It is infinitely more accurate and easier to match to paint (even if the can is really low) than to try and get a chunk off the walls. Ask me how I know not to throw out those cans... *kicks past self*
Pregnancy, whilst wonderful, is really ruining my efforts to have a clutter-free house! I've been given lots of maternity clothes, for which I am so grateful. But they are in a huge range of sizes (which is great, I don't know where I'll end up) and I feel like I need to keep them all to see which will be useful.
On top of that, my regular clothes are slowly becoming unwearable, but obviously I'm not just going to throw them out. So I need to pack all those up. So far I've come up with the idea of using two suitcases we have (since we are not going away again until after I am due).
The largest suitcase will hold winter clothes (as they are bulky) that I might be able to wear this winter, post-partum. The smaller suitcase will hold clothes that might fit again next summer. Hopefully that means I won't be as overwhelmed when I unpack them with two new babies to care for.
I just need to get my act together and start packing those things up. That will free hangers for the maternity clothes. But 1) it seems to be tempting fate. I know that's ridiculous, but it's how I feel 2) it makes this pregnancy seem very real! 3) I am soooo tired I just can't be bothered. But stepping over piles of clothes each day is stressing me out.
Ask a friend to help? Then you get good company too.
Waiting for the hazardous waste day in July so I can get rid of the estimated 35-40 cans of paint in the garage.
Careful of this. If you want to keep ANY of the paint colors in the house, keep those cans! It is infinitely more accurate and easier to match to paint (even if the can is really low) than to try and get a chunk off the walls. Ask me how I know not to throw out those cans... *kicks past self*
Even if I wanted the colors (which I don't), they're in the uninsulated garage. Alternate freezing and cooking, plus most it wasn't good paint to begin with. I will be keeping the cans from what I use of course.
As it is, everything needs to be repainted - walls, trim, ceilings, closets, in every room. This is not a short term project!
Broken dehumidifier placed at curb during large trash week. Picked up by a scrapper in less than 15 min. It's out of my house, won't go in a landfill and the scrapper made a few bucks. Win-win-win!
Waiting for the hazardous waste day in July so I can get rid of the estimated 35-40 cans of paint in the garage.
Careful of this. If you want to keep ANY of the paint colors in the house, keep those cans! It is infinitely more accurate and easier to match to paint (even if the can is really low) than to try and get a chunk off the walls. Ask me how I know not to throw out those cans... *kicks past self*
Even if I wanted the colors (which I don't), they're in the uninsulated garage. Alternate freezing and cooking, plus most it wasn't good paint to begin with. I will be keeping the cans from what I use of course.
As it is, everything needs to be repainted - walls, trim, ceilings, closets, in every room. This is not a short term project!
Oh man. In that case, chuck away!
Are you planning (or doing) a journal of the updates? I would love to follow along. I eventually need to repaint, since EVERYTHING in this house was done matte and so is scuffed up, but it's such a huge project and it's been pretty far down the list.
Waiting for the hazardous waste day in July so I can get rid of the estimated 35-40 cans of paint in the garage.
Careful of this. If you want to keep ANY of the paint colors in the house, keep those cans! It is infinitely more accurate and easier to match to paint (even if the can is really low) than to try and get a chunk off the walls. Ask me how I know not to throw out those cans... *kicks past self*
Even if I wanted the colors (which I don't), they're in the uninsulated garage. Alternate freezing and cooking, plus most it wasn't good paint to begin with. I will be keeping the cans from what I use of course.
As it is, everything needs to be repainted - walls, trim, ceilings, closets, in every room. This is not a short term project!
Oh man. In that case, chuck away!
Are you planning (or doing) a journal of the updates? I would love to follow along. I eventually need to repaint, since EVERYTHING in this house was done matte and so is scuffed up, but it's such a huge project and it's been pretty far down the list.
I have not planned to do a journal here. I've been doing some stuff on Facebook, but with work and general life, am tackling things in manageable pieces. Right now, been focused on just the high priority stuff. Working from home today while the gutter guys replace my completely nonfunctional gutters, and hopefully they can look at the roof where I've got some fresh water damage and apply appropriate sealing (I'm guessing its flashing). Otherwise, will have to find someone to take care of that, because I can't get on the roof.
But I'm sure there will be occasional "what the heck do I do with x" posts.
Re repainting everything - one room at a time. Ceilings, walls, then trim.
The problem with the painting plan... we have a big open floor plan design, with tall ceilings, that's all one color through living room/dining nook/kitchen, then another all through entry/hallways. Each of those respective colors would take a good... 5-10 cans of paint. LOTS of space. =o So tackling those will be a huge project.
The problem with the painting plan... we have a big open floor plan design, with tall ceilings, that's all one color through living room/dining nook/kitchen, then another all through entry/hallways. Each of those respective colors would take a good... 5-10 cans of paint. LOTS of space. =o So tackling those will be a huge project.
If you are going to do it all in a short time period, you can buy big cans* of paint - like about 4-5 gallons? That is what I bought when I painted the whole basement. If one will do everything you also don't have to worry about little colour differences from can to can.
*really a big plastic container with a lid
New here but this thread got me moving!!!
I currently have 31 items listed on ebay and several (~30) more to put on. Have given away several items that I have just been holding onto for years. Since I moved back from out-of-state I let it all pile up in the attic. In about another month or so I will have sold or given away well over 100 items that we never use.
Some of the larger items that are still good for use I brought to work for us to use as a community and to save money...
THREE! Yes three Weber grills. We now grill out in the shop for lunch sometimes.
Gas pressure washer.
Several dozen large bins from all the items I've cleaned out.
Extra tools from small items to large.
Finally, I dug up a pile of ~30 old college textbooks and started trying to assess the value. As expected, most were worthless. But around 10 had values ranging from $10-$40. So I need to figure out whether it's worth it to try selling some or all on half.com, etc. My local library won't take them until the next book sale in ~6 months.
Recycled two broken dehumidifiers, and discarded several large bags of junk -- mostly styrofoam, plastic bags, bubble wrap, and expired food from the pantry.
Sold a baby gate, kid's table and chairs, and train table on a local FB group.
Donated 4 more boxes to The Goodwill. Mostly toys, decorations, clothes, and cordless phones.
Oops, forgot to mention that my pile of to-be-recycled electronics has grown to include 3 computers, 2 printers, plus 3 more boxes of miscellaneous old wires, cables, adapters, ancient cell phones, etc. Even a standalone caller ID box that probably belongs in a museum. :D
Gone:
<stuff>
skis
new: fleece fabric scrap - made 3 kitty pads (simply cut into shape) and a liner for my bike basket
Almost gone:
hard drives - got one hooked up; I think I did a good job of getting the files of this one, now just need to look at the newer one which will probably need a lot of files moved over before it can go
Priority to move out next:
stability ball
paper monster
bike
too-fancy knitting purse/handbag
added: tennis racket
added: bike shoes
De-clutter fail.
De-clutter fail.
But not yet fail on side hustle. :)
When I moved in, the previous owners left behind one of the shelving units that stands above the toilet. I didn't like it, didn't want it, and finally found the proper screwdriver to take it apart and throw it out on Saturday. Sunday, I went in the bathroom and realized that the smell of urine was mostly gone. Great. That's why the bottom of the legs were yellow.
Anyone know how to clean under pedestal sinks without moving them? I suspect that's why the other bathroom smells of urine.
Boys and men, please sit down to pee. I don't care if it isn't cool, I don't want these problems.
When I moved in, the previous owners left behind one of the shelving units that stands above the toilet. I didn't like it, didn't want it, and finally found the proper screwdriver to take it apart and throw it out on Saturday. Sunday, I went in the bathroom and realized that the smell of urine was mostly gone. Great. That's why the bottom of the legs were yellow.
Anyone know how to clean under pedestal sinks without moving them? I suspect that's why the other bathroom smells of urine.
Boys and men, please sit down to pee. I don't care if it isn't cool, I don't want these problems.
+1. A huge, huge thank you to my MIL, who back in the old days required all male family members (including DH) to sit and aim it down. We have taught our DS as follows: Public toilets -- ok to stand up. At home -- you sit.
I had some success using a spray bottle to send some soaking cleanser underneath. I couldn't reach a scrubbing tool under there, but the soak seemed to reduce or eliminate the smell.
A plumber said we can go one of two ways on the matter:
1. Put sealant around the base. But then the pee will likely discolour the sealant over time, compelling some people to want to replace it.
2. Put no sealant around, and clean more thoroughly. He felt this was the optimal way to go.
My kid sits to pee, but the pee comes out through the front of the seat, lol.
Just recycled all my medical paperwork from a long-term illness I had three years ago. Lyme -- and Lyme paper trail -- be gone!
I had some success using a spray bottle to send some soaking cleanser underneath. I couldn't reach a scrubbing tool under there, but the soak seemed to reduce or eliminate the smell.
I will try flushing it out with a spray bottle. Maybe the stuff I use for cat urine will help.
Speaking of difficult cleaning situations, I dumped a whole travel mug of milk-based hot chocolate onto the (non-removable) floor carpet of my car. I mopped it up immediately, and we have shampooed it. No dice, the smell of the spoiling milk is awful. My SIL always jokes about an old beater in which the spilt a pint of milk - in the end it was enough to condemn the vehicle and she had it scrapped!
This is not an option with my (company) vehicle. Any ideas? Could a super valet service help?
Speaking of difficult cleaning situations, I dumped a whole travel mug of milk-based hot chocolate onto the (non-removable) floor carpet of my car. I mopped it up immediately, and we have shampooed it. No dice, the smell of the spoiling milk is awful. My SIL always jokes about an old beater in which the spilt a pint of milk - in the end it was enough to condemn the vehicle and she had it scrapped!
This is not an option with my (company) vehicle. Any ideas? Could a super valet service help?
I remember my mom putting kitty litter on the flooring when we spilled some milk once... but I don't remember if it helped! Haha. We kept that car a few more years though, so *something* worked.
The last time I visited the parental units I found a bunch of small toys in the back of my closet. Today I gave them to a co-worker for the granddaughter she's raising. The kid's parents said buh-bye, and she's a sweet little girl. Tomorrow is her birthday.
I remember my mom putting kitty litter on the flooring when we spilled some milk once... but I don't remember if it helped! Haha. We kept that car a few more years though, so *something* worked.
When our son was little he dumped an entire cup of milk in the backseat of the car. The smell was awful. We cleaned it up the best we could (we found actual 'cheese' forming down in the seat -- crème fraiche haha) and then we parked the car in the hot summer sun for weeks with all the windows up. Baked the crap out of it. Seems to have worked -- no detectable odor after that. I guess the heat baked the 'cheese' remnants dry.
I have nothing for urine and spoiled milk in carpet smells, but...Do you need all the gas and electric statements? What would they be useful for?
If you ever have a musty or smoky book, stick a folded sheet of newspaper in every few pages, then place the book in a cardboard box filled with crumpled newspaper. Seal it up for a few days. Repeat if needed. I have used this trick once, and it only took one shot to work.
I finally bought the little ADF scanner I wanted (used, of course) and got it working with Linux, so today I scanned and dumped all the gas and electric statements I have accumulated in my adult life. It was a four-inch thick folder. The project continues in the coming weeks with other paper statements!
I suppose another problem is the loads of guilt and grief I have about "disappointing" people (mostly my mother) if/when I throw/sell it all.
She can't be disappointed in you if she has passed away.
My kid sits to pee, but the pee comes out through the front of the seat, lol.
QuoteTeach him that his left hand is for aiming.
Oh! Okay :) Thx, TomTX.
Though I think he may have sorted something like that out for himself, as it doesn't seem to be an issue anymore. There was just a bumpy year or two in there, I think when he was getting used to his body. So I probably should have put it in past tense.
*snip*Do you need all the gas and electric statements? What would they be useful for?
I finally bought the little ADF scanner I wanted (used, of course) and got it working with Linux, so today I scanned and dumped all the gas and electric statements I have accumulated in my adult life. It was a four-inch thick folder. The project continues in the coming weeks with other paper statements!
Tax purposes?
*snip*Do you need all the gas and electric statements? What would they be useful for?
I finally bought the little ADF scanner I wanted (used, of course) and got it working with Linux, so today I scanned and dumped all the gas and electric statements I have accumulated in my adult life. It was a four-inch thick folder. The project continues in the coming weeks with other paper statements!
Tax purposes?
Nope. I don't have a home office or rental property, so they are useless for tax purposes. I am just a nerd and worry that I may be curious about my electricity usage back in 200X, and what if I don't have my old statements? The spreadsheet only goes back to 201X when the I last switched dwellings. So, need them? No. Save them because they are (computer-wise) small and easy to keep organized and may be interesting someday? Sure.
*snip*Do you need all the gas and electric statements? What would they be useful for?
I finally bought the little ADF scanner I wanted (used, of course) and got it working with Linux, so today I scanned and dumped all the gas and electric statements I have accumulated in my adult life. It was a four-inch thick folder. The project continues in the coming weeks with other paper statements!
Tax purposes?
Nope. I don't have a home office or rental property, so they are useless for tax purposes. I am just a nerd and worry that I may be curious about my electricity usage back in 200X, and what if I don't have my old statements? The spreadsheet only goes back to 201X when the I last switched dwellings. So, need them? No. Save them because they are (computer-wise) small and easy to keep organized and may be interesting someday? Sure.
Wouldn't it be faster to just enter them in the spreadsheet rather than scan them, label the files, etc?
When I moved in, the previous owners left behind one of the shelving units that stands above the toilet. I didn't like it, didn't want it, and finally found the proper screwdriver to take it apart and throw it out on Saturday. Sunday, I went in the bathroom and realized that the smell of urine was mostly gone. Great. That's why the bottom of the legs were yellow.
Anyone know how to clean under pedestal sinks without moving them? I suspect that's why the other bathroom smells of urine.
Boys and men, please sit down to pee. I don't care if it isn't cool, I don't want these problems.
I'm debating whether I should donate or consign a bunch of clothes. I have a consignment store I use regularly but I noticed that the store has gone down the hill recently. Things take forever to sell and the money I get for it is not much - I stopped by Friday when I was running an errand in the area and got a check for $50. At what point do you say that it's just not worth the effort and donate instead?
I have a small batch of items prepped already so I will bring them in later this week. And I have a few nice sweaters that I can bring in the fall. After that, I'm done. Anything else will just go to charity.I'm debating whether I should donate or consign a bunch of clothes. I have a consignment store I use regularly but I noticed that the store has gone down the hill recently. Things take forever to sell and the money I get for it is not much - I stopped by Friday when I was running an errand in the area and got a check for $50. At what point do you say that it's just not worth the effort and donate instead?
For me it's when the thought of dragging it to the consignment store puts me off doing anything with it. Then it goes to charity, as it's easier.
If there was anything worth much in there, I would have more motivation. So when I'm dragging my heels I know it's not a good haul, and the mental and physical space it takes up as I trip over it and debate when to take it is worth more than they money I would get for the items.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
When I moved in, the previous owners left behind one of the shelving units that stands above the toilet. I didn't like it, didn't want it, and finally found the proper screwdriver to take it apart and throw it out on Saturday. Sunday, I went in the bathroom and realized that the smell of urine was mostly gone. Great. That's why the bottom of the legs were yellow.
Anyone know how to clean under pedestal sinks without moving them? I suspect that's why the other bathroom smells of urine.
Boys and men, please sit down to pee. I don't care if it isn't cool, I don't want these problems.
Bleach is one of the only things to neutralize the ammonia in pee. I don't know if it will fix yours, but I would try mixing up a fresh spray bottle of diluted bleach solution and spray it up, around, under and anywhere you can thoroughly soak the pedestal sink. Hopefully lots will soak into the porous back of the porcelain and neutralize as much as possible. Good luck.
I was advised never to put marble tile in a bathroom for obvious reasons, as porous stone + ammonia soaking in is one of the worst combinations.
too-fancy knitting purse/handbag - will sell to knitting friend when I see her on 7/3
tennis racket - listed
I let go of three emotionally invested items today. It was hard to let go but it is going to go to a better place - I hope!
When Cadel Evans became the first Australian to win the Tour de France, I had spent that entire month of July watching him and urging him and screaming hoarsely to win and conquer the mountains as hours passed midnight here. When Cadel beat Contador, it was a sweet moment.
Anyhoo, the morning of his win, I went to the nearest BMC dealer here and bought the Team BMC Hincapie cycling jersey and cycling cap. I bought the same jersey he was wearing on the podium in Paris.
Years later, the jersey has remained unused, hung in my wardrobe not seeing sunlight; same with the cycling cap and same with the other cycling jersey. Tonight, my childhood friend had written a letter to my mother and she showed me photos of him and his son - the latter an avid cyclist who has won a couple of races and who liked BMC but wearing the knock-offs.
The BMC jersey is going to a better place.
I still have a BMC Jacket, not to mention my BMC bike. But those $200 cycling clothing items which I have rarely used will find better use elsewhere and hopefully appreciated by a better athlete.
It's time to let go of my piece of Cadel and a piece of that magical moment in July. Vale jersey - I will miss what you stood for but I never saw you. I'm going to be Buddhist and zen about this all....
*snip*
Mr. O is out of town starting Thursday, so I will list the stability ball then. He won't agree to get rid of this huge thing in our tiny apartment that has sat in the corner, unused, blocking the fire escape for *years*. So I'm doing it behind his back.
When I moved in, the previous owners left behind one of the shelving units that stands above the toilet. I didn't like it, didn't want it, and finally found the proper screwdriver to take it apart and throw it out on Saturday. Sunday, I went in the bathroom and realized that the smell of urine was mostly gone. Great. That's why the bottom of the legs were yellow.
Anyone know how to clean under pedestal sinks without moving them? I suspect that's why the other bathroom smells of urine.
Boys and men, please sit down to pee. I don't care if it isn't cool, I don't want these problems.
Bleach is one of the only things to neutralize the ammonia in pee. I don't know if it will fix yours, but I would try mixing up a fresh spray bottle of diluted bleach solution and spray it up, around, under and anywhere you can thoroughly soak the pedestal sink. Hopefully lots will soak into the porous back of the porcelain and neutralize as much as possible. Good luck.
I was advised never to put marble tile in a bathroom for obvious reasons, as porous stone + ammonia soaking in is one of the worst combinations.
Mixing bleach and ammonia generates a rather nasty compound: Chloramine. If you do use this technique, PLEASE ventilate thoroughly.
@With This Herring: normally I'd agree with you. In this case, 1) there is no such free space and 2) ostensibly the ball is "mine", as I bought it and used it in place of an office chair for a time.
I'm taking a "better to ask forgiveness than permission" approach on this one item. Thanks for the deflation links!
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
I had such productive day yesterday. I organized and decluttered. I donated another bag of clothes and gave away a wall mirror to a relative. The mirror was stored in my walk in closet so it wasn't really bothering me but I wasn't using it either so I finally decided to part with it. It actually felt good to get some things out of the house. I even threw out some boxes from my fans and other things but some of my new small appliances boxes I kept for now. I will be throwing them out eventually too. I even organized my walk in closet and what a joy it is now to go in there. I still have too much stuff but for now, it will have to do. It is hard when you don't have a lot of room. I would of continued for a few hours more because I was making some good progress but then my back did me in.
I did a major declutter a couple of years back and felt so much lighter, I am ready to go through things again.
Can I ask what you folks do with collectibles if you had any? I have lenox dolls, department 56 houses and other things. They are virtually worthless now but I cant bring myself to get rid of them just yet.
I had such productive day yesterday. I organized and decluttered. I donated another bag of clothes and gave away a wall mirror to a relative. The mirror was stored in my walk in closet so it wasn't really bothering me but I wasn't using it either so I finally decided to part with it. It actually felt good to get some things out of the house. I even threw out some boxes from my fans and other things but some of my new small appliances boxes I kept for now. I will be throwing them out eventually too. I even organized my walk in closet and what a joy it is now to go in there. I still have too much stuff but for now, it will have to do. It is hard when you don't have a lot of room. I would of continued for a few hours more because I was making some good progress but then my back did me in.
I did a major declutter a couple of years back and felt so much lighter, I am ready to go through things again.
Can I ask what you folks do with collectibles if you had any? I have lenox dolls, department 56 houses and other things. They are virtually worthless now but I cant bring myself to get rid of them just yet.
I don't have collectibles, but I have hobby tools & supplies. I have offered them for free first to other hobbyists I know. After that, I post them to either Craigslist or Facebook (a group similar to Buy Nothing) for free.
If you can do "porch pick up", that is easiest. I live in a gated community and so try to meet folks at the nearest coffee shop at a mutually convenient time for the hand off. It's quite a bit more hassle, but I want to know that folks are going to appreciate what they are getting.
The batch of clothes for consignment is finally in my car - I will bring it in at lunchtime. What the store doesn't take will go straight to the donation pile which now includes an unused suitcase, a backpack and a bunch of clothes not suitable for consignment.
I'm eagerly waiting for my daughter to get a job and move out so that she can take some stuff with her. I have some kitchen items, towels, bed linens, etc. that she can use.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
The batch of clothes for consignment is finally in my car - I will bring it in at lunchtime. What the store doesn't take will go straight to the donation pile which now includes an unused suitcase, a backpack and a bunch of clothes not suitable for consignment.
I'm eagerly waiting for my daughter to get a job and move out so that she can take some stuff with her. I have some kitchen items, towels, bed linens, etc. that she can use.
The consignment store took all but 4 items, so I'm planning to pack these and other stuff I have for donation and bring them in this weekend.
Daughter is doing a second round of interviews today so fingers crossed for the job and the move!
I let go of three emotionally invested items today. It was hard to let go but it is going to go to a better place - I hope!
When Cadel Evans became the first Australian to win the Tour de France, I had spent that entire month of July watching him and urging him and screaming hoarsely to win and conquer the mountains as hours passed midnight here. When Cadel beat Contador, it was a sweet moment.
Anyhoo, the morning of his win, I went to the nearest BMC dealer here and bought the Team BMC Hincapie cycling jersey and cycling cap. I bought the same jersey he was wearing on the podium in Paris.
Years later, the jersey has remained unused, hung in my wardrobe not seeing sunlight; same with the cycling cap and same with the other cycling jersey. Tonight, my childhood friend had written a letter to my mother and she showed me photos of him and his son - the latter an avid cyclist who has won a couple of races and who liked BMC but wearing the knock-offs.
The BMC jersey is going to a better place.
I still have a BMC Jacket, not to mention my BMC bike. But those $200 cycling clothing items which I have rarely used will find better use elsewhere and hopefully appreciated by a better athlete.
It's time to let go of my piece of Cadel and a piece of that magical moment in July. Vale jersey - I will miss what you stood for but I never saw you. I'm going to be Buddhist and zen about this all....
Woohoo... today mustachepungoeshere and her husband helped me carry down an old dining table that's been gathering dust for 2 years in my apartment. Finally getting rid of it in the council cleanup!
Beautiful table, but couldn't sell it, and then couldn't get rid of it for free either.
Dropped a fair amount off at goodwill, including an old ikea chair we've had around for a few years since picking it up for free from our old apartment's recycling room. It wasn't super comfortable, though, and the space in the office is now being taken up by a second desk (also free, haha).
A ton of stuff set aside to return to my parents, too. They keep dropping their crap off without asking, ugh. Some of it is useful, I'll admit, but most is metric tons of crap they should just take to Goodwill. Parents: please do not do this to your children. Especially with the message "if you don't want it, give it back to us". Just let me get rid of it if you insist on dropping it off! </rant>
Anyway, finally went through a lot of decor that was trapped in a closet since we first moved in. Brother took his mattress finally, so we can access the closet now. Come to think of it, my biggest clutter problem is definitely family members!
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
Dropped a fair amount off at goodwill, including an old ikea chair we've had around for a few years since picking it up for free from our old apartment's recycling room. It wasn't super comfortable, though, and the space in the office is now being taken up by a second desk (also free, haha).
A ton of stuff set aside to return to my parents, too. They keep dropping their crap off without asking, ugh. Some of it is useful, I'll admit, but most is metric tons of crap they should just take to Goodwill. Parents: please do not do this to your children. Especially with the message "if you don't want it, give it back to us". Just let me get rid of it if you insist on dropping it off! </rant>
Anyway, finally went through a lot of decor that was trapped in a closet since we first moved in. Brother took his mattress finally, so we can access the closet now. Come to think of it, my biggest clutter problem is definitely family members!
What would happen if you just gave it to goodwill?
And stop being nice to family.
Dropped a fair amount off at goodwill, including an old ikea chair we've had around for a few years since picking it up for free from our old apartment's recycling room. It wasn't super comfortable, though, and the space in the office is now being taken up by a second desk (also free, haha).
A ton of stuff set aside to return to my parents, too. They keep dropping their crap off without asking, ugh. Some of it is useful, I'll admit, but most is metric tons of crap they should just take to Goodwill. Parents: please do not do this to your children. Especially with the message "if you don't want it, give it back to us". Just let me get rid of it if you insist on dropping it off! </rant>
Anyway, finally went through a lot of decor that was trapped in a closet since we first moved in. Brother took his mattress finally, so we can access the closet now. Come to think of it, my biggest clutter problem is definitely family members!
What would happen if you just gave it to goodwill?
And stop being nice to family.
I'm so torn though. Family cast offs are how we outfitted our house and everything. Like seriously, we've bought... 1 piece of furniture? And got a couple off Buy Nothing. But it's usually good stuff, in great shape, way nicer than I would ever be comfortable buying. There's just SO much of it.
Anyway, it makes me feel guilty, because there is some that I do take and use and this stuff was so important to setting up a comfortable life without spending a ton of money when we were younger. =\
(Some of it that I think she won't miss does get disappeared to Goodwill though).
When we were young we accepted everyone's cast-offs too. But as we got more $ and acquired our own tastes we no longer did that. I think gently explaining that would be a good first step.
When we were young we accepted everyone's cast-offs too. But as we got more $ and acquired our own tastes we no longer did that. I think gently explaining that would be a good first step.
Sigh. So it sounds like my solution probably shouldn't be to just gripe about it on the internet and do nothing until everyone dies of old age? *sigh*. You people and holding me accountable.
(Thank you for that. Seriously)
Does this count? I made my teenagers tidy up the linen closet. Nothing got thrown out but you can see everything and they might be less tempted to root around like piglets when they are looking for a beach towel.
I think he has at least 80 and he wears about 15 of them. Some don't even fit anymore and some are 15 years old.
I think he has at least 80 and he wears about 15 of them. Some don't even fit anymore and some are 15 years old.
Kudos on the decluttering push. Personally, I don't use age - the shorts I wore today are roughly 25 years old....
Decluttering roughly half of them last year is why I am actually wearing them instead of being stuffed in an overflow drawer that I don't need. Heck, I no longer even have that dresser - the whole thing went. Eventually.
I think he has at least 80 and he wears about 15 of them. Some don't even fit anymore and some are 15 years old.
Kudos on the decluttering push. Personally, I don't use age - the shorts I wore today are roughly 25 years old....
Decluttering roughly half of them last year is why I am actually wearing them instead of being stuffed in an overflow drawer that I don't need. Heck, I no longer even have that dresser - the whole thing went. Eventually.
That's exactly why I'm decluttering. We have a cupboard in our bedroom that we bought when we lived somewhere else. This house came with a built-in cupboard in our bedroom, so we don't need that extra cupboard anymore. I'm emptying the bedroom out now so I can paint it and I'm not willing to put that thing back.
We generally wear lots of old clothes too. Not 25 years old, as he's only 30 ;-) but he has a nice pair of Levi's jeans that I think he's worn for almost 15 years. I'm taking my winter coat to the dry cleaner's later today and it's also at least 10 years old. But if you keep buying new shirts, you need to throw out old shirts. I came across an old Hot Rod Helloween costume, so that's one thing we don't have to buy this year...
I'm going to spend this weekend decluttering!
It's amazing how much stuff you gather when you are two minimalistic, frugal adults who have never had any kind of hoarding tendencies. I think boyfriend's clothes might be the next thing. I don't have a lot of clothes (just enough to wear for a weak and a few special occasion outfits) but my boyfriend wears band shirts and those are hard to get rid of. I have heard of a lot of minimalistic men who can't get rid of their band shirts. I'm not asking him to get rid of his favourite shirts from his favourite bands, but as he's in a band he's traded t-shirts with other bands, received shirts from festivals they played at or he worked at, he even has shirts from bands he hates that he got for free from a store he used to work in. They used to give the shirts that no one bought (Coldplay) as freebies to the employees. I think he has at least 80 and he wears about 15 of them. Some don't even fit anymore and some are 15 years old.
I'm going to spend this weekend decluttering!
It's amazing how much stuff you gather when you are two minimalistic, frugal adults who have never had any kind of hoarding tendencies. I think boyfriend's clothes might be the next thing. I don't have a lot of clothes (just enough to wear for a weak and a few special occasion outfits) but my boyfriend wears band shirts and those are hard to get rid of. I have heard of a lot of minimalistic men who can't get rid of their band shirts. I'm not asking him to get rid of his favourite shirts from his favourite bands, but as he's in a band he's traded t-shirts with other bands, received shirts from festivals they played at or he worked at, he even has shirts from bands he hates that he got for free from a store he used to work in. They used to give the shirts that no one bought (Coldplay) as freebies to the employees. I think he has at least 80 and he wears about 15 of them. Some don't even fit anymore and some are 15 years old.
Have you ever thought of making a tshirt quilt with the ones that do not fit? They are easy to do, and then you will have a useful quilt instead of drawers full of old, unworn shirts. You can also pay people to make them for you, but it is easy enough to do yourself. They can be done by hand, but if you have a sewing machine, or access to one, it is a snap.
And since everything is out of the garage, I can put it all back in an organized, neat fashion. Just debating when - the garage is pretty wet, so it would be best for it dry some before I put stuff back in.
I went through our bathroom cupboard and drawers. Everything in there, we use! There were only a couple of small things to throw out. We might be able to move the hand towels or something back into that room!and now I've photographed and emailed my siblings in case they want the kitchen gadgets or castoffs from our grandma (they are not nice clothes, just ones she doesn't want any more).
And since everything is out of the garage, I can put it all back in an organized, neat fashion. Just debating when - the garage is pretty wet, so it would be best for it dry some before I put stuff back in.
If you have ever wanted to epoxy the garage floor, this is the time!
@With This Herring: normally I'd agree with you. In this case, 1) there is no such free space and 2) ostensibly the ball is "mine", as I bought it and used it in place of an office chair for a time.
I'm taking a "better to ask forgiveness than permission" approach on this one item. Thanks for the deflation links!
Oh! I didn't know it is yours! That makes a big difference. :)
They rejected 2 boxes, which we sort of expected (vhs tapes mostly).
Huh, interesting. Well I just found out that DH posted to Facebook about the tapes and very quickly had 2 people say they would like some. Better than the trash!They rejected 2 boxes, which we sort of expected (vhs tapes mostly).
Funny - those are in high demand at the Goodwill near us, along with VCRs. I guess everyone takes them to the cottage for rainy days.
And since everything is out of the garage, I can put it all back in an organized, neat fashion. Just debating when - the garage is pretty wet, so it would be best for it dry some before I put stuff back in.
If you have ever wanted to epoxy the garage floor, this is the time!
Multiple deep cracks in the floor. Wouldn't work. I'm happy to get all the dirt out. (this isn't attached to the house btw)
@With This Herring: normally I'd agree with you. In this case, 1) there is no such free space and 2) ostensibly the ball is "mine", as I bought it and used it in place of an office chair for a time.
I'm taking a "better to ask forgiveness than permission" approach on this one item. Thanks for the deflation links!
Oh! I didn't know it is yours! That makes a big difference. :)
He's been back from vacation since Thursday and hasn't noticed it's gone! Win!
Gave away 2 kitchen items through a FB group. Feels good.Turn those into a video file and chuck the physical DVD.
I'm debating whether to give away a DVD box set that is UK region or whether to wait and lug it over to the UK next visit (next year) and try to sell it for a few pounds or even give it away there to charity. It cost about $100 and it was a gift. We were in the UK one year at Xmas and for some reason DH thought he'd buy it there. I should have returned it at the time but didn't click and ended up never watching it.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
I have found a creative way to declutter my yarn stash! I don't have a massive amount of yarn, just one box, but still plenty of bits and ends I'd never use normally. My brother works with homeless people and he's known for always wearing a striped scarf I knitted for him. I'm going to use all my bits and ends to knit more scarves and hats like that so he can give them to people who need them. It might be a strange season for knitting winter gear but I hope to have a bag full by the time it's winter.
Fire pit is gone! And I cleaned up where it was a bit.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
- TSX brake calipers
- DVD Player
- Card Table and 5 chairs
- Storage baskets
- pillow stuffing (free)
Gave away my two favorite pairs of shoes. They are the cutest shoes and I love them. But my tendinitis doesn't let me wear heels anymore. So they are useless to me.I donated all of my pairs of heels except for one pair a few years ago. It was a great decision. My feet feel better. My running has improved, and I have way more room in my closet. :)
I just reviewed a drawer in my son's dresser. I counted 29 t-shirts. That is just t-shirts. That doesn't include long sleeve shirts, school uniforms, dress shirts or any that are in the wash. I've pulled out 14 in smaller sizing. It seems like such a waste as they still fit him.
I just reviewed a drawer in my son's dresser. I counted 29 t-shirts. That is just t-shirts. That doesn't include long sleeve shirts, school uniforms, dress shirts or any that are in the wash. I've pulled out 14 in smaller sizing. It seems like such a waste as they still fit him.
With a child's clothing, I would think you could let them go by attrition. Just remove them as they are outgrown or become overly stained or worn. Or do his drawers not have enough space?
I just reviewed a drawer in my son's dresser. I counted 29 t-shirts. That is just t-shirts. That doesn't include long sleeve shirts, school uniforms, dress shirts or any that are in the wash. I've pulled out 14 in smaller sizing. It seems like such a waste as they still fit him.
:D :D :D
Can you sort out my wardrobe MPGH?
:D :D :D
Can you sort out my wardrobe MPGH?
Don't tempt me!
I'd be brutal. Bye-bye cricket shirt from 1998... :D
:D :D :D
Can you sort out my wardrobe MPGH?
Don't tempt me!
I'd be brutal. Bye-bye cricket shirt from 1998... :D
I'll have you know it's a summer 5-a-side soccer shirt from 1997. That remains the only soccer premiership team I've ever played in. I can't throw it away :)
:D :D :D
Can you sort out my wardrobe MPGH?
Don't tempt me!
I'd be brutal. Bye-bye cricket shirt from 1998... :D
I'll have you know it's a summer 5-a-side soccer shirt from 1997. That remains the only soccer premiership team I've ever played in. I can't throw it away :)
I have a box with my old sports trophies I got when playing baseball as a kid. I don't know what to do with them. I don't want to throw them away but I don't want them sitting around the house anymore. I doubt I could give them to someone because they have my name on them, baseball league, etc. Any ideas?
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
- TSX brake calipers
- DVD Player
- Card Table and 5 chairs
- Storage baskets
- pillow stuffing (free)
- TSX Rotors
- Shop Vac
- Queen bed set
- Standing Hammock
- TV Stand
I have a box with my old sports trophies I got when playing baseball as a kid. I don't know what to do with them. I don't want to throw them away but I don't want them sitting around the house anymore. I doubt I could give them to someone because they have my name on them, baseball league, etc. Any ideas?
Third time posting this here so forgive me for repeating myself.
Some churches take them for mission trips, or for sporting camps for under-privileged kids.
The plaques come off with a hair dryer to melt the glue and dental floss.
I have a box with my old sports trophies I got when playing baseball as a kid. I don't know what to do with them. I don't want to throw them away but I don't want them sitting around the house anymore. I doubt I could give them to someone because they have my name on them, baseball league, etc. Any ideas?
Third time posting this here so forgive me for repeating myself.
Some churches take them for mission trips, or for sporting camps for under-privileged kids.
The plaques come off with a hair dryer to melt the glue and dental floss.
Thanks for the reply mustachepungoeshere. I'll look into that.
What's weird is that a lot of the stuff I'm piling up to get rid of is brand new to us, mostly gifts or "I thought you could use...". I wonder if we need to have a talk with some people...
What's weird is that a lot of the stuff I'm piling up to get rid of is brand new to us, mostly gifts or "I thought you could use...". I wonder if we need to have a talk with some people...
With people trying to give me stuff, I say, "If I can no longer use it, would you like it back?". No-one has ever said yes. Therefore I feel free to just donate. I don't want to tell them not to give us stuff as lots of useful things have come to us second hand, especially being pregnant. I'm getting a really expensive body pillow from a friend this week!
With gifts, I remind myself their intention was to make me happy. I thank them genuinely for the gift, then I do what will make me happiest. Usually that is to donate it. If I wouldn't have bought it for myself, it just becomes an obligation to me. No-one has ever noticed, and I have been doing it for literally years.
Note I never regift. I just think it's tacky. I donate, so a charity can benefit and someone can get something they truly want at a low price. And I choose people gifts I genuinely think they will enjoy, and then let them do with them as they choose.
sw1tch - how big is your house???? I am very impressed by all the stuff you have got rid of, I'm just a little confused as to where you were keeping all that!
During gift season, it is a very good habit to make a wishlist of things you really want to get. If you are planning to buy something, put it on your wist and wait until the gift season. This way you might not receive so much nonsense.
Anyhow, with our current timeline we have about a month left to get rid of / donate the rest of the items. As I said elsewhere on the forum, maybe I'll journal about this experience someday soon.
sw1tch - how big is your house???? I am very impressed by all the stuff you have got rid of, I'm just a little confused as to where you were keeping all that!
Glad you asked! Well, in 2015 we moved out of our ~2000 sqft house, which had an unfinished basement and 2-car garage into a ~ 900 sqft duplex with a 1-car garage. When we first moved, we got rid of ALOT of stuff (probably 75%), so all of this stuff is just what we moved from the first house. We found that with our current lifestyle (DINKS that don't really need much), even 900 sqft is too large for us. The garage also allowed me to justify keeping the 2nd car for way longer than necessary (2 years) and the extra space allowed for stuff to sit unnoticed (out of sight out of mind). Going forward, I think we're good with 500 sqft - my wife only really cares about having a decent bathroom and kitchen.
With FIRE and life changes coming, we decided to completely minimize and start from scratch. We are literally planning to sell the bed out from under us. We're also planning to move about 10.5 hours south of our current location and I didn't want to pay to move/store more stuff than we needed/wanted. We can always re-buy essentials. Ultimately, our end-goal is to be able to pick up and leave any place that we end up at without having to go through an ordeal like this again! The possibility of being nomadic or semi-nomadic is pretty appealing.
Anyhow, with our current timeline we have about a month left to get rid of / donate the rest of the items. As I said elsewhere on the forum, maybe I'll journal about this experience someday soon.
What's weird is that a lot of the stuff I'm piling up to get rid of is brand new to us, mostly gifts or "I thought you could use...". I wonder if we need to have a talk with some people...
With people trying to give me stuff, I say, "If I can no longer use it, would you like it back?". No-one has ever said yes. Therefore I feel free to just donate. I don't want to tell them not to give us stuff as lots of useful things have come to us second hand, especially being pregnant. I'm getting a really expensive body pillow from a friend this week!
With gifts, I remind myself their intention was to make me happy. I thank them genuinely for the gift, then I do what will make me happiest. Usually that is to donate it. If I wouldn't have bought it for myself, it just becomes an obligation to me. No-one has ever noticed, and I have been doing it for literally years.
Note I never regift. I just think it's tacky. I donate, so a charity can benefit and someone can get something they truly want at a low price. And I choose people gifts I genuinely think they will enjoy, and then let them do with them as they choose.
During gift season, it is a very good habit to make a wishlist of things you really want to get. If you are planning to buy something, put it on your wist and wait until the gift season. This way you might not receive so much nonsense.
I need to get started on mine for this year. One relative will go overboard and get us additional junk regardless, but we have a chance of getting something we actually want/need this way (and we also never offer it up, but it's routinely asked for).
What's weird is that a lot of the stuff I'm piling up to get rid of is brand new to us, mostly gifts or "I thought you could use...". I wonder if we need to have a talk with some people...
With people trying to give me stuff, I say, "If I can no longer use it, would you like it back?". No-one has ever said yes. Therefore I feel free to just donate. I don't want to tell them not to give us stuff as lots of useful things have come to us second hand, especially being pregnant. I'm getting a really expensive body pillow from a friend this week!
With gifts, I remind myself their intention was to make me happy. I thank them genuinely for the gift, then I do what will make me happiest. Usually that is to donate it. If I wouldn't have bought it for myself, it just becomes an obligation to me. No-one has ever noticed, and I have been doing it for literally years.
Note I never regift. I just think it's tacky. I donate, so a charity can benefit and someone can get something they truly want at a low price. And I choose people gifts I genuinely think they will enjoy, and then let them do with them as they choose.
During gift season, it is a very good habit to make a wishlist of things you really want to get. If you are planning to buy something, put it on your wist and wait until the gift season. This way you might not receive so much nonsense.
That's a good idea! I have an online wishlist for some things I am considering buying, so I can keep an eye on when they get on discount. I have never thought about sharing it with others and I do get a lot of nonsense during gift season. For some reason my relatives think I need certain things because I don't have them in my home. Even though I've tried to explain them a million times I don't have them in my house because I don't want them. In the past, I always used to say I didn't want any gifts, but they would just turn up with massive amounts of succulents. Then I asked for money, if they really felt like they had to give me something, but they won't give me money because I do 'stupid' things with them like paying off my mortgage or investing.
As my online wishlist contains mostly scientific books and whitegoods that need to be replaced in the future I'm not sure if they'd want to give that but at least it's worth a try :P .
I'm sure I've posted this around here before, but it's working for me, so I like sharing it.
I started asking for chocolate, coffee and wine for any gift occasion and being a little silly about it. When I was a teenager I thought penguins were cute... so for ten years I received dozens of penguin themed items. I decided to gush over chocolate, coffee and wine and create that family knowledge that I love those things. It's worked fairly well. One year my cousin got me three pounds of coffee from a local roaster I'd never heard of. I still dream about that coffee. I've gotten starbucks giftcards, I often save them for when I am stuck in airports. This past christmas my mom gave me a bag of coffee nestled in a bag full of fresh fruit from the local market. It was perfect. Consumable, something I buy myself as a treat, but for gifts people often splurge and I get to try new and different things.
As for getting rid of clutter. I'm paused for now until I figure out my next life step, but I am actively working to finish things. I completed a quilt this past weekend.
I'm also traveling with a very small wardrobe this summer. It's really helping me identify what works and what doesn't. I lost some key pieces when I forgot them in a hotel room and found a hole in an almost new shirt, so I have been checking the thrift shops out, but working hard to resist extras and buy what I need. I have tried a few styles that are new to me, but I've been able to return or donate back items that just don't work. I tell myself it was just a $5 donation to goodwill and now I know what I don't like. I don't need to keep it around just in case.
I'm sure I've posted this around here before, but it's working for me, so I like sharing it.
I started asking for chocolate, coffee and wine for any gift occasion and being a little silly about it. When I was a teenager I thought penguins were cute... so for ten years I received dozens of penguin themed items. I decided to gush over chocolate, coffee and wine and create that family knowledge that I love those things. It's worked fairly well. One year my cousin got me three pounds of coffee from a local roaster I'd never heard of. I still dream about that coffee. I've gotten starbucks giftcards, I often save them for when I am stuck in airports. This past christmas my mom gave me a bag of coffee nestled in a bag full of fresh fruit from the local market. It was perfect. Consumable, something I buy myself as a treat, but for gifts people often splurge and I get to try new and different things.
As for getting rid of clutter. I'm paused for now until I figure out my next life step, but I am actively working to finish things. I completed a quilt this past weekend.
I'm also traveling with a very small wardrobe this summer. It's really helping me identify what works and what doesn't. I lost some key pieces when I forgot them in a hotel room and found a hole in an almost new shirt, so I have been checking the thrift shops out, but working hard to resist extras and buy what I need. I have tried a few styles that are new to me, but I've been able to return or donate back items that just don't work. I tell myself it was just a $5 donation to goodwill and now I know what I don't like. I don't need to keep it around just in case.
+100. Unfortunately it hasn't worked *as well* for me, but it's worked very well for husband (my family loves giving him things, haha). So he gets a lot of whiskey, coffee, wine. It's cut down on the influx of mis-sized clothing quite a lot, lol.
Sorted through the tub of airline toiletries and put aside five cans of shaving cream for my dad and four bags for my nephews.
I keep what we will use - toothbrushes, toothpaste, etc - but the rest of it is easy come, easy go.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
- TSX brake calipers
- DVD Player
- Card Table and 5 chairs
- Storage baskets
- pillow stuffing (free)
- TSX Rotors
- Shop Vac
- Queen bed set
- Standing Hammock
- TV Stand
- Folding Bicycle
- Small TV Stand
I feel SO guilty.
I am getting rid of my grandmother's sewing machine. I wanted this so much; a treadle base, cabinet, and machine. I never met my grandmother.
My great-aunt had it and I was given it upon her death. However, it had sat in her garage and much of the base is rusted. It turns out my grandmother also had cut one side of the cabinet off to fit it in a smaller space. And while it worked when I got it, the drive band was so old, it quickly snapped. In other words, it is in horrible condition.
I am giving it to a neighbor who refinishes (and then usually sells) furniture. I have no use for it, we have no good space to display it (though maybe if it was in good condition we could find a space).
My Dad will be so upset if he finds out I got rid of it. But should I really be obligated for life to keep this? No one else in the family wanted it. (I had wanted the two trunks that my family immigrated here with, but the word didn't get to my Uncle before the clearing out garage sale.)
I still feel really guilty. I should have refinished it or something. But even if I had- it still would only have 3/4 of the cabinet...
So, +1 for getting rid of clutter. -1 for feeling horrible.
Also, if your dad is going to feel so bad that you got rid of something that was owned by someone you've never met, then he should have stepped up and taken it originally. NOT YOUR PROBLEM.
-signed, the evil daughter who's making her mom get rid of everything (yeah, it's not working.)
Also, if your dad is going to feel so bad that you got rid of something that was owned by someone you've never met, then he should have stepped up and taken it originally. NOT YOUR PROBLEM.
-signed, the evil daughter who's making her mom get rid of everything (yeah, it's not working.)
To be fair, I didn't meet her because she died shortly before my Mom and Dad met. I love sewing, and wanted something of hers (though I have her teacup collection from when my grandfather died), so I got it because I wanted it. But I think for my Dad taking an item is a lifelong commitment.
I am scared for when I have to clean out my parents house. My Dad isn't a hoarder, but only because they have a lot of space. SO MUCH STUFF.
(When my Mom had me clear out my stuff from their attic we got 2 boxes to leave there. I actually didn't leave anything there, I have my own attic. Cue a year later "Jessi, you really need to clean out your stuff". I put it all in her goodwill pile. Two years later "Jessi, please clean out your stuff". That's when I said "Mom, at this point, it's Dad's stuff, not mine". He kept setting aside my dolls, drill team uniform, school papers, thinks he "knew I really wanted". Uh no, I didn't.)
My husband has a big Lego car kit which we enjoy building, but the box is about eight times the size of the contents.
He just agreed to move the Lego into a smaller plastic tub with the instructions and a picture from the box, and toss the box itself.
Unless you have a neighbour you could ask to borrow theirs, I'd keep the ironing board. There's nothing worse than trying to iron without one.We have an ironing board now, but I used to used to iron on my dryer (put a towel down).
Unless you have a neighbour you could ask to borrow theirs, I'd keep the ironing board. There's nothing worse than trying to iron without one.We have an ironing board now, but I used to used to iron on my dryer (put a towel down).
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
- TSX brake calipers
- DVD Player
- Card Table and 5 chairs
- Storage baskets
- pillow stuffing (free)
- TSX Rotors
- Shop Vac
- Queen bed set
- Standing Hammock
- TV Stand
- Folding Bicycle
- Small TV Stand
- queen Mattress, box spring, frame
No ironing boad here either. I just put a towel on the washing machine when we have a funeral to go to. Other than that, I only iron when I'm giving a professional presentation and then I use the ironing board in my hotel room - no need to store one myself.
I helped a friend declutter because she's moving soon. We decluttered 3 large boxes of baking supplies. She's keeping two ... but at least that means the majority is gone. I have never seen so many cookie cutters in my life, seriously not even in a cookware shop. She offered me a lot of things too, but I only took two things (that I'll really use). This is actually how I get most of my stuff: my spendypants friends throw out perfectly good stuff and I take it home. The cookie sheet I took yesterday is actually still in the original packaging and the price sticker is still on it. Who pays €15 for a cookie sheet? :o
No ironing boad here either. I just put a towel on the washing machine when we have a funeral to go to. Other than that, I only iron when I'm giving a professional presentation and then I use the ironing board in my hotel room - no need to store one myself.
My DH sews clothes sometimes. He needs an ironing board for that. Also for taping Goretex clothes.
Unless you have a neighbour you could ask to borrow theirs, I'd keep the ironing board. There's nothing worse than trying to iron without one.We have an ironing board now, but I used to used to iron on my dryer (put a towel down).
May I please have some advice on old food?
In my (slightly) younger and (much) more optimistic days, I purchased a bunch of canned/jarred foods with big plans. Well, I've become a better cook, eliminating the need for some of those foods, and others are just not things we eat. So now I have a bunch of canned/jarred foods that are 2-5 years past their expirations. Most of them are probably still good, but they won't be eaten here, and I know food pantries do not take expired food. Additionally, DBF's mother gave use a huge box of baking mixes (which I have never used) years ago, and I didn't realize at the time that I should just donate them.
So, there are no compost bins/piles available around here. I hesitate to put it on the free section of CraigsList because someone might eat something, get sick, then sue me. Does anyone have less wasteful ideas for getting rid of long-expired food besides throwing it out?
May I please have some advice on old food?
In my (slightly) younger and (much) more optimistic days, I purchased a bunch of canned/jarred foods with big plans. Well, I've become a better cook, eliminating the need for some of those foods, and others are just not things we eat. So now I have a bunch of canned/jarred foods that are 2-5 years past their expirations. Most of them are probably still good, but they won't be eaten here, and I know food pantries do not take expired food. Additionally, DBF's mother gave use a huge box of baking mixes (which I have never used) years ago, and I didn't realize at the time that I should just donate them.
So, there are no compost bins/piles available around here. I hesitate to put it on the free section of CraigsList because someone might eat something, get sick, then sue me. Does anyone have less wasteful ideas for getting rid of long-expired food besides throwing it out?
May I please have some advice on old food?
In my (slightly) younger and (much) more optimistic days, I purchased a bunch of canned/jarred foods with big plans. Well, I've become a better cook, eliminating the need for some of those foods, and others are just not things we eat. So now I have a bunch of canned/jarred foods that are 2-5 years past their expirations. Most of them are probably still good, but they won't be eaten here, and I know food pantries do not take expired food. Additionally, DBF's mother gave use a huge box of baking mixes (which I have never used) years ago, and I didn't realize at the time that I should just donate them.
So, there are no compost bins/piles available around here. I hesitate to put it on the free section of CraigsList because someone might eat something, get sick, then sue me. Does anyone have less wasteful ideas for getting rid of long-expired food besides throwing it out?
I bought a yard of ironing board cover material (quilted non-scorch stuff) and iron on my kitchen island. I do have a tailor's ham on my wishlist, though.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
- TSX brake calipers
- DVD Player
- Card Table and 5 chairs
- Storage baskets
- pillow stuffing (free)
- TSX Rotors
- Shop Vac
- Queen bed set
- Standing Hammock
- TV Stand
- Folding Bicycle
- Small TV Stand
- queen Mattress, box spring, frame
- 2 shoe racks
- small weed whacker
- Civic Si suspension
- 8 person tent
A bit unconventional for this thread, but I just deleted a ton of apps on my phone that I haven't used in a while.
A bit unconventional for this thread, but I just deleted a ton of apps on my phone that I haven't used in a while.
A bit unconventional for this thread, but I just deleted a ton of apps on my phone that I haven't used in a while.
Less stuff to manage. Potential savings in time, bandwidth and even electricity.
SOLD:
- Car
- Supercharger kit
- Lawn mower
- Fertilizer spreader
- Low profile mechanic's creeper
- Civic shift assembly
- Deep fryer
- Old subwoofer
- Votive candle holders
- 17' Ladder
- Console Table
- Jug of antifreeze
- Civic wheels & tires
- Trumpet vases
- Lawn chairs
- Desk and chair
- Couch and loveseat
- Coffee table
- Printer
- Papasan
- Dining table set w/ 6 chairs (gone in 2 days; maybe should've listed higher)
- 2 table lamps
- Box fan
- Wall Mirror
- TSX brake calipers
- DVD Player
- Card Table and 5 chairs
- Storage baskets
- pillow stuffing (free)
- TSX Rotors
- Shop Vac
- Queen bed set
- Standing Hammock
- TV Stand
- Folding Bicycle
- Small TV Stand
- queen Mattress, box spring, frame
- 2 shoe racks
- small weed whacker
- Civic Si suspension
- 8 person tent
- my bike (2007 Trek 7.2 FX)
Tossed a couple more things from the balcony. Feeling good.I hope there was nobody underneath.
Tossed a couple more things from the balcony. Feeling good.I hope there was nobody underneath.
Trying to figure out what to do with my MIL's old silver cutlery...
Took another small bag to the community thrift store. I get tax deductions, not cash, but they invest all proceeds directly back into our local community. It's my way of doing "United Way" without doing "United Way."
This weekend is the great closet purge of '17. Posting here for accountability. I have a real problem getting rid of clothes (6 Rubbermaid totes of stuff that doesn't fit, plus a jammed walk in closet). but sometimes you have to just rip the bandaid off.
This weekend is the great closet purge of '17. Posting here for accountability. I have a real problem getting rid of clothes (6 Rubbermaid totes of stuff that doesn't fit, plus a jammed walk in closet). but sometimes you have to just rip the bandaid off.
Listening to radio coverage of the damage Irma left behind, I heard one woman describing how the storm took everything she owned. The house is wrecked, her possessions are gone or damaged beyond repair, her clothes are gone or ruined. She literally has nothing.
It made me look around and re-evaluate the value of a lot of my stuff and wonder why I have some of it at all.
If a storm wrecked my home and possessions, what would I bother replacing? What would I take with me as I fled ahead of the storm? If I was that woman on the radio, how would I face starting from absolute zero stuff?
I don't even have that many clothes, less than four garbage bags full doing the hanger/garbage bag trick.
I don't even have that many clothes, less than four garbage bags full doing the hanger/garbage bag trick.
I am ignorant. What is this trick?
I don't even have that many clothes, less than four garbage bags full doing the hanger/garbage bag trick.
I am ignorant. What is this trick?
Image attached. It's not super common, but very helpful! Keeps your clothes all in the same order and it only takes a couple minutes.
This weekend is the great closet purge of '17. Posting here for accountability. I have a real problem getting rid of clothes (6 Rubbermaid totes of stuff that doesn't fit, plus a jammed walk in closet). but sometimes you have to just rip the bandaid off.
Good luck! I have problems with clothes and shoes as well. I've made a lot of progress but still have a ways to go. Let us know how it went on Monday!
...
--100-150 VHS tapesThey wouldn't take tapes.
...
Did not do too well this weekend in getting stuff out the door- but I got rid of two drying racks that were in the kitchen, a bunch of cleaning supplies we don't use, and some random paperwork.
Try your local women's refuge. Typically what they can't use in the refuge itself will go into starter packs for women who move on from the refuge into new p.ermanent accommodation. They'll also take toiletries.Did not do too well this weekend in getting stuff out the door- but I got rid of two drying racks that were in the kitchen, a bunch of cleaning supplies we don't use, and some random paperwork.
Do you mean implements or cleaning products?
What do you do with cleaning and/or laundry products you don't use? Pour them down the drain and recycle the containers?
Any suggestions anyone?
...
--100-150 VHS tapesThey wouldn't take tapes.
...
A surprising number of people still want VHS tapes. You can probably donate these.
Source: the townwide garage sale last weekend, at which I saw multiple people excitedly buying stacks of VHS tapes. I prefer to think they just don't like DVDs, please don't abuse me of that if there's a gross reason.
...
--100-150 VHS tapesThey wouldn't take tapes.
...
A surprising number of people still want VHS tapes. You can probably donate these.
Source: the townwide garage sale last weekend, at which I saw multiple people excitedly buying stacks of VHS tapes. I prefer to think they just don't like DVDs, please don't abuse me of that if there's a gross reason.
...
--100-150 VHS tapesThey wouldn't take tapes.
...
A surprising number of people still want VHS tapes. You can probably donate these.
Source: the townwide garage sale last weekend, at which I saw multiple people excitedly buying stacks of VHS tapes. I prefer to think they just don't like DVDs, please don't abuse me of that if there's a gross reason.
No gross reason that I know. People either don't have a DVD player, can't get those specific VHS movies on DVD, or maybe have a secondary location (summer cottage?) with a working VHS player that doesn't need to be replaced. When you have a good VHS player and VHS movies are going for cents, there is no need to shell out for a DVD player.
Goldielocks, is there storage space at the hall where the event will be held? If they have a large attic, utility closet, or whatnot, maybe they can accumulate some of the donations until the big day.
...
--100-150 VHS tapesThey wouldn't take tapes.
...
A surprising number of people still want VHS tapes. You can probably donate these.
Source: the townwide garage sale last weekend, at which I saw multiple people excitedly buying stacks of VHS tapes. I prefer to think they just don't like DVDs, please don't abuse me of that if there's a gross reason.
Exchanged a bunch of stuff with neighbors. Got rid of 25 items that we didn't need (balloon weights, books, etc) and got items we could use (soap, cleaning stuff, gift bags, etc). Even though it was not true decluttering, I'd consider it as such since we now have things we can use and none we can't. Also those things we couldn't use will be used by someone else. Double win!
My husband has been trying to get me to clear out clutter, but I've been resistant. Y'all have inspired me to actually participate. This week:
a) Husband cleaned our game room. We are giving away 5 board games we don't play, and the ones we're keeping (30+ ... baby steps) are sorted so we can actually see what we own.
b) I sorted through my desk at home. Reference books were returned to their actual bookshelf homes. Paperwork was sorted and filed or recycled. I finally looked in the two pretty baskets on the top shelf and realize they were full of paperwork and tchotchkes I had forgotten about. The recycle bin is now full, my daughter took one of the baskets to organize HER desk, and the other basket went into the Goodwill box. My husband is amazed that I can actually see the surface of my desk now (honestly, so am I).
c) We tried on 75% of the stuff in our closet. Two big bags to give away, and a bunch of just-slightly-too-large stuff folded and put in a storage tote. If it is still too large next year, I'll give it away.
d) Cleaned off the kitchen island, which had served as an open-air junk "drawer"
e) I requested The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up from the library after I saw several people recommend it on this thread.
This weekend's goals:
1) Finish cleaning out our closet. Be realistic about which shoes I will never wear again.
2) Get rid of 4 things in the kitchen.
3) Tackle top of dresser (I have no idea what that mess is, but I suspect I don't need 85% of it)
ZiziPB, I don't have any suggestions but I can commiserate on the difficult feelings. I have listed my toddler's (preschooler now) tricycle. Even though I know she will not use it anymore and had outgrown it (nor will her siblings use it), I want to hold on to it just for the memory's sake. It feels as if I'm giving away a part of her toddlerhood. :(Thanks for the support firelight! Even though I'm not particularly sentimental it is hard to deal with objects that have all these feelings attached to them. In my case, one additional feeling I'm struggling with is guilt - I know that these gifts were a big expense for my parents at the time they were given so it's hard to just discard them and show total disregard for that.
The only thing that has helped so far is taking pictures of it and reminding myself that the bike has given us fun memories which are stored in my heart and I don't need the bike to remind me of them. Still working on it though.
ZiziPB, I don't have any suggestions but I can commiserate on the difficult feelings. I have listed my toddler's (preschooler now) tricycle. Even though I know she will not use it anymore and had outgrown it (nor will her siblings use it), I want to hold on to it just for the memory's sake. It feels as if I'm giving away a part of her toddlerhood. :(Thanks for the support firelight! Even though I'm not particularly sentimental it is hard to deal with objects that have all these feelings attached to them. In my case, one additional feeling I'm struggling with is guilt - I know that these gifts were a big expense for my parents at the time they were given so it's hard to just discard them and show total disregard for that.
The only thing that has helped so far is taking pictures of it and reminding myself that the bike has given us fun memories which are stored in my heart and I don't need the bike to remind me of them. Still working on it though.
ZiziPB, I don't have any suggestions but I can commiserate on the difficult feelings. I have listed my toddler's (preschooler now) tricycle. Even though I know she will not use it anymore and had outgrown it (nor will her siblings use it), I want to hold on to it just for the memory's sake. It feels as if I'm giving away a part of her toddlerhood. :(Thanks for the support firelight! Even though I'm not particularly sentimental it is hard to deal with objects that have all these feelings attached to them. In my case, one additional feeling I'm struggling with is guilt - I know that these gifts were a big expense for my parents at the time they were given so it's hard to just discard them and show total disregard for that.
The only thing that has helped so far is taking pictures of it and reminding myself that the bike has given us fun memories which are stored in my heart and I don't need the bike to remind me of them. Still working on it though.
Not knowing anything about your relationship with your parents... These gifts are like a cashmere sweater that is two sizes too big. It's beautiful and lovely but just doesn't fit you and it's just not useful, and honestly it's so big and baggy that it loses its beauty and looks rough. You would trade in that sweater for one that fit. And you can trade in these items for something that fits. Maybe that is money towards debt or savings. Maybe it is a necklace or kitchen utensil you're more likely to use. They served their purpose. You have admired their loveliness. You aren't disregarding their worth. You tried them on. They don't fit.
ZiziPB, I don't have any suggestions but I can commiserate on the difficult feelings. I have listed my toddler's (preschooler now) tricycle. Even though I know she will not use it anymore and had outgrown it (nor will her siblings use it), I want to hold on to it just for the memory's sake. It feels as if I'm giving away a part of her toddlerhood. :(Thanks for the support firelight! Even though I'm not particularly sentimental it is hard to deal with objects that have all these feelings attached to them. In my case, one additional feeling I'm struggling with is guilt - I know that these gifts were a big expense for my parents at the time they were given so it's hard to just discard them and show total disregard for that.
The only thing that has helped so far is taking pictures of it and reminding myself that the bike has given us fun memories which are stored in my heart and I don't need the bike to remind me of them. Still working on it though.
Not knowing anything about your relationship with your parents... These gifts are like a cashmere sweater that is two sizes too big. It's beautiful and lovely but just doesn't fit you and it's just not useful, and honestly it's so big and baggy that it loses its beauty and looks rough. You would trade in that sweater for one that fit. And you can trade in these items for something that fits. Maybe that is money towards debt or savings. Maybe it is a necklace or kitchen utensil you're more likely to use. They served their purpose. You have admired their loveliness. You aren't disregarding their worth. You tried them on. They don't fit.
Another run to Goodwill last night: bed linens, towels, kitchen stuff... I think I'm slowly getting there. The agent who listed my house for sale commented that the house feels "minimal" (in a good way :-)
And I took an easy way out on the cleaning/laundry products. I put the lot in the local laundromat with a sign saying Free stuff - please take. Hopefully there will be some takers.
Two items out the door and two more pending pickup tomorrow. Time to list more items.
I have some fan memorabilia for shows like orange is the New Black, Bojack horseman, etc. Putting as auction on eBay would give the best possible price but would include shipping work, cut in profits to eBay etc. Posting as porch pickup on Facebook and Craigslist keeps it local and doesn't have shipping hassles but I won't get the best price. What should I pick?
Two items out the door and two more pending pickup tomorrow. Time to list more items.
I have some fan memorabilia for shows like orange is the New Black, Bojack horseman, etc. Putting as auction on eBay would give the best possible price but would include shipping work, cut in profits to eBay etc. Posting as porch pickup on Facebook and Craigslist keeps it local and doesn't have shipping hassles but I won't get the best price. What should I pick?
This weekend's goals:
1) Finish cleaning out our closet. Be realistic about which shoes I will never wear again.
2) Get rid of 4 things in the kitchen.
3) Tackle top of dresser (I have no idea what that mess is, but I suspect I don't need 85% of it)
...if you have to store things in weird places just to say you have a home for it, then you have waaaaay too much stuff.
I'm doing this gauntlet for October. It's the one where you do one object on Day 1, two on Day 2 etc. Hubby is quite adamant that we've decluttered enough so the challenge will be a combination of decluttering and storing things in their correct place for me.
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/minimalist-challenge-for-october/
I moved apartments recently and packed a fair few boxes full of stuff that has been a "to sell" or "to throw out" for years. I thought I'd be motivated to do better after the move, but of course they've sat there in boxes for the last couple of months. Such is life, hey?
Except my partner's father passed away last week, and we've been cleaning out his house. He has rooms and rooms of junk, with a study full of messy paperwork from 2008 mixed in with mouldy towels and his daughter's artwork from primary school, and two sheds full of cobwebs and old broken furniture.
It's like a shock of cold water to the face to see this much junk. When I get back home I'm going super hard on my clutter and boxes - no excuses.
There is a council clean-up scheduled for my building tomorrow. Finally!
Must be tough to find items worth keeping between all the mess.My partner and his sisters don't want any of their dad's stuff, but their mum is insistent that our generation throws too much stuff away and all of this stuff is still good. She also says that she needs to buy an extra storage unit because her house is already full of old furniture. Can't make this stuff up.
Must be tough to find items worth keeping between all the mess.My partner and his sisters don't want any of their dad's stuff, but their mum is insistent that our generation throws too much stuff away and all of this stuff is still good. She also says that she needs to buy an extra storage unit because her house is already full of old furniture. Can't make this stuff up.
one was 19 years old and disintegrated as I tried to put it on.
Vent: I've been doing good at decluttering but got into the rabbit hole of selling some of the stuff. I have a lot of people interested but no concrete buyers yet. Not to mention the scammers that want you to ship stuff to them. Everytime I sell I go through this pain and apparently I forget :( hope it sears in memory this time and I don't sell anything more unless it's like for 100% profit.
I currently am having a bit of a panic attack about taking roughly 9 large boxes of various items (decor/clothes/toys) to the thrift shop tomorrow. Lots of like new "valuable" stuff that we could technically try to sell, but the idea of dealing with selling said items just makes me want to hop on the NOPEtopus to NOtown.
And some things were from my childhood/family, so there are stupid FEELINGS attached to them. But they are junk or things I absolutely can't use or even want out in my house!
Will sleep on it and possibly just wait a bit longer, as usually I will end up staring at the boxes/piles and finally get sick to death of looking at it.
We have a verge pickup (council sends people around to take our stuff to the tip).
We have a verge pickup (council sends people around to take our stuff to the tip).
We had ours last week. Put everything out, cheering.
Yesterday I was in the laundry and spotted the blind rack from our previous apartment. Kicking myself for forgetting to put it out.
I'd been waiting a year for council clean-up!
huge success today.
One huge van load of stuff donated to bibles for missions. I don't mind using them because they have folks working there who couldn't get work any where else.
Three shelves put out on the sidewalk and they were gone before we got back from the donation drop off.
Next was scrap metal - the tool library was collecting scrap at a church downtown so it was on the way to my son's friends.
Then hubs loaded the stuff for the sorting yard. Shredded paper - two huge bags, three bags of plastic film, random cardboard that didn't fit in our already full bin, e-waste, toxic waste, old medications.
The garage has room for a car now.
One more parking space to clear out still but huge progress.
Finally got the old light fixture out of my house. I'd replaced it, and it's been sitting around for a month waiting for me to take it to Habitat for Humanity. Someone else will like it. Not me!
Also dropped off some stuff to the hazardous waste collection event today. Most of that stuff went earlier this summer, but I'm happy to get rid of the small bag too.
We have a verge pickup (council sends people around to take our stuff to the tip).
We had ours last week. Put everything out, cheering.
Yesterday I was in the laundry and spotted the blind rack from our previous apartment. Kicking myself for forgetting to put it out.
I'd been waiting a year for council clean-up!
You need to find a friend in the next clean up suburb on the list who will take it....
Ours is next weekend but I believe I may live further than is appropriate to bin your thing. Can it not squish in the general bin? If it's metal and you pop it on the verge for a day it may be gone by the time you get home.
Today I wanted to find out in which year DH and I went to live together. (Needed the information for something.)
I took out the fully stuffed drawer where our living-together contract should have been. But I think I ditched the contract after we got married. I did find the bill, so I know the date.
In the drawer I found lots of things that are just memories. Like school reports from elementary school. And diploma's from dancing championships. And a certificate that I weighed enough to not be a which. Combined with relevant diplomas from higher education.
I guess when we'll downsize at FIRE this is one of of the personal stuff that we need to remove, just to get less stuff in total and make it easier to move between (rental) houses in the first period. Yes, I understand folks emotions about throwing away childhood memories. I am really not there yet to be rigorous about it. Maybe I should start photographing some of it to store it electronically. Then it can be thrown away later. I'll put the photografing on my todo list.
I'm reading Marie Kondo's book on tidying and although it sounds hokey, am loving the approach of thanking things and releasing them. If I keep it up much longer, I may only have the dog and my bed left in the house soon :)
Slowly but surely. College son is home and has made a HUGE dent in the Legos, selling off some more valuable ones, then putting together a 10 pound random piece box and shipping them all out. Meanwhile, I've been digging through an attic storage area, bringing more legos, burnable crap and Brio stuff out. Found the one thing I have been searching for....a brio train roundhouse. Granted, it's not worth much, but this was the one big thing I knew we still had. Brio stuff now up on craigslist. Have removed (and burned) a bunch of empty boxes that were in storage. Why are we storing empty boxes? Continued baby plastic toys and pieces into the recycling bin (youngest son is 17.....we need baby stuff why?). Also saving yu-gi-oh! cards and Magic the Gathering cards as college son has found buyers. Son greeted me when I got home yesterday and said that our upstairs room (where the mess resides) is starting to look like space has opened. This is good and bad. If my wife notices, she'll probably go ape shit. My plan now includes getting a bin of similar crap from the basement, dumping it upstairs and then bringing the container to the recycling center to hide the evidence. She won't notice basement reduction in crap.
The problem with people that will throw away nothing is that usually therapy is unsuccessful and so is talking to the person. It is a deep seated behavior usually from childhood trauma, not having enough, not feeling good enough, etc. Yes she may be mad if she finds out but she may never find out. The person that would like a decent home has some rights too and 9 times out of 10 talking to the hoarder is not going to work.I'm not sure, even if you're correct about the statistics, that just because it's likely not to work that he shouldn't try at all? That seems rather defeatist and guaranteed to have a bad outcome, instead of maybe him trying for a good outcome?
There's a theme here - I also decluttered my bookshelves this weekend.
I had a few cookbooks where there was one recipe I loved, but I knew I probably wasn't going to make anything else out of it. I photographed the recipe on my phone, printed it out and put it in my recipe binder. Books can now be donated.
I showed my husband what I was keeping, including a book I thought he would never get rid of. (I do not touch his stuff, as I find I can make a huge difference just doing my own, and I don't want to be a nag). Anyway, he saw that book, and said, "oh, you can get rid of that". That would not have happened 18 months ago.
He is really coming round. Since I removed one of our two bookcases he keeps saying, "Oh there is so much space! Doesn't it look great? Oh it's so lovely having so much less stuff". I really think I may be winning the war without fighting a single battle :)
There's a theme here - I also decluttered my bookshelves this weekend.
I had a few cookbooks where there was one recipe I loved, but I knew I probably wasn't going to make anything else out of it. I photographed the recipe on my phone, printed it out and put it in my recipe binder. Books can now be donated.
I showed my husband what I was keeping, including a book I thought he would never get rid of. (I do not touch his stuff, as I find I can make a huge difference just doing my own, and I don't want to be a nag). Anyway, he saw that book, and said, "oh, you can get rid of that". That would not have happened 18 months ago.
He is really coming round. Since I removed one of our two bookcases he keeps saying, "Oh there is so much space! Doesn't it look great? Oh it's so lovely having so much less stuff". I really think I may be winning the war without fighting a single battle :)
You're an inspiration!
Two furniture items posted on kijiji.
One car fits in the garage and I can see how ten items re-homed would permit a second car in the garage as well. We are so close!
I need to be in this thread more and decluttering more. I did a little this weekend:
This weekend I found some perfume and perfume samples in my bathroom. I never wear perfume. I gave them away on our FB buy nothing page and they were gone in an hour.
I threw away a bunch of old makeup and filled another bag with 'make up to throw away the next time I decide I don't care about makeup but can't bear to throw away today'.
Maybe this has been asked and answered: Do you guys scan all your old photograph prints? I have all these old photo albums I have pulled the photos out of. But I think I'd like to scan them and make them digital but that seems so overwhelming and time consuming compared to just throwing them in a box. Any ideas?
Another item stumped me. It's a music box from when I was a kid. It seems to no longer work. It was bought in Switzerland (I was born in Europe) so it's a nice antique. I was thinking I would give it to my daughter when I found it wouldn't work. Can these be repaired? Or should I toss it? Anyone know?
Also, any suggestions for people who have plenty of space to store this junk but still want to get rid of it? This is the hard part for me. My junk 'fits' in my closet. But my closet is HUGE. Or kitchen stuff, etc. How can I motivate myself when I can hide everything behind doors and it's still neat?
Camping items in garage now sorted and put away. Two large bins worth for sale or donation. Still have inside camping items (sleeping bags) to go through. Moved the utility trailer back into garage, and tomorrow will get the car in there, too.
I have a severe problem with loving bags and backpacks of all types. Can't seem to toss those. Other than that, I think I was pretty straight forward. It helps that I did this 2 years ago, and tossed a lot of pure crap then.
Next problem -- should I actually have a mini craigs-list one day sale with all of the stuff? (Each room cleared adds another bin's worth to the pile.. the pile is growing). Some items are worthy of selling individually on craig's list, and many others would get taken away for free. Hmmmmm....
I like the methodology. Wish I had done it that way.Camping items in garage now sorted and put away. Two large bins worth for sale or donation. Still have inside camping items (sleeping bags) to go through. Moved the utility trailer back into garage, and tomorrow will get the car in there, too.
I have a severe problem with loving bags and backpacks of all types. Can't seem to toss those. Other than that, I think I was pretty straight forward. It helps that I did this 2 years ago, and tossed a lot of pure crap then.
Next problem -- should I actually have a mini craigs-list one day sale with all of the stuff? (Each room cleared adds another bin's worth to the pile.. the pile is growing). Some items are worthy of selling individually on craig's list, and many others would get taken away for free. Hmmmmm....
Wow, well done, congratulations on your progress! I can understand that having a large 'Get Rid Of' pile is a new challenge. First challenge is going through everything and deciding whether you want to keep it or not, but then... do you sell, donate or throw away? Such a hassle! In my experience, some thing I thought would definitely sell haven't sold and things I was planning to donate got sold quickly. It's a strange market... What I've done with a similar heap: post *everything* online with the price you'd like to get. Ten days later, reduce the price of all items that are left (I mostly cut the price in half). Ten days after that, reduce to 'free pickup'. Ten days after that: donate whatever's left. At that point I'd rather have my space and time back.
I need to be in this thread more and decluttering more. I did a little this weekend:
This weekend I found some perfume and perfume samples in my bathroom. I never wear perfume. I gave them away on our FB buy nothing page and they were gone in an hour.
I threw away a bunch of old makeup and filled another bag with 'make up to throw away the next time I decide I don't care about makeup but can't bear to throw away today'.
Maybe this has been asked and answered: Do you guys scan all your old photograph prints? I have all these old photo albums I have pulled the photos out of. But I think I'd like to scan them and make them digital but that seems so overwhelming and time consuming compared to just throwing them in a box. Any ideas?
Another item stumped me. It's a music box from when I was a kid. It seems to no longer work. It was bought in Switzerland (I was born in Europe) so it's a nice antique. I was thinking I would give it to my daughter when I found it wouldn't work. Can these be repaired? Or should I toss it? Anyone know?
Also, any suggestions for people who have plenty of space to store this junk but still want to get rid of it? This is the hard part for me. My junk 'fits' in my closet. But my closet is HUGE. Or kitchen stuff, etc. How can I motivate myself when I can hide everything behind doors and it's still neat?
About the photos, it would be time consuming. If you want to get rid of the physical photos but don't have the time, there are probably services out there. Or if they are family pics, maybe there's a teenager in the family who you might pay to do it?
The music box, I have no idea myself but here we have a couple of volunteer staffed places where they try and fix things (to keep them from landfill). Do you have anything like that?
With the cupboards - if you know it is really junk, leave the doors open the whole time and you might feel motivated to deal with it!
I surprise-decluttered my cat costume (ears, tail and gloves). I say surprise because I had put it in the donation box, but a co worker wanted the costume for next year. I brought it to her today. Win!
I surprise-decluttered my cat costume (ears, tail and gloves). I say surprise because I had put it in the donation box, but a co worker wanted the costume for next year. I brought it to her today. Win!
I surprise un-decluttered something from the donation box this week, too.
I wanted light, summery pants to wear one evening this week. My beach pants were in the wash, and I remembered I'd thrown a pair in the donation box. I had thought, oh, they're sort of duplicate, I don't really need them. Rescued them, wore them, they're not going back in the box. I like them too much. But I still feel like I need to rationalise keeping my own pants...
I put my box of "opened pretty smelling stuff I don't want anymore" on the front porch last night with a sign that said "Free stuff". By the end of trick-or-treating, it was all gone!
+1 I have a lot of stuff that would've been gladly taken away by our trick or treating visitors. Oh well! Next year for sureI put my box of "opened pretty smelling stuff I don't want anymore" on the front porch last night with a sign that said "Free stuff". By the end of trick-or-treating, it was all gone!
What a brilliant idea. I might steal that one for next year.
One more unused item gone. Courtesy of Craigslist, I sold my 1974 custom built racing bike. Haven't ridden in at least a year and when I do ride, I take out the mountain bike. A little sad to let go a thing I built myself in high school but again, I don't ride it anymore and have access to my son's road bike if I wanted to use it. The shed now has one empty hook for a bike.
I spent a considerable time yesterday going through my inbox, unsubscribing to everything apart from bare essentials, and then deleting to Inbox Zero.
That counts, right?
I think I might be overly obsessed with clearing out clutter.
When I put away my shoes last night I noticed a dress in the closet that fits and looks okay but I don't really like it. I dreamed about the stupid dress, and the first thing I did when I woke up was take it out of the closet and put it in the box I'll be sending to Dress for Success. I felt so much better as soon as it was out of the closet.
I never imagined I'd get to a point that a dress would annoy me that badly.
So, what do you do when each individual thing you pick up *does* spark joy, but you've still got way too much stuff and need to ditch it? We already got the easy things (another 6 full bags to the thrift store today) but I'm now finding myself going through the same closet/bookshelf/cabinet again and again, annoyed with the clutter but with nothing to happily part with. Just finished reading "the life changing magic of tidying up" and found it inspiring, but am still stuck at a slow trickle of maybe 1-2 things a day to part with. We aren't hoarders by any means, but I still dream of open space in the cabinets (and no embarrassing pile of craft supplies with no home in the spare bedroom).
This is fantastic! Definitely saving to read later.So, what do you do when each individual thing you pick up *does* spark joy, but you've still got way too much stuff and need to ditch it? We already got the easy things (another 6 full bags to the thrift store today) but I'm now finding myself going through the same closet/bookshelf/cabinet again and again, annoyed with the clutter but with nothing to happily part with. Just finished reading "the life changing magic of tidying up" and found it inspiring, but am still stuck at a slow trickle of maybe 1-2 things a day to part with. We aren't hoarders by any means, but I still dream of open space in the cabinets (and no embarrassing pile of craft supplies with no home in the spare bedroom).
One of these might work, depending on the type of stuff:
Find alternative ways of accessing the things you love
Try getting rid of some of your books with the understanding that next time you want to read a certain have permission to buy the e-book or can borrow it from the library. Check to see if your favourite movies are on Netflix, then donate your DVDs.
Use up the consumables
You mentioned craft supplies. Is the joy in the owning or in the using and then giving away the finished product? If the joy is in the using, then commit to working your way through the stash. Then when the hoard is at an acceptable level, set yourself a limit, e.g. all craft supplies must fit in this plastic tub, or this cupboard, or this shipping container, whatever space you think is suitable. Then you know you can't buy more till you've used up some of what you have.
Get creative with how you store memories
Drowning in kids' artwork? Take a photo and get rid of the piles of craft paper and pipe cleaners.
Take some time then start again
Now that you've offloaded a lot of stuff, you need to adapt to this new base. In time, you might find yourself reassessing what you decided to hang onto. Yes, it did spark joy, but for whatever reason it doesn't anymore. Or maybe now that you've gotten rid of the stuff you don't like, you can better discern between the things you like and the things you love.
I have friends who complain about how they're drowning in stuff. But I love more than 90 per cent of what surrounds me at home. I love my doona cover, I love my favourite chair, I love these two little aqua bowls I have. I live in an apartment, so like doesn't really cut it anymore.
I’m curious about the best way to get rid of alcohol i don’t want any more. My husband and I were always light drinkers but now he isn’t drinking at all and I’ve decided to limit myself to one drink an evening, if I’m out and it seems right at the time, but not drink at home. I have several nearly full bottles of hard liquor (bourbon, gin, and of course, sloe gin) and eleven bottles of vintage port. Most of the people I know who would take this stuff should not be encouraged/enabled in their problematic drinking. I already contacted one place that buys vintage port but they aren’t interested because it wasn’t professionally cellared. We don’t entertain often.
There has to be something less wasteful than pouring it all down the sink, right?
This is fantastic! Definitely saving to read later.Thanks. I should have re-read it and fixed mistakes before you quoted it!
I’m curious about the best way to get rid of alcohol i don’t want any more. My husband and I were always light drinkers but now he isn’t drinking at all and I’ve decided to limit myself to one drink an evening, if I’m out and it seems right at the time, but not drink at home. I have several nearly full bottles of hard liquor (bourbon, gin, and of course, sloe gin) and eleven bottles of vintage port. Most of the people I know who would take this stuff should not be encouraged/enabled in their problematic drinking. I already contacted one place that buys vintage port but they aren’t interested because it wasn’t professionally cellared. We don’t entertain often.
There has to be something less wasteful than pouring it all down the sink, right?
I would definitely gift anything unopened at Christmas. You said most but that means not all your drinking friends were problem drinkers! I love port, give it to me!
Otherwise I'd investigate cooking uses eg stews and desserts with port (the alcohol will burn off), pickling veg, household cleaning/ fabric or air freshener and mouthwash.
I like the KonMari questioning 'does this spark joy?' or Brooks Palmer's (https://clutterbusting.com/) question 'do I love and want to keep this?' where any answer other than an emphatic yes means no, get rid of it. For practical useful things, I prefer to focus on annoyance level.
This week we donated 3 bags of stuff:
- a skirt I got in a clothes swap earlier this year but realised I didn't actually love it
- from DH, a belt, a pair of shiny shoes barely worn, several short sleeved shirts that no longer sparked joy
- a couple of old watches
- some plastic containers in as new condition but I can no longer open them due to some injuries
- a lingerie washing bag that turned out to be made of rough fabric
- a storage box that didn't work for what I wanted it to (solved this by rearranging where some things got stored)
- a magazine
- a small torch that used AAA batteries (we normally only have AA batteries on hand)
plus a few other bits and pieces
I’m curious about the best way to get rid of alcohol i don’t want any more. My husband and I were always light drinkers but now he isn’t drinking at all and I’ve decided to limit myself to one drink an evening, if I’m out and it seems right at the time, but not drink at home. I have several nearly full bottles of hard liquor (bourbon, gin, and of course, sloe gin) and eleven bottles of vintage port. Most of the people I know who would take this stuff should not be encouraged/enabled in their problematic drinking. I already contacted one place that buys vintage port but they aren’t interested because it wasn’t professionally cellared. We don’t entertain often.
There has to be something less wasteful than pouring it all down the sink, right?
I did unvoluntarily clear out another piece of clothing. One of my woolen vests was so dirty that I wanted to wash it. I did not choose wool program in the washing machine and it came out filted and children's size.
So, what do you do when each individual thing you pick up *does* spark joy, but you've still got way too much stuff and need to ditch it? We already got the easy things (another 6 full bags to the thrift store today) but I'm now finding myself going through the same closet/bookshelf/cabinet again and again, annoyed with the clutter but with nothing to happily part with. Just finished reading "the life changing magic of tidying up" and found it inspiring, but am still stuck at a slow trickle of maybe 1-2 things a day to part with. We aren't hoarders by any means, but I still dream of open space in the cabinets (and no embarrassing pile of craft supplies with no home in the spare bedroom).
Okay, I have a lot of items up on Craigslist right now, and on my way to getting $40 before lunch.
Man, there is a huge volume of things I want to sell / give away. Next weekend, it will be "free giveaways", then the last of it to thrift store, I guess. Seems like a lot of work, which is why I can declutter (to the garage staging area),then I stop.
Each room I enter, I now have the urge to declutter and the garage pile will start to grow quickly. It fills the utility trailer right now.
Kids items are worth quite a bit (scooter / pogo stick, like new downhill biking helmet).. maybe I will need to wait until spring to sell those... argh, the challenge is what to do with a kid's (the helmet) item that cost $90, that was worn about twice.. giving it away seems like such a loss of $$'s.
This weekend, I made my 11-year-old sort through her closet. She doesn't want more than half of her clothes. Granted, a lot of them she had outgrown, but there were multiple things with the tags still on that she didn't want anymore. We had a nice heart-to-heart, and she confessed that although she likes the idea of those clothes, she really hates wearing X, Y, and Z type clothes. Simple fix - we aren't buying those types of garments anymore.
I took her with me this weekend to drop 2 bags off at Goodwill, to sell the nicer clothes at the resale shop, and to sell 100 books at the used bookstore. She was SHOCKED at the tiny amounts of money we got for what was easily more than $1k worth of stuff, bought new. It was a nice teachable moment about why I'm suddenly refusing to buy stuff. We're being wasteful.
This is definitely a huge part of what’s making me hold onto my shoes and clothing that I no longer wear. While I never went into debt accumulating all of it, I spent an absurd amount over several years and I just can’t bear to take the loss (yes, I know I’ve already taken the loss/it’s a sunk cost... I’m obviously not mentally ready to let it go). At least it’s all well organized and accessible. 2018 is going to be Step37’s Year of (getting mentally prepared for?) Closet Consolidation... yes, yes it IS. I stopped buying clothes and shoes nearly three years ago (other than replacements of worn-out items such as gym shoes), so this is the next logical step. God knows I’ll never wear all of it out.
Storage question! Ladies who wear molded-cup brassieres: Where do you keep them?
I keep mine daily ones in a drawer and some fancy ones in a bin on a shelf. Your hook idea gave me an idea though. How about one of those space-saving multi-skirt hangers - one with several rows of clips? If you clipped one bra strap to each clasp, you could keep a bra per tier, preserve their shape, and hide them a bit by hanging it among your clothes.
An example of the hanger I'm talking about: https://www.amazon.ca/Miyare-Foldable-Closet-Multi-layer-Trousers/dp/B07478KCVV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509669433&sr=8-1&keywords=multi-skirt+hanger
So, what do you do when each individual thing you pick up *does* spark joy, but you've still got way too much stuff and need to ditch it? We already got the easy things (another 6 full bags to the thrift store today) but I'm now finding myself going through the same closet/bookshelf/cabinet again and again, annoyed with the clutter but with nothing to happily part with. Just finished reading "the life changing magic of tidying up" and found it inspiring, but am still stuck at a slow trickle of maybe 1-2 things a day to part with. We aren't hoarders by any means, but I still dream of open space in the cabinets (and no embarrassing pile of craft supplies with no home in the spare bedroom).
*snip*
So what should I do with all the bras that don't fit anymore. I bought three new bras two years ago. I got them because none of my bras fit - I was so appalled at the size of them it was the incentive to lose weight. Now they are huge. And they are brand new looking - well two of them are. And they were expensive. I don't even want to say what I paid. It was probably my last pre-MMM purchase. Do I keep in case I put 10 pounds back on - or say goodbye to the Goodwill. Does Goodwill even sell bras? This is not something I want to put on kijiji and it is a little embarrassing to ask a friend no?
So what should I do with all the bras that don't fit anymore. I bought three new bras two years ago. I got them because none of my bras fit - I was so appalled at the size of them it was the incentive to lose weight. Now they are huge. And they are brand new looking - well two of them are. And they were expensive. I don't even want to say what I paid. It was probably my last pre-MMM purchase. Do I keep in case I put 10 pounds back on - or say goodbye to the Goodwill. Does Goodwill even sell bras? This is not something I want to put on kijiji and it is a little embarrassing to ask a friend no?
Someone bought my daughter's old twin bed and I indicated that the box spring was included and also managed to include all the miscellaneous pieces of wood that hubs had used to make it super over-structured. It was taking up a couple of locations in the garage.
Now I am back focused inside the house. I painted two dressers so I took all the clothes out of the drawers. Hubs dumped all his back in without sorting through them. I am going to go through all mine and refold first. I did t-shirts this morning before work.
So what should I do with all the bras that don't fit anymore. I bought three new bras two years ago. I got them because none of my bras fit - I was so appalled at the size of them it was the incentive to lose weight. Now they are huge. And they are brand new looking - well two of them are. And they were expensive. I don't even want to say what I paid. It was probably my last pre-MMM purchase. Do I keep in case I put 10 pounds back on - or say goodbye to the Goodwill. Does Goodwill even sell bras? This is not something I want to put on kijiji and it is a little embarrassing to ask a friend no?
So, what do you do when each individual thing you pick up *does* spark joy, but you've still got way too much stuff and need to ditch it? We already got the easy things (another 6 full bags to the thrift store today) but I'm now finding myself going through the same closet/bookshelf/cabinet again and again, annoyed with the clutter but with nothing to happily part with. Just finished reading "the life changing magic of tidying up" and found it inspiring, but am still stuck at a slow trickle of maybe 1-2 things a day to part with. We aren't hoarders by any means, but I still dream of open space in the cabinets (and no embarrassing pile of craft supplies with no home in the spare bedroom).
One of these might work, depending on the type of stuff:
Find alternative ways of accessing the things you love
Try getting rid of some of your books with the understanding that next time you want to read a certain have permission to buy the e-book or can borrow it from the library. Check to see if your favourite movies are on Netflix, then donate your DVDs.
Use up the consumables
You mentioned craft supplies. Is the joy in the owning or in the using and then giving away the finished product? If the joy is in the using, then commit to working your way through the stash. Then when the hoard is at an acceptable level, set yourself a limit, e.g. all craft supplies must fit in this plastic tub, or this cupboard, or this shipping container, whatever space you think is suitable. Then you know you can't buy more till you've used up some of what you have.
Get creative with how you store memories
Drowning in kids' artwork? Take a photo and get rid of the piles of craft paper and pipe cleaners.
Take some time then start again
Now that you've offloaded a lot of stuff, you need to adapt to this new base. In time, you might find yourself reassessing what you decided to hang onto. Yes, it did spark joy, but for whatever reason it doesn't anymore. Or maybe now that you've gotten rid of the stuff you don't like, you can better discern between the things you like and the things you love.
I have friends who complain about how they're drowning in stuff. But I love more than 90 per cent of what surrounds me at home. I love my doona cover, I love my favourite chair, I love these two little aqua bowls I have. I live in an apartment, so like doesn't really cut it anymore.
All good input. Our biggest category is kid stuff - clothes and toys saved for the next kid, clothes and toys handed down to us that don't fit yet. I've been whittling this down, but most of it is not in deep storage because I'm reluctant to buy totes for the garage, and the 2yo pulls stuff out of closets - it might be time to get it moved into the garage, or move beyond the simple door nob cover for keeping the kid out of things. It still isn't a huge amount (we still have less than half the toys of anyone else I know with kids and what we do have is pretty open ended, not talking toys, etc) but it needs a better solution.
The bigger problem: I have a full set of Pfaltzgraff dishes with all the accessories (all bought in 2000). I don't ever use the teacups/saucers, the sugar dishes, etc. They take up 3 shelves, and I don't want them. At the same time, I feel like because it's a set I should keep it all together.You've kept the set together for nearly 18 years, so it's all grown up now and you can send the parts you don't want out into the world without guilt.
Help!
The bigger problem: I have a full set of Pfaltzgraff dishes with all the accessories (all bought in 2000). I don't ever use the teacups/saucers, the sugar dishes, etc. They take up 3 shelves, and I don't want them. At the same time, I feel like because it's a set I should keep it all together.You've kept the set together for nearly 18 years, so it's all grown up now and you can send the parts you don't want out into the world without guilt.
Help!
The bigger problem: I have a full set of Pfaltzgraff dishes with all the accessories (all bought in 2000). I don't ever use the teacups/saucers, the sugar dishes, etc. They take up 3 shelves, and I don't want them. At the same time, I feel like because it's a set I should keep it all together.You've kept the set together for nearly 18 years, so it's all grown up now and you can send the parts you don't want out into the world without guilt.
Help!
Yesterday I came home from a conferance with a new bag. Not a pretty one and not one we needed. I double checked with DH and ditched it. No new rubbish in the house.
Yesterday I came home from a conferance with a new bag. Not a pretty one and not one we needed. I double checked with DH and ditched it. No new rubbish in the house.
I always find those decisions are easier as soon as you get the item or bring it home. My husband gets a lot of that sort of thing and I try to triage it immediately, otherwise it gets put in a cupboard, he forgets we even have it, then I drag it out and he inevitably wants to keep it because, well, we’ve kept it this long, it must have been for a reason.
>.<
Nope. Better to rip off the Band-Aid as soon as he gets home. Even better, don’t bring it home!
I have to keep reminding him that hotels have bins. No luck yet.
We've been decluttering the shed and found more stuff in the garage too. The bad news is that in order to park the car in the garage, the four bikes will have to live in the spare room. I'd rather the bikes than the hedge trimmer etc! The garage is about 5.5 x 2.4m for context - built in an era of matchbox cars. We have a small car but you have to be a contortionist to get out.
We've been decluttering the shed and found more stuff in the garage too. The bad news is that in order to park the car in the garage, the four bikes will have to live in the spare room. I'd rather the bikes than the hedge trimmer etc! The garage is about 5.5 x 2.4m for context - built in an era of matchbox cars. We have a small car but you have to be a contortionist to get out.
In America, many garages have a high-enough ceiling to hang bikes over cars. Would that work for you? With the small footprint of your garage, it sounds like one of those wall storage pegboards for bikes wouldn't work. Maybe someday your shed will fit the bikes!
The bigger problem: I have a full set of Pfaltzgraff dishes with all the accessories (all bought in 2000). I don't ever use the teacups/saucers, the sugar dishes, etc. They take up 3 shelves, and I don't want them. At the same time, I feel like because it's a set I should keep it all together.You've kept the set together for nearly 18 years, so it's all grown up now and you can send the parts you don't want out into the world without guilt.
Help!
Agreed.
My dinner set came with 12 mugs that I knew we would never use. We're not coffee or tea drinkers, and we had been given a set of six mugs that we could use for guests.
I gave away the 12 spare mugs almost eight years ago and, until you posted about your dinner set, hadn't given it another thought.
Two big bags of plastic bags/baggies went to Wal-Mart, where they have a collection bin in the lobby. I took three boxes of unloved art supplies to Volunteers of America, plus a gift I'd gotten for Xmas a couple years ago and did not want (still in its gift bag, so it's ready to go for the next giftee!). I also got rid of two turtlenecks I didn't like anymore, and a mug (I recently got a new mug from sister, so I'm using the "one in, one out" rule that A Slob Comes Clean uses in her blog).
I live in a foreign country. Currently cleaning out my basket of cook books. Many are written in Dutch and no Norwegians can read it. But I asked the Dutch cook at my job if he wanted to receive a pile of Dutch cookbooks. He said he would love to receive them.
For some of the cookbooks that I am keeping, we are just not using them enough. DH says we should look into more, because we keep making the same dishes. So I have put one of the cookbooks on the kitchen counter. My task is to find a recipe, buy the ingredients, and prepare it. And write the tasting result in the cookbook.
I took a look into one of the books I originally put in a bag to donate. And on the second recipe I found a note that said "tastes good". So I put this book back. Now I only donate the books I really don't ever use or the ones that only contain super exclusive ingredients that I don't want to spend money on. Then I will give the rest of the books another chance before deciding to donate them.
I took a look into one of the books I originally put in a bag to donate. And on the second recipe I found a note that said "tastes good". So I put this book back. Now I only donate the books I really don't ever use or the ones that only contain super exclusive ingredients that I don't want to spend money on. Then I will give the rest of the books another chance before deciding to donate them.
*snipped luggage Tetris*
This really must be thrilling for you all to read.
It made me smile - it is nice to know I am not the only one devoting brain power to these types of problem. And just think of all the time you saved with this optimization.*snipped luggage Tetris*
This really must be thrilling for you all to read.
You say this, but it is stories like this that make someone realize than can fix their own storage woes by revisiting their default arrangements.
I live in a foreign country. Currently cleaning out my basket of cook books. Many are written in Dutch and no Norwegians can read it. But I asked the Dutch cook at my job if he wanted to receive a pile of Dutch cookbooks. He said he would love to receive them.
For some of the cookbooks that I am keeping, we are just not using them enough. DH says we should look into more, because we keep making the same dishes. So I have put one of the cookbooks on the kitchen counter. My task is to find a recipe, buy the ingredients, and prepare it. And write the tasting result in the cookbook.
I took a look into one of the books I originally put in a bag to donate. And on the second recipe I found a note that said "tastes good". So I put this book back. Now I only donate the books I really don't ever use or the ones that only contain super exclusive ingredients that I don't want to spend money on. Then I will give the rest of the books another chance before deciding to donate them.
If there's just a handful of recipes in a book, copy them then donate the book. Get a binder with plastic sleeves and put them in there, or write on index cards and keep in an appropriate sized container.
All good input. Our biggest category is kid stuff - clothes and toys saved for the next kid, clothes and toys handed down to us that don't fit yet. I've been whittling this down, but most of it is not in deep storage because I'm reluctant to buy totes for the garage, and the 2yo pulls stuff out of closets - it might be time to get it moved into the garage, or move beyond the simple door nob cover for keeping the kid out of things. It still isn't a huge amount (we still have less than half the toys of anyone else I know with kids and what we do have is pretty open ended, not talking toys, etc) but it needs a better solution.
I wouldn't classify clothes and toys your child has grown out of or hasn't yet grown into as items that spark joy - they're just necessities. And that's ok.
In that case, you might get something from reading some of what Rachel Jonat (The Minimalist Mom) has written on the subject.
She has three children but is not a big believer in stockpiling clothes for future kids because you can't predict sex, sizing or seasons, so what you keep might never get worn.
She is also a big proponent of minimalist wardrobes, even for children.
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2011/09/paring-down-for-fall-toddler-clothes/
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2015/04/bye-bye-baby-stuff-2/
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2016/01/week-4-kid-clothes/
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2012/06/childwardrobe/
All good input. Our biggest category is kid stuff - clothes and toys saved for the next kid, clothes and toys handed down to us that don't fit yet. I've been whittling this down, but most of it is not in deep storage because I'm reluctant to buy totes for the garage, and the 2yo pulls stuff out of closets - it might be time to get it moved into the garage, or move beyond the simple door nob cover for keeping the kid out of things. It still isn't a huge amount (we still have less than half the toys of anyone else I know with kids and what we do have is pretty open ended, not talking toys, etc) but it needs a better solution.
I wouldn't classify clothes and toys your child has grown out of or hasn't yet grown into as items that spark joy - they're just necessities. And that's ok.
In that case, you might get something from reading some of what Rachel Jonat (The Minimalist Mom) has written on the subject.
She has three children but is not a big believer in stockpiling clothes for future kids because you can't predict sex, sizing or seasons, so what you keep might never get worn.
She is also a big proponent of minimalist wardrobes, even for children.
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2011/09/paring-down-for-fall-toddler-clothes/
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2015/04/bye-bye-baby-stuff-2/
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2016/01/week-4-kid-clothes/
http://www.theminimalistmom.com/2012/06/childwardrobe/
Good stuff, thank you! I think I'll haul the three totes of baby stuff and clothes in from the garage today and try to cut it in half. I do want to save stuff for the next kid but we don't need ALL of it. I think with the next kid it will become clear what's worth saving vs. just planning to buy again later to a degree, but since we didn't find out gender in advance the baby stuff is 50/50 girl/boy (people still bought clothes even not knowing). At this point the toddler grows so slowly she wears out all her cloths and the only things that get saved for later are bigger items like snow pants and nice coats. Also, we live in a climate where you can pretty much have the same wardrobe for 75% of the year and you just don't use the heavy winter coat for all of that - ha! So if the next kid is born in the opposite season we'd still make use and only need to buy a handful of summer things in whatever size was needed for those few months.
Edit to add - I just bookmarked this blog after readying a few entries - thanks! As you can see, I am often torn between wanting to be minimalist and HATING buying something again that I had donated in the past which makes it hard not to stockpile. Still looking for the happy medium.
We had 10-15 stress ball type promotional objects (shaped like lightbulbs, frogs etc from various companies). They are all GONE!
I have a ceramic pot from the last time someone sent me flowers.
I don't need it but it would be a waste just to throw it out, so I'm going to ask the local florist if she can re-use it.
We had 10-15 stress ball type promotional objects (shaped like lightbulbs, frogs etc from various companies). They are all GONE!
I don't know anyone that actually uses those things!
Question for parents - what age did your kid like blocks and/or a rocking horse, or never? 2.5 yo is not at all interested in either, but I'm on the fence as to whether that means we should tuck them away for 6 months, or just donate now. Possibly relevant - we have no flashy/talking toys - just wood toys, books, a few puzzles - I try to keep the toys both minimal and open-ended.
Question for parents - what age did your kid like blocks and/or a rocking horse, or never? 2.5 yo is not at all interested in either, but I'm on the fence as to whether that means we should tuck them away for 6 months, or just donate now. Possibly relevant - we have no flashy/talking toys - just wood toys, books, a few puzzles - I try to keep the toys both minimal and open-ended.
I can only answer this as a former child (haha), but my siblings and I were using a rocking horse until we were told we were too big for it, and the blocks were in use for many years to build houses for dolls, Lego guys, and stuffed animals.
You might try the parenting section of the forum for more opinions, if no one else answers here.
I have a small box of things to be donated, but think I've almost reached decluttering equilibrium; I just don't have the big boxes of stuff to clear out like in years past, which means less money is being wasted on crap I didn't need or really want. Win!
I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
Cleaning out the garage - mostly reorganizing as opposed to "getting rid of", but I did get rid of the following: broken snow blower, broken yard trimmer, hovercraft (yes, hovercraft), 3 sets of kids' golf clubs (well these are in my trunk to be given to a cousin at Thanksgiving), charcoal briquettes (we have gas grills now), and cleaning products (donated to cleaners).
Cleaned out two junk drawers in the kitchen. 50 items in total went in the trash. Threw away numerous items in the garage that was just laying around, taking up space. Decided to go digital on my media (movies/video games) and sold 17 video games for $200.
67+ items gone = $200 in my pocket
I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
I'm doing this with my team's generic email at work (think info@company.com.au).
We get ungodly amounts of marketing rubbish and spam, and I'm the only one who blocks spammers or unsubscribes from mailing lists.
Colleagues: But it takes longer.
It takes a second longer, and it saves us all time in the long run!
Actually, there is way to reduce it. Someone recommended it a while ago but I don't remember the website now. I'll look for it. My junk mail got reduced by over 50%.I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
I'm doing this with my team's generic email at work (think info@company.com.au).
We get ungodly amounts of marketing rubbish and spam, and I'm the only one who blocks spammers or unsubscribes from mailing lists.
Colleagues: But it takes longer.
It takes a second longer, and it saves us all time in the long run!
It's helped a lot. It usually comes from websites I have purchased things from in the past.
I just wish I could do that with the physical junk mail I get. Junk mail is a waste of time, paper, and the energy used to print and transport it. The vast majority of I get goes directly in to the recycling bin.
Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.Actually, there is way to reduce it. Someone recommended it a while ago but I don't remember the website now. I'll look for it. My junk mail got reduced by over 50%.I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
I'm doing this with my team's generic email at work (think info@company.com.au).
We get ungodly amounts of marketing rubbish and spam, and I'm the only one who blocks spammers or unsubscribes from mailing lists.
Colleagues: But it takes longer.
It takes a second longer, and it saves us all time in the long run!
It's helped a lot. It usually comes from websites I have purchased things from in the past.
I just wish I could do that with the physical junk mail I get. Junk mail is a waste of time, paper, and the energy used to print and transport it. The vast majority of I get goes directly in to the recycling bin.
Found the thread. I used the recommended links and my junk mail went down significantly. https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/receiving-(almost)-no-junk-mail/msg591429/#msg591429I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
I'm doing this with my team's generic email at work (think info@company.com.au).
We get ungodly amounts of marketing rubbish and spam, and I'm the only one who blocks spammers or unsubscribes from mailing lists.
Colleagues: But it takes longer.
It takes a second longer, and it saves us all time in the long run!
It's helped a lot. It usually comes from websites I have purchased things from in the past.
I just wish I could do that with the physical junk mail I get. Junk mail is a waste of time, paper, and the energy used to print and transport it. The vast majority of I get goes directly in to the recycling bin.
Found the thread. I used the recommended links and my junk mail went down significantly. https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/receiving-(almost)-no-junk-mail/msg591429/#msg591429I've been working on unsubscribing from marketing emails. I spend way too much of my day deleting them on my phone as they arrive.
I'm doing this with my team's generic email at work (think info@company.com.au).
We get ungodly amounts of marketing rubbish and spam, and I'm the only one who blocks spammers or unsubscribes from mailing lists.
Colleagues: But it takes longer.
It takes a second longer, and it saves us all time in the long run!
It's helped a lot. It usually comes from websites I have purchased things from in the past.
I just wish I could do that with the physical junk mail I get. Junk mail is a waste of time, paper, and the energy used to print and transport it. The vast majority of I get goes directly in to the recycling bin.
Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.
Or make? I don't generally see them going for free! And I don't have the stuff to make one. And I can't just write on the letterbox (renting)Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.
What is this "buy" thing you speak of? :D
Or make? I don't generally see them going for free! And I don't have the stuff to make one. And I can't just write on the letterbox (renting)Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.
What is this "buy" thing you speak of? :D
Haha oh whoops! I was thinking "what magic source do they have that I don't? Must know!"Or make? I don't generally see them going for free! And I don't have the stuff to make one. And I can't just write on the letterbox (renting)Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.
What is this "buy" thing you speak of? :D
I'm just taking the piss. ;)
Or make? I don't generally see them going for free! And I don't have the stuff to make one. And I can't just write on the letterbox (renting)Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.
What is this "buy" thing you speak of? :D
There is magic! Brilliant, I'll be doing this.Or make? I don't generally see them going for free! And I don't have the stuff to make one. And I can't just write on the letterbox (renting)Here I can just buy a "no junk mail" sign and stick it on my letterbox.
What is this "buy" thing you speak of? :D
Paper were you write ”no junk mail” and tape that you use to cover the paper works fine. You can take it away when you move.
We have an office chair that recently broke. This afternoon we bought a second hand good quality replacement. Now I need to bring away the old chair that is now standing in the (hall)way.
DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
Two more trash bags of stuff to goodwill. A couple of items that I hesitated to donate -- maybe should have thrown away. How do you decide if it's "nice enough" to donate? Part of me thinks it's better that Goodwill makes that decision...
DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
also lift couch/sofa cushions completely off so that you can find tiny things. We had paid for the replacement library book and then when we moved it was found behind the cushions when the movers bagged them up before loading the couch onto the truck.DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
Check coat pockets, trouser pockets, her bed and her school bag, if you didn't do that already. I hope you'll find them.
DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
Check coat pockets, trouser pockets, her bed and her school bag, if you didn't do that already. I hope you'll find them.
also lift couch/sofa cushions completely off so that you can find tiny things. We had paid for the replacement library book and then when we moved it was found behind the cushions when the movers bagged them up before loading the couch onto the truck.DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
Check coat pockets, trouser pockets, her bed and her school bag, if you didn't do that already. I hope you'll find them.
Also - if she has a lunch box, check the zippers on the side. Oh - and check between the mattress and the box spring and under the top rail of the bed headboard if you haven't already (and between couch cushions). We've found ear things in all those locations for grandma in the past.
While I was cooking yesterday an innocuous kitchen utensil in the drawer was fairly screaming "ha ha, I don't belong here". I ushered it straight to the giveaway box. I was highly amused at the magic of the KonMari method.
Over the weekend, I delivered a trunkful of stuff to Goodwill, mailed a big box of work clothes to Dress for Success, and completed my first Craigslist sale - 2 pots! My house is still a mess with stuff we're trying to sell; if it isn't gone by the week before Christmas, I'm giving it all away.
Decluttering has slowed, however. My husband is not on board with getting rid of almost anything that he might consider useful one day. He thinks that because we have tons of space, it's okay to keep it all. He has big plans to build better storage systems....and doesn't seem to hear me when I talk about cleaning out rather than organizing.
For now, I'm going to keep focusing on my stuff and the children's rooms. That should keep me busy for a few weeks.
Does she have a locker at school? Could she have left them there or any other place at school?also lift couch/sofa cushions completely off so that you can find tiny things. We had paid for the replacement library book and then when we moved it was found behind the cushions when the movers bagged them up before loading the couch onto the truck.DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
Check coat pockets, trouser pockets, her bed and her school bag, if you didn't do that already. I hope you'll find them.Also - if she has a lunch box, check the zippers on the side. Oh - and check between the mattress and the box spring and under the top rail of the bed headboard if you haven't already (and between couch cushions). We've found ear things in all those locations for grandma in the past.
Thank you all! We have been through all coat pockets of everyone in the family, and think we've been through all her other pockets. All beds have been checked thoroughly, including removing and shaking the matresses, and pulling the bed out from the wall. One sofa has been completely taken apart, will do the other one soon. No lunch boxes with zippers, but we could probably go through her school bag again.
Two more trash bags of stuff to goodwill. A couple of items that I hesitated to donate -- maybe should have thrown away. How do you decide if it's "nice enough" to donate? Part of me thinks it's better that Goodwill makes that decision...
I agree that Goodwill should decide... I think many clothing items get cut into rags if they’re not salable. Conversely, something you think is garbage might be just what someone is looking for.
DD got new fancy tiny hearing aids, and promptly lost them. So far we have decluttered her room, the car, my office, large parts of the living room, and her sister's room in an effort to find them. You don't notice all the tiny stoff in drawers and boxes, until you have to look through everything in the search for small expensive things. We have thrown away sooo much junk. Much of it is tiny junk, but it all adds up.
The hearing aids are so fancy that they even have an app with a "find me" function, but we found out the hard way that it doesn't work when they are turned off.
I've been thinking for weeks of what to get rid of and I'm still at a loss. I moved so many times in the past year and a half that I naturally dumped a lot of stuff (such as decorations that were fragile/difficult to transport). I can think of maybe a handful of things, like 3-4 books, a cast iron skillet because my FMIL gave me two instead of one, some excess bike accessories that got replaced with better versions, and MAYBE some clothes but I already have very little compared to most.Depending on your storage, just set a time limit -- anything you have not touched /used in a year is a good start. Then anything not used in the past month would be a lean approach.
I guess it's a good problem to have or I just need to step up my criteria. Does anyone have a list of things to declutter for inspiration (I seem to remember a list of 100 things to declutter online somewhere) or tips towards the final stages of decluttering? I have bought a decent amount of new things in the last year since moving into my first apartment post college graduation, some of which I may not have necessarily needed (e.g. oil and vinegar bottles). Those things are the hardest for me to get rid of mentally but I've still done it several times. It's so difficult to get rid of something you bought less than six months ago! But on the bright side, I learned what I really needed and what I didn't. It seems like a lot of y'all have really old things to declutter from a house you have lived in for years, which is a different challenge in itself.
I think part of this itch to minimize further is because I'm considering applying to jobs in other states and I have no idea how I'm going to move all this stuff plus two cats that hate each other in my tiny coupe. Without paying a moving company, of course.
I've been thinking for weeks of what to get rid of and I'm still at a loss. I moved so many times in the past year and a half that I naturally dumped a lot of stuff (such as decorations that were fragile/difficult to transport). I can think of maybe a handful of things, like 3-4 books, a cast iron skillet because my FMIL gave me two instead of one, some excess bike accessories that got replaced with better versions, and MAYBE some clothes but I already have very little compared to most.Depending on your storage, just set a time limit -- anything you have not touched /used in a year is a good start. Then anything not used in the past month would be a lean approach.
I guess it's a good problem to have or I just need to step up my criteria. Does anyone have a list of things to declutter for inspiration (I seem to remember a list of 100 things to declutter online somewhere) or tips towards the final stages of decluttering? I have bought a decent amount of new things in the last year since moving into my first apartment post college graduation, some of which I may not have necessarily needed (e.g. oil and vinegar bottles). Those things are the hardest for me to get rid of mentally but I've still done it several times. It's so difficult to get rid of something you bought less than six months ago! But on the bright side, I learned what I really needed and what I didn't. It seems like a lot of y'all have really old things to declutter from a house you have lived in for years, which is a different challenge in itself.
I think part of this itch to minimize further is because I'm considering applying to jobs in other states and I have no idea how I'm going to move all this stuff plus two cats that hate each other in my tiny coupe. Without paying a moving company, of course.
Aaauugh... I'm sure you've tried everywhere, but have her check her lockers (normal and gym) at school, school lost-and-found, and the cars of any family friends that have given her rides. Check any air-return vents in the floor, especially if you have pets.
Does she have a locker at school? Could she have left them there or any other place at school?
Gaja, You remind me of when DD lost her retainer when we went swimming at the pool. (She wrapped it in tissue for some awful reason, put it in her locker or left on the bench). And then told me she must have thrown it into the garbage. Do you know what sorts of things get thrown into the ladies garbage at a swimming pool change room / washroom? Yeah. I got to dig through 2 large bags of that. Nothing found. Then DD found her retainer at home... in the retainer case.Thank you! We have been through all garbage bags from the kids' rooms, bathrooms, and office. Not the most fun activity. Same goes for dismantling the vacuum cleaner.
My best wishes are with you.
On the hearing aids. Check inside all shoes.Good tip - will do! Some of the shoes could probably be tossed too.
If you have room, keep the bulk to small container systems, and only reduce spice count, as you need to. But check the spices, 75 is a lot, any not used in the past month can go and you won't notice.I've been thinking for weeks of what to get rid of and I'm still at a loss. I moved so many times in the past year and a half that I naturally dumped a lot of stuff (such as decorations that were fragile/difficult to transport). I can think of maybe a handful of things, like 3-4 books, a cast iron skillet because my FMIL gave me two instead of one, some excess bike accessories that got replaced with better versions, and MAYBE some clothes but I already have very little compared to most.Depending on your storage, just set a time limit -- anything you have not touched /used in a year is a good start. Then anything not used in the past month would be a lean approach.
I guess it's a good problem to have or I just need to step up my criteria. Does anyone have a list of things to declutter for inspiration (I seem to remember a list of 100 things to declutter online somewhere) or tips towards the final stages of decluttering? I have bought a decent amount of new things in the last year since moving into my first apartment post college graduation, some of which I may not have necessarily needed (e.g. oil and vinegar bottles). Those things are the hardest for me to get rid of mentally but I've still done it several times. It's so difficult to get rid of something you bought less than six months ago! But on the bright side, I learned what I really needed and what I didn't. It seems like a lot of y'all have really old things to declutter from a house you have lived in for years, which is a different challenge in itself.
I think part of this itch to minimize further is because I'm considering applying to jobs in other states and I have no idea how I'm going to move all this stuff plus two cats that hate each other in my tiny coupe. Without paying a moving company, of course.
I'm pretty close to this. I'd say there are only a handful of things that I don't use in a month, such as seasonal stuff (not decorations but stuff like electric blanket, jackets, etc) and tools for working on my car. My seasonal stuff is already pretty minimal though, I only have one sweater and no long sleeves. Tools are probably the biggest category of things I could get rid of, but it's still fairly minimal and I have plenty of storage for it. I theoretically don't NEED a torque wrench and some of the other stuff since auto parts stores usually loan that stuff out but I already have the tools so...
My problem is stuff that I use but probably don't need. Like the oil and vinegar bottles, which are convenient when you buy in bulk and get giant bottles. Or a deep fryer. No one needs a deep fryer! Or the crazy amounts of spices and dry food I have, which required buying a spice shelf and a large storage shelf to act as my pantry (apartment doesn't have one). But I was perfectly fine without those things for years.
Maybe I'm being too hard on myself. I keep comparing my life now to 4 years ago at my first apartment in college when I had very little. But I barely drove so didn't need to work on my car, didn't cook as much of a variety of food, didn't have two cats, etc...
I think it will help if I make a list of things I would bring with me on a cross-country move. Would I keep my 75 spices? I have no idea...
If you have room, keep the bulk to small container systems, and only reduce spice count, as you need to. But check the spices, 75 is a lot, any not used in the past month can go and you won't notice.
But -- if you actually use the deep fryer every month, then keep it for now, and re-evaluate when you move. If you are paying down debt, just put it on sale for a high-ish amount, and use it until you sell it or move.
Being minimal for the sake of being minimal is a bad idea. Other than the potential move, why do you want to reduce further? What is your driver to do so?
I've been thinking for weeks of what to get rid of and I'm still at a loss. I moved so many times in the past year and a half that I naturally dumped a lot of stuff (such as decorations that were fragile/difficult to transport). I can think of maybe a handful of things, like 3-4 books, a cast iron skillet because my FMIL gave me two instead of one, some excess bike accessories that got replaced with better versions, and MAYBE some clothes but I already have very little compared to most.
I guess it's a good problem to have or I just need to step up my criteria. Does anyone have a list of things to declutter for inspiration (I seem to remember a list of 100 things to declutter online somewhere) or tips towards the final stages of decluttering? I have bought a decent amount of new things in the last year since moving into my first apartment post college graduation, some of which I may not have necessarily needed (e.g. oil and vinegar bottles). Those things are the hardest for me to get rid of mentally but I've still done it several times. It's so difficult to get rid of something you bought less than six months ago! But on the bright side, I learned what I really needed and what I didn't. It seems like a lot of y'all have really old things to declutter from a house you have lived in for years, which is a different challenge in itself.
I think part of this itch to minimize further is because I'm considering applying to jobs in other states and I have no idea how I'm going to move all this stuff plus two cats that hate each other in my tiny coupe. Without paying a moving company, of course.
Cleaned up my balcony, and threw out 6 old plastic pots from plants that I'd repotted.
Also removed all traces of paper from my living room. That makes a huge difference to the look and feel of the room.
Any suggestions on how to dispose of a sofa? I have a reclining leather sofa that is peeling badly and looks terrible. I posted it on Facebook Marketplace and CraigsList for free but no interest. I need to get rid of it within 30 days (I’m moving) and can’t put it out at the street as I live in an apartment complex. Putting it at the apartment dump is a no-no (although technically I could do that). 1-800-Go-Junk charges $140 to come get it and dispose of it. Any suggestions?
When I lived at a house I just called the local trash service and asked which days they picked up furniture and put it on the street that day. With apartment living there seems to be no such option.
FREE SOFA! Resident of apartment 26A is moving away December 31 and wants to give you a free sofa! [photos of sofa] It's peeling, but it is leather, really comfy, and it reclines! My home has (no) pets and (no) smokers. I will be taking these posters down when it is gone, so if you see this poster it is still available! Leave a note in my mailbox/text me at XXX-XXX-XXXX.
We recently remodeled our kitchen and though the dishwasher worked, it didn't 'match.' It's been sitting in our garage and last week TheHusbandHalf said we had to do something with it because it's not good for the motor to freeze. I told him we can take it to the HH Restore and he said first he'll just stick it out front and see if someone takes it.
It was gone in 15 minutes.
That's the way to get rid of stuff!
LOL
Are you lost?
We keep all of our clothes (and a whole bunch of ther stuff in a big cabinet/wardrobe thingy. I reorganized my drawers and designated one for dirty laundry. We'll see how it works. Hopefully it means no more pile in the corner but we'll still have then pile of stuff to be reworn on the side table.
We keep all of our clothes (and a whole bunch of ther stuff in a big cabinet/wardrobe thingy. I reorganized my drawers and designated one for dirty laundry. We'll see how it works. Hopefully it means no more pile in the corner but we'll still have then pile of stuff to be reworn on the side table.
I don't think it's good for dirty laundry to be in a drawer. Not enough air circulation-and it might make the clean clothes smelly.
2 thumbs up for organizing things!!!
MaybeBabyM, how are you going to track that you're actually using all of those things? I'm very interested in systems for things like that.
This weekend I found the collector book for the American state quarters. I remember sorting through my change looking for new quarters when these were first released. WHY did I (or any of us) care so much? So much wasted effort. My son spent half an hour reclaiming the quarters (they went straight into his piggy bank) and then threw the book away.
The children have started to comment on the fact that the surfaces are emptier...except that every surface I clean off my H then fills with electronics parts. They want the electronics to go away. :)
MaybeBabyM, how are you going to track that you're actually using all of those things? I'm very interested in systems for things like that.
This weekend I found the collector book for the American state quarters. I remember sorting through my change looking for new quarters when these were first released. WHY did I (or any of us) care so much? So much wasted effort. My son spent half an hour reclaiming the quarters (they went straight into his piggy bank) and then threw the book away.
The children have started to comment on the fact that the surfaces are emptier...except that every surface I clean off my H then fills with electronics parts. They want the electronics to go away. :)
With clothes, you can do the hanger method where you hang everything one direction to start then turn the hanger opposite when you put it back in the closet after wearing and washing it. I don't use a dresser so not sure how you would handle clothes in a dresser.
I guess with everything else it's just memory based. Maybe put things you think you don't use or need in a box and everything that's still in the box after a set amount of time gets donated.
I also had the quarter thing many years ago. I'm pretty sure I eventually took the quarters out because I realized it was ridiculous.
MaybeBabyM, how are you going to track that you're actually using all of those things? I'm very interested in systems for things like that.
This weekend I found the collector book for the American state quarters. I remember sorting through my change looking for new quarters when these were first released. WHY did I (or any of us) care so much? So much wasted effort. My son spent half an hour reclaiming the quarters (they went straight into his piggy bank) and then threw the book away.
The children have started to comment on the fact that the surfaces are emptier...except that every surface I clean off my H then fills with electronics parts. They want the electronics to go away. :)
With clothes, you can do the hanger method where you hang everything one direction to start then turn the hanger opposite when you put it back in the closet after wearing and washing it. I don't use a dresser so not sure how you would handle clothes in a dresser...
So we have this site here where people post odd jobs and I bid for them. I just scored my first decluttering gig, v excited! I love love love sorting out shit.
So we have this site here where people post odd jobs and I bid for them. I just scored my first decluttering gig, v excited! I love love love sorting out shit.
Ooooh. That sounds really interesting! Please let us know how it goes! (in as much detail as you're comfortable with)
Decluttering is infectious; today I decluttered worn-out dry erase pens from the conference room during a boring conference call. No more trying three pens before finding one that works properly.
I'm hanging out at my moms for a few months while I'm visiting family and have been helping out around the house while I'm here, trying to make her life a little easier. My mom has zero interest in decluttering but we tease each other about it. She laughs and tells me about it every time she throws something out!
Her fridge is packed full of all sorts of condiments, sauces, dressings, etc. I cleaned out a couple things with mold, and sorted out the rest so I knew what was there. We are playing a little game now where we pick one condiment in the fridge then look up a new dinner recipe we can make to use it up. So far we are 5 days in and have finished up 8 different containers. Soon there will be room in the fridge!
PS. Also I'm enjoying the little game of discovering recipes and hanging out with my mom so much!
I'm hanging out at my moms for a few months while I'm visiting family and have been helping out around the house while I'm here, trying to make her life a little easier. My mom has zero interest in decluttering but we tease each other about it. She laughs and tells me about it every time she throws something out!
Her fridge is packed full of all sorts of condiments, sauces, dressings, etc. I cleaned out a couple things with mold, and sorted out the rest so I knew what was there. We are playing a little game now where we pick one condiment in the fridge then look up a new dinner recipe we can make to use it up. So far we are 5 days in and have finished up 8 different containers. Soon there will be room in the fridge!
PS. Also I'm enjoying the little game of discovering recipes and hanging out with my mom so much!
I made a great (and early!) start on my 2018 mission of sorting the basementAh! I like it best when the stuff flies off the to-sell list without even having to list. Great work!officestorage area. I’ve decided to switch the office with the guest room, which is upstairs, since I plan to work more from home and rarely have overnight guests. Spent the morning blissfully making a diagram of each of the rooms, and arranging the little furniture cutouts I’d made (to scale, of course - I may have missed my calling).
I decided to sell a dresser that would no longer fit in my new configuration, so checked kijiji to see what they were fetching vs. new (common IKEA dresser). I didn’t even have to list it! Someone was searching for one and she’s already come and picked it up for the price I wanted. I have some space back, $200 in my wallet and did not have to deal with a single flaky person.
Ok, I DIDN'T THROW THINGS OUT TODAY! (wait for collective gasp) Well, I did throw a couple shopping bags of burnable crap into the wood furnace, but that's par for the course for me and boring and not worth making a post about.Repurposing is good: even if you didn't get rid of stuff you did clear out clutter by moving the pants from your son's drawers to yours. I bet you now have surplus pants which you can get rid of, right?
My college son who's also a weight lifter, so bigger than me went through his drawers and came out with a big bag of clothes to donate and asked me where to put them. Knowing that it takes my wife at least 8 years to decide to throw out a onesie even though our youngest is 17, I said to hide it in my room. So I went to sort through, figuring everything will either be tossed or given to my 17 year old. Bunch of pairs of pants, in new condition. Hmmmm.....the waste size is my size. I try them on. They all fit. Couple of T shirts as well that fit. So I have about 6 pairs of pants, 4 of which can be used at work.
Ist day of 2018, I decided to start small. I decluttered my bed-side table. A bunch of paper went to recycling, some things returned to their places, and other items were tossed.
Baby steps!
One of my colleagues has been talking for a year about how she desperately needed to declutter her home.
She took a month off over Christmas, and that was one thing she hoped to get done.
Back at work today and ... she didn't make much progress.
She said it was too overwhelming and that she needed a system to get organised, so she was going to go buy a notebook to help keep track of her decluttering tasks.
She came back to work with two notebooks ("I couldn't decide which colour"), a pencil case, a shopping list pad and a lamp. What clutter problem?
We dropped off a car load of clothing at Goodwill today. I also posted a few items on my local Buy Nothing group.A bunch of stuff given away through my Buy Nothing group with minimal effort. I also gave a friend a bunch of stuff that I know she uses (and was just collecting dust in my house).
One of my colleagues has been talking for a year about how she desperately needed to declutter her home.
She took a month off over Christmas, and that was one thing she hoped to get done.
Back at work today and ... she didn't make much progress.
She said it was too overwhelming and that she needed a system to get organised, so she was going to go buy a notebook to help keep track of her decluttering tasks.
She came back to work with two notebooks ("I couldn't decide which colour"), a pencil case, a shopping list pad and a lamp. What clutter problem?
hahaha. Although, I feel sad that she took an entire MONTH off & didn't make any progress. That was a prime opportunity, wasted. How I would love a month off for that type of work. I do have today off, so hoping to make the most of it! Maybe a used copy of the Mari Kondo book could make its way to her desk?
In her defence, she did have two young kids on school holidays and a terminally ill mother in and out of hospital every week, so the time off just didn't go as she had planned.
But I think maybe she has realised there is no perfect time or perfect way to declutter - she just has to do what she can, when she can.
Congratulations, Astatine! Sorting the filing cabinets is on my tentative list for this weekend.
A sculpture that I didn't display because it reminded me (and DH) of a previous bad relationship, but was also too beautiful to throw away. So it sat in the garage for YEARS. Finally, I dragged it out--it weighed a ton--and SMASHED it with a sledgehammer.
GONE!!!
Does anyone remember how I had my first paid decluttering gig? It was this week and I said I'd report back.. Well it was good but a little disappointing - I thought it would be a bit more like extreme hoarders but their place is probably no more cluttered than mine :) I helped clear out about 1cubic metre van of stuff for charity and other giveaways but they'd done the bulk of the sorting before I got there.
Does anyone remember how I had my first paid decluttering gig? It was this week and I said I'd report back.. Well it was good but a little disappointing - I thought it would be a bit more like extreme hoarders but their place is probably no more cluttered than mine :) I helped clear out about 1cubic metre van of stuff for charity and other giveaways but they'd done the bulk of the sorting before I got there.
The only thing I really regret from the list are the various glasses that we got.
Small things. I threw out the box where a iPad was delivered in. As we don't plan to sell the iPad I don't see the point of storing the box in a cupboard as my DH had done.
Threw away the old calender.
Does anyone remember how I had my first paid decluttering gig? It was this week and I said I'd report back.. Well it was good but a little disappointing - I thought it would be a bit more like extreme hoarders but their place is probably no more cluttered than mine :) I helped clear out about 1cubic metre van of stuff for charity and other giveaways but they'd done the bulk of the sorting before I got there.
Oooh. Cool! Did you just help with lifting stuff in to their van? Or did you help with some of the 'do I keep? do I donate? do I throw this out?' decision making?
And maybe the biggest help to them was the deadline of you showing up. (maybe a bit like how some people who have a regular cleaner tidy up before the cleaner arrives?)
Today we decluttered a mouse. I sure wish our garage door was mouse proof, but the last time we tried they chewed through the barrier I put up.
When we got married we didn't really want any gifts and asked people to donate money to charity. We thought we shoud make a list as well as there would always be people that will buy things and we didn't want random stuff. On the list were sets of wine glasses because we thought we should have matching sets... However, two unopened boxes now sit in our pantry. I feel so bad getting rid and I doubt I'll be able to sell them for what they are worth but realistically, I doubt we'll ever be hosting a shindig where 8 people drink champagne and if we do, I'll borrow some.
PS 95% of people ignored the request for donations and bought gifts. The only thing I really regret from the list are the various glasses that we got.
Also squeaking in under the wire by taking a donation to charity yesterday (1box). Wouldn't you know it, today I ran across a pair of slippers that I don't like. Wish I had got those out of the house yesterday, grr. Time to start a new box, I guess.
We got wine glasses (red, white, champagne, shot glasses and a few more sets of 6/8 each) for our wedding and I don't even drink! DH drinks out of his favorite glass (not in this pile). After three moves, I realized it was not worth all the effort and finally sold them all for $50. Someone got a great deal and I got them out the door.When we got married we didn't really want any gifts and asked people to donate money to charity. We thought we shoud make a list as well as there would always be people that will buy things and we didn't want random stuff. On the list were sets of wine glasses because we thought we should have matching sets... However, two unopened boxes now sit in our pantry. I feel so bad getting rid and I doubt I'll be able to sell them for what they are worth but realistically, I doubt we'll ever be hosting a shindig where 8 people drink champagne and if we do, I'll borrow some.
PS 95% of people ignored the request for donations and bought gifts. The only thing I really regret from the list are the various glasses that we got.
Update: I found THREE unopened boxes of glasses and one box with two unused glasses inside. Horrors! The unopened ones are now for sale. In the dishwasher are six mismatched wine glasses that I hope I can give away but I expect no-one will want eg branded tasting glasses from a wine festival.
An extra benefit of getting rid of this stuff - the time planning the wedding and just after was unfortunately really stressful due to work and family. Everything was rushed and I regret not being able to put the thought into things because of my stupid job (ex-job). It was a great party but I regret things like the wedding list (had to do it all quickly online) so I'm glad to get rid of things that remind me of that.
Had a busy and satisfying weekend getting rid of clutter.
Sold unwanted Xmas presents: Longaberger basket and Essential Oil Diffuser.
Gave away for free: excess tree ornaments and stockings, craft rubber stamps, kids movies, and outgrown kids shoes. Today I'm mailing away my uncle's fleece that he left at our house two summers ago and returning some hockey gear.
Now what to do with the Amazon Echo we were gifted??
Had a busy and satisfying weekend getting rid of clutter.
Sold unwanted Xmas presents: Longaberger basket and Essential Oil Diffuser.
Gave away for free: excess tree ornaments and stockings, craft rubber stamps, kids movies, and outgrown kids shoes. Today I'm mailing away my uncle's fleece that he left at our house two summers ago and returning some hockey gear.
Now what to do with the Amazon Echo we were gifted??
Can you return the echo to a store that sells it for store credit?
Had a busy and satisfying weekend getting rid of clutter.
Sold unwanted Xmas presents: Longaberger basket and Essential Oil Diffuser.
Gave away for free: excess tree ornaments and stockings, craft rubber stamps, kids movies, and outgrown kids shoes. Today I'm mailing away my uncle's fleece that he left at our house two summers ago and returning some hockey gear.
Now what to do with the Amazon Echo we were gifted??
Can you return the echo to a store that sells it for store credit?
Or, sell it on eBay/Craigslist?
Please tell me I can get rid of this necklace?
I am usually really good at getting rid of stuff. I am stuck on this one though. TIA
wondering what to say when my brother in law asks how we like our Echo he gave us for Christmas?
Thanks for all the replies about the pearl necklace.
:/ Turns out that if I'm actually at the point of asking about it on a forum, It's Complicated.
I have gotten rid of a shit ton of stuff over the years, including photos, diaries, millions of books, half my clothes etc so I should have know something was up if I had to ask about something I'm never going to wear.
It's a bit too upsetting to write about (and I'm at the point where I'm worried I'm gonna have bad nightmares tonight - like I said, It's Complicated). It's back in my little jewelry box for now and I'll have to deal with it later when the time is right.
This weekend we packed up our entire house..does that count as clearing out the clutter?? We did a good job at paring down our stuff for the move, but I'm sure unpacking we will still find things we don't need/use.
Thanks for all the replies about the pearl necklace.
:/ Turns out that if I'm actually at the point of asking about it on a forum, It's Complicated.
I have gotten rid of a shit ton of stuff over the years, including photos, diaries, millions of books, half my clothes etc so I should have know something was up if I had to ask about something I'm never going to wear.
It's a bit too upsetting to write about (and I'm at the point where I'm worried I'm gonna have bad nightmares tonight - like I said, It's Complicated). It's back in my little jewelry box for now and I'll have to deal with it later when the time is right.
Family stuff is often complicated. :-(
Since it is DH's side of the family, would discussing it with DH be useful?
I have to admit, if I were in your shoes I would be taking the necklace to an appraiser to see if it is actually as special as aunt-in-law implied. A cheap imitation would make everything so easy, eh? Gone. Worth lots of money? Sell it and donate the proceeds to a charity that would drive Aunt-in-law bankers.
Yes, the snark is strong today.
I have three big boxes of old photographs that have been sitting under my desk for two years now. I tell myself that I will get around to scanning these so I can toss them. Still haven't gotten to it. i'm going to offer up some $ to the kids if they will do it. I like a spare, uncluttered house, and those three boxes are like a weight around my neck.
Worst case scenario -- I am FIREing next summer, so I could do it as a FIRE project. :(
3 boxes of photos? You're so lucky. My mom does genealogy. She has 5-6 large boxes of just big photo albums. Another 8-9 boxes of loose photos and small albums. That's not counting the 3 boxes of albums, photos, and slides that she's got in her house from my dad's side of the family. I think 3 boxes of books and papers. These are not shoe boxes either. They're at least the "small" moving boxes, some are larger.
Oh, and none of this "can" be discarded. Even if you scan it first. I have no idea who else in the family(ies) may want this stuff. And mom will basically murder anyone who gets rid of genealogy. Suggestions? Cause I'm at a loss.
Is 'Dutch things' an autocorrect doozy, or is it a new term I haven't come across? (I genuinely can't tell - am a tad tired)
Regardless, yay for help!
3 boxes of photos? You're so lucky. My mom does genealogy. She has 5-6 large boxes of just big photo albums. Another 8-9 boxes of loose photos and small albums. That's not counting the 3 boxes of albums, photos, and slides that she's got in her house from my dad's side of the family. I think 3 boxes of books and papers. These are not shoe boxes either. They're at least the "small" moving boxes, some are larger.
Oh, and none of this "can" be discarded. Even if you scan it first. I have no idea who else in the family(ies) may want this stuff. And mom will basically murder anyone who gets rid of genealogy. Suggestions? Cause I'm at a loss.
3 boxes of photos? You're so lucky. My mom does genealogy. She has 5-6 large boxes of just big photo albums. Another 8-9 boxes of loose photos and small albums. That's not counting the 3 boxes of albums, photos, and slides that she's got in her house from my dad's side of the family. I think 3 boxes of books and papers. These are not shoe boxes either. They're at least the "small" moving boxes, some are larger.
Oh, and none of this "can" be discarded. Even if you scan it first. I have no idea who else in the family(ies) may want this stuff. And mom will basically murder anyone who gets rid of genealogy. Suggestions? Cause I'm at a loss.
hah, whoops! Yes, Linda_Norway is correct.Is 'Dutch things' an autocorrect doozy, or is it a new term I haven't come across? (I genuinely can't tell - am a tad tired)
Regardless, yay for help!
Maybe it is the autocorrection of "ditch things"?
hah, whoops! Yes, Linda_Norway is correct.Is 'Dutch things' an autocorrect doozy, or is it a new term I haven't come across? (I genuinely can't tell - am a tad tired)
Regardless, yay for help!
Maybe it is the autocorrection of "ditch things"?
I friend of mine is trying to start a business as a professional organizer, so she came over and helped me go through a few of my trouble spots in the house.
In addition to a much more organized living space, I also sold $430 worth of useful to other people items. I've also got sales pending for another $350 worth of things!
Sounds like an interesting business. How does it work? Is she coaching and face-punching you through the process? Does she help evaluate and sell off your stuff? I was actually wondering whether such an endeavor would be successful, after much sorting and moving this week.
I took a vacation last week with friends. One bought lots of souvenirs for friends and family. Last year, that would have been me. This year, I just looked on in bemusement. There was nothing I could justify bringing into my home....except chocolate. I bought the kids a giant chocolate bar. They are busily decluttering that for me.
We're starting to think about moving; I got all excited about the idea of getting rid of more stuff. More husband looked at me blankly and said, "Aren't we done now? We gave away everything we didn't need."
I took a vacation last week with friends. One bought lots of souvenirs for friends and family. Last year, that would have been me. This year, I just looked on in bemusement. There was nothing I could justify bringing into my home....except chocolate. I bought the kids a giant chocolate bar. They are busily decluttering that for me.
We're starting to think about moving; I got all excited about the idea of getting rid of more stuff. More husband looked at me blankly and said, "Aren't we done now? We gave away everything we didn't need."
I might have cackled a little bit.
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
The fact that you don't drink coffee or tea makes it even more interesting! My husband currently drinks out of a mug I made at a work event. It looks like a child made it. He thinks it's hilarious. The paint is crooked, the colors are awful. . . I'm clearly not an artist. :-)
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
The fact that you don't drink coffee or tea makes it even more interesting! My husband currently drinks out of a mug I made at a work event. It looks like a child made it. He thinks it's hilarious. The paint is crooked, the colors are awful. . . I'm clearly not an artist. :-)
@mustachepungoeshere wait... you were given a pug mug? >_<
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
The fact that you don't drink coffee or tea makes it even more interesting! My husband currently drinks out of a mug I made at a work event. It looks like a child made it. He thinks it's hilarious. The paint is crooked, the colors are awful. . . I'm clearly not an artist. :-)
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
The fact that you don't drink coffee or tea makes it even more interesting! My husband currently drinks out of a mug I made at a work event. It looks like a child made it. He thinks it's hilarious. The paint is crooked, the colors are awful. . . I'm clearly not an artist. :-)
Picture please!
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
The fact that you don't drink coffee or tea makes it even more interesting! My husband currently drinks out of a mug I made at a work event. It looks like a child made it. He thinks it's hilarious. The paint is crooked, the colors are awful. . . I'm clearly not an artist. :-)
Picture please!
Will get one! As for decluttering, I sold & mailed another eBay item today. Yielding a whopping $4 in profit. But, item gone, and $4 made.
Per your request, please feast your eyes on this artistic masterpiece. Note dripping paint, uneven color, white spaces . . . obviously my best work.
Per your request, please feast your eyes on this artistic masterpiece. Note dripping paint, uneven color, white spaces . . . obviously my best work.
That was all on purpose....for artistic effect.
Per your request, please feast your eyes on this artistic masterpiece. Note dripping paint, uneven color, white spaces . . . obviously my best work.
That was all on purpose....for artistic effect.
It's difficult to enter into this work because of how the reductive quality of the spatial relationships notates the eloquence of these pieces. I find this work playful because of the way the sublime beauty of the purity of line spatially undermines the remarkable handling of light. It should be added that the subaqueous qualities of the biomorphic forms contextualize the distinctive formal juxtapositions.
Although I am not a painter, I think that the mechanical mark-making visually and conceptually activates the essentially transitional quality. I'm surprised that no one's mentioned yet that the iconicity of the line-space matrix seems very disturbing in light of the substructure of critical thinking.
(Critique courtesy of Pixmaven The Instant Art Critique Phrase Generator (http://www.pixmaven.com/phrase_generator.html) and Random number generator (https://www.random.org/) with light editing by yours truly.)
Per your request, please feast your eyes on this artistic masterpiece. Note dripping paint, uneven color, white spaces . . . obviously my best work.
That was all on purpose....for artistic effect.
It's difficult to enter into this work because of how the reductive quality of the spatial relationships notates the eloquence of these pieces. I find this work playful because of the way the sublime beauty of the purity of line spatially undermines the remarkable handling of light. It should be added that the subaqueous qualities of the biomorphic forms contextualize the distinctive formal juxtapositions.
Although I am not a painter, I think that the mechanical mark-making visually and conceptually activates the essentially transitional quality. I'm surprised that no one's mentioned yet that the iconicity of the line-space matrix seems very disturbing in light of the substructure of critical thinking.
(Critique courtesy of Pixmaven The Instant Art Critique Phrase Generator (http://www.pixmaven.com/phrase_generator.html) and Random number generator (https://www.random.org/) with light editing by yours truly.)
This all made me deeply happy. I will use this mug with new fondness tomorrow.
Per your request, please feast your eyes on this artistic masterpiece. Note dripping paint, uneven color, white spaces . . . obviously my best work.
That was all on purpose....for artistic effect.
It's difficult to enter into this work because of how the reductive quality of the spatial relationships notates the eloquence of these pieces. I find this work playful because of the way the sublime beauty of the purity of line spatially undermines the remarkable handling of light. It should be added that the subaqueous qualities of the biomorphic forms contextualize the distinctive formal juxtapositions.
Although I am not a painter, I think that the mechanical mark-making visually and conceptually activates the essentially transitional quality. I'm surprised that no one's mentioned yet that the iconicity of the line-space matrix seems very disturbing in light of the substructure of critical thinking.
(Critique courtesy of Pixmaven The Instant Art Critique Phrase Generator (http://www.pixmaven.com/phrase_generator.html) and Random number generator (https://www.random.org/) with light editing by yours truly.)
This all made me deeply happy. I will use this mug with new fondness tomorrow.
Synchonicity of Being
MaybeBabyMustache ~ 2007
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
A friend gave me a personalised mug... personalised as in it has a photo of her dog on it.
>.<
That was . . . a very risky decision. My husband would definitely use it, ironically.
He sounds fun. :) Tell him I'll do him a good deal on a mug!
Don't get me wrong, I love her dog.
But I already have too many mugs. I don't drink tea or coffee so any more than one is too many. :D
You can always accidentally drop it so it breaks. :-)
Culled one of the underutilized bikes from the herd. Was really in the fence about getting rid of it but now I am relieved that it is disassembled with all the parts listed on eBay.
If I'm undecided about getting rid of something, I rarely find that I regret parting with it once it's gone.
I've got two months, tops, before we move house. Our house hasn't recovered from the arrival of our baby 9 months ago, so it was very needed anyway! First later is just removing the rubbish and recycling...
Thanks! Today I filled a box with baby clothes and some of my clothes, and took it straight to the donation bin (.... While dropping DH at the train station to go to work). I'm hoping the dresses I donated will be found by frugal teens for their highschool balls, since those will happen in a few months. I have another dress I couldn't quite donate... But I think it will go in the next lot, it just isn't quite my style and I don't attend enough fancy parties!I've got two months, tops, before we move house. Our house hasn't recovered from the arrival of our baby 9 months ago, so it was very needed anyway! First later is just removing the rubbish and recycling...
Good luck! You can do it!
After reading a rather terrible book that had been on my bookshelves for 5 years, I remembered my surprisingly accurate rule of thumb: if a book doesn't get a least a 3.5 out of 5 rating on Goodreads, I'm not going to like it. So, today after work, I went through all the unread books on my shelves and looked up their ratings. I ended up finding about 10 books with a low rating that I can now donate. Decluttered and saved myself from once again accidentally reading a not-very-good book!
After reading a rather terrible book that had been on my bookshelves for 5 years, I remembered my surprisingly accurate rule of thumb: if a book doesn't get a least a 3.5 out of 5 rating on Goodreads, I'm not going to like it. So, today after work, I went through all the unread books on my shelves and looked up their ratings. I ended up finding about 10 books with a low rating that I can now donate. Decluttered and saved myself from once again accidentally reading a not-very-good book!
This is genius. Nothing worse than a bad book.
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
My police station accepts it. They have some kind of bin right in the front lobby. Right below @jordanread 's picture on their wall. ;-)
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
My police station accepts it. They have some kind of bin right in the front lobby. Right below @jordanread 's picture on their wall. ;-)
Just for the record, I didn't do my hair that day. It was an awful picture!
I now have 2 gallons of expired medication ready to dispose of - but since some of it is "controlled" I need to figure out how to get rid of it. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I seem to remember reading I might be able to drop it off at a fire station.
Pretty sure you can sell it on Craigslist. :)
I would have recommended the Hospital for help, but the fire department seems like it would be better.
* Cleared out under the sink and took all the items I couldn't immediately remember the use for (why do I have mineral oil? why do I have this Tuff Stuff) to the toxic materials disposal site.
* Cleared out under the sink and took all the items I couldn't immediately remember the use for (why do I have mineral oil? why do I have this Tuff Stuff) to the toxic materials disposal site.
Machine mineral oil? Or food grade for maintaining wooden cutting boards?
I have a bunch of left over paint that I am going to use to paint the inside of my closets so that's sorta a declutter! Working on that chore this week.
Hence why it's all sat in my house for long periods of time. I confirmed I can take it to our local fire department, but only the pills. I'm still trying to figure out what to do with the liquids and epi pens.
On the other side of the coin, I have a coworker who used some badly out of date sunscreen and got burned in a ridiculous blotchy pattern, because the active ingredients were degrading over time and weren't effective anymore. It was pretty funny for everyone but her :)
On the other side of the coin, I have a coworker who used some badly out of date sunscreen and got burned in a ridiculous blotchy pattern, because the active ingredients were degrading over time and weren't effective anymore. It was pretty funny for everyone but her :)
That is good to know. I often have a load of half full sunscreen bottles, as we have so many different sun factors. Last year I actively started using up some of them. I hope the rest keeps doing their job long enough.
On the other side of the coin, I have a coworker who used some badly out of date sunscreen and got burned in a ridiculous blotchy pattern, because the active ingredients were degrading over time and weren't effective anymore. It was pretty funny for everyone but her :)
That is good to know. I often have a load of half full sunscreen bottles, as we have so many different sun factors. Last year I actively started using up some of them. I hope the rest keeps doing their job long enough.
Aussie here. Not an expert but I have to pay attention to UV because ours is harsh and I have pale-ish skin. I look at the active ingredients to work out if I'm comfortable using sunscreen past its use-by.
If the active ingredient is zinc oxide or titanium oxide, then I'm happy to use sunscreen past its use by date for a year or so (those oxides are not gonna break down in a hurry).
But if the active ingredient is something else, I'll probably chuck it in the bin when it gets past its use by date or only use it in autumn or spring when the maximum UV is less than 8 and its less than 6 months past the use by date (dunno if the UV scale is international, I've just calibrated my burn rate to the numbers on the Aussie Bureau of Meterology forecasts/observations).
(and if it's an aerosol can of sunscreen, I would a) assume that 50+ is more like 15+ and I would discard it as soon as it hits the use by date. There were a bunch of articles about aersol sunscreens here recently from a reputable source and unfortunately my google-fu is failing me to share the articles)
(and if it's an aerosol can of sunscreen, I would a) assume that 50+ is more like 15+ and I would discard it as soon as it hits the use by date. There were a bunch of articles about aersol sunscreens here recently from a reputable source and unfortunately my google-fu is failing me to share the articles)
About a quarter of an average bottle of aerosol sunscreen needs to be applied every two hours to ensure you are fully protected.
http://www.smh.com.au/business/consumer-affairs/useless-aerosols-cancer-council-says-best-place-for-spray-sunscreen-is-the-bin-20171130-gzvsk2.html
Thanks so much for specifying this. I think most of my personal sunscreens with SPF 30 contains these filters, because they make my white when I use them. But DH has a bunch of low SPF ones that I might want to throw away if we still have old bottles.
We're seriously considering moving, so I'm starting to consider what I'd need to do to stage our current house and sell it.
I was running through a mental list of things I'd pack and put in a storage unit for a few months ... and now I'm trying to justify why I would need to keep those things at all versus getting rid of them. If I don't need it/won't use it for three months...do I really need it at all?
My husband is going to be really unhappy with me....he's admitted that I've only given away one thing he actually wanted (but had zero use for), but he is still highly suspicious of my attempts to declutter.
Aussie here. Not an expert but I have to pay attention to UV because ours is harsh and I have pale-ish skin. I look at the active ingredients to work out if I'm comfortable using sunscreen past its use-by.
If the active ingredient is zinc oxide or titanium oxide, then I'm happy to use sunscreen past its use by date for a year or so (those oxides are not gonna break downin a hurryuntil the Sun expands into a Red Giant and swallows the earth. Or a volcano erupts under the bottle. Something serious).
DH just took a boot load of stuff to the donation bin, all of which was stuff gifted to us that we never used. Ugh I'm so glad to have it out of our house.
New line for anyone offering us anything (we're I about to move from our rental house to one we purchased):
"Thanks for thinking of us. We already have everything we need!"
Simple, effective, hopefully won't result in any reasoning from the other party as to why we need their junk.
That is a very good point, or even the people who think that if 1 coffee table is good, 2 must be better...DH just took a boot load of stuff to the donation bin, all of which was stuff gifted to us that we never used. Ugh I'm so glad to have it out of our house.
New line for anyone offering us anything (we're I about to move from our rental house to one we purchased):
"Thanks for thinking of us. We already have everything we need!"
Simple, effective, hopefully won't result in any reasoning from the other party as to why we need their junk.
Love it! Maybe change it slightly to 'We already have everything we need and want'. To avoid the occasional person who thinks that everyone needs treats and fancy things on top of the essentials.
@Fresh Bread it seems to load fine for me but I can open a new one and close this one, anyone else wants to chime in before I do it? Thanks for asking. :))
@Fresh Bread it seems to load fine for me but I can open a new one and close this one, anyone else wants to chime in before I do it? Thanks for asking. :))
@Fresh Bread it seems to load fine for me but I can open a new one and close this one, anyone else wants to chime in before I do it? Thanks for asking. :))
It may be that the difference is only noticeable for those with marginal Internet (like me). As a general rule, long threads are slower to load for me than shorter ones, and this is one of the threads where I notice and go do something else for a minute while it loads. It's not "go get more coffee" slow, but it's "start preloading a news article in another tab" slow. (Yes, I know that slows it down more, but it makes me feel better, so I don't care.)
@Fresh Bread it seems to load fine for me but I can open a new one and close this one, anyone else wants to chime in before I do it? Thanks for asking. :))
It may be that the difference is only noticeable for those with marginal Internet (like me). As a general rule, long threads are slower to load for me than shorter ones, and this is one of the threads where I notice and go do something else for a minute while it loads. It's not "go get more coffee" slow, but it's "start preloading a news article in another tab" slow. (Yes, I know that slows it down more, but it makes me feel better, so I don't care.)
Same. Since DH works from home, the router assigns him a huge % of the total bandwidth during the day. When this happens, I notice the loading speed of the longer threads. This and the "small thing to save money" in particular. The rest of the time it's fine though.
Okay peeps, I started a new thread! If you would like to continue to talk about your experiences getting rid of stuff and clearing out clutter, this is our new abode! :))
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/continued-getting-rid-of-stuff-clearing-out-clutter!-part-2/