Author Topic: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!  (Read 1851364 times)

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #250 on: December 22, 2013, 10:11:09 AM »
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.

So true.
931 sq feet here, but 6 (small) closets.  Linen, coat, mine, husbands, tools, and cleaning/stockpile.

Moomingirl

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #251 on: December 23, 2013, 12:10:58 AM »
580 sq feet, no closets, but a room that is practically a 'junk' room. Working my way through it gradually.

Moomingirl

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #252 on: December 26, 2013, 10:37:43 PM »
I am stunned. Speechless.

My husband came to me today with a pile of things for me to put up for sale. Without me mentioning anything. He is getting rid of stuff. Voluntarily.  :-O

Maybe after all of these years he is finally getting it..... I am very excited, just thinking about thenew, less cluttered living space that may result. :-D

ichangedmyname

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #253 on: January 02, 2014, 11:29:15 AM »
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*

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #254 on: January 02, 2014, 11:35:17 AM »
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*

Welcome!  I am very glad you followed up on my suggestion.  You'll find we cheer on small and large accomplishments, and I've gotten some great advice on disposing of items.

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #255 on: January 02, 2014, 11:44:52 AM »
I am going through my massive (several hundred) collection of CDs.  I am preparing to ship them out and get some $$ for them.  I am also storing the ones I really like on my desktop and laptop--hoping I have enough storage space.

I am using Zumu and Abundatrade.  I am finding that Abundatrade usually gives better prices, but not always.  If you know of an even better website for used CDs, please let me know.  Thanks.

Right now, my living room looks quite cluttered, with various stacks of CDs all over, but once this project is complete, the result will feel great.  Plus, I will receive checks in the range of $300 total.  Win!!

ichangedmyname

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #256 on: January 02, 2014, 11:48:01 AM »
I know we have boxes of movie DVDs somewhere in the basement. where are you sending your CDs and getting money for them? Sounds awesome!

CommonCents, thank you!

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.
« Last Edit: January 02, 2014, 11:52:52 AM by ichangedmyname »

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #257 on: January 02, 2014, 12:11:00 PM »
Right now, I plan on sending some of the CDs to Zumu, and the rest to Abundatrade.  You enter the bar code, and the website tells you what they will pay.  Then you ship the CDs (at no cost to you), and they send you a check!  Both sites also accept DVDs.

I can't believe I bought this many CDs.  I probably have at least 500 of them.  Let's say I paid an average of $12 for each one.  Had I invested that money instead???  Oy.

I think I will end up keeping 20 or 30 of them.  Huge lesson here.

Regarding your question about make up, lotion, etc., is there a women's shelter in your town that could use them?

Moomingirl

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #258 on: January 02, 2014, 12:51:41 PM »
Hi ichangedmyname, welcome to the decluttering club. :)

Don't worry, most of us here started off with far too much stuff. Soon you will be finding out how addictive it is to have a clear out. Things feel more spacious and light.

I stuck a picture of a beautiful, minimalist (but not empty) house on my pin board. Now, every time I feel myself waivering about throwing out something completely useless, I look at that picture and it inspires me to keep going.

limeandpepper

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #259 on: January 02, 2014, 06:38:59 PM »
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*

Yay, welcome! Even though I think I have less things than most people, it's amazing how they can accumulate. I've gotten rid of a few bags of things and yet sometimes it still feels like I have just as much stuff. So don't feel discouraged if at first you don't see much difference. Keep on it.

kms

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #260 on: January 03, 2014, 06:37:22 AM »
I love this thread, I've read all six pages of it and it feels good to see we're not alone.

Between the two of us, my wife has always been the de-cluttery part. I've never been really bad but usually decided to keep stuff around just in case. After all we did have enough space. Recently, however, I've felt more and more overwhelmed by how much stuff we've had around, even though all our friends thought our apartment was basically empty. Truth be told we really didn't have much stuff compared to our friends and family, and what we had was stowed away in closets. My wife's had the idea many years ago that we need to de-clutter once a year, and she picked Jan 1. Apart from the fact that she picked to worst possible day, one that inevitably comes with a massive hangover, I liked the idea. I'm not sure what exactly gave me the final push, it may have been my parents' house - they're not hoarders but really bad when it comes to getting rid of things, and I certainly know where my cluttery side is coming from. They're more collectors than hoarders, keeping random stuff they aren't emotionally attached to gathered at yard sales or random family members' attics, several sets of everything "just in case" (like three complete sets of ironing equipment, three fridges, probably around twelve chairs, etc.) - but it's all usable and good, no trash or broken things, just way too much of everything.

Either way, we've started to de-clutter our apartment step by step, room by room. Over the last six months we got rid of:

  • Around 450 books, we're down to around 50 now
  • Around 50 pounds of clothes (all donated)
  • All of our music CDs - we haven't had a CD player in years
  • All of our DVDs - I realized that we never really watched a movie twice, also we've trashed our DVD player about two years ago and never bothered to replace it
  • Decoration - my wife really loved putting lovely things up here and there, like a vase or a bowl, candles, etc. - it's all gone except for a few very special items she's still emotionally attached to in one way or another, such as wedding gifts
  • Cables and old electronics
  • Old cell phones (two Android smartphones, an iPhone 3GS, laptops (my old netbook), old monitors, hard drives, spare parts, etc.
  • Kitchen appliances we once bought, used maybe once or twice then never looked at again
  • Old tools I've had many times over - I don't need five hammers, two differend size ones are enough
  • Silverware, old plates, cups, mugs, a tea set we got for our wedding but never used, etc.

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.

CG

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #261 on: January 03, 2014, 03:59:14 PM »
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?

JessieImproved

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #262 on: January 04, 2014, 07:42:22 AM »
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?

JessieImproved

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #263 on: January 04, 2014, 06:12:04 PM »
Here's today's dose of decluttering inspiration: I just spent most of the day going through a room I use for storage.  It went from "can't walk through it" to the floor being clear enough to run a vacuum.  I took a large load to Goodwill and have another load of books to drop in the BetterWorldBooks drop off in the morning.  I use the storage room to mentally separate myself from things before I get rid of them, so it's an integral part of my decluttering effort.  Now it's empty enough to actually use!

So who's gotten rid of some stuff lately?

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #264 on: January 04, 2014, 06:53:22 PM »
Well, it's still an ongoing project, but I am close to the end.

I have 65 CDs packed up to go to Zumu for a whopping $18.  And I have 230 CDs set aside to be sent to Abundatrade--they will fetch around $300.  Postage to both places is free--all I have to do is get boxes and pack them up.  I guess, to make it even easier on me, I can schedule a USPS pick up at my house--I've never done that before, but it would save me from having to haul the boxes to the PO on my bike trailer.

I also have 3 textbooks ready to be sent to 2 different places for around $200.

Yay!

CG

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #265 on: January 04, 2014, 10:22:54 PM »
The photos may be on an SD card inside the phone, that you can take out.  What kind of phone is it?

LG HTC something or other (510, is what I vaguely remember) - quite an old model, bought as a reconditioned item on eBay.

mm1970

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #266 on: January 05, 2014, 12:10:46 PM »
Someone on this site - don't know who, don't know where, recommended Home Storage Solutions printable calendar for "Declutter your home in 15 minutes a day".

http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/support-files/2014-printable-declutter-calendar-final.pdf

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

Over the holidays I worked on just decluttering bits and pieces as I had time. I was home with the boys, so I didn't really have that much time.  But I printed January and February and got to work.  January is "the kitchen".

Well, this morning my husband helped pick out a few books to donate.  Then we tackled two kitchen drawers.  Amazing!  We still have 9 more drawers to go, but we do have all of January.  I got rid of half the stuff in that top drawer.  Even if we only do 1/3 of the days in this calendar, we will be SOOO much better off at the end of the year!  I really like the small, focused jobs.  And doing it TOGETHER is better.

yogagirl95

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #267 on: January 05, 2014, 12:57:41 PM »
Went thru my girls clothes, which is a big job.

My oldest has too many, mostly been gifts. I donated 2 big bags yesterday, have 2 tubs saved to go to consignment store ( I have had the apt for 4 months, that big of a wait), and one tub saved for my younger daughter.

Went thru my clothes, found about 10 items to donate. I don't have much clothes anyway, but sent in a bag to thread up last month.

Sold my ipod for $160 on craigsist.
Sold my kindle fire tablet, 2 years old for $75 on ebay, probably $60 after fees.
Traded daughters camera for $43 into amazon, will get a credit for it. ( she got a new camera for xmas)
When I sent in the camera to amazon, traded in 5 dvds for a grand total of $1. lol
Sold two books I bought at goodwill, will net about $7 after fees and what I paid
Sold 4 textbooks, one instructor edition. For $10, 35,75, 40. Not sure fees but maybe $20 at most
sold daughters headphones for $60 net on amazon.

Ive also sold some nailpolish on ebay. sounds funny right? But I used to collect them and some of the colors are discontinued. Ive made about $50 back.


needmyfi

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #268 on: January 05, 2014, 01:42:10 PM »
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?
   

We donated ours to the local YMCA cell phone drive-they ship to overseas military and provide them with free time as well. Didn't need ours anymore when we switched to a $7 a month burner.  Seemed like a good cause and unlikely to end up in nefarious hands.  Check online for a charity that specializes in this.

ScienceSexSavings

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #269 on: January 05, 2014, 02:29:58 PM »
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.

Ugh

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #270 on: January 05, 2014, 03:23:18 PM »
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.
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.
Anything you really want to keep needs to be packed and sealed with great care to prepare for possible water damage from below, on the sides AND above. 
Looking at what my children have left in storage, there is a direct correspondence between the amount of crap they accumulate and their financial picture.
The kid with the least baggage has the most cash.  The kid with the most accumulated junk that "might be worth something" someday has the least cash.
I think there might be some connection there.

Zaga

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #271 on: January 05, 2014, 04:19:41 PM »
Between last week cleaning out the garage and getting rid of several bags of trash and today rounding up all the excess boxes in the house (how the hell did we get so many anyways?!) our basement is looking much better.  It's still half deconstructed, but there are a few places where we can see the floor and counters.

NinetyFour

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #272 on: January 05, 2014, 04:30:10 PM »
Hey Zaga--I need some of your boxes to pack up my CDs!!  I'm only across I 70 from you.  About 1600 miles.  :(

Zaga

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #273 on: January 05, 2014, 05:06:31 PM »
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!

Anatidae V

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #274 on: January 05, 2014, 06:15:58 PM »
We took photos of some sentimental clothes (highschool jumpers etc), made sure the photos were clear, then chucked them in the bin! Also went through a stack of magazines and will now pass them on to a friend or doctor's waiting room

CG

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #275 on: January 05, 2014, 08:52:18 PM »
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.
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.
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!

limeandpepper

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #276 on: January 06, 2014, 07:11:49 AM »
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 can so relate to this. Most of my belongings are concentrated in my bedroom or kitchen, and it feels like there are endless things to sort through.

To make things worse, I have stuff at my boyfriend's place too, so even when I think I'm making progress here it's still just half the battle!

ichangedmyname

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #277 on: January 06, 2014, 10:25:55 AM »
Gonna do the kitchen counters today.

I wanna get rid of the plastic containers. We have a ton of plastic "Tupperwares"that are either missing a lid, have burnt bottoms, 'disfigured' from putting in the dishwasher, etc. Also I want to throw out some plastic ladles and wooden spoons. Maybe keep 3 of one thing? I promise to take pictures so I can at least pat myself on the back for ANY progress.

ETA:
Just waiting for my mother-in-law to go to work. I hate working when someone else is in the house. My husband is asleep so he is not conscious and doesn't count.

kms

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #278 on: January 06, 2014, 10:38:15 AM »
Had a good weekend and found plenty of stuff to get rid of:

* Old (aka 1978, oldtimer by now) bike I no longer use -> for sale
* The sad sad remainder of our music CDs (the ones I thought I was still emotionally attached to but never listened to ever again) -> trash
* More of my wife's deco stuff -> partly donated, partly for sale
* A cheese cutter we got as a gift from a French friend but never used -> donated
* My old coin collection - what the hell was I thinking? Coins, the stamp's cooler brothers... -> for sale
* A steam cooker we have no idea how and where we got from and have never used -> donated

Once again I have no idea where that stuff was hiding and how it managed to escape and survive our last purges.
« Last Edit: January 06, 2014, 10:54:35 AM by killermilchschnitte »

Wolf_Stache

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #279 on: January 06, 2014, 11:02:52 AM »
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!

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #280 on: January 06, 2014, 11:13:18 AM »
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!

When I was a kid, my mom made my favorite t-shirts into a bean bag.  You could also make a quilt with them.  It was a great way to get me to relinquish them and still remember things like my participation in the Alaskan State Championships for skiing, or Odyssy of the Mind.

EK

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #281 on: January 07, 2014, 08:50:07 AM »
I'm getting ready to move to a smaller house and the additional motivation of if-I-get-rid-of-this-I-don't-have-to-pack-it-and-transport-it had been fantastic!!!  I found so much to get rid of and some great stuff to sell!  Feels so good to get this clutter out of my life and be able to enter the new space without worrying about how I'm going to store all this junk I never use and don't want.

The mountain of items we've stacked up in the spare bedroom to donate is just crazy!!  I wish I had taken a picture but I think my husband will have taken it over to goodwill before I get a chance to snap a pic.

CommonCents

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #282 on: January 07, 2014, 09:00:13 AM »
Ask him to take the picture.  I've been donating a lot, and I think the pictures will be helpful in case I ever get a knock on the door from the IRS, to prove my donations, in addition to my list of items.

somepissedoffman

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #283 on: January 07, 2014, 01:36:02 PM »
The girlfriend and I cleaned out the garage and the house this weekend, including the mounds of junk that the previous owner left (messy short sale), and put it all out with a free sign and accompanying craigslist ad.  We were worried most of it wouldn't move and we'd have to get creative with disposing of it, but it turns out our neighbors are hoarders and almost all of it was gone within an hour.  Whoo!

kms

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #284 on: January 07, 2014, 03:03:44 PM »
I wish I had your neighbors, we're having serious trouble getting rid of our stuff.

Had luck with the bike though, put up the ad yesterday and it sold today, buyer will pick it up on friday.

grantmeaname

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #285 on: January 07, 2014, 07:36:36 PM »
SWMBO and I have been doing a good deal of decluttering lately. Our goal is to fit a recliner into our tiny-ass bedroom. We've shrunk down the clothes and random bedroom stuff from two dressers, a closet, and a bookshelf to a dresser and a closet, though the closet and remaining dresser are very full. 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).

JessieImproved

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #286 on: January 08, 2014, 12:11:17 PM »
(though the decluttering hasn't quite spread to the dearly beloved kitchen implements yet).

The kitchen is going to be the most daunting task of all I think, especially since DH and I have to do it together.  Every other part of the house can be tackled by one person at a time.

limeandpepper

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #287 on: January 08, 2014, 05:15:46 PM »
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

This is what motivates me to get rid of my stuff, too.

(though the decluttering hasn't quite spread to the dearly beloved kitchen implements yet).

And this is probably my more difficult task, too. :(  But I will have to do it sooner rather than later, because there is definitely a move later in the year. I guess I'll have to sell, donate or throw quite a few items away.

grantmeaname

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #288 on: January 08, 2014, 05:36:24 PM »
I know I need too. But I love my pans and my knife and my dishes and I really like (but never use) my Kitchen-aid and my food processor. I don't wanna!

impaire

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #289 on: January 09, 2014, 01:44:59 PM »
Hey guys--I'm doing the Apartment Therapy Cure this January (with modifications, since they recommend things like buying flowers every week... in January... No way!), and they have a suggestion to put the items you're having trouble parting with in an "outbox" (http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/a-simple-step-to-success-set-up-an-outbox-january-cure-assignment-4-198802). Perhaps that would work for getting rid of these stubborn egg slicers and Kitchenaids? (I tried with belly fat, it was a fail).

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #290 on: January 09, 2014, 03:36:00 PM »
Just finished up boxing up over 200 CDs and 3 textbooks.  Two boxes are ready to go to the post office.  I have to wait for shipping labels for 4 other boxes.  But all the boxes are taped up and are OUT OF MY HOUSE!!  That was a big, long project, and I am glad it is done!!

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #291 on: January 09, 2014, 08:02:53 PM »
Hello! I've been doing this here and there. I've got several bags to donate in the trunk of my car with an assortment of drinking glasses, books, and clothes.

1. I went through ALL of the clothing boxes (we pack away summer during winter, etc, due to small closets) and found items to give away. Yay!
2. While I had time off of work, I attacked one drawer at a time and got this horribly almost-can't-open it drawer completely cleaned up and organized.
3. We keep postage stamps in one of the formerly messy drawers, and some are ooooold. So, spouse and I--every time we have to mail something--use up as much of the old postage as we can. Then, we take it to the PO and have them check it, and pay them remaining few cents to mail the item.
4. Spouse cleaned the spice shelves and alphabetized them!
5. I cleaned out the pantry cabinet. Cleaned the shelves and re-organized the food by type. Thankfully, only one food item was so old it needed to be thrown away...but I did find three jars of tahini!

Tomorrow's dinner will be created around what we have and what I want to use up!

Feeling good!

 




kms

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #292 on: January 12, 2014, 12:12:28 PM »
Paperwork. It's amazing how much of that stuff accumulates over the years. Contracts, statements, copies of this and that, you name it. We went through every single piece of paper this weekend, they were taking up eleven folders, and managed to scale down to two by scanning hundreds of pages (old bank statements, tax documents, etc.), then throw them out with the rest of the stuff that didn't get scanned.

Two folders are left now, instead of taking up an entire shelf they now sit there on the right side, sad and lonely ;)

happy

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #293 on: January 12, 2014, 03:11:03 PM »
I'm up and running again with clutter clearing. Seems to be a New Year with me. I also signed up for the get rid of 1 item a day thread.  So far we've donated two large garbage bags of clothes and a bag of old shoes.  Collecting up other items as I go along. Also going through the pantry and using up items close to expiry ( so far: coconut pie, flourless chocolate mud cake, chocolate brownie mix, gluten free raisin bread, home made baked beans, homous....mmm this ones a fun one).

Well done killermichschnitte. So far my study with piles and piles of paper work remains untamed. :(. 

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #294 on: January 12, 2014, 08:52:58 PM »
Cleaned out the bathroom cabinets. 2 trash bags of old crap. :)

pachnik

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #295 on: January 12, 2014, 09:03:56 PM »
In preparation for moving in about 6 weeks, I went through some things and pulled out 6 boxes of stuff.  I am loading up the trunk tomorrow and taking it over to the thrift store.   I should probably take our old Ikea Poang chair too since the new apartment will be a bit smaller. 
« Last Edit: January 15, 2014, 10:21:52 PM by pachnik »

N

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #296 on: January 14, 2014, 01:01:23 AM »
There is a "community free table" at one of my weekly meetups. Every week I take a pile of stuff there. Im really trying to purge purge purge. We are moving in a couple of months and I just have to pare down.

Its astonishing how much Ive already gotten rid of in the last two years. And how much is still left. But Im working on it.

Last week, I donated outgrown snowpants, some toys, vases, curling irons.
A friend is taking one of my broken tivos off my hands.

It pains me to weed out books, but I will make yet another pass through them and let go of some more. I will try to find at least 25 to donate or maybe sell.

I also cleaned out a cabinet in my kitchen. two actually. I tossed a broken mandolin and some other old grimy stuff from the cabinet over the stove that no one ever uses. then I weeded out most of our glasses and cups. My daughter and I splurged on a cute set at costco for 20$, and we are getting rid of all of our mismatched, ratty plastic cups. Im thinking we will let go of our wineglasses, too. we never use them and they just take up space.
« Last Edit: January 14, 2014, 01:04:36 AM by startingfromthestart »

ichangedmyname

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #297 on: January 14, 2014, 12:22:32 PM »
I'm going to sort all my magazines and sell them on eBay. I checked and outdoor actually pay for back issues.
Also gonna consolidate all my samples perfumes makeup and sell the unopened ones.

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #298 on: January 15, 2014, 12:10:42 PM »
So far, we made a huge donation to the Salvation Army before our move.  Now, we've listed 25 items for sale on eBay (sold 7).  I also listed a few textbooks on Amazon.  Only one has sold.  All together we've made about $260.  We also will have a nice tax break from our donation last year...and we're filling boxes for our next donation. 


N

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Re: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter!
« Reply #299 on: January 15, 2014, 10:14:41 PM »
Organized book shelves and game shelves.  Filled three paper grocery bags with books and games to donate/sell.

Listed 6 books on half.com and sold one today!

Made a pile of stuff for a friend to look over when she comes on Friday. whatever she doesnt take will donate.