Decluttering

2014
Backwards

This year is going to be a busy one for me, so I'm going to focus on one thing: sorting out the clothes in my bedroom closet.



I have hung all of the hangers backwards.  As I wear clothes, I will turn hangers back around to the front. By December, I will be able to see very clearly which clothes I wear and which clothes I do not wear and do not need.  

I will donate any clothes that do not get turned around.

It is going to be interesting to see how many pieces I end up with at the end of the year. 
I love that I can sit back and just let time do the work for me.  

Anybody want to join me?








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2013

100 Spaces (The Decluttering Continues)



This year, instead of counting items that I'm getting rid of,  I'm going to count the spaces that I sort through, clean up, clear out and organize;  each shelf, each drawer, each cupboard, each pile of paper,  counts as one space. 

My goal is to tackle at least 2 spaces each week (8-10 spaces each month), with a final goal of 100 spaces by Thanksgiving. 

I made the decision to break this de-cluttering job into small spaces, rather than whole rooms, because I just don't have time (or energy) to do a big area all at once.  So instead of getting frustrated, I'm breaking the work down into small pieces that I can manage.   I can do this!  I will do this! 

I ask myself these questions to help decide what to keep and what to get rid of:
Do I love it?
Do I use it?
Do I have space for it?
Who gave it to me?
Does if reflect who I am and the life I want for myself?
Does it fit me right now? Have I worn it in the last year?
Will I read it again?
Is it a duplicate?
Is it broken? Does it have missing pieces?


Toss, recycle, donate.
Items can be thrown away, recycled, donated to a charity of your choice, put in a garage sale, sold on e-bay, given to a friend, tossed over the fence into your neighbors yard (Ok, maybe not that)... whatever... as long as they leave your property.

No purger's regret.  

If I'm not sure about something, I can put it away in a six-month-box.   If I need to get it out to use it during those 6 months,  now is probably not the right time to get rid of it.  On the other hand if I never even think about it,  it's probably safe to toss it.

Get rid of the things you don't care about to make room for the things you do.  
No, I will not be chucking out family heirlooms or the things I collect.  But I will be getting rid of the useless junk that fills my house, and by doing that, create space to display the sentimental family items and collections I love.  

You can follow my progress through 2013 here:


1. Sorted through Christmas tree ornaments.  

2. Recycled big stack of magazines



3. Organized the kitchen junk drawer.

4. Sorted through the kitchen-linens drawer. 



5-14.  Sorted through and reorganized 10 shelves in the kitchen. (dishes, glassware, etc)
15-29.  Picked through 15 fabric and crafting supply drawers in my craft room/office.
30-36.  Looked through 7 shelves in the china cabinet and buffet. (teapots, china, etc)
37- 43.  Emptied and sorted through 7 storage bins in the basement (Holiday decor, etc)
44-47.   Sorted through 4 storage boxes that came home with my son from college.
48- 67.  Plowed through 20 shelves, drawers and boxes in my daughters room. (Mostly stuff from her college days that she no longer needs.) 


We held a big garage sale in June, and then donated the things that did not sell. 
It is nice to see a few empty spaces here and there.



68. Sorted through my yarn bin and donated ones I won't use in future
69. Sorted through three mountains big piles of papers
70. Shredded a huge mound of personal/financial papers 
71. Cleaned out under kitchen sink (And discovered we have a slow leak! Eeeek!)

72-76. Tossed old yucky stuff from kids bathroom cabinets and drawers and

organized all the hotel sample shampoos/lotions into a jar for guest use.

77-82.  Organized and tossed a bunch of old grungy stuff in master bath drawers
83-84. Cleared and sorted dresser tops in son's room and master bedroom
85-86. Cleared and sorted two boxes under beds in kids rooms
87. Sorted and donated unwanted white/cream quilting fabrics

89-90. Packed up two boxes of children's books and mailed them to my daughter

91-97. Sorted, sized and donated clothes from seven dresser drawers
98. Recycled another pile of magazines and catalogs
99- 102. Organized and tossed old junk from four shelves in upstairs cleaning closet
103-105.  Tossed outdated food items from three shelves in kitchen pantry 
And...
106.Packed up a box of my Christmas ornaments and mailed them off to my niece. (Her very first tree was looking kinda bare, and I had way more than I could use.)

So that brings me to a grand total of 106 spaces cleaned-up/cleared-out/donated/recycled/decluttered for the year!  What a liberating feeling to send these things I no longer need to a new home.


How did you do?








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2012 -

The 366 Challenge

Please join in as we let go of 366 things this year!   One item for every day of the year.

We're getting rid of clothes that don't fit,  items that don't suit our taste anymore,  projects we've given up on,  books we've already read,  kitchen items that won't fit in our cupboards,  things we were crazy to purchase in the first place.  Anything we no longer use or want.

We can gift things to friends who are collectors, donate things to favorite charities, sell things in a garage sale,  toss broken things in the trash, etc...    We can get rid of 7 things each week or 31 things each month. One way or another our closets, drawers and basements will be feeling lighter by the end of this year.

Get rid of the things you don't care about to make room for the things you do.

Family Heirlooms.  Please don't think I am suggesting that you get rid of Grandma's heirloom china.  Quite the opposite.  Get rid of the useless junky stuff that is cluttering up your house, so that you have room to display those wonderful heirloom pieces in a way that will honor your Grandma. (But if something has been passed down to you and you hate it, you don't need to keep it.  Talk to your siblings and cousins and see if someone else in the family would appreciate it more.)  

Make it easy! Don't try to do it all at once, because that can be overwhelming.  But it's really easy to find 7 things each week.  Make it fun!  Just turn on the radio for two songs and go through a room (or a drawer) picking out all the things you don't want anymore.  Put them in a box and get them out of the house before you change your mind.  

Start a 6-months-box for things you are unsure about. I don't want anyone to have purgers regret.  If you are unsure, put it away in a box for 6 months.  If you need to get it out and use it, or miss it a lot, maybe now is not the right time to get rid of it.  If, on the other hand, you never even think about it in those 6 months, it's probably ok to go bye bye.  


Let me know if you want to accept the 366 challenge and I'll link your blog here.  You are welcome to participate/post as much, or as little, as you want about your attempts to clear things out.  (Or not at all if you'd prefer that.)  And don't worry if you don't get all the way to 366, just do the best you can.  (You don't even have to count if you really don't want to.)  Any purging is a step in the right direction.   I think it's a good idea for me  to look the beast squarely in the face, so I'm going to take pictures and make a list.   Hopefully that will be an inspiration to you.


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Ask Yourself These Questions to help you decide what to keep and what to get rid of:

Do I use it?
Do I love it?
Do I have space for it?
Is it a reflection of me and the life I want for myself?
Does it fit me right now?
Have I worn it in the last year?
Will I read this again?
Is it a duplicate?
Is it broken?
Does it have missing pieces?


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Suggestions:

Animal Shelters need your old towels to use as bedding for the cats and dogs in their care.

Cell Phones can be reused by Boys and Girls Club of America.

Broken china and pottery can be used by mosaic artists.

Books can be donated to your library.  (Our library holds a used book sale every year to raise funds.)



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Here are pictures of things that are going, going, GONE from my house in 2012.













































I reached my 2012 goal!  366 things have been given away, donated, recycled or trashed.  No longer  cluttering up my home!  I hope you did well and accomplished all you wanted to.


2 comments:

  1. Absolutely Love this idea! I'm such a pack rat it would definitely be a challenge!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Christina, I hope you will join me in sorting through some of the stuff at your house. It really does feel good to get rid of some of the stuff that you don't need or want and create useful space in your home. The wonderful thing about the decluttering I am doing right now, is that I am just taking it slowly, one small space at a time. It doesn't matter where you start. Just one drawer, one shelf, one cabinet at a time.

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