Im quite good at getting rid of the big stuff -furniture etc. Toys and clothes are a bit harder but can be done if i leave them long enough. But what is tripping me up ,each and every time I try to have a good clear out, is the small stuff.
Ive just cleaned the kitchen cupboards and although everything is nice and clean it has mostly gone back. I have eleventy million little bottles of specialist cleaner for fats or felt pen for instance. I have all manner of cleaners for all sorts of applications, I have loads of sauces in packets,sachets and jars.I have too many saucepans and cookware and I cant close the doors properly on most of the cupboards .
But it is all useful . I havent used any of them for a long time
How can I bite the bullet and get rid without a load of anxiety about my dwindling stocks ? Has anyone a way of talking themselves into letting go?
Is there perhaps a site that suggests a minimum/maximum amount of stuff you need?
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Decluttering -please talk me down.
KillmeNow · 17/08/2014 14:47
Hmmm. You see thats what i would say to anyone else asking me the question. But -what about things that are only needed on a rare basis? I seem to have lots of those. Like bun tins .I am not a baker but every so often I decide to do a batch of cakes .I cant do that without a bun tin which i might well not have used for a year or more. This is of course only an example. I have lots of things that will definitely come in useful.They are not worn out ,past their sell by date or damaged so cant be put in the bin. They are not really useful to someone else as they are .I mean where would you go to buy a part used bottle of fat remover?
You see?
And its not just the kitchen.That was just todays conundrum.
I have similar cupboards ,drawers and boxes of stuff all over the house. It all looks tidy but my God -the mess behind the doors.
Has anyone just emptied the whole shebang into the bin and lived to tell the tale? Tell me how you did it. Pretty please 
Kitchen stuff is easy, its the other stuff I find hard.
Use some of your fantastic cleaners to clean your pans. Take all you don't use to the charity shop where somebody will be pleased with them.
If you haven't used it in a year throw it away or take to charity shop.
Be just as meticulous as you are with other rooms.
My problem is always stuff that I'm not sure about or want to keep and have nowhere in its relevant room to store it
Put all your little packets in a plastic box, then you can store it anywhere and keep them together.
Or, let your husband / sister / mother at it and see what they leave you with
This made me laugh. I darent let them near the place or I really would have nothing left.
My husbands ideal place would be a narrowboat with only the bare minimum of everything in it . Possibly cup,plate etc one per person and no loft or cellar/shed to store things. What do people who live on boats or in Caravans DO with their stuff?
But . I wonder if you have a bit of an idea there. Would it be possible to put myself in the position of defending certain items and HAVE to throw them if I cant remember using them or when I would use them and not one of the other several thats lurking about the place.
Right - I will go back to the kitchen and chuck away everything that I havent used for some time. Thats the first step anyway.Wish me luck -Im going in .
You wouldn't believe what you can get rid of on Freegle. Put the half used things into a box and list it on Freegle. People will bite yr hand off to come to yr house and collect 
If you've got unopened, still in date, food stuff and you know you're probably not going to use it, can you take it to a food bank?
How to let it go - know that it'll be passed on to people in need and you can, presumably, buy more as and when you need it. You'll be able to close your cupboard doors as well
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