Anyone doing a declutter?

[Littlemiss74]

Being cooped up has made me realise how much stuff we have. Every day I try and tidy a bit but it never stays that way for long. I want to sort it while I have more time than I’m ever likely to have again! Still working in the week but weekends I want to get stuck in.

Anyone else been doing a lockdown declutter and want to share tips?
No matter how hard I try the house just never seems more organised!

No, because it would drive me mad not having anywhere for the clutter to go. As charity shops etc aren't open.

I am wanting to do it, but think it'll have to wait otherwise we'll just end up with boxes and bags everywhere.

Just do 15 mins a day...(FlyLady approach) it’s amazing how effective it is. You would need a temporary space for the Rubbish/replying and rejoining clutter to go...but as flylady says, you just can’t tidy clutter. Three piles: rubbish, charity shop, keeping. If you don’t use it & it doesn’t make your heart sing, then pass it on.

If things aren’t staying tidy, then once you’ve started declutter and everything you have left has a defined place then it gets easier. Also have 2 min “hot spot” tidy up before bed...those items you’ve put down to deal with later as you don’t have a place for them...they seem to grow & breed if left!

Same as @covetingthepreciousthings need to get rid of so much but no where for it to go and no storage.

Yes, we are. Or at least we are trying to. It is really frustrating having all this stuff and nowhere to donate nice things to, nor a tip where we can take the rubbish.

I really don't want to throw perfectly good stuff in the wheelie bin

No because the tips and charity shops are closed 🤷‍♀️ I have no where to store it, might as well leave it in the house

I've been tidying /decluttering
I've also got rid of shelves and storage units so i can't fill them again.
charity shop stuff is stored in my car until they are open again.
someone mentioned local homeless shelter / animal shelter /womens refuge may take items of use.

I've had the stuff sitting round to decorate my living room for quite a while, but no time to actually do it. So yes, I've been slowly decluttering in there as I'm moving things.

Tbf, a lot of it is resources for my Rainbows and Guides so I plan to scan & save that rather than keep it all & either recycle or paas on the hard copies - depending what it is.

Ideally, I'd like another shelf free on my bookshelf for actual books so I'll be having another look when I'm "done".

I don't have time. Lockdown has trashed my plans for sorting the house for now

I started but have run out of space to put my bags for the charity shop, which is a bummer as I’ve only done one rooms worth so far.

I’m procrastinating instead of doing a de-clutter right now! It feels so overwhelming. We have got so much stuff, it’s going to take a very long time to sort!

As wasteful as it is, I don't take stuff to the charity shop anyway as i don't drive. If I have anything decent or of some value, such as my old microwave (which did still work) I just stick it out on the drive and someone soon takes it. Everything else gets chucked. I've been doing a deep clean at the same time as getting rid of some clutter and it is quite satisfying. I just do little jobs each day but it's adding up to making a big difference.

As wasteful as it is, I don't take stuff to the charity shop anyway as i don't drive.

Some Charities will collect, or you could also give away via free Facebook sites when this is lifted. Please reconsider throwing it all away!

I want to declutter, but I’ve been holding off as I can’t get stuff out of my house until charity shops and tips open again.

I’ve put some worn out stuff in the wheelie bin, but that doesn’t make much of a dent in things.

Yes! I’ve been doing it and we are so so nearly there. Done one or two rooms every weekend. Done half the kitchen today and just finished, will do the other half next Friday.

It feels SO GOOD to know every cupboard and drawer has been cleaned out, every window clean, every piece of furniture has been pulled out and cleaned behind. Our main issue has been underestimating the time it takes (we are pretty good to be fair with clutter so we didn’t have too much stuff to start with) and then getting stressed with each other, plus keeping the kids occupied. We’ve accepted now we WILL argue and laugh about it. We finish by 2 and then chill the next day. The car is full to the gunnels with stuff for charity shop and stuff for the tip has been bunged down the side of the house.

@Kerlassic how do you keep the kids occupied while doing this? Think this is why I never get anywhere. I never get long enough to finish something without interruptions!

I will say.... start with your wardrobe/clothes. I don’t know why but it’s a very motivating place to start. Get EVERYTHING out, clean the wardrobes and inside the drawers, pull chests of drawers out to clean behind whilst they are empty, then go through methodically deciding what to keep, hang it up either in colour sections or by type of clothes.... in drawers, fold your things up kondo style.

It’s a good one to start with because it is quite a contained job, not too physical and at the end you should have some nice satisfying bin bags full of stuff leaving your house. It’s also the biggest job in the bedroom so when you do come to deep clean and de clutter your bedroom 75% will already be done.

Honestly, mainly shouting. My 8 year old is lovely and my 4 year old is happy if the 8 year old is playing with him so we ask the 8 year old to do that and he does (he gets bribed with uninterrupted switch time later that day). Or we put movies on for them etc. It would have been much harder a year ago with a 3 year old but doable now.

I am a Professional Organiser and I'm amazed at the number of articles I've been seeing online advising people to declutter... I honestly don't think this is a good time to do it at all, especially if you also have kids around
As it's been said before, there is nowhere to take stuff to atm + people are also not buying 2nd hand, so you won't be able to sell.
It's also very frustrating to organise when you have kids at home 24/7. It can be done, but it will likely exhaust you.
The only thing I would advise is to pay attention to what is working in terms of organisation and what is not working, never used, etc. And when things start getting back to normal, you can always start resetting those areas in your home.
You can also start getting your kids involved in getting things a bit more sorted, making them understand that it will be better for them if they know where things are and how important it is to give you a hand around the home.
I am also foreseeing an overflood of donating items to charity shops once they reopen and that won't be easy for them to manage either.

I'm trying! I've several several draws but the awful dark chaotic cupboard under the stairs has given me the most pleasure.

Oh my goodness... In our ikea delivery on the Saturday, an ikea wrapping paper holder was included.

£9 of sheer bliss and heaven.

All those torn, ripped, old wrap rolls... Snapped into place. Controlled. And scissors and cello tape placed with them. ❤️❤️❤️.

I've spent about 50 quid on wrap crap because I couldn't see what I have. So it's going to pay for itself because I won't need any more parcel adornments until the children are 50 years old.
I keep walking past the cupboard to admire the slim tall grey container holding utter splayed chaos.

Next is our chests and trunks.