Do we all have too much stuff???

[Notcontent]

I moved house recently (had another thread about how stressful that was!). I moved to a house pretty much the same size as my old house but both houses are quite small. Anyway, as part of the moving process I had to obviously find new places to put everything etc and I felt really overwhelmed by how much stuff I have. It’s just me and a teen, and I did lots of decluttering before the move, but it still feels like we have a lot of stuff. But we don’t have a garage or a loft where we can just stuff random things out of sight, so I think we probably have fewer things than a lot of people.

If you have a small house or flat, are you constantly decluttering? Or if you have a large house, is it full of stuff and do you ever feel overwhelmed by it?

I absolutely agree, and culling it is really hard! Have you watched The Minimalists (its on Netflix I think)? Its a good way of thinking about things

I have a relatively large house, and yes, I feel overwhelmed, and would love some help "thinning out" my stuff.

I declutter once or twice a year. Go through everything and get rid of as much as possible. Having less crap gives me a clearer mind and makes the daily tidy up much easier.

yes we do
x10
it's capitalism

I think my family definitely has more stuff than we need, and yes, I do find it overwhelming at times.

Although given how resistant DH and the DC can be about decluttering stuff, I don’t think they’d agree with me about too much stuff.

Yes! We have a small cottage with very little storage so I’m always trying to de litter. We do have a large garage where most of the stuff ends up in boxes labelled ‘car boot’. I’ve just spent this week getting a load of DS’s newborn baby bits ready to sell. I hate to wish their childhood away but I often look at things and think ‘won’t be long before we won’t need that anymore’.

Declutter not de litter

For me being at home has given me the time to get rid of so much stuff. I am almost on first name terms with the blokes working at my local tip. My house looks so much better and everything has a home. It means it's easier to keep the place tidy. We've now got space to store useful stuff that we do need and use.

I watched so many videos on YouTube about decluttering and it really inspired me. I agree we are encouraged to always want more, when actually we usually have plenty.

I can see I have come to the right place

We've recently had our kitchen ripped out and replaced. Had to completely empty the old one, which was full of 25 years' worth of clutter.
Got rid of loads when I was packing it all up. Now we are half-unpacked and the kitchen is full up already. I still have two large cardboard boxes and three big carrier bags full of stuff to put away, not to mention a giant collection of baking tins (cake-making hobby).
Where it is all going to go is anybody's guess at the moment.

I will be moving next year from a large detached house to a terrace half the size. We are drowning in stuff. I have got rid of a lot, but how many candle holders do I need? I have five candelabras, and a dozen candlesticks. I do crafting and have boxes of bits and pieces. I'm dreading the move.

Yes, I completely agree, but it still feels wasteful getting rid of something which might be useful again. Even if it's something which hasn't been used for years and gets rehomed or recycled. It's tricky.

Before I decluttered, I heard people say that having lots of stuff is a mental burden, but I didn't really 'get it'.

Something kind of magical and silly happened when I pared everything right down - a little bit of the joy of 'playing house' came back. It was a taste of that same feeling - my plate, your plate, my towel, your towel - sort of childishly satisfying. And everything feels like less work.

When DD starts school in a week or so, I'm hiring a skip it'll be just me and the baby as DH will be back at work and I'm going to get rid of everything

I can't bloody wait

I put a lot of things aside at first to cope with the "what if we need?" feelings, but it was boxed up and taped down. After a while I just got rid of it.

Yes. Far too much stuff. Also growing up with almost nothing (we were qute poor) made me now go a bit too much onto...accumulating stuff. I too want to declutter. Massively so. I have an excessive amount of clothes yikes!!!

I hate to wish their childhood away but I often look at things and think ‘won’t be long before we won’t need that anymore’.

I do that too! Kids toys are so bulky and get everywhere.

I grew up in a house half the size of what I am lucky enough to have. My mum declutters constantly and it mindful of where she is going to put stuff before she buys. Her house is always immaculate even as a family home it was immaculate.

My house is always a mess always stuff everywhere. I have guilt at throwing stuff out. The kids have far too many toys. Half of which are never played with.

We are in the midst of Operation Empty Nest, DD1 has left home. We are remodelling and repurposing parts of the house.

This has forced us to rethink a lot of the things we have kept but dont use.

The challenge now is getting remaining DCs on board. DS is a total prevaricator.

I also have far too many clothes and far too much fat that 3/4 don't fit. I dream about loosing weight so I can fit my clothes again.

I don't tolerate random stuff, I'm quite militant about it. We have a loft and a garage for storage but I see no point in keeping stuff in the loft that will get thrown away without ever seeing the light of dat again!

We recently moved abroad ( yep in lock down ) and I was incredibly strict with decluttering. I got a skip and threw so much rubbish out. Stuff went on Freecycle sites , sold some stuff and basically cut our crap by half. Its hard at first ( well it was for my DH) but once you start it so liberating. We now live in our new home with only things we really need

We've a big house and far too much stuff. The kids have so many toys (hand me down toys) it's ridiculous.

We've told family that we don't want any material Xmas gifts for us or the kids - instead we want a week at FIL's holiday cottage. Or sports club subscription I. E. DD's gym class.

I am terrible for buying clothes, I have far too many. But I do clear out stuff regularly and donate old clothes to charity.

Toys are so hard to keep on top off. My youngest is only 3 so far too young to suggest non-material gifts but seriously I'm dreading Christmas. I know I need to clear out before then and do a re-juggle after Christmas too.

Yes I do get overwhelmed with all the stuff I've realised over lockdown, possibly cos I've spent more time here
It's all her toys and her stuff. A lot of it anyway.
And I've thought she doesn't really play with a lot now but I'm reluctant to part with a lot because I think what will we do will we get bored
I don't know how other people keep their house so tidy and clutter free

I have taken loads of stuff to charity shops since lockdown ended. I have halved my clothing. I still have too much clutter. I have thrown out lots of cake tins and odd mugs and glasses. I am now operating a one in one out system. If I buy something new something else has to go.

My dd asked me not to buy more stuff for dgs for their birthdays so I got them zoo membership instead and they love it and already been three times.