To bin EVERYTHING and just start over?

[readingismycardio]

Just kidding, obviously, I wish I could!

Recently I realised I have too many objects (clothes, shoes, accesories, bags, anything really), and giving that we're moving next year from a one bed to a three bed (yay!) I want to declutter massively and only take with us things that we actually use and love. So this year, the decluttering has started, I binned, I sold, I donated a shit ton of clothes, bags, perfumes, books, etc, but I still feel like I'm not done with it.

I am in no way aspiring to be a minimalist, but I do like my house to be tidy.

Did you ever feel like you are tired of SO MANY THINGS? What did you do?

Rant over, thank you

I have a ton of DVDs, but they’re European region and we live in the states so nobody here can use them (we brought a PlayStation 3 over with us to watch them on which has since been passed on)….there’s no way of saving them from the dump is there really? Have offered them on all the expat groups I’m on

Place marking.

I suffer from keeping too much stuff - bought for a reason, memories, love the colours, may read again, and you never know, I might just need it.
I was right about keeping plastic bags though

For all those
Sentimental items - I read
A tip once which said take a photo of them
and then Get rid!

As a charity shop manager could I please ask that if you're donating to a charity please bear in mind that although most accept everything it really does have to be saleable. We get hundreds of bags of broken dirty things. We can't sell them and then have to spend time sorting through them and pay to have them removed. We fill our industrial bin every week with broken and unusable items . We do sell our rags but receive nothing for the hundreds of bras and knickers we get each month . If you don't think it would raise money for yourselves it won't raise money for a charity either . We do take dvds and cds though

I've got rid of everything several times.
When I bought a boat from a large house, charity shopped 95% of my stuff.
When I abandoned my husband on said boat then started from scratch taking very little with me.
When I moved into my forever home from my small council house.
I am a Scorpio though and we are forever shedding our skin and renewing.

Drastic but when we moved house everyone got one box of things they would like to take 😂 We bought new beds and furniture and everything.
We’re fully grown adults with a house we had lived in a decade so had a lot of stuff we didn’t need x

I believe a lot of the contents of a skip are recycled

www.skip-rental.co.uk/what-happens-to-skip-waste/

I'm tired of so many things, but mostly DH's - I'm quite good and unsentimental about getting rid of things I don't use or are knackered, but DH is not quite a hoarder, but does hold onto things for no good reason.

@FindingMeno

The other part of this is to address future buying.

This is really important - I always end up with too many clothes - so my rule is a new item that comes in and old one gets sold or given to charity. If possible 2 items - this helps.

Also the zombie apocalypse idea - where you have 20mins to grab the essentials and a few precious or keepsake items - makes you think about what you would bother to take.

@Vicliz24

As a charity shop manager could I please ask that if you're donating to a charity please bear in mind that although most accept everything it really does have to be saleable. We get hundreds of bags of broken dirty things. We can't sell them and then have to spend time sorting through them and pay to have them removed. We fill our industrial bin every week with broken and unusable items . We do sell our rags but receive nothing for the hundreds of bras and knickers we get each month . If you don't think it would raise money for yourselves it won't raise money for a charity either . We do take dvds and cds though

Absolutely and thanks for your message. I Only donate items in pristine condition. It makes me sad that people see charity shops as their own personal bin... Knickers? Really?

@KobaniDaughters

I have a ton of DVDs, but they’re European region and we live in the states so nobody here can use them (we brought a PlayStation 3 over with us to watch them on which has since been passed on)….there’s no way of saving them from the dump is there really? Have offered them on all the expat groups I’m on

I have the exact problem.

MIL in England has sent us DVD's for the past 17 years and the collection is pretty large but we no longer own a DVD player because we can see all the programs on streaming services in the US.

I have gone to UK expat groups, tried the FB marketplace and no takers because of the region and few people have region-free DVD's. It pains me to think my only option is to throw them but I just can't do it.

When I moved into my current house a couple of years ago, I did similar. I got rid of about 80% of stuff. I'd bought a lot of things very cheaply or second hand when I first bought the house as I had very little money and never replaced them so I didn't bring them. I had wound up with multiple junk drawers - I had a quick look through them for anything actually needed and then just got rid of the whole things.

All those things that I had kept "just in case" and never actually used, but been annoyed by the clutter every day. It's just not worth it. It's so freeing and feels so nice to have a place for everything now and drawers and cupboards not basically rammed full

Regarding the DVDs. My neighbour has used some to hang in a tree as decorations. İt looks ridiculous but maybe you could take them out of the boxes, recycle the boxes and put them up as a job lot in eBay with international buyers as an option. You might get someone who wants to watch them somewhere in the world, or you might find someone who wants them for an art project.

@KobaniDaughters

@KobaniDaughters

I have a ton of DVDs, but they’re European region and we live in the states so nobody here can use them (we brought a PlayStation 3 over with us to watch them on which has since been passed on)….there’s no way of saving them from the dump is there really? Have offered them on all the expat groups I’m on

The boxes are recyclable plastic and the cardboard sleeve can be pulled out for recycling too.

I'm not sure if the discs themselves can be recycled though. Does anyone know?

My neighbour has used some to hang in a tree as decorations.

I want to point out that this is pure hell for anyone with the misfortune of having their neighbours close by, with the sun glinting off these home-made bird scarers (what my neighbour uses them tied to plants for) and sending shards of bright light flickering all round the room.

@OnyxOryx we already did that a few years ago with a bunch of old cds!

@TeapotCollection

We’ve got way too much stuff too!

I don’t have the answer but we are going to have a massive clear out over the winter. We’ve got a mountain of DVDs that’ll probably end up in the bin, which is a shame but they’re just gathering dust

Try Ziffit, MusicMagpie or similar apps. A quick zap with the barcode reader, put in box and post them free. They will then credit you with some cash. V quick and easy.

Went through mine and DH’s wardrobes yesterday and have two charity shop bags and a big box of higher end stuff to take to a clothes exchange

Loving doing a little thing every day. Half way through all the crap in and under our bedside tables so will finish that today then move onto the garage which is full of stuff that can immediately be binned or donated

@OnyxOryx I don't think they can be recycled, I looked a little while ago and couldn't find any way to recycle them. However, people sometimes use them on allotments as a way of scaring the birds away. So it is possible to find another use for them at least.

We moved House and did a lot of de-cluttering, inspired by having to clear out MIL’s house when she sadly died. I didn’t want our kids to have to do the same for us, so we passed on masses. For us the secret was, after donating clothes etc to recycling and charities, using Freegle. We worked out it wasn’t worth the hassle selling stuff, we just wanted it out of the house and with freegle people honestly need and want the stuff so it’s very satisfying! Also great for sentimental things. Though anything will go! Amazing to pass on half a bag of cat litter you’re keeping just in case (we don’t have a cat)! to someone who actually wants it!

Just found a car seat recycling program at the local children’s hospital! I’ve had two hanging around for 3 years unused! Off they go today (and offered on my neighbour’s group to also take other people’s along)

@OnyxOryx

My neighbour has used some to hang in a tree as decorations.

I want to point out that this is pure hell for anyone with the misfortune of having their neighbours close by, with the sun glinting off these home-made bird scarers (what my neighbour uses them tied to plants for) and sending shards of bright light flickering all round the room.

Wow now it makes sense why they have done that. İ thought they genuinely thought they looked pretty 😂 they do shine occasionally into my living room but barely noticeable.