To just chuck it all in the bin 😖

[Oohooh]

My house is cluttered. Mainly with old clothes that no longer fit the kids/me, baby items (a bouncer, toys that have been outgrown, that kind of thing), and half empty bottles of beauty products (yep I’m a bit of an addict).

Charity shops round here aren’t interested, the local baby bank didn’t want the things I offered as they’re in need of other items. Listing things on Facebook is a total nightmare as you just get inundated with CFs asking you to deliver (no car) or no-shows.

WIBU to just shove it all in a bin bag and take it to the tip? I know it’s a waste but getting rid of it item by item will take FOREVER. Most of the kids stuff was second hand to start with.

I’m in the same position. I create a box once or twice a week and put it outside with a sign, collect it at the end of the day.

It really works

Definitely put it all in the bin. When my mum was in hospital for 6 months my stepdad removed about 28 bin bags of hoarded out of date food from their spare room and freezer. Their house has hmgone from hoarders hell to normal (apart from my mum being bed bound)

Charity shops have very limited storage and they only want stuff that will turnover quickly. Lots of us are over invested in the stuff we've accumulated. We resist binning stuff as "someone could use it" when really it's unlikely to find a home.

Seriously no one wants opened toiletries. It's almost demeaning to expect anyone to use a half bottle of shampoo or second hand makeup. Clothes that aren't pristine are best recycled. Same with kitchen ware etc.

Try olio? Ppl will take anything off that one.

I have put lots of things out my front with a "free" sign and took a video of all the stuff and posted on local facebook with 22k in group

Half of it went in two days rest got tipped

Your local scouts group may well take all the clothes - bag them up and stack them up in the garage or under tarpaulin in sealed plastic bags outside and ask.

Our town has a local clothing bank where people can pick up donated items for free.

Alternatively the clothing recycle bins at the tip are an option. I took about 16 half filled bin bags (of you over fill they won't fit!) a few months back

Get it all to the tip and get yourself and your kids a fresh start.

Feel ZERO guilt about this.

People will say "you should do this, you should do that" but you are an adult so can do whatever you want/need - and you are doing nothing illegal. You might be failing to live up to the ethical standards but people profess to have - but saying "do this, do that" is very different to actually getting that stuff done as it's a nightmare pain in the arse. You've already tried with the baby bank and you have encountered CFs on Facebook. You have done your duty. Just get to the tip and get sorted.

Agreed

For clothing, Put in a bin bag and then into a clothing recycling bin.
The rest of it, dump if nobody wants it.

I agree, I think it's appalling and really sad. They'd sell more if they just put the prices down and help more people.

We do an annual car boot. All adult clothes are £1 all kids stuff 50p.
I stick it on a rail and it's all sold within a couple of hours. To people who actually need it and it lets the kids see another side of life in the UK, where you have to buy clothes from there.

You also get people like the librarian from a local school who wanted to buy all the kids old books - kids negotiated a bulk buy discount.

We also take other stuff which sells somewhat randomly.....last time all the old fashioned phones sold.

Get a skip and fill it up. Throw it all away.

The waste is buying it, not throwing it out. It’s all going to get thrown out eventually, so from now on just don’t buy it.

Good luck!

Please please don't put toiletries down the plug hole - put them in landfill where they will do less damage

Second h&m as it can be any condition.

Putting in all in landfill because you can’t be bothered to recycle responsibly is a disgrace.

As above, there are many easy ways to get rid and for someone to make use of your cast offs.

Putting in all in landfill because you can’t be bothered to recycle responsibly is a disgrace.

I think that ship has sailed @PatRey

The OP tried. The ways might look easy on paper, or might be easy where you live, but it is not easy for OP where she lives.

It is not a disgrace putting this in landfill - it's necessary for the OP to get herself sorted.

You can definitely just throw it all away. So much will end up in landfill anyway.

Once your home is under control, you can be more mindful going forward.

Loads of good YouTube videos on decluttering and minimalism that can help you get and keep you motivated. Dana K White "a slob comes clean" has a great no-.mess method.

OP, throw it away. I used to this hang on to things that just need a button reattached (of course I didn’t have the matching spare button) that sweater with the small hole that just needed a 5 minute darning repair, that blouse with a stain that I knew I could get out with a little work… (you get the idea) because if I did those things I could donate them.

Yeah, that was fine logic… I wasn’t willing to do those things so I could wear them but I was going to jump right on it to donate. Once I realized that by the time that would happen (umm never) nobody would want it anyway!

So new rule… if I don’t want it it’s a pretty safe bet that nobody does.

There are exceptions… non soft furniture goes out at the end of the drive with a post in the neighborhood FB group. “Free to good home… You have until it’s gone or Monday (whatever day) when it’s going to the dump.”

It’s usually gone by the next morning.

@Limth, where do you live that you have scrap men? I've never seen one in my life.

Beauty products, old tatty clothes and any broken or tatty toys straight to the tip.

I would probably try and pass on the baby bouncer and any good kids toys/ clothes if you can. Have you tried Gumtree freebies? I’ve found that better than Facebook personally.