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[educatingarti]

This is the new minimalist/decluttering thread! I hope everyone likes the minimal title!

Freecycle has been a godsend this weekend - gone is the box of left over tiles, unused door knobs and a wall hung drying rack! I'm now trying to get someone to come get the 20 (!) sample pots of paint I have. I've also found a chair and a stool that are going to the recycling centre.

Harriet I actually had a tidy tent! I gave it to a friend on a decluttering kick. Sadly I now need something larger due to the volume of ride-on toys / buggies / carseats we have. In my defense I have a lot of kids around on a regular basis, they do get used!

That's fantastic Polka !! Your DD will love it!
My DC still love their creations, even when badly sewn on eyes have fallen off

arti I want to read 'strage tings that happen in the night.'

Finished sewing another patch on jeans at the weekend and sewed elastic into forlorn pjs while we watched Dr Who. Consigned an unmendable jumper to the scrap bag, dyed a skirt and pair of shorts and finished making a cushion cover from a tshirt that's far too small for ds1 but he wanted to keep. (It's age 5-6. He's nearly 11). All while telly on, which either means we watched too much telly or I'm sewing more quickly. Either way I'm minimising the mending basket and keeping clothes that I like going. Also consigned a few more clothes in good condition that don't suit me to the chazza bag. No amount of sewing will make that bolero cardigan work. What was I thinking?

Trouble is my arm is still playing up so I can't get all this stuff to the dump/charity shop at the moment and the hall is filling up!

harriet
Maybe a line or two from Chapter 3 "setting off", will keep you going!
"So thay pichet there tents and spred there grownd shiets and startid araniging there things and Anne went rornd the tents to see if all the things where in the rite plaseis"
Do you think I've absorbed the style! I was surprised, reading it as an adult, to find out how many Blytonesque phrases I've included!

You seem to have done a load of things -there's a lot in my mending basket waiting for me to get around to it!

I need to get on with stuff today. Struggling to throw out old keys in case I suddenly remember what they were for and need them!!

Is there a good way to dispose of food storage tubs? I doubt the chazzer would want them?

'Anne went rornd the tents to see if all teh things where in the rite plaseis.' LOVE IT!!! I think Anne would have been on this thread.

hobnob try your local recycling centre. Ours does 'soft' and 'Hard' plastics. Otherwise no idea
The ones I no longer want for fresh food I either use to store crafty bits in or even in the fridge for -hiding- DCs packed lunch things that if left out in fridge will be consumed -by DH-

I had a dream about clutter last night

I dreamed it was DS' birthday and one person gave him a tiny bit of plastic railway kit. And I thought oh well, I'll just sneak it away as he has loads of wooden railway track anyway so this wouldn't really be used.

But then everyone else gave him bits for the same plastic track. And I was screaming inside, NOOOOOO, what do I do, I can't get rid of all the presents, but DS can't have two types of railway!

:o

Well Ds could have 2 types of railway at least for a bit you know! There are no rules about this!!

Fuzz this happened to me in real life - I posted about it on one of the previous threads! I have just moved the plastic train into the house because our renter has moved into the annex where it was. However, I think I'm going to see if he wants it as his DS will be staying on the weekends and he has a distinct lack of toys.

Trains and tracks absolutely multiply !!
DD had a small ikea 8 track it was brilliant, shoebox size. Then she got into Thomas TTE so she had a small oval shape track. Then DSIL offered us their old engines and later a beautiful Brio track. DH saw a track mounted on a base board it was fab so he wanted to do that. But not with the Brio so he bought a cheap wooden track to do this with!!!

Last year our friends mother died, he lives OS so we helped him clear his mums house and would you believe it asked if we could store his childhood train set

arti I love your FF book, I want to read it all!

No decluttering here, no energy for that sort of thing just now. Back on the topic of pens, from a few days ago - I found a box with about 20 blue biros in it! So glad I didn't buy any!

Sorry you're not feeling well fuzz, take it easy, hope you feel better soon.

I think my DCs would be devastated if we glued down any track! :o DS loves building with it much more than playing. They have loads which is stored in a big Really Useful Box. They use it all - DS's intricate tracks take up the entire room - but I do need to go through and snaffle away any broken bits.

at issimma.

Sounds great issimma! And even though it seems like you have no life now, just think how much more of a life you will have when not fighting the clutter! :)

Good to see you back Issima. I have finally made it to the chazzer!!! Four crates of stuff I have gradually cleared out through this year have gone from our lives, and the plastic tubs taken to the dump. Back into eBay too, but away for 3 weeks so the cycle will be broken. I might educate my mother in the way of eBay whilst away

I've had a lovely morning clearing out drawers in our living room.
Firstly, I did the 'Electrical' drawer -chucked the boxes that the DDs cameras came in and wound all the cables to the many chargers etc. DH has a labeller, so I labelled them all -all is neat.

Then I moved on the the 'random' drawer and sorted that out. It contains lined paper, cross stitch kits, wrapping paper, craft supplies etc.

Then the final drawer has DD clouring and activity books -I think they must breed in there. Dh fixed the drawer a few months ago as it was so heavy, the bottom was falling out. Unfortunately it was popped out again so I was very strict and culled the books and quickly put them in the recycling before DDs get home from school.

Hobnob - depending on size, see if your local primary wants the food tubs. Ours is always asking for takeaway tubs for the dc to take home their cooking. Means no one worries about having to find something or losing it.

Got rid of 12 wine glasses, 2 margarita glasses, one glass candle lantern thing (we used to have a pair but one broke) and the sandwich toaster no one seems to want today. Was terrified of the glasses all shattering in the box but they survived intact. We still have 8 wine glasses! (Just in case we entertain).

Have also cleared loads of rubbish out of our bedroom. Dh can see the floor so was nicely surprised. Onwards and upwards.

We have no wine glasses as we don't drink. If people (meaning, my parents!) want to drink wine, they a) bring their own and b) drink it out of a mug :o

I need wine glasses. We seem to have broken all of ours and we have 8 folk coming round tomorrow. Thanks for the timely reminder.

We need wine glasses as well! I have my grandmothers china and the box of wine glasses seems to have disappeared in the renovations

Well I'm down a chandelier, wireless router and 20 (!) tester pots of paint thanks to freecycle. I'm just waiting for someone to want a couple of chrome waste traps and some fuzzi bunz cloth nappies...

After this latest round I'm pretty sure I can tackle my craft supplies again. I need to organise the kids stuff and I'm sure more of mine can go as well.