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[educatingarti]

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

If you haven't done so you might like to take some BEFORE photos.
I regret not taking them - and I avoided taking photos showing the flat at all for years - so no before photos for me.

becool I was lamenting this very fact yesterday to DH. I have sent out 8-9 carloads of stuff to charity/recycling/bin, plus sold a good 25-30 things on eBay and sent 2 large boxes of electronics to those websites that buy things of that sort.
Also gotrid of 25 A4 box files, 5 or 6 lever arch files, 2 mini filing cabinets.

BUT I don't have any before photos!

This leads to me walking anxiously around the flat, looking at our boxes (packed for the move) and muttering "it has to have made a difference... there are fewer boxes than last time... are there?? "

I'm feeling the declutter bug taking over. Think it's this heat. Owning stuff is making me too hot.

hehe fuzz the yoga bra is basically a very soft crop top with elastic around the edges to hold everything in when you go upside down. Really comfy, I actually want a couple more of them

I buy all black multi pack knickers, I threw away all the coloured/patterned ones as I never wear them [boring emoticon]

Iwipe avoid the tip at all costs - we went yesterday and I nearly expired from the heat, all that concrete and no shade... also smelly

"I buy all black multi pack knickers"
Me too!

I'm about to do a ruthless cull of my sideboard. Loads of books, paper, unused stationery in there. Full time work starts in Sept and although I'll mainly be working at uni, I want to make my study inviting for all the reading I have to do. Also I have about 30 incoming books for work that need somewhere to live before I get my office. And I'll take before and after photos!

Artemis, I'll see if I can unearth the links x

The coolest shadiest part of my flat is now 26 deg C!
My (probably) Scandinavian genes are not liking it very much - although I am enjoying the sunshine generally. I am melting.

I am trying to do some alternate 20:10 housework, 30:10 work sessions ( 20 minutes isn't quite long enough to get focused in on a bit of work).

For some mad reason ( why don't we have an "am I crazy" smilie?) I have decided to wash the bedroom curtains. they could do with it and of course it's a great day to get them dry but then of course they will need ironing!

The sole piece of de-cluttering I've done today is to sort out all the spent batteries to put in the battery recycling next time I go to Aldi!

I have one final bag of clothes under bed to sort .. then that will be it.. yipeeee... I have even bought a pretty box - large but will fit under bed (everything else gone now) that is empty an waiting on maternity clothes to store away in seven months weeks time.
I just want to wash the duvet in single room plus kitchen curtains and the nursery needs a paint. Then one final whizz around the house and I will be very happy.

I made photobooks online to reduce clutter.

Just a question - we live in a very small house. All my declutter efforts have now meant it is a very easy to keep house.
Already, the hand me downs have begun and people are kindly getting us stuff. Oh my god.. where will I put it. I have told himself to keep stuff in the shed till we know what we really need. How to you keep baby clutter to a minimum? I have good storage now- full empty wardrobe and chest of seven large drawers.

Thank you

Does anyone else get that thing when you vacuum - you know when you hear something rattle up the vacuum tube and you are convinced it must be a valuable earring/lost widgit that you absolutely need to operate the thingamejig/pricless miniature family heirloom/gold dubloon from pirate hoard/ etc? I have to resist opening up the dustbag to see!

My bedroom is now 27 degrees C but it is clean and vacuumed and relatively de-cluttered - it was the easiest to declutter and that is where I have made most progress! It looks great with clean sheets on the bed and everything.
Curtain 1 is dry and curtain 2 is on the line. I'm tempted to hang them up without ironing!

I am going to have something to eat and then a cool shower in an attempt to get myself to do a bit more work!

Wow- MrsPaddy - it sounds like you have done loads! Rearding baby stuff - not much real advice but the shed sounds like a great plan! One thing I'd do is be logical. Not sure when your baby is due but if (for example) baby is due in December and people give you 0-3month summer clothes then there's not too much point in hanging onto those!

DD is now freaking out at the thought of selling her precious tat in the car boot tomorrow. I've said she can keep anything she wants to, as I don't want to scar her for life.

Baby due early Sept.. I have four large white storage boxes and used the label maker to mark them 0-3, 3-6 etc. in preparation for older stuff. Then I made compartments for the chest of drawers/changer we bought. It is antique white/distressed. I love it and should last a lifetime.

I have wicker baskets bought to store toys/nappies.

I have nothing else to throw out !!!

I love my label maker though.. where was I without it?? ha ha.. everything is getting labelled. Actually it is great for marking boxes etc and so quick.

I love my label maker too, Mrs Paddy.

Just been through my top drawer (where I keep make up, moisturiser etc) and wondering about getting rid of the 2-3 aspirational products that I never use eg posh serums I bought back in the age of affluence.

Realistically I'm a wash and moisturise kind of woman and don't do anything more complicated. So do I really need the eyelash curlers? I think I've just answered my own question...

mrsp which label maker do you have? I need one too!! You sound very organised, reminds me of when DC1 was due - no plastic crap in sight

Becool I take photos!! Its for photographic evidence . I clear the decks and within 5 minutes of my DH and DCs being home, the rubbish reappears I can then look at the pictures before/after to reassure myself that it was clean and clear, once.

I blitzed the kitchen, shredded some paperwork and vowed NEVER to buy lego again.

Arti re the vacuuming thing, if I hear a rattle I assume its Lego. I have no desire to pick through the fluff/hair/dust to find it and TBH a little piece of me is glad as it is 1 less bit to stand on [meany emoticon]

Oh and Building'i would do the same as you good luck with the sale

I did a bit more in the DCs' room this evening. Two more plastic bags full of rubbish and a large bag of chazzer stuff. And their clothes are mostly hung up and folded now.

I have a question though. As I have been really ruthless with clothes, there is now more space in the Trofast unit, so I think I'll move their underwear/socks into the spare buckets. But that means I will now have the three wooden drawers in the cabin bed free. What do I put in them? (I know that sounds like a really stupid question but I can't think what to store in them!)

Bedding

fuzzpig I am soooo impressed!

Ok, so half-hour of paper culling went well and I've more or less emptied an antique suitcase that has housed all sorts of junk. I want to get rid of the sideboard if possible because it just doesn't suit my needs. Maybe someone would want to buy a midcentury modern sideboard - something my friend was getting rid of a while back - and I can use the proceeds to buy myself a more suitable piece of furniture.

Considering I make my living through books I don't think I have too many (having ruthlessly culled at every opportunity). I've finally accepted that I don't get on with the Kindle, so I may need to bring down a (currently empty) set of shelves so that my books can breathe...

Thanks Harriet :o

IWipe sorry I should've been clearer, they are quite small drawers. Not sure of measurements but I could perhaps fit a sheet or two in them (they are currently folded into linen baskets at the bottom of their wardrobe) which is a good plan. I have also culled some old hand me down duvet covers as we were given nicer ones by PIL last year. And I have finally accepted the fact that it is totally counterproductive to have too many spares of anything that requires washing!

I know I keep harping on about the book but a while back the idea was mentioned of a Simplicity Parenting chat thread. Is anyone still up for that? I am really struggling with DD and it would be nice to talk about it with people who 'get' what the problems are and what we are trying to achieve, but don't want to derail the clutter thread. If anyone is interested I will gladly start one tomorrow :)

Anyway, the behaviour DD is terrorising us all with currently displaying is making me want to do this decluttering much faster. I am SO frustrated with my health right now I want to do loads more NOW but can't risk overdoing it. I am also resisting the urge to go and get more boxes to safely move our books into tomorrow, so we can get rid of the rubbish/delapidated bookcase. I don't think we are ready for that though as the house is still so cluttered there'd be nowhere to put any of it.

Such a long way to go...

Yes, fuzz, I'm definitely up for a Simplicity Parenting thread. I haven't reread it in ages and my dc's screen time has got out of control... Are you happy to start it?

Ds1 left primary school yesterday and last night I put all his school sweatshirts into storage for his brother to grow into and started quietly weeping... He's a lovely boy and I'm so proud of him but I'd like the growing up to slow down a little...

I read becool's kitchen thread with great interest. The only thing I disagreed with was the poster who talked about replacing bedding and towels every couple of years. I have a duvet cover handed down from my mum that is so soft through years of wear and it's lovely to sleep under it. I have towels that are 10+ years old. They look fine and they still dry me.

Yay Harriet glad I won't be on my own then! I am about to rush off to work now so will start it later.

I think I'd be interested in that thread, I'll download the book later.
How about pyjamas in the drawers?

Today my lounge contents sit in the garden. We're laying laminate. Despite a good amount of decluttering, it looks like we could still get rid of more. So I'm evaluating everything before it goes back in. What we don't want will go. I filled a big box and a laundry basket just with bottles from the drinks cabinet. We hardly drink these days.

I'm looking forward to getting the lounge organised how I want it finally. It will certainly give the dc more room and we will all be able to sit at the dining table, even the babies in their high chairs.

sok I went to a colleague's bbq at the end of term and brought the vast majority of my drinks cabinet, a real mixture of stuff - she was delighted as everyone brought mixers and made cocktails/experimented and she didn't have to buy any drinks at all for the party.

I was delighted to get rid of all these dusty bottles which were taking up a whole cupboard in the living room.

Best part was that DH who is a bit of a hoarder is very generous by nature so he didn't argue about getting rid of them this way as he would have done if I had just wanted to chuck them out!