De-cluttering - can it make such a difference that you don't need to move to a bigger house. Inspiration needed!

[nananoo]

Hi all.

We love the area we live in and our little house. But increasingly it does feel too small. We don't want (and can't afford) to move. We can't extend because the building is listed.

So - I think de cluttering is the answer! DP and myself are not hoarders and things regularly go to charity shops and eBay.

I do struggle with the dcs possessions though - bikes,soft toys, plastic things etc.

I would love to hear any advice and tips from anyone who has made their small house work for a growing family just by getting rid of stuff.

We are managing in our small house because I got OH to declutter. Well he didn't actually but I did get him to move his 2000+ dvd collection from an entire wall of cupboard space into 3 cases so that now we can fit things for the kids in the living room and have some storage space as our little kitchen doesn't hold much.

Now if I could only get him to switch to a kindle and get rid of his wall of books we'd have a ton of space...

Hi EagleRiderDirk - we had a purge on the DVDs and the books too. It freed up a whole bookshelf! DP has a kindle - and I will get one too when I find some time again to read!

Hi Nannanoo - we are one adult and 2 DC in a one bed flat in central London. We will have to move eventually, but as I split from P over Xmas, and childminder & schools etc are great where we are, I want to stay for a little while. I can't afford a bigger place in our area so moving is completely overwhelming at the moment (as it would mean changing everything).

Our flat was very cluttered, so I decided to have a major sort out and declutter and in the hope that the place would then be more manageable & a better space to live.

And it has pretty much worked for us - I still have a way to go, but it was amazing how much more space I have made, and how much more enjoyable the flat is to live in now I've thrown away/given away/donated a whole load of stuff. And I'm not missing anything.

The DC toys was hard to do and I went lightly, but toys have been put in different places and they aren't missing them at all! So I'll no doubt give that another go soon.

Come and join us on the minimalist/decluttering thread - current one if simply entitled 'm'.

loads of advice an inspiration on out thread, but in a nutshell it is the classics you need to refer back to:
repeatedly as yourself:
Do I use it?
Do I need it? (think about what need means)
Do I love it?
If yes to the above then keep it - if not decide what goes to charity/friends/sell/bin.

You rarely need more than one of anything esp in the kitchen. Get rid of duplicates. You can get crockery/cutlery etc down considerably and easily, towels and linen too.

Some days will be hard, other days you will find yourself feeling fantastic and doing really well. Once you get started it is quite contagious.

Over 2 months I estimated I took 25 bin bags full to charity shop and about the same to the bin. Now it's slowed down but its an ongoing process.

We have just downsized from a 4 bed, 2 public room in an alright area to a 3 bed, 1 living/diner in the area we wanted to be. I had a good de-clutter before we left but I have sent another 25+ bags to the charity shop and dump since we arrived.

I have been quite hard on the DC's possessions too as they didn't play with a lot and had outgrown even more. Items they adore but have outgrown have been placed in the attic.

For the first time ever it takes under 10min to sort out bed's, hoover etc in the morning . I am currently looking to change our living room furniture for something with a bit of storage. I am definitely a clutter free convert!

Me, DH and 2DDs live in a 1.5 bed flat (small room fits bunk beds and nothing else). It's fine for now because we have no clutter so it's easy to keep tidy and clean. I don't know if we will move to somewhere bigger when the DDs are bigger but no plans to now. My best tip though is to stop buying things. There's no point de cluttering if you go out and buy things to fill the new space

oooh - do come and join us on "m" thread! Currently people there with, for example 4 dcs in 2 bed house!

Thanks everyone. I'm off to look at the "m" thread now! Feeling very motivated and inspired.