Become a Konvert in 2015 - Kondo thread 5. All welcome!

[PeoniesforMissAnnersley]

Thought I better set this up when I realised I had inadvertently posted the 999th post on thread 4!

Join us in purging our lives of things which do not bring joy and discover the wonder and magic of folding your knickers!

Just finished kondoing the baking cupboard and the other half of the food cupboards when I was intending to bake a cake! Three carrier bags full of out of date crap later, sponge now in oven! I'm finding it a bit of challenge as it seems every drawer or cupboard I open I think right lets do this now! Makes me head spin a little bit but in a good way I guess

Violettatrump I'm glad you found the link helpful.

That's a great wardrobe list!

The key is choosing items that are versatile - 91 outfits from 12 garments! Who'd have thought it?

I need a few more things than that, because I only do laundry when I have a full load, about once a week, and I try to avoid using the dryer. Also, my house has no central heating, so I'm the Layer-Queen!

APlaceOnTheCouch

Yes, it is possible for feet to change size.

For most of my life I was 5.5 - 6. Now I am a 6.5-7. And width sometimes plays a role too.

I suspect some of the shoes stored in my wardrobe will have to go.

APlace. I used to be a 5.5 pre kids but now post kids take a 6. I've been told they spread a little over the years but only now believe that

Iqueen I've copied my clothing list out and will have a second sift through my wardrobe mid week before plugging holes. Will aim for versatile wardrobe thanks, you've started the cogs turning! A minimalist but working wardrobe would suit me. Presently I have the first but not the second as everything is so scrappy. Who'd have ever thought kondoing my house would make me kondo my appearance too! And my finances! And eating habits!

Must add I've collected a tesco bag stuffed full of shoes for the charity shop today.

Iqueen that's interesting to know. I have about 5 pairs that don't fit ranging in size from 5 to 6. I think I've kept them thinking that they must fit because they did in the past but it's obvious that they don't so in the bag they go. They are in very good condition so hopefully my DSIS will get some joy from them

I actually found a pair of shoes that give me great joy but I'd packed them away because the heel needed repaired. I repaired it today and am looking forward to wearing them when there is no torrential rain so that will be about July then .

Just causght up on the thread - and thank you all for the inspiration. I was feeling very bleurgh today but reading your exploints has enthused me to get on with Kondoing the final shelf of books in the spare doom! (Yes I know I was supposed to get them ALL out at once but the living room floor was covered as it was!) I may then tackle another shelf in the hall cupboard as my previous system for storing hats/scarves etc isn't really working!

Violettatrump So many changes! Well done! I hope each one brings you joy now, and in the future! (I think a lot of people on here will find that they have more money - thanks to MK. The book is definitely a good investment.)

APlaceOnTheCouch I once read that wearing tight shoes shows in our faces! Your sister's in luck... providing her feet haven't spread as well!

Hi, I'm trying to get started with all of this. We decided to start by sorting out our loft as when H went to put the Xmas tree back in the loft he said it was 90% full. We've used our loft as a place to shove things we don't know what to do about.

So, this weekend we've started to take things out but I feel very overwhelmed. We've taken 3 car loads to the tip already. I tried to take other stuff to the charity shop but out of the 3 nearby, 2 weren't accepting donations and the 3rd one would only take clothes and they weren't even that happy about that.

I'm really stuck about what to do with things that are actually quite decent but that we don't need if I can't get the charity shops to take them. We've masses of baby toys, equipment and clothes. I could Freecycle or sell stuff on eBay but then I'd still have it hanging around for ages. Also, all the clothes are quite decent but have been in the loft for quite a few years (my children are now 11 and 14!) and so would all need washing etc. Should I just dump them? Not sure I can bear it. I just wish I'd sorted all of this out at the time but I'd hoped I'd be able to persuade H to have another 2 children (no luck!) so thought I might need it again.

I am trying though. Had a little moment at the tip with the first stage car seat. I found myself dangling it over the hard plastic skip and saying, "Thank you and goodbye".

Lindt70Percent

I was wondering what Charity Shops were going to do, in view of the exponential growth in discarding - thanks to MK!

Here's a possible solution for clothes:

www.genierecycling.com/?gclid=CNjwvue8jMMCFYLnwgodlT8ABQ

We use the clothes bank regularly - just a huge metal container in big supermarket car park. We also shove things in the shoe bank too sometimes.

I think freegle/freecycle etc is quite a good way of getting rid of stuff fairly quickly. In my experience you can often get rid of stuff within a week ( and I'd not get to a charity shop more than once a week anyway!)

Why not try putting stuff on (say tonight) and then taking anything that hasn't gone to the tip next weekend. If you put "needs to be taken before Sunday" on each post then people know they have to respond quickly!

DS was moaning about having to tidy and why am I always saying thank you and then getting rid of things? I made him watch How Clean is Your House so he appreciates why we all need to make an effort to keep our house clean and tidy. I think he gets it now probably given him nightmares too . I am encouraging him to say thank you and goodbye to his too small clothes (he gets very attached to his things) and he said it to his swim trunks. Yay!

The great thing about Genie is that they supply a very strong, free, 30kg poly sack, they collect free, and they pay 60p/kg for everything they accept. Full details about what, and the condition of, items, is on the site.

Sadly, I don't have enough stuff to do it.

Iqueen just looked at your link. It looks interesting but then I found on one page PLEASE NOTE: DUE TO CITY LINK ENTERING ADMINISTRATION, COLLECTIONS ARE ON HOLD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. APOLOGIES FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE THIS MAY CAUSE.

I think Freecycle might be the way to go. I guess I'll need to give everything a wash first won't I. They are all packed in bags labelled things like "Boys clothes 6-9 months" etc. so I could do a bag at a time.

H is really laughing at all of this (in a nice way!). He always calls me 'the shopping jinx' as whenever I want to buy something it's always sold out of they've got every size except mine etc. Now when I want to get rid of things no one will accept anything! He's now calling me 'the donation jinx'.

IQueen - I don't think that you need to give everything a wash! Just put on freecycle advert - "good quality but stored for a while so could do with a wash to freshen up" or something similar! If someone is really in need of stuff, they'd still be pleased (and would probably want to re-wash it anyway - I always do with stuff I get from the Chazza!)

I'd second the idea of Freecycle to get rid of stuff. It's worth looking at the wanted posts too as it can be quicker if you find someone asking for whatever you want to give away.
Last week someone asked for carpet offcuts which reminded me we had some in the garage, they were gone the next day!

Lindt70Percent do you have a local FB selling page ? Put bundles of kids clothes/toys up there for free to collect or price them cheaply and you should get rid quickly . Thought I'd have gotten rid of a buggy,baby swing and a bag of other stuff to charity shop plus clothes to the Womens Refuge but DP was being a moany plonker and after the big row we had I wouldn't satisfy him to remind him he'd promised to take the stuff into town for me (yes, I'm a little bit stubborn :) ), so Im going to list it up for collection this week to get rid - except for the stuff for the refuge, I'll get it in at some stage .

educatingarti That's a good point, I think I'll do that.

Pointlessfan Just chucked away some carpet offcuts. Should have thought of Freecycle.

MILLYmo0se There is a local FB selling page but I don't have an active FB account. I'd happily to take stuff to a Woman's Refuge. Will see if there's one nearby.

Hiccup

You don't have to make a firm decision now, i would keep what you want to now and revisit later. You can always get rid of it if you decide you don't want it but can't get it back if you donate it now. I am quite happy for them to be in the loft as long as they are organised. My dd is very happy that i kept her cot toy from when she a tiny baby, she might decide to get rid of it later together, with her handmade blanket, but it is up to her. I do wash them every now and then and they have been up there for 16 years which might seem crazy to others, but i would like them to have the opportunity to use the stuff if they want to and i won't mind if they don't. This whole process is about letting go of things that weigh us down.

Somebody mentioned photos, i have lovely photos in albums of pretty buildings from far away and from twenty five years ago, i can't decide what to do with them either, so i can't say it makes any difference if they are in albums, you still face the same problem. At the moment i am ignoring them as it is probably the only cupboard in the house that has not been kondoed. They are tidy , in albums and yet I know I should go through them. It might be one of the categories i just revisit as yesterday i realised that a towel that i had taken out was not as thick as it used to be so off it went.

Yay just sold washable nappies on a Facebook group that have been cluttering up the place! Pleased to a. Get rid and b. Get a bit of cash. Also sold them to a lady about to have a baby who wanted to try washable nappies so I feel I've helped her out too!

Love reading everyone's stories! We've just got back from a weekend at the in-laws so no Kondoing for me lately. Am raring to get back into it tomorrow though. plenty of stuff I could have Kondoed at the ILs though, starting with their extensive collection of tiny and completely threadbare guest towels

Linda, a good option might be to call Women's Aid. They are keen for all that sort of thing as some women have to leave abusive partners with literally the clothes on their back. They often come and collect as they have to be so careful about letting people know locations to drop off.

Iqueen I can understand why that would be - hobbling in pain doesn't lend itself to smiling. From now on, my feet will only wear shoes and boots that give them joy

I've Kondoed all the bits and pieces on the kitchen table and seats and the jackets hung over the seats . For the first time in ages, the table is absolutely empty except for the fruit bowl. Usually there are little toys or paperwork or laundry waiting to be put away. I am now Kondoing Christmas chocolate to celebrate.

lindt I've found freecycle good for getting rid of baby clothes quickly. I got rid of two bags of baby bedding and three of baby clothes in two days. I'd not washed them first either (obviously washed before I stored them originally) and just let the people know they'd need freshening up.

I'm getting a bit of kondo-fatigue, I believe it's known as medically. Have now done clothes, books, paperwork, dvds, cds, makeup and skincare. I've been piling general rubbish into boxes of categories as we go. So we have a box of electrical, photos, sentimental, tools etc but I'm so fed up of clearing out and the house being a tip of stuff for the charity shop etc.

However had a huge break through and I have organised all my son's craft stuff. He now has a whole shelf of paints, colouring books, stickers etc all in boxes and labelled. Didn't realise how much we had until it was organised and brought together I did a 'before' picture of the cupboard so will take another now it's done and post them both