So this decluttering malarkey...

[Snap8TheCat]

What happens if you need everything but your house is still full and gets messy really easily?

Any tips?

Most people move to a bigger house.
? "storage" solutions.
Try the Kondo idea where you declutter by category, to make fully sure you don't have unrequired multiples of the same thing.

We have lots of baskets. Especially in the dcs rooms. I just gather everything and sling it in there at the end of the day.

Be ruthless - do you really need it or could something else do the same job? Bin it if so.

I get rid of every book and magazine once read, store dvds and cds in a big case without their boxes and take photos of paperwork so I don't have to keep the originals.

I also have a hook on the back of bedroom and bathroom doors for dressing gowns etc.

Moving to a bigger house is a definite no- it’s a HA house.

I work from home as a CM so tidiness is pretty essential.

I’ve read Marie Kondo’s book but it just seemed rather extreme. A bit impractical.

If you need everything then you need somewhere to put it all.

But do you really need everything?

Hmm. Even if I got rid of a few things, it’s not a significant enough amount to make any difference.

I genuinely don’t know how people get rid of so much stuff that their houses look vastly different.

But if you got rid of a couple of bits from each area you would notice.

So your bookcase. Take off every book you will not read again. Every book you have had on your 'I will read this' list and never got round to it. Take off everything that isnt a book. Itll make a difference.

Board games and jigsaws. Take away all jigsaws with pieces missing. All games which are outgrown / missing key elements / broken.

Maybe I’m not brutal enough! I feel like everything I look at we need and perhaps we do but equally if I got rid I wouldn’t notice!

I definitely don’t keep broken toys. My daughter has a teeny tiny bedroom and hates parting with stuff but I don’t let her keep broken stuff. My boys share a small double and are older so no toys particularly but two in there means there still isn’t a lot of space.

Brutality is needed.

Do you have Netflix? If so get rid of the dvds. Yes all of them.

I do have Netflix but not everything is on there?!
Do you just accept that and think well there’ll still be something else to watch?

Ok so bin the ones that are. Its a start. And the ones you wont watch again.

Ok I’ve started making a list. We have two sets of suitcases when we only need one so they can go too!

Well done!!

What you need is a packing party. Pack up everything. Even toiletries.
Make sure to label boxes well!

As you actually need something, you take it out, use it then put it into its cupboard/drawer.

After a month ( or whatever) assess what's still left in the boxes.

If you can't find anything you think "oh I don't need that" about immediately, then look for the things you use least.

Kondo is useful for the approach to categories even if it's too brutal. Think about gathering all your books/jeans/whatever together and find the ones you use least. That's what goes.

Find whichever drawer you open least. Put all its contents into a box, looking at them as little as possible. Put it at the back of your wardrobe for a month, then see how much of it is worth putting back in the drawer and how much you can chuck.

If you wouldn't notice something was gone you definitely don't need it.

Examples of things I've got rid of:

• All DVDs and the DVD player. If we want to watch a film we pay £4 to watch via Virgin Media or we watch on Netflix

• All CDs, now we just stream from Amazon prime music (which I already had for deliveries)

• Any clothes I haven't worn for 12 months

• Any decor/ornaments/art/whatevs that doesn't go with the current look of the house

• We go through every cupboard once a quarter and throw away anything out of date (herbs, medications, tins, etc)

• Any cosmetics, body lotions, other toiletries I haven't used for six months

• Anything related to hobbies or courses that I no longer do

• All books that have been read unless I am highly likely to re-read them (one or two novels and some reference books)

• Any clothes that don't fit. By the time I lose weight (if I ever do) my tastes will probably have changed anyway

• All items related to a different season are packed away. I've just packed away summer perfumes, summer clothes, beach towels, picnic hamper, etc which we won't use now until at least March.

And do you need as many items as you have. For example you might genuinely need PJs but do you really need five or six pairs or really only three (one to wear, one in the wash, one spare assuming not all of us are on top of our washing all the time).

You need socks...but how many pairs?

Unless you are self employed you can normally really slim down your paperwork as well.

Keep tax related documents, pension docs, mortgage docs and any current insurance/finance docs. However there's no need to keep old bank statements, docs related to finance that isn't current, insurance that isn't current. Change everything to paperless so it doesn't build up again in the future.

There is a big difference between ‘things you need’ and ‘things you might need’

If you haven’t used/read/worn/played it for a year, do you really need it or are you just hoarding on the off chance you do in the future?
And in the event of that happening and you don’t have the item, would you be able to improvise?

If it’s yes, you don’t ‘need’ it at all and it can go

Alas I am self employed but I have (financial) paperwork reasonably under control. My work paperwork on the other hand is vast...

We do all have a lot of clothes. In the past I’ve thinned then out but then for instance when we go on holiday abroad or camping or the kids go away with school/cubs I find we are lacking and have to buy more!

Random shit we need but not all the time...

Fans
Exercise bike/ dumbells/ other equipment
Waterbottles/ lunchboxes
Wires/ tech equipment
Memory boxes

Put up more shelving. Shelves can up to the ceiling.

I made it my resolution to find the 10 things I liked least in the house every week, then take them to a charity shop. I lasted about 6 weeks, but it did clear a bit of stuff and left us with only stuff we really like.

How often do you use the exercise bike or fans?

I already have 7 Kallax units in the house 😂

The fans we use a lot in the warmer months, our upstairs especially gets very hot being a terraced house. The bike not so much at the mo but we go through spells.

The spare suitcases can you use them to store summer / camping clothes and shoes and put in attic. Fan in attic. All camping gear attic.
Get rid of books and CDs.
Baskets on top of kitchen cupboards.
Check how much of the same food you have like 6 tins of beans. Don’t buy more util you’ve eaten them.
Get rid of extra pans and cooking utensils. Extra bits that come with stuff like food processor bin the accessories you don’t use.

Start in the kitchen where you are less emotionally attached to possessions, you are likely to have unneeded gadgets, and you will likely have multiples of things.

Think about how many sharp knives you can physically use at once... Do you really need as many as you have? Same for wooden spoons etc.

How many rings on your hob? How many pans do you have? The number should be similar.

What is the largest number of people you have cooked a sit down meal for in the last 12 months? That should guide the maximum number of plates/ bowls/ cutlery you keep.

Gadgets, do you use them? do you need them or is there something else in you kitchen that can double up and do the same job?

Kitchen is a good start as you I think you can make huge gains fairly quickly and that will give you the confidence and motivation you need to tackle the rest of the house.

Good luck

Kitchen is teeny tiny and only has what we need but it’s still full. I’m a cm so regularly have 10/12 for dinner so we need a lot of plates.

Not trying to be awkward ! I really feel we need everything!

I think a lot of what makes our house look untidy and full is that so much of it is ‘on display ‘. We don’t have any empty surfaces.

My house is large and still cluttered, but something i once heard i thought was helpful - lots of things are kept 'just in case' they're needed. Chuck anything yoi could rebuy for under £10 if you ever do need it (eg in a charity shop)