Decluttering one thing a day part 8 - the one where we de-tetris the cupboard of doom!

[WoogleCone]

Welcome! This is thread 8 of the declutter one thing a day challenge!

This is just holding the discussion open until @stealthninjamum gets her computer sorted and back in action :)

Everyone is welcome here, new and old. We implore you to join us on our mission to clear the cupboards, swipe the sides and declutter all debris!
We recycle, reuse, give away, donate or just plain chuck it out to help clear our spaces.

If you're new, start with a small mission - can you tackle one small area at a time? Be it a bedside table, a bathroom cabinet or The Kitchen Drawer?
Just one thing a day is all we ask and report back here with your outs for the day, or week at a time. It's very easy to get the bug when you start small and have success!

Will we find any more big bags of change? Can we sell more big ticket items? Will the school books all get returned? Will the happy meal toys ever stop multiplying and just how many books can we say goodbye to?!

Previous thread here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/housekeeping/3525812-Part-7-of-the-decluttering-challenge-can-you-get-rid-of-one-item-a-day?msgid=87790915#87790915

4 bags of clothes to the recycling bank.
Pre moving declutter and sort out progressing.

Oo, I forgot, I've also managed to get rid of a cutlery set. My mum had clutter cleared it to me (in a 'wanting to pass it down' kind of way) but I just didn't want it and didn't want to have to try to sell another thing. So, she's agreed to take it back and deal with it herself. (Hopefully, she will do this and not just leave it for me to find after she goes.)

I've also been through my food containers again and have 5 pots and jars to go out. (And more which I'm still thinking about.)

I decided to lock the cat in the bathroom and tackle a big closet yesterday - took out one bag for donating and added a good few papers to the kitchen recycling. Among the treasures I unearthed is a gorgeous professional photo of my mum from about 1960, matted and ready to frame, so now I need to be on the lookout for a frame to fit.

I really need to join you guys! My house is hopelessly cluttered, I haven't filed paperwork for months and I know I need to get cracking. I am currently having a few counselling sessions and one of the things we'be been talking about is how the state of my house is impacting my mental health and how I need to stop procrastinating...

So I pledged to spend half an hour a day decluttering but I haven't managed to stick with it. I've tidied the top of the chest of drawers in my bedroom which was a dumping ground, but that's it really!

Hopefully by joining this thread and reading your very inspiring posts i can finally make some progress :)

Better start to today. I've cleared some paperwork and put some in recycling and some things in charity shop pile. I've also charged the battery for the hedge trimmers (does outside tidying count). Playing cards are all tided up so a start has been made

Welcome vallar!
Theres definitely stock in the idea of tidy workspace, tidy mind. Doing this and reporting in here has helped me no end and my house and head are definitely better for it.
Doing the top of your drawers is a brilliant first step so well done, dont beat yourself up about not sticking to half hour a day. How about today you look at a shelf - any shelf, in any room? Or one kitchen cupboard?

Mum visited yesterday to help me with paint stripping. We got a fair bit done and even managed to start sanding one section so I'm chuffed with progress. Still a long way to go though and my next session will be on monday.

Couple more bits went in the textile bag. Few things now need to go to the tip so we'll try to go on monday again.
Today were clearing out the living room as kids crap has built up. Also going to tackle the under sink cupboard as I want to make space for a small bin. I hate my current big bin, it's just in the way.

But first were visiting grandad so off to get ready!

namechange outside absolutely counts!!

@WoogleCone i started paint stripping woodworl on my landing a few years ago and I still haven't finished...

I'm going to make a start on the messy pile of stuff next to my desk, mostly papers that need filing and random stuff that needs to find a home. I am not working today so I'll do that now.

Done the front of the garden cut the bushes back so I can park and kept the kids amused by helping out. Just having lunch before I consider doing the back garden

@VallarMorghulis it is tough at the start - I found if I set an alarm for 5 or 10 minutes at a time I made some progress. Maybe start with 3 x 10 minute decluttering sessions or 6 x 5 throughout the day and see how you go. Small and often.
I have a charity bag that I drop items into daily and then drop it off when it is full.

Welcome, @VallarMorghulis! I'm wondering, if 30mins/day doesn't work for you, maybe you could try a 5 minute run round with a carrier bag? You don't have to get rid of it all but you might be surprised how much you can do when you do it quickly like this. I find this harder now as I've been doing it a while and have hit the 'harder to get rid of' stuff, but I think it can work well with people who have more obvious clutter.

I've got a freebayer coming round to collect something soon (hopefully) and am also waiting for someone to get back to me about a nice top.

I'm still debating with myself about some other items.

-outgrown clothes

• toddler sized hangers
• out grown/unwanted fancy dress

-unwanted cuddly toys

• broken toys

-sweat. A lot of sweat (a cool 36 today!)

-DH has a box full of rubbish in attic

We only had a couple of hours today so happy with progress!

Well I did it, I sorted my papers, filled a few recycling bags and even found a few things to take to the charity shop. I am very pleased! Thanks for the encouragement, the running around with a bag and chucking f things seems like a good idea, I will try it.

Well done, Vallar and happy holidays, Willow!

I've stayed up late to catch up with a few things (and because I'm too hot to sleep):

I've sorted out my to do list and my diary for next week and set some reminders. (I've got another freebayer booked in to come next week and a friend is coming to see if she'd like some of my clothes before they go to charity.)
I've cut a blind to fit and fitted it.
I've sorted out the last kitchen cupboard (I've done all the others relatively recently). It's now about half empty! (I'm going to go through it again though as I've got a feeling I'll see more next time.)
I found a box for a gadget which went to the tip, so have recycled that and all the bits which were in it.
I've half packed away the guest bedding which I'd laundered.
I've wiped round the kitchen and put the dw on, so it'll be nice to see in the morning.

Night all!

Morning all, I haven’t posted here before I don’t think, although I follow with interest.
I need to get rid of (sell, ideally) my cloth nappy stash. There is far too much of it, and youngest child is about to come out of Nappies altogether & I haven’t even been using them for her.

Why am I putting it off? Do I secretly want another child? Or is it just regret that I only used them first time round, and have failed at eco mothering because I prioritised my mh?

I’d like to pop this here for a bit of accountability, I need to get the conversation out of my head. And get the Nappies on gumtree.

Well done vallar, some amazing progress! Keep up the good work!

Good job on fitting a blind sand, they're my worst nightmare and make me crazy angry everytime I try to cut and hang one haha! DH just stays put od my way until I need him to use the drill - its better for everyone that way 😂😬

Welcome to the thread coldhands!
You got ten mins now? Do it. I find selling items to be a bull by the horns type thing, I just got a force myself to do it. But it feels great when they're on and get a seller.
Do you have a particular problem area in the house you want to tackle? We've had dining room tables, kitchen drawers and bay windows of doom on here! My current nemesis is under the stairs!

We were going to go to the park today but its forecast heavy rain all day. Fi gets crossed being stuck inside will = good outs!

Sorry, just caught up on the thread after a very busy couple of weeks. Work has been manic and to top it all off we had to pack everything up yesterday as we move offices over the weekend. Managed to declutter a pile of paperwork at work and at home.

Still going through my vast collection of CDs so a few more listened too and now in the charity pile. Read a paperback (most of my stuff is on the kindle) and that’s now in the charity pile.

Decluttered a load of OOD meds and batteries last Sunday. Also decluttered some oven cleaner and a load of grease out of the oven/grill which hadn’t been cleaned in years (totally getting someone else to clean the cooker in the future!)

Also 2 dresses gone, one had a little hole in it (moths?) and one doesn’t suit me.

vallarmorghulis welcome. My house is by no means perfect but I can feel myself more relaxed about it and it is definitely good for my mental health. It's slightly worse at the moment as it's the school holidays but if I run around for 10 minutes the 'public' areas i.e. sitting room, kitchen, hall and dining room will largely be tidy. It also takes less time to clean as a result.

It sounds like you have made a really good start but I always recommend new people:

1. Make to do lists
2. Aim to do something that makes a visible difference (so table or window ledge, or a large toddler toy) to give a sense or achievement

or

1. Set a timer for 15 minutes to clear an area that you're dreading.Some of us have found that it is never as bad as we think and we end up spending much longer than 15 minutes on the area.

Today I have put an old fashioned egg timer in the charity pile. I can use a phone to time an egg for 3 minutes.

More outs today:

Some string.
A big notepad.
A large postal tube for a print which has been framed for years.
A wad of packing paper.
A skirt.

All of these have been kept, unused, for years!

Welcome, @Coldhandscoldheart !

Thank you. I got up almost as soon as I posted & took photos for a gumtree listing. Can’t decide how much to put them on for, it’s quite a large stash. Will finish the ad once kids are in bed.

Another skirt. It's beautiful but I've just remembered that I never wore it even when it fitted me. It's got to go.