Clutter free, how??

[Times10]

I was looking on rightmove earlier and most of the houses had completely bare surfaces, and nothing out of place. Obviously, I know that most of them are staged that way, but I don’t know how we’d ever managed that, without hiring a storage unit and putting everything in there!

We’ve been decluttering with more or less results, but are still far away from a clutter free house! The photos look so relaxing though, compared to what we’re living in at the moment. It is just a question of getting rid of more, or is there tricks to keep surfaces clear? I think we have enough storage, but maybe we’re not using it effectively.

I’m not quite sure what I’m asking (except for someone to come and get rid of everything for me )

It’s the decluttering stage that I’m still stuck at, after so long working on it. I logically know that the house has improved but there’s still so much to do!

The point I was trying to get across earlier OP, is that you decide what goes where. e.g. jumper drawer. You can only have the jumpers that fit into the drawer. Any surplus has to be culled.
In the past I would just get another set of drawers.

I've made a lot of progress with this in the last year. I don't buy much unnecessary stuff now. But sometimes struggle with throwing things away. I like clear uncluttered surfaces but my cupboards and draws look crazy and are completely unmanageable. I wish I could chuck the lot, It's too overwhelming to sort them out.

I understand that (as I did the same re buying more storage) but still struggling to put it completely in practice. At least I know what I’m aiming for now, just need to do a lot more work/decisions to make it happen!

It is overwhelming isn’t it?! And I know the benefits of doing it will outweigh the work in the long term, but it does make it any easier to achieve so far!

I thought these photos were all staged too OP, but in February I started work as a dog walker and so I am in and out of people's houses all day. I've been amazed and a bit ashamed to see how many people have very tidy clutter free houses.

I also feed cats, this means I'm in and out of under-stairs and kitchen cupboards. These too are often beautifully organised and clutter free.

It's made me realise I need to address the clutter in my own home!

I need one of those people to sort out my house! My cupboards are starting to be more organised... slowly...

I agree completely with Mike on the jumper drawer thing.

We had to completely renovate our current house (still not finished). With each room we had to think about the furniture, the built in storage etc that would go into that space. When we restocked the space we were forced to declutter if it didn't fit.

Sometimes it is easier to understand in terms of kitchen design. You would always think about the cabinets and counter space you need for your pans, your cereal etc. You can do the same with the rest of the house. Plan a home for everything in theory then make it so, meaning you have bin stuff as necessary.

So, design the dream version of your house then see what you have to jettison to make it happen.

Don't start with where to put all my stuff?

Just plan your cupboards on paper first then reorganise to that plan. Have lots of black bags on hand.

I think Cyw is spot on. It's not just finding a place for everything, it's committing to actually putting stuff back, day in, day out. Commit to 5 mins twice a day of putting things back and your house will look so much better in a week... but it's boring and I am really rubbish at actually finding that 10 mins as long as it's not too bad...

It's the "Toothbrush Principle" - you never lose your toothbrush because you always put it back in the same place when you've used it. Apply that to every single thing in your house - everything needs a place to live, and it always gets put back there.

I did a massive massive declutter when we downsized from a big three bed house to a two bed flat - I went through a drawer or a shelf at a time, and charity-shopped or binned so much stuff. A bit easier because the DC are all older/have left home though.

I could do better...but one thing that helps is looking at what's in the cupboards and drawers more ruthlessly. Chances are lots of it never gets used and if you get rid of that stuff you'll have room for the "clutter" that does get used to be kept out of sight.

When I sold my flat it looked like a show home because I'd already moved my "stuff" with me to my (now) DH's place so was just left with furnishings and decorative items.

I genuinely didn’t want to bring Hardy anything of our old stuff .... felt great it all packed away but ... gave a lot to charity or kept in garage until “I’m sure “

A paper plan sounds like a good way of sorting things without making a massive mess in the process!
I read the toothbrush principle and although I understand the concept, putting it into practice is a different story!
I’ve got another thread running at the moment about putting things away when I finish using them, and it really does help, but also shows we’ve got far too much stuff compared to what we actually need!

On a related/unrelated note, can I store household paint pots in the shed, or are the variable temperatures going to ruin the paint?

I think this is the book mentioned upthread:

www.amazon.co.uk/s?hvlocphy=1007850&hvnetw=g&hvadid=291527034370&k=decluttering+at+the+speed+of+life&gclid=CjwKCAjw8NfrBRA7EiwAfiVJpU9oAj2wTQ6A7QHNa2dwsH1Q9hZzRRSLF0SozDhAgD7Z8p4zZ9E7gBoC_HAQAvD_BwE&ref=pd_sl_5nl0hjy62u_e&hydadcr=25306_1886394&hvpos=1t2&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&hvtargid=kwd-382813959776&adgrpid=59982499833&hvrand=8493435455281018621

It's v practical and friendly!

What I don't get (and what stops me being able to properly declutter) is what about stuff that might come in useful?

I hate to throw away things that fall into the category of 'may be useful one day', because I'm loathed to spend money replacing what I already had.

Does that make any sense? I wish I could get past this way of thinking!

I’ve been reading her blog, horizon, it’s a fun read, might get the book (I should check if the library has it first)

For the may be useful one day, I decided that cheap stuff could go, as it’s easy enough to replace, but then we got rid of all the baby stuff a few years ago, and as I’m now pregnant we have to buy things again, BUT a) we’ve had years of it not being in the way, and b) with fab marketplace/gumtree/eBay we’re able to repa lot of the costly items at a fraction of the price. I decided that space now was more important than a potential future need that may never come. Also there was a book (possibly Marie Kondo, but I’ve read a lot of decluttering books so might not be that) where they said that you should think about the current you, and your current interests etc, and get rid of stuff that either you’re no longer interested in, or that you don’t take the time to make a priority. So I got rid of a lot of craft projects that just didn’t inspire me anymore, and got rid of books about topics that weren’t really relevant for the me now. Even if I decide to be interested in those topics again, there’ll probably be more up to date information at that time, than keeping stuff from years ago just in case.

Fb not fab
Replace not rea

Yes, that was the book.

The 'might come in handy' will only be of use after you've got rid of it.
When you need it, you will not be able to find it anyway, unless you are organised.

Yes there is no point in owning something if you can't find it. I kept coming back to that when we were decluttering the garage - not even so much will I ever need this, but IF I do ever want it again, will I firstly remember I still own it, and secondly be able to locate it fairly quickly? My brain can hold a lot less than my house and that's the driving factor for me.

@Times10 and @MikeUniformMike thanks you for the great advice about the 'might be useful' things. I know you're right, and I'm going to make an effort not to hang onto stuff which is clogging up my home just because it might be needed one day.

I think maybe I'm very tight fisted as I instinctively want to hand onto every little thing! Money is tight for me, so that's probably part of the reason .

Check out Minimal Mom on YouTube. She’s not as drastic as Marie Kondo, much more realistic and helps to change your thinking.
She does it differently: watch her clothing ones to see what I mean. It’s different to the usual capsule wardrobe idea.
She has a few religious ones but isn’t pushy, gives you a warning and encourages you to “skip this video if faith isn’t your thing”. She’s great.
She also understands about not wanting to get rid of things that you’ve paid good money for.

Peoplepleaser, can you sell some of the stuff you’re getting rid of? Might make it easier to part with. I don’t have the patience for that, so just give it to the charity shop, but I see a lot of stuff on marketplace going for a few £, so there’s ways of recouping some of the cost.

Thanks for the YouTube recommendation, Penelope, I’ll check it out!

Just gone through the bathroom cabinets and got rid of half the stuff. I’m pretty sure I did it recently (6 months or so ish) so I was surprised to see how much I managed to get rid of, but the reality is most of the things in there hadn’t been used in years. And although I’m not too worried about use-by-dates, when things have been opened for 3 years and they’re meant to be used in 6 months, I think it’s time to say bye! And now things fit, where they were supposed to (who knew?!? )

@Times10 well done on the bathroom clear out. How long did it take?

Yes, I could sell some of the stuff. I am rubbish at getting round to it though!