Still throwing an item away a day – part 13

[StealthNinjaMum]

One of mumsnet's friendliest corners this is the 13th 'one item a day' thread to inspire and motivate a group of mumsnetters to declutter their houses, gardens and lives bit by bit, one step at a time.

Each day we get rid of just one item and report back. We’ve all got different challenges and problems and it keeps us going to discuss them and work through them together.

Newbies are welcome. It’s not just decluttering, join us in the chat about recycling, organisation, grumbles about hoarding family members and obviously our many successes.

Previous thread here.
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/housekeeping/3913755-The-decluttering-one-thing-a-day-thread-part-12?msgid=99387987

And for 2020 some of us are also aiming to get rid of 2020 items!

One broken and dangerous hair dryer out and a make up palette that my Mum passed me which I don’t use.

Day 23:
A pair of shoes into the charity bag that haven't sold on fb marketplace.

I'm also finally getting to finish off the cross stitch that I started when I was pregnant 21 years ago. Baby came a week early otherwise it would've been finished. It's been put away all this time!

Moved the pc out of my office-cupboard into the living-room. Surprised to find that it seems to take up less space now, and that I have a huuge and very useful space above my office desk. Sometimes things just work out fine! Connected up speakers which had been lying in another corner, and now it all looks purpose-built instead of jumbled.

Today will be storage tetris in my office/cupboard. It is rapidly becoming more a cupboard, and less an office. Which is not as bad as I first thought, since it means that somehow or other I've got straightened out enough to get things off floors and out of rooms, and become far less distracted.

Still, I need to carve out a space that is mine and mine alone. Maybe I could slot myself into a corner of the kitchen, where some more storage tetris will be required.

Haven't posted as the only thing that's left the house is the daily recycling

Sold 2 winter hats yesterday. Also passed the tree house on to my friend. Her DDs absolutely love it, which is great to see & my DS can go round & play with it, so it's win-win.

@Elenorrigbywoes I know what you mean about small outs. Mine hardly ever seem to make a dent, although they must do!

Having quite a bit of luck on FB sales pages - expecting some duvet covers & a giant garden game to go today. Things only bring in a £ or 2 at a time, but it is much needed, as is the space. So will get some more listed today.

I think I need to go back to daily updates as I have stalled on decluttering/ organising over the last week. But it might have to wait until next week as DD is at home this week due to a Covid case in her year at school, so it’s probably going to be a stressful week. DH is still furloughed so is in charge of homeschooling, but it will still be disruptive for me WFH And the washing machine couldn’t be repaired, so we need to find the money for a replacement!

Checking in with this thread because you all seem lovely and motivational. I have a mountain to climb but had a very good day yesterday ditching two huge piles of magazines and paperwork for he recycling. Today got off to a good start when I tried one of my many random old mascaras, noticed it was pretty rubbish and binned it.

Setting an alarm for 12:30 every day to get teen DC a proper lunch and do fifteen minutes paper-pruning - I should have the desk down to bare wood by the end of the week.

Oh, and StealthNinjaMum, if the next time you post you overtype your name in the username bar with the version with capitals then you should come up green again. You’d have to do it every time though, so it might be easier just to change your name officially again from stealthninjamum to StealthNinjaMum.

I used to love Apartment Therapy, the photos are so beautiful. I'll have to have a look again.

Miaowse Try looking at the Flylady website for the zone of the week and declutter in that room each week? Don't subscribe to the emails, she inundates you. It gives you a starting point when you don't know where to begin.

Outs: more things listed on ebay, it's a pain to do isn't it?

I've not really had any outs over the weekend. Managed to shift one of the many gift bags by using it for a birthday present.

@moglovesquotes you sound like you've reached the pinnacle of decluttering?!?! Is your whole house totally down? Well done you that's bloody brilliant.

Day 24: recycled a bag of milk bottle tops that I was saving for a craft project. It's not worked out so they have gone.

Hello. I think I posted on one of these threads a couple of years ago during one of my many "New Leaf" moments but I got swept back by the current into the mire of shite again.

Anyhow. Here we go again. Today I decluttered my underwear drawer, which wouldn't actually close, and threw out half a binbag of stuff including some items that were nearly 20 years old, most of it never worn or worn only a couple of times.

Reasons for not previously getting rid / decision making that led to successfully getting rid-

I never really liked lacy underwear- I find it uncomfortable and IMO it looks crap under clothes. I felt that I should like it so bought and kept it for the time when I would magically like it. / Have accepted that will always dislike that stuff and that's OK.

A couple of sets gifted to me by a guy I had a very fun foreign holiday fling with about 15 years ago before I met DH / Have accepted that if I choose I can remember fun fling without keeping the nice pants.

Feeling that I should keep all those thongy type things to avoid VPL for the magic day when I once again wear nice dresses and go out a lot / But technology has moved on since 1999. Bin the cheese wire.

Vague feeling that I should get organised to parcel up and post all the usable bras to that African charity instead of Letting Them Go To Waste / Sorry African ladies who might have wanted scratchy nylon frilly bras from the late 90s/early 2000s. When the house is less of a tip I will have time+energy for better recycling but I just wanted to get started.

Bridget Jones pants that didn't sit on the C section scar. Kept in case needed another section (nope- 2nd was a VBAC), then felt should keep as cleaning rags/ actually could dust the entire moon with all the potential rags in the house. Dumped.

And closed the drawer.

@AlexTheHalloweenCat thank you! I used to subscribe to FlyLady in the dim and distant past - I do remember the deluge of emails, so checking the website instead is a good tip! CHAOS - “can’t have anyone over syndrome” certainly struck a chord...

@powershowerforanhour I loved reading your reasoning. Hurray for drawers that close!

5 parcels of eBay sales posted. Also 2 magazines recycled.

While I was at the bank I handed in a chequebook for a closed account.

Also out, a lot of garden waste.

Posted my parcel listed three more things on eBay. DH did a charity shop run with an old mini food processor, a hostess trolley, nativity set and a lamp that has stood in the corner of the room unused for four years!

Sold a couple of duvet covers on FB, so that's another small out. Also one small in, as the friend I gave the treehouse to gave me a bottle of wine to say thank you 😍

*Maybe we need a thread of 'I have not bought anything or spent any money today'.

I almost bought a nice yellow coat in Morrisons the other day but I thought of having to own up on this thread so I left it. I really do not need any more coats and this wasn't even shower proof.*

@footprintsintheslow Well done! I like coats so if saw one that looked nice I would have been tempted. (I'm not a high end retail therapy type, more a ooh look bargain in the supermarket whilst I was meant to be getting groceries type). DH and I both need to practise not acquiring.

More things:

11 scratty old toothbrushes. We are a family of 4. Reason for not chucking before- they get trailed down the stairs when not organised enough to brush kids' teeth before they go downstairs, then get lost in the piles of crap, new ones get opened upstairs then old ones get found and brought back in circulation etc. Also, some vague notion of reusing the old ones to clean the mould off the grouting and window corners or something like that instead of letting them go to waste. / but realised that the point at which "carefully cleaning nooks and crannies with a toothbrush" reaches the top of the to-do list is at least 598 toothbrushes away.

Also, some ancient mascaras and horrible old garish eyeshadow and a manky old makeup bag. And that was without even properly sorting just picking the low hanging decaying fruit in about 2 minutes.

3 prs of sandals & a pr of trainers too small for DS.
He will need some new PE trainers, mind, but 4 out 1 in is pretty good ratio.

Thanks for the tips, girls. I'm going to try again and will let you know.

Today's outs

2 t-shirts.
1 DVD.

Hi, joining in (a little late) as your thread has given me the impetus to pick up sorting again. Have already started getting rid of old baby clothes but today I cleared the dining table of seeming tonnes of paper and toddler drawings and put into piles for each household member. Actually filing them can wait for a nursery day. 2 bags of maternity wear to go to a local refuge and booked a slot at the tip.
Recently discovered there are boxes of my stuff in the loft at DPs house which have been there for at least 20 yrs. impossible to sort whilst there (toddler intent on finding new and inventive ways to kill/maim themselves and others) so need to make space in our overcrowded flat to bring back and sort here. Hoping I can be ruthless and non-sentimental (weeps into boxes of programmes for gigs long past)... Will check in here to keep momentum as this is at least the 5th time I’ve tried doing this since moving in with DH a decade ago.

@Weneedmusicandtheatre and anyone else I've missed, welcome!

I've been doing some late night pottering and have almost, I think, emptied another box!!! Woop-woop!!! This will be one (forgotten) box less in my small wardrobe, which must be good. Tbh, most of it's been relocated but I've also got a couple of things to try to sell.

Outs:

Another 2 sets of teeth whitening strips.
1 envelope.
6 pieces of paper (bills, notes etc).
3 audio tapes.
Some halloween tat.
A load of emails.