The countdown to Christmas - but still decluttering one item a day. Thread number 15

[stealthninjamum]

Thread number 15 of the ‘declutter one item a day thread’ and this bunch of mumsnetters are still decluttering our houses slowly by getting rid of one item a day.

It’s always challenging at Christmas for declutterers, as we fill our house with more presents, food and children’s toys. This thread should give us a bit more accountability as we keep plugging away slowly while we making our homes more organised and decluttered.

Obviously Christmas won’t be the same this year and the stealthninjahousehold won’t be having any visitors but I’m still keen to spend the last couple of weeks making my house a nicer space to spend time in.

Newbies are always welcome. We just get rid of one item each day and report back on the thread.

Previous thread here.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/housekeeping/4053749-Getting-rid-of-one-item-a-day-thread-number-14-where-we-extract-precious-autumn-leaves-rocks-and-twigs-from-our-children?pg=1

I can’t believe I’m still finding things to discard from my kitchen cupboards. Two very large jars of coconut oil out today. They are several years out of date but I used some as a hair masque a few weeks ago. I can’t see me using it again as my family hated the smell and it really lingered.

I also found a very out of date lemon, thyme and sea salt grinder but it had a bit of a weird smell so I chucked it. I’ve hung onto the bean mix that is 2+years OOD (thinking I might use it for a sensory activity).

Finished up a bottle of conditioner, so now am using the matching shampoo plus a bar of conditioner, which actually comes with its own matching soap so am already out of sync

Unboxed most of the presents so there is some more space, although now comes the stealth battle to get as much of the cardboard as possible into the communal recycling bins before the neighbours do the same thing (we live in a flat)!

One major out which will be cancelled out by a replacement in is the washing machine, which has a burnt out heater. I feel very un-eco friendly by getting a new one rather than repairing the old machine, but I’ve got two more children than I had when I bought it and much more washing . The new one has a bigger drum and faster quieter spin. Unfortunately not being delivered until Wednesday so I’m watching everyone with eagle eyes to make sure no one gets dirtier than they absolutely have to

Reorganised the kitchen this afternoon. Made some space on the counter tops by sticking a blackboard to the wall.

I was cursing myself for getting rid of all the boxes as I now have to post presents to my parents as we're also tier 4. Luckily DP had one big enough. I was going to book a DPD collection but Wednesday was the earliest so post office queue in the morning it is.
I haven't achieved much either. Am hoping DP will sort his post out (he's off for two weeks now) as the letter rack is rammed.

Day 103:
🎄Last minute before toddler bed time we decided to go through the board game cupboard.
🎄We decided neither of will be playing many grown up games with a newborn around so they are going in the attic. Orchard games are more our thing now.
🎄Some too babyish jigsaws gone away for the next one.
🎄Two trivial pursuits and a monopoly going on freecycle now in a minute.
🎄Photos and emails.

Tomorrow: things will make it to the attic for sure. Empty boxes are there waiting to be filled.

Cleared out and recycled loads of receipts from my pocketbook (including a Co-op coupon that expired in March).

Sorry to everyone whose Christmases are looking a little lackluster this year.

Having a very satisfying rearrange of kitchen storage. Lots of flour sugar etc moved to new shelf unit freeing up space in cupboard for mugs. Feel we have too many and if none get used from the second shelf now they are spread out I will have proved my theory Some very old gram flour is my out. Sadly two storage tubs I bought are too big - turns out 10 litre tub fits a lot of flour and is very heavy. Will have to rehome those

Best wishes to everyone contemplating adjusting Christmas plans.
Am aiming to do my final food shop very early Monday morning as need to avoid the crowds as DH has vulnerable health.
Outs for today - 4 boxes of biscuits I had bought for the company's staff but as everyone is wfh (Tier 4 now) there is no one to eat them. Donated to the foodbank. Also 4 batteries recycled using the supermarket collection point.

Agh, it's been ages, but jumping back in with a nail varnish I'll never use and some very past its prime risotto rice.

I’ve been going through my kitchen too. I threw out some chutney that I opened a couple of weeks ago to declutter a cupboard and no one liked. I also threw away white wine vinegar with dots in it. I get through loads of white wine vinegar as it goes in dressings so I have no idea what the dots were. They weren’t there last week.

I also went through my bags for life that I take shopping with me and removed all the old receipts and car park tickets. There were loads.

Best for Dd has been binned. It’s all stained. Thanks nursery for letting her get it covered in spaghetti sauce!!

Finished a bottle of cleaning spray. Coop apple flavour. It did not smell good. Moved onto method rhubarb. Now this smells amaze!!

I love the smell of the rhubarb method too, ememem84, and their peony laundry detergent is gorgeous.

More outs:

• I have added a couple of tins and a box of chocs to a bag for the food bank.
• Recycled 3 largish cardboard boxes (but kept about 6 more in case I need to post anything)
• Threw away some old receipts and out of date coupons from the top of the microwave
• Finally washed up my mini mountain of plastic bottles and containers and put them in the recycling.
• Put some mini corn on the cobs in the food bin as they had gone mouldy - I only bought them a few days ago but didn’t notice the short date on them

Lastly - I’m considering throwing away my air fryer and have moved it out of the kitchen as the first step. It has a broken catch so it’s been gathering dust for quite some time. I’m hesitating because it is still technically usable if you’re careful.

Must be a kitchen day today!!
Went through the cupboards in search of pasta. Or house have been without pasta since Lockdown 1.0 started!! We've had to have rigatoni in the pasta bake!!! Anyway it forced me to check what we had and I've put some soup, refried beans and a pie in the food bank bah and a bag of oats in the bin.

Aforementioned items dropped to the charity shop along with a toy for a single pushchair which didn't gfit my double and two cuddlies.

Also sorted through and will bin a bag of half open bits that I don't use when there's actual space on the outside bin. Also some miniature soaps and shower gels - charity shop or for bank??

Of and I took the advice and donated the make your own Christmas card sets. I've not used them BEFORE I had 3 kids so...

Just a small one for me:

1 receipt.

This was to post back an eBay purchase - it looked nothing like the photo so had to be returned. I then had to involve eBay as there was a problem with the refund... long story short, it's taken a while to get the money back but it's now all sorted, so, the receipt can go. Phew! It feels good to finally be able to tick that one off my list.

@Miaowse

I love the smell of the rhubarb method too, ememem84, and their peony laundry detergent is gorgeous.

More outs:

• I have added a couple of tins and a box of chocs to a bag for the food bank.
• Recycled 3 largish cardboard boxes (but kept about 6 more in case I need to post anything)
• Threw away some old receipts and out of date coupons from the top of the microwave
• Finally washed up my mini mountain of plastic bottles and containers and put them in the recycling.
• Put some mini corn on the cobs in the food bin as they had gone mouldy - I only bought them a few days ago but didn’t notice the short date on them

Lastly - I’m considering throwing away my air fryer and have moved it out of the kitchen as the first step. It has a broken catch so it’s been gathering dust for quite some time. I’m hesitating because it is still technically usable if you’re careful.

personally i'd ditch the air fryer. if you have to be super careful when using it, i don't think i'd be using it - because i would see it as too much faff iyswim.

todays jobs for me include:

• sort out plastics drawer in the kitchen - i'm wfh for the foreseeable again so don't need my lunchboxes, coffee cup, porridge thermos taking up space in there. a quick 5 minute job really so one which will be done while i make my lunch
• fold laundry and put it away - another lunchtime job maybe. or maybe the lunchtime job will be to empty the laundry onto the bed so i can use the baskets to do more laundry
• recycling and bin have to go out tonight so they can be collected tomorrow.
• i am also determined to start wrapping the presents this evening. it needs to be done.

i bought enough wrapping paper i think. so should be ok and then this will also be gone!

but for not - the outs for today are:

• old coat hangers which were hanging about in the garage - was meant to be taking them to charity, but the shop is closed until the new year;
• old lottery tickets - out lottery draw was on thursday evening - we didnt win a sausage
• body shop 30ml shower gel. coconut flavour. smell was very intense.

Early out this morning: a packet of Vietnamese rice wrappers for summer rolls. I knew they were out of date but kept thinking I’d get round to using them at some point, but they’re now three years past the BBE date so enough is enough.

No outs today other than a couple of christmas cards I forgot to write and more receipts - they seem to breed.

I have been clearing up evidence of home schooling and hope to put the sparkly table cloth on the table today. Just need dds to also go through the piles of stuff.

But my main achievement is that I have arranged for stuff to be taken from my garage. I have found a man with a van and checked against the government register on the second post and sent some photos. Even though I have cleared most of the garage there is enough stuff that he has quoted me £200. There're old doors, tiles, half a bed, shelves, an old car battery. So tomorrow's 'one thing' will pretty much be the equivalent of a small room. Best of all I'll be able to put more of stbexh's stuff in the garage and continue to clear out his crap from under my nose.

The air fryer is in my boot and I’m enjoying the clearer work surface

Recycled three used Britta filters at the supermarket collection point. That's probably all I'll manage for today.

Everyone is doing so well!

Stealth I put my paint brushes and rollers in sealable plastic bags between painting, then I don't need to wash them.

Sorry for everyone who has gone into tier 4.

Ins: Christmas food shopping, it was lovely and quiet today so think I made the right choice. It's a quiet Christmas and just got normal chicken fillets as the whole ones were due up before Christmas Day and the turkeys were the size of ostriches compared to what we need. Outs: some receipts and papers from the paperwork pile.

Parcel and card posted.
Crusty head medicine handed to best friend along with cards, present and book for baby.
Food and toiletries put on local food bank at the Spar.
Squeezed a large toy, small Christmas tree and yesterday's bag of toiletries into the bin for collection.

Unfortunately the recycling was so compacted it didn't empty properly so is already 1/4 full and we didn't see bin men to tell them. D H also didn't think to decompact it before putting new on top.

Both kitchen bins have broken so they'll be outs bit God knows what we'll do with them, I'm seeing a plastics tip run over Xmas with MIL.

@pollyannaperspective did you manage to shop and avoid crowds?

@SandAndSea I hate refund dramas. It puts you off returning things and now actually puts me off buying things in the first place.

@stealthninjamum I bet it feels great to get that garage cleared and the knock of effect of that!

@AlexTheChristmasCat H is having chicken breasts too as it's just him as me and daughter are vegan. Happy to cook him whatever meat though. I'm not a twatty vegan (I hope).

Day 104:
🎄had a big attic rejig first thing and put lots of bits up there in their correct boxes and bags
🎄got a boy doll out of attic as a local family in need were particularly looking for one and that has been picked up today.
🎄monopoly given to neighbours plus 6 strawberry plants they wanted that H had listed on fb freecycle
🎄two trivial pursuits being picked up any moment (I hope).
🎄2 big boxes we were using for baby stuff storage recycled.
🎄 one box of out of date crackers in food waste
🎄one roll of wrapping paper listed on freecycle and being picked up tomorrow. In Wales non essentials are banned from sale and I'd bought this paper for my toddler to play with as a wrapping Christmas activity. Seemed very decadent to keep it when people are scrabbling round for it now so that was snapped up.
🎄marble run and giant awful doll that was given to us listed on freecycle down from attic but no takers as yet.

It's been a good day but I feel exhausted and like I've got tonsillitis coming. I really can't take any more illness as it's just not my style to be ill. Must be pregnancy's final gift to me before the big finale.

I can't check in daily but I do like reading other people's progress on this thread. :)

I have 2 largish bags to go to charity shop. Lots of books, especially.
Better get them taken before Lockdown3 arrives & no charity shops left open, I guess. I may be guilty of buying 2 jigsaws as well to get us thru the long break... I realised one of my bed sheets is almost transparent so that's one for recycling, plus an old swimsuit is about to go, too (will grit teeth against my hoarder instincts & not replace them, well excess to requirements).

@footprintsintheslow you can't have many weeks left? Possibly you're body's way of trying to make you slow down.