Decluttering one item a day thread number 19 – running out of ideas for original titles

[stealthninjamum]

Another ‘one a day’ thread. We’re still here.

This is a group of mumsnetters who are slowly decluttering our spaces and organising our lives, chatting as we go.

We all want to live in a nicer, emptier, clearer more relaxing environment and this is our space to talk and moan about our husbands and children who often do not share our desire for such a peaceful, decluttered haven!

We only aim to get rid of one item a day, when we have time, although often we manage more. Newbies are always welcome to join us.

Previous thread here.
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/housekeeping/4259830-Decluttering-one-item-a-day-thread-number-18-quickly-stashing-our-clutter-in-charity-shops-now-we-can-let-people-back-inside-our-houses?pg=1

Maybe the baby Jesus needed a bath @LivingInABuildingSite

I had ten minutes to go through the pile of papers on the dining room table. Shredded/ recycled a couple; and moved a few things to the paperwork box to file later (which is just moving clutter to a different place, really).

I feel quite frustrated by the amount of stuff that comes into the house. We’re not buying things, it’s just letters and junk mail and leaflets and DD’s collection of twigs/ stones/ random bits of paper and I don’t know what else. Feel like I am always having to find homes for things or be the person who says ‘do we need to keep this?’ and it means I have even less time to do anything more than surface sorting

The lack of time to declutter is still getting me down, and I’m struggling to think logically about how to improve things. Feel like I’m using all my energy on day to day things, and everything else is an effort.

I’m not allowed to get rid of our dolls house even though dds never play with it.

ellieq I fee a bit like that myself. Dd2 no longer brings twigs and crap into the house but makes little origami figures and I’m never sure what I can throw away. She has the most remarkable memory for this stuff (but not school work) and will notice if one of these bits of paper goes.

Given that you work and look after dd life is busy. Are there any particularly bad areas you want to tackle? Is there a drawer you could empty into a box on Monday and then spend the week sorting through it / putting things back for two minutes a day for the rest of the week?

Not much going on here, I have a delivery of presents later so I’m going to put the trees up - but not decorate them yet. That means moving furniture around a bit.

I now have three bags of life stuff to go to the charity shop, I was going to take them before half term but never got round it. It’s books, toys, rags, clothes.

Sometimes it does feel like a slog but I am feeling less guilty about everything this time round as everything out (no matter how small) feels like a win. Today was just a bag of music books going to a Saturday Centre but it is still a bag less than yesterday.

Hopefully more to go tomorrow.

In the meantime the only thing brought in today was my Pfizer booster given a couple of weeks early as the centre had a few spares to go at the end of the day

Have got another bag of kids clothes to go.
DS has moved up to bigger teets in his bottles so that's 4 old ones out and 4 into his bottles making some space in their cupboard. Have finally managed to get to a solid wood unit that has been marked to go for a while but was covered in crap 😂 so that can be listed on market place today.

My hope for today is to identify at least 50 items that can actually leave the house by Sunday evening. 🤞🤞
I then want to get rid of another 200 before we put our decorations up for Christmas at the end of this month.

The box idea is good Stealth as I do find it easier to have a defined area to be going through. I might go back to DD’s clothes and tackle the next age range (18-24 months) as I finished age 2-3. That’s quite easy in some ways as I can work through each category (tops, dresses etc) and have a charity bank near us where I can take the clothes.

Didn’t do any new decluttering yesterday, but I did take a bag of previously sorted clothes to the charity bank. Also put packaging from a parcel straight into the recycling instead of leaving it to be done later.

Good luck Mommabear with finding 50 items today!

@EllieQ I'm already upto 41! 😂

65 and counting!

mommabear that's amazing! Does someone else have your dc? I'm impressed.

I have decluttered some school work from home schooling hat's been cluttering the dining room.

My main news is that I brought the trees down yesterday and put them up. I have only put on a few decorations so far and some tinsel around the house but I have also wrapped some presents and I bought a few 'Santa presents' today so I feel that I'm slowly getting organised for xmas. Wrapping presents is my most hated job of the year so it's good to be doing it gradually and not staying up til 4am on Xmas Eve/ Day like when dc were little.

Today is Divali. We're not Hindu but I have bought a huge amount of ready meal curry foods so tonight will be decluttering plastic cartons.

I can’t be doing with Christmas just yet! Aside from having no ideas for presents, and having nowhere to put a tree because of building works, I’m trying to put off Christmas for as long as Poss, for the builders to get more done before they disappear!

Finally went to put away the Halloween stuff and found a bag full of random party bits from across the years; jungle, Thomas, pirates, unicorns, Star Wars, etc.
Nearly all has gone in the bin, sticky table clothes, homemade bits, anything paper recycled. Small bag for charity of pirate accessories and unicorn headbands that never got used.

Also, finished packing up a big Lego set to sell for DD, need to list it now and hope it sells.

So feeling better about today, having done nothing yesterday.

@SydneyCarton I should really sort that out the next time I log into my account to renew all the overdue books! I only have ebooks but still get proper ones for the DC.

Lots of baby stuff finally left the house at the weekend! Just need to get the pram packaged so that can go too.

I have a lot of November and December birthdays to buy for so lots of things being bought at the moment. I need better hiding places now the DC are getting bigger!

Quiet day today as feeling a bit grotty after my booster jab yesterday. Sadly I had to bin my trusty Primark bag that I have been using to tote stuff to the charity shop as I overloaded it with books and it ripped - mercifully before leaving the house. Think I might bag up a load of books tomorrow and get DH to drive them and some music to the local BHS books and music shop at the weekend.

I made up a smaller bag of lighter bits that the DC have abandoned over the years and walked that to the charity shop instead and I listed an evening bag on ebay in the hope someone might buy it. Lady in the charity shop said they were inundated with clothes so I am feeling a bit less guilty about having used Thrift to declutter some of those.

I did buy a couple of Poundland Christmas rubber ducks as a joke present for DC and a couple of refillable MAC palettes which I am hoping they will use in future instead of buying hundreds of eyeshadow palettes where they only use 3 shades but then don't bin as they are still "nearly full" despite being in a revolting state...... not envy. Hopefully the refillable bit cancels out the plastic tat of the rubber ducks.

@stealthninjamum no! They were home with me, just being very good which was lovely!

I'm tackling the bathroom today, not much decluttering needed but definitely needs a good tidy away and clean round so that's the task for while DC are napping! 🤞🤞

Decluttering with DC around is impressive - when they were little mine always wanted to keep everything for their own children!!

Waiting for a Lego pickup today, then planning a charity shop trip as have sorted two big boxes of baby clothes.
Not my babies clothes, DDs baby doll clothes lol.
She went through a mad charity shop stage and most of the clothes are far too big for her dolls.

Want the boxes out today so they don’t hang about all weekend in the hallway.

Hello everyone. Can I join this thread please? I’ve not had a chance to read all the previous posts yet but I think this group might just be what I’m looking for (she says as she trips over a pile of toys, clean washing, bags and a Halloween skeleton). Xx

@Sourcreamsky welcome!! Definitely sounds like the thread for you! I was the same but this lovely lot have given me the motivation I needed to get stuff done & I feel so much better for it!

Welcome!

I’m reading the book Decluttering at the speed of life atm.

It’s quite interesting.

The two key questions when faced with an item:

1. if I needed this item, where would I look for it first? Put it there. And straight away, not in a pile of things to Re home later.
2. if no answer to 1), then ask if I needed this item, would it ever offer to me that I already had one?

It actually makes you think.
So put the things where you would actually go to see if you had one of whatever.
Or get rid, if you would never have thought you’d own one.

And accept the size of your container - whatever that is, your house, your kitchen drawer, you wardrobe. Downsize to fit.

There’s more, but it’s helped me clear out some stuff already, and make me put stuff away, which I do tend to struggle with.

Out today;
2 big boxes of baby clothes
Old tatty useless baby clothes into textile recycling bag
Random bits of rubbish found in DDs room into the bin
Random artwork recycled

Hello Sourcreamsky

I know what you mean as everywhere here feels really cluttered. I'm not yet n a place where I think I can see the end in sight but I am finding it easier to know that my base line is not to do a room in a week but simply to get rid of something every day. Then I don't beat myself up if things don't go to plan.

Today I took another bag of random stuff to the charity shop and reorganised all the bags for life and tote bags so that they fit into one large beach bag in the hall. In doing so I found another large TK Maxx bag so I was able to use that to lug stuff to the charity shop - memo to self do not fill entirely with books as they aren't that strong.

Took a bag to the charity shop today. I was happy to hear they’re still taking books. Haven’t done much this week but I intend to do a lot tomorrow.
I’m going to go through our books and sell some to one of those book sites and take the rest to charity.

Managed to get the bathroom done while DD had a pre nap bath after getting jam all in her hair at lunch! Which left me time during their nap to fold and put away all the laundry that had accumulated on the stairs and then rest with a nice cup of tea and cuddles with the dogs 🥰

I'm.still cleaning up after half term 😭

livinginabuildingsite I saw that book recommended on another thread, I’m tempted to buy it but worry it could end up unread clutter like my Kondo book. I think a key theme of organised people seems to be to put things away straight away which I try but haven’t yet mastered.

Welcome sourcreamsky my house is a bit like yours at the moment so I need to spend the morning putting things away.

Last night I finally got round to sorting out the hats and scarves and gloves that had been sitting in a box for two or three weeks. It’s a guy fawkes night thing every year as I like to make sure we’re warm for the fireworks and then winter. Anyway we have put seven items in the charity bag but I do need to buy dd1 a scarf and gloves so it’s not a big win but it’s mainly good that dds have a routine and know about organising summer and winter clothes and an annual declutter.

The trees are half decorated now and the Xmas music is on so dc are excited and the house is starting to look nice. Last year I got rid of about a third of our decorations and so far I’ve noticed it’s been quicker to put the decorations up as I like them all.

Stealth ninjamum - I’ve just finished it, on my kindle so doesn’t clutter up the house, but then can’t pass it on either.

I think it gives some good life lessons, accepting the size of your container - house, kitchen, bookshelf, underwear drawer, whatever it may be.

Have gone through DS2’s room with him, did toys, soft toys, books, even posters on the wall. Some baby ish ones I put up that he sadly doesn’t want. I know my alphabet now he says 😂 not sure I am ready to let that one go yet….

Out:
Big bag of books ready at the front door to give to a friend who works in a school and is always after more.
Box of toys I will prob donate to charity and say to him I’ll give him some money as if I sold them.
Some posters to decide what to do with - recycle, donate, etc.

Also out - parts of a fancy dress costume we gave back to its owner last but couldn’t find at the time.

Nearly out - big Lego hotel someone is buying tomorrow.

Now to go and get some wine in for Saturday strictly!

Welcome @Sourcreamsky.

Dropped three toys off at the local Christmas charity collection. They were all duplicate gifts, we seem to have bad luck on that front!

Have had a good week for using up toiletries and finished several things, including a bottle of perfume that I've had for ages. School are collecting for the Christmas fair so am going to see if I have anything unopened to donate to their gift stall. They run it in school time just for the children so hopefully it won't be bought back for my Christmas present!