Decluttering at the speed of life

[Sallygoroundtheroses]

The follow on from www.mumsnet.com/talk/housekeeping/4709904-im-doing-the-31-day-declutter-challenge?page=21&reply=123534967 as we go into February and maybe beyond. We are no longer doing the numbers challenge but chucking, recycling, regifting and reselling the clutter in our life.

*The title is a nod to Dana K White, someone who has helped me declutter.

Definitely keep some book collections cornedbeef. I have older teens and they enjoy my books now.

A few more boxes of ds’s stuff sorted. And 5 old/nearly finished toiletries from dd. Dropped a couple of old but useable handbags to charity.

Also managed to steer dd out of charity shop before she could buy anything 😅

I missed the new thread. Checking back in.

This week has been poor for decluttering but I've got the house to myself for a few hours so I'm thinking of making a posh coffee, putting some music on and tackling some smaller tasks.

☕

I need to do major decluttering and read through this thread earlier - then binned / gave to charity ten items, so it was a good inspiration!

I like the Pomodori Technique of allocating time in 25 minute chunks to tasks

Yesterday I listed 2 dressed on vinted, so e kids stuff on Olio, and filled a bag for charity.

Easier I took everything out of the top of my wardrobe, gave 1 top to family, and have to go through the rest before I can get in bed!

Place marking!

Where do people get cardboard boxes from, to put the stuff they’re going to donate? You used to be able to grab them near the supermarket checkout but I went to several supermarkets today and had no luck. I did eventually manage to persuade a shop-floor person at Asda to go out to the store room and grab some, but although I said the ideal would be the kind that holds (eg) 6 wine bottles, he brought out three large flat produce boxes instead. I’ll use them, but they are not ideal. Does anyone have any tips?

I look out on Olio and Freecycle. Sainsburys also do the banana boxes.

I've got DH's permission to remove anything that has seen better days from his laundry and not put it back in the wardrobe. Some might say not to ask permission but is be annoyed if he got rid of my things without asking.

One bag has gone to the charity shop today and I've got some children's items to pass to a local mums group.

Spent an hour going through kitchen cupboards and binned lots of (really ) out of date foods plus made a plan for using up lots of the other stuff still in there

Something set up round here by the Mum’s from a local primary school and that works really well, is a "Swap and Share" WhatsApp group. People put a pic and description up of things they are getting rid of (often for free, sometimes with a price if it's quite an expensive item, or as a request for a donation to the school PTA or another charity). Then whoever says "yes please" first gets it - and generally goes to collect from the person's house whose giving it away (or arrange a swap over at the school gates).

It works really well - from a posh tin of loose leaf tea, to clothes, toys, even beds get put on it.

People often then have a designated place they just leave the stuff for collection (porch / car port / etc) so you don't need to be in for the handover.

I ended up buying some boxes at one point @BeepDeep but there's a local independent garden centre that has a box pile as well. Worth asking around. I miss the supermarket box piles.

I would love to join and wish I'd found the previous thread!

I try to do too much at once and then get overwhelmed - like taking absolutely everything out of the wardrobes instead of doing just one drawer at a time. I need to focus on smaller chunks.

I did manage a small task yesterday and cleared out about 12 lots of spices that had gone out of date LAST DECADE 😮 Was feeling quite smug as I emptied them all in the food bin and then washed and recycled the glass containers, however now the whole flat smells of cinammon so that'll teach me to be smug!

Thanks, @declutteringonedayatatime - I hadn’t come across Olio before, so this could be really useful information, not just for getting boxes but also for moving certain items along.

ooh, I’ll try my small local independent garden centre, that’s a great idea, thanks!

Ive got some huge toys out the house today which made room for more toys in boxes. My OH mentioned clearing out another chest of toys that we can declutter this evening. I think this constitutes date night after 15 years together, I’m quite excited.

@noodlezoodle I was very similar in that I would tackle bigger jobs but it would be too much for the time
or energy I had. It’s why Dana K White’s method works for me, I do small jobs, have a bin liner and donatable
donate box ready and take anything that should live
somewhere there immediately (no piles to be sorted after) and the rubbish goes in the bin and the donate box in the car for the charity shop.

I have a tin of old fence paint being picked up tomorrow, via Olio. Hoping to.hit the loft later to find a few more outs.

I'd got really behind after being ill with a kidney infection for three weeks. On the mend now I hope so we went through some of the boxes in the loft that haven't been touched since we moved house nearly three years ago. We're now on 247/406 for February (ahead again!). It hasn't made a difference visually but it feels good to know that's a load of clutter that's not still sat waiting to be sorted.

I tidied the garden today and we did a recycle centre run after this. Took builders rubble, large stones, old tiles, glass bottles, and a bag of general rubbish / toys that had got left out and ruined.

I agree that little and often is better. I was going to try and find more stuff to take to the tip and stopped myself - done is better than your perfect and the garden looks a lot better.

Mowed the lawn for the first time this year! Feels like Spring here.

Another item sold on vinted , going to the post today . Its all dribs and drabs but all helps

Pair of ancient trainers binned and some trousers into the charity bag. All the little bits add up@Bemyclementine !

I need to join in. I get so overwhelmed with this. Any advice?

I keep trying to hold onto things in case I need them in the future. I won't.

Or can someone just give me a kick?

well @iwanttobreakfreeee what has worked for me is to start small and manageable to avoid the overwhelm. I’ve been decluttering for years and I’ve never got rid of anything I’ve regretted or been unable to purchase again easily. Mostly if I kept things I’d maybe need for later then I’d likely forget where I’d put them.

For me Marie Kondo worked on letting go of sentimental items. Dana K White (podcast ‘A slob comes clean’ but she writes books and is on youtube) has the same brain as me in many ways so her method works for me.

If you want a virtual kick you could try the 31 day challenge which kick-started this original thread. 1 items on day one 2 items on day 2 and so on.

@iwanttobreakfreeee I find that even if I just say I'll sort one shelf then quite often once I've started I stick with it until I've done the whole unit or whatever. Also, I imagine how much it's costing me in happiness to have stuff cluttering my home. If it was something i REALLY needed in the future then I'd find a way to buy it again.

I've got rid of a black bag of my clothes t today, a pair of dance shoes of Dd and a bag of rubbish. I have 2 boxes of computer consoles and games ready to go hopefully to the children's ward.