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.

3 tops given to my mum today. Went through DCs t - shirts, a big pile to sell/charity.

I currently have a skip for a bathroom refit so once they're done I'm going to add all the rubbish that won't fit in my car.

I am very excited as I've done about 25 tip runs since we moved house so a skip seems like a luxury!

I also took 2 bath mats to the charity shop this morning.

Today I've been on a real mission. It's so so time consuming. Sorting through clothes, outgrown, to grow into, charity shop pile, clothing bank pile, to sell pile it's taken me all day abd upstairs looks like a tornado blew through.

Another 8 bags filled today. Listening to podcasts definitely puts me in the zone.

Love reading these

yesterday I chucked out old course notes (I may get around to scanning in those I kept as they are useful to my work)

toys have gone and old clothing - we are lucky to have a clothes bank at the end of our road so I can get rid of all in one go and not get tempted to keep stuff. I have some stuffed toys to clear out Tuesday

house feels really airy

I've sold my big tent - really happy about it. Practically given it away but the fact that they came and took it away is fantastic!

I have moved all my boxes of uni notes and old planning (teacher) out of the understairs cupboard and it’s absolute chaos.

I don’t need that stuff anymore, do I? I mean I never refer to it and looking through it makes me feel a bit inadequate if I’m honest; I was so much more organised then, and did a much better job at work! (Before kids and adult responsibilities.)

I guess I’m keeping it as proof that I used to be better, haha! 😳

My house looks far worse than before I started. I'm nit putting stuff awY if it's not "done". It will get better though, abd my boot (estate car) is full. Charity bag, clothing bank bag, towels/bedding for rspca. Bag for school. Loads listed on vinted. I wish I dudnt worry about waste, being skint, making use of stuff so much.

Inspired reading today from this thread. I’m jealous of the skip though. I’ve been merrily chucking bits and bobs that I’ve found along the way today. Not made a huge vosual
distance but a good mindset for me to have.

Today I've listened to about 6 of Dana's podcasts while painting the utility room.

There was one about what happens after you reach your clutter threshold. I think I'm there really, there's not much more I could get rid of after two years of decluttering but it did make me realise I am rubbish at cleaning.

I might try her daily tasks as dishes are done every day and I'm on top of laundry but I only sporadically clean the bathrooms and rarely mop. I do hoover weekly though as otherwise we'd drown in cat hair.

@CornedBeef451 which podcasts are they?

I have been chipping away but it does just take me AGES.......

I ordered a cheap slide viewer and have been going through my Dad's old slides (there are mountains of them - totally jumbled up) to see what is worth keeping/getting printed up. All quite emotional, but good to make some progress. Next will be trying to work out how to view old films - anyone know???

Bits and pieces in back of car for next tip trip - but not enough to make it worth it.

This week I've tackled a sock bag of odd socks. All the ones that have their match are away and all the odd ones have gone.

I want to try to tackle at least one DOOM box a week for March. For those unfamiliar with DOOM boxes, they're those boxes for items that you Didn't Organise, Only Moved (DOOM).

I was getting ready to go for a run and totally exasperated by my under-bed box of workout stuff which was so full that the lid wouldn't fit on, so I tipped the whole lot out and did a quick sort through. I reckon it's now half the size and I've got rid of 3 pairs of leggings, about 10 (!!!) tops, and 4 pairs of shorts.

And now I can get the lid back on the box and am not going to lose my temper every time I need to grab some workout gear

@CornedBeef451 is this the podcast?

www.aslobcomesclean.com/podcasts/

@Bemyclementine it's A Slob Comes Clean and I was listening to old ones from early 2021.

She's very engaging and honest, very practical tips on decluttering and setting up systems.

@noodlezoodle yes that's the one!

Thanks, I'm going to start listening as I go. I've done LOADS today but it feels like I've barely scratched the surface.

Been a bit AWOL, illness has decimated us in recent weeks, plus have had a household full at weekends, which isn’t really conducive to decluttering!

Managed to get the latest bag up on Vinted. Sold 27 things this weekend to the tune of about £90. Still a fair amount of my clothes to declutter still! Two unopened presents will be regifted at birthday parties in the next couple of weeks.

Just need to keep going through rooms one by one each week with a couple of bags. I’ve been really conscious about what we are buying recently, but it’s still baby steps.

@WombatBombat vinted tips? I'm finding g it very slow.

I’m mainly selling kids clothes, which go well. Selling in bundles, with discounts and accepting non-pisstake offers ie £8 for something listed at £10 but not accepting £5.40.

Ive been buying and selling for a while too so have over 400 reviews which I think helps. A couple of times a year, I do buy that booster spotlight and get a lot of sales that way.

@LolaSmiles God yes - DOOM boxes. The bane of my life. I am extremely guilty of just moving things around the house in an aimless fashion.

About to tackle cupboard full of all sorts of half empty bottles/cans of paint/white spirit/ant killer etc. All probably 30 years old-ish.

500 photos deleted from my phone. They were all from Feb 2022. I need to do every month onwards!

@CornedBeef451 THANK YOU for the podcast suggestion, listened to 4 today! Resonates very well