All I Want for Christmas is a tidy house - Decluttering thread 9

[Pigtailsandall]

New thread!
Hope you all find this! It's not letting me tag people..

@Jellycatrabbit im sorry for your loss.

Hope you had a good birthday @LivingInaBuiltSite

Welcome @UnimaginableWindBird that sounds like an amazing job getting so much stuff out without a car.

I have been mainly focused on dd2 who’s being home schooled.

I’m largely maintaining and organising stuff. My routine is working and every night I spend no more than 15 minutes (often less) getting the four downstairs rooms that guests would see tidy but I’m still struggling with the rest of the house. It’s still too messy - although much better than it used to be.

I haven’t posted for about ten days but my main outs have been

• lots of papers, notes from meetings, shopping lists, to do lists
• socks
• some skincare I hadn’t used since I bought it in Covid.
• an electrical cord that doesn’t seem to plug into anything - I think it was from a radio I recycled a couple of years ago

I also spent an hour at the weekend sorting through Lego and an hour organising my computer. I must’ve deleted over a hundred files.

Attempting a big sweep today for the beginning of half term!
It already feels pointless

Day 45 declutter- set of 6 spoons. They came with a set but were awkward shape and size

I've sorted out a corner of utter doom, but we need an actual space somewhere in which to put tools and DIY stuff, which we do need to keep, but currently have nowhere to store.

After doing so little decluttering recently I tidied an area of my bedroom. A chest of drawers had a pile of crap on it. I mainly threw out old papers, and filed some. It’s a tiny restart.

Well. I have been driving round with over 200 baby bank items in my boot. Some of these I have put on one side since the autumn. I have held back wanting to offer some to friends, not wanting to let go of hand made items… but we were going near a baby bank and I just dug deep and made myself donate the lot! Bags and bags gone. I actually felt a bit wobbly about it…

This evening I posted another vinted sale and found 3 out of date things in kitchen cupboards I’m not planning to replace

Hi all hope you don't mind me joining in as this thread is very inspiring! I live in a very small terraced home with DH and 3 grown up kids plus 2 dogs and although I try to keep stuff minimal, it still feels so cluttered. So am going to start being more ruthless about the stuff everywhere and especially stuff on surfaces as the visible clutter really stresses me out. Joined Vinted this week and have sold 4 items for over £30 so far! Really chuffed but now got to parcel up and send tomorrow. Also planning more wardrobe decluttering as definitely have too many clothes and just don't have the space.

I have found a new home for all of our Lego!

Well done @Realfastfoodie it’s really hard emotionally to get rid of baby stuff.

I have just decided to let go of another wire, this one for a router that I’m sure belonged to exh. I also found a charging wire for an iPad I bought in 2012 to watch the olympics on. The iPad sits on a surface in my bedroom and is never used so I am charging it and have emailed a local charity to see if they want it.

Been absent for a bit, nothing was selling on vinted and decluttering is getting harder now the low hanging fruit has been dealt with. But out today...

Charity shop: 3x blankets, picture frame, pack of gift boxes, swimming noodle, swimming costume
Sold on vinted: jumper
Bin: 2 tatty pillow cases

Total: 185

Those who are struggling with vinted, I seriously recommend doing a listing spree and then paying for Wardrobe Spotlight. I wasn’t convinced but it’s been very helpful for me.

I’m need to do a push on electricals I think. The problem is that my other half wants to be in charge of recycling them but doesn’t get round to it!

@Realfastfoodie I hear you on the electricals, we have decades of devices and wires needing to be dealt with! they're a DH job

I listed about a dozen things on vinted yesterday and sold 5 which isn't to be sneezed at.
Sold: 2x jumpers, shirt, dress, pack of paper

Total :190

Days 46 & 47 declutters - 2 boxes of lightbulbs which are the wrong size for us. Were at the very back of the kitchen cupboard so happy to make a bit of space there

loads more stuff listed/dumped/packed I just wish I knew how not to get triggered by stuff, especially when I see XH nearly every day 🥺 decided I will keep an unused hobby item yes in the hopes that I'll use it lol the results will look pretty in my new kitchen gin

I had a lovely birthday thanks! Although I still can’t believe I’m 50.

Jobs:

1. Hang up framed pictures: this has now changed to critically go through the framed artwork as we’ve agreed we don’t actually want all of it?
2. DS2 paperwork: blue badge started
3. my British passport application - make appointment DONE ☑️ upload paperwork
4. DS1’s gaming, PC, nerf collections to go through and tidy
5. Portfolio work - waiting for more to be marked, more to do, always
6. Assemble DDs new desk, DONE ☑️ let her sort her stuff ☑️ , give away old desk DH using it now; give away shelf bit DH doesn’t want if anyone wants it

Not quite outs yet:
scooter hooks x 3 onto FB, need to bump up
see if anyone wants a mostly working prelit Christmas tree
parts for a bed minus one plank DONE

Out:
ood lemon juice
ood sauce sachets x 2
bed parts
111+4=115

(lots more gone thanks to DD and DH but I haven’t been counting their stuff)

Sold: Old phone sold to CEX
Bin: pants
Total 192

A belated happy birthday @LivingInaBuiltSite!
I've been continuing with the kitchen: a few more items binned/into recycling. Unfortunately, I still have the dumping ground drawers to tackle.
Someone collected an item I put on Freecycle this morning.
I'm away a few days this week so that puts a halt on things.

I tidied my medicine cupboard and threw out an old nit comb. We still have 3 or 4 and as noones had head lice for about 8 years I’m thinking of throwing them all out. Also to go are some out of date calpol, antisan and painkillers. I’ll take them to a pharmacist next week.

im also throwing out two thermometers that don’t work. They were cheap on Amazon and I replaced their batteries and they still don’t work.

i am also throwing out some unflattering trousers that I never wear.

I also sat with dd1 and threw out more GCSE notes from her wardrobe and art stuff.

Basic tidying and recycling for the past fortnight. Also gathering all electricals and cables into front room for sorting out what works and what doesn’t.

For about half an hour I had an empty cupboard as I dug out the last of the stuff in there. A strange trip down memory lane about twenty years ago when kids started leaving home and I was peri but didn’t realise. Stuff is sorted out a bit, and I can go back and declutter with less emotion and mess.

Friday we got a computer desk down the stairs to replace a rickety card table. The space it’s in now looks a lot lighter and tidier with all the plugs and cables hidden away.

Today DD took two 4’ high bookcases for her storage area.

Forgot - donated ten pairs of oitgrown black school socks.

@Realfastfoodie well done for getting rid of the baby stuff, sounds so difficult, I'm the same.
@UnimaginableWindBird can you put up a shelf to store things in or hang them on the wall? Depending on what type of things you have.
@Jellycatrabbit sorry about your bereavement. RIP to your relative.
@IncessantNameChanger I feel exactly the same about going out clothes. I miss going out and getting dressed up, having fun and feeling like the world was full of endless possibilities, but it's not my life now.
@stealthninjamum well done on getting started again.
@JK3 I think it was you who is approaching maintenance decluttering? From what I've seen people fall into two groups, those who continue to buy but also have a big clear out every few months and those who just stop buying anything unless they've had to throw something out and need a replacement. In theory it's one in one out, but I don't think anyone manages it because when they go to decide what to get rid of so they can buy whatever new thing it is that they want, they decide they're happy with what they've got and don't want to get rid of anything so they end up just not getting the new thing.
@LivingInaBuiltSite happy birthday 🎉✨🎂
@Stuffocation welcome to the thread.

This week's outs:

Lipstick
Face cream
Body lotion
False lashes

All used up.

Belt
Socks

Both worn out and binned.

Jumper x2
Top
Sunhat
Blazer x2
Baby's pram suit

All donated.

CD
DVD x2

Binned, we didn't like them any more.

Birthday card
43 photos
2 rosettes

No longer feeling sentimental about so binned.

Total is 3225

Days 14-16 of Feb decluttering: I listed two more items on Vinted yesterday (already counted as outs in a previous declutter), and one of them has sold already, so I will post it off this week.

I also remembered to put the stash of foil for recycling actually out in the recycling last week, which isn’t really decluttering but has improved the state of the kitchen.

I'm.quite behind. Have lots on Vinted with no real interest si I'm going to sort it to donate tomorrow. Also going to list world book day outfits as I have to buy bigger ones ( on Vinted of course).

Day 48 declutter - very cute t-shirt that's too small.

I'm really tired atm but trying to keep up with just one thing a day