This was a good topic for a thread on DG. Was hoping Debbie from DG would come over here and start it again..but I will....

It is to share tips and encouragement about making your life simplier via decluttering...donating...tossing...burning!! Whatever!

Minimalists to hoarders welcome!
Nobody judges! All encourage and share what works!


I decluttered a years wirth of paperwork today because I do not want my kids to have to go through it.

I also straightened out my food closet and brought the dates to use first up to the front.

I also cleaned my fridge and tossed condiments...

Can you tell it is cloudy out?

There is a teen who needs some winter duds ..I am about to visit her town and so going through clothes I think she may like...no fuddy duddy please! Ha! What I think is great and what she thinks....hmmmm

The shed....now that is a wreck.

I should mention that my DH is a packrat.

He has grocery receipts from 1971 .he has warranty books from appliances we no longer have....he has nuts and bolts and screws in case he "NEEDS them". BUT IF HE NEEDS THEM...HE GOES TO HOME DEPOT AND BUYS MORE!!..... .

I kid you not.. ..but I make him keep everything (paper) neatly so the kids wont be afraid to close eyes and toss when the time comes. When he is not looking..I toss. I exaggerate..but IF I let him..he would have every surface covered..bad match for a neatnik... except for paint...I hate to toss paint! ...and books...and the kids art...and platic plant containers...and colored bottles....

You have me motivated me again. There is a community-wide garage sale this Saturday. We are not allowed to have garage sales in this subdivision except for this one day of the year. But that means I clean out and donate regularly. I still have a few things I could make a buck off of.

I am pooped from the day's errands. Shopping just wears me out. I hate it! But it's done. I told myself I am NOT preparing for the garage sale! I need to rest. It's Margarita Day tomorrow. Maybe I will get on with it after a few?

I remember that over on DG.

I have been shredding 10 years of bank statements the last couple of weeks. I am down to just one year left to do! My husband insist on keeping things like that. I told him no more! Everything is digital and available online now, so no need. I suggested we go paperless but he is not willing to do that yet. So I now keep the only the newest bank statements. They get shredded when the new ones come.

Hayly left bank stuff of hers here so I shredded all that yesterday and tossed it since have not heard from her.

I got rid of some old plastic planters that were in bad shape and not usable anymore yesterday. Have been trying every week to put something from the garage that is no longer needed/useful either in the trash or off to local thrift stores.

I like decluttering when things get a bit chaotic. It seems to help me get grounded again.

That is a good attitude. My problem is that like you, there is a good feeling as the junk goes but with my husband it makes him anxious. He is convinced that when he needs that receipt..he won't have it. But, like you, little by little..things are shrinking. Good thing I have an attic and filing cabinets!!

The other area I am working on is trying to get rid of doo dads and knick knacks. You know when young ..we get things for our homes and tastes change. .. but the cost and quality of the items dictates not just tossing. Or we put things to the side " in case we need it...later "
It is a process..

Cheryl- GO FOR IT.
It doesn't have to be every single thing. Just get what you think you have the energy for out there. Sometimes doing chunks at a time are less overwhelming .

Hahahaha. And the vacuum

Well I almost talked myself out of doing the community garage sale but I busted my butt and drug everything out of the garage last night. I decided I wanted to get rid of it all and not deal with it again. SO I said everything will be a dollar.

By the time I woke up at the ungodly hour of 5:30 am I decided to raise my prices as if I was going to get up that stinkin' early, I deserved more than a buck! $250 later, the driveway is empty and I only h ad 2 light boxes to get to the donations center. It was a successful garage sale.

Now I have to get busy and clean the garage from the mess I made in there. I *might* actually get a car inside.

GOOD FOR YOU!!!! See it was fortuitous I started this thread with its arrow unbeknownst to me..aimed at you!

Cheryl!

I finished my shredding Friday evening!

Already have several things in the garage lined up for trash day.

I just found this thread. After having to clean out my MIL's home, and my parents home after they passed, I'm determined not to leave a big mess for our kids. I've slowly been going through papers and doing a lot of shredding. Several times a week we take things to the thrift shops or list things on Ebay. It is a good feeling when excess "junk" is gone, and nice clean spaces can be seen. I'll look forward to learning your tips and tricks on this thread.

It's almost 4 years since Bill died and I still have to go through the sheds and tool bags.....but I really do need help as I've no idea what some of the stuff is. I keep asking Alex to help me...hello he might could make out like a bandit already passed lots of tools on to him. He is doing major work on his place and I'm sure he could use alot of the screws, nails and such....plus how many sets of the SAME sockets, drill bits and things like that does one person REALLY need.

Ginger as an FYI ..some materials can be sold bt the pound..,metals and such...but for whatever reason some common tools ( that feel and look like regular metal to me ) will not be accepted ..because they have been "hardened off " or something like that. I don't understand it exactly.

Congrats Claudia and Cheryl! Karen, your motivation is like mine...after dealing with my brother's estate ..it was so hard, it was daunting, it was sad, it was overwhelming, and half of it I had no idea of value OR meaning to him.. I was so sad... anyway, I will not leave a mess for my kids.

Different topic .. it may seem too simple but the old bins..KEEP...DONATE...TRASH ...SELL... works!

My greatest greatest. Greatest...GREATEST challenge is the "dialogue" that goes on in my brain that tells me that:

"SOMEDAY I MAY NEED IT."
"It's STILL GOOD"
"BUT, I PAID SO MUCH FOR IT!
"I AM SAVING IT....BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO DO ( fill in the blank) WITH IT "
(something crafty)

Just stumbled here, I know not how. I have so much 'crapola' that it's hard to believe. I don't have any kids, just adult nieces and nephew. I know they don't want my mother's stuff (thanks, mom - I didn't want it either) and I don't want to leave a bunch of my stuff for them to deal with whenever that may be.

A few years ago I made the round of the consignment shops. Dallas, of course, has a lot of them. They were already full of things like my mother had and they couldn't sell any of it and certainly didn't want to add more.

At one time I did ok consigning clothes. Now it's become so upscale that if something is more than a year old the consignment shops won't take it. So I've donated a lot of clothes and have nice deductions when tax season comes around.

A number of years ago I bought a shredder. Burned it out. By the 3rd one I burned, I finally read the instructions. What's up with shredding for 5 minutes and then letting the shredder cool off for 30? So now I throw stuff into boxes and periodically go to a place that will shred everything for me for cheap. Got 2 1/2 boxes full and still more paper to sort through. Should have tossed or scanned everything years ago.

Last week I loaded up the back seat of my car and took boxes and bags full of doodahs and such to a local charity. Now that was cathartic! However I did end up buying a lampshade for $8 for a naked lamp in my 'office'.

Have to admit that I'm one of those people that can't keep things off of any available surfaces. Haven't always been like that. I'm glad I have pictures to prove it. Don't know what happened but no matter how long it takes, I'm getting rid of it all (well, not all) and keeping my house clutter free again. Wish me luck.

You shoulda took the hatless lamp to sell or donate and you wouldn't have had to buy that shade!

I have my days and chores pretty much organized...like on Tuesdays and Saturdays I clean baths.

Tuesday..big hard clean
Saturday..just a fast Clorox wipe.

Well, I have begun to commit to one drawer each Monday ..
No clothes drawers yet..kitchen...everything out..sort...vacuum..put back

It is slowing getting done

At one time I was going to donate that naked lamp. I'm so glad I kept it b/c my office needed it and I had been looking for a new lamp or shade. Saved money with my $8 expenditure!

Organized? Is there a class or something where I can learn that? I've never been organized!

MISSINGROSIE said:I have my days and chores pretty much organized...like on Tuesdays and Saturdays I clean baths.

Tuesday..big hard clean
Saturday..just a fast Clorox wipe.

Well, I have begun to commit to one drawer each Monday ..
No clothes drawers yet..kitchen...everything out..sort...vacuum..put back

It is slowing getting done

Just found this thread - thanks Rosie! I found out the best way to de-clutter and downsize is to move! When we moved from one side of town to the other I started off with packing up the boxes very neatly that I wanted to donate and DH took them to our local thrift center. Then it got closer and I just crammed stuff in boxes and he hauled it there. Then it got REALLY close and I said what the heck just take it along and I'll go through it later and send it to the thrift center then (I used to have garage sales and now I donate because I don't want to mess with pricing, sitting there for hours if no one is showing up - etc.) . The stuff is STILL in my basement and we moved in 2011! I have a box upstairs that is supposed to go to the thrift store - just have to bring it down and have DH take it over. Then after mom passed away in April I was the person in charge of selling/donating her entire household, other than what the siblings wanted. I had to bring BOXES of things back to Iowa from Colorado that I didn't have time to go through out there but knew I couldn't just throw things out on some of it (lots of pictures, etc.), and it is STILL in the bedroom upstairs I figure I will get to it when the weather turns bad and I can no longer go outside! I have Pottery Barn picture hangers in the corner of the dining room still in the boxes from 4 years ago that I still need to hang Last year at Christmas I just put a sign on them that said "I'LL DO IT LATER" and everyone laughed! Just as soon as I de-clutter inevitably I realize I just got rid of something I want back But now that it is getting cooler I'm going to have to follow Rosie's lead and start working on it again I do go through my closet on a regular basis though and get rid of clothes and shoes - makes more room for the new stuff and DH doesn't notice so much if the closet isn't crammed full

I fixed that..separate closets! Gave up bath space for it..was a good move

I am organized after 63 years with ADHD HAD TO LEARN TO BE. It works.

But I do get anxious with clutter..and like I said DH loves clutter.. cozy.

I just finished arranging cityscapes on wall.

I went upstairs to get hangers and found..a pear..a crow. Two long horn cows, a man pulling a dead female in a cocoon ( shiver) a flower vase... all oil or acrylic. But..some.framed with glass ( I HATE things behind glass ..unless pastel or a need..do not do it...) in HEAVY DARK FRAMES...
I don't know if he likes the art....the framing ...or pissing me off....
Grrrrrrrrr

It is going to look like a Cracker Barrel in here!
I just hung these..in photos ..TRYING to make a grouping..that space bottom center has two tiny cityscape..waiting to be done in identical frames
I am no hanger kind of gal.

I put up paper first to avoid random mistakes/ holes

Love the arrangement (you did good!) and excellent idea to use paper first