August Decluttering

[happystuff]

I didn't see that a decluttering thread had been started for August, so... here we go!

I am happy to say that my decluttering motivation is continuing! I have gone throught my crate of wallets/purses/backpacks/bags/etc. and I got culled out pretty much half! Dd took two, about 4 will go on ebay and the rest are being donated. Looking for another way to store what I'm keeping so that I can get the crate off the floor and out of the bedroom. :)

[Stacy]

Thanks for starting a new thread, happystuff, and I'm glad to hear that decluttering motivation is still going strong.
I didn't get much time to declutter in the past few days, but I have done some organizing. I bought a bunch of baskets at my place of work for 50 cents apiece and placed them on wire racks to store a bunch of office supplies. Looks a lot prettier than plastic bins. I also brought my previously decluttered stuff right to Goodwill, rather than letting them sit in the car trunk for months on end. Pretty easy to do, though. My workplace is in the same building as our Goodwill.
I still haven't cleaned out that closet that has been haunting me. So I'm leaving the closet door open, and I figure sooner or later I'll get fed up and go on a cleaning frenzy.

[Life_is_Simple]

I second the thanks to Happystuff for starting this thread.

I have some papers to declutter, and have a question:

If I have Flexible Spending papers from 2006, can I shred them all? I think there would be no tax reason to keep them, right?

[rosarugosa]

Life_is_Simple: The general recommendation is to keep tax-related docs for 7 years, so I would not shred them yet.

[Life_is_Simple]

Life_is_Simple: The general recommendation is to keep tax-related docs for 7 years, so I would not shred them yet.
Ok, I'll keep those. And I have since found some from 2001, which I can now get rid of.

[cdttmm]

Thanks for starting this thread, happystuff. I'm going to make a concerted effort to declutter this month.

To start with, I just listed some boxes of gum on Freecycle. We had 40 boxes of gum from a promotion at work that never got distributed and so instead of holding on to them for some future use out they go.

I need to put together a bag of clothing and shoes to be donated to the thrift store. They aren't open today -- it's Sunday -- but I am going to aim to drop off a big bag of stuff by Wednesday of this week.

Not sure what I'll tackle after that, but I'm going to come back to this thread to help keep myself accountable!

[Life_is_Simple]

I shredded 4 bags of paper today.

[Life_is_Simple]

Today I shredded 2.5 bags of paper.

[fidgiegirl]

We have a lot of stuff sitting around to be donated to specialty organizations or to be returned to stores. When we organized the basement a lot of it surfaced. So this week I'd like to try to get all of it returned and what I can, donated.

[Gardenarian]

I filled a bag with books to take to the used bookstore. I have now emptied two large bookshelves and we have a lot more space in the sitting room. It's great to be able to walk around without worrying about stubbing my toes!

I also went through all my linens (I have a weakness for picking up quilts and sheets etc. at yard sales.) I realized that I have a big pile of sheets that are torn or have holes in them. I have to decide whether I'm going to do something crafty with them or donate them to the Humane Society. I also mended a bunch of quilts and comforters that were becoming ragged looking.

I re-gifted a wedding gift we never used (22 years!) Silver plated candle sticks and tray - I gave them to a friend for her 25th anniversary party.

[Life_is_Simple]

I re-gifted a wedding gift we never used (22 years!) Silver plated candle sticks and tray - I gave them to a friend for her 25th anniversary party.
Way to go!:+1:

[Life_is_Simple]

Shredded 3 bags of papers today. Is there an end in sight? Stay tuned... ;)

[fidgiegirl]

Keep at it, Life_is_Simple . . . any bag out is a good bag out!!

Is it worth it for you to pay a shredding service? Just to get the papers sorted more quickly? Someone mentioned it last month, I think, and maybe it was even you!

[Life_is_Simple]

Keep at it, Life_is_Simple . . . any bag out is a good bag out!!

Is it worth it for you to pay a shredding service? Just to get the papers sorted more quickly? Someone mentioned it last month, I think, and maybe it was even you!
Ha! You caught me! When I dropped off the papers to be shredded last month, they were bounded documents from past jobs/clients which could be shredded in entirety. When I pick a page here and there, it is sometimes easier to shred as I go. I haven't really decided the cut-off point. OTOH, the shredding service is cheap.

[Tradd]

Dumped a LOT of papers this evening. Went through the zippered binder where I keep my important papers. Pulled out and shredded a ton. Moved all my bills to paperless. Will be closing my PO Box when it's renewal time in a few months, as my mail is so little and the mail delivery has vastly improved in my complex.

[fidgiegirl]

I'd like to move back to more paperless.

But when DH wants to see something, then he doesn't know how to access.

Perhaps a master list of all the sites where we have accounts. If we use the same username and password for all of them, he knows that.

[Tradd]

Fidgie, buried in the same place where I keep my important papers I've got a list of websites, as well as my username/passwords.

[Zoe Girl]

Does the freezer count? I have sooo many bananas in the freezer anda couple in the fridge. So this weekend I am trying different recipes for muffins. That should be easy toadd to my lunch as my sweet thing. The good news is that i can eat bananas! I have had some food limits and wasn't sure about bananas. :cool:

[Life_is_Simple]

Dumped a LOT of papers this evening. Went through the zippered binder where I keep my important papers. Pulled out and shredded a ton.

Does your shredder ever fight back and overheat?

[Tradd]

Does your shredder ever fight back and overheat?

This is a new-ish shredder, but not yet.

[Tussiemussies]

I use some old gift wrap with my shredder and then use it to fill gift bags...
:)
Now that I think about it, I should save gift wrap from the gifts we receive and use that!

[Float On]

As we move towards school and fall I'm getting the declutter bug again. DH swears there won't be anything left (he gets a mini panic attack when he hears me say "everyone grab a bag and fill it").
Yesterday DS#1 and I worked on his room. We filled his small trash can and filled 4 walmart bags with stuff to donate. Progress!!

[decemberlov]

DH and I spent all of Saturday going through boxes in the basement and organizing and putting aside things for our garage sale in Sunday. We moved back in November to our new house and about 80% of our stuff was still packed away in the basement. In the process I got some school "shopping" done while I was down there in the art supply box, I found 2 packs of brand new pencils & 4 notepads (all of which had 2 or 3 pgs used), 2 pencil cases, glue sticks, scissors etc!
We moved everything we didn't want out to the garage. It was shocking to see how much junk I accumulated over the years!!
Sunday we setup our sale and made $103.00!! Best part is we had a blast! Met some really nice people in the neighborhood, drank a few beers and grilled some food. In the end we just kept laughing about the fact that we couldn't figure out exactly what the heck we sold...seemed like we got paid just to hang out and meet great people. We plan on doing one for the next few weekends. We hardly even put a dent it our junk pile! Now that we did all the hard work getting the stuff out there it's just a matter of opening up the garage doors and sliding the tables out.
The money was just a bonus to having a clean basement!!

[Minz]

I filled a large garbage bag with letters from high school and grade school. I'm 40, I've been carrying these around all this time and always thought "some day" I'll take them out and read them. Well today was the day to just trash them! Woohoo! I feel lighter already!

How do some people reconcile with selling something versus donating?? I've sold a few things here and there, but sometimes I wonder if it's just more trouble than it's worth?! So lately I've been thinking if I can get around $15 or more for something I'll try to sell it...otherwise just donate. What do other on this forum do?

[Tussiemussies]

Hi Minz, if you can afford to I vote to donate some and sell some. It really helps others when you donate. For us though we have some big items like a beautiful king sized headboard that we paid $500.00 for and we will sell that. A lot of other things we will be donating. : )

[fidgiegirl]

How do some people reconcile with selling something versus donating?? I've sold a few things here and there, but sometimes I wonder if it's just more trouble than it's worth?! So lately I've been thinking if I can get around $15 or more for something I'll try to sell it...otherwise just donate. What do other on this forum do?

That's about how we do it. $15 is a good number. Sometimes we go for $10, but I think that's only worth our time at this point because we have done enough eBay to be able to do it pretty quickly, so we're not investing a lot of time in selling it. If it's not worth selling all on its own, then we donate simply for selfish reasons - to get it out NOW. Others in my life have done well with garage sales but I couldn't stand to watch it sit around. Once I've decided to declutter it, I want it out. We do sell quite a bit of our own things as well as garage sale finds and make a nice little side money at it as well as get some entertainment value!

Remember, even if you donate, the tax write off can still be substantial. You have to keep track of what you're donating, though, and the fair market value.

[SteveinMN]

Minz, same with us. If the item has some value and it should sell easily, we'll put it on craigslist or maybe eBay (some items have value which will be more quickly uncovered by a national audience, which craigslist really doesn't offer). Otherwise, we'll donate to Goodwill or DAV (depends on what it is; Goodwills around here are choosy about what they'll take and when). We used to list lower-cost items and free items on craigslist, but time constraints made it a pain to coordinate them. Strangely -- and sadly -- giving away stuff was the biggest hassle -- as the British say, people just couldn't be arsed to show up when they said they would for free stuff. It's easier to just put it in a box and drop off the box at Goodwill next time we're out. And it goes to a good cause.

[try2bfrugal]

How do some people reconcile with selling something versus donating?? I've sold a few things here and there, but sometimes I wonder if it's just more trouble than it's worth?! So lately I've been thinking if I can get around $15 or more for something I'll try to sell it...otherwise just donate. What do other on this forum do?

I'm self employed so I usually go the donation route for odds and ends. I consider that part of my charitable contributions for the year. I never really have a lot of high value stuff to sell so I usually make more money working than selling small items. I do sell books at the local used books stores and I have sold some books and text books on Amazon. With our old cars we have usually sold them to friends or donated them for the tax deductions. We usually drive them until they aren't worth very much.

[Minz]

Thanks for the replies SteveinMN and try2bfrugal. I put a few things on Craigslist and EBAY today. If they don't sell quickly, I am happy to donate. It's sometimes seems more of a hassle to package, ship and/or meet someone on Craigslist who may or may not show up...even though I usually have good luck with that. The more I declutter...the more it makes me want to declutter even more! Peace!

[decemberlov]

I use some old gift wrap with my shredder and then use it to fill gift bags...
:)
Now that I think about it, I should save gift wrap from the gifts we receive and use that!

This is such a good idea!! Would be great for Easter baskets too! Thank you, I think I'll do this :)

[Minz]

That's about how we do it. $15 is a good number. Sometimes we go for $10, but I think that's only worth our time at this point because we have done enough eBay to be able to do it pretty quickly, so we're not investing a lot of time in selling it. If it's not worth selling all on its own, then we donate simply for selfish reasons - to get it out NOW. Others in my life have done well with garage sales but I couldn't stand to watch it sit around. Once I've decided to declutter it, I want it out. We do sell quite a bit of our own things as well as garage sale finds and make a nice little side money at it as well as get some entertainment value!



Remember, even if you donate, the tax write off can still be substantial. You have to keep track of what you're donating, though, and the fair market value.

Thanks Fidgiegirl.
I know what you mean...once I decide I'm ready to get rid of something, it's hard to see it sit around as I try to sell it...I also just want it the heck out. I'll give it a week for the things I listed on CL and EBAY, then it's out of here. I've also started doing a little bit of shopping at Goodwill so I see the value of donating even more than I did before.
On a side note, I looked at your blog about your house remodel...that house looks so charming. I love tudor style historic homes. I'm living in a home built in 1910 but I'm finding it's too big and too much work for me...now thinking of downsizing...my next adventure!

[bunnys]

I just went through my underpants/sock drawer yesterday. Got rid of 5 pairs of tights and I still have 8 more! I have too many clothes. Thinking of how I could do no-new clothing (aside from underclothing) until my 50th birthday in March 2014. But I'd want to get going within the next month so I can do it for at least 18 months. This is something that is very necessary for me as I have an absurd amount of clothing. It's extravagant and wasteful and almost immoral how much clothing I have and I don't like it.

[Minz]

I just went through my underpants/sock drawer yesterday. Got rid of 5 pairs of tights and I still have 8 more! I have too many clothes. Thinking of how I could do no-new clothing (aside from underclothing) until my 50th birthday in March 2014. But I'd want to get going within the next month so I can do it for at least 18 months. This is something that is very necessary for me as I have an absurd amount of clothing. It's extravagant and wasteful and almost immoral how much clothing I have and I don't like it.

I bet you can do it! Or as another suggestion, how about doing six months chunks at a time that way you're breaking your goal into smaller pieces. I've never been a big shopper but when I was getting rid of clothes I felt the guilt of how wasteful I had been spending $x.xx amount on something that I only wore a couple times, or even worse I wasn't crazy about the clothing item but I bought it because I got a good deal...but it wasn't really a good deal if I barely wore it. Do you have those same kinds of feelings? If so, how do you overcome it?
Best of luck in your new goal!!

[Minz]

I wanted to share my Pinterest Board...it's basically a collection of minimalist, clean, uncluttered rooms. I look at photos when I need inspiration and it helps to remind myself why I'm on this journey.

http://pinterest.com/blissfulmindy/minimalist-lifestyle-rooms/

[bunnys]

Minz: I notice a theme with all those pics. White. Also, looking at all those mass dorm rooms lined up makes me want to go to camp. Can you as an adult actually living somewhere where you actually had to sleep in a dorm where the beds were all lined up like that? No privacy. No solitude? I wonder what it would be like.

I just did a teacher seminar on the history of Big Meadows Camp @ Shenandoah National Forest--Skyline Drive. One day was on Herbert Hoover's pre-Camp David retreat--Rapidan Camp. The second was on the CCC camp @ Big Meadows. We looked at a lot of pics in addition to visiting the camp sites. The barracks we looked at were just like that. Army barracks style. Little stations of bed, trunk, nightstand and hooks lined up along the walls. This was for mass residence of a bunch of 18-25 year old men.

As far as the clothing thing is concerned. I think I can do it for 18 months. Frequently, now I'll go 6 months at a time without buying anything, then, in a month's time, I'll buy several items that I don't freaking need because I already have so much stuff. For winter now I have 12 pairs of pants, 5 skirts, 30+ sweaters, 4 coats that could be winter coats, 5 dresses... I could go on and on. Something like I could wear a different outfit to work every day for 2 months and never wear the same thing twice. It's outrageous. Yet, when I'm in this mental state and I think of my wardrobe, there's always something I could buy. Something I "need."

The only thing that worries me about going 18 months without purchasing any clothing is what if my underwear all wears out (I can't abide threadbare at the elastic underpants) or if a wire breaks in every bra I own? What if I need new, expensive athletic shoes (I walk nearly 2 hours every day.) I go through the athletic shoes and can't go cheap or secondhand with those as I already have an issue with my foot and my knee and don't want to exacerbate it. What if an event came up where I had to have something to wear that's a style that I currently have nothing for that category (i.e., formalwear?)

That's why I have to figure out this mess before I embark upon it. I don't know if I'd let myself have some kind of budget for the 18 months or if I'd stock up on the underpants and bras or if I'd say I'll only buy something for a special occasion if it's 2nd hand?

And the reason I want to do this is I want this clothing to wear out. I don't want to get rid of it because it's out of style which is what I'm doing right now.

And yes, I do sometimes give things away after having worn them 1x. That's obscene! I feel terribly wasteful about it.

[Stacy]

The only thing that worries me about going 18 months without purchasing any clothing is what if my underwear all wears out (I can't abide threadbare at the elastic underpants) or if a wire breaks in every bra I own? What if I need new, expensive athletic shoes (I walk nearly 2 hours every day.) I go through the athletic shoes and can't go cheap or secondhand with those as I already have an issue with my foot and my knee and don't want to exacerbate it. What if an event came up where I had to have something to wear that's a style that I currently have nothing for that category (i.e., formalwear?)

That's why I have to figure out this mess before I embark upon it. I don't know if I'd let myself have some kind of budget for the 18 months or if I'd stock up on the underpants and bras or if I'd say I'll only buy something for a special occasion if it's 2nd hand?

And the reason I want to do this is I want this clothing to wear out. I don't want to get rid of it because it's out of style which is what I'm doing right now.

Bunnys- I think you should jump right in. If you have to buy some clothing out of emergency, just think about whether or not it's an actual emergency. If the elastic in your underwear is pinching you, or your feet are killing you because your shoes are wearing out, I'd say buy them. Consider them necessary supplies, like toilet paper.
I'm not so sure about the question about the formalwear. I guess I hang out with a pretty casual crowd.

[Stacy]

I wanted to share my Pinterest Board...it's basically a collection of minimalist, clean, uncluttered rooms. I look at photos when I need inspiration and it helps to remind myself why I'm on this journey.


Thanks for the link! I clicked "Follow". :) I have a wabi sabi board you may like.
http://pinterest.com/sewrightdesigns/wabi-sabi/

I like those white bedrooms. I happen to have a white bedroom,too. I find it very relaxing. As a quilter, however, I must put a quilt on the bed to add a bit of color to the room.

[bunnys]

Stacy:

I don't wear formalwear!!!!! I'm just grasping at straws, here.

I don't know what I'll do but I'm seriously considering some "ok" items. Underpants, bras, athletic socks and athletic shoes and everything else is off the table. But haven't decided yet.

The 18 month starting date would be September 23rd.

[Stacy]

Oh, and I finally got around to decluttering that closet that was vexing me. It's in the office, so I had the closet door open so that every time I sat at the computer, I had to look at the mess. So today, I threw out a bunch of old gift bags that had gotten wrinkled, and I'm giving a bunch of unused Christmas cards to Goodwill. I never was very good about sending them out in time, so last year I decided to just quit sending them out. (The year before, I went ahead and bought New Year's cards because I was that late.) I kept two rolls of gift wrap and a small bag of bows, but I'm giving all the ribbon of Goodwill.
I had a bunch of very old video games in there that I put online to sell, and they haven't sold after four years. So off to Goodwill they go. I have loads of board games in there. My son is not interested in any of them, and I'm waiting until my husband rests up from work so he can see what he wants to keep. Chances are, most of them are going to go.
I have a keyboard in there that has actually been wrapped in plastic over the past three moves! My son didn't even know we had it. I'll hold onto it, because he might be interested in playing it. I might be interested in playing it, too. It might be fun to pull it out of the closet and try it out again, after it's been sitting for years.

[Stacy]

Bunnys- I'm reminded of the book by Judith Levine: "Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping". Have you read it? If not, get it from the library. ;)
She went a year without buying anything, but I believe she did buy the necessary household and personal supplies. And food, of course. When she did cheat a couple of times, she bought clothes.

[Life_is_Simple]

Oh, and I finally got around to decluttering that closet that was vexing me. It's in the office, so I had the closet door open so that every time I sat at the computer, I had to look at the mess. So today, I threw out a bunch of old gift bags that had gotten wrinkled, and I'm giving a bunch of unused Christmas cards to Goodwill.
Stacy, I was hoping that you would update us when you started on the office closet ;) Way to go! :+1:

[Minz]

Thanks for the link! I clicked "Follow". :) I have a wabi sabi board you may like.
http://pinterest.com/sewrightdesigns/wabi-sabi/

I like those white bedrooms. I happen to have a white bedroom,too. I find it very relaxing. As a quilter, however, I must put a quilt on the bed to add a bit of color to the room.

Stacy: I am now following your Wabi-sabi board!! Very cool!
I guess I do have a thing for white rooms...I find them refreshing and peaceful. Hehehee. I think I will look for some other minimalist colored rooms just to add some boldness and variety to my board.

Bunnys: I agree, no privacy with the beds lined up like camp...I think I just liked the uncluttered-ness of it. Ahhhh.
I agree with Stacy....I would also consider the underwear and athletic shoes a necessity. That is awesome you walk two hours a day...I so need to do something like that as well. Keep us posted on your 18 months without buying non-essential items. Have you ever checked out this website: http://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2011/08/how-to-not-buy-anything.html. It's a cool website about this couple who lives simply and don't buy anything that is non-essential.
p.s. I think we are allowed to post websites we like...correct?

[Selah]

Reading this thread inspires me. The last time I read it, I spent some time going through my bookshelf and managed to get rid of one book, that I thought was my husband's. When I asked him if it was a book he still wanted, because I'd never seen him read it, he swore up and down that it was MY book and he'd never seen it before! Judging from the title, I knew there was no way in heck that would ever be a book I'd buy, so out it went!

Of course, clutter does have a way of accumulating without me noticing it, so it will be an ongoing chore. However, I'm really having to look hard these days to find these little nests of crapola, since I've gotten SO much better at not letting it get past the front door in the first place.

[Tussiemussies]

We are planning on moving and the fireplace where we are renting we had inspected and they warned us of not using it since it is bent inside and carbon dioxide could be leeching into the room. So we have a little over a 1/2 cord of wood that we put on Craigslist. No sense in paying to have that hauled in the move...:)

[try2bfrugal]

I wanted to share my Pinterest Board...it's basically a collection of minimalist, clean, uncluttered rooms. I look at photos when I need inspiration and it helps to remind myself why I'm on this journey.

http://pinterest.com/blissfulmindy/minimalist-lifestyle-rooms/

I love it. That is a great idea.

[fidgiegirl]

p.s. I think we are allowed to post websites we like...correct?

Indeedy! It's if it gets into marketing a site that someone might flag you. But we have very little of those shenanigans on these boards. We have tight prevention on the admin side, methinks. Yeah for that!!!

[fidgiegirl]

We are planning on moving and the fireplace where we are renting we had inspected and they warned us of not using it since it is bent inside and carbon dioxide could be leeching into the room. So we have a little over a 1/2 cord of wood that we put on Craigslist. No sense in paying to have that hauled in the move...:)

When do you plan to move, Tussiemussies? I know you mentioned looking for a place, so sorry if I missed any actual purchase . . . it's pretty amazing though that even in the house-hunting process it helps one to purge. It's like putting on a different pair of glasses to look at your own house, even long before you're packing the boxes.

[razz]

You guys are very motivating. I have been trying to clean up one small space a day. The top of the dryer is clear, the one section of kitchen counter is now clear. One small cabinet with two shelves is now organized. Magazines are collected and donated. I am determined to get things cleared up so that dusting is so easy.

Where does one store tickets for upcoming theatre shows? I have about 5 different shows coming up and have these collecting on my dresser?

[Tussiemussies]

Hi Kelli, thanks for asking, we are looking around right now to get a feel of the areas we like most, we would like a minimum of one acre and to be out in the woods with no neighbors. Been there done that and would just complete privacy. I always wanted a tub in my yard. It would be so nice to have a fire pit going and soak while looking up at the stars. Where no one can see you! LOL. So far the area we like the taxes are high. The taxes inNJ are really high anyway but they are at usually $10,000 dollars in the area we love.

Thanks again for asking. I'm sure I'll have a lot to post once we start with all the boxes. We have moved twice and the movers couldn't believe how much we had. It was never cluttery though, there was always a place for everything and it was kept there...

Hope all is well you way! I see on another thread you are getting your exercise ball!!!:)

[Amaranth]

For upcoming shows you could store tickets in:
File folder marked events
The daily file folder for the day of the event
The day's pocket on a large calendar
Your fire safe


As far as the clothing thing is concerned. I think I can do it for 18 months. Frequently, now I'll go 6 months at a time without buying anything, then, in a month's time, I'll buy several items that I don't freaking need because I already have so much stuff. For winter now I have 12 pairs of pants, 5 skirts, 30+ sweaters, 4 coats that could be winter coats, 5 dresses... I could go on and on. Something like I could wear a different outfit to work every day for 2 months and never wear the same thing twice. It's outrageous. Yet, when I'm in this mental state and I think of my wardrobe, there's always something I could buy. Something I "need."
Bunnys, a fun way to challenge yourself and to work on wearing out your clothes when you have that many is to divide the clothes into clothing capsules. Wear the items in each capsule for a couple of months. For your winter clothes, I’d divide them into 3 groups for Sept-Oct, Nov-Dec, Jan-March.

Here’s one way to divide it out for a person of Winter coloring. If you are a different color season, let me know and I can do another division based on your season and the clothes you have. Also, I am going to assume you have an even number of items in the various colors. More likely you will have more in certain favorite or easy to find colors, but this is easily adjusted to whatever you have.

For Sept-Oct:
Neutrals: Navy, Charcoal, Stone
Accent Colors: Lavender, violet, turquoise

Pants (4 pair) Navy, Charcoal, Stone
Skirts (2) Navy, Charcoal
Sweaters (10-12) Navy, Charcoal, Stone, Lavender, Violet, Turquoise
Shirts (about 1/3rd of them including a few short sleeved ones for warmer days) White plus same colors as Sweaters
Dresses (2) Navy, Plum

Hang everything above in the first/front section of your closet or put folded sweaters in a dresser drawer near the top.

Look over all the clothes you have pulled for the capsule and see if anything needs repair.
Move appropriate shoes to the front. See if they need any polishing.
Select a set of accessories that go with these and put them in one section of a drawer.

Although the turquoise and the navy are not likely to go together unless one is a print that includes both, the rest of the tops and bottoms are likely to work well with each other if they are solids. So from the bottoms and sweaters you could expect 60 plus different outfits, and with the shirts even more. Try to wear each item an even number of times over the two months (10 times each bottom, 6 times each sweater).

If anything wears out or falls apart during the rotation, put it in the ragbag, good parts for children’s clothes, good parts for quilt blocks, compost, clothing recycle drive as appropriate. Save reusable hardware as appropriate (buttons, hooks, zippers).

November—December
Neutrals: Black, Charcoal, Light gray, Forest Green
Accent Colors: Lighter greens, True red

January-March
Neutrals: Cobalt Blue, Winter White
Accent Colors: Lighter Blues, Yellow

To help make decisions about how to divide things out, it helps to arrange each type of clothing in color order before you start. It makes it easier to see what you have a lot of.

[Life_is_Simple]

Reading this thread inspires me. The last time I read it, I spent some time going through my bookshelf and managed to get rid of one book, that I thought was my husband's. When I asked him if it was a book he still wanted, because I'd never seen him read it, he swore up and down that it was MY book and he'd never seen it before! Judging from the title, I knew there was no way in heck that would ever be a book I'd buy, so out it went!
:laff: Pretty funny! The mysterious book, where no one claims ownership!

[Selah]

And the decluttering continues. This time it was the refrigerator. Out went a container of what DH bought, thinking it was beet salad but actually was a kind of extremely bitter horseradish, another container of bitter green olive tapenade that I'd bought thinking it was pesto, half an onion that had been frugally "saved" to the point that it was stale and useless, and a bit of food that had been a gift but actually tasted terrible.

The horseradish and tapenade were our own mistakes due to our own Hebrew illteracy when it comes to food items. Even though the containers were clear, we still didn't know the actual names of the items, so it was a case of mistaken identity. The onion was due to mental laziness...I could have used it before it went off, but I just...didn't think about it. :( And the last was one of those things that was just...oh well. Once I'd tasted it, I realized immediately that neither DH nor I would ever eat it, but since it was opened and partially consumed, I couldn't "re-gift" it, either!

[fidgiegirl]

Selah, I bet you'll never buy either again, though! That's how language goes! :)

I am struggling with some beautiful kitchen canisters my sister passed on to us. At first I said I didn't need them but that I'd take them and give them to a local group that outfits homes for people coming out of crappy life situations (homelessness, abuse, etc), and then I realized they are something I've been thinking about getting for bulk items to replace some of our crappy Tupperware. We don't really have room for them now, though, and so I'm trying to think of what I can get rid of in order to fit them in the cupboards. And I feel bad pilfering off the items I was going to pass along to the needy! I have money to buy my own canisters! So who knows what will happen. I'll struggle with it for a few more days.

Big garbage can out of our garage and into the alley. It is pretty wrecked but someone might take it.

5 lbs. of leftover dry dog food given through Craigslist this afternoon. We washed out the dog food bins and ready to refill.

[Stacy]

I made 7 1/2 quarts of bread & butter pickles from a bunch of cucumbers that were hogging up the fridge. Although that's more of a frugal activity than a decluttering activity, it did declutter my fridge a little, at least until I get more cucumbers!

For the past few days, I've been driving around with all my decluttered items from the closet I cleaned in the back seat of my car. Finally, I got to Goodwill to drop them off. It feels good to have completely finished that project.

I took care of a ton of paperwork and receipts that had been sitting on my desk all week. It sure builds up fast! I'm going to make an effort to deal with that every day.

[fidgiegirl]

I took care of a ton of paperwork and receipts that had been sitting on my desk all week. It sure builds up fast! I'm going to make an effort to deal with that every day.

All big accomplishments, but having battled the paper beast myself, this one stands out! It's hard to establish the habit but well worth it.

[Float On]

4 bags of clothes and a bag of stuffed animals from when the boys were little that I found in one of the dormer window storage seats.

I plan to have DH drag everything out of one of the attic storage areas so I can toss a few years of business tax files. I'm looking for 1997-2000.

[iris lily]

Selah, I bet you'll never buy either again, though! That's how language goes! :)

I am struggling with some beautiful kitchen canisters my sister passed on to us. At first I said I didn't need them but that I'd take them and give them to a local group that outfits homes for people coming out of crappy life situations (homelessness, abuse, etc), and then I realized they are something I've been thinking about getting for bulk items to replace some of our crappy Tupperware. We don't really have room for them now, though, and so I'm trying to think of what I can get rid of in order to fit them in the cupboards. And I feel bad pilfering off the items I was going to pass along to the needy! I have money to buy my own canisters! So who knows what will happen. I'll struggle with it for a few more days.



Give your tupperware to the needy? How crappy is it, really? Still functional?

I liked this dilemma since is mirrors the sort of thing I got through now and then.

[leslieann]

It is EARLY in the morning and here you guys have been decluttering already on this Monday. Wow, am I impressed.

I am sitting in the office surrounded by files, piles of papers, notes to myself, receipts, etc. and feeling overwhelmed, so much so that I am reading this forum INSTEAD of doing my work. But you inspire me! I forget that decluttering is critical at the office as well as at home. And the fact that my workplace is IN my home makes it more critical.

No clients for a couple of hours...I wonder how much headway I can make if I just quit reading and wishing and start DOING? thanks for the inspiration.

[leslieann]

Just checking in to say that I made a lot of progress here today. AND I shanghaied DSD (15) who was looking bored (never safe to look bored when I have ideas) and she filed for me for a couple of hours (for pay). So things are not great, not yet, but much better. Many papers made it to the shredder, many more to the recycle bin, and files are in cabinets. Yay!!

[fidgiegirl]

Give your tupperware to the needy? How crappy is it, really? Still functional?

I liked this dilemma since is mirrors the sort of thing I got through now and then.

Well, I use Tupperware like many use Kleenex. It's really those Gladware containers that are meant to be throwaways and have been reused many times already.

DH made big fun of me for posting this so I'm glad someone found it useful! :)

[Life_is_Simple]

4 bags of clothes and a bag of stuffed animals from when the boys were little that I found in one of the dormer window storage seats.

Way to go!! :+1:

[Life_is_Simple]

Just checking in to say that I made a lot of progress here today. AND I shanghaied DSD (15) who was looking bored (never safe to look bored when I have ideas) and she filed for me for a couple of hours (for pay). So things are not great, not yet, but much better. Many papers made it to the shredder, many more to the recycle bin, and files are in cabinets. Yay!!
Papers have got to be the hardest part of clutter. Good job! And nice that you had a decluttering buddy :)

[happystuff]

Freecycled the dryer about two hours ago and finally got a taker!! It's been unplugged for over a year and I can use the space for my drying racks. Can't wait for it to be really gone!

[Minz]

Sold a couple items on Craigslist last week = $25
Sold an item on EBAY = $25
Buying my own internet modem so I don't have to rent the one from which will save $7 per month. (dang, wish I had done this sooner)
Threw away a large trash bag of old letters from grade school and high school!

[Tradd]

Deleted several thousand photos from MacBook and Windows laptops, as well as from my Flickr and Picasa online albums.

[Life_is_Simple]

Freecycled the dryer about two hours ago and finally got a taker!! It's been unplugged for over a year and I can use the space for my drying racks. Can't wait for it to be really gone!
Is it gone?