Feeling low with clutter

zarazara

Muppette,just to let you know, I have a friend who was diagnosed with MS 33 years ago. Shes had a couple of "hiccups" but is otherwise fine, in fact, more stable now than years ago. Take Care x

Brighton_belle

JoR - if money is tight - you can always try freecycle for furniture - I have 3 excellent bookshelves through that means. One of them if 6ft square.

There is no doubt, having storage makes a big differnce. If everything has a home, there is no reason for it to sit in piles everywhere .... in theory anyway:)

shellsuit

The best way to declutter, is to move house and ONLY take the stuff that you actually want and use!

We moved house on Saturday, the only stuff left in boxes right now are mine and OH's clothes as we are going to get some new wardrobes.

The kids just brought what they actually use (laptops, consoles, TV, games, clothes, personal items and toiletries etc...) and all their old toys are still in the other house ready to be sorted, and either given to family and friends, charity shop, or binned!

The old house is full of stuff still (mainly kids crap!), so we'll be going each day this week to sort out and a skip will be arriving on Sat morning to throw it all in, ready for me handing the keys back over on Monday morning.

Whatever is left over will be getting boxed and labelled and put in the loft here.

I HATE clutter, I hate tripping over things, I hate piles of things, I hate cups and glasses left in places, and the most annoying thing is, I don't do any of that, it's the kids and OH!

I agree with Brighton Belle, if everything has a place (so bookshelf/toy chest/drawer etc), then it can be put away once used ~ if it doesn't have a home, do you really need it??

Mupette

Jo_R wrote: »

Can I confess I've been deliberately avoiding this thread?:o Because I knew I'd probably have meltdown as I assumed everyone else in the world had really neat houses

We moved last June and there's STILL stuff that needs unpacking in the garage... It's taken me some time to work this out but I have realised the main reason we have clutter in every room is because we lack storage. We moved from a tiny two-bed terrace with only a small living room to a three-bed semi with living room, dining room, conservatory, hallway and downstairs bathroom (and garage.) Because we couldn't fit much by way of furniture in our old living room, we just didn't buy any. So now we're here, there's what seems like acres more space - but nowwhere to properly store things.

Our DVDs and CDs are in an old drawer in the conservatory, that's how bad we are:o

I'd love to go through all our things and be ruthless but my energy and time are lacking at the mo. My plan is to deal with a room at a time, and so my main priority is DDs' room. DDs need new drawers and some kind of bookcase although I may keep their books downstairs as I need to get a bookcase for the living room anyway and it'll free up room in their room.

So I hereby declare my plan for the week is to purchase bargainous chests of drawers.

no way, my house is the pits.

Come in and join us

jellyhead

Jo_R wrote: »

Can I confess I've been deliberately avoiding this thread?:o Because I knew I'd probably have meltdown as I assumed everyone else in the world had really neat houses:D.

I'm avoiding it today too I've got a migraine, just out to get kids from school and take them to church youth club, where I stay in the kitchen - then tonight more sewing up hems on trousers and getting cooking ingredients ready. No time for decluttering, I feel too sick (and lazy! lol!)

bestpud

I've been working on my uni assignment today but I have arranged to get some cardboard boxes from Freecycle tomorrow, so I can carry on getting stuff to the self-storage.

I've also just seen they have two sanders for £9.99 in Aldi from tomorrow and I may well invest in those.

I want to paint all the doors and also dd's furniture, and the various items I will be turning into storage for her playroom, so a sander will make life far easier! I saw one in Homebase yesterday but I don't want to pay £35 for one!

Jo - Ha! Come to my house and I will be sure to make you feel better about yours!

Keep going everyone! :j

Mupette

come one clutter bugs what are we all doing today.

I look at my dining table which is used as another place to dump stuff....

Went to the French exchange meeting last night to prepare us for next month.

Said to DS on the way back that we should have every meal at that table because it's an important parts of the day, I said that in France they discuss their day over meals (don't know if it's true) but we should be doing the same, more so when our visitor is here,

So today is table clearing day, but not shifting it somewhere else, its putting everything away properly.

Plus need to find corned beef for my day who lives in france, he only like fray bentos


Good ole Asda has saved the day they sell it

crutches

I'm making space in the kitchen and the shed by planting all the bulbs (kitchen drawers) in the pots (shed) and filling my garden nicely too.:)

Brighton_belle

Yesterday I felt really lousy and got nothing useful done in the end, but today..
I have finally let go of an old musical instrtument- lots of difficult associations with it and it took a humongous emotional effort to get rid but it has gone (freecycle:wasn’t worth money as needed repairs).
It is amazing the complexity of emotions that we humans can attach to ‘things’ isn’t it. I have been both aware almost as an onlooker of the fear around getting rid of it and the longing that somehow by continuing to hang on to it I can make the past better, and been caught in the emotions of the process.
It has now gone, this afternoon, and it. Feels. So. Good.

I have also got rid of my old laptop that has been kicking aound ofr 3 yrs - it will be professionally wiped for free and then donated for recyling.

So two relatively small things gone , but quite 'big' in other ways.

Well done crutches - planting bulbs will have such a lovely end result too.

Mupette - good stuff re the dinig table - I do think itis a nice way for a family to connect with each other at the end of the day

Best spud - hope you got the sanders!
jelly - hope the migraine is better toady.

Shell - you are right about moving - I always try and use 'would you take this is you were moving' to help decide if something should be got rid now.

Mupette

What a day

Asda let me down big time, made the call, had assurances that they had it in stock.
went back to bed as headache got bad,
then went to asda to find, none in stock, they don't stock said product at all.

I almost burst into tears, helpful people there but the woman on the phone wasn't listening at all to what i was asking, apparently its not the first time, is it Mary (if your a MSE fan)

not been able to de clutter today, head is still bad.