Decluttering but leaving some personality in your home

Cat501

FrugalWorker wrote: »

I have to say I'm happy to give away pretty much every. I'm down to 1 cookery book, a couple of random books around and my library books. All my music is now electronic. I found I was keeping books that I aspired to read. I was trying to use my belongings to give an aspirational personality to my space. I'm much happier now, sure there's still lots more work to be done.

Having less stuff, means less things to keep clean and tidy. I've more free time to do things that I enjoy doing. I'm still working through my stash of yarn and fabric. I'm not suggesting that people are keeping books that they aspire to read. But in my case, I've a super library 15min walk away. My objective is to only have things that I believe to be useful to me or beautiful. We've a 2 bed apartment, and I'm so much happier with less than with more.

Actually you've hit the nail on the head, I AM keeping books I aspire to read! But I'm determined to get round to them when my concentration is better:) I'm a bit better than I used to be and only buy books I really really want now, or ones to complete a collection:o

tori.k

I love my Kindel, i always said i would never go for an E-reader but soon changed my mind when i had a play with one. i love books and our home resembles more of a library then a house, all the Kindel does is give us more choice over what books we want to read and what we want in hardcopy. im in the process of slim-lining our bookcases there is no point in keeping cheap fiction books that we will never read again and left there to slowly rot, there is an saying only keep things that you need or is beautiful to you, a house full of clutter is not personality its just a house full of clutter

tanith

Everyone whom I've heard say I wouldn't like a Kindle I love my books too much has been converted to the Kindle once they have tried it. I just keep my favourites and my read again books the rest I hand onto my daughter who hands them on to her work colleagues.. I love my kindle as I no longer have to carry several books on holiday and it tucks in my pocket or bag whenever I'm going somewhere that I might have to wait.. its a wonderful invention..

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

No way could I ever get rid of my books,CDs,LPs even.
I'm lucky in that I have a room we use solely as a den,it has floor to ceiling storage and we have all our stuff neatly stashed away so having any amount of stuff is'nt a problem to be honest.
I like my home to be realy tidy,I'm a tidy freak to be honest but I would'nt want it to be impersonal though so being able to stash everything like this is just wonderful .

GreyQueen

Citygirl1 wrote: »

I do love to declutter as it makes me feel good afterwards and I wouldn't want a disorganised home but there are some things I do hang onto, like books I know I will read again (others I am happy to let go), ornaments that mean something to me, photos, diaries, some of my parents belongings etc.

Do you see decluttering the same, not hoarding everything but not getting rid of everything either, there is a middle ground.

I think the question to ask ourselves is, do I love, need, use this thing?

I have a tiny home so there is no way I can keep everything which comes thru my hands and I'm a voracious reader (150-170 books a year). Like an earlier poster, I am very close to a large public library so most of "my" books live up there.

I have a few ornamental objects such as pottery I've made, some self-taken photos enlarged and framed, home-made rugs and a few family things which are meaningful to me. I think these things make my little flat homely; they give me pleasure and comfort and that's my purpose in having them. If visitors enjoy looking at them too, that's a bonus.

I agree that those life-style magazine pictures tend to look very cold and un-lived in. I have a single shelf of books in a wall unit (alas no room for a bookcase here) and a large floating population of passing-thru books. CDs live in a folder-case which makes them very compact. Vinyl records I sold years ago to someone who really appreciated having a whole lot of the music which I'd moved on from.

I think it was William Morris who said:

"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

I guess each of us can define our own usefuls and beautifuls and tailor our own belongings according to our own tastes. After all, if you can't do what you like in your own home, where can you do it?

ceridwen

I know what peeps mean by keeping books in order to read them "at some point". But "some point" DOES come and I've eventually read everything that had been sitting there "waiting its turn".

I wouldnt have so many books in the first place if Kindles had been there all along.

I guess I'm waiting now for a bigger/better version of a Kindle - then I can declutter the computer. I only use the computer for reading websites/emailing/watching YouTube and tv things anyway - so only need a limited range of functionality.

I didnt realise Kindles can be used to read things on the Web when I bought it - but have found they can (its just a matter of it being slow and clunky - and that tiny screen). Have now read they can also be used for e-mailing - so will be trying that function out later. Assuming that works - then I've got my fingers crossed that in a couple of years time (ie when there is either a better Kindle around OR Ipods stop charging people cash to get at the Internet on them to compete with Kindles free access) I can just junk the computer, etc, as such.

Linda32

Hi,

I don't like clutter either and do declutter, but I couldn't really get rid of our books. I have a bookshelf of gardening books for instance, yet don't very oftern look at them, but thats not the point I like them being there.

I am about to treat myself to a Kindle as I have a big birthday coming up but I have no intention of getting rid of my books.

If I didn't have room for them, then I'd put them in the loft first, plenty of room there.

Hermia

I never thought I would buy an e-reader, but I love and adore my Kindle. I give away dead-tree books as soon as I read them as I rarely re-read books. I just keep a small selection of craft and cookery books. I also just listen to music via my computer/iPod. I live in a tiny, tiny rented flat so the less clutter the better. I hate clutter. I don't have any shelves etc so I can't have lots of books or ornaments. If you might be required to leave a place at any moment you also don't want to accumulate lots of stuff. I have had people tell me that they would judge someone who didn't have a house full of books and art etc. But, I don't have time for someone who would do that without considering a person's circumstances. I have a friend who lives in a very minimalist flat with very little possessions, but he'd rather spend all his money on the things he loves (travel, theatre, opera etc) rather than objects.

valk_scot

If an item is decorative or useful then it's not clutter. At least as far as I'm concerned! Clutter is useless, ugly stuff. If a book is no longer being read then yup, it's clutter and should be moved onto the charity shop. But books that are still being used are not clutter! No matter how many there are...and I speak as someone that has 18 full bookcases of books in this house, of the floor to ceiling variety.

We do have a Kindle btw. I honestly don't much like it...it's useful for some things and when you're out and about but I would no sooner sit down and read a book on it than fly. It feels totally wrong to me

Cat501

valk_scot wrote: »

If an item is decorative or useful then it's not clutter. At least as far as I'm concerned! Clutter is useless, ugly stuff. If a book is no longer being read then yup, it's clutter and should be moved onto the charity shop. But books that are still being used are not clutter! No matter how many there are...and I speak as someone that has 18 full bookcases of books in this house, of the floor to ceiling variety.

We do have a Kindle btw. I honestly don't much like it...it's useful for some things and when you're out and about but I would no sooner sit down and read a book on it than fly. It feels totally wrong to me

I would LOVE to visit your house, that sounds like heaven to me!:)

I remember an episode of HCIYH, the "crossword lady", and Kim said to her that she understood how she felt about her books, they're her "treasures", and that's just how I feel. I did take one to the charity shop today though, a Rebus one, because I don't really like them and won't be collecting the set:j