Decluttering 2013, the saga continues ...

mineallmine

Morning all,

Good grief everyone has been so busy! :j

I'm watching a Gok Wan programme showing the whole capsule wardrobe idea. That's got me thinking about whats missing in my wardrobe but has reminded me I have some lovely accessories/bags that I need to look after, give a clean etc. But I have to declutter the bedroom to get to that stage.

Who's up for 15 minutes of decluttering. I'm starting at 10 :j

belfastgirl23

Anyone got any tips for encouraging a hoarder to declutter? DH is terrible. I have managed to persuade him to declutter duplicate books (!) and he will agree to some things going in the attic but at the minute as I'm clearing space, he's gradually encroaching into it. Would love to hear if others have managed this. He's especially bad on books, DVDs and clothes (including things he's never worn that are far too big for him!)

taplady

morning!

decluttering for today

I have already been and recycled our bottles and jars:T

I plan to tackle the bathroom cabinet and small seagrass baskets that hide a multitude of sins today.

Whover it was that said small steps is spot on:T

I have always found this the best way. For example I will do a kitchen drawer while tea is cooking.
By doing it in small steps it is not too over whelming. Of course when you have done a certain area the trick is to keep it that way and not just put more stuff there for convenience sake;):D

Happy Decluttering Folks:)

short_bird

bubblegumcola wrote: »

Does anyone have any tips for keeping paperwork? Are folders the best way? How long should you be keeping stuff as I'm never sure.
Thanks x

If you do a yearly tax return, you need to keep the stuff for 5 years. So, on 31st January 2013, you can dispose of paperwork for tax year 2006-2007.

Folders and a hole punch works for me, along with a box to chuck receipts into.

cyclingyorkie

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

Anyone got any tips for encouraging a hoarder to declutter? DH is terrible. I have managed to persuade him to declutter duplicate books (!) and he will agree to some things going in the attic but at the minute as I'm clearing space, he's gradually encroaching into it. Would love to hear if others have managed this. He's especially bad on books, DVDs and clothes (including things he's never worn that are far too big for him!)

I've got one like that too - we still have the old PC - it crashed on an hourly basis and no-one in their right mind would use it but it's still set up and taking up space in my dining room.

And he has an addiction to stationery...and i do mean an addiction...

OrangeFairy

134. Cleared loads of rubbish from my handbag....reciepts, out of date vouchers, wrappers etc.

As I am not as home today that will probably be it!

muddled_midget

Hi

I was lurking on the old thread but have decided that 2013 is definitely the year I sort out my house. My friends from uni are always on about coming to stay but I keep putting them off as I'm so embarrassed about the piles of stuff all over the house. Part of the problem is my OH inherited the house from his parents as they both died when he was young, so we moved into a house already full of things with sentimental attachments, although we don't always know the sentimental reasons for having them IYKWIM (his parents valued them enough to move them around the country)

He has over the years allowed me to donate some of this to charity but now we're stuck on the rest of it. I want to live in a house that feels like mine, instead of a jumble sale, but don't know how to get him on board with this due to the emotions involved. I also don't think he sees the mess in the same way as I do and isn't so embarrassed by it, as he brings in even more stuff.

Does anyone have any advice on how to do this, am I OK to just put stuff in the attic until he feels more able to make decisions on things? I feel this is maybe the way forward as it feels like a compromise, but I know I'm just hiding the problem, admittedly in a massive 200 square foot loft that will easily contain it for a few years!

His other problem is he refuses to get rid of anything which he perceives might have a use or a value, ie, old egg boxes, sweet tins, oven trays etc, but I think that might be one for the hoarder thread to help me with!

Sorry for the long post!

MM x

mineallmine

Hi muddled and welcome


Sounds like hubby is a hoarder, especially keeping stuff like egg boxes. First of all smile It will get better. Have the faith that it will get better. What you need to do is a gradual overhaul.

So to give you confidence why don't you start in a room that has the least inherited or setimental stuff. So is that say the bathroom or the kitchen for instance? You need to get him on board slowly. If you go straight for the kill of saying where there are lots of his parents stuff he will be emotional or unhelpful in your path.

Now decide what room that is. Let us know if it is a fairly neutral zone and what baby steps you can take to get that one room sorted.

You can do it :j We know it should be him that can do it but let's lead by example :j

hedgesparrow

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

Anyone got any tips for encouraging a hoarder to declutter? DH is terrible. I have managed to persuade him to declutter duplicate books (!) and he will agree to some things going in the attic but at the minute as I'm clearing space, he's gradually encroaching into it. Would love to hear if others have managed this. He's especially bad on books, DVDs and clothes (including things he's never worn that are far too big for him!)

As a bit of a hoarder myself, I would recommend some sort of damage limitation. My husband is a neat person and I am not. So we agreed on a deal. I have certain spaces in the house that are mine to have as cluttered as I like. For example under our bed, a few drawers in the living room, and my craft room. It's not as strict as it sounds, I do have books on the bookshelves and normal things like that. Anything of mine that I leave lying around my husband is allowed to move to my craft room so the house doesn't drive him nuts. But of course the craft room is terrible but at least he can shut the door when people come round.

And I don't actually "like" the clutter. It stresses me out. But it takes me longer to sort through than it would him because I have a lot of emotional issues with the stuff. Something that really helps me is when he offers to take anything I sort away. The physical act of getting rid of things out feels awful so if he does that I feel better about it. I feel guilty that I am "abandoning" the things which is ridiculous I know.

So perhaps you could encourage him to declutter by saying "I'm going to the charity shop/tip today, if you want to sort anything out I can take it for you". That time when the bag is lying around is the most dangerous, I feel like I might get the stuff back out again. Even if my husband puts it in the boot of his car and I don't have to look at it that helps massively.

And small chunks is definitely the way forward. When I try to have a massive clear out in one day I get very stressed and upset (and the house is normally worse than when I started). But sorting out ten things a day is feeling manageable and I am almost enjoying it.

Sorry, didn't mean to write such an essay.

mineallmine

So reporting in...Minimal decluttering done (just wrapping up another utensil jar) as got busy doing fly lady and boring correspondence.

Will report in later with my decluttering :j