Hoarding - Springing Ahead

Brighton_belle

SuzyZ wrote: »

Got a few questions re decluttering.

I need to be more ruthless but how?!

1st of all, I think you need to just focus on your stuff for now, not your OH's.


Why not take everything out of your wardrobe and as you chuck on your bed separate into 5 separate piles

1. work
2. chilling at home
3. going out smart casual
4. going out posh
5. hobby/activity clothes

• consider, how many outfits can you realistically wear: there are only 7 days in a week and you probably do a wash once a week at least? Consider:

1. Do you need 7 pairs of jeans and 6 winter jumpers for example?
2. How many slob about at home outfits do you really need? How many posh outfits do you need vis a vis your real life style.
3. Have you worn it in the last year - if not you clearly don't feel great in it

• Then try all these clothes on and only, I repeat, only hang back in the wardrobe the things you feel absolutely great in.
• If your heart sinks at even the thought of trying them on, get rid. For anything to have a chance to earn its place back in the wardrobe, it has to make you feel energised when you try it on.Anything you are bored of/tired of/other people tell you are pretty but you don't feel fab in...don't keep. Give to the cs.
• Consider a small wardrobe of clothes you love an feel great in. I can't tell you how wonderfully freeing that is and how many more compliments you'll get and how much simpler getting dressed in the morning will be.
• As you hang back up, separate into summer/winter/mid-season and at the end of the process, store appropriately.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

This_Year wrote: »

Don't understand what you mean Jojo - I meant fantasy self as wearing floaty feminine dresses, lady who lunches etc style whereas the clothing I wear is more practical.

And when I've bought those clothes [that I haven't worn] - I'm always saying I need to lose weight, I've bought one in my current size and one in the size I feel I should be.

Does that not make sense?

Fantasy self is the person you aren't now.

Like me buying or keeping size 12s when I'm a 20. I may very well have been a 26 at the beginning of the year, but there's really no point buying a stack or hoard of size 12s on the offchance I might get there before picking up my pension - I need clothes in the size I am now, not what I'd like to think I will be one day.


Those size 12 jeans could sit in my wardrobe, looking at me every time I open the door, reminding me of what I am not but would like to be, taking up space, taking up money and time - but aren't me right now. It's nice to dream of being able to go into a shop and buying a lower size, but the pleasure is most when you actually ARE that size, not when you aren't.

This_Year

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

Fantasy self is the person you aren't now.

Like me buying or keeping size 12s when I'm a 20. I may very well have been a 26 at the beginning of the year, but there's really no point buying a stack or hoard of size 12s on the offchance I might get there before picking up my pension - I need clothes in the size I am now, not what I'd like to think I will be one day.


Those size 12 jeans could sit in my wardrobe, looking at me every time I open the door, reminding me of what I am not but would like to be, taking up space, taking up money and time - but aren't me right now. It's nice to dream of being able to go into a shop and buying a lower size, but the pleasure is most when you actually ARE that size, not when you aren't.

Agreed, thank you for explaining what you meant. I regard my fantasy self as being ultra feminine, going to Ascot, afternoon tea at the Savoy, and a bit of cross-stitch/craft work in between times. Whereas the reality is far different.

I had gone through a spell of "I put the weight on quickly because of medical reasons, I will be able to lose it quickly" and so I foolishly bought clothes in the smaller size too.

I do see the folly of that now, as I have more clothes than I can wear, and most won't fit me I know I may lose weight, however as it's not a given, I shouldn't be buying useless clothes.

If I buy anything it's in my size now. The last time I bought clothes was a suit for interviews and there'll be no purchases for a while yet until I get my next job sorted. But thank you again for clarifying what you meant, appreciated.

sjprmc01

My fantasy self looks perfect in any clothes they throw on

My fantasy self is most definitely a size 14/16. (Currently being a 20/22)

My fantasy self can wear all heights of shoe with no problems (I need to face that I'm probably too tall to, at 36, get away with the sky high shoes I buy, they are a danger to my health, my weight means I have no proper balance in them)

My fantasy self can apply flawless makeup easily, my real self makes me look like a man in drag when I do

Hmmmmm these fantasy selves have a lot to answer for

Gingernutty

:hello: Hi everyone!

Long time no talk. I've been around the boards and lurking here and there.

I've been decluttering - just bits and bobs, though.

I managed to puncture one of the vacuum storage bags under my bed so took the opportunity to buy a couple of the cheap jumbo sized ones and sort through the stuff.

Out

Edit : 1 busted vacuum storage bag!

a 2 large and one jumbo JML vacuum storage bag set

1 pillow that stayed as flat as a pancake after storage

1 cushion cover - no cushion, just a single cover :huh:

and on returning the stuff back to storage - I labelled A4 sheets of paper with the bag contents and placed them on top of the contents before sealing the bags. That way, I don't have to open them to find out what's in them.

Why didn't I think of that before? :huh:

I bought a pair of Next trousers from a charity shop, but have since realised I don't need them. I've already got more trousers than I've got special trouser hangers for so they can go back to the charity shop. Along with that one cushion cover.........:undecided

A shirt collar, sleeveless vest type thing that was handy under some of the tops I previously gave away.

200 clothes pegs - I live in such a nasty neighbourhood that I could never put washing out in the communally accessed garden.

A coat and a t-shirt went in the rag bag - they were great charity shop finds but they've both done their duty. They were both starting to pill and the coat lining was fraying. Stopping only to cut the metal buttons off the shirt (recyclable) and the hanging collar chain from the coat for another coat, I put them in the rag bag with only a little deliberation.

Another book

A pair of charity shop shoes - they had a cellular sole construction and one day, as I walked, the right insole started to fall into the shoe. On inspection, the walls of the cells had collapsed and the shoe sole squidged like a marshmallow as I walked - no hope of a repair with that one so I binned them when I got home. Even though I hadn't had them long, no thought required.

A plastic, cocktail shaker style mixer for a proprietary diet milkshake - like that worked. :rotfl: That went to the recycling bin.

The spare clothes horse - a cheaply made, plastic coated, metal rack which was starting to lose the plastic coating and I risked rust stains on my drying clothes - gone to recycling.

More lidless tupperware - I can find my socks okay, do the lids go to Lid Limbo?

In

A new toolbox to replace my mum's old sewing box.

Mum was insane. Everything new had to be 'fixed' to her liking. In the case of the toolbox that meant the lid was broken off the hinges and sticky tape was used to put the lid back on. Of course it was rendered useless as a carry case. One couldn't pick it up by the handle as the sticky tape wouldn't hold. It was kept in my parents' back room on an eye level shelf and held by the sides to move it. I got it back to my place in a bin bag.

It has sat in a corner of my back room, under a side table with me debating with myself about buying a new toolbox. So I finally did it. I bought a new box, filled it up with the sewing stuff and I can now store the stuff under the stairs with the sewing machine without the risk of an explosion of cotton reels, pins, needles and scissors into the darker corners of the cupboard. The old box went in the recycling.

I bought decorative PVC to cover a fold up Z-bed for the back bedroom. The bed folds up with a headboard folding up at the top to make a flat surface. I've been using this surface to hold some of my wet washing as I put it up on the clothes driers and thought some sort of protective covering was in order.

I thought I had measured properly but managed to buy far too much floral PVC and only realised how far I was out after I had wrestled with it trying to tape it with duct tape, hauled it up the stairs and then tried to cover the bed with it. I've got a couple of big pieces left - they can be drawer liners. The small pieces can go in the bin.

A Tu fake sheepskin jacket from a charity shop - the sleeves are far too long, but it's great to keep me warm around the house - I'm wearing it as I type!

The temporary job I was told would finish at the end of March now finishes possibly at the end of April, or May or June.

We've got issues........... :mad: :eek: :doh: :embarasse :lipsrseal

A neighbouring hospital has had a few problems and the surrounding hospitals have been seeing a lot of people who would ordinarily end up there.

You would not believe the hoops and hassle required for an out of area patient discharge. The highlight of last week was trying to get through to a hospital. Not a ward, or a particular extension, an actual hospital.

After dialling the main health authority switchboard number and getting no answer when they tried to put me through, I was told to call back in an hour. To. A. Hospital's. Reception. Seriously?!

There are some heartbreaking cases and there was a real push for beds last week. It was horrible.

Still, I've got an interview next week. Or rather, a three hour assessment, a two hour wait and a 45 minute interview. :eek: Pray for me?

This_Year

Good luck, Gingernutty!

Great achievements, too!

dktreesea

sjprmc01 wrote: »

My fantasy self looks perfect in any clothes they throw on

My fantasy self is most definitely a size 14/16. (Currently being a 20/22)

My fantasy self can wear all heights of shoe with no problems (I need to face that I'm probably too tall to, at 36, get away with the sky high shoes I buy, they are a danger to my health, my weight means I have no proper balance in them)

My fantasy self can apply flawless makeup easily, my real self makes me look like a man in drag when I do

Hmmmmm these fantasy selves have a lot to answer for

My fantasy self, way back when, used to be the second tallest person in the family. I have just graduated - to being the shortest.

My youngest, with glee at just discovering he is now taller than me, says I will have to lose weight (I'm a size 22) because whereas he will grow taller and slimmer with age, I will "get shorter and grow wider" (his exact phrase). Who appointed him the family fortune teller?:mad:

dktreesea

mcculloch29 wrote: »

Re your Mum, pavlov's_dog, I think our parents generation (mine were born mid 1920's) had the advantage, generally, of much less "stuff". My mum's lounge and living room were fairly spartan, she had carpet squares or runners to hoover rather than fitted carpets downstairs, and lino throughout upstairs. No central heating, just a few pictures and ornaments to dust. Books and magazines were relatively expensive so there weren't many of those, either.
Can I also say that I love your sig? My brother and his wife (a Welsh speaker) had "Calon Lan" at their wedding. Which was interesting for my Mum & Dad who were Estonian and Latvian...

I enjoyed showing your post to my DD, to prove to her that parents and grandparents that weren't hoarders and don't have houses stuffed to the rafters really do exist. Maybe in Estonia and Latvia they didn't have flea markets....

whitewing

My bodyclock is very confused with the cold weather, change in routine and clocks going forward. I fell asleep in the boat race and woke up at 8.30pm. I'm getting a head start on tomorrow - the dishwasher and washing machine have gone on, DH has gone to bed, and I am about to sort out the recycling so he can drop it off in the morning. With all the Easter stuff there is a lot of packaging.

Have found a pair of glasses that I no longer need so they can go for Vision Aid or similiar, although I guess they'll hang around the house waiting to go near the High Street.

pigpen

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

Ugh.

Just done something stupid.


Told someone - sort of - how much I liked him. Almost.

I don't think he quite realised. I'm not going to spell it out to him because I don't think I could handle the rejection. Or he did and is politely remaining oblivious.


Argh.

oh sweetie.. he is a man, if you don't spell it out in cold hard terms he hasn't the vaguest idea.. just tell him! You are not 12 you are a big strong hardcore battleaxe female meant to dominate the world!