Hoarding - Springing Ahead

whitewing

I last used a launderette when my washing machine broke about 15 years ago, and also used them as a student. It was one of life's great pleasures actually, sitting in a launderette reading while the machines hum and throb in the background and clean, warm clothes come out. Why don't you do the washing and drying in one, rather than lug wet clothes there. Their washing machines tend to be bigg,er than home ones, as are the driers.

You could explain the situation with them in terms of your clothes hoarding - they may well be able to give you some good ideas on the best way to go about sorting, when the launderette is at its least busy and so on.

Also, Ames, was it you who sometimes had someone supporting you with your declutter? Perhaps they could help with regard to getting you to the launderette and you could sort out there and then once the clothes are dry so only potentially wearable stuff comes back in the house.

Do let us know how you get one with everything. I'm quite excited for you. (Obviously there are budgeting considerations too so don't get too carried away by my enthusiasm - go at a pace that is right for you).

good_advice

We are out spring clearing the garden today.
Plastic rubbish, some logs from next door that we were given when we had a coal fire. Cutting plants back. Dead heading some daffodils.

Oh is doing a good job of taking my pile to the recycle centre.
He said some one asked for the logs.

Kitchen bin also emptied.

Have a good recycling day everyone.

GreyQueen

Evening all.

Didn't allow myself to turn on the pooter after work until I'd re-zipped the trousers which I did before and whilst tea was cooking. I detest re-zipping trews, I always blow it up in my head to some big job, when it isn't really.

I also did another sewing project, one of two pending-and-pinned, then came over all weary at a point where I needed to wind another bobbin so decided to call in a night.

ginnyknit, I think it's a good thing to prepare and organise your home for changes which can be seen coming. A lot of people head-in-the-sand it, and then when they have to deal with it, it becomes much more of an ordeal than it would have been otherwise.

I'm tying to keep my home ready-to-move, not because I am about to move but because I thing it's a good exercise to be ready. If anything untoward happened to me I would like things to be as simple as possible for family picking up after me. And if it's me picking up the bits and pieces, the fewer of them the merrier.

Have just hoiked out two bits of 'wood' - they're actually chipboard- from the cupboard. One of them came off the bottom of the blockboard wall unit when I got it from the chazzer and didn't seem to be serving a useful purpose, and the other is the edge strip off the keyboard shelf of this pooter desk. It didn't seem to serve any purpose but getting in the way of the edge of my keyboard so I unscrewed it. I figure I haven't needed it in a decade and I don't need to have it now. I'll swing by the timber section of the tip on my way somewhere else over the weekend.

They've been leaning against the wall in the back of my broom cupboard and had achieved invisibility somehow, you know how things do?

I'm encouraged by my ability not to print out everything I think I need and have just left two things recently on the pooter (apart from the ones sent to various places) whereas I would have once found it compelling to have printed and filed hardcopies myself. It might sound trivial, but for a paper-obsessed control freak, it's a big move.:rotfl:

Declined another till voucher last night for something I won't use so never even took ownership of it briefly. Trying to have unsticky hands when it comes to acquiring stuff. Am up-to-date on the bin and the recycling and stuff it continuing to move smoothly out. I'll take some of those moulded plastic trays which ready-meals come in to my hometown, where they recycle them when next I go there. I buy these on YS as an occasional treat when feeling like a takeaway. It's a modest vice.

Been having some thoughtful convos with Hoarder Mum in recent weeks, sounds like she is now letting a few things go. It's a drop in the ocean, but it's moving in the right way. I'll see her at Easter and if she wants to have a dericharding session, I'll offer to help, but she's very resistant and 9 times out of 10 the mood isn't right and I have to be careful not to cause upset.

Righty, on for a cuppa then a wander around the interwebs. Laters, GQ xx

Saver-upper

Oh,my!
Myself and four children have worked soooooo hard today.And you can definitely see the results (lots of little messes all over the house :rotfl:).
No,it's ok.....
My will-be-12yo-later-this-month daughter,and 10yo son share a room.Mostly the room is over-run with daughter's stuff:clothes,books,ornaments,drawing stuff,writing stuff,school stuff.....Poor son's stuff is confined to a couple of small shelves of an IKEA unit for books,a box under his bed for toys and "stuff",and the top of his chest of drawers (and half of that is covered by a tank containing African land snails :eek:).
Anyway,said daughter spent 6 hours(:eek::eek::eek::eek:) sorting through her stuff.She was fantastic-went at her own pace,considered everything.She decluttered her clothes hanging in built-in-robe,her chest of drawers,all her surfaces,a side-board unit (top of,not drawers).Now,I don't know if that sounds like her room is absoluteley trashed:it isn't,because I can't stand the clutter,and mess on floor,but there were a couple of "hot-spots" in their room that haven't been sorted through for years .For example,in the BIR she cleared out clothes she has owned since she was 7!
One of the hotspots I have always hated in that room is,infront of BIR,she has all these different bags:school bag,PE kit bag,small-ish wicker basket containing shoulder bags,knapsacks,etc.She'll come home and dump something else into the mix.....Anyway,now all that remains in that spot is the wicker basket.Everything else has a place to live,woohoo.
Meanwhile,my 7yo and I helped 5yo sort out 5yo's under-bed storage box.Lots of stuff from there chucked,some donated to charity,some all the pieces put together and made into useable toys again,rather than just having bits of 1/2 toys around .
That room looks brilliant now-only built-in-cupboard to be decluttered now.Definately a mummy job,that one.
Hanging on the top rail of 11yo's BIR was some of my clothes that I NEVER wear .Some of them I inherited about 20 years ago,some are old work uniforms,there was my partner's suit.....I took most of my clothes down to give daughter more room,put them on my bed.What to do now?????Some of the items might sell (some hand-made overseas,some expensive woollen coats I had inherited.....).So I proceded to take photos so I could start listing "one day".I photographed about 2 items,threw a couple of items in the wash-basket cos they were so dusty on the shouders.Went to photograph a third item before deciding I really can't be bothered with all that malarky!!So I took everything off their hangers so I can donate the hangers,and just need to decide whether to donate it all to a charity shop,or sell to Cash4clothes.Meanwhile they have gone into the loft,ooops .
Off her own bat,my 7yo daughter decided she was going to sort through her chest of drawers(kept in our room).She went through drawer by drawer,then put clothes on my floor in seperate piles,which she hand-drew special,very colourful labels for: "charity shop","cash for clothes","little sister","school".
Oh,and I rounded up all the piles of papers I have been creating over the last few days(some were in bedroom,some were where I sit on sofa).Will have a look in Works tomorrow for the files Ames mentioned(thank you).
Think that's all .
Thank you everyone for all the encouragement and support.

GreyQueen

:T Well done, saver-upper, and your children. Certainly sounds like the decluttering fever has infected your household in the nicest possible way. Well done to you and the little ones.

I guess one of the things which I've taken away from reading children-of-hearders type websites, is the feeling that so many of these now-adults is that they never learned how to let things go in their own homes. In fact, their hoarder parent(s) had no recognition that things could ever be released and so didn't demonstrate this to their kids.

So, I reckon every parent who involves their children in decluttering is helping to turn the tide. And thoughtful decluttering, not just randomly chucking away stuff which might be of great importance to the child but utter trash to the adult's eye.

But yes, helping them to recognise that they have outgrown clothes and toys and books and thinking about re-homing those, whether to other family or via donation or sale. And showing that you walk the talk yourself, with a regular turnover of stuff which has ceased to be of relevence.

I have to work to day, and run some errands after work. Such a pity as it is shaping up to be a gorgeous sunny day and I'd rather be gardening, but there you go. Have left the two pieces of 'wood' propped against the hallway wall so that they'll be right under my nose and ready to go out to the tip this weekend. Not allowing them to lapse back into invisibility in the cupboard.

whitewing

I have forced myself to get rid of a pair of worn and holey trousers - too tatty to mend. It is a decision I am struggling over.

We're about to go through a monumental life change; can't be too specific. A lot of positives will come out of it both in the short term and longer term but it is making me cry. It will mean also that I can get some more dehoarding done. But it hurts too.

whitewing

The trousers are never coming back.

Recycling is out.

Doctor was very good and has booked me in for blood tests too. And has suggested group therapy and given me a leaflet. I am very tired but have washing out in the sunshine and home made wedges in the oven.

I am going to try to make Impossible Pie for an Easter treat. I'd never heard of it but saw it in another thread. Sometimes I find trying something new, even if it's just something little, helps break out of the rut.

Ames, how are you getting on?

Saver-upper, I am enjoying your posts, and GQ and everyone.

GreyQueen

((((((((whitewing)))))))) you take care, hun, and tell yourself that you are worth more than a pair of holey trousers and that good things will be coming your way, although things in flux are upsetting you now.

I've been making a clean sweep in the crisper drawer of the fridge and getting some stuff cooked and ready to eat over the next few days. I did it whilst I was cooking my tea, even though it wasn't a meal which needed to be attended-to.

I reasoned that if I sat down with a cuppa this stuff wouldn't get peeled, diced, steamed and mashed and would linger in peril of the shrivelled fate which is apt to be the lot of veg which is out of sight, out of mind.

I've also remembered to add and subtract stuff from my list of freezer contents, which is kept in pencil and it feels good to know at a glance what's in there. Memory can play tricks with me and I end up rummaging and letting all the cold out..........

I went out to the shops after work and deposited one of my spent printer cartridges in the charity shop collection. It's only been out of the printer 3 days, so that has to be a personal best. Did buy some veggies and trusted myself to go into a couple of chazzers and spent £1.50 for a book and a pair of brand-new wellie socks, which was something on the wants list, anyway. There were several charity shops I didn't go into at all, and I'd've once been fretting about what is was that I was missing, but I felt quite chilled about it. Not bovvered.:D

Itching to get those pieces of 'wood' off the premises at the weekend. Does anyone else deliberately leave stuff in annoying places so that it doesn't get overlooked? Or am I an odd-bod in this respect?

Looking forward to the weekend and getting some stuff out of here and off the allotmentino so fingers crossed for fine weather. Plus I get to watch The Hoarder Next Door tomorrow on 4 OD, woop-woop.

IrishRose12

Well another bag went out for DD's jumble sale this morning. Her class made £203 for Trocaire so she was delighted. SHe was allowed to take £5 from her money box to spend on anything she wanted, aslong as it wasn't anything that came from our house lol. She came back with a Baby born doll and some clothes. I'd swear they were brand new too! She also bought herself a book that's she's been wanting for a while. Her change went into their total, so I can't complain about that. Plus she managed to get about £30's worth of stuff for a fiver :T

Attacked our storage bed last night, it's now much tidier and much more empty. I think I could get rid of some more stuff in there still though. Might leave it to the Easter holidays.

Tonight I'm off to make a start on my own clothes as I didn't do that as I'd planned the other night.

I'm glad I've found this thread as it's really motivated me to keep clearing out! Thanks guys :T

GreyQueen

Morning all.

Lovely to have you aboard, IrishRose12, and I'm glad the thread is helping you. I know it helps me a lot.

I took the opportunity of a late start at work today and used some time whilst doing other things to watch last night's The Hoarder Next Door on 4OD.

I don't own TV and have never been able to sit still and watch stuff, I always need to multi-task, so whilst it was playing, I was bobbling about doing a few bits and pieces. I got out my fabric box, which isn't huge, just about 2 ft x 18 inches, and was looking for something in there to finish a sewing project and get that put away.

Anyway, short version is, I hauled half a carrier bag of fabric remnants out of there and they are now in a rag bag. They're mostly bits cut off garments which I've altered (and kept the bits in case garment needed a patch) but oftentimes, those garments had been worn up and ragged and I hadn't taken out the leftovers at the same time.

The level in the box has gone down a quarter, but it's really more than that because I moved some stuff from another drawer into the box. I'll send the rag-bag with the next Hoxfam donation bag, clearly labelled as only suitable for ragging. I checked with them and they do take rag-stuff also. I think most chazzers do, but I guess it's best to ask in case you end up giving them a problem not an asset.

The programmed was interesting because it re-visited two previously-helped hoarders who were relapsing, and it was both sad and eventually joyful to see their outcomes. I find it very humbling that some people are prepared to open their lives to strangers in such a way. Their courage, when they often haven't even been able to allow family and friends into their homes for years, is amazing. They don't seem like the types who'd do anything for attention, either, more very private people with their own griefs. Brave souls, and I wish them well.

I find I have a new habit of prowling around my home, often last thing before bedtime, giving things the beady eye and saying What can go? Is there anything visible which should be in the washer, the bin, the recycling, the donation bag?

It's amazing that you can round up like this.