Hoarding - Springing Ahead

ginnyknit

Listed 21 items on fleabay :j only about £50 but will make a big dint in the messyness. Things are moving fast round here now I have my mojo up and working. yesterdays tip run inspired me

Saver-upper

Everyone is doing so well at the moment-I think the sunshine inspires us.

I went to Slimming World tonight (I am at target weight,so just need to maintain),and was shocked to find I had lost 4.5lb!! I had eaten 4 small chocolate bars on Thursday,so it wasn't because I was eating properly:I could only put it down to the amount of energy spent decluttering (and,who knows,the emotional weight of that cot :eek:).
Just little jobs around the house today:decluttered a kitchen drawer,a drawer in the small Welsh dresser in the hall,the surface of the Welsh dresser(not the VERY top of it,that's got about 12 money-boxes covered in cobwebs:that is a job for another day).Also sorted through afew papers.I would like to get into the habit,when I have a spare few minutes,of sorting through a couple of papers.If I just do a handful when I get afew minutes,instead of not doing any because I don't have enough time to finish the job,that should be easier.Need to get into good habits as far as paper goes.

And a silly thing....
One thing that has always driven me crazy,is bits of toys/games missing.It always has.Everytime the kids finish playing a game,I say to them "count up that all the pieces are there,then put it away".And it drives me crazy when pieces go missing,which they still do :mad:.
Sometimes they will open a jigsaw puzzle only to find it is missing pieces,and I say "That is not a jigsaw puzzle.It is 28 pieces (out of a 30 piece puzzle) of cardboard for recycling!"Drives me barmy.
Over 12 years I have collected small boxes/bags of loose pieces of games/toys,kept in different drawers/cupboards around the house,with the intention of matching them all to their rightful home.I know it is ridiculous,really,pieces of a toy xylophone,marbles,game pieces,die,counters,instructions......I should just get rid,but I keep because eventually all the pieces will be married up.
Well,today this obsession was "justified" (and so,I guess,re-enforced ).In one of the kitchen drawers I sorted,I found a bag of odd-bods that included a card from a "matching cards" game that I have had in the loft,ready to donate except for this one missing piece.
I am pleased from the point of view that a charity may now get afew more pence as a result of this donation (think it would only sell for 50p-£1),but really,from my viewpoint,I might have been better off putting the game (30 pieces of card) out for recycling without a second thought when there was only 29 pieces left and my kids grew out of it 2 years ago.Groan.

pigpen

Well I dug out the bed.. and sorted a binbag for charity shop 3 in the bin and 1 sent off home with DD1. I have a few bits for DS1 but they are moving in a couple of weeks so I'll sort that then.

I have about 3 binbags of my clothes I don't know where to keep.. they are in a jumble on the floor.. tomorrows job I think.. sort a bag or 3 of stuff I do not need to keep. I have 1 jumper in mind for a start and 2 vest tops..

GreyQueen

Glad you made it into your bed last night, pigpen.

Actually, beds are pretty fab surfaces for sorting stuff out; large, flat and about knee-high so not so much stooping as sorting on the floor. Only trouble is that with the bed you actually sleep in, you have to shovel it clear at night.

Today is work followed by archery, so a fast turnaround between the two and I won't be home until nearly 8pm. And then I gotta eat.

Last night, at the end of a long and busy day, I was unracking my clothes from the airer and found a 5 min hand-sewing job on a garment. It was black so very much not ideal to be trying to sew that under artificial light when already v.tired.

My normal practise would have been to park the item on the side as a visual reminder to mend it when I got around to it. Last night, I went one further; I parked it on the coffee table with the thread, scissors and needle and the just grabbed it first thing and mended it. Will wear today. That little bit of prep just gave me the impetus to get on with it. It's a good feeling.

Flat's a bit untidy, reflecting the relatively small amount of time I've spent at home in recent days, but nothing horrendous is happening and I'm keeping on top of the essentials. Will have the washing up done before work and the recycling out en route from the block (communal bin set up here).

All in all, progress is being made slowly but surely, Shirley. Have a good day, one and all. GQ xx

pavlovs_dog

Easter holidays and I am on a mission to declutter and degrot my house from top to bottom.

Have started with the attic, which isn't too bad as I've been quite sensible about what we put up there. We have loads of old empty archive boxes from when we moved in 3.5 years ago, which I have collapsed, freeing up a load of space. Don't wan't to recycle them as they'll be fab when we next move or if we need to empty rooms for decorating.

I'm purging through my old uni notes (which have sat unloved in a box since I graduated 8 years ago) as fast as the shredder will allow. I've also found a few things for the CS, but the main aim is making space so that OH has no excuse not to sort out all his old [STRIKE]junk[/STRIKE] treasures that have been unceremoniously dumped in the guest bedroom since we moved in. At this point in time, I'm not even that bothered that he streamlines before putting it away, I just want it out of sight.

Will also have a bit of a re-jig so that luggage and camping bits (the things we use often) are by the hatch, and his old rubbish can go at the back

Once that is done, I'm going to give the bedroom a good clean and we have pictures for the staircase to frame and hang. It WILL be done today!

pigpen

GreyQueen wrote: »

Glad you made it into your bed last night, pigpen.

Actually, beds are pretty fab surfaces for sorting stuff out; large, flat and about knee-high so not so much stooping as sorting on the floor. Only trouble is that with the bed you actually sleep in, you have to shovel it clear at night.

I went up about 8:30 and cleared the bed in about 10 minutes.. I do however have piles of my clothes to sort through.. and decide if I am ever going to attempt to fit in them again.. baby is 8 months old and I have only just put away the maternity stuff and most of my clothes don't fit still.. For the love of leggings, tunics, jumpers and pjs!

whitewing

We got a huge bin full of paper for recycling from DS' bedroom (old school exercise books etc). Also, some stationery items that can be passed on to someone else. Some books to go but a lot to keep. It was a productive evening in between TV programmes.

What was great was the not keeping the exercise books for years and years and years, just 'in case'. They didn't get boxed up into the loft, just out from the drawer, a quick look through and then gone. Anything that reflected his character was kept, but just the one page.

silvasava

Hi Everyone:wave:

I'm a long time MSE'r but only just found this thread. My issue (problem?) is a loft with 'stuff' that also contains boxes of my late mothers things (mainly ornaments etc) that I just could not bear to sort at the time of her death. Its been 12 years now & I havn't opened any of them so I need to face up & get it sorted. To be honest I don't know how to start - I'm thinking of taking a deep breath & 1 box at a time.
If any of you have any ideas/comments please feel free

Thank you

caitybabes

silvasava wrote: »

Hi Everyone:wave:

I'm a long time MSE'r but only just found this thread. My issue (problem?) is a loft with 'stuff' that also contains boxes of my late mothers things (mainly ornaments etc) that I just could not bear to sort at the time of her death. Its been 12 years now & I havn't opened any of them so I need to face up & get it sorted. To be honest I don't know how to start - I'm thinking of taking a deep breath & 1 box at a time.
If any of you have any ideas/comments please feel free

Thank you

With emotional sorting, I have found it easiest when I have already made some decisions beforehand. For example, when going through books I decided that I would only keep it if it passed the test of "if I saw that in a charity shop, would I buy it?".

Sorting through your late mother's things will, of course, be very different to that, but you could have a different question that you ask yourself. Perhaps you could think "if I was to keep 7 things to remember my mother by, would this be one of them?". It's also worth remembering that getting rid of her things does not get rid of any memories, they are yours, with or without the things.

Good luck, do let us know how you get on. The one box at a time approach is exactly the way to begin.

pavlovs_dog

silvasava wrote: »

Its been 12 years now & I havn't opened any of them so I need to face up & get it sorted.

well taking the tough love approach... you haven't needed any of these items to help grieve your loss or remember your mother by for the past 12 years.

Go through one box at a time and enjoy the memories that the items spark. Choose a few treasures to have on display or pass on to other family members and sell/charity shop the rest so that others can benefit from your mother's legacy. (many CSs will give you an 'account' number so that they can inform you how much they have raised through your donations - may bring some comfort, particularly if you choose a charity that is close to your heart).