Hoarding - Springing Ahead

Catriona_P

mcculloch29 wrote: »

Some of the ladies from 40 Bags in 40 Days Facebook group are continuing for another 50 days. I think it's a good idea continuing but I'm not sure I could do 50 bags, I'd have to count the rubbish and recycling for that one.

Yeah I've been following that too, to be honest I'm a little bit burnt out from doing the 40 day challenge so will leave the 50 one for now I think!

Baby clothes sale did not go well and I don't know why - everything was in good condition and reasonably priced in comparison with other sellers there. Of 120 items I only sold 44! I think I've earnt enough money to break even with the clothes I bought my daughter at the same event, but even so. Little reward for a lot of work.

Dining table has sold on eBay, just waiting for the buyer to respond to arrange a collection date. Fingers crossed this will be a smooth transaction, with everything else going on in life right now, not sure I could take a hiccup with this aswell.

Happy weekend all!

whitewing

I think selling 44 was good. What did you do with the rest?

I went thro a spontaneous declutter of a green plastic box that had been sitting by the plant in the dining room. I have chucked out half a full-size dustbin's worth of old school exercise books etc of DS', plus some cards. I was ably assisted by a tiny helper who found a pair of scissors and happily pulled the paper out of the bin and cut it up. She must have spent a good 3 hours through this afternoon doing it. I don't think she has used scissors before, bless her. She is sleeping like a log since her dehoarding efforts.

I have kept a smallish pile, which includes the card I made DH when he passed his driving test.

I kept loads of DS' stuff from when he was little for making memory albums. I have a big cupboard and a number of boxes with stuff in. I knew I'd throw some out as I crafted it, but it occurred to me earlier this year that I may never get around to crafting it because there is so much that I will never get it organised. Plus, even if I did 1 album per child for 0-16 years, that is 34 albums in total. Far too many to grab if the house was on fire (but slightly less than the skipload I currently have).

So I am going to try to dump some more with an aim of actually getting it scrapbooked!

I will add that my spontaneous declutter only happened at all because DH had cleaned the house before he went to work. And I wanted to do something practical and there was nothing actually to do. And this thread and flylady have helped out tremendously.

PudseyDB

MrsAtobe wrote: »

PudseyDB so glad your dog will be OK, are the other dog's owners being cooperative?

Ummm......yes - the dog's being sent back to the rescue place she came from - in the hope she can be rehomed with no other dogs. She's a lovely dog usually - this was totally out of character.

Catriona_P

whitewing wrote: »

I think selling 44 was good. What did you do with the rest?

I'm going to separate some of the younger baby bits into 'bundles' and try to sell them at work, we have a staff selling page and other baby things I've sold on there have done well. A few bits will go to charity but I can't really afford to not get anything back for so much.

Heard from my buyer r.e. the dining table, who has paid me using paypal when I made it clear on the listing that it was cash on collection. *faceplant*. Now have to sort THAT out.

whitewing

I threw out the remnants of chocolate Easter eggs, and condensed the treats drawer into one (Easter, mother's day and birthdays lately). Threw out empty wrappers. Why do people put wrappers back into the bag - drives me crazy.

As I still had the wet wipe, I cleaned the drip marks off the kitchen door/freezer/door frame. Dishwasher on and sides wiped.

Tidied the stuff I was keeping from yesterday and put it put of the way. Made the salvaged Xmas cards into gift tags and put them in the presents chest.

DS vacuumed all the tiny bits away. That was an 'effort' job, but I am so glad we did it. DD had a lovely bath in front of the TV and played for ages. Now she's fluffy and clean and all the bath stuff has been packed away. DS is putting the whites wash on the line and I am just about to strip the beds and wash the sheets and duvet covers.

It is hard to balance between housework and decluttering sometimes. Decluttering can feel like a lot of work done, but then the last 10% slips into that category where I feel that someone else should finish it up and they feel like they get the xxxx jobs! I know I could pull more out of my cupboards and get rid of a lot, but then it would overspill into my working week, so I am trying not to get lost in the impulsiveness.

Yesterday's dehoarding showed me how much of my hoard was not just due to "Loss" but also to "Longing".

This_Year

Catriona, hope it turns out ok re the table! And you did sell some things at the sale, well done!

Good work, Whitewing, you do so much! And I agree that Longing is a great tool for hoarders. Not a good tool. It's a very fine line between snapping up a bargain and having cupboards filled with stuff that it would take years to use up.

I'm regarding decluttering as HouseworkPlus. As it both needs doing!

MrsAtobe

I think I want to kill my OH. I've been wondering why I don't seem to have many clean clothes, despite being reasonably up to date with the washing. It turns out he's been bundling them into the bottom of the only wardrobe we currently own, not even folding them properly. How he thought this was helping is beyond me, although this is the man who thinks that if he's washed the clothes that he's worn to work that week, then he's done all the washing that needs doing, grrrr.

I have failed in my quest to clean all the windows, but on a more positive note, we now only have one storage unit, not two .

whitewing

I told DS to hang his clothes up in the wardrobe. He did, without coathangers, just draping them neatly over the pole. He is slightly higher up the evolutionary scale than your DH, MrsAtobe

This_Year

We dry tops/jumpers and shirts on coat hangers to maximise the airer space so an armful of ready to put away clothes went into DD's room. She then removed them from the hangers so she could shove them all in her bottom drawer :huh:

I'm still struggling to see how this is easier for her.

mollythewestie

Just thought I would drop by and update on our progress here.
(I can't believe we are on the third hoarding thread now )

Well I *think* we have finally cracked it!!! I can smugly say that the house is in such a good way that we have organised 3 estate agents to visit this week for a valuation. Something that we wouldn't have even considered this time last year as we were sinking into piles of paperwork and junk.

The last few weeks have been a frantic mix of ebaying, freecycling, gumtree(ing?!), and trips to the tip. As well as the inevitable cleaning and scrubbing once the piles of junk were clear, we have also re-painted most of the house and the garden is tidy and presentable.

The loft area is still a work in progress as it's still pretty full, however I haven't put anything new up there since the Christmas decs went back up in January.

Just this morning I have filled 2 carrier bags with unwanted bathroom stuff.

All of our mis-matched crockery that was chipped have been thrown away and replaced by a basic Ikea set (8 of each dinner plates, side plates and bowls, rather than the dozens I had before). And my old set of saucepans - kept just in case - have gone to a new home too.

I cannot believe how far I have come, but I feel so free of it all.