The KonMarie method

Debsnewbudget

I am still clearing mums house and still bringing very little back to mine. Most is going to the charity shop.
Over the weekend I moved her sewing machine to clear a space and thought to myself, what on earth do I do with this?
Then today saw a request from a charity for a replacement sewing machine.
Things really do come along to help in the process don't they

Igamogam

greent wrote: »

I've been guilty of binning stuff which *should* have been recycled (involving a trip to the recycling centre by car, possibly having to take small children), *could* have been freegled etc just to get rid of it out of my house quicker. I am usually a great believer in recycling/ reusing/ gifting but sometimes the space matters to me more. It's quite a 'here and now' attitude and I don't have it often, but it sometimes rears its head.....:o

I have to re/freecycle as much as possible otherwise it 'bothers'me:D. I know that where I live we are close to capacity regarding landfill which is a little scary - the council are looking at incinerators which I think is preferable to shipping it half way across the globe to China - why should the Chinese have to deal with our rubbish??:mad: But I know what you mean about the 'space' being more important. We should look at reducing what we buy both in a packaging sense and stuff - I have certainly bought hardly anything this year and there has been a net flow out of the door. Our cheap-goods-throwaway-need-one-of-those-now-even-though-I-have-a-perfectly-functional-last-years-model society we live in doesnt help. My grandparents - born before 1920 and bringing up a family during WW2 - were keepers of stuff but all of it had a use. A product of having no waste and on not having a lot to start with and they wouldnt dream of getting another one of anything just because the colour wasn't in fashion.........Sorry I can get a bit soap boxish about this so I wont go on:o

Today I have fr**gled 2 space taking items and taken 3 very large N*xt sale carrier bags to CS. Some of the things going to CS are brand new unused stuff.....why oh why??? I have at last put some stuff up on Eb*y and 2 large collection bags out for charity roadside collection tomorrow.

On my local fr**gle I saw this today:Am looking for any ever-green shrubbs or privates as my wife is doing up the garden

Dont you just love a spelling error ( or two;)) Think he must have meant privet :rotfl:

PollyWollyDoodle

juliebunny wrote:

Had a sudden panic attack over the weekend too - what will I do with myself once I've finished this project :eek:

Relax, read a book, go for a walk, see friends, open and close your knicker drawer just to admire it ... Oh, maybe that's just me then!

I'm really hoping that when I've finished this process, I will be able to do some decorating without too much stress because I won't have to shift tons of stuff to clear the room first.

Take a look at Mavvymoo's posts for someone who's finished the whole house!

supersaver1000

juliebunny wrote: »

He then sort of hrumphed and put in back in the same pile!

That made me laugh, but I've had similar experiences myself.

Sorry you can't get rid of your things. We used to put things at the front of the house or put a notice in the window and they always went. I put a Free sign on my old bike and it went in no time. One day I had a bit of old carpet left in the front and someone knocked and said could they have it. Another time I put a sign in the window for free patio slabs and someone came and helped my DH lift the old patio ready for the new one. Depends where you live of course, we live in the middle of nowhere now so no good anymore. Happily we have a charity bike fixer upper in the village so donated last two old bikes there.

Good luck getting rid of things, I'm always so much happier to think things are being used. I am always 'bovvered' if I throw things away. :rotfl:

DawnW

juliebunny wrote: »

Put an old bike on freecycle and no-one has even inquired about it - can't even GIVE my stuff away! Took a considerable amount of effort to get it out the shed, photographed, join the website and then post the ad! Also, put on my old laminate underlay, brand new, but no takers so that, very sadly, went out this morning as it's bin day. I knew if I left it there another week, I would convince myself again 'it might come in handy' (my mothers favourite catchphrase!) Bike is still on there but if it's not gone Friday, I've found out that Halfords will take it for reconditioning and then goes to a bike charity. Will be a bit of hassle to get it there, but somethings are worth a bit more effort than others.

Not sure if you do facebook, but I find the local selling / buying / freebie sites quicker and more effective than freegle etc. I find that I get requests almost immediately if I advertise something on there free of charge, and it is usually collected the same day And I don't care if they want to ebay or car boot it - if they want to go to the effort with the sort of low value items I put on there, they are welcome as far as I am concerned!

I have even got rid of a couple of broken electric drills like this - making it quite clear that they were for spares or repair, of course

DawnW

Igamogam wrote: »

I have to re/freecycle as much as possible otherwise it 'bothers'me:D. I know that where I live we are close to capacity regarding landfill which is a little scary - the council are looking at incinerators which I think is preferable to shipping it half way across the globe to China - why should the Chinese have to deal with our rubbish??:mad: But I know what you mean about the 'space' being more important. We should look at reducing what we buy both in a packaging sense and stuff - I have certainly bought hardly anything this year and there has been a net flow out of the door. Our cheap-goods-throwaway-need-one-of-those-now-even-though-I-have-a-perfectly-functional-last-years-model society we live in doesnt help. My grandparents - born before 1920 and bringing up a family during WW2 - were keepers of stuff but all of it had a use. A product of having no waste and on not having a lot to start with and they wouldnt dream of getting another one of anything just because the colour wasn't in fashion.........Sorry I can get a bit soap boxish about this so I wont go on

It bothers me too Igamogam

I haven't done the full kondo thing, but I have read (and enjoyed) the book, and have got rid of a lot of junk, including loads of clothes and literally hundreds of books, paper sacks of paperwork and boxes of kitchen stuff. All has been donated to charity / given away / sold / recycled, except for old broken junk (and even some of that has found a willing home :rotfl:) and real rubbish. I don't 'get' / can't be bothered to do all the folding and samosa-ing though

GreyQueen

Scoosh up on that soap box, ladies, it bothers me, too. I flinch when I see the perfectly good stuff going over the side at the tip, stuff which could have been donated or even sold, but is being broken by the fall.

We live in an obscenely wasteful world. However, I can only do my little bit not to be part of it, and I will.

Nighty-night, my library book is calling to me. Well, the remains of the washing up are also calling, but I have selective deafness and choose not to hear certain things.

silvasava

Igamogam - just sprayed my tablet with my evening tipple! Just trying to imagine evergreen privates. Mind you my tablet has predictive text so I always have to check just in case

PollyWollyDoodle

I too hate waste and try to recycle whereever possible. However, I'm aware that in the past this has held me back from 'decluttering', tidying or whatever you like to call it - if I couldn't locate a suitable good home for something, I would hang on to it.

I think one of the reasons why this system is working better for me is a recognition that sometimes it's just as much 'waste' for it to sit in my cupboard unused and taking up space, as it is for it to be binned - rather like the principle that clearing my plate, if it's food I don't need or want, isn't really helping global starvation - we should be more cautious about what we acquire in the first place.

I've just Kondoed the mug-and-tea-things cupboard. Drinking chocolate 'use by June 2002' anyone? :eek: I still found myself hesitating, thinking 'perhaps I can use it up in cooking' before a still small voice of reason told me that if I haven't used it in the last 13 years, it's not gonna happen now!

mavvymoo

Yes look at my posts :rotfl:Says she who is still who getting thrills and joy from using up bottles and getting stuff out the house.and who still has the shirehorse In the garage

You just do more when you are fully kondoed but its hard to explain how you feel as you feel so changed and I also feel much happier in my own skin if that makes sense.I dont worry about anything anymore 'I just think does it really matter' and the answer is always No

I dont spend time with people who I dont want to spend time with I do spend MORE time with people I do I will not waste one bit of my time doing something I dont really want to do and have learned to say NO very clearly :rotfl:(Which has taken too many years to learn)

I dont care anymore how others see me.If they think I am a bit mad and impulsive well yes I am but so there
Get over it :rotfl:

In the last year I have learnt to box and love it.I play touch Rugby and love it and now I have booked to learn to Surf :rotfl:
I wouldnt before as the classes are full of kids but now heyho I like kids and dont care if I am the eldest by about 35 years :)That will not stop me and hopefully I will give them a run for their money.

Nothing is going to stop me doing what I want to do for me anymore and if I am seen as odd. I dont care

My DH got asked a while ago what he was doing that evening and he said oh I am cooking dinner as mav is playing rugby tonight His friend said shouldnt that be the other way round ? No he said as she plays better Rugby than me and has got more guts :rotfl:

So get on with it:) and then you will know exactly what I mean and I cant wait for you all to join me and just enjoy life.Do things you have never done and surprise yourselves at what you can do if only you take that chance.

Mav x