KonMari 2016 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

mavvymoo

PollyWollyDoodle wrote: »

I'm pleased to say that apart from Lego I have never heard of most of the toys on that list! :rotfl: (I don't have children).

I looked up tempur pillows, gosh they are expensive- going to have to go on the list for when I'm feeling flush. However Mavvymoo's comment got me thinking - what have you bought that made you wince at the price but has been really worth the investment? For me, it's the Turtle mats I have in the kitchen. A lot of money for a doormat but they can be washed and come up like new.

I have been thinking long and hard about your question.

1, The pillows already talked about

2, Bosch logixx fridge it was much more than others but its brilliant and I would recommend it to anyone.

3,My Shepherd of Sweden boots which cost an eye watering £180 :eek: But I wear them almost everyday for everything from cleaning the chooks out,walking the dog, going shopping in fact everything.I would say I wear them 350 days a year :rotfl:and have now had them 6 years. They are still waterproof and when cleaned (once a year) come up like new. They leave makes like Durberry miles behind.worth every single penny I paid for them.

4, The woodburner which is a Morso modern style which was again miles more expensive then the others over £1000 more :eek: But again worth the scrimping and saving to get it.

But on the other hand loads of bad buys which cost a fortune and are now bringing joy to others as they have been given away /donated.

Thing is with KM I dont think I will ever make these mistakes again as you are so much more careful with what you buy and there is not many snap decisions now

The whole process makes you see so much more clearly and you think about the pros and cons of every little tiny thing before you bring it into the house


Mav x

greenbee

Look out for the crispy mice GQ - they just desiccate and you can hold them up by their tails like lollipops (according to my builder who was the one who removed the loft insulation).

I hope you're wearing a dust mask while you're in the loft. Loft insulation itself isn't good for your lungs, neither is mouse poo or desiccated bird.

I don't store anything in my attic, as I don't go up there much and really don't want to store stuff just for the mice to eat. I do still look up there every so often to make sure it's all still watertight and there are no visitors (it has been bird-proofed as it used to be full of jackdaws, and I've removed the mouse ladders, but things can still work their way in.

Re. pillows - most of mine are feather/down. I wash them in the summer on a 90C wash, then tumble dry until crispy. The stuff about skin cells and dust mite poo is science not marketing, so they need keeping clean. I also have one millet and one spelt husk - these are both quite thin, but I use them in combination with feather and microfibre pillows - if I'm sleeping on my back of front then I get rid of the others.

I used to use a tempur pillow, and it was great for a bit, but over time they become soft and less responsive, so you do still need to replace those. They also heavy, and their responsiveness also depends on the temperature of your bedroom so they work differently in summer to winter/hot houses to cool ones.

mrs-moneypenny

Morning all
GQ your bead bird story reminded me of "the frog" when I was a teen we had a second hand settee we'd had it for years but we finally replacing it with I think another newer second hand one. I was given the task with my brother of helping take settee apart to make to easier to load for the tip run. When we cut the bottom open a very desiccated dead frog fell out it was gross!!! Not sure how it got there or how long it had been trapped under us. EWWWW

MyHappinessProject

GreyQueen wrote: »

:eek: A DEAD BIRD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I swear I am not making this up!!!!!!!!!

Just went into the other half of the parental loft (which wasn't tidied/ kondo'd in Sept) and was crawling gingerly across the central roof truss towards to gable end when just about put my hand/ knee on a skeletonised dead bird!

EWW! It looked like something out of Alien. I have retreated temporarily from the loft with some things to sort out downstairs, sneezing and coughing, demanding a cuppa to steady my nerves.

Folks, those of you who have lofts, don't be strangers to them, you have no idea what is going on up there!:rotfl:

Thinking of you this weekend GreyQueen, Kondoing at the folks.Looking forward to reading all about it...you are Game (as we say in Scotland) meaning you are BRAVE and up for anything. It has been lovely reading about how attitudes have changed at the parental home...that is you that has done that! Gives me hope for changes at MY parental home...slowly slowly catchy monkey! But it is exhausting changing minds and hearts , especially if they are not too keen on letting the joy in... a bit bitter and resentful. Good Luck you Brave GreyQueen you! Looking forward to your next post and I am off to do some Kondoing at my own house.

grunnie

Mavvymoo thanks for the name of the boots you recommend. Have had a look and a stockist is quite near me. I wear uggs and they are no use if you are caught in the rain or if there is slush as they let in the water so soggy feet and soggy boots.

maddiemay

Igamogam wrote: »

Mummified rats in the attic GQ............:eek:

Pillows: an alternative especially for those with allergies are pillows from here Not tried myself but BIL and SIL swear by them and the duvets - BIL suffered with morning headaches and congested nose every morning for years and was given medication for asthma............they changed their bedding and hey presto......he never was asthmatic after all:mad: I have been tempted by the duvets but not until the one we have is past its natural;)

I read somewhere about how much dust - ( skin cells and mite poo basically!) collects in our pillows -- frightening! If I can find the article I will post it. I am sure we are supposed to change pillows frequently - maybe that was just from a pillow manufacturer point of view Certainly wash often I would say

I have a wool duvet, made by a company in Devon, but bought at local Indie bed/bedding shop, it is much heavier than normal duvets, but I soon got used to it and love it now. Pillows are down and feather, OH has a memory foam mattress and pillow, but they are too warm for me.

GreyQueen

Without venetian blinds it'd be curtains for us all.

OMG, how many pairs of curtains does one loft need?! Bearing in mind that each window which needs curtains has curtains.

I was after one of two pairs of identical curtains to replace the curtains in the 3rd bedroom (the home office/ spare bedroom/ junk bunker) and managed to retrieve them on the second attempt. Along with several pairs of other curtains and half- pairs of curtains. The back bedroom curtains are going to a pal.

One half of a pair is used over the glass panel on the back door and got stained in an unfortunate accident involving caustic soda in the bathroom above a few years ago (not guilty, I wasn't even here at the time). So the recently discovered half is going to be swopped for that and the other one ragged.

One half of a mystery blue moire curtain is apparently the mate of one which is over the glass panel of the door from the extension room into the back garden. The door itself is covered with floor-to-ceiling boxes and is only visible from the outside. The curtain is invisible so I'll have to take her word for it.

One pair of floor-to-ceiling curtains, in immaculate conditon, have apparently never been seen by either of my parents or myself (and I have a great memory for textile prints) and no one knows from whence they came. We know where they'll be going, tho, to - the chazzer. Unused, fully lined and with a matching pelmet, someone should be made joyful by them.

Because the window that they used to fit isn't there since the extension wsa built about 18 years ago.............. but the other pair of floor-to-ceilings can't be donated because they match the shorter curtains which could go at the other end of the same room (they're not is use, not really suitable, but they're lined, excellent quality and they MATCH). Keeping something you can't use because it matches something you don't use........ hmmmm.:p

There are two other pairs of matching curtains from who-knows-where, which both could be used in any of the three bedrooms, where they aren't needed but could be, if you cut a foot off them first.

I found the door curtain from my old flat, (which Mum wouldn't let me dispose of when I moved 10+ years ago btw) and it's one of a pair of floor-to-ceiling curtains from the jumbly which which I will go over with a finetooth comb to see if they are fit to donate.Otherwise ragging.

This isn't the sum total of the curtainage I'm wrestling with, but I think I've tortured you enough.:rotfl:The only mercy is that in over 50 + years of married life, Mum has only ever bought one pair of curtains new, so shedloads of cash isn't being represented by this acerage of cloth.

Oh, and I have retrieved the dead bird and placcy bagged it. I used tongs. Which I have now misplaced in the loft and didn't realise until after I put the hatch away. That's tomorrow's gig.

And one of the suitcase archive (1970s vinyl) contains more of the curtains which are too long/ don't get used) and another archival suitcase (1960s cardboard type) contains a selection of brushed cotton sheets.

It's a funny old life.

mrs-moneypenny

My mil has some of those double bed stripy brushed flannellette flat sheets still in their packaging she now has a single bed and uses fitted sheet so can't even say she's saving them for best. I've also seen blankets still in their packaging I've been married to Dh over 30 years and never known them to use anything other than duvets. I have no clue why or what these are being saved for oh and there are two still boxed electric blankets that they bought but she never used as she "doesn't trust electricity so prefers her water bottle" TBH I wouldn't trust them either now given their Age now so they will be one tip filler one day but if mil has any say in if it won't be anytime soon.
She used to have winter and summer curtains and would swP them with the seasons and have soared of both. The curtains haven't been changed in the last five years since fil passed so I'm guessing there are at least 3 spares sets for the whole bungalow lurking somewhere.

mavvymoo

Glad I could be of help grunnie. I have the Mikaela Long Brown style. I can walk in 8" s of water and my feet do not get wet The heel has hardly any wear and the soles none after 6 years of very very hard wear :rotfl:

I did have 2 pairs of Uggs before Kondo came in to my life Gave them too a really good friend of mine who loved them. I agree with you on the wet feet and I called them my fair weather boots.So if it looked like rain I didnt chance it :rotfl:How unjoyful is that.

I also had Durberrys (dont even look at the price ) double the Shepherd and a bit more Wore them out in about 2.5 years.They were wrecked and also let water in


GQ I have been laughing at the curtain/loft/bird saga :rotfl:Poor you but reading it is so funny its almost like we are there with you. So if we need any curtains we know who to ask

I must be one of the few have no curtains in the house or in the loft :rotfl:


Mav x

GreyQueen

mavvymoo wrote: »

GQ I have been laughing at the curtain/loft/bird saga :rotfl:Poor you but reading it is so funny its almost like we are there with you. So if we need any curtains we know who to ask

I must be one of the few have no curtains in the house or in the loft :rotfl:


Mav x

It's good to share the insanity. I was thinking of you, and others who wisely have nowt in their lofts, as I was wrestling with Stuff balanced awakwardly on joist and trying not to look to closely at cobwebs. Tell ya, if I'd accidentally touched that mummified birdie, there would have been some major girlie squealing going on!:o

It's also a bit of displacement activity as my 92 y.o. Nan who we would have been spending the day with at her home was rushed into hospital yesterday afternoon (4 days after she'd had a skin graft op). We've been playing telephone tag with the hospital and my Aunt, and will be over there when hospital visiting hours open this afternoon.