Jamiedodgers 4 month simple life challenge

SAFC73_2

Hello LA

Could you take a unilateral declaration of de-cluttering and get rid of your stuff?

I'm doing that with mine but I didn't realise how much I've accumulated over the years one way and another, ie birthdays, Christmas etc. Some of it I'll keep for sentimental reasons but with the rest it's a case of do I want it, can I use it and could I sell it.

I'd do a boot sale as we have in our garage stuff from a house clearance that I did with OH when their aged aunt died. this was some 3 and a half years ago and we still have it. I've been told to get rid of it but no-one will volunteeer for the old car boot sale . It's not really worth ebaying. But it's sitting there....

My parents are hoarders due mainly to their growing up during the War when they didn't have much. Plus my Mother has the habit of the "little present" syndrome every once in a while. Not sounding ungrateful but it does add to my stuff

LookingAhead

Hi SAFC.....

Well - I don't 'do' clutter so I haven't got a lot of stuff (I did a boot sale in September and then got rid of the rest of the stuff to charity, the stuff that didn't sell) but fiancé has tonnes of old books, cds etc and I can't take them off him.

We compromised by him storing most of his stuff in his room but we still have some DVDs sitting on a bookcase that I know we probably won't watch again but when I suggested we sell them - he wasn't willing.

It could be worse I suppose! He's mostly fab so I can't really try and change him too much....

Oooh I do understand that 'little present' thing.....I had to speak out in the end but I felt awful doing it.

JD - hope you are ok?

JAMIEDODGER

hi guys:)

SOoo sorry that i haventnt updated for a while.

october has been really busy for me, i have worked a solid four weeks with only one day and two evenings off, loads of orders in from my wholesalers and then all that to be photographed and uplisted to the shop! on the upside though...my shop is now the biggest metaphysical/new age shop on ebay!! not bad for just over a year in business:D

anyway another benefit of this is that i havent spent hardly anything in a month lol, so i havent added any clutter lol

had a bit of a tidy out of huge cupboard the other day and have thrown away some rubbish and recycled what i could:) and i found all the christmas deccies too

i am gearing up for my busiest time of the year for work now so probably wont be able to post much! made all my yule incense yesterday, so the workroom is a bit of a mess...herbs everywhere!! I am planning on taking today off though, really need to do some house work!!!:D

hope everyone is doing well!

JD X

taka

Hi and well done on your challenge and ebay shop! Do you sell worry stones/touch stones in your ebay shop? If so could you PM me your shop details? Thank-you!!

SAFC73_2

got rid of a Cup Final programme on ebay today. It's been in my collection but as I'm not wanting to keep stuff like that then I felt it should go to a good home. I used to collect prgrammes from the match but invariably never looked at them again after the game

I'm starting to declutter stuff from the house. It feels like it gets on top of me at times and has the effect of making feel quitre stressed when I get in from work.

monkeymonkey_3

Hi all,

Just wondering, am I the only one who has a sort of conflict of opinions between trying to de-clutter and trying to be debt free?

I'm moving out of my parents house tomorrow (packing is NOT going well, due to my hoarding nature!).

I have recently finally faced facts that I keep too much cr*p and I need to declutter, but then I'm loathed to get rid of stuff if I'm not getting any money for it, but on the other hand, half the stuff I'm getting rid of is worthless old junk! Took a few bags of stuff to the charity shop today, but somehow I almost felt guilty for giving stuff away. It's like my DFW brain says "don't get rid of anything if you're not getting money for it, or incase you might suddenly find a use for it", but then my newly acquired clutter-free brain says "just get rid of it, just get it out of the house"!
It's so confusing!

Kevicho

Hi, just wanted to add my opinion to monkeys question.

I think the thing you find is that the more junk you have, the more worry you have, its no coincidence a report has shown that low child self esteem and high demand for material presents are interlinked.

Yes there is always the fear of, "i may need that one day", and yes, in 3 or 4 years time if that rare occasion occurs you will be berating yourself, but on the positive side you have had a clean sideboard for those years, and also the knowledge that you are less stressed about that items upkeep.

My room now is pretty bare, i have a PC, storage for my clothes, and a really cool leather chair which i sit on in comfort.

My room is easier to manage as there is less "stuff" to mess it up, and i find i dont need any of it anyways.

And also consider this, you may not get any money for an item straight away, but time is money, and the time you will save from not having to keep cleaning, tidying, or moving an item, adds up.

And in closing, JD, i hope the Pea garden is going well

monkeymonkey_3

Thanks Kevicho,

Yeh, I think you're right, I probably would be more relaxed if all the clutter was gone. At least that's what I'm hoping, and trying to fight the urge to keep everything 'just in case'. It's interesting though, what you say about the childhood studies, my brother and me were brought up in the same house, in the same way, and there's only 2 years between us (he's younger) and yet I've turned out to be a terrible hoarder, both of sentimental and 'practical' items, yet, in the possessions stakes, he is like my polar opposite, he doesn't keep anything, he sorts through all his stuff every few months, and each time loads gets chucked away! I wonder why we turned out so different? :rolleyes:

JAMIEDODGER

hi all, right this is the end of my four month challenge.

i have done really well. my house is looking much less cluttered, I have ebayed, amazoned and charity shopped this house to extreme.

I now own just one shelf of books, none of these i would get rid of, i am still using the library. if i want any specialist books i get them from amazon marketplace, read and then sell them again.

i have reduced my wardrobe, toiletries and personal items to the bare minimum which i am comfortable with and to be honest i dont miss any of the stuff i have given away!

my home is a lot easier to clean now it has less stuff in it!

the one area of the house which still has a lot of stuff in, is the kitchen, however, i cook everything from scratch and would find my life to be a lot harder if i had less kitchen appliances.

there are two things i would get rid of one is my panasonic breadmaker, as i now make bread by hand everyday. the other is my microwave, i made a note of how many times i used it in a fortnight and what for, and i found out that i was only using it to melt butter and heat beans! both which could be done in a saucepan!!

these two items i am planning on putting on freecycle this month.

i have used freecycle a couple of times so far, i gave away my tumble dryer which i no longer used i now hang everything on 2 airers that sit where the td was! i also freecycled an exercise ball i didnt use, im happy these went to good homes!

i am planning on ending my contract on my mobile when it ends in the summer and just getting a payg instead. not bothered what the phone looks like just that i can make calls and recieve them.

i have found throughout this challenge that i can and have made do with much less stuff, and i will be continuing this throughout 2008:)

linniestorm

I've only just found this Jamiedodger, what a great thread! I've been thinking a lot about this myself the last few months. I've always been a bit of a hoarder and it's a family joke that the difference between moving me and my brother is about one transit van and three car loads! But it's only really this year I realised, I don't actually NEED any of the stuff, and I hardly ever look at any of it, so begun the job of getting rid. I totally agree with Kevicho about a lot of it being linked with self esteem and similar issues, but I'm also a great one for keeping things for sentimental reasons or in case it's needed one day (also being the family historian!) You should start an '08 challenge for it and lead us through the minefield of becoming minimalist: I'm in!