KonMari 2018 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

GreyQueen

:j Just assembled enough items to fill a large carrier bag and will take them with me to work and drop them off at the chazzer on the way home.

I've been reflecting on how I came to own some of the things I own and many of them are things that I have not sought out and purchased myself. Although plenty which I did deliberately buy, which I freely acknowledge, seldom new-new, just new-to-me.

A lot of the things I have are as a result of friends and family members decluttering their own homes.

Because I am grateful recipient of many kinds of articles, I guess I am seen as a safe way of them shedding their excess with a clear conscience. I'm poorer than some of them. Their item will be treated carefully and not wasted. I'm not a trasher or a !!!!!! (hopefully not, in both senses of the last word, lol).

I'm going to have to do some careful management of expectations around this, because the very last thing I would want to do is cause offence to relations or dear friends (not keen on offending colleagues or casual acquaintances, either, generosity shouldn't be rejected out of hand). But, with a very small home, a pretty full life, and a craving towards simplicity, I'm feeling something's gotta give, and better the possessions than my peace of mind.

Anyone else out there reaching a similar point with Stuff? The feeling that there's got to be a better use of time than shuffling it around for a chunk of each day?!

silvasava

Seibrie - hope your back is improving
Posessions that have an emotional attachment are the hardest to get rid of. I've got a box of Capo Di Monte ornaments of my mother's in the loft that's been there for nearly 20 years I will sort it someday.
Most of my kitchen units have gone to the Freecycler. Some elderly unused pans, my oven and the sink unit are going to my metal recycle chap who uses the funds to run a workshop for young teen lads.
Some nice large french terracotta dishes and a big S/S stockpot are going to DS1.
I'm sure there will be more culling over the next few weeks.
As I've got no hob for the next month I've ordered a plug in induction hob. Between Topcashback and Groupon I've managed to get it for under £20 instead of over £40! If it performs well it will be kept as I can use it on the boat when moored up with shore power.

Siebrie

Greyqueen, I usually accept donations with 'thank you for this. If I cannot use it (anymore), would you want it back, or can I find another good home for it?' In general, people are fine with me passing it on. I keep the destination vague on purpose, because sometimes the only good home is the bin.

Karmacat

GreyQueen wrote: »

I'm going to have to do some careful management of expectations around this, because the very last thing I would want to do is cause offence to relations or dear friends (not keen on offending colleagues or casual acquaintances, either, generosity shouldn't be rejected out of hand). But, with a very small home, a pretty full life, and a craving towards simplicity, I'm feeling something's gotta give, and better the possessions than my peace of mind.

Anyone else out there reaching a similar point with Stuff? The feeling that there's got to be a better use of time than shuffling it around for a chunk of each day?!

I have a lot of spares-in-waiting from my mum (ordinary t shirts, scarves, that sort of thing) and my sister - interestingly, my *sister* is the one who started saying the "disposal" thing, because of what she's been getting rid of - a dinner-party-type presentation box of cutlery, for instance, she knows she'll never use it, and she offered it to her daughter in law saying "do you want it, don't worry about saying yes and deciding that you don't want it, I'm getting rid of it myself after all". It was quite a step forward!


As for the space and shuffling that Stuff takes up - yes! I'm still working on it, but I'm almost ready to use the reclaimed space (possibly simply wafting about in it, admiring the ease of the wafting ) Cat ornaments are off to the charity shop today, after photography session, though I kept a lot more than I expected. More to come on that.

luxor4t

DH will be off the road for at least a month following surgery next week and I do not drive so we are rushing stuff out of the house in advance.
Three bags of joyless clothing to the fabric recycling place plus a laundry basket full of bits and pieces to the CS have already gone and I'm aiming for another run shortly. I'm a-l-m-o-s-t ashamed to confess that the CS stuff has been sitting there since just after Christmas :o:o
Once DH is on the mend we will be trying our luck with Book of Faces selling pages/ eBay to clear DS2's [STRIKE]collection [/STRIKE] hoard of space related toys - all with his permission. I am going to eBay some of my craft equipment mountain because it only sparks guilt now

greent

Another one with a bad back here - also 'acquired' last Sat - I have been wafting around in a cloud of co-codamol/ Naprosyn/ paracetamol/ ibuprofen throughout the week - along with using up several sticky self heating patches and wraps (both of the heated things coming from my late m-I-l's house - she died almost 4 years ago) and then wheat bags when the (ood) heated things ran out (very handy to have on at work) Not much else other than the minimum has been done by me - I've had the 2 big children do some housework and the rest has been left - although I have my toddler nephew this weekend (my sister is very poorly in hospital) so we need to make a couple of rooms at least toddler-safe before then!

Work finishes next week until Sept - I'm looking forward to clearing more stuff out (we've acquired 2 lots of student uni stuff here for the Summer too....) - I want space and less things to look after!!
x

GreyQueen

Sorry to hear about your bad back, wishing you a prompt recovery.


Readied another chazzer donation bag yestereve, not a huge amount, just a bag-for-life's worth, but if I mentally add all the things I've shed this week, it'd probably be half-a-car's bootful. Not that I have a car these days, I drag things outta here a bag/ big item at a time. But still, pretty satisfying to imagine.


I have been procrastinating about some sewing jobs which will involve the finsihed article leaving my home, and knuckled down to one of them last night. Time-consuming hand sewing, but rewarding, I was watching inspirational stuff on YT while I did it.


2nd project, which is shortening a pair of jeans for my brother, is sitting in the middle of the ironing board in the middle of the sitting room, as a reminder. I'm busy with gardening at this time of year but there's no reason why I shouldn't do this in batches.


Such as measure and cut, pin and tack, get the machine out and sew the hems. Baby steps........


ETA; just did two things which lead towards decluttering. Have cut two inches off the jeans, put the cut-offs in the rag bag for recycling, and also spent 2 mins checking the going rate for two books online. Which is £1-£2 for these heavy hardbacks, which makes them unecononic to offer to Kid Bruv the online bookseller. Books are now in the donation bag and will be leaving within the hour, between them they probably weigh 3.5 kg. Whew!

Karmacat

I'm squaring up to repairs gradually - and my sister has volunteered to help me learn how to thread the sewing machine I inherited from my mum.

The big win today - ta-da! I went in to my local Curry's, which I've never bought anything at because their systems seem stuck in the 19th century, though not their products - but their recycling pledge seems to have made it into their noggins! You can't bring white goods in, but you can bring any electrical goods you can carry, and I specifically checked on cables (eg between TVs and DVD playes, that sort of thing. Yes! They'll take them! I forgot to check about laptops themselves, so I'll ask when I go in again on Tuesday

silvasava

Found one of my local Chemists accepts used inhalers as apparently the outers are high grade plastic and the inner is aluminium. Wish I'd known this ages ago! My local hospice takes plastic milk bottle tops but I'm looking for somewhere local that takes tops from other containers too.
I do like to dispose of stuff as responsibly as I can. TBH there are so many complaints round the world about plastic waste but you try finding somewhere that can recycle them. We wont mention the rubbish we've been sending to China

Slinky

I'm back from a lovely holiday, oh my how wonderful it is not to have to go to work tomorrow! I sold my business and completed the handover just before we went. Just got some accounts stuff to tidy up now. I have retired.



However a huge task ahead as hopefully we will be moving within the next month. Kondoing stopped pretty much with my broken arm, but today I drove for the first time so can start shifting some stuff out the door before we go.


We can't decide whether to keep one of the beds, so that will go with us and a decision will be made when we get there. It's hard to work out where some things will fit, we may just have our good quality sofa bed in our guest room. We don't have huge amounts of visitors now, and I can't really see that changing, so the space in the guest room could probably be put to better use. Our new home is smaller than our current one, and even though we plan to extend it, we need to be more creative with the way we live in it.


I've found out that we can get the new council to take 5 bulky items for £32. There's a fridge freezer there which I don't think a charity could find a buyer for, plus a 10 year old washing machine we won't need either. I'll offer that to BHF before getting rid, along with the bedframe if we don't keep the bed. The mattress on the bed definitely needs to go to the tip, (if we keep the bed we need a new mattress) plus some other odd bits. It may seem odd to move then ditch, but it'll work out cheaper than getting rid of some from here, and some from the new house.