KonMari 2018 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Karmacat

I had another victory yesterday: I've been using my sister's cast-off work shoes as my garden shoes for 3 years now, and I got soaked the other day, so they've been binned and new-to-me cast offs No 2 have been pressed into action. Same as the previous pair, different colour my garden doesn't care With the old pair, they had to be binned because they were literally falling apart, but I cut two pieces of leather off them to use for various things: my handbag strap needs a snippety bit to restrain the flap of leather coming from the buckle, and I want a little bit to use for the applique Christmas tree hanging I'm going to do this year.

Slinky

Slinky wrote: »

There aren't currently any rodents occupying the freezer.

Spoke too soon. Rodent now snuggling up alongside moths.

GreyQueen

Slinky wrote: »

Spoke too soon. Rodent now snuggling up alongside moths.

It would be so funny if some stranger went foraging in your freezer!


Was out and about after work - three new-to-me pieces of clothing in and a pair of old taps from the homestead to metal recycling. We found those about 3 hrs after the dump run, isn't that just typical?


Will aim to get some more of the bits & bobs to the chazzer after work tomorrow, things will take a few trips as I haven't a car, but persistance wins in the end.

kboss2010

Storage cupboard & spare room kondoed.

It doesn't look like much but I have a full car with charity shop donations.

Trying to reform my hoarding tendencies & improve my mental health one day at a time.

Siebrie

1 bag-for-life with miscellaneous items to the charity shop.
ragbag: 3 socks, 1 pair of pants.
bin/recycling: dds' crafts.
2019 calendar in paper recycling.
Using up: hair conditioner that started to separate (how old is my stuff, exactly?) I shook it well and now it's more or less back to normal; I'll finish it quickly. I have put myself on a new-shampoo-and-conditioner ban until all my stash is used up. There are still 2 bottles of conditioner and 13 bottles of shampoo left. Most were acquired on rebate-after-purchase and only cost me the stamp for the form (€0.79).
I'm also working my way through all these tiny hotel soaps I have; they are a bit of a nuisance, but soap is soap and I'd rather have dealt with the nuisance than have them lying about.

I have agreed with husband that we will make a proper start on clearing the house of any unwanteds and maybes before September, when we hope the renovation can start.


What is helping me tremendously in my day-to-day life is my little notebook. It's only 10x6cm, but it has my list of things-to-do and things-to-buy, all mixed up, I just write it down as it pops into my head. I cross it out when I have done or bought the item, and tear out the page if it's all crossed out. Especially in December (St Nicolas, my birthday, Christmas, New Year, church musical, end-of-year school and work activities) this is a life-saver. It's an old notebook dds' had lying about and were not using, so I'm also using up something I couldn't donate.

VJsmum

Hello - it's been a while since I've been on this thread, or even read it. But I feel a need to rejoin.

Not especially for me, though there is always SOMETHING, but my sister in law who I've pledged to help with her house, which is AWFUL. I'm doing it in exchange for her editing my thesis but i'm not sure who's got the worse deal..:p

I visited a couple of days ago and she certainly needs help. It is an overwhelming amount of clutter she's got going on.. She seems to think that throwing money at remodelling the house will improve it.. I am not so sure. Funny thing is she was saying that her furniture doesn't work, and she's right, it doesn't. But it isn't that different to ours.. quite a lot of upcycled stuff that seems better in our house:o I think the sheer volume of stuff means that she can't see wood for trees.

So, from afar I have set her the task of simply going round with a bin bag and just getting rid of pure, visible rubbish of which there is quite a lot. Then I have told her to address books, which are the easiest, I think.

Also, when I finish my thesis I am going to help DD sort out her room as, whilst our house as a whole isn't too bad, her room is terrible....

Looking forward to joining in again...

VJsmum

GreyQueen wrote: »

Was just listening to a livestream of a yoo toober I follow who had a fascinating idea - allow thrift stores to 'store' your unneeded belongings. Donate what you don't need, let others get the benefit, and buy again (secondhand) as and when needed.

This is pretty much what I said to SiL...

GreyQueen

When I consider the space something takes up in my very small flat, vs the cost of replacing it should I ever find out that I really REALLY need such an item again, it all becomes clearer. Obviously, some things are unique and special, but others are generic items which are made in the millions and which abound. I am thinking of things like my 1 litre pyrex measuring jug.

I was of the opinion that this is a basic kitchen requirement, but then I realised that it isn't any kind of requirement in my kitchen. I cannot recall when I last used it and it takes up about 10% of the shelf space in my crockery cupboard.

I have a few things tagged for charity shop donation but I am going to allow the immediate-post-christmas donation tsunami to come and go first, as my preferred chazzer is currently a bit overwhelmed. If I haven't needed the jug in another couple of months, it will be donated.

I did visit them briefly today with a carrier bag for their rag collection, worn out clothing and domestic linens. One was a brushed cotton bedsheet which had suddenly become more rip than sheet. Fortunately, a little chrissy-tyme sorting out brought a replacement bedsheet to the surface of the pile and that is going into use immediately.

Discussed with the mothership the use of having a home inventory as much of the overwhelm in her home is unintentional duplicates, triplicates and quadrupulets, even. I shudder to think how many pairs of scissors there are in that household. Between household, craft, kitchen etc, I think it must be north of 100 pairs. I know that sounds like hyperbole, but I think if it's not over 100, it has to be a whisker under it. Frightening.

VJsmum

GreyQueen wrote: »

When I consider the space something takes up in my very small flat, vs the cost of replacing it should I ever find out that I really REALLY need such an item again, it all becomes clearer. Obviously, some things are unique and special, but others are generic items which are made in the millions and which abound. I am thinking of things like my 1 litre pyrex measuring jug.

I was of the opinion that this is a basic kitchen requirement, but then I realised that it isn't any kind of requirement in my kitchen. I cannot recall when I last used it and it takes up about 10% of the shelf space in my crockery cupboard.

I have a few things tagged for charity shop donation but I am going to allow the immediate-post-christmas donation tsunami to come and go first, as my preferred chazzer is currently a bit overwhelmed. If I haven't needed the jug in another couple of months, it will be donated.

I did visit them briefly today with a carrier bag for their rag collection, worn out clothing and domestic linens. One was a brushed cotton bedsheet which had suddenly become more rip than sheet. Fortunately, a little chrissy-tyme sorting out brought a replacement bedsheet to the surface of the pile and that is going into use immediately.

Discussed with the mothership the use of having a home inventory as much of the overwhelm in her home is unintentional duplicates, triplicates and quadrupulets, even. I shudder to think how many pairs of scissors there are in that household. Between household, craft, kitchen etc, I think it must be north of 100 pairs. I know that sounds like hyperbole, but I think if it's not over 100, it has to be a whisker under it. Frightening.

Most things have a weight equivalent in any case (all things?) 100ml of water weighs 100g for example.

GreyQueen

I got rid of the scales last year!


I'm a lackadaisical cook and mostly throw things together in big pots/ live on salads, so precise measurements aren't important to me. Heck, even IMprecise measurement aren't important.


I don't bake, f'rinstance, at all. I know that's almost heresy on MSE, where there are many keen cooks, but I've tried to interest myself in cooking for several decades already and I still really don't give a darn and can't see that changing........