2020 - banish the clutter

retiredinfrance

I'm back and I am going to take it gently this year, following Dallam20, with 52 bags , trying for 4 per month and the other 4 squeezed in somewhere. Our first decluttering came when we moved to France fulltime and I'm going back to one of my then decluttering tips - go for cash! so bag 1 -full of books is ready. Then I did Mrs. SD's challenge and got past 365. Now my third go and here I hope to make a difference with good stuff being sold, then Charity shop and then the tip, after recycling, of course. I am also going to set myself some wee challenges . The first is to stop adding to the craft stash and work my way through the stash, after adding making my own cards to the list last year. The next is to get a grip on my charity shop habit . I really belong to the "best charity shop purchase " thread and the "make do and mend" thread. Well, enough to say stuff has been gathering again. The third is to repair clothes as far as possible, with a start this afternoon on new elastic for two pairs of knickers which have been hanging around in the laundry basket for at least a year.. The last one is to buy second hand where possible - yes - I know watch the CS habit but last year I replenished our stock of pillowcases at a fraction of the cost of new ones, with brand new, in packet ones from CShops. New Year's Day and good intentions ,but giving it a go. So, back to the knickers.( Why I had put off mending them was because I had got two sets form CS, brand new two bags where the first of the multipack had gone and the rest abandoned. Perhaps tmi for some readers, rest assured I only bought them as they were clearly unused.) Now I want that laundry bag empty so back to the mending and Bag 1 ready to go.Happy and thrifty 2020 to you all out there.

[Deleted User]

Another two bags of declutter. One for the charity shop and one for the food bank. Got a growing pile of stuff to be put on auction website next week. Feel as if I am finally getting a grip on the stuff that needs to go. Will take the bags tomorrow 5/365.

Alli135

Took the Christmas Decorations down last night and when we went to put back the normal ornaments but 7 in the Boot fair box. Really pleased that hubby agreed to this - perhaps it’s rubbing off on him now ��

Happy_Kitties

Happy new year everyone.

My targets for this year are,

500 items out of the house
100 neutral items for charity.

Have already got a couple of bits in a bag to drop off to CS tomorrow

Primrose

Help! I,ve decluttered a lot of my own possessions but have a much loved husband who won,t declutter and prevaricated so much about disposing of unused stuff that I' m losing interest in trying to keep the house clean and tidy.

Hints please on how to get him to realise it won,t be the end of life as he knows it if he gets rid of some of these bits and bobs !

short_bird

1-6: 6 garments to charity shop bag
7: Christmas cards to recycling if they don't have glitter and foil, rest to bin.
8-10: Xmas jumper and 2 copies of Private Eye to the bag for the ex
11-12: 2 reminders of other former relationships to the bin. :mad:

Primrose

If anybody wants a good incentive to declutter try this:

Just imagine you're going to die within the next 48 hours. Your house will be left unoccupied and the entire contents of house, garage, shed and attic will have to be cleared out.

YOU (yes, you've been reincarnated for the purpose of this exercise).are going to be the lucky individual who has to undertake this tasK!

Now, does that concentrate your mind as to whether something should be retained now or not ? :rotfl:

juliejim

Happy New Year all!

So far I am on 26/2020 so I have made a start!

Jue

ChasingtheWelshdream

Christmas box reducing done - 8 boxes down to 4 and only stuff I really, really like. In light of some of the comments on here, I've offered the decent stuff on the local free FB page, rather than cluttering up the local CS. Anything else has been dismantled and sorted ready for the recycling run at at the weekend, including the broken plastic crates things were stored in along with random lids that don't seem to fit anything!


Next up is a kitchen inventory and meal planning to declutter lots of things lurking in the pantry. I desperately need to lose a ton of weight, so hoping cooking from scratch will help. Going to start on this tonight if I have the energy after blitzing the new year budget.


My plan of action is to ignore the Rooms of Doom and pick a small area/box/project at a time. No targets in terms of items/bags etc, but just to get rid of whatever needs it as I see it.

This year I really, really want to frame and put up several photos. I've boxes full ready to go through, and lots of frames but have never found opportunity to sort them. I went to a relative's house at Christmas and their place was so much more homely with things on the wall, so that's my mid term plan.

elsien

I have declutttered some sitting room drawers and now have the start of charity shop/tip/freegle bags.
There is however an unfortunate side effect that I can't now get up the stairs for things waiting to go upstairs.:o