2022 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN MrsSD

GrannyKate

593-597 Five frogs dealt with before my visitors arrive.  Whoopee

Floss

Granny Kate, could I suggest that you note on the back of your photos "who, where, when" to help future identification? My mum did that with our family photos  but ex's parents didn't so theirs were all chucked away.

TC77, I massively rationalised my makeup by thinking back to when last used / bought... for example I only go to MAC when walking through Westfield from Stratford International and I've driven down to DS2s every visit for the last 2 years so not been on the train since late 2019 😳

wort

Really interested for those in maintenance mode if this means you have relatively few belongings? would friends/family think you have much less?

In regard to the above question, I have been in maintenance for a few years now after doing the declutter the Marie Kondo way though I followed a few other declutter books.
I have much less belongings and my friends and family all joke ,if I say I’ve been throwing or donating things that I haven’t got anything left to give😂

I did have a neighbours child ask why my kitchen was empty! Her mum said it’s because her kitchen has clutter everywhere and that is what the child thinks is normal .
If you were to come to my home it’s not minimal but I have little out on display in the living room and my kitchen counters have only the very basics out on the worktops. I have a dresser in the kitchen with a small selection of cook books and decorative items.

it makes cleaning quick and easy and I can find everything straight away. I wish I’d done it many years ago. Also that I’d known when I first left home and not bought so much in the first place.
I say no to things people are offering for free and always think what I’m buying and if I buy it what can be got rid of to make way for it.

EnergyShifter

TC77 said:

Really interested for those in maintenance mode if this means you have relatively few belongings? would friends/family think you have much less?

Great question @TC77 - it really got me thinking.  I've still got plenty belongings - in fact I know I could let go of more stuff there's even a couple of bits of furniture that I actually don't need but I like them and there's room .  My house is very far from minimalist but I guess it does look a little more empty than some other people's homes.   I like bold colours and art-prints so that's how I add my mark.   I've had mixed reactions - some people love that it is relatively uncluttered but a couple of people have hinted that they think I could do with making it more "homely".   I think a good way of describing the feel of the place is like a holiday home but with a few extra pictures, book and ornaments.  

Sorry you have been having such a rough time @TC77 -I  hope things start improving x

Happy Easter to you all 🌷🌼🌸

GrannyKate

@Floss - trying to ensure all my photos are labelled and dated.  My difficulty is I inherited my mother and MIL's collection of Photos, paper and memorabilia.  I can make sense of a lot of my mums but mil is much more difficult.  

vulpix

Happy Easter lovely people in my phone. 

 I am just having 5 minutes at work. Not as busy as expected. Mobbed obv but not as bad as it can be. 

 I have just about put everything away in the two bedrooms after the plasterer. I have put a pine blanket box in the shed. It is pending a decision.  I have put a small amount of spare bedding in vacuum bags. The spare bed has a trundle so it is the pillows and duvet for that. 

 Hold the front page! The small suitcase we took away with us is in the loft. It joins a small Rug that I have rolled up and wrapped in a plastic bag. That is it. Nothing else is allowed in there. Big suitcases went last year before we moved. If they were full I couldn’t lift them. 

 I am at maintenance. I have taken several years to do my own version of Swedish death cleaning,before I even heard of it. I think my house is homely without being cluttered. I don’t save things for Justin nor do I have a stock of food other than that will be used immediately. It’s a space thing and now I can say I am saving electric. Shops can pay to keep the stuff chilled and frozen for me. Things will just leave now when they break or are not useful. 

I love to hear of everyone’s news. I enjoyed seeing big numbers for things leaving last year. I miss it. Decluttering is addictive for me. 

 Photos. I made a folder for each child with birth cards, pictures from school,photos etc. They left with each child when they left home. Luckily my mum has given family stuff to my nephew as he is interested. 

Gotta go. Love to all

Vx 

vulpix

Ps Sue,look at your phone. X

EnergyShifter

EnergyShifter said:

717 & 8 - 2 x Easter cards
719.  Easter gift for Niece
720.  Borrowed leggings returned 
721.  Sequined pin board to Niece
722.  Bundle of surgical gloves

723. Black wheelie bin full of bits of shed
724. Wheelie bin full of green waste
725. Cast iron door stop
726. Scattered a box of wildflower seeds that have been in shed for at least 2 years

TC77

Thank you for all the answers to my queries, really helpful and interesting. And inspiring!
@EnergyShifter I love the idea of a holiday home with abit extra.
@wort inspiring that you still have things but that having decluttered its quick to clean and more important to find things
@Floss I think last year I gave up the fantasy me with make up, and got rid of alot of jewellery but still have too much of the latter. And many other things although glassware  reduced significantly. 
Appreciate everyone sharing their journeys.
Crockery is difficult as we do have a lot of breakages and so does DD1 who has moved out and will often ask if I have a spare x or y.
DD2 has her friend round to revise yesterday and tonight staying over and has been doing cooking for all of us - microwave saucepan came to a nasty end 571
Think the apprehension over clearing my dad's house caused some of my overwhelm but know so many here have been through this/going through it.
sock to textile bag 572
old medication 573
Spare soap dispensers 574
First coat of painting finished (leaving patio doors and windows for another time), realised that quick drying emulsion so masking tape on skirting and picture rail - physically exhausted - first time painting a big room since having hand difficulties and not sure I will do again, second coat hopefully tomorrow 575  People coming to do hall and dining room in 2 weeks so need to create space to move things out of there!
Saucepan -  I burnt and gave up scrubbing. 575
Accepted roofing quote - can be quite indecisive over these things as fingers burnt so many times 576

Off to see if the easter eggs left in the car have melted or are still egg shaped. Hope people have had some time to relax/catch up and hugs to those struggling and/or under the weather x

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Write a daily To Do list - only 5 tasks

2. Deal with Old Frogs & potential frogs ASAP but at least one on FROG Fridays.

3. Reduce/Restrict time watching TV and playing AB2 during daylight hours 😉

4. Continue to keep kitchen clean & tidy - before going to bed

Sunday was a warmer day but with less sunshine - at least the clouds were white & fluffy 😉 DH spent the day on & off sleeping but I did get him to cook the various meats for our dinner (all from freezer & bought at Christmas) 🙂 Dinner was duck breasts, pheasant breasts, venison steaks & pork steaks, roast potatoes, roast parsnips, cabbage, broccoli & cauliflower. DH & I had a bit of everything 😋 but DSis just had duck, roast potatoes & cabbage 😔 Wudupa. I spent the day writing up yesterday’s food stock lists; cleaning, sorting & listing contents of 3 of 4 shelves in my ‘larder’ (using the term loosely 😉) + washed cupboard door. Regrettably I did have to bin various ood foodstuffs + wash & dry the jars for recycling; transposed a few recipes from scrap paper to Recipe notebook. All in all feeling quite pleased with myself 🙂 Also found time to chat to a couple of my neighbours 😉 There is a rather lovely moon tonight 🙂

633 - 652 Kitchen recycling, 4 plastic takeaway boxes and lids, 6 foil trays, drinks cans, cardboard packaging, 7 glass jars - recycled 

653 - 659 Kitchen detritus, 4 partial bags of ood foodstuffs, contents of jars, Uu scourer sponge - binned 

Love it GrannyKate - “an attack of decisiveness” A very successful decluttering session of emotional items👏 so one Gold Star ⭐️  on its way 🙂 Wow 5 frogs + the original frog 🥳 

Great work TC77 👏 leading by example 🙂

Lovely post Floss 👏

wort, thanks for sharing what life will be like when we reach the Nirvana of maintenance decluttering 👏 Your home sounds perfect to me 😻 I also like the ‘one in, one out’ approach to stopping clutter invading again 👏

Thank you for sharing EnergyShifter 👏 I really like your description “the feel of the place is like a holiday home but with a few extra pictures, books and ornaments” It sounds like several of the lovely places DH & I stayed in when we had our New Zealand holiday 😊

Good luck with labelling the photographs, GrannyKate 🍀

Wow, a third maintenance declutterer, vulpix 👏 Perhaps you can take in other people’s clutter & count that out 😉😉

Great work EnergyShifter 👏 Hope the wildflower seeds germinate 🤞

TC77, I agree that our maintenance declutterers are inspiring 🙂 & that the information they have shared is both helpful & interesting 👏 Very pleased to hear that you are feeling less overwhelmed 🙂 and a bit more in control 👏 Keep up the good work 🙂 P.S. hope the Easter eggs were OK 🤞

MrsSD  🏅🏅🏅🏅 🌟 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

I AM A STAR 🌟 

Decluttering Target: 659/2022

2022 - 1p Savings Challenge: Running Total £74.92