2023 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD

plumduff55

I am still slowly and methodically sorting and decluttering. @Mrs_Salad_Dodger thanks for the medal - I am wearing it with pride 😀.
Last week I bought myself a new duvet set and will be donating my old one to a cs. The new one cost less than half the cost of my previous one that I've had more than 12 years. So today I will change the duvet and I will declutter the bedding drawer. In fact I'm sure there's an even older duvet in there. If there is it will be donated as well.

DVDs are my next project 😳. I have more than 100 with the majority being ones I recorded myself and are stored in vinyl sleeves. I am going to watch every one and and hoping to discard at least 20%. Last night I started watching Alex Cross (James Patterson)  after 10 mins I decided that one could go. I then watched Armageddon and definitely keeping that. I ❤️ Bruce Willis. As you can imagine this bit of decluttering is going to take a while - on the plus side I'll get loads of knitting done 🧶

Wednesday2000

I need to go and clean the garden chairs before they are picked up on Tuesday. I am also wondering if they want a coffee table I never use.

I bought a couple of new necklaces from a chazzer so I decluttered a few older things, three necklaces and a pendant. They can go in the bag with all my plates. I probably will go through my wardrobes again and my nightwear. I seem to only wear a few things over and over in bed, especially with colder weather as I just seem to wear my thermal tops and leggings.

We were supposed to go out to the O2 today to see a film, but my brother has woken up with a cough this morning so we will just go out locally instead. I might take the donation bag to the shop today actually. Just off to check through my clothes, again!

SecondStar

So I’ll soon be making an offer on what will hopefully be my new home, and thought I’d ask the experts -

How do/have you decluttered for a house move? Particularly one that is a considerable downsize, with a small amount of storage?

I have lots of craft materials and art supplies, lots of craft books and novels, ornaments & knick knacks (some I’ve bought, and some I’ve inherited), far too much furniture, not to mention the less frequently used things like Xmas decorations, and luggage.

Very little of it all is actually trash, much could be donated, or given away, and some bits could be sold.

It just feels like a huge undertaking, and I’m not sure how to make the ruthless decisions needed, because I physically won’t be able to fit all my things into my new home!

QueenJess

SecondStar said:

So I’ll soon be making an offer on what will hopefully be my new home, and thought I’d ask the experts -

How do/have you decluttered for a house move? Particularly one that is a considerable downsize, with a small amount of storage?

I have lots of craft materials and art supplies, lots of craft books and novels, ornaments & knick knacks (some I’ve bought, and some I’ve inherited), far too much furniture, not to mention the less frequently used things like Xmas decorations, and luggage.

Very little of it all is actually trash, much could be donated, or given away, and some bits could be sold.

It just feels like a huge undertaking, and I’m not sure how to make the ruthless decisions needed, because I physically won’t be able to fit all my things into my new home!

I'm sure others will have much better ideas, but when I moved about 7 years ago, I went through every drawer and cupboard and then went round again and again since every time I look I seem to  find more than the last round (I had a 6 month period though before I moved to do this).  I kept in mind what I actually wanted and since I hate packing up and unpacking, it was a big incentive to get rid of stuff as I didn't want to move excess stuff.  I kept thinking "do I actually want to pack this up, move it and unpack it again?".

In terms of furniture I moved into a new build and had detailed room sizes etc that I planned out.  Anything that wouldn't be going into the new home was got rid of before I got there.  I did move the odd thing I knew would be temporary before I could buy replacements.

Floss

@SecondStar It's difficult to do but the only way is by going through as you pack - and yes, you are likely to have to go through stuff again when you've moved in. And please remember that living with less can be easier, despite the hard work & stress of getting there.

Furniture - what do you have & what will you need? Will it fit? I knew my old 3-piece suite wouldn't fit so it went & I bought an IKEA sofa-bed on Ebay. My coffee table & tv unit both have storage, and my Ikea Billy cabinets & shelves fit along one wall giving more storage.

Crockery / equipment/ household - do you need enough cutlery glasses & china for a 4-course dinner for 8, or would there be 4 max? Will you be baking & decorating cakes or can you just keep 1 size of each tin / tray? Is there an attic or a dry shed for things like Xmas & luggage? Will any old curtains fit / be shortened or can they all go? Will you have a king bed or double, and do you need to keep all those sets of bedding / old pillowcases?

Craft materials - are you really going to use every one of those bolts of fabric / balls of wool / embroidery silks or maybe just keep the ones you love to make new cushion covers / a throw / wall art for your new home? Will you really knit those jumpers again, or can you scan & store patterns digitally?

Paperwork - keep payroll, tax & bank records for 7 years. Scan other stuff & store digitally.

Music - I have all my CDs stored digitally as I use a USB stick or my old iPod in my car, so they have all physically left the building.

Floss

Also, I started by packing most of the stuff I was keeping to go into storage as I was living in a 10m² bedsit for 4 months, so that was a drastic lesson in living with less!

donna73

@bit_by_bit I like the idea of filing the wool by colour! That’s something I should do with my stash. Might help me to think about how best to use it. 

@Mrs_Salad_Dodger how’s it going doing 23 minutes of knitting at a time? Wondering whether to try that with my sewing. 

@weenancyinAmerica 3 books in a week !! That’s an impressive amount of reading! 

@QueenJess I completely agree with you about going back through drawers and cupboards you’ve already decluttered. This year I’m going back over areas I did last year and already finding plenty that can go.

SecondStar

Thank you @queenjess and @floss !

It’s tricky, because I’m moving out of the house I’ve owned with my ex. He is still living there, and so it feels hard to start going in and ripping the place apart. There are things like the flatware and cutlery and bed linen and towels, which are mine, but he is still using because they’re there.

Things like ornaments and pictures are still up which belong to me, and I might not want to bring them with me when I move, but it feels wrong to throw them out when they’re making up part of what is now longer ‘our’ home.

I suppose I’ll start with decluttering & packing things that are very strictly mine - clothes, craft room things. Then once I’ve got some empty floor space established, I can start pre-packing the things I definitely want to bring, and then he can take a look over what’s left and decide what he wants to keep, and what can go.

I hate packing/unpacking. I’d love to get a packing service in, but I think it would be too difficult with both of our things all mixed in together right now.

Floss

SecondStar said:

It’s tricky, because I’m moving out of the house I’ve owned with my ex. He is still living there, and so it feels hard to start going in and ripping the place apart. There are things like the flatware and cutlery and bed linen and towels, which are mine, but he is still using because they’re there.

Things like ornaments and pictures are still up which belong to me, and I might not want to bring them with me when I move, but it feels wrong to throw them out when they’re making up part of what is now longer ‘our’ home.

Been there, done that and it's hard x

However, if things are yours, i.e. you brought them with you, you inherited them or they were given to you, I classed those things as mine to go with me. So the pictures I inherited / were given came off the walls & with me, my parents bedroom furniture came with me, my Kenwood mixer came with me - right down to the small things like my dad's pickle fork & mine and my parents Pyrex collection. Those things small enough were all taken out of cupboards & packed.

I also took all the (bought by me) frames for our wedding photos but kindly left the actual prints & wedding album for him 😁

Don't forget you can always change your mind once you're in your new home about whether that picture you brought is right on the new wall, but that decision is YOURS to make IN YOUR OWN TIME and not in a rush as you move out. Better to have too much & then reduce, than realise you're missing something you left behind.

Floss

SecondStar said:

I hate packing/unpacking. I’d love to get a packing service in, but I think it would be too difficult with both of our things all mixed in together right now.

I was lucky that I owned the house next door which was untenanted, so had space - but if you can get removal people in to pack I would recommend throwing money at them to use the service. I did, and if I ever move again would do the same as it is so much less stressful!