2023 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD

cinnamon123

Finally caught up on this thread and everyone is off to a wonderful start! I have a rough idea of what I will be doing so here goes:

I will not count items as that will just be too much for me. Instead I will borrow (steal?!) @DundeeDoll 's idea and aim for 23 minutes a day. Having organized my thoughts, here is my current general plan:

• Phase 1 is targeted to take place during Jan-Mar. I need to find a new place to live before anything major happens. While I am looking, I will be doing the initial wave of decluttering. Obvious decluttering of things I do not want/need, things that are broken etc.
• Phase 2a is targeted to take place during Apr-Jun. I will move into the new place and based on the size/layout, I will then declutter the rest of my furniture/belongings. (I will be downsizing. While I would like to keep most of my furniture/belongings, available space in the new home will be the determining factor and hard decisions will be made then.) I am also going to have to weigh the cost of moving some items vs. replacing them.   
• Phase 2b is also targeted to take place during Apr-Jun. (Hopefully just in Apr and a little May but all depends on the timing of me finding a new home.) This is the part where I have to deal with my current home. Repairs will need to be made before it can be sold.
  
• Phase 3 is to sell my current home and stay on top of maintaining my remaining belongings. Hoping the current home sells quickly (and at a fabulous price! ) 

My ex-lodger still has some belongings here and they will be moved over the next 2 months. (They are tucked away and not in my way so not an issue. Together we will move any unwanted items to charity shop. I have set aside an area (out of the way) for me to build up the stuff that will be donated. Charity shop runs will be done as and when possible - prefer to chunk this since their hours do not always work.

I am also doing the Frump-to-Fab challenge this year and it is a good combination. Clutter weighs heavily especially on one's mind which affects everything. As I declutter my home, I will start to feel so much better, and thus will make better decisions for myself. All good!

Today I have started taking down the Christmas decorations, moving some unwanted papers to trash and shredding bag, and I lit a nice candle. (I have many candles and I am NOT moving them - they will be lit and enjoyed and new ones can be purchased when I am in my new home.)

Very thankful for this thread!

weenancyinAmerica

Today is a Federal holiday here - so no mail and trash day postponed by one day. But Cat woke me up early demanding to be fed, so animals fed and watered. Watched the Rose Parade (since it is a local parade). 

5-9 mended trousers and 4 tops that have been waiting
10 - tried on the clothes my sister gave me a week ago - wearing one pair of trousers now
11 - washed and cut my hair (next time I will take my sister up on having it done professionally and letting her pay for it as my other sister posted the pictures from Christmas - needs help)
12 - deleted 50 more emails
13 - downloaded Christmas and birthday (4 birthdays this month) pictures to my Google account
14 - put Christmas decorations away
15 - took friend grocery shopping when he got back in from Colorado as he had been gone two weeks - ended up helping him move 11 bags of groceries into car and then into his house just before the rain came back again
16 - bought white thread  while there; also got an ornament for $1 as they couldn't find the price tag. I didn't buy any last year, but try to limit myself to one or two so this is my one. 
17 - paid two bills - one of which is due tomorrow 

Tonight we have to dog proof the house (living room kitchen, and hallway) as dog will be coming in tomorrow for about an hour while the young man comes to clean the pool. This will involve several items being decluttered and cans of food being put away. Dog loves to chew on everything including the pool filter cover. Pool company suggested I put a 12 x 12 tile over the top to keep her from chewing on it and the basket below it. Will try that tomorrow morning. We are expecting several days of heavy rain which then goes to the rest of the country as tornado warnings and snow before heading to the UK - so I hope it doesn't get too bad there next week.

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Write a daily To Do list - only 3 tasks

2. Commence ‘Operation Frog Tickling’ I have an acronym - I.R.I.S. being Identify, Research, Implement, Sign Off

3. Implement a new sleep/wake up regime - start going to bed earlier (target before 2:00 a.m.) get up earlier (target by 9:00 a.m.)

4. Deal with daily mail immediately 

5. Don’t put it down, put it away

6. If I spot a mini task deal with it immediately e.g. refill olive oil pourer or salt cellar, stitch up a hole in a garment etc

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

Didn’t get to bed until 3:30 a.m. but up at 9:30 a.m. on Monday - so no.3 is off to a start at least 😉 Another bright day with some sunshine & no rain. DH spent some time in the garden - turned the compost, checked on the wormeries, filled the bird feeders & gathered up all the packaging & detritus from bird food packaging. I finally washed & proofed DH’s motorbike trousers & hung them out to dry. They were outside for 5 hours & were just as wet as when they were first hung out 😔 Gave them a 15 minute spin & now hanging over the balustrade 🤞 I also sorted out the spice & condiments cupboard - emptied, washed inside & out & then restocked - managed some decanting & updated contents list in my stores notebook 🙂 Finished knitting a beanie & started knitting another beanie. Dinner was the rest of the turkey with oven chips & baked beans. Wudupa.

7 - 13 Kitchen recycling, glass jar, glass bottle, plastic jar, drinks cans, foil tray, cardboard packaging - recycled 

14 - 15 Kitchen detritus, large bag of garden detritus - binned

Just seen that I am 7 pages behind so might be a slight delay in the cheerleading 😉

Good idea wort 👏

Well worth keeping the kitchen tidy DrCarrie - lovely to come downstairs or go into a clean & tidy kitchen 😊

Hi ScarletRibbons 👋 A great start to your 2023 decluttering campaign 👏 I can see clutter is going to find it hard to get a foothold in your home 😉

Liverpool_Anne, sorry about the dire New Year’s Day warnings 😉 However what a good start to your 2023 decluttering 👏

Luxurious showers sound lovely, florianatwobob 😊

roundtuit, I think New Year’s Day was a chance to recharge your batteries 🤞Well done on conquering your overwhelm & clearing the Christmas cards. 

Thanks for that EnergyShifter - the video was motivating but I am not sure I could get past day 4 😉

Good luck with the shredding Frogletina 🍀 One of the more gratifying decluttering tasks 👏 Rather like your plan for tackling one room, one space at a time 🙂

Sorry to hear that DH’s lurgy has caught up with you thriftyscotslass 🙁 Hope the funeral goes as well as it can & that it is a celebration of uncle-in-laws life. 

Excellent work with the laundry roundtuit 👏 

Great start the_cross_rabbit 👏

What an excellent start ~FlowerPot~ - one room almost finished 👏

Please stay safe on your drive bit_by_bit 🙏 especially as the lurgy has found you now 🙁

An excellent start diminua 👏 Good luck with your plan to use up notebooks 🍀

Great work the_cross_rabbit 👏 You are on track with 6 items per day 🙂

Hope you have a lovely relaxing time in Tenerife, Fizz2015 😊 There is nothing to beat sunshine & heat on a January holiday 👏

Excellent decluttering ChasingtheWelshdream 👏 Very impressive charity shop - spreading the love & the monies raised 😊 

Kittikins, what great news - OH aka beloved on board the EDT with you 😊 Excellent decluttering 👏

Liverpool_Anne, all sounds a bit confusing - garage closed then open & a mystery appointment 🤔 Excellent decluttering 👏 & hopefully the slow leak will be sorted promptly 🤞

Hi Blackandgold_2 👋 An excellent start to your decluttering journey 👏

Definitely the best type of decluttering MadamMim2013 getting someone else to do it 😉 With both you & OH decluttering you will keep the motivation to continue 👏 You are so right, the enthusiasm is even firing up my motivation 🙂

Sorry to hear that ‘someone’ has ‘donated’ their cold to you Brie 🙁 However well done on continuing to declutter - every bit helps on your quest to a clutter free home 👏 Timely reminder  about Foodbank & Freegle. Not a lecture but a handy guide 🙂

Excellent decluttering QueenJess 👏 What a great idea to tidy away 23 things a day - at that rate you will have no visual clutter by the end of the month 😊😉

Great decluttering Wednesday2000 👏 & nice to have your husband assisting you in the delivery 😉

Just seen the time, so I am off to bed. Only 52 posts behind 😉

MrsSD

Decluttering Target 2023: 15/2023

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £5:00

grandmanerd

I'm getting better slowly but this bug is going out kicking and screaming, so Sunday was  mostly spent in my room. Had a good look at all the old e-mails and culled 990. Found another 67 on another e-mail account and another 200 or so yesterday (I am still keeping my monthly DD notifications for the time being). I'm awarding myself 1 declutter point for every 25 e-mails

Yesterday I remembered to get myself downstairs in time to get the 'bottom of the stairs' sorted. Have nearly cleared most of the laundry so bagged up the remainder - it was mixed in with clean and dirty (trodden all over) cardboard, paper waste that fell all down the stairs when I was bringing an overflowing sack downstairs (paper waste was collected whilst I was away at DS1's, the sack was all the pre-Christmas stuff I couldn't squeeze in the bin before then, I'd made space for DS3 to squeeze in 2 paper carrier bags worth). Bits of other categories too.

Multiple bags of rubbish/ recycling out to the bins (told DS3 to make sure the 2 black bins went out for collection but he came upstairs later to check that bins were on schedule, then told me it was still Monday - they will go out tonight for collection on Wednesday morning). Have compressed the rubbish with a layer of bricks at least twice (anything from their room tends to be mixed stuff that needs squashing). Not sure there's room for more bin bags but there's a little space down one side so will fill a couple of old sticky carrier bags with bits today. May do a trawl round the yard if I feel up to it - there will be some broken plastic plant pots to go in the bin after it's been collected.

Whilst I was downstairs, I moved a sheet, two medium towels and some of my clothes into the tumble dryer, emptied the DW and refilled it (will look at that today), ate a tin of baked beans and a tin of soup (first hot food in days) and brought an opened and drained tin of pears back upstairs with me. I've set myself a target of eating through 23 tins per week from the pantry. This is mostly my mother's choices (I'd stocked her up  for the winter just before she died last January) but will set aside £1 per tin used for restocking (my choices). I've recently seen an offer on branded soups at £1 per tin - the reason I have so many was that for a 3 month period at the end of 2021 there was an offer that made them the equivalent of 50p per tin. Lots of in date tins went to the food bank (the manager collected them from mum's bungalow) but they have more soup, baked beans and pasta than they know what to do with (people have very little imagination about 'emergency supplies' - these things disappeared first in prior to the first lockdown).

I will be replenishing my stock but with different items. If it snows I'm not going out. If it's icy I'm not even going down the garden path. Will also be making an effort to use up mum's 'jar of sauce' stock (I'm a make it from scratch person) and microwave (rice, pasta) and packet sauce mixes. I really want my new kitchen this year and I need to reduce bulky stuff as I'm not carrying everything upstairs and back again.

So, heavily influenced by my current state of health (and a bit confused because I have jotted list everywhere)

12 Days of Christmas Day 3
1    Dead flowers (went out before midnight on the 31st - pretty sure dead flowers isn't a good omen for a new year)
2    2 jars of pickles -  one used for sore throat months ago, one spotted 'gone bad' on the shelf but can't get the lid off 
3    Rubbish and recycling
4    Deleted emails and junk
5    Small boxes and sacks of paper (carrier bag sized paper bags, filled with bits)
6    Items from top of fridge freezer - binned, mouthwash and shampoo brought up to the bathroom 
7     3 brushes, a mop, a hoe and a polytunnel frame all contained in a large kitchen bin. All brought back from mum's in my brother's car on the day the bungalow sale should have completed. Brother and I got them inside the house. I thought DS3 would move them if they were bugging him. He did whilst I was at DS1's but only as far as the back door. I wrestled them outside.
8     Deleted emails
9     
10  )
11  ) Deleted emails and junk
12  )

Day 4 
1    1 old towel with a rip turned into rags - some mucky jobs to tackle so may not get rewashed after use
2    2 cds (1 was for my funeral but they download stuff nowadays)
3    3 extra grooming tasks (one took most of the day in odd minutes
4    4 my cutlery and a plate (my grandma's) from DW to upstairs to be stashed in my room, mum's copperstone fry pan 
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12

Will add these numbers at the end of today. Lots of jobs started - some use up toiletries, need to do same with cleaning stuff. One spray bottle brought upstairs on New Year's Day - no cleaning but squirted it all over the bathroom especially difficult/ fiddly bits like ridges on safety handles, left to 'work' on those areas, most will only need a wipe later. may use another bottle on doorframes (where I've held onto them for support - will add door frames, light switches etc to cleaning targets for the week. small cardboard box cull, large (useful for packing) cardboard boxes folded flat and stored under the mattress.

gm2917

Please may I join - feel like the house is bursting at the seams.

Thank you

Karamac

Some inspiring stuff on here, and I’m going to need it!

First 8 out yesterday - a perfume I’ve tried several times, but always smells much nicer in the bottle than it does on me, plus 7 items from the Brexit / Covid  stash that are OOD and we just won’t use.

Back to work today, but only a few weeks to go. My OH getting ill means we’re having to close down our small business and retire a bit earlier than planned. We’d have preferred to do that in our own time, but it needs both of us to keep going. So decluttering the job as well this year!

2023 Decluttering Campaign 8/2023

Keiths_Mum

Floss said:

-taff said:

  

It IS difficult, but different strokes etc, just remember, you're not denigrating their design choices, you just have your own.

It's also not denigrating memories if you don't wish to / cannot keep everything.

My 3 brothers & I have lost both our parents (32 & 17 years ago) and we cleared a 4-bed detached house. As we all had our own homes we didn't need anything, but each of us has a few carefully chosen things that we use & love. I have my parents bedroom furniture: 2 wardrobes, dressing table & bedside cabinet, bought when they were married in 1954.

We got rid of the large stuff quite easily, my brother had just moved into a new flat after a break up and had literally no furniture, so took a lot out if necessity. Clothes were also really easy for us to donate. 

It's things like eye glasses because I know they wore/touched them everyday, the clipboard my Dad used to do countdown everyday, etc, there are a lot of these personal things, not worth anything, not usable but mean something to us.

My Dad also kept a box of his Mother's things, which I now have, my brother and I both agree she was a nasty old woman, we did not like her, but she was my Dad's Mother and he loved her and I've kept these things not because they were hers but because my Dad kept them. I know that doesn't make any kind of sense but that's the reason.

Keiths_Mum

daisy_1571 said:

Keiths_Mum said:

My brother is the same he'll say 'oh, I don't have my car, can you keep it for me', then takes an age to collect.

I think I need to give him a time limit, like 'if you don't take it within 3 months, it goes to charity'.

    3 months?  I think you meant to type 'by the weekend'.   

If these are difficult areas for you both to deal with, having made a decision once, neither of you should be having to make more decisions at future dates (as is likely to happen if you wait 3 months to look at it again) and as importantly it is very unfair of you to condemn yourself to looking at/working around/moving/storing/being aware of that item for another 3 months.  If he has great excuses lined up to dodge taking responsibility immediately, then I am fairly sure he will have another excuse in future and you'll haveit another 3 months.

I'd bet you only need to follow through once for him to realise you find it just as hard as him but he can't keep shelving the decision onto others.  Possessions aren't the person.   You are doing them no disservice by finding new homes for their possessions.  Its likely if they could talk to you now they would be sad you are agonising over their stuff.

Good luck with it all

Daisy xx

To be fair he does not live close to me and does not always drive when he visits. 

He should be coming up in January as we have to sort out the interment for our Uncles ashes, which are also currently residing at my flat.

He was here at Christmas with his car, due to the train strikes but I really could not face doing it then. Our Dad died 2 days before Christmas so it's never a good time for us.

TC77

@Keiths_Mum I understand about the things your dad kept. We've found so many things f3om out childhood and I find some of those hard. We got rid od sledges but we have some games etc  I like some of the furniture.  Clothes  were quite easy although I found some hats of my.mums, I'm taking one I will wear snd trying to find out what one is- possibly her mums ww1 home.front cap. I feel I need to know what things are before passing on. Know I'm taking too much but see my own decluttering as 3 years for full impact. I tread gently with my brother as I realise he must be struggling at times. Will have something to list next time!

SecondStar

I’m feeling so jealous reading all these posts, and admiring how well you’ve all started!

I’m feeling jealous, because I’ve only stepped foot back in my ex and I’s house to take my dog for a walk, I’ve not touched a single thing in there yet, and I’m dying to.

In the interest of wanting to feel productive and to set myself up for back to work today, I tidied and rearranged the tiny room I’m staying in. It’s a double bed, a single clothes rail, and a small desk surface. I’m trying to romanticise it by calling it ‘tiny living’, and a ‘capsule wardrobe’ - some days this works better than others.

I think I’ll plan ahead for when I’m able to start decluttering the house, and I’ll declutter my car first in preparation.

Currently, it’s full of stuff that either needs to be binned, or taken to charity. If I get that done, then at least there will be room in the car to put more things.