2025 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN MrsSD - The Joy of Decluttering

TC77

Having a tidy and deep clean. After advice on what to do about old musty chests of drawers. Brought 2 back from my dad's and realise the clothes I put in are smelling musty - I thought of wiping with warm soapy water but wondered if there is anything else I should do. Very old drawers ...

All looks messer than before but some areas definitely cleaner!

Welcome newbies, and lovely to see regulars back too

redofromstart

Thank you for the welcome.  Lots of progress on my study and the paperwork, need to fire up the shredder shortly. Still plenty to do but it looks much better already. 

Much sympathy to you too @mehefin.  

Brie

TC77 said:

Having a tidy and deep clean. After advice on what to do about old musty chests of drawers. Brought 2 back from my dad's and realise the clothes I put in are smelling musty - I thought of wiping with warm soapy water but wondered if there is anything else I should do. Very old drawers ...

All looks messer than before but some areas definitely cleaner!

Welcome newbies, and lovely to see regulars back too

If it was a nice warm dry summer I'd suggest putting the drawers outside for a couple of days.  Alas it's a bit damp out currently.

You could - take everything out, put a large sheet of tissue paper in each drawer, sprinkle in a large quantity of bicarbonate of soda - maybe one of those little pots per drawer at least so you need the industrial size packs.  Close up the drawers and leave for a week.  Then carefully remove each bit of tissue paper by folding them to contain the bicarb.  (reuse the bicarb on any stainless steel in the house - it will make it shine!  or dump in the loo with some lemon juice or vinegar to soak for a while).  

If the drawers smell better I'd also suggest sprinkling in a nice layer of lavender and put a sheet of paper over top - wrapping paper or similar would work fine.  Anything stored should smell much sweeter.

tibawo

@Florenceem as a family unit we decided a month otherwise it can stay there indefinitely- if there have been some likes we will reduce it and see how it goes.

dND

Happy New Year everyone 😁😁

It was a bit blowy here in S wales last night and I woke up to everyone else's rubbish in the front garden



I got half a binbag of the non-recyclable stuff but the cardboard is too wet to do anything with at the moment so that's just been moved to one side until I can deal with it.  Unfortunately, the bin men left any boxes that weren't flattened when they did their later than usual collection and there were also bags left out that due to a change in what they collect each week, they weren't collecting this week.  So more than usually was swirling around the streets. 😞
Apart from that, the sole on a pair of slippers cracked across, so in the bin they've gone.  I'm shuffling stuff from pillar to post in the house still but trying to make sure I put any recycling in the bag when I come across it.  So far today, half bin bag! 😁 
I think that the upcoming cold weather might mean I get more done in the house as I won't be so tempted to go out - every cloud etc.. 🤣 Dx

Florenceem

tibawo - wow - a month!
I turned off my computer ready to go out - looked out the window - it was raining really hard so - we didn't go to SA.
I have been listing on V.

BlueJ94

Dinner has been cooked, eaten and washed up. I've got left over for the dogs and for work lunch too! Overall success!

I'm running myself a bath and was going to use the new bubble bath I had for Christmas but I'm making myself use up the 5 I've got open and now I'm down to 4 as I finished the one. 

I picked up some alcohol gift sets from sainsburys in the sale aswell RRP on one was £18 I picked it up for £4 and RRP on the other was £15 I had it for £3, so I plan on gifting them whenever it's someone's birthday next.

Tomorrow ive 2 items to drop off at inpost lockers and a black bag for the clothing bins which I'll drop on the way into work. 

Now I plan on listening to my audiobook and chilling for the eveninh as I'm bsck at work tomorrow. 

QueenJess

2024 was the year I finished decluttering and so my goals are lower this year.  However, I am switching my attention to living more frugally, not buying any unnecessary stuff to reclutter my house, maintenance decluttering and now everything is under control I want to make sure I am using everything that I have to it's full potential (i.e. using things up).  I also need to keep an eye on my local Buy Nothing and make sure I'm not saving too much stuff from there to avoid things going to the tip.  For example, I picked up some gift bags earlier because they would otherwise have gone in the bin apparently (not sure why people wouldn't recycle or offer more things to charity as lots of people say they will put really nice things in the tip).  I will absolutely use them up, but did I really need them?  Possibly not.  I did also pick up a puzzle and a few books for DD's birthday.  I have a few books to leave the house, but just need to find time to sort through them (probably after DS is back at school).

Anyway, enough wittering for now.  Quite by coincidence, some face moisturiser I've been working on using up for a couple of years finally finished this morning and so now I'm working on the next one in my collection (I only have 2 now, so quite respectable).  So I am counting my first use up of the year!

1 - bathroom oversupplies used up

New total = 1

Blue_Doggy

Hello, and wishing everyone a very happy and healthy New Year.
 

May I join you, please? I did join in 2023 (I think it was, may have been 2022), but got overwhelmed by the size of the task and basically ran away and hid.
 

However, the Stuff is still here, it’s impossible to get repairs done to the house because it’s too cluttered to be cleaned and accessed properly 😔.

 

Having ummed and ahhed for several years over whether to have my garage converted into a study, I’ve now decided to move my study from one of the spare bedrooms into the bedroom over the garage (same area as the garage, and won’t have me slicing bits off to contain garden and car things). I also have a rented storage unit which costs silly money every month and although it was a “temporary measure” has been being used for nearly ten years. Moving the study (and the couple of thousand books) will involve “House Tetris”, especially as I want to deep clean and redecorate as I go, and have the en-suite shower room refitted.
 

I’m not setting any targets, as that is part of what overwhelms me. I shall just try to work towards the goals of getting repairs done, redecorating, moving the study, and getting out of the storage unit. If I get only a couple of things done this year I’ll be delighted.
 

Meanwhile, I have a giant frog to deal with this evening (writing a talk to be delivered tomorrow morning), and a rapidly growing frog of the house insurance renewal, due in a fortnight, to be researched. Such a waste of time.

florianatwobob

florenceem, when we were eBaying regularly we got to the stage where it had two relistings and if it hadn’t sold in that time then off it went to the CS. We did use a little judgement if selling anything on DBro1’s behalf. He has nerdy specialist tastes which could make significant amounts but sometimes they just needed to coincide with people’s paydays!