2026 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD - our Year of Redistribution

Moorviews

I really appreciated reading the family history discussion as I have been meaning to ask about it myself. It is something that I am very interested in getting started on but probably not until the winter now.
GrannyKate, I hope you have a better week and enjoy the upcoming holiday.

Due to the weather being more suitable I have been doing lots of weeding, interspersing digging out the tough kind (bindweed, creeping buttercup, brambles, nettles and couchgrass) with easier to pull annual weeds. Hopefully, I can avoid doing my back in by alternating like this 🤞

Our big filing cabinet has been weighing on my mind. If anything were to happen to us it would be very confusing for our children; there is so much obsolete stuff in there. They wouldn’t know where to start. We have been consolidating and simplifying our pensions and savings over the last few years. On Monday, I got the bit between my teeth and completely emptied many of the files. Old bank and credit card accounts, insurance, pension, payslips, property sales, vehicles we no longer own etc. now almost all gone. There is more that can still go but I had filled the sack! I feel so much better for it and it is a relief not to see it all when opening a drawer. Although, it wasn’t exactly a fun day 😂 We have another cabinet with the paperwork from the estates we have been dealing with but that being separate, could just all be disposed of easily into a confidential waste sack.
Other urgent frogs are doing our LPAs and reducing the number of bank accounts we hold and seeing what else we can tidy up.
We also need to start making a list of what money we have, where it is and how to access it. That way it could all just be dealt with relatively easily. I don’t want my children to have the miserable time that we had trying to deal with many institutions, whose main things in common seemed to be an extraordinary lack of efficiency and knowledge. This kind of organisation doesn’t come naturally to either of us but we need to make the effort sooner, rather than later.
We are planning a day out at the coast today which will be a very welcome change and blow away any mental cobwebs. Hope you all have a good day 😊

Moorviews

@TC77 - good luck with your dining room. I think considering what to keep is often a good way and less overwhelming.

Just a reflection on my thoughts currently and really what I have learned through joining the Declutterati. I don’t think it is good for most of us to be buried alive in belongings as it limits what we can do every day. We need to be free to live our own lives.
Some recycling centres have a reuse area where you can put things aside rather than in the skips. It is worth searching one out for those serviceable items that nobody seems to want but seem too good to put in skips. I would also let many things go for nothing if the money isn’t really needed. It is extremely difficult with parents and other loved ones. We want to still do our best for them, however the value in their belongings was for them, in their lifetime. It is good to be thoughtful and rehome what we can but ultimately what we don’t need or want for ourselves must go. It is a process of learning not to tie ourselves in knots about every decision and to make these more quickly. They really aren’t the most important decisions in our lives and disposing of something isn’t likely to be one of our biggest regrets. I speak as one who can agonise over the smallest of objects and is very sentimental!

TC77

@Green_hopeful thank you and I think I need to offer for upcycling more. A couple of years ago I did this and someone took a 1960s hairdryer - a table top version of the ones you sit under (in original box) and was going to convert to a lamp.

Only one layer of stuff on dining table but have 4 lots of paper in recycling, seat pad for textile recycling and book for CS, also updated meter readings and put about 20 items in rightful home.

Trying a version of the pomodoro system which is meant to be 25 mins focus and short break, last week it was 15 min and 15 min but put my timer on for 10 /20 min and sometimes keep going abit more then a break and maybe start a new area if I'm abit bored of that area!

TC77

@Moorviews so spot on! I look round and want time to read some of the books, go out with my camera etc.

We don't have a reuse section at our tip and I don't have a car anymore but there is one at my dad's and we've taken lots more.

I do have to sort other rooms to move office type stuff out of the dining room - 🤣

Florenceem

TC77 - there are clothes in the built in wardrobe in the large ROD. There will be some of Mr F's clothes in there.

Floss - I had to pay ahead of the direct cremation for Mr F.

Mrs SD - I moved the 6 large storage boxes that were in the garage - came from small ROD. I did lighten them before taking back upstairs - J had carried them downstairs. So now I have that space in the garage to use for stuff from large ROD. My house is in a constant mode of moving about. It will be lovely when I can say - it is all done! Have I got a date in mind for that? By Christmas maybe.

TC77 - taking photos of a room before tackling it is a good idea. Taking photos as you work on it can be encouraging. I took photos of the small ROD - when the room is done - I will share - dreadful mess!

Moorviews - Mr F had moved from a bank he had been at since the 1970s to my one - he said to make it easier for me. This is more evidence that he knew his health was failing. I am going to leave all important documents in one place for my children to find when I join Mr F.

Moorviews - getting rid of stuff means space to move about easily and it certainly helps with cleaning. I think I am a non sentimental person.

TC77 - I had to google - The Pomodoro Technique. I will use a timer today.

I carried on with knitting a glove last night. When I have used all the balls of variegated yarn on knitting gloves - I will move on to a very different make - watch this space.

I had a good night pain wise but many trips to the bathroom.

I am having my hair done at lunchtime. Apart from that I plan a day at home - sorting. I want to move boxes out of the large ROD into the small ROD - they have yarn in them. As I have 6 empty storage boxes in the small ROD - I plan to sort the yarn by colours or probably lights/darks. It is mostly DK.

Had a text from a lovely chap at my old corps - misses me - I would usually be there on a Wednesday organising volunteers at lunch club.

GrannyKate

Been trying to get all holidays sorted so got some Euros and a couple of clothing items and underwear at Mr A. I've not got started on frogs yet as unexpected things came up. A positive declutter though when a polite man knocked on door and asked if radiators were scrap. They were very happy to take 4 radiators, a rusted bird feeder pole and a battered wheelbarrow. I plan to drop off some wood and cardboard at tip when I go to do school run.

456-461 Six metal items taken for scrap

462 Old manky wash bag binned (new one bought)

463 Holiday purse to CS bag (new one bought)

Florenceem

GrannyKate - I too have a positive declutter. Someone has asked for the Penny Pincher Papers that I put on Freggle.

I have ventured into the large ROD and heaved 5 large containers and 2 bags out of there. One of the bags is disintegrating so making a mess.

Soontobeoap

Just clearing up house after weekend away and then car boot sale. Sold a bedside table today just have a beautiful mirror from the big things to go. Have reduced its price in the hope of it selling. I am beginning to see more space again. Lovely sunny day here.

Brie

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81988152#Comment_81988152

Invited some friends over for coffee and cake and made everyone's favourite banana oatmeal loaf. We were busy chattering in the dining room with our coffee and I heard a ominous thump in the kitchen - the sound of a cat landing on the ground. Went out to discover a bite out of the middle of the loaf still cooling in it's baking tin. Thankfully there were 2 loaves and the other was unscathed. I mentioned the bite out of the other while serving up the nice one and 2 of the attendees made faces and went "yuck". The third person (a true cat friend!!!) said "well if no one else wants it can I take that loaf home with me?".

TC77

Flagging no, while dining room table is slightly clearer I had to work on the back room which is meant to be my study, dodgy looking mould like appearance on the old french doors so wiped these down, cleared and cleaned my desk surface and screen, and lots of papers filed and others recycled (lots more to do).

requested GP appointed, boiler service booked for tomorrow, posted on free sites items for my dad, other bits - I'll list later for decluttering, booked a slot at auction valuation day in June in Greenwich (see if anything worth more than pennies), waiting for call back about where to drop things for the teenage project. Sent a list of printers, chargers to the computer project to see if they want and asked about help with my laptop, and said maybe someone there this pm. Hitch - I can't find the laptop :( DD2's but I borrowed and caused a problem which I hope to fix before she's home!

Wash hung outside and now in as looks like rain with some forecast everyday for a while!

Just had phone call that boiler service brought forward to this pm so going to clear a path in the hall (bags awaiting being taken) and check they can get to the boiler!