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'The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up' by Marie Kondo is a home organisation/ decluttering book like no other. Instead of looking for things to discard, Marie Kondo says we should instead look for things we wish to keep - using the 'does it spark joy?' method. Ultimately this means that everything in our homes should spark joy for us You might not think that everyday and seemingly mundane items can't spark joy - but you need to think around it a little. So whilst an iron may not spark joy, wearing ironed clothes may. A cheese grater may not spark joy, but your child may really like grated cheese in their wraps - which brings joy.
Marie Kondo also says that this should be done quickly and properly. This may take six months to achieve, but tidying properly should mean doing it just once. This is against the often-seen decluttering advice of doing 15 minutes a day, or a drawer/ shelf a day.
MK suggests an order as to what to sort through first and subsequently. This is important - she starts with items which many people do not have an emotional attachment to (clothes) and builds up to sentimental items (photos) so that a person's joy-meter can be developed along the way.
Many MSE-ers have been following the KM method (kondo-ing) successfully. It fits into the MSE ethos by changing your mindse - you will no longer want to shop mindlessly for something 'just because' or 'it'll do' - you will want to buy only joyful items, thereby often saving ££ on random, impulse purchases.
From the 2016 thread
How/ Where Can I Dispose of My Unwanted Items?
It is vitally important to make sure that you dispose of your unwanted items asap - less chance of any doubts creeping in and items making their way back!
To make money and/ or save items from landfill, you may find the following ideas useful:
Money Making:
www.ebay.co.uk - am sure many will use this already. Be careful of fees - ebay now charge final value fees (FVF) on your postage as well as the amount which the items sells for.
www.ziffit.com - can sell any unwanted books, CDs, DVDs & games. Download the app onto your smartphone/ tablet for ease of use - scan the barcodes and it will tell you if the item is accepted and what price they will give you. For even more money, go through a cashback site first (such as www.topcashback.co.uk or www.quidco.com) (tip: save your accepted items in your virtual 'cart'. If you have any items which they initially refuse, try re-scanning these several days later - I find about another 20-50% of previously unaccepted items go through on another attempt!)
www.preloved.co.uk - Quidco are currently offering 60p to new members to Preloved (Jan 2016); plus you get 10p for posting a new advert. It's free to join and post adverts to Preloved, you can post things for sale or free to a good home so might be an alternative to eBay, free cycle, facebook selling pages to offload unwanted, unloved items. All free ads include a photo and private ads are completely free, no listing fees, no selling fees and no catches
Ink jet Printer Cartridges
Can be dropped off at Sue Ryder stores or posted off freepost for a charity from wide list or Tesco club card points for you via http://www.therecyclingfactory.com /our-partners/
Books & Music
British Heart Foundation and Oxfam both do specialist charity shops that sell books and music so you could separate those donations to maximise the money the charities make
Toiletries/ make-up/ clothing (women's and children's) - women's refuge centres. Google your local area for one - but be prepared you may have to drop off to a 3rd party point - for obvious reasons they do not always want to publicise their location! Or post to : http://www.carolinehirons.com/p/give-and-makeup.html to help women and children in the Southern/ London area
charity shops
ziffit
ebay
gumtree etc
MoneySavingExpert.com insert 14 Jan 2019
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Thanks - these are all pristine so I'll put them in the next charity bag. Thank you for the 'Smalls for All' reference, but they want (understandably) new pants and 'gently worn' bras. Afraid mine are 'heavily used and rather tired'.
"Inconceivable". "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
Sorting present stash under bed (ready for Xmas ) revealed 2 items no longer required which have since sold on Fb00k , 1 for the CS and another which I've assimilated into my toiletries stash (which has vastly decreased - hence the need to use this item from under the bed!!)
2 items from elsewhere in the house also offered to (and been accepted by) a friend, so they will also be leaving.
And another 30 (!) hotel/ airline bars of soap and several tubes of shampoo put in a bag ready to take to the homeless collection drop off point.
When sorting out the shoe shelves under the stairs yesterday (well DS2 and DS3 sorted, OH supervised....) OH decided a manky old pair of trainers could go for recycling. Approx 15 years old, worn soles, broken insoles and broken down backs.
Spaces are appearing.....
I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul
I've shed the worn-out bedsheet and another couple of worn out socks to textile recycling via the chazzer and have purchased a new helmet for cycling in so the 15 y.o. one is being binned shortly.
Finished a library book this morning and returned it within two hours (our central library operates a skeleton service on a Sunday, which is great for busy people). And me, who is semi-busy some of the time.
Everything in the homestead is up for scrrutiny and some things are definately not to be replaced once used up.
Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.
John Ruskin Veni, vidi, eradici
(I came, I saw, I kondo'd)
We have decided that we're possibly going to try and move next year rather than the year after. Heaven help us what with Brexit uncertainty, but we learned recently of some major infrastructure changes which 'could' affect the area at some point, so seeing we planned to move away anyway, means we're going to try to go sooner rather than later.
I plan to get an estate agent in for a realistic opinion next week, bearing in mind our local property market seems to have gone very flat apart from anything in the more desirable streets. Hopefully ours is one of those, people move in here and go out in a box usually, but it's about 4 years since anything sold so who knows. I also plan to ask if they think there are any improvements we could make to help it sell. We need to redecorate 1 small bedroom (OH's office) which hasn't been done for about 18 years and needs some replastering. I'd put in some new carpets downstairs if he thinks that would help - we've got pale blue throughout the house which isn't everybody's choice.
I've just lugged some more files of dead paperwork down the stairs and will shred them this week. OH has given me permission to bin some old folders of information from courses he attended many years ago. I view this as a victory, I thought he may play the 'I might need it at some point' card. I think he's seeing the sense now of clearing out the clut pre-move. I've also negotiated that if I come across other things similar, I can bin them without reference to him (yippee!).
I've also finally been able to shred flight tickets that have been on my desk since last December and which we've just received delay compensation for. Win win!
I have one of those butterfly-style thingummies (corkscrew with bottle-opener in the top).
It is 8 inches long and, even with the arms folded upright, is 3 inches across at its widest point. It isn't quite a Unitasker (see unclutterer.com for an expanation) but it's definately just a duo-tasker. It is also taking up a chunk of space in my only cutlery drawer and I am now questioning its rights to reside.
I cannot remember when I last needed to use it for either of its functions.
Seriously. I barely drink and never home alone. Some of my closest friends don't drink, either, due to it clashing with medications. My home is so tiny that I rarely socialise therein, and convivial gatherings with a bottle or two just don't happen here. Indeed, I donated my stem-ware for that very reason.
Sooo, why am I keeping this thing? I have just prised open my swiss army knife and confirmed my recollection that it does, indeed, contain a corkscrew and a bottle-top opener. Thus, if either eventuality comes to pass, I am fully covered by something which is much smaller - 3.5 x 0.75 inches - that I also own.
It is now going in the donation bag and the SAK is going to get a little TLC with WD40 to ease the 'ponents.
Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.
John Ruskin Veni, vidi, eradici
(I came, I saw, I kondo'd)
Before you bin the corkscrew GQ, have you ever actually extracted a cork from a bottle with the SAK? I know I struggle with an ordinary pull type corkscrew, it's much easier with the lever types.
Push comes to shove, you could just resolve to buy screw top wine!
Before you bin the corkscrew GQ, have you ever actually extracted a cork from a bottle with the SAK? I know I struggle with an ordinary pull type corkscrew, it's much easier with the lever types.
Push comes to shove, you could just resolve to buy screw top wine!
I am a leddy and leave opening wine to the gentleman callers. Akshully, the last time a gentleman gave me wine it came in a box, with a handy little tap on it - it was straight from a french vineyard and was rather superior. Took me about 3 months to drink it............
My lottie pal keeps a corkscrew in her shed to open wine with, that's typically where I do any wine-drinking (from a tin mug).
Screwtop wines could be the way to go, tho. I shall take a chance on it and let the corkscrew go. Along with the nutcrackers, the tea ball and the other bits of random carp - have had the tray outta the cutlery drawer, washed it and put everything back neatly.
Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.
John Ruskin Veni, vidi, eradici
(I came, I saw, I kondo'd)
Screw top wine is the way to go. Tops are recyclable (so is cork, but very few places take it) like the bottles. And there's less chance of the wine being contaminated.
Screwtop wines could be the way to go, tho. I shall take a chance on it and let the corkscrew go. Along with the nutcrackers, the tea ball and the other bits of random carp.
I second the nut crackers for opening bottles and milk cartons, I have RA in my hands, a friend suggested using the nutcrackers instead of buying a purpose made gadget, they are great and I bought a second set to keep in the caravan.
The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time. (Abraham Lincoln)
You'll get there! I think it's easy to lose sight of what you've achieved - I still think my house needs a makeover, but if I think back to before MK, I used to have bags and boxes of stuff in corners, overfilled shelves and cupboards that I couldn't close. I do have a place for everything now, it's just that it doesn't always make it back to its place!
I turned out my "posh" wardrobe last week, i.e work and smart clothes. I managed to discard two dresses and a pair of trousers, and rediscovered some trousers that I'd forgotten I owned! I don't think they did up last time I tried them, but I'm pleased to say that they now fit. It must be three years since my first round of MK, and if I haven't worn it in the time then I probably don't need it.
"Inconceivable". "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
5 skirts of DD1 to the attic: 3 for donation/African relatives, and 2 for DD2.
I've brought my flipflops down from the attic again, they are in a very easy-to-reach place, so that was a 1-minute job Just like Marie says it should be.
Our coatrack is overflowing with both summer as well as winter coats at the moment, but I'm enjoying the Indian summer so much, that I'll live with it for the time being.
We're having guests for a week, starting today. It's a bit of intrusion on family life, but on the other hand: they will do the cooking
Ooh Seibrie - guests who cook!!! I'd welcome them with open arms!
The building work is going on space - all I seem to do is dust, dust and dust again took my full length curtains down last week and discovered they had what looked like mould spots on them. I've washed them but the marks hav'n't come out. Don't understand what they are as the room isn't damp. Curtains have now been consigned to the ragging bag. Undecided as to whether to removed the linings - no marks on them - very strange.
Small victories - sometimes they are all you can hope for but sometimes they are all you need - be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle
The dead paperwork referred to above includes:
OH's P60 & P45 from his first Saturday job. He's now 56.
Insurance documents from a house we haven't lived in for 14 years.
Endless pensions paperwork from a pension he's not sure if he's transferred to another provider or not.
Course handouts from courses he attended in the 1990s....
An instruction handbook for Word 97
Purchase paperwork for a house we don't own anymore.
Sales paperwork from his house from his previous marriage.
Endless copies of old share certificates from holdings long since sold.
And to top it all, all the paperwork for an attempted house purchase that fell through. It has been moved to the house which did complete, and 2 subsequent houses.... Why, why on earth was he keeping that cr*p? It is now shredded/in the recycling sacks.
Do not allow financial paperwork to enter your loft. It will only end badly.
I also found his medical card, dated when he was 3 months old......
About a year ago, I was helping the mothership by sorting out the linens in the divan drawers under her bed. The bottom of one drawer had some misc kipple including a folded up piece of brown paper. It had once been sent around a parcel to a neighbour of my late Grandma BACK IN THE EARLY 1960s.
Oh yes, that piece of paper had gone from Grandma's to Mum's and moved through three different houses in 50+ years of married life. Then there's Grandma's old address book. Grandma died in Dec 1970 and all her peers, in this book, are long gone. And the photos in the album including some of chaps who used to lodge with Grandma when they were at the estate management college in the 1950s........!
Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.
John Ruskin Veni, vidi, eradici
(I came, I saw, I kondo'd)