I am going to be single if I do not attend to clutter that I've accumulated! But to me, it's a mess not a throw-away kind of clutter. Can you give me ideas, like where to start? I have accumulated many 5 gallon buckets for tool carriers and this season's container garden. All wrenches, hammers, paint brushes in their own bucket?
Should I pick a room that I need to conquer? Or pick a singular flat surface I would like to see again? I want tried and true suggestions, not a link please. The tough part is that I will be without help. So I've got to start somewhere. Please let me know how to declutter my workbench, which is what my entire house has turned into! Thank you, and my family thanks you, big time!
Thanks for the inspiration. Clutter short circuits me too and instead of doing, I just give in to feeling tired and sad. I intend to see what I can accomplish and report back.
For many years my clutter seemed to start with a closet. Finally I wised up and put a closet organizer in the bedroom closet. This mean everything had to be taken out and placed on the bed. With the organizer in place, if things couldn't be put in there neatly, out it went,ie clothes and footwear that hadn't been worn in a very long time. Now, nothing can be added unless something is subtracted. A year later it is still nice and tidy. This prompted me to move on to other areas. One question I keep in mind as to whether to pitch an item or not is "am I going to let this control my life?"
It's emotional for me. Because I double- recycle, repair, and utilize later. I try to keep only what i believe I will put to use in the near future. I store too much, stacking too deep, not organizing/labeling well enough to get to everything, and i cover larger piles with a sheet then forget it because, "out of sight, out of mind."
It becomes a convoluted puzzle if you get too far behind, are impoverished, have a broad range of things collected/saved for when you will need to use it to replace something else that is not repairable especially if it's one of a kind.
What we collect makes a difference. I had to stop storing furniture, hoping to replace older items, but not doing that. I've given as much away as I've ever saved, but that's not good enough. Changing clothes sizes a lot, not being able to buy more when needed, makes me want to save all.
I know in my heart that my faith in jesus will get me through any crisis, and I have to keep doing a little at a time and keep giving and giving until i have nothing much left to give. "Freely you have received, so freely give." "It's better to give than to receive."
I panic when I see good items about to go to the land fill or get broken up by the "jaws of death" from bulk trash pickup trucks. One way to avoid this is not to drive around too often. Now my van is out, so I don't do any driving except for emergencies/ doctors appts. And groceries.
It helps to not get overwhelmed, not to plan too much clean up, nor to try to clean a whole room or area in one day. I just choose a small area and try to clear/ clean/ maintain that, and move to the next. It has helped, but is going too slow for my psyche to accept. I'm too hard on my patience and i easily get frustrated.
My goal is simplicity, but comfort and functioning. I'm no longer a people pleaser, but more of a God pleaser in these bad times. I don't believe god is happy with too many material items, supplies, and projects, so many things must go. I'd be ashamed for my family to have to deal with all of this should I die before them. I need not be so sentimental and let more go, regardless. The best things in life are not things. God bless and help us all. : )
Hey girl pick one spot and start working and keep at it until done. Do the sell donate and keep piles. You say you have a lot of tools well get a plastic drawers or metals one if you are really into hardware and put the stuff in. You are not a bad person just get up an do it even while watching tv. Now when you are done in that spot go to the next until the whole room is done. Little by little you will get the place uncluttered. Now for the keep stuff. Ask yourself deep down do you really need it and does it have a place of it's own. Good luck and please just start ok don't and I mean don't keep putting it off because in 50 years from now or even 10 what would your place and you look like.
The idea of boxes: sell donate sort I read somewhere. I have the same problem but no relationship problem (yet)
I also like the idea of going through the house with a digital camera & taking pics. This helps me focus on what the lens sees. Whereas I can become somewhat blinded by my own junk & begin to look through it until "it goes away" but it really doesn't go away until I MAKE it go away!
saying : "I love housework, I can sit & look at it all day."
Jane, the clutter has introduced so much randomness into your life that you cannot think straight; that's why you sincerely do not know where to begin. (I have A.D.D., and with even small amounts of clutter, I become non-functional.)
Begin by focusing on ONE THING at a time. The way I begin decluttering is by sorting by picking up all of the same things. It might be all papers, all clothing, all dishes, or all books; it doesn't matter, but the key is to do them one at a time.
You may focus on collecting the one thing from the whole house, or just focus on one room. Collect, only.
P.S. - An effect occurs when focusing on "one thing" at a time. It puts you in the "NOW". You suddenly "wake up"; you notice things you've never noticed before; colors are brighter; you regain some hope. I don't understand it, but it happens every time.
If these collected (same) items have a home, go ahead and put the books in, on, or near the bookshelf. Put the clothes in the hamper, or hang them in the closet. Get a box and put the papers that need to be gone through, together; if it's newspapers or junk mail, recycle (if you already have a place for that); otherwise, throw them away.
Things that do not have a true home can be tossed into labeled boxes (or paper bags) to correspond with the ROOMS in which those items belong. Do not agonize over each item. Work quickly. Toss. Toss. Toss. Mark the boxes with LARGE letters that you can see from across the room.
If you come across something that is clearly trash, eliminate it immediately. If you come across something that you know you want to donate, designate a box for that, label it, and toss into that box. These are the no-brainers, only. No agonizing allowed!
The BEST boxes are banana or pineapple boxes from the grocery store. [See picture.] They are large, but not TOO large; they have hand holds for easy lifting, and they stack well.
When one box gets full, put the lid on and begin another. I find it helpful to go ahead and stack the full box in its designated room. Yes, it will clutter that room, but it will be contained for the moment.
By the end of your first day, try to have one room clear. This will be your "haven". Come here to breathe, sit, relax, de-stress, and think.
If there were any bills or "immediate" paperwork that you collected into a box, you must make it a priority to sift through the box of papers right away, pulling out the items with a deadline.
The next time you begin decluttering, start with your haven and see if it needs any "tweaking". See if something crept in that needs removing. Then move to your next space. We are not looking for perfection; we are looking for improvement.
As you fine-tune, use the same guidelines, above. Keep "same things" together, if you can. When you need glue, you will have certainly that you will find all varieties of glue in that ONE place. Each item will have ONE home. Even if it takes a few extra steps to get to that one place, it will be there every time because it lives there. People can find me at MY address because I live here; it's a very old concept that we are expanding to accommodate each and every small item in our home.
When you get to rooms with boxes already stacked in them, you will sort through those boxes as you declutter that room. It seems that you are double-sorting the same things over and over. Yes. It's true. I find that *I* must do it this way for my sanity. My subconscious knows what's in those boxes and is dealing with it at its own speed. It cannot be rushed. When we are ready to let go of certain things, we will know it; it will feel just perfect to pass them on. I often think of it as "blessing" others with my "good stuff" that no longer contributes to MY joy, but which will contribute dramatically to their joy.
Decluttering is an emotional onion-peeling process with thousands of decisions. The no-brainer, quick-and-dirty decisions come at the beginning. Finesse, fine-tuning, and value-driven decisions will come toward the end. I find that it can take a year or more to get to the fine-tuning stage. You will know it is time to peel the onion again when you feel "burdened" with the way things are. In fact, it feels pretty much like the way you are feeling right NOW! Ask me how I know. [wink] From Kathryn Kistner in Texas, who's now saying, "Burdens feel so good once you have eliminated them!"
There is one important thing I have learned: I will never live long enough to do all the projects I have collected stuff for. So consider saving only the stuff that is in your favorite field. It pares down the choices.
I can't tell if you're completely serious about being single or not, but if so I think you need to take drastic action. Start by asking yourself why the things you're accumulating are so important to you that you would let them threaten a relationship with a loved one.
There are many excellent tips here as to the most thrifty or frugal ways to dispose of things, but if you're in an emergency situation, I suggest you simply start throwing out things--everything that's not of major monetary value or that you don't see a use for in the next six months or so.
I've been told that setting a timer and working for 15 minutes a day will eventually get the job done. I would start in the area of the home that's most troubling to your spouse, and work out from there.
Well Jane, I'll just come right over and we'll do it together! Seriously, you need to hear a quote from an organizer. You are in a large enough city to have one, lucky you, and s/he can make sure the mess doesn't come back.
It sounds like you should pick one room at a time. Clean some floor space and get some empty boxes (can be found behind most stores) and sort. You can label your boxes according to what room it should be in or like items. Also, if you intend to have a yard sale or donate, label boxes for those type of items as well. As for papers, if you are quick read. Toss the trash fast. If not, put them in one box and go through them last. Then label boxes for the papers:trash, file, pictures, coupons, recipes,taxes, anything that you need to keep and organize.
Once it has been sorted, you'll be great and go ahead and start another room and repeat. You should find as you go about your day. You will find things out of place and sort them accordingly. Then you can clean and put things where they belong. Love the peg board for tools. Don't stress, you'll be fine.
I would use a peg board to store most tools. Tools that can't be stored on pegs can be placed in a tool box. If You can't afford a new tool box. Pick up an old dresser from a garage sale or thrift store and use that for your tools.
One of the posts mentioned giving magazines to the library. DH and I also started taking books to the library. Our branch library sells books and uses the money for the coffee break supplies. In my own decluttering situation I have tried to keep small containers for my stuff and put things away immediately after use.
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Request: Decluttering Tips
Archived on 03/04/2009
I need to start decluttering urgently. I have an excessive accumulation of craft supplies, books and magazines. Looking for help in getting started with online sales or other methods of decluttering. Need help. Thanks.
Sharon from Thomson, GA
Answers:
RE: Decluttering Tips
I, too, have been decluttering. I joined Half.com and I am able to buy/sell books.
Also, I have joined the local freecycle website, so I can list my giveaway items or items wanted there. Our local library has a bin where people can bring magazines that they no longer need or want. I regularly sort through the magazines at the library and have found older and current issues of popular as well as specialty magazines. We have local thrift stores that resell donated items. And you can get a receipt to count the donation on your taxes. I also ask friends and family if they'd be interested in having any of the books or other items I am getting rid of.
Hope this helps, happy decluttering! (07/29/2008)
I had an item placed on a box marked FREE and within 30 minutes, the item was gone. It was fun seeing how fast something leaves the FREE box. I intend on doing this until all those unwanted stored items are finally eliminated. I figure if I put a lot out there at once, people will think it's junk and pass it up when really it's just things we don't use or need anymore.
(07/29/2008)
First you go girl. I am in the same predicament. I had a hard time with fly lady.com cluttering up my mailbox so I had to un-join from there. I have had some men here putting in shelves for me and I have chucked stuff, given stuff away and have a large pile for a yard sale in September. I still have mini piles throughout the house but they are getting smaller and there are less of them. (07/29/2008)
I recently cleaned out my files, as well. First, I went through the magazines and catalogs and pulled out any ideas and projects I wanted. If there was nothing, I put it in a pile for selling or donating. For the stuff I wanted to keep, I bought a 3 ring 3 inch binder, and glued the item on cardstock. I write the date on the cardstock when I use the recipe or whatever. I plan to go through the binder every year and pull the stuff I still haven't used to make room for the new stuff I find. (07/29/2008)
By Tigger1971
RE: Decluttering Tips
Also, a good way to recycle your gently used items is FreeCycle. I belong to my local FreeCycle group and enjoy passing on my items to others who will get some use out of my things. These items will no longer be cluttering up your house and you are helping others and the environment by recycling. REMEMBER: Practice safety when using this system. Never give out personal info and meet in a public place to exchange items. Go to FreeCycle.com and check out your local group. (07/29/2008)
From a sister clutterer: A group of us crafty women had a craft supply sale at a local church. Each of us brought craft stuff to sell and handled our own sales. We advertised on a local on-line bulletin board, and of course bought lots of each others' things. Newspaper ads would have been better, but we did get some things sold to outsiders. (07/30/2008)
By Nance
RE: Decluttering Tips
I love using Free Cycle in our county. I have given a lot of useful things away. I found that it was easier to group items, i.e. Group 1, 2 and so on and offer them by groups with the caveat that the responder must take all in each group. It's worked wonderfully for me! It's worth checking out. (08/02/2008)
