Garga Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 My house looks nice for the most part, but I have hidden clutter. It's in closets and attics and sheds and drawers. And it's starting to get to me. I just don't like opening closets and having them stuffed (crammed, filled) with things. (Sometimes the stuff falls out on my head!) I want to de-clutter, but I'm scared to. What if I do get rid of things and then wish I hadn't? I honestly don't have a lot of money to replace things if I regret getting rid of them. (Like, what if I got rid of the gravy boat or the flower pots and then really needed those things in the future?? I wouldn't be able to re-buy that sort of stuff again.) Has anyone recently decluttered? Did you regret getting rid of anything? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 Well I have always held onto things because I didn't want to have to rebuy things if I needed it down the road. This became a problem because I has saved so much stuff that I couldn't find anything so I was rebuying it because it was easier than trying to find what I had. Once I realized that I started pitching things. I have found once I started it has been much easier to let go of stuff. And the more I get rid of the more I WANT to get rid of things because it is just so much easier to manage my house without it. I started decluttering about a year and half ago and diligently worked for an hour a day for several months (then got pregnant and had a baby and everything came to a screeching halt). Honestly off the top of my head I can't tell you ONE thing I have missed. I can't even remember what I got rid of. I have the items itemized for my donations for tax records but otherwise, I doubt i could even tell you what that stuff might have been and I made many trips trips to goodwill. Now that baby is a bit older, I'm make in decluttering mode. I only get about 15-30 minutes a day on good days but I'm getting there. My goal is one bag for the garbage or one box/bag for goodwill a day. It's amazing that I can get rid of that much stuff and my house still feels like it's overflowing. So start small, get rid of things you really hate or know you will never use. Once you start it gets easier to keep pitching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alana in Canada Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 You will be surprised at how much you can let go of. Don't fret it. Just start. If you honestly and truly aren't ready to let something go, the clutter police won't bust you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 I find it much easier to let things go now that I'm hooked up with two groups that have free exchanges, and a subscriber to freecycle. That's because I'm reasonably confident that I can replace a lot of things later if necessary. The other thing that helps is that I say, "I want a spacious feel in this room more than I want this clutter." I'm not totally there yet, by any means, but I'm a lot better than I was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthwestMom Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 YOu can do it! You will be surprised by the feeling of freedom you get as you release things. I'm sure you'll be able to buy a new gravy boat if you need it. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 We have been de-cluttering to hopefully help the sale of our house, and I have to say that it feels so good knowing that when I open a closet door I can find stuff in there! We got rid of things that were broken, worn out, and outgrown first, and that made a huge dent. It is amazing how much stuff I had in those closets that we could no longer use even if we wanted too. We have since gone back and gotten rid of ugly things, things that we have had for over a year with no intentions of using and so on. We gave everything to friends or swapped for things that we needed (except the junk of course). Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jubilee Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 I want to de-clutter, but I'm scared to. What if I do get rid of things and then wish I hadn't? I honestly don't have a lot of money to replace things if I regret getting rid of them. (Like, what if I got rid of the gravy boat or the flower pots and then really needed those things in the future?? I wouldn't be able to re-buy that sort of stuff again.) Has anyone recently decluttered? Did you regret getting rid of anything? :grouphug: If you are stashing things in the attic or closet and it is out of sight anyways then you are not using it to begin with. The gravy boat should be in the kitchen so, when you need to use it, it is accessible. Same with the flower pots; put those in the garage and prepare to use them in your yard this Spring. If you truly want to declutter, start small. Take one closet at a time. Organize a keep pile (moniter what you put in this pile) sell pile, and donate pile. Continue until you have cleared through your home. Plan a date for a yard sale, drop off all of the donation items. Make sure all of your "keep" items have a place in your home. If there is not, than you need to let go of more items. Now that I have written all of this, I am not sure if you need to let go of items you are no longer using or if you need to better organize the items you currently have and use. I hope what you just read will help in some way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnetteB Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 We've parted with a lot of junk, er stuff, over the years. De-cluttering seems never-ending around here. Some we pass along, some to Goodwill, some off to the dump, and I have never regretted anything. We serve gravy from two pottery mugs at Thanksgiving and no one notices. I don't like to keep things that are only useful one or two days out of the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tutor Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 Moving really helped us declutter. We had to fit everything we wanted to keep into a 17' moving truck. You can apply the same principle to your efforts without having to pack up everything. :D Maybe you could decide to designate one of your closets as the "what if" closet (or shed, or corner, or whatever). Completely empty it out, get some shelving or whatever you need to store a variety of items. Then, start cleaning out the other closets. If you need it, make a home for it in a regular closet. If you aren't sure you'll need it or are otherwise afraid to get rid of it, put it in th e"what if" closet. After you have decluttered all of the closets, sheds, etc., go through the "what if" closet and organize it by type... all the serving pieces together, the winter clothes (even though you live in Florida), the duplicates of photos, etc). If you have duplicates of things, decide if you can get rid of all but one. Give away multiple gravy boats or send family members duplicate pictures (they are now out of your house and your family thinks you are so very thoughtful ;) ). Now try to fit everything left back in the closet. If it doesn't fit. Go through everything again. And again. Until it fits in the closet. The important thing is to make sure that when you buy or receive new things, reassess. If it replaces an old, worn-out item, throw out the old one and put the new one in its place. If it duplicates an otherwise needed and useful item, decide which you will keep and immediately give away or sell the other. And as soon as you see a closet showing signs of unruliness, declutter it before it tries to eat you alive! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanM Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 We did major de-cluttering when we listed our home for sale. Unfortunately an awful lot of stuff my dh refused to get rid of and is in boxes. I love how much more space we have though, and I'm hoping that we can get rid of the stuff in the boxes that we obviously aren't using. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athena1277 Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Dh and I are (very) slowly decluttering our office space. It's really bad. I hate to look at it or think about it. The one thing that gets me to work in it is the knowledge that when the room is cleaned out, it will become our schoolroom! It's also a highly visible room, so getting it cleaned out means much less anxiety about having people over. So my advice is to figure out what you will gain by have all the clutter gone and think of it often. By focusing on the goal, the road there doesn't seem so long! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katemary63 Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I'm sure you'll be able to buy a new gravy boat if you need it. :) LOL No one actually NEEDS a gravy boat! We too just used mugs and ladels. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeannie in NJ Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I read something interesting one time, it said that how many coffee mugs do you really need? At the time, I had 2 entire shelves of mugs so I thought about what is the max that I would need for the few times a year that we have a big family party and it came to about 8 or 10 adults that would actually drink coffee so I tossed all my mugs except for about 10. I try to use this same reasoning with all my other stuff and just get rid of all extra stuff, no more keeping it for "just in case" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 LOL No one actually NEEDS a gravy boat! We too just used mugs and ladels. :D That's funny! We use a pyrex glass measuring cup. It is nice b/c you can put it in the microwave if the gravy gets cold. (Like when mom is the last to sit down and the gravy has a skin over it!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 LOL No one actually NEEDS a gravy boat! We too just used mugs and ladels. :D Ahem. :D I'm normally not a cluttered person, except when it comes to the kitchen. I have a *thing* for kitchen gadgets and appliances. I try to follow the advice of dear Alton Brown - if you don't use something for 6 mos., toss it. And I just try to make sure that I go a round of holidays before tossing anything. (There's some things that are only used at that time.) I think that's a pretty good rule to apply to the whole house. And y'all can just send your gravy boats this way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda in VT Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 My house looks nice for the most part, but I have hidden clutter. It's in closets and attics and sheds and drawers. And it's starting to get to me. I just don't like opening closets and having them stuffed (crammed, filled) with things. (Sometimes the stuff falls out on my head!) I want to de-clutter, but I'm scared to. What if I do get rid of things and then wish I hadn't? I honestly don't have a lot of money to replace things if I regret getting rid of them. (Like, what if I got rid of the gravy boat or the flower pots and then really needed those things in the future?? I wouldn't be able to re-buy that sort of stuff again.) Has anyone recently decluttered? Did you regret getting rid of anything? I have occasionally regretted getting rid of something, but it's been a brief twinge. (In fact, I can't even remember for sure what it was. Maybe part of a Halloween costume I wanted to reuse for another kid?) However, I regularly feel gratitude and peace for decluttered spaces. It's so much more pleasant to put things away when I can do so easily. I can find what I want when I want it. There are more cleared surfaces for my eye to rest on. This summer I did a major decluttering and reorganizing of our main floor (one open kitchen/dining/living/office room). It has had a huge, HUGE impact on my happiness with our living space (<1000 sq ft for a family of 6). My only regret is that I did not do it sooner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marylou Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 try looking at some free ideas at www.flylady.net Marla Cilley is the Queen Bee of decluttering! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nestof3 Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 Quote: Originally Posted by katemary63 LOL No one actually NEEDS a gravy boat! We too just used mugs and ladels. :D Serving food from the stove helps too. I do have one shelf of my special Pfaltzgraff dishes -- a high shelf, and we only use them when we have company, which isn't very often. For the five of us, we serve right from the stove. I purged my drawers and cabinets and got rid of: melon baller, hand-held mixer (I always use my KitchenAid), garlic press (I always buy minced garlic in a jar), chese slicer (a vegetable peeler works great for small slices, otherwise, we buy sliced cheese), and other things I cannot remember now (see -- they weren't very important afterall, huh?) I also simplify cleaning supplies using general cleansers that are good for everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apmom Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 Oh, declutter, declutter, declutter! It is so refreshing to have space. It's like white space on a newspaper--you need it to breathe between the stories! My husband read a line somwhere (can't remember, sorry to the author!) that we should only keep things that are either almost immediately useful or that we believe to be beautiful. I love that sentiment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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