2024 Destash Dare to be Bare!

[comicguy]

Here is the start of this years destashing/decluttering thread! Let's hope we can all get rid of a lot more stuff and feel less overwhelmed in our homes

 

[comicguy]

My 2024 Goal is to get rif of another 500 items minimum. It seems like every year I get rid of more stuff and there is just another layer that I come across, sometimes it is motivating, sometimes it is frustrating. I am looking into remodeling 2 rooms this year (sheetrocking, new trim, new floors) so I need to go through those rooms especially hard to be able to empty them out and then make them nice looking afterward and a 3rd room new flooring and new trim work. Lots to do and lots to deal with! Hopefully can get these accomplished this year!

0 / 500 items
0% of goal

 

[dpswift]

Joining again. Just got back from a week at my parents retirement house and realized how little storage there is. We have gotten rid of a fair amount of stuff in 2023, but there is still a lot to go

 

[Genie+]

Following for motivation! Goodluck to your goal.

Our kids are young adults and it is time to start a new chapter. There are boxes in our basement that haven’t been touched on over 10 years. Surely we don’t need this stuff lol.

 

[teamagic]

Joining for motivation and accountability!

Going to try to hit my goal this year! My goal is 2024 items in 2024! I have so much in the basement and just sitting around the house. I need to keep after if EVERY month and not slow down. A little every week will make a huge difference. Our children are young adults, attending college while living at home to save money. Time to declutter the house and start new.



504/2024

 

[disneyseniors]

Hi: I've watched this thread for a while, and finally decided to join in.
I have already started today in my sewing room/studio. I am getting rid of the fabric that I will never use and am just keeping. It will go to one of our local churches that can really use fabric for their charity work. I am going to clean out drawers in that room as well. It's been a while and it really needs it. It is so difficult for me to throw anything away! I always think I will use it or need it later. So I have to overcome that.
I also am going to clean out our utility shed this year. I say that every year, but I am determined this year.

Glad for this thread to give me the motivation I need. Good luck to all

 

[easyas123]

I cleared out a area in our basement where several boxes got parked when we moved almost 10 years ago. Those boxes were stored at our previous house, too. I tossed two large boxes full of old princess house glassware of my grandmothers than I had wrapped up & not looked at again in 1999 Ridiculous. I ended up tossing a lot of other stuff and taking several boxes/bags to Goodwill.
Now I'm ready to tackle the spare room aka the depository of the kids high school 'stuff' - paperwork, awards, art portfolios, snowboards and god knows what. The last one graduated in 2015 so it's time for them to take their crap or toss it.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I'm not organized enough to actually count the items I get rid of, but I will continue to purge around the house. My cousin lives in a subdivision that has a neighborhood yard sale every June. I actually talked to her today to see if she thought we would have enough stuff to have one this summer. We decided we did. That will be the motivation I need to go through things and have plenty for the sale when June rolls around.

 

[delmar411]

My house is a constant work in progress. This year's goal is not just to continue to downsize but to reduce what we bring in. That's a tougher goal for us.

I already have a small bag for the thrift store, a bag to leave at work for whomever wants it, and sold 16 items. I have a bunch of other items listed as well.

 

[Tygerlilly]

I'm joining again this year. I didn't update much last year, but I purged quite a bit when we moved in June.

This year I'm making it a priority to really get down to "needed" items and a few decorations. My anxiety over the last year has been triggered by a lot of clutter around the house and then I get so overwhelmed I just shut down. So to combat that, I'm drastically reducing what's in my house.

I already have a bin of donate and a bin for a spring yard sale going and have started with our room. Specifically clothing. I found stuff from 2005 that hasn't been worn since then. Time to go!

 

[newski_mom]

Joining in as well. I've followed past threads, but never posted much.

We are transitioning to an empty nest - DD26 and DD25 have been gone for a few years and DS21 still living at home and going to school. I'm thinking he will probably be here a few more years as he's taking part time classes and working part time as well, so slower to progress through school. I'm fine with that as I love having him around!

I started a note in one note breaking down small tasks of things I need to go through and purge / organize. I'm starting with 5 big boxes in our storage room. They were in one of the spare bedrooms until I had to move them to the storage area with the kids stayed at home during Christmas lol.

So, instead of moving them back into that bedroom, I'm tackling them. Most of it is stuff that DS has outgrown or no longer wears. I just need to make a donate box and at least start there.

I'm typically not good at keeping a count, but I think I'll try this year and see how it goes.

 

[zanzibar138]

I didn't realise this thread existed, but this is definitely something I need to do too! I had a massive purge a couple of years ago when I temporarily moved back in with my parents from interstate. It's amazing how quickly it builds up again though once you've got somewhere to put it! On top of that, my partner and I bought a house together mid-last year and so have now combined our 'stuff'. We were actually aiming to only move things that we really wanted, but it was a messy settlement and we ran out of time so we ended up just throwing everything into boxes which have been sitting untouched in a spare room since we moved in.

My other problem is that I pack a box ready to take to an op shop or with things to advertise online, and never do anything about it so never actually get rid of anything.

I have no idea what sort of number to put on it, so let's start with 1000 and see how it goes. That is items identified for purging AND actually purged!

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

Where is the best/safest place to sell stuff? I've got clothes, books, DVDs, purses (wife's) and other stuff I'd like to sell and get out of my house/out of boxes that have been packed in a closet since we moved in 18 months ago). But I'm afraid to sell on Facebook marketplace because I hear of people getting robbed, shot, killed and/or assaulted whenever they meet to make the swap (I guess I watch too many reality crime shows). I do have an eBay account. But what about local type places (I'm north of DFW)? Do they buy these types of things? Like clothing resale shops, books stores like Half Price Books (for books, CDs, DVDs, etc)? Just looking for some ideas from you experienced destashers.

 

[MinnieFan4ever]

I am joining in. I really need to let go of some things. Why do I feel the need to hold onto things I don’t need.

 

[barkley]

I also am going to clean out our utility shed this year. I say that every year, but I am determined this year.

you seem to be happy that the church will make use of the fabric so if that mindset helps you purge items i have a suggestion that worked for me on the utility sheds. if you have tools, fixtures, odds and ends of usable construction/repair stuff...take a look at your local area and see if there are any thrift stores that work with individuals (esp. veterans) on home repairs. we have some in our area-their profits go to fund repairs/handicapped access for vets. they accept all these types of items and what they can use for their projects they set aside, what they can't they put on their sales floor to generate funds. i found that knowing that these types of items would'nt end up in a landfill helped me purge a great deal from our (multiple) sheds a few years back.

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

I don't have a specific goal right now. But 3 cookie sheets and two silicon mats out the door.

5 items

 

[disneyseniors]

you seem to be happy that the church will make use of the fabric so if that mindset helps you purge items i have a suggestion that worked for me on the utility sheds. if you have tools, fixtures, odds and ends of usable construction/repair stuff...take a look at your local area and see if there are any thrift stores that work with individuals (esp. veterans) on home repairs. we have some in our area-their profits go to fund repairs/handicapped access for vets. they accept all these types of items and what they can use for their projects they set aside, what they can't they put on their sales floor to generate funds. i found that knowing that these types of items would'nt end up in a landfill helped me purge a great deal from our (multiple) sheds a few years back.

Thank you barkley! That is an excellent solution to some of my stuff in storage. I will definitely check on that. I am not aware of anyone helping veterans around here, but that is a great idea!

 

[delmar411]

Where is the best/safest place to sell stuff? I've got clothes, books, DVDs, purses (wife's) and other stuff I'd like to sell and get out of my house/out of boxes that have been packed in a closet since we moved in 18 months ago). But I'm afraid to sell on Facebook marketplace because I hear of people getting robbed, shot, killed and/or assaulted whenever they meet to make the swap (I guess I watch too many reality crime shows). I do have an eBay account. But what about local type places (I'm north of DFW)? Do they buy these types of things? Like clothing resale shops, books stores like Half Price Books (for books, CDs, DVDs, etc)? Just looking for some ideas from you experienced destashers.

I use FB marketplace and local groups. I say this kindly but yes you watch too many crime shows. It's very safe. I do public meetups unless the item really must be picked up at the house. Many areas have special areas at the local police station to do these meetups. I'm not sure how far you are from your local police station but that might be a possibility for you.

You have to be smart careful though, don't give out your address or phone number. Make sure other people know you are going to do a meetup to sell an item, etc. And there will be tons of flakes and wasted time. People who read the ads properly will be reflected in their inquiries. You learn who to spend time on and who to not.

You can often sell books on Ebay or Amazon or even FB marketplace depending on what kind of book it is.

 

[barkley]

i'm the late in life child of depression era parents so it's hard for me to just 'toss' entirely usable stuff (and that includes to an extent donating to some thrift places b/c i've seen the big dumpsters outside of them filled to bursting with items THEY purge from donations) so i'm just going to pass on some organizations/places i've found that have welcomed certain types of donations (both pre and post pandemic)-

blankets, sheets, towels-animal shelters (our local also welcome pet carriers and will post other items of need on their websites)

vhs/dvd/blurays-college and university libraries (contact to see if they have movie collections and if they are accepting-our local w/a film degree program does)

camping gear-vet (and in some regions homeless population) organizations

luggage-woman's shelter and foster care support organizations

hotel soaps, shampoos, hand lotions, sewing kits (all the stuff they restock during your stay)...-if you're like me they get tossed into the suitcase and collect over time never getting used. our local shelters gladly accept these.

books-these are harder to give away (too many donated during the pandemic) but children's books in good condition are often welcomed by school and public libraries.

household goods (some types of furniture, small appliances, housewares)-if you have a military base in proximity see if they have an 'attic'. we've always lived in proximity to airbases and found that 'airman's attics' are fairly common. these serve as a means for newly arrived service families to borrow household goods while awaiting the arrival of their own.

this one is kind of obscure but it applied to me so i'll pass it on-costumes, period clothing and accessories (c'mon-you still have an old pair of parachute pants hidden in the closet don't you? , maybe some old boxes of a long passed family member's decades old shirts/blouses/ties/scarves). see if a local theatre group in interested. i donated boxes of old costumes and stuff i aquired from my own days of theatre. same with some furniture and (hideous) household decor-the stuff you hate to part with b/c it is so reminiscent of a certain era but has no value to sell. see if a local theatre company wants it for props/stage dressing. with kid's old halloween costumes-see if any local groups do a collection of these. we have a drive for these that starts a few months before halloween-volunteers go through them, launder and piece together full costumes for area kids.

i purged allot of stuff a few years ago but as i want to dig deeper in 2024. for me the sentimental value makes it hard for me to part with stuff but i know my adult kids don't have that connection to much of what is squirrled away. i never want my kids stuck in the same situation dh and i were-dealing with a bunch of stuff when a parent had to move into assisted living or after they passed.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

Thanks. So people can actually sell on Amazon? I thought it was just for businesses? And I do sell on eBay. But it seems books don't sell very well. I have trouble with clothes too. I listed several nursing scrubs a couple of years ago, probably 10 different listings, and didn't get but 1-2 views per listing. Not sure what I'm doing wrong. But I will try there. Might also call around or post on Facebook and see if there's anywhere locally that buys clothes to resell. Even if we only get a couple of bucks per shirt, it will added up.

And yes, I do watch too many crime shows. But I also watch the news nightly and hear about murders, assaults, etc. Makes me not want to do Facebook. Plus, we tried to sell our couch on there when we moved last summer. We were asking $800, and a potential buyer DMed us telling us his bank told him he had to pay us $1,200 then we'd have to refund the $400 difference. Not sure if it was a scam or not. But he said he sent us money, and he called the police on us (he said) when we didn't send him the $400 back. My wife worked at the bank at the time, and she knew he didn't pay. But we got the cops called on us. That's why we're afraid to do Facebook marketplace, haha.

I use FB marketplace and local groups. I say this kindly but yes you watch too many crime shows. It's very safe. I do public meetups unless the item really must be picked up at the house. Many areas have special areas at the local police station to do these meetups. I'm not sure how far you are from your local police station but that might be a possibility for you.

You have to be smart careful though, don't give out your address or phone number. Make sure other people know you are going to do a meetup to sell an item, etc. And there will be tons of flakes and wasted time. People who read the ads properly will be reflected in their inquiries. You learn who to spend time on and who to not.

You can often sell books on Ebay or Amazon or even FB marketplace depending on what kind of book it is.