Destash 2021 Don't Fear to Clear

[comicguy]

March was another slower month. Got rid of an additional 47 items (most of which were sold on ebay). Still not too bad, items moving out is always a good thing! Hopefully this month I can get rid of a few larger items as it is hard to see headway with just small items leaving.

4 books - sold ebay
4 books - sold ebay
11 cardboard boxes - used to ship ebay items
1 Manilla Envelope - used to ship ebay item
1 roll of packing tape - used up for shipping
1 lego sensor - sold ebay
2 lego motors - sold ebay
2 Lego ball and casters (new) - sold ebay
1 Lego remote - sold ebay
1 Lego smart brick - sold ebay
1 Lego Rechargeable Battery - sold ebay
1 bag of 100 lego treads - sold ebay
3 Lego Motors - sold ebay
8 Lego sealed official replacement rubber bands - sold ebay

2 pair of socks - trashed
1 dried up permanent marker - trashed
1 pair of sneakers - trashed

1 partial notepad - used up
1 partial package of sticky notes - used up


315 items of 500 goal or 63.0% of goal

 

[ski_mom]

March was another slower month. Got rid of an additional 47 items (most of which were sold on ebay). Still not too bad, items moving out is always a good thing! Hopefully this month I can get rid of a few larger items as it is hard to see headway with just small items leaving.

4 books - sold ebay
4 books - sold ebay
11 cardboard boxes - used to ship ebay items
1 Manilla Envelope - used to ship ebay item
1 roll of packing tape - used up for shipping
1 lego sensor - sold ebay
2 lego motors - sold ebay
2 Lego ball and casters (new) - sold ebay
1 Lego remote - sold ebay
1 Lego smart brick - sold ebay
1 Lego Rechargeable Battery - sold ebay
1 bag of 100 lego treads - sold ebay
3 Lego Motors - sold ebay
8 Lego sealed official replacement rubber bands - sold ebay

2 pair of socks - trashed
1 dried up permanent marker - trashed
1 pair of sneakers - trashed

1 partial notepad - used up
1 partial package of sticky notes - used up


315 items of 500 goal or 63.0% of goal

You do great selling on Ebay! I always tell my family when I retire, that's what I want to do. I piddle with it now, but I enjoy the process (when the buyers are honest), so hope to get into it at a little higher level when I have more time on my hands.

 

[Sirenitas]

Donated 5 books, have 3 more for a coworker.
A bag full of Winter clothes that had their last season

I have so many things I want to sell on Ebay, used to do it a lot (for about 10 years!) but after a couple of scammers one after the other I gave up. But I do have some really nice things that could be sold for a good price, not much luck on FB since we live in a pretty small town.

 

[comicguy]

You do great selling on Ebay! I always tell my family when I retire, that's what I want to do. I piddle with it now, but I enjoy the process (when the buyers are honest), so hope to get into it at a little higher level when I have more time on my hands.

More like luck of what I am selling. Excess robotics equipment and the books just happen to be wanted at this time, nothing overly special! Starting to run out of these things, so time will tell

 

[comicguy]

April

1 Lego servo - sold ebay
2 Lego touch sensors - sold ebay
2 Lego ultrasonic sensor - sold ebay
2 Lego Ball and Casters - sold ebay
4 Lego controller cables - sold ebay
2 Lego remote - sold ebay
2 bag of 30 Lego rubber treads - sold ebay
3 small cardboard box - used up for ebay shipping
2 manilla envelope - used up for shipping ebay item
3 Digital Calipers w/ cases - sold CraigsList
3 Button cell batteries - installed in digital calipers
4 books - sold ebay
6 Lego technic squares - sold ebay
1 box of misc robot parts - sold ebay

12 assorted harbor freight parts bins of Technic Legos - went to DS’s house
1 1 gallon bag of misc Lego parts - went to DS’s house
8 pieces of scrap trim work - went to DS’s house for burning

1 Vacuum and attachment center put together - installed

1 partial piece of Insulation board used - up for a project

2 partial pieces of insulation board (too small for any real use) - trashed
1 broken precious moment figure - trashed
1 ripped winter coat - trashed

4 sandwich bags of misc bolts and nuts - given away

2 appliance boxes - recycled
3 cardboard boxes from the shed - recycled
3 cardboard boxes from front porch - recycled
1 garbage bag of air pillows - recycled (tried to give away on facebook for 2 weeks beforehand)
1 First aid kit box - recycled after combining with another kit
1 hand sanitizer combined with another container - recycled
1 3 inch stack of pictures from my early teaching career (kept a few) - recycled
3 maps - recycled

1 pair of bluetooth headphones - replaced

9 canned goods - donated

(89 items)


404 items of 500 goal or 80.8% of goal

 

[crazylady]

April was a really slow month. I got rid of 35 things bringing my total to 360.

We bought a new dining set this month. I found another home for the table, but I was at odds with what to do with the chairs. Part of me wanted to keep them just in case I needed them. When I thought about it though, I'm almost 50 years old. I think I know how I entertain by now. I don't need 8 extra dining chairs! Change in mindset = extra chairs and table are gone. I'm slowly learning.

 

[4 Ears]

April was a really slow month. I got rid of 35 things bringing my total to 360.

We bought a new dining set this month. I found another home for the table, but I was at odds with what to do with the chairs. Part of me wanted to keep them just in case I needed them. When I thought about it though, I'm almost 50 years old. I think I know how I entertain by now. I don't need 8 extra dining chairs! Change in mindset = extra chairs and table are gone.

Woot woot on destashing the extras!

 

[barkley]

i am mid destashing our entire house/multiple storage areas on our property.

it started with having to get our master closet empty for a remodel but then watching the newest episodes of 'hoarders' kicked me into high gear-

furniture to go-a dressing table, a tall full length mirrored jewelry box, 2 large bookcases, a long sofa table (bookcases/sofa table going to eldest kiddo-rest to a veteran's thrift shop),

electronics-multiple (still working) dvd players (vet's thrift shop), busted computers/laptops (when memory is swept clean-to electronic's recycling), an abundance of cords, chargers...(to electronics recycling),

old paint/varnish...-hazardous waste disposal drop off,

household goods-vet's thrift shop,

usable clothing (laundered first)-vet's thrift shop,

perfectly usable towels, comforters, sheets, blankets and quilts (laundered first)-split between local animal shelter and vet's thrift shop,

way too much christmas, easter, halloween decor-goodwill,

camping gear (we don't camp so how do we have so much??????)-vet's thrift shop,

outright junk-garbage.




beyond it being freeing to get rid of so much stuff i'm finding so many multiples of smaller items that we have repurchased time and time again. going through it, organizing it better (and showing dh what we have/where it now is) will end up saving us money in the long run.

 

[barkley]

heigh ho, heigh ho-it's off to the dump (and recycling i go):

7 laptops
1 tower
numerous chargers/cords

4 containers of paint/stain

a truck bed full of old odds and ends that no thrift shop or charity should be burdened with.


i also managed to recycle a 20+ year old toy of my kids-one of those wheeled large containers that massive amounts of larger building blocks were sold in. it now holds all the cans of paint we need to hang on to for touch up. i realized if i used it vs. a large box i can wheel it anywhere i need to take it

 

[dpswift]

Very true. I wish I could get my husband to participate more. He has tons of crap stuff he should part with but he thinks is he's all going to use it someday.

He sounds like my dad! My father always said, you never know when you might need it! We found so much stuff after he passed. He saved Dunkin plastic cups. Why? You never know....

Before my mother died my father kept everything. After she died he started dating someone who is more of a minimalist and has really cleaned out. With the good possibility of a move my husband is getting better but still over values his things

 

[dpswift]

We had a garage sale yesterday. Not super great but I was able to get rid of a couple riding toys that I was saving for grandchildren that seem very far in the future. We sold a few other things as well. Got a few bulky items out of the house

 

[barkley]

7 days and counting to 'd day' (donation day). we've got the small uhaul truck set up for rental, and today i'm going to call the primary charity we want to help out with (vets). so far as i can tell from the research i've done our massive decluttering efforts can benefit 4 groups-

vets (all furniture, household goods, camping equipment, freshly laundered clothing)

pets (freshly laundered towels, blankets)

homeless shelter (all those new/unopened/sealed shampoos, conditioners, lotions, qtip/cotton ball, sewing kit packets from hotels we just toss in our suitcases unused on trips)

local small independent nursery (i asked if they knew anyone who took old planter buckets when we buying some landscaping material recently-they said they would love any 5 gallon or larger to help keep their costs down).


we've managed to clear allot of stuff out, allot was outright unusable when we took the time to pull it out and look at it so that went to recycling or dump. the end effect is allot more space and ability to get to the stuff we DO use and an ability to see more clearly the stuff we DON'T but still want to hang on to so we can do a seasonal evaluation and determine what it can go.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

We finally got rid of 4 things (limit) for bulk recycling day today.
2 charcoal grills
1 gas grill
1 door
The garbage hauler refused to take the gas grill. Less than 2 hours later someone took it. It needs work but they could replace a few parts.

 

[comicguy]

May was another slow month for getting rid of or using up items around the house. Hoping June will be better, but again any items gone from the house is a good thing!

1 partial pad of sticky notes - used up
1 Partial legal pad - used up
2 Partial notepads - used up
1 new picture frame - used up for a gift
1 picture frame hanger - used up
1 storage caddy - to DW’s work
1 3D printer - fixed and returned to school

3 misc storage containers - donated
3 misc plastic bowls - donated
1 laundry basket - donated
2 pair of sneakers - donated

1 kitchen cart - sold facebook
5 books on CD - sold ebay
4 Lego robot cables - sold ebay
6 Lego pieces - sold ebay
2 manilla envelope - used up to ship ebay items
5 random pieces of bubble wrap - used up for ebay item
1 parts storage bin - sold craigslist
1 cardboard box - used up for ebay item

1 tabletop wood planer - DS took it to his house
1 package of super glue - DS took it
2 boxes of legos - to DS house

1 pair of ripped shorts - trashed
1 pair of socks - trashed

48 items left the house this month


452 items of 500 goal or 90.4% of goal

 

[crazylady]

I forgot about my May update. I got rid of about 75 things bringing my total to 435. Big garage clean out didn't get rid of as much as I would have wanted because DH was holding tight to his treasures. Some things we got rid of were two bikes, large pieces of luggage, a ceiling fan, tons of boxes, rockets, pallets and a bunch of kid toys we weren't using anymore.

House and garage are torn up now. Hopefully when we put it back together I can entice him to part with a few more things.

 

[barkley]

not a destash of clutter but a destash of sorts..........


when i went to donate all the camping items and other things at our local veteran's charity shop that they were seeking i noticed that they have a small food pantry strictly for the vets that come in (we have lots of all access food resources in the community, but as far as i know this is the only that targets the vets and since it's near the vets hospital i'm thinking they get lots of traffic). i asked if they take private donations and they said they do but just don't get much b/c people don't think about it when they are donating other items. so.........i just went through every cabinet and shelf and pulled a bunch of non perishable foods that don't require other ingredients (soups, chili, beans, veggies, canned pasta, canned meats, individual powdered milk packets...). it's all stuff i've got multiples of and can (thankfully) afford to replace as i need to. i made sure everything has a best by date of a year or more.

just thought i would share this b/c if you are decluttering and donating to a charity that is close to your heart you might want to consider seeing if they serve their target population in a manner you wouldn't nesc. think you could also help out with.

 

[4 Ears]

Woohoo, update from here.
Working on organizing pictures/scrapbooks to digitalize and was able to get rid of a whole tote!
While on a get a way a few weeks back we purchased some Christmas ornaments I wanted put up stairs AKA the very hot attic.
Also had a few things up there I knew could be destashed. Well today my stubbornness got the better of me. Got the ladder out, hauled my self up there and SAFELY DOWN Neither of the men of the house had time
I was able to destash and reorganize enough to downsize by a whole tote there too. woot woot me!
Anyone else finding time over the dog days of summer to destash?

 

[yeahdisney]

Today, in the basement, just quickly went thru where DS had spring semester- just his book area and folders. He has a summer class that starts Monday. So I tossed him a folder and notebook from the upstairs stash. I wanted to see what he needed for fall. I cleaned off the ping pong table.

Then since it was hot and Everyone was gone. I decided instead of having grandma hem the two new long curtains for the dorm room. I would put those in DS room and take the one in there to his dorm.- save me cash. DS still had shelves in the bottom of his closet and a tub of stuff- he told me- it could all be given away.

I took most of the stuff out of the closet to remove the shelves. Out went anything I thought wouldn’t fit or wear. I got give away. Donate. Trash. I rearranged his wall pictures, we really just threw them on the walls, when he came home from college last March due to Covid. I got books a Nintendo DS and games and toys to share with family.
He had a desk and chair in there from his senior year of high school-gone. He took over the basement office for over a year.

He not into decorating but I wanted it to look nicer. It was the same closet configuration from childhood and the same plain light blue curtain from that time. And he is like me in the sense of having a curtain to block the light when I’m sleeping - so that curtain will be fine for the dorm room.

 

[hsmamato2]

Wow..... you all are so disciplined,counting each item destashed! I wouldn't know where to start,counting wise However I'm interested in this thread b/c I'm trying to force myself into accountability..... I'd say (a guess) since the beginning of this year, I've destahed my personal bedroom closet (so about 3 full garbage bags donated clothes) and working my way through kitchen storage. I've been avoiding the basement,which needs a serious cleaning and I need to destash a lot of collected items I've been storing down there. SO far from this week I've tossed in the donation bag a gallon size ziploc of essential oils that were gifted to me but I don't like them, 3 pairs of unused men shorts,a child dressup play set,and a depression era glass dish (so pretty but I'm limited by how much I can collect and display). I also gave away 3 haircolor kits since I stopped coloring my hair.
This is kind of tough b/c I'm getting rid of things that I like, but don't use/have no room for.

 

[focusondisney]

It’s been a few months since I have been able to do anymore clearing out. My elderly mother’s
declining health has required a lot of my time. Luckily my DH was able to get a few things done last week. We gave a 36 inch flat screen TV to a relative. DH repurposed the stand as some extra shelving for his car supplies. He also trashed a box of old Polly pocket & happy meal type toys plus another box with over 50 old matchbox cars. We had a set of dishes we got when his dad passed over 20 years ago. We never used them but 1 of his siblings was happy to have them for sentimental reasons. So he took those there last week too. That’s 3 more boxes + a TV gone.