Have you de-cluttered/downsized successfully?

[hsmamato2]

YES! I do it every six months..with the seasons,so maybe I'm actually unsuccessful... I go through seasonal decluttering fits.... I just go through closets,etc and just fill bags with unwanted items, or even just items I like, but haven't used in a year.... coats, clothes,books, household items.... The best idea is to NOT go and buy more stuff...but to a thrift store-a-holic like me....that's hard to do!

When I get rid of stuff,I generally just give it to Savers/donate. I figure I usually buy things used,so I enjoy giving them a 2nd life with someone who wants them! And it's a fast,east way to declutter,just GIVE IT AWAY!
Even if I love some things,I get rid of them. I hate feeling overwhelmed with 'stuff' and my thrift store shopping is VERY selective,I only bring home things that I *LOVE*! And I mean I have to LOVE any item I bring through my door. If I don't,I don't need it.That reminds me. I have 3 bags of last seasons items to donate,waiting upstairs.

 

[hsmamato2]

Now when i walk into my room and see dh's area, my spareroom and garage i feel a block. I hate looking at those areas and feel overwhelmed.

Ugh...hahah blocked.....literally! my Dh has so much stuff we can't get into our shed,and barely into the garage......

 

[swilshire]

Really... how many mickey soaps do we need??? Oh yeah--none

I love Mickey soaps!

Sheila

 

[herdtoDisney]

It's funny-I spent all my life in small houses/apts. I always was so diligent about decluttering because I hate clutter and with five kids-I HAD to to stay sane
Now I have a big house with closets and all-and it's easy to just 'put something somewhere' rather than assess whether or not it is really needed, and of course it usually isn't! I actually took a couple days off work next month to declutter-I'm cleaning out the closets, loading up the van and getting it all out of here! So for all the stuff I put away to 'think about later', well later is coming LOL.

 

[LuLuO]

I feel like I am in a constant state of de-cluttering. The kids stuff is always out of control. MIL and GMIL buy them so much stuff all of the time. At Easter GMIL was still giving them Christmas gifts that she had forgotten about.

We donate everything to goodwill. We log everything and take pictures and get to take some off of our taxes. I used to have yard sales but for us donating is easier.

I just filled three more laundry baskets of kids stuff that has to go. I have a hall closet to go through, my craft corner, the unfinished side of our basement that, while not full at all, is disorganized and I know there are quite a few things that can be donated.

DH hangs on to so much stuff. We don't often argue, but when we do it is about this kind of thing.

 

[LuLuO]

I love Mickey soaps!

Sheila

We still have some left from our last visit.

 

[arwood82]

I have just started the process of decluttering this week. It is amazing how much stuff we acumulate. We have a big childrens consignment sale in our area and I just dropped off a truckload of stuff there yesterday to sell. We are also going to have a yard sale next month to get rid of some more stuff. The more stuff that leaves my house the better I feel. Every dime of the money we make getting rid of stuff is going to Disney. We are paying cash for this trip.

 

[emilymad]

That link doesn't appear to have anything there...

the book "It's all too much" by Peter Walsh is great too.

Sorry! Try this
http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com/

 

[mermaidwannabe]

Thank you, OP! I spent the last 3 days going through two of my kids' rooms (with their help), my pans, my drawers, my spice and vitamin cabinets, my linen closet and my blankets/sheets/comforter closet and made 4 trips to our GoodWill! Yes, I could have saved a lot of it for a garage sale, but I just really needed to get it out of the house, and do I feel good! I seriously feel so much better walking through my house. Just need to work on my desk area tomorrow. This is all from reading your thread! Thank you!!!

 

[pigletto]

I can relate to the feelings in the first thread so much. My brain actually feels too crowded when I look around and see too much *stuff*. I am hating stuff on the counters, the tables etc. It seems like all I do is clear them off.

Dh spent the day decluttering and organizing the garage (Can I get a HOORAY!!!). I tackled the bathroom drawers, my sons room and a closet.

Where in the world does all this stuff come from???!!!!
I need to get better at pitching things as I bring new stuff in. Our recycling is full every week, I donate clothes and toys all the time. I recycle kids artwork and school notes and junk mail. And yet there is always more to get rid of. It's a never ending battle.
One policy that has helped me is to make the words "No, Thank You" part of my vocabulary.
It seems like whenever someone else declutter their space they want to move all their junk over to me. So now when asked if I want that area rug, popcorn maker, extra lawn chair.. the answer is NO.
It just ends up in my garage anyway.

I have to say. I have never..not one single time, regretted throwing something away or donating it. I've never wished I kept it, or missed it. So that tells me that if I haven't used it in a set amount of time, then it has to go.
It works for me.

The rooms in my house are tidy and organized. But the closets and drawers need major help. I'll get there.

 

[sookie]

Yes! For us, it was getting rid of all the baby stuff. We had several moves, and that helped... we went from our house that we owned to some rentals that were smaller, which was awful Really, we gave most of it away to Goodwill and people who really needed it (grad students from other countries who suddenly got pregnant, etc). It felt GOOD.

We have now moved to owning a bigger house now - so we had to buy some furniture again. But it feels great to not have all that "stuff" to contend with!!

 

[peabody58]

DW and I started a few years back as we laid out out long term plan to retirement.

First thing we downsized was her baby grand piano. She hated to part with it until she relaized that she would get a high end Kawia electronic piano and have lots of $$$$ left over (which we used to lower our mortgage).

We're slowly getting rid of furniture and only replacing with items which will fit into our downsized home of the future (3300 sq ft to 1700 sq ft). DD's are helping take things off of our hands.

We're down to 4 TV's from our 9 originally, and hope to be down to only 2 shortly.

We had a huge garage sale a few years back, and I am slowly accumulating items for another sale next year. Doing a little at a time (cleaning, bagging and tagging) makes the task a lot less daunting.

It is refreshing to declutter and free our selves from 'things'. DW also knows that it will be alot easier to sell off a lot of our stuff and not have to pack it up and move it. In a few years she'll be able to buy a lot of new stuff, but only that which is functionally necessary.

 

[nunzia]

Sometimes the clutter gets to me as well..I find I get cranky in a cluttered environment.. BUT...so much of what we have are family teasures..my MIL was an artist and we all have her work and love it when we find a new piece someone is donating back to the family (she passed away 13 years ago) We also, from her, have alot of old family antique glassware, etc, that we have no room for so it's in cabinets and the kids also do not have room for at this time, so what to do? Then there are all the DVDs, CDs (which I think I'm ready to part with most) and yes, VHS (as soon as I think I can get rid of one a grandkid watches it). Then there is the crafts room. Holy Cow..so much scrapbooking stuff..I mean..really! But..I scrapbook so use it, and then you find yourself buying stuff to fit a theme and so buy more stuff...a bit out of control and I keep trying to do projects with existing stuff. Then there are the framed family pictures..we get these as gifts alot and love them..but where do they go?? I keep downgrading my Disney stuff but then at the Expo or something..hmm..items I can't pass up. I also have several hundred paper backs (my second job is at an enteretainment store, and we used to get a free book a week..have worked there for 10 years..ahem..so I guess those will eventually get read.)So..just what can we downsize? I actually at times will use my several bread pans or mini muffin pans or many many little bread pans certain times of the year and most of those kitchen appliances do get used at times..(why did DH give me a quesadilla maker?? really??) so, although I'd like a more tidy organized space, what to do?

 

[mrsklamc]

Sometimes the clutter gets to me as well..I find I get cranky in a cluttered environment.. BUT...so much of what we have are family teasures..my MIL was an artist and we all have her work and love it when we find a new piece someone is donating back to the family (she passed away 13 years ago) We also, from her, have alot of old family antique glassware, etc, that we have no room for so it's in cabinets and the kids also do not have room for at this time, so what to do? Then there are all the DVDs, CDs (which I think I'm ready to part with most) and yes, VHS (as soon as I think I can get rid of one a grandkid watches it). Then there is the crafts room. Holy Cow..so much scrapbooking stuff..I mean..really! But..I scrapbook so use it, and then you find yourself buying stuff to fit a theme and so buy more stuff...a bit out of control and I keep trying to do projects with existing stuff. Then there are the framed family pictures..we get these as gifts alot and love them..but where do they go?? I keep downgrading my Disney stuff but then at the Expo or something..hmm..items I can't pass up. I also have several hundred paper backs (my second job is at an enteretainment store, and we used to get a free book a week..have worked there for 10 years..ahem..so I guess those will eventually get read.)So..just what can we downsize? I actually at times will use my several bread pans or mini muffin pans or many many little bread pans certain times of the year and most of those kitchen appliances do get used at times..(why did DH give me a quesadilla maker?? really??) so, although I'd like a more tidy organized space, what to do?

Can any of MIL's art go to a museum? If the grandkids like a VHS, send it home with them. Framed family photos- most recent can be hung, rest can be put in albums or even scanned.Part with all but a few of the books that you are going to read SOON. I bet your local library has or can get most of them for you any time you want.

 

[hsmamato2]

scrapbooking stuff is only useful if it's organized,and you ACTUALLY use it- I know how easy it is to start building a collection of supplies that grows so massive I never even see 1/2 of it trust me, get rid of it,and keep one box or binder with supplies, you won't need more than that anyway....
-the art,that's hard,I had a prolific painting Grampa,and we all have his stuff in our homes, with TOO MUCH left over.....no one else wants it, I love the stuff b/c it's my memories....the rest we had to donate and hope someone somehwere could use it..... the paintings are only valuable if displayed and appreciated, sitting in a damp basement till I die and my grandkids clean it all out to a dumpster is not really appreciating the stuff anyway....so, as my Grampa used to do when he was alive.... we use what we can,and gave the rest away!
I treasure the 3 paintings I kept...as do my sibs.
Saving all kinds of 'stuff' for 'someday' is not a good idea.....I do watch that show 'Hoarders' once in a while to remind myself of what I DON'T want......
If I have an applaiance I only use once a year,I donate it (can you say food processor?)

 

[estherhead]

I hear you! We've been in this house for 10 years, and have 3 kids, a dog & a cat, and just too much stuff!!! I have been feeling the need to downsize, and especially simplify my life! I think I'd even like to move into a smaller home, get rid of half of our stuff & have less to clean & maintain so we can have more fun DOING things instead of HAVING things. As soon as we get home from our weekend trip, it's going to be my top priority to get this accomplished!

We moved into a giant house 10 years ago. My dh assured me we'd only use the upstairs until the kids were teenagers (they were babies when we moved in) but, of course, within 2years someone had given us a pool table and other people trying to de-clutter their lives had give us couches and chairs, etc.

Well, 2 years ago I'd had enough. I HATE cleaning and I felt like it was all I did. Selling was impractical since the housing market hasn't been good. We had a big family meeting and decided to just use less of the house, and we slowly made changes. Until this past June (almost a year ago) when we fully committed.

We moved all three of our girls into one bedroom and got rid of 3/4 of their stuff. We took the other upstairs bedroom and turned it into a toy room & office. Then we sold all the stuff in the basement on Craig's list and used that money to turn our basement into a rental.

My area to clean has been reduced in half and we have more income. Best idea EVER! My girls love their new room set-up as their bedroom is just for sleeping and clothing making it a calm and restful environment and Mommy keeps the toys cleaned up because they are in the office and I can't stand a messy office. So they feel like they made out. And so do I.

My dh had the hardest time with it as he felt there was no place for him to escape. So for 1 month we moved a recliner into the office/toy room and made a rule that if no one could go in there when the door was closed. Every night for most of that month he'd come home from work and go in there and close the door. Then one night I came home from work and the recliner was back in the living room. He said he was done needing quiet space and now he is on board with the reduced space as well.

And best of all, I use half the rental money to pay a housekeeper. So I went from cleaning ALL the time. To cleaning: NEVER! When I get in the mood to clean, I de-clutter more. So my house is always clean and all of our closets and drawers are actually organized.

SOOOOO in love with our situation now. In the evenings we actually spend time together, going to the park and putting puzzles together instead of chores and whining.

So even if you can't sell your house, you can find ways to accomplish what you want to!

 

[4forWDW]

Thank OP for starting this thread.
I really need to de-clutter my house.
My main problem is paper clutter - not keeping up with the mail gets totally out of hand.
What are other disers' thoughts on keeping birthday/Christmas/holiday cards and your children's schoolwork papers???
We have ample storage and I have kept so much stuff that I could have just thrown away.
I was getting ready to finish putting away the Easter decorations and ran across the Easter cards that my father had sent my DD & DS. I asked them if they wanted to keep them. My DS said it didn't matter and my DD said she really didn't need to but it was up to me.
That's when it hit me - why do we need to keep all these "things" we get.
I really need to weed though and maybe just keep the cards from immediate family.
Amy

 

[estherhead]

Thank OP for starting this thread.
I really need to de-clutter my house.
My main problem is paper clutter - not keeping up with the mail gets totally out of hand.
What are other disers' thoughts on keeping birthday/Christmas/holiday cards and your children's schoolwork papers???
We have ample storage and I have kept so much stuff that I could have just thrown away.
I was getting ready to finish putting away the Easter decorations and ran across the Easter cards that my father had sent my DD & DS. I asked them if they wanted to keep them. My DS said it didn't matter and my DD said she really didn't need to but it was up to me.
That's when it hit me - why do we need to keep all these "things" we get.
I really need to weed though and maybe just keep the cards from immediate family.
Amy

I did not invent this idea, but I take pictures of important things my kids do & make. Then I trash them. As for cards, I cut out the sweetest personal
notes & put them in the back of photo albums (or in an envelope awaiting a photo album, and then trash the card. Just make sure you date them before taking a picture or on what you've cut out.

 

[LuLuO]

scrapbooking stuff is only useful if it's organized,and you ACTUALLY use it- I know how easy it is to start building a collection of supplies that grows so massive I never even see 1/2 of it trust me, get rid of it,and keep one box or binder with supplies, you won't need more than that anyway....
-the art,that's hard,I had a prolific painting Grampa,and we all have his stuff in our homes, with TOO MUCH left over.....no one else wants it, I love the stuff b/c it's my memories....the rest we had to donate and hope someone somehwere could use it..... the paintings are only valuable if displayed and appreciated, sitting in a damp basement till I die and my grandkids clean it all out to a dumpster is not really appreciating the stuff anyway....so, as my Grampa used to do when he was alive.... we use what we can,and gave the rest away!
I treasure the 3 paintings I kept...as do my sibs.
Saving all kinds of 'stuff' for 'someday' is not a good idea.....I do watch that show 'Hoarders' once in a while to remind myself of what I DON'T want......
If I have an applaiance I only use once a year,I donate it (can you say food processor?)

So true! I have a whole craft area full of this scrapbook stuff and I never use it. Ever. I have good intentions, but I am so far behind on my photos that I've decided it will be easier and cheaper to make electronic albums and print out a few of the pictures to print and organize them in a box. I will never be a scrapbooker. Every collage I've made has been on the computer and I actually like doing that much more.

 

[dizkids]

OP great thread! I am in the process of decluttering..again, so i can try and be organized.

We have enough space in our home, but my counters, tables, drawers, closets, accumulate everything. I just want to be organized so i can simply "go and get" something when needed without sending out a search party! That alone is my main goal : )

Good luck!