Need Budget Decluttering Ideas!!

[Miffy]

Great thread. DH and I live in a 400-sq-ft apartment with one closet. I am constantly throwing things away and/or putting them up for sale. I mean, it's an ever-ongoing process.

A couple, maybe 3 times a year, I get super-energetic and we have a major purge.

OP: It's great that you have such big plans. Sometimes that's the only way I can get things done--by doing it all at once. Exhausting, yes, but very satisfying.

Only you can tell if the time and effort spent trying to sell stuff is worth the $ you'd get for it--if it sells. Be honest with yourself. Sometimes we think we're going to try to sell Thing X, then we realize that it's just not worth it. If the relief we'd get from pitching it is greater than the possible benefit of the maybe money we'd get for it--it's gone.

I find it really helpful to look at things as if they belong to someone else. They're not mine, so the sentimental value part's eliminated. I get surprised that I don't even like a lot of things I've held on to for some vague feeling I've got about them.

Confession: I adore throwing things out. It makes me really happy and energetic, so it doesn't seem like work to me.

When I'm sorting through things, I'll decide to pitch X, Y, and Z but keep V and W. It often happens that maybe a few hours or a day after X, Y, and Z are gone, I realize I don't need or want V or W either!

DH and I do sell a lot of our stuff, though, especially things that can easily be listed on amazon, like books, CDs, DVDs, videos. It's nearly effortless, since we have all the mailing supplies here and the post office is nearby...and air conditioned! But if something like this seems like WORK to you, forget it. The space and freedom of movement you'll get from eliminating objects is priceless.

Thanks to everyone on the thread. I picked up a few new ideas. Loving them!

 

[branv]

I totally agree with the donate rather than garage sale. Now if you are a person who doesn't mind the effort to sell items, and you really will do it ASAP, then it's great. But it's true that the majority of us will just make a pile of "garage sale" stuff that will sit and sit and sit. And as weird as it sounds, I'd rather give to a good cause something that once meant something to me, then flinch as its sold for an el cheapo price (especially when it's one of those ruder GS people who try to talk you down by insulting your stuff). Also, if you're like me and you don't have a truck to move bigger items (and if the local charities won't pick up), try offering it for free on Craigslist or Freecycle. We did that once, and I swear, in 20 minutes after advertising a desk, it was gone. Hallelujah!

It's amazing how often we don't want to waste time putting things away, but forget how much time we waste looking for things that aren't where they should be (and for those of us who are married, disputing who had it last )

As for organizing, I'm getting brutal. I've established that if I'm the person cleaning it, I make the rules. With DH's things, I either put everything on top of his personal desk so he has to toss it or put it away to use his desk. That way his clutter bothers him, not everyone else. When it's stuff like newspapers/ magazines/papers in the way of functioning (i.e. on dining tables, kitchen counters), after a week, I tend to tell the person saving it that they have one more week to put it out of the way and then I'll assume it's not important and it will get tossed. All paper items get thrown away or filed.

Another thing I do is that when I see a recipe in a magazine, rather than rip it out, I go online to see if it can be found. I'll then copy and paste it into a Word document and save it on my computer. Much easier to store than a magazine or a bunch of scraggly torn out paper.

Ikea was a big space saver for me -- they sell for fairly inexpensive those little metal stands that go in your cabinets. So now I can store vertically and avoid piling or lost space. It also means that a) I can get to things easier, b) stuff doesn't get hidden under or behind that I forget about (i.e. keep buying stuff, forgetting you already own 3! ) They also have cheap cheap drawer organizers. And the beauty of this is, once you buy them, it gets you to go home and go through your stuff, tossing what you don't need on the way. You should see how beautiful all my cabinets are now

I also organize all my electronics paraphernalia using Ziploc. For instance, when you get a camera you might get a wall charger, a CD with software, a cord for connecting to the computer, etc. OY! I will put all of those in its own ziploc and I'll label the outside the item they belong to. Then I have a drawer in my entertainment center I've assigned to hold all these doodads, except rather than the usual junk drawer where you have to rummage through a bunch of tangled items, you just reach in and pull out the correct bag (takes a little training to get people to remember to put the items they've removed BACK in the bag of course ) And if an item only comes with an instruction manual, that goes into a filing cabinet folder (I have about 6 folders labeled things like: kitchen manuals, electronics manuals, utility manuals, etc.) I can't tell you how many times that has come in handy! Oh yes, and if an item is a big purchase, I make a copy of the receipt and staple it to the instruction manual. When my camera went kaboom after 9 months, but still in warranty, I didn't have to frantically search all over for my receipt.

Whew! Hope that wasn't too much to take in! It's taken me a long time to get into a rhythm, and it doesn't come naturally judging by those in my immediate family -- i.e. most likely to be lost in their own home inside a maze of 20 year old magazines. Sometimes it's hard to throw something away...especially when it's something you like, but honestly haven't used in years (cough, ice cream maker, cough)! I've actually cried giving away clothes I associated with special moments (but which a gallon of vaseline and 20 rubber bands couldn't get me into anymore). But it's so worth it. I may stink at dusting, but at least I can see the surfaces in my house, and that alone takes a big weight off my chest.

 

[sherry7]

Great post!

My house is ALWAYS in a state of messiness. My biggest problem, by far, is paperwork. I absolutely hate dealing with it, so the mail, etc usually piles up for about 2 weeks until I go through it. I've told myself a million times to just open it daily while standing by my shredder, but that resolution never seems to last.

I read someone once that stuck with me. I can't remember if it was Flylady or Peter Walsh who said it, but it goes like this: YOU CAN'T ORGANIZE CLUTTER!

I've been trying my best to get rid of things. In the last few months, I've donated about 20-25 boxes of my old clothing to Goodwill. (I lost a lot of weight.) After I realized that I didn't have room to hang up my new smaller clothing, I realized it had to go!

In order to deal with the paper clutter, I've decided to start scanning a bunch of my different papers and keep the files on a little flash drive (password protected in case I lose it). Really, other than for things like passports, birth certificates, marriage licenses, etc, you don't really need the original copy.

For storage of the things you actually do need, don't forget about under the beds. I have some nice storage boxes (on wheels) that fit under the beds perfectly.

Like many others said, I gave up on the yard sale thing. It's way too much work and aggravation, and people bicker too much about prices. It's easier to drop it off at Goodwill, and I get a tax receipt too.

 

[sherry7]

.......I also organize all my electronics paraphernalia using Ziploc. For instance, when you get a camera you might get a wall charger, a CD with software, a cord for connecting to the computer, etc. OY! I will put all of those in its own ziploc and I'll label the outside the item they belong to. Then I have a drawer in my entertainment center I've assigned to hold all these doodads, except rather than the usual junk drawer where you have to rummage through a bunch of tangled items, you just reach in and pull out the correct bag (takes a little training to get people to remember to put the items they've removed BACK in the bag of course ) And if an item only comes with an instruction manual, that goes into a filing cabinet folder (I have about 6 folders labeled things like: kitchen manuals, electronics manuals, utility manuals, etc.) I can't tell you how many times that has come in handy! Oh yes, and if an item is a big purchase, I make a copy of the receipt and staple it to the instruction manual. When my camera went kaboom after 9 months, but still in warranty, I didn't have to frantically search all over for my receipt..........

I love this idea!

 

[starwood]

I so feel your pain. We have way too much stuff and it just never seems to go away. I am committing this fall to get rid of junk. It is very difficult because I come from a long line of pack rats.

One of the cleaning shows (don't know which one) did something I always wanted to do, but am afraid that I'd get in the middle of and not be able to get it done. I think they were only doing one room at a time not entire house so that might be the way to do it. They pulled everything out of the room and put it in the yard. They then sorted into three stacks. Something along the lines of Keep, trash and donate/sell. Then you only put back in the room what you are keeping and have a garage sale/donate the rest.

The show is Clean Sweep.

I bought plastic storage bins and when I find something I don't use or want I throw it in there. Then we have a garage sale 2x a year. We're due for our next on next month and i can't wait because I have full bins all over the house.

I've been trying the 15 minute routines but we are having work done in the house and DS hasn't gone back to school yet (he starts back to band camp on Monday). I'm hoping to get some kind of routine going then.

 

[MrsPete]

What kind of mail is he saving? We basically just get junk mail and bills. The junk mail goes straight into the trash can, and the bills go to the 'pay' pile for the 15th and 30th.

The biggest problem is my/your DH! I went out and purchased one of those shoe organizers with a pigeon hole for each pair of shoes, but used it for mail. The four cubbies on top were for DH and included to be paid, paid and then whatever he wanted for the other two. He could keep whatever he wanted, but would need to clean it out when they got full. The second row of four cubbies were mine and the botton three were for my DD.
I wanted it to be a communications center also. If my DD needed something signed for school, she could put it in my "in" cubbie.
NO ONE WOULD FOLLOW MY SYSTEM!! Frustrating!

Most of the saved paper has to do with money. He gets his pay stubs (actual check is direct deposited) through the mail, and they do include info about his sick days, taxes, etc. Also he gets various statements from investments.
Then there are coupons, recipes, rebate and registration forms. Invitations sit around for 6 months before they're tossed. School papers really aren't a problem for us; hmmm . . . I should think that one through. WHY aren't school papers a problem? With two kids, I have plenty of them. What am I doing right with school papers that I'm not doing with other forms of paper?

I tried to set up a system to keep these things organized, but Semo233 hit the nail on the head: NO ONE WOULD FOLLOW MY SYSTEM. At one point I bought stacking paper trays and put them by the computer, the idea being that mail and other paperwork could go there, and when your "in box" was full, you had to clean it out. Well, when the boxes were full, no one would clean them out -- they just kept stacking and stacking, and eventually made a new stack next to my system. Then I moved a small desk into our den, and I bought a pretty basket, the idea being that papers would go there. Well, it filled up in a week and nothing was ever removed from it. Meanwhile, new mail and other papers stack up next to it.

I know very well what the real problem is, and it's not one I can solve. The real problem is that the only person who is bothered by all this paper is ME. The rest of the family is content to pile it up on the table, the desk, the counter. Move it so we can eat dinner, and if it's a mess, so what?

 

[TinkandAriel]

Thanks for this thread! It's very inspirational.
This fall (after the smallish one gets back to school--she's a packrat at heart) I plan on doing some major purging around here...I'm relatively good at keeping up with the clutter because I do find that I am at peace more with less clutter in the home.
I deal with SO much paper at work --dr's office, and the stacks of paper are RIDICULOUS--so at home I'm seriously antipaper...everything gets tossed in the woodstove unless its tax-worthy, then it gets filed in our file cabinet.
I really need (and plan) to declutter my room at my mom's...I'm freaken 37 for goodness sake, it's still the same as when I was in high school. I'm definitely doing that this fall, going through the clothes there, papers, mementos etc and getting rid of a ton for my mom so she can stop stressin over it.
I also need to donate all the baby clothes piled up at moms and the inlaws, the child is turning 9 for goodness sake....

 

[mrsklamc]

Make it clear to your DH and kids that when the cubby starts to overflow YOU will empty it- into the garbage.This usually only has to happen one time.

 

[WDWorBUST]

First I want to thank everyone again for their great ideas Today we started on the garage. The part that stinks is that for whatever reason (I won't go there) crap was just piled EVERYWHERE in the doorway of the garage. So we started by pulling out the first 1/3 of the garage and went through it. Although I know you can't organize clutter we did get some shelves since we do need to organize tools, etc that will stay in the garage. We have a huge pile of garbage and one large box for goodwill so far. I do have a shelf in the garage to Craigs List - a bunch of Party Lite stuff and then DH has a couple of tree stands that we will try and sell. I had a TON of NICE jeans that I know I could get something for....but they went in the donate box - Yeah Me!!! However, the back of the garage is where all the baby stuff is and rubbermaid stuff that we are just "saving". I am pulling one tote inside of baby stuff to go through tonight. I'm going to do the Just Between Friends consignment sale this fall and hope to get through all 5 years of her fall stuff. While doing I plan to sort it all, even for the spring sale since I know I can make some good money there. As much as I want to keep it for sentimental reasons I know it is stupid. I do have one question for you guys.....I was a fastpitch softball pitcher in high school and college and it was my life. I made All-State and still have my All-State jacket. Any suggestions on what to do with something like that??

 

[mickeymaker2003]

I was a fastpitch softball pitcher in high school and college and it was my life. I made All-State and still have my All-State jacket. Any suggestions on what to do with something like that??

Frame it in a shadowbox and hang it on the wall.

 

[missesdisney]

We are clutterbugs and of course can't agree on who is worse

A few months ago I bought a nice scanner (snapscan) and now whenever I have papers I need, I scan them. Same for school papers I need to go back to. Since I am pretty paperless otherwise, this is a huge help. And then I have the informaiton easily available on the computer to print at any time. Also, to avoid new paper, any time I order something online, I print the receipt to pdf so I never have paper for it.

Was laid off end of June and start new job Monday and one huge accomplishment in that time (other than trying to entertain DS8 who got yanked from summer camp he was looking forward to), was getting his room completely cleaned out and also the playroom that we could not walk into because of all of the mess. I admit it's easier that he is older, but we threw away tons of broken, half boxed, old toys. We have a friend with a little boy and we give him a lot of things in good shape but we really tore through the rest of it. My husband was shocked when he saw the rooms. I set a few new rules to be followed so they never look like that again (next time I trash everything I said). NO toys touching the floor unless he is playing with them that minute. There are only one or two open bins in each room and everything else has a shoebox or something to go on the shelves. Let's hope he follows this!

Now, if I could only get my own room clutter free and keep it that way. I don't know why I drop junk in here when it bothers me so much in the rest of the house!

 

[dakcp2001]

Clutter experts, I have done a wonderful job of cleaning out my kitchen! I scrubbed it top to bottom, but I have ONE major issue.


How to store all the lids to my pots and pans? They can't be stacked, cuz of the handles, and they cant go on top of the pans, cuz I need to stack the pans inside of each other.

Anyone know a good way to store them, to avoid them all falling out on me each time I need one?

 

[raftislander]

Found this thread after spending day clearing out the "guest" bedroom but is more appropriately called the "junk" bedroom. So my fellow declutterers - take pride in any success at clearing out the junk. Some really great ideas here. Love the 10 items a day for thirty days and the ziploc bag on the electronics stuff - BRILLIANT! We have a huge problem with paper and magazines. Any ideas on how to store those things like family graduation announcements, wedding invitations, memorial service programs and obits? I cant seem to throw these out but dont' know where to put them. Oh and I am technically challeged- dont suggest scanning- i haven't figured that out yet

 

[tinkermom23]

Clutter experts, I have done a wonderful job of cleaning out my kitchen! I scrubbed it top to bottom, but I have ONE major issue.


How to store all the lids to my pots and pans? They can't be stacked, cuz of the handles, and they cant go on top of the pans, cuz I need to stack the pans inside of each other.

Anyone know a good way to store them, to avoid them all falling out on me each time I need one?

I had the same problem. And the nonstick finish inside my pots/pans were getting ruined because I stacked them. So, when I got new ones, I put up a small pegboard inside my pantry with hooks and I can hang the pots from their handles and the lids hang too. And nobdy can see them.
I also got rid of the ones I didn't use very often. I saved 2 pots & 2 pans. If I need a huge stockpot, I borrow my mom's and return it so I don't need to store it! She has much more room than I do

 

[SarahKate]

I kinda do the Ziploc thing. I used to save everything from my DD's birthday's but not as much now that she's older (7 now). I started a gallon size ziploc and it has the list of gifts, b-day cards, etc. and any small things I wanted to throw in there. She went to Girl Scout camp this year and accumulated some little art projects and small things....so those all went into a "Camp Widji 2009" baggie. When I get motivated, I'm going to use it for other things as well.

 

[Imzadi]

I had the same problem. And the nonstick finish inside my pots/pans were getting ruined because I stacked them. So, when I got new ones, I put up a small pegboard inside my pantry with hooks and I can hang the pots from their handles and the lids hang too. And nobdy can see them.
I also got rid of the ones I didn't use very often. I saved 2 pots & 2 pans. If I need a huge stockpot, I borrow my mom's and return it so I don't need to store it! She has much more room than I do

I read somewhere to get those rubberized shelf liner rolls, (available at the dollar store,) cut them in circles to fit inside the nonstick pots. This way, they act as a cushion against being scraped up by placing a smaller pot inside.

 

[npmommie]

My biggest challenge is the temptation to keep everything the kids have ever made, and that's the one I haven't quite conquered yet.

This is my biggest challenge as well. I have everything, I can't seem to part with anything.
I also have all the baby clothes too. and its really taking up a LOT of space around here.

 

[Vacation Lover]

I've only read the first page so far (great ideas!) so sorry if this has already been mentioned. A U-Haul trailer might be cheaper than PODS if you're only using it for a week or two.

 

[3girls4me05]

The other thing is Vietnam Vets of America picks up. You can schedule a pick up online. I had a yard sale and then had them pick up everything that didn't sell the next day. I really need to schedule another pick up. Knowing they are coming gets me to declutter.

 

[luvmyfam444]

Today I made it into our masterbath - where all the sale clothes have been stored for quite some time. I got 60 items tagged & dropped off @ the kids consignment sale today. YAY! And 1 donate bag!

Now if I could get busy on the rest of things.