I am horrible about collecting, impulse buying,shop-o-holic, and anything else that allows me to get so much stuff. Now I am at a point where I need to de- clutter my house. Where do I start? My ds's room has sooo much stuff, and I hate to get rid of anything, but so need to. My whole house is like that. I mean it is not dirty, it is cluttered. I hate it and just really don't know where to start. Any ideas?
Yes, FLYLADY!!!!!!!! I HIGHLY suggest you sign up for her emails (it's free). She takes you step by step through decluttering without getting burned out (therefore giving up). She also helps you deal with the reasons for the clutter, so you can stop the cycle.
I tried FlyLady for a while and I like her. Got to meet her personally at a seminar she did for Free at Ft. Campbell for wives with deployed hubbies. I absolutely could NOT do everything she suggested but I do like many of her ideas (even if they aren't for me). I just finished reading Homeschooling at the Speed of Life by Marilyn Rockett. It can be used as a bible study of sorts too and is a helpful book in balancing home, school, life, etc. It comes from a more HS perspective since the FlyLady doesn't have kids at home all day, etc. She has free e-mail stuff too. Not as much as the FlyLady who will e-mail you reminders hourly if you need them :lol: I'm trying to personally figure out a plan for the paper clutter. We've moved twice in 10 months and I've gone thru the kids stuff several times in between so we have less clutter in other areas but I haven't found time to do all the papers that need to be sorted, filed, pitched, filed, tossed...did I mentioned filed yet....you get the picture. Good luck. Rhonda
I actually do this for people!! I offer to help YOU declutter and teach you how to keep it up. For some they have kept it up. I have only had 1 family fall off the wagon... If I were closer I would come help you. (I love to do this? My family thinks I am crazy!!) Biggest thing is you have to be ready to get rid of things. Make 3 piles in each room 1) Give Away 2) Sell 3) Throw away then I just go through EVERYTHING!! I have never seen Fly lady because I am already a clean freak!! Maybe I should just check her out?
my problem is the give and sell. I have this "well I spent so much on this, and maybe someday I will need it", problem. Okay, I guess you would call me a "pack rat". But not to the point that my life is over run, but I do have way to much stuff! LOL
I couldn't get rid of much of anything until I got to the point in my faith where I could trust God completely to provide. When I would say, "but what if I need ___ again someday?", what I was really saying was "when I need this again, I don't know if I'll be able to get another." It was totally a faith issue. Once I trusted that God would provide the item or the funds to get the item if I ever needed to buy another, then the de-cluttering really took off.
Start with the "have I used this in the last year question? If no, why not. I have trouble with sentimental type things but I've got A LOT better in the last 3 years. Actually living in military housing in KY that were infested with brown recluses....cured me on clutter. We had to live CLEAN and without cardboard (which they like to nest and lay eggs in ). Our spiders were NOT reclusive despite their name....I could go on and on. Anyway, that helped me decide what truly was important. Don't get me wrong, I have rubbermaid containers in the closets, garage, basement, etc. I still have stuff!! But LOTS less than we used to have. Rhonda C.
I spent over 20 years holding on to everything because of the foster children. We kept toys, clothes, shoes, books, furniture, and anything you can think of. We kept extra toothbrushes and stuff like that too. People at our church brought us their kids hand me downs to save for the kids too so we have tons. When kids would leave I sent anything they could wear but we still have a lot left. I have never gone back through all that stuff so it is in bags and boxes in a little house next door to us that we use for storage. I think I need to make it a summer project to go through all of it and give it to Goodwill. First I have to get the image of spiders out of my head! Beth
SPIDERS??????? Oh I would help in a sec!! Well I always say start small and if you can devote even 15 minutes it's a start!!
If this doesn't cure you, I don't know what will! I saw this before Christmas and it has changed A LOT in our home. http://www.storyofstuff.com/
This is my mantra! I am super organized and I can't keep a lot because there just is not the space. This question works well for anything, but I find it especially helpful when I am going through my closets. If I haven't worn it in a year it goes to Goodwill. Sometimes I ask myself why I bought/acquired something in the first place. What was my intention? If I have not fulfilled that plan over the course of the past year, why not? That usually helps put things in perspective.
Well, I am trying out the "have I used this in the last year question". Well I could supply a whole new family with everything they need.:lol: But now my question is, who do I give all of this stuff to? I live 100 miles away from the closest goodwill/salvation army. There is not a used or resale shop near me. I hate to throw it all away, but that is a long way to pack a bunch of crap with me. I have thought about having a yard sale when it gets warm, then I remember that I say that as an excuse every time I keep something. So, I need to stay away from that one! Any ideas?????
I am not good for advice in this area. I HATE clutter. I HATE having little junks around. I don't even care to shop. lol. I also have no problem throwing just about anything away. I threw away a perfectly working coffee maker because I simply didn't have the room. It was old...but worked. I knew I would end of storing in my basement if I planned on giving it away and then I would forget about it. I normally give all my kid's clutter away to friend and people at church. However, if ANYTHING sits in my house too long after I have decided it was clutter...it gets trashed. I know...I am bad. Of course, we do have "garbage pickers" coming around almost every week...so anything good that is left out someone will pick up. I also hate garage sales. LOL. Last one, I threw away most of what didn't sell and gave away the rest. I even put a box in the front yard that said FREE with a bunch of stuff in it. It was gone in a day. lol. Right now, I am considering throwing away old twin size girl's sheets. I have about 4 sets...not all complete. My dd has a full bed now and my son won't sleep on girl sheets. I have NO storage room. NONE. If I keep it in my basement it will get nasty because we don't have a dehumidifier. I am having a hard time just throwing them away I will admit. That does seem wasteful. Maybe I will look at them again and if they are in decent condition I will see if anyone at church wants them. However, anything of NO use like candle holders, old furniture, my broken washing machine, lol, most old clothes, most decor items, and toys I have no remorse about trashing. Oh..sorry..so I am of no help because I am the opposite of you. My rule is if I haven't used it in a year and don't love it, it's gone. If I forgot I even owned it and have no place for it...it's gone. LOL. I say have a yard sale. If you are willing to sell it aren't you willing to give it away? Maybe you can price the stuff super low and then offer 1/2 off on the last day. You can even have a FREE section.
You can give away stuff on www.freecycle.org You just sign up for it in your area ;-) It's a great way to declutter and help someone else out.
I have gotten 2 trash bags full of junk and threw it AWAY!!! I am making progress!!! You know this getting rid of stuff can be a very addictive thing to do. I have already done my laundry room and front entry way. Dh is going to have a heart attack when he sees how much I have already gotten rid of. Just had to update everyone. Thank you for all the advice.
Hoorrraaaayyyyy!!! I am very glad for you Jo Anna! Keep up the good work! If any space seems too big to tackle, do it over a few days! *high-five* to you!!!
Just wanted to add that I'm a flybaby and I have been doing my routines and swish and swiping and yesterday we got the hotspots (areas that collect clutter) and just today i saw the email saying "attack your hotspots" and I was all "I already did!" YAY! I'm glad I have routines in place now that we're going to HS this year!
