Buying Shelves

Before you go out and buy storage shelves, bins, closet organizers, etc., have you considered saving money and just decluttering much of what was to be stored on or in those units?  Storage and clutter truly costs you more money.  You may have to rent a storage unit, buy hardware or extra cabinets to house all your stuff.  You purchase extras because you forgot you already had an item. 

If you are considering shelves or any storage containers, try decluttering before you make the purchase, then see how much $ you can save.

Hang Your Pictures

Command Strips are such a marvelous invention!  You can hang anything and then take it down with no damage to walls, no nail holes, peeled paint, stains.  They have even been on sale lately for college kids heading back to school.  Why I bring this up is that if you have any framed pictures or posters that have been leaning up against the wall for months or even years, put them up!  If you don't like them, get rid of them.  If you do like them, schedule a time to hang them.  It will declutter your floor and decorate your walls at the same time.  A tip I learned years ago that has served me well when hanging pictures is don't hang them too high.   The center of the picture should be at eye level or just slightly higher. 

When using nails for heavy frames, there is a handy device called a "Stud Finder" that will locate wooden studs for more support.  When I bought one for my husband one Christmas, he quipped something like, "Why would you need this?  You've already found a stud."  Sigh...

Do your best to get those pictures off the floor!

Rewards, Not Escapes

Once again, I credit Cindy Glovinsky for this great idea.  In her book, One Thing At a Time, she brought up something I've always struggled with.  She says that instead of using some of our pleasures as escapes from doing decluttering, we should use them as rewards AFTER we've accomplished a goal.  If we escape into our favorite show, book, sport, computer, or phone chat, it can stretch out and take up much more time than we planned.  However, if we set a reasonable goal, for instance, "I'm going to sort through this box before calling Morgan," we accomplish more of our decluttering.

Dangers of Clutter

My post yesterday seemed to be a portent of things to come:  "Trash Broken Things."  Our area on the east coast felt an earthquake of 5.9 magnitude around 2 PM yesterday.  There was no significant damage, but things fell off the shelves and some broke.  As my daughter and I were assessing how anyone could have been hurt in the earthquake, the only thing we could come up with was that clutter or other good items could have fallen on them. 

There are health hazards that go along with clutter:  mold, vermin, tripping over piles, and now, avalanches because of earthquakes!  Be sure to be devoted to clearing out clutter from your home!

Trash Broken Things

Yesterday, I put a garden bench out with the trash.  The seat was fine, but the back slats were swinging and there was no hope that we would ever take the time to recut wood, fit it in, and repair it.  It's been like that for probably three years!  Looking in the back yard, it looks neater with that gone.

It's difficult to get rid of something that "might" be able to be fixed, but if it's been years and you have no plan or skills to fix it, go ahead and dejunk.

Loose Paper

I got a great idea for decluttering from the book, One Thing at a Time, by Cindy Glovinsky.  She suggested taking a new box with a lid and walking through one room at a time.  Put all loose papers into the box.  She says it's important to not look at the papers then, just toss them in.  Keep going to other rooms and do the same until the box is full.  Then, on the outside of the box, write down which rooms you de-papered, with the last room on top, moving down to the first room (the order in which papers would be found in the box.)  Set the box aside.  Repeat if you didn't collect from all rooms.  Your rooms are instantly decluttered from paper, you know where the stuff is, and you can sort when you get a chance later.

When you are watching TV, grab the loose paper box you filled, a trash can, and a "file this" box and sort.  

(Her book is a great read; I highly recommend it.)

File Cabinet

Go to a file cabinet or box today and see what you can discard.

Breaking It Into Manageable Bites

If a decluttering task seems overwhelming, break it into manageable sections.  I began yesterday with one folder in the file cabinet while watching TV.  That sorting and tossing stretched into a whole drawer and a trashcan full of unneeded papers. 

Stocking Up

We moved son #1 into a three bedroom apartment on his college campus yesterday..  The six guys living there communicated somewhat well about the kitchen needs, but we laughed at the six large cannisters of Clorox Wipes in the bathroom.  Way to go, Moms!  IF they do use the wipes to keep the sinks, toilets, and shower clean, I don't think they'll ever use up all those wipes.

Bringing it back to home, sometimes buying in bulk is a wise idea.  However, if you buy so much that it has to be stored and then goes bad, it will waste money, space, and add to the physical and mental clutter in your life.  If you have a large stash of food that has a shelf life, evaluate how much you can really use and then sell some or give some to a friend so as to free up space.  You won't constantly be reprimanding yourself when you look in the freezer or cupboard, "Oh, I need to hurry and use this up!"  Save money, yes, but only if stocking up won't clutter needlessly.

Organizing vs. Decluttering

Is organizing the same thing as decluttering?  My favorite author on the topic, Don Aslett ,(see Clutter's Last Stand and For Packrats Only) has strong opinions.  He thinks organizing is a good thing, but if you're just organizing and moving around junk and clutter, what's the point?  Clear out the unwanted and unneeded items and then organize what's left.  It frees up your housework, life, and mental state!

We've thought about this before if you have followed the blog for any amount of time, but here's a tip for decluttering AND keeping it organized as you go.  If you are simplifying by getting rid of one thing per day, keep a couple bins handy.  One is marked "Charity" (Goodwill, or Salvation Army...whatever is your favorite).  For me, the other is marked "Attic."  As I'm decluttering one thing a day, if it can go to charity, I just drop it in the bin.  When the bin is full, I make a trip to Goodwill.  Since we have pull down stairs to our attic, I don't go up often.  By having the attic bin, I can wait until it gets full and then take one trip up to organize those items in the attic for future use.  (Note:  I store some of my school things that I use once a year, Christmas and seasonal decor, etc. up there.  It's not a free-for-all, just a spot for items not used frequently.)

You Need a No Nonsense Friend

If it is really difficult for you to get rid of things, you need a no nonsense friend.  This type of friend can be objective about your clutter and help you get rid of it.  Believe it or not, you can be that type of friend to others, because their clutter means nothing to you either.  This might be as simple as offering to "take care" of something she/he is having a hard time decluttering where you then trash it out of their sight and property.  It can be as intense as spending a day with the person who is decluttering, sitting nearby, talking through what's needed and giving her/him "permission" to throw something away.

I have been on the objective side, and I've also been on the receiving end of an objective friend.  Both ways, you benefit and bond.

On and On It Goes

Decluttering is never totally done.  It's a continual process since stuff continually makes its way into our homes daily.  Since I'm a teacher and have a little more time off, I'm choosing one room a day to examine for clutter.  So far I've pulled everything out of the hall closet and two bathroom cabinets.  It's amazing that I found some mismatched gloves, a scarf I no longer want, cosmetics unneeded, and items that were in the wrong spot.  I only put back in that which I use or want.

Dip Mixes

A recent fad was to purchase mixes to create fabulous dips for veggies.  I got in line and bought my share.  The problem is, they've been sitting in my cabinet for a few years, unused.  We are watching our fat intake at my house and putting in all that mayo and sour cream along with the spices doesn't fit well.  So, this morning I pulled them out and will ask a friend if she wants them; if not, I'll throw them out.

Under Bathroom Sink

If you have a cabinet under your bathroom sink, go through it today.  See if there's anything you can throw out.

Stained Clothing

I really hate stains.  Every product claims to take out stains, but few I've tried really do.  Today I am throwing away a blouse on which spaghetti sauce splattered this week.  I tried to get it out, but to no avail.  The blouse is six years old, a little faded, so it's time.

By all means, try to get out stains from clothing, but if the stains don't come out, declutter and get rid of the item.

Might Be Worth Something Someday

I was given a great gift five or six years ago.  My class of 5th graders painted an adirondak chair red, white, and blue, and then signed their signatures on the arms.  I've used it in various ways through the years,  and now have a plan to paint it a solid color that can be less noticeable sitting out in the yard.  My daughter pointed out that I may not want to cover a couple of the signatures as they could be worth something someday.  One of the girls sings before Congress and all sorts of famous people; another is a state winner athlete, often featured in our paper. 

How long do we hold onto things that "might be worth something someday?"  That can be really confining to feel that you can't get rid of something out of fear you'll regret it someday.  Planning ahead is important, but living for today is its equal.  We can't let the "what if's" of this life tie us down under mounds of clutter.  Let it go.  If you find out the items you gave away (or painted over) were worth a lot, balance the regret with the money, time, and mental health you've saved over the years not storing clutter 

Now, if only I'd saved a couple of their math papers...

Outside, Behind the Shed

Our property doesn't back up to anyone, so behind the shed is a place no one sees.  Yesterday, I went back there to clean up.  I threw out some old plastic plant pots, raked up old leaves, and straightened the area.  Now I could give a tour back there and feel OK. 

Everything But the Kitchen Sink

We had a handyman help install some better pipes under our kitchen sink yesterday.  It got me thinking of my phobia of what's under a kitchen sink.  For some reason, it is often a storage space for "gross."  Trash can be under it, which is covenient (but gross if old food is stuck to the walls of the cupboard).  In the south, I heard people used to store coffee cans of used bacon grease under there.  Chemicals and cleaning supplies are stashed, sometimes old and corroded, having been there for years. 

O.K., think of this.  If you suddenly had a leak and had to have a plumber come in, would he easily be able to crawl under your kitchen sink?  Take a peek and see what can be done there to organize it and keep it from getting gross. 

A suggestion:  one little organizing plastic tote made all the difference for me.  It has a handle with sides to put bottles of dish soap, Mr. Clean, dishwasher detergent, etc.  I try to keep everything in that, so it looks organized, can be pulled out easily, and doesn't gross me out.

It All Comes Down to Nothing

My kids have been talking about what they would want from our possessions when they inherit everything.  Know what they want?  A frog Christmas ornament they have fought over for years called "Mistletoad."

We laughed about it.  In spite of the humor I found in this declaration, there is a sad truth.  Most of the items we collect and work so hard to buy, no one else really cares about too much.  Many of our possessions will come down to $.50 in a yard sale someday, as we've discussed before in this blog. 

Begin to simplify now.  If you like something a lot, keep it.  If it has faded in its worth, get rid of it.  If you don't really love it or need it, don't buy it.