Day 257: One Item Per Day

Keep up the great work, getting rid of one item per day! Yesterday, I found a reference-type book I rarely looked in, so it went into the give away bin.

Day 256: Success!

I had written about a TV/radio unit my son had won at eight years ago, how it wasn't ever used and I tried to get rid of it. He asked for it back since he "might" use it. Well, I kept an eye out all summer and it sat in the same place collecting dust. It has now been sent onto greener pastures.

Day 255: Rearranging

Sometimes we have things we really want to keep. One way to make them look less cluttered is to rearrange their placement. Can framed photos be hung on the wall instead of crowded on a dresser? Can magazines be placed in a basket or on a bookshelf? Can kitchen appliances be stored in the cabinets instead of on the counter?

Simple rearranging can make your areas seem less cluttered. Look at your spaces with a critical eye and find ways to rearrange!

Day 254: Plans to Use Stuff...

I happened across the show "Hoarders: Buried Alive" again last evening.

One lady had hired a professional organizer to help her. As the organizer was attempting to throw away a handful of plastic picks that hold cards in flower arrangements, the owner about broke down saying she didn't like to waste anything and she had plans to use most of her stuff (that was piled about three feet deep throughout her house.) My thought is, are we hanging onto dumb things because we "have plans to use them?" I have a dirty little crocheted bassinet someone gave to my daughter at least 16 years ago. The base was a dishsoap bottle and someone crocheted the cutest little top that folds up into a bassinet with a hood for a little doll. I've saved that thing for YEARS because I wanted to learn to make them and give them as gifts (to who now? My daughter's college friends???) It's a great craft, but I can't figure it out on my own, and I have no little preschool girls in my life. So, it's one of those things that is cluttering my life and needs to go.

Day 253: Cake Pans

When I took cake decorating as a 4-H activity, I became enamoured with the craft. As I grew, I poured over Wilton Cake Decorating catalogs and saved money to buy specialty pans. I have used that skill for many events through the years, but that hobby has waned as my family discovered Paul's Bakery (a cake place in our town.)

My precious pans...that I haven't used in years..need to go. If I want to be creative, I can do so with my 9 x 13 or 9 inch rounds. Hopefully someone else starting out in cake decorating can enjoy them! (It's hard to let the horseshoe pan go...used it as for roller coaster cake once!!)

Day 252: Cast offs

I am taking some clothing cast offs to Goodwill. My son and daughter cleaned out closets and their cast offs will provide others with some still usable clothing.

Day 251: Paper vs. Electronic

There's something about writing a check, putting it in an envelope, and setting it in the mailbox that seems like the right way to pay bills. However, there is the dilemma of filing the rest of the bill or shredding it.

To try to simplify, we could go to all electronic bill paying through the Internet and cut down on paper. Have any of you taken this course of action?