Self confessd Hoarder

mammamags
Try not to buy any more. (easier said than done, I just sent for some more)
I know it's tempting but you could do something with all your stash even if you can't manage to use it yourself.
DD 'inherited' lots of fabric which she knew she would never use so she got together a group of ladies and they make cotton quilts which will go to a charity for African orphanages.

Keep your best machines and sell the rest?

Oh mamamags how I relate to your post I used to have my own craft shop and did workshops which I loved, due to health probs had to give up 7yrs ago, I now have double garage full of craft 'stuff' also a large purpose built shed full of craft 'stuff' and I craft from my dining room which is also full of craft 'stuff'.
Thing is I haven't been able to craft for over 6 months but I still get pleasure from buying the 'stuff' and I can't throw anything away, the guilt I feel when parcel is delivered is unbelievable but in my heart I want to get back to my old life

Some very lovely and useful responses there and I have taken them all on board. Thanks everyone. Even though I won't be here to care what happens, I simply can't leave my lovely offspring with this problem to sort out. So I am adding to my hoarding collection, huge plastic storage bins and placing labels( of which I have loads)of my chosen charities and at least that will make things simpler for them and I can still carry on with these hobbies of mine. And now that they will all be nicely labelled it will make it easier for me to find when I need them.

Now!! Where on earth am I going to store all of these plastic bins???

My FiL hoarded jam jars with rusty nails and screws in. My MiL had a stockpile of BioTex - to which she was allergic! Me, I can't throw away plastic containers. I think it comes of being a war baby, brought up on (proper!) austerity.

I have mixed feelings about hoarding as I am really trying to de-clutter but do still buy new things. I have my sons at home and they have lots of clutter. However, I am now thinking about stuff I inherited and other old things - will my sons just dump it when I'm gone? Should I just get rid of some of it now? I've realised some things I keep just because I've had them a long time - it makes it seem difficult to get rid of them.

Since having to clear my FIL's house of the National Collections of Jubilee clips and polythene bags, I am trying not to leave the same problem to my children. So each spring and autumn I sort the items I have not touched in the last 6 months and try to dispose of something. This time it has been candles - I have kept half my collection, the rest to a charity shop to make it seem worthy.

Difficult one this...... I had son 2 empty my very full loft whilst I was away and not let me see a single item. Have to say haven't needed anything that might have been up there but have had the occasional 'wonder what happened to???' That soon passes.

I still have a couple of items made by my FinL and inherited by my husband. They are beautiful and I cannot part with them BUT they are a burden of sorts. I neither need or use them and I have very happy memories of him without 'stuff'. Explain this if you can, ladies.

I think de-cluttering is an act of kindness. I did my Mum's and I honestly wish I had given the keys to a complete stranger. It was a heart wrenching experience as well as physically demanding.

My parents in law have moved three times in the last ten years or so and each time they've had a drastic clear out of books and other things they had been holding on to. So my major concern is for the contents of my father in law's study as a lot of his work (yes, he's still working almost full time in his eighties) is highly confidential. Even if some of the paperwork can be returned to the various commissioning organisations it will still need sorting first and I'm dreading it, I think we'll need an industrial shredder. My mother in law's only passion is music so I think her music scores can probably be donated to her musical friends and hopefully she will dispose of her grand piano in her will.
My teaching materials and lesson plans are what might cause my family a headache to sort, but I can't get rid of them as I'm still using them so maybe I'll leave a note that they're to go to a charity that offers English lessons.

I helped a friend clear a deceased relative's flat a few years ago . When we opened a kitchen cupboard we discovered 20 bottles of Aludrox indigestion medicine that she had been ordering on her repeat prescription but never used ! I have a mother aged 93 who is still in the large family home with every room and a cellar stuffed full of both my mum and my Dad's possessions .He died ten years ago but my siblings and I have just left it all to do a massive clear out when the house is eventually sold as it would distress my mum too much now . My DH is an appalling hoarder but I have a twice yearly cull now to try and keep things under control !

My husband's parents were hoarders, especially his father. When they both died it was very difficult for him to have to dispose of things which, useless and unusable as they were, had been kept through several house moves 'in case they came in handy'. It took time, money (he had to get a house disposal person in) and was emotionally wearing. I felt it would have been kinder had they taken a few tough decisions for themselves.

I am also a hoarder of craft stuff and also have lots of books,some new,some very old.I cannot bring myself to part with them and have a sneaking suspicion that my daughter will enjoy sifting through it all when I am gone.
If your hoard brings happy memories or gives you comfort then I think you should keep it.It is part of your life history.

Massive hoarder here! Also, I'm an enthusiastic taker-up and dropper of hobbies, so there's stuff in all nooks and crannies (usually hidden, as my extreme lack of commitment is embarrassing). The violin I never learnt, the 12 month writing course with 11 months unopened, the language tapes,fitness stuff beyond imagining, crafts galore. I know exactly what will happen when I go. Very-organised-and-minimalist DD will order in a couple of skips, socially-conscious DS will bring in a local charity with a big van, and there'll be a stand off at the front door as very-much-like-me DD stops them getting rid of anything, and loads it all into her car.

I think I'd better start sorting it all, for the sake of future family harmony.

Since turning 70 I am trying to be less of a hoarder. My husband suggests a one in one out habit especially with clothes. Cutting back on ornaments and trinkets to cut back on cleaning. My biggest concern is a garage full of goodness knows what. The task for clearing seems too great.

Try to keep a charity bag on the go.

Oh yes I'm a hoarder of craft bits and enough wool to knit a scarf to tie round the world! I can't resist buying odd balls or bags full from the charity shops.
My other weakness is blue and white China and pale blue vintage glassware. Trouble is my cupboards are full to bursting with items waiting to be put on display! All purchased from charity shops or car boots so not a fortune to buy.

I love decluttering. It's a hobby for me! However I knit, and can't through away anything related to it.

Since sorting out my mum's house I have got rid of lots of clutter. I know I won't be there to worry but it was so upsetting disposing of things she had once loved but then simply stored away in bedrooms until they were so full they couldn't be used. She loved sewing and crafts and kept on buying stuff even when she couldn't do it anymore. As someone said, craft stuff was easy to find homes for. Fabric and sewing stuff went to charities who make clothes for children here or in other countries, but other personal treasures have little value and even charity shops won't take everything.
I don't want to land my children with the same task so I'm keeping the things that I really treasure and getting rid of anything else.

I moved home this year. What a chuck-out!But I couldn't bring myself to get rid of ( throwing out or passing on ) my supply of cake tins, loaf tins and baking trays, even though I should not be eating what I bake in them. I also could not prune my cookery books. I was a devil for keeping out of date tins of food, but my daughter went through those and stood over me while I binned them. Because I'm so close to shops now I won't do that again - I promise.

I don't hoard because my husband does. I do have lots of art materials but that's because I paint. When I retired I threw out all my teaching resources, records etc. And I have even given over 1000 books to charity shops. I regularly go through my wardrobe too. I'm not a paragon of virtue. I just don't want to leave a mess for someone else to clear up.

I felt like you mamamags and last year made a new year resolution to get rid of one thing every day. I joined a group who make items for NICU s across the country and have had hours of fun making things for this worthwhile cause.

If you want to keep it round you, keep it round you and forget what will happen when you are not longer here. That's not for you to worry about now. If you get pleasure from having your stuff around, then have it.

I have lots of little things around which bring me comfort and I couldn't care less what other people think. I need them around me. I have been throwing some things out too and have took a trip to the tip a few times recently but it just highlights the things which I really want to keep and to have beside me.

One way to do it if you want to get rid of some stuff is to take photos of it and to do an album of favourite things. That way you still have a memory of it but it is not cluttering up, but only if you want to get rid of it.

If you do get rid of any of your craft items, then think about charities like the one on diy sos last night, a young carers charity where young carers meet up and have some time out from their caring responsibilities. That sort of charity would love some craft items and it would benefit all of you. Just a thought. X

I am not a hoarder myself, but why don't you arrange for the local Embroiderers Guild, or Womens Institute or similar to have your crafting things( After you shuffle off of course). You could as another poster suggested have them all tide in boxes, write to the said organisation with the promise of what is to come, inform your nearest and dearest of you wishes, and hey presto all that is needed is a telephone call, and someone should come and collect it all.

ps does Carnation Caramel in a tin go off?

What about a tin of butter beans two years out of date, should I carry on hoarding them?
The juicer which DD loves but she left home years ago?
George Foreman grill anyone?

I have a hi-dome pressure cooker thank you, Elegran, at the back of the cupboard.

I think we too are entitled to live our lives and enjoy them - not just prepare the way for the youngsters. I try to keep things fairly tidy but I'm sure my son and family will just hire a skip for all my hobbies when the time comes. In fact I'm sure they are just glad that I am happy and busy so that they can get on with their own lives.

What does it matter if things are chucked after you are gone?
If you are enjoying them and finding them useful now, that is what they are for.