How good are you at sorting out your life's belongings and how do you decide what to throw away?

Yes, MissA - things I’ve asked the DD’s about having, I’m advised to ‘just get rid Mum’.

Spag that £3K is for a brand new Balmoral. My friend who is very wealthy would be lucky to get £50 for his (it’s not that model) and when he’s gone, I suspect it will end up in a charity shop or skip.

I’m relatively (some might say completely) ruthless. I have one A4 box file that contains some memorabilia from when my sons were young, everything else I’ve asked them if they want - they didn’t, so it’s long gone. My photos are mostly scanned and stored online, although I have 5 albums too. I have two small items that remind me of my grandmothers, and some jewellery from my younger days that I no longer wear, which I’m about to get shot of.

I have two ‘failings’ though: books and a husband.

When we first downsized five years ago, I disposed of 25 large boxes of books, which was very hard, and I still had a couple of thousand (books, not boxes) left. Inevitably, I’ve added a few hundred more since then.

And my husband likes stuff - we have everything from his mother’s school reports to enough camping equipment to start a shop, even though we only use a fraction of it these days. If anyone has a solution for that, short of death or divorce, do let me know!

Mine only want things they remember as children - only arguments when we downsized were over the Christmas decorations 😂

I don’t think my two will want anything - apart from the house, one lives abroad and the other isn’t the slightest bit interested. Though they will be interested in the house 🏠

MissAdventure

I've known quite a few people who have kept things for "their children", only to find their children aren't the slightest bit interested in them.

Mine keep saying that yes, they do want stuff but not yet .....
I'm tempted to fill a crate and ship it off.

Not very good unfortunately. I try but am too sentimental.

I've known quite a few people who have kept things for "their children", only to find their children aren't the slightest bit interested in them.

Am neither ruthless or a hoarder, but as we have a small terraced house things regretfully have to go if we don’t use them or the wider family don’t want them.All the kids things went a long time ago, they didn’t want them and mice had taken most of their soft toys for their nests in the loft.😲

I’m pretty good my loft is 90% empty now and I recently sent a box of stuff to Cashcow after asking my daughters if they wanted any of it made a bit of money and cleared loads of bits and pieces. I still have to finish the garage but I’m happy with progress. I need to steel myself to Chuck out a box full of cards going back years.

Don't forget you can pack things into a box and post to Vintage Cash Cow where you 'll get something for them. These are vintage things the charity shop probably won't want, nothing modern.
www.vintagecashcow.co.uk/
And take a picture of anything nostalgic, then you have a permanent record of it. 🥰

Not good at all.
Actually going through stuff at the moment.
The tension causes me back pain.
I'm doing at least two -four hours a day .
I'm not enjoying it at all !

Visgir1

Granmarderby10

…hmmm, now books are another thing though🥲

I'm the opposite on books, once read in charity bag, big dust collectors. My DH likes to hang onto them.
I do a mega sort only about once a year but we still have useless stuff hanging around.

But we've got shelves of books that aren't just modern novels, many are very old ones from MIL's house.

I'm hopeless, JaneJudge.
Every time I'm ruthless and throw things out, I regret it but DH is worse, won't get rid of stuff. It's just stuff as my friend used to say.

For your DC you could buy a scrapbook each (or two).
You can put their old records, sports/dance/music certificates etc in slots along with photos and other memories.
I bought some about 20 years ago with the intention of making one for each but haven't done them yet.

I must find that Round Tuit.

It's so hard isn't it Jane.

We're moving out of a huge 4 bedroom, 2 living room, 2 bathroom and large kitchen diner and separate utility room house into a furnished double lodge!!! We will live between that and a small furnished flat.

I'm amazed at how much stuff we've got rid of already, and we are today making enquiries for a huge skip to be delivered next week.

Despite being far more ruthless than I thought I could be, we'll be storing 2 boxes of photo's yet to be gone through and a box that contains the wedding dress my gran made for my mum, my wedding dress and the beautiful jackets, leggings, cardigans, booties and mittens my gran lovingly knit for our boys when they were born.

I can't bring myself to get rid of them and as we do have room to store them at our flat, I'm keeping them.

There's nothing wrong with keeping hold of some things you can't bring yourself to part with, and as you do have a loft to store them in, I'd do it.

I don't have any regrets about parting with the things that have gone and will be gone by the time we've finished and that's the best way to be.

I hope you'll be happy in your new home.

Granmarderby10

…hmmm, now books are another thing though🥲

I'm the opposite on books, once read in charity bag, big dust collectors. My DH likes to hang onto them.
I do a mega sort only about once a year but we still have useless stuff hanging around.

Here for the past few years we do have to applyfor a season “pass” to avoid all the cars queuing to get in.
It works well as the staff have plenty of time to help and direct.

I try to give away special items to my family now so they can have the pleasure of using them. When it comes to know what to do with everything, I keep things that have sentimental value and give pleasure and if they are useful, otherwise they go to charity.

I am going through this now. I am moving to a small one bed flat next months, so even though this house isn't large, there is still too much stuff1

I am being fairly ruthless as I really won't have anywhere to store things that just aren't going to be used. I have kept a lot of my son's things from when they were young. I have asked them if they will ever want them, and the answer is no. So they will now go to the tip!

…hmmm, now books are another thing though🥲

I don’t really care whether anyone will want my stuff when I am dead, but I do attempt to organise my rammel such as special greetings cards, tickets to events and such. Same with photos.
I regularly get the best full length mirror out when alone, prop it up and go through every item and if it’s not a good comfortable fit it gets washed, folded, bagged and off it goes to a charity shop.

I’m in the ruthless gang!

All done on an annual basis with charity shop runs or skip if it’s beyond redemption.

Every time I visit my dad I go into a decline as I look around and know that he hasn’t cleared a thing since my stepmother died 12 years ago. My brothers and I are dreading the day…

Should say jotters

I downsized six years ago when I retired. I split the photographs between my two children and gave them to them. I kept a few which I have framed in the hall. All toys, childhood mementoes were given to the appropriate child to dispose of as they wished. I warned them I was throwing out old jitters etc by a certain date to if they wanted them. I had a garage full of other people's stuff, not mine. One warning then it was disposed of, to a charity shop, the original owner if appropriate or the dump. I must have had a season ticket for the dump! The more I removed, the lighter I felt. Now, every year, I do my Swedish Death Clean and get rid of more stuff. This year my daughter got the jewellery I no longer wear but she wanted. The rest went to the charity shop. Last week I got rid of lots of books that were dad's and had never been looked at in years. Good luck!

My sister-in-law could not let go of anything, Their loft was full, then suddenly her husband died and she deteriorated via dementia. She is now in a care home and her two grieving children had to clear everything in order to sell the home, both had to travel considerable distances. Many of us do this sorting in order to help our children

There are de-cluttering threads on GN, on the house thread

Many of us have been in a similar position OP. Our move from the family home involved skips and giving away as much as we could including chicken house and horse equipment. That was only the start

Then there were more downsizing moves and later I had to clear when I was widowed and again when I moved myself to an area that was better for me. The men at the tip said that most people go time and time again after moving house as almost everyone thinks they have cleared but not in reality cleared enough

Now I still de-clutter but it has slowed to a very nice and manageable level

I’m ruthless too, anything of my children’s past was offered to them when they left home, if they didn’t want it, out it went. I have two pictures from my parent’s house and a paperweight, that’s it. A box of photos and a few albums are now with my daughter, more recent ones are online, stored away.
So, to answer the OP, I don’t keep anything that’s not being used.