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Decluttering

(999 Posts)
Doodledog Sat 21-Sept-24 11:36:44

It’s that time of year.

Who is looking to get rid of extraneous items and declutter their houses ready for winter and associated upcoming festivals?

I have two boxes of books waiting to be collected on Tuesday, and hope to add a few bags of clothing before they get here. My decorator is coming to do various bits and bobs, and I need to clear the decks ahead of that, which is my motivation for starting now.

I also need to clear out a huge kitchen cupboard which will become a walk-in larder if the carpenter ever gets back to me.

What’s on your declutter list? Record your successes and difficulties on this thread and support one another.

No lectures on why we shouldn’t need to declutter, please? We know grin. Start another thread about people who are disorganised or who shouldn’t buy too much in the first place and we can choose not to engage with it. This one is for support, encouragement and celebration of clearing ‘stuff’ from our lives.

MissAdventure Sun 03-Nov-24 23:29:27

I've made a start on my kitchen cupboard.
The horrible one with dusty old airbricks in that you have to virtually climb into.

I already have some mouse mesh, to put up over the airbricks and, of course, my 95 rolls of various sticky tapes to keep it in place.

I am wondering the best way to store saucepan lids, because they are taking up a lot of space in that cupboard.

Any suggestions?

There is a contraption thing you can buy for cupboards like this, but they are really expensive!

Need to carry on in the kitchen, as I've been decorating it for two years now, and still not a lick of paint has Ben put on the walls- it's all repairs, and bodges, so far, which need to be done.

MissAdventure Sun 03-Nov-24 23:30:54

Been not Ben.
If only I had a Ben to come and paint it!

Doodledog Mon 04-Nov-24 00:04:08

Something like one of these?

I saw something else that might work, but might also need someone (Ben? grin) to fit it. It was a sort of tray on runners that went near the top of a drawer to add a separate layer (like a shelf within a drawer) and you lie the pan lids on that.

fancythat Mon 04-Nov-24 07:15:37

We are all making progress, which is great.

I am bogged down by paperwork.
I was doing well these last few months until this.

Oh well. I will get there.
But didnt want to have to spend so much time on it.

I cant just throw it all away.
I know there are details in it that I need.

I may be spending too much time catergorising. Not sure.

MissAdventure Mon 04-Nov-24 08:23:36

I have a suggestion for paperwork which has worked for me.

A folder with separate compartments, which you can label.

Then any paperwork that comes in - bills, appointments, whatever, can just be put into its compartment- without even opening the envelope, if its "one of those days".

At least then you know where to find the letter or bill you need.

Now I have a question. Which is my table covered in paperwork?

fancythat Mon 04-Nov-24 08:31:05

Thank you for the suggestions.

DH deals mainly with the bills.

For my "stuff", I did buy a 12 slot compartment thing. Which works well.

Was going to write some more. But my brain is unsure what my problem is.
Well it is that I write just about everything down[bad memory for some things]. And then dont deal with my scribbles.

MissAdventure Mon 04-Nov-24 08:31:06

Oh yes, thanks. Doodledog.
That pic shows a few different options.

Sometimes I know what I need bit I don't know what it's called to look it up.

The thing I saw has a shelf that pulls out to reveal another shelf, at a different angle, but I'm pretty sure space is wasted on the workings parts.

And of course, I believe that may be a Ben job too.

MissAdventure Mon 04-Nov-24 23:09:48

Today another bedraggled plant has gone, along with the plant pot and the earth.

My No More Nails came by post, ready to fill the gaps in that horrible deep cupboard, too.
Eventually, I'll be ready to paint the walls, and then put down my new rug, which is currently taking up space in Brian cupboard.

There is a method in my madness.. somewhere.
I shall secure my rug in place, using one of my many double-sided tapes. (Also in Brian)

Allira Mon 04-Nov-24 23:12:41

I had a good sort out of paperwork last week but still have far too much.

Weren't computers supposed to mean the ed of unnecessary paperwork?

MissAdventure Mon 04-Nov-24 23:15:20

I'm starting to dread more paperwork arriving by post
I can now understand how people can let these things pile up and overwhelm them.

MayBee70 Mon 04-Nov-24 23:16:17

I might start going through the lentils in my larder. It’s the Melbourne Cup tomorrow morning and I always stay up listening to Australian radio pretending that I’m somewhere in the outback listening to a crackly transistor radio. Note to self, when you look outside tomorrow morning don’t think the car has been stolen: remember you dropped it off at the garage this afternoon.

Doodledog Mon 04-Nov-24 23:17:29

Allira

I had a good sort out of paperwork last week but still have far too much.

Weren't computers supposed to mean the ed of unnecessary paperwork?

They pretty much have for me. I do as much as possible online, so there is next to no paperwork here. The admin still exists, but it happens online, so nothing is lying about and nothing gets lost. I keep a council tax bill to prove we live here, but that's about it. Even things like letters from doctors are photographed and saved in a file labelled 'heath'. Same with receipts etc. It's so much easier.

Allira Mon 04-Nov-24 23:18:25

I should get rid of yarn but have just ordered more. It is to finish a project and I was waiting for it to come back into stock 🤔

Doodledog Mon 04-Nov-24 23:19:58

Oh, yarn is my downfall. I have so much of it that I'll never knit it all up. On Ravelry they call it SAPLE (Stash Above Probable Life Expectancy).

Allira Mon 04-Nov-24 23:22:24

Doodledog

Allira

I had a good sort out of paperwork last week but still have far too much.

Weren't computers supposed to mean the ed of unnecessary paperwork?

They pretty much have for me. I do as much as possible online, so there is next to no paperwork here. The admin still exists, but it happens online, so nothing is lying about and nothing gets lost. I keep a council tax bill to prove we live here, but that's about it. Even things like letters from doctors are photographed and saved in a file labelled 'heath'. Same with receipts etc. It's so much easier.

We need to be ri0utless.

There really is no need for bank statements, credit card statements, all those letters from the bank, are there. I will have a shredding session.

Guidebooks on places we visited 30 years ago?
A very long print of the Bayeux tapestry anyone?

However, one thing DH has done is to type out a list of any bank and savings accounts, contact numbers for his pensions and put them with our wills.etc

Allira Mon 04-Nov-24 23:23:17

Ruthless!

Tomorrow - make an optician's appointment and then throw out all the old spectacles around the house.

fancythat Tue 05-Nov-24 15:37:32

I am far too concerned that the computer systems will break worldwide, to leave things online.
Hence my troubles.

Decided today that if January is a quiet month, like it usually is, I am going to spend a whole two weeks on the subject.
I need a ruthless sort through, branch and something, whatever the expression is.

Doing it piecemeal, is just not good enough any longer.

MissAdventure Tue 05-Nov-24 21:32:09

Nothing achieved today.
Felt really unwell and was in bed
Sigh...

MayBee70 Tue 05-Nov-24 22:13:10

I think I’ve got motivational tiredness. I just want to close my eyes and ignore the chaos I’m surrounded with. At least the boiler has been serviced and my car has passed it’s MOT.

MissAdventure Tue 05-Nov-24 22:54:16

I bet that's a relief.
I need to clear out my food cupboard- some f in should be on the antiques roadshow, and it's all jumbled up in there.

I wouldn't mind, but I do clear and tidy it regularly.

MayBee70 Tue 05-Nov-24 23:41:27

I’m quite obsessive about keeping my larder neat and tidy. But my dislike of throwing things away makes it very cluttered. I just started watching one of those obsessive hoarder programmes and realised that putting everything in large containers is only a short term solution. A sticking plaster job.

MissAdventure Wed 06-Nov-24 09:32:18

Yes, I think for those obsessive people, the large box is a more gentle way of tackling the problem than people coming in and putting it all in a skip.

To deal with the reasons why and how the person hoards, and "cure" them would probably take a whole season of programmes - for one episode, a box will do.

MissAdventure Wed 06-Nov-24 15:15:07

That's the food cupboard cleaned and tidied, containing a few less out of date foods.

Honestly, it's ridiculous!
I could replace the out of date stuff, but I wouldn't, given a chance, because it's not stuff I'd particularly eat. 🙄

Allira Wed 06-Nov-24 15:20:25

Cleared out some kitchen cupboards of 'stuff' ie glass and china, that we just don't use.

I shall need it as soon as it's gone to the charity shop.
Or see a piece of china on the Antiques Road Show worth half a million £ and think - wasn't that the old jug of Auntie's that I threw out?

MayBee70 Wed 06-Nov-24 15:25:16

Allira

Cleared out some kitchen cupboards of 'stuff' ie glass and china, that we just don't use.

I shall need it as soon as it's gone to the charity shop.
Or see a piece of china on the Antiques Road Show worth half a million £ and think - wasn't that the old jug of Auntie's that I threw out?

I know someone that is going to appear in one of those BBC bargain hunt type programmes. He said he had to hide everything in his house that wasn’t politically correct eg anything to do with fox hunting etc.