Getting rid of unused/unwanted clutter at home

Our local hospital has a thriving book room full of donated books and it is very popular with visitors. Prices are between 50p and £1.50. Also, selection of the books are taken round the wards for the patients to read and return, like a mobile Library.

We must have a lot of keen, old-fashioned readers here. I know of two of our local charity shops who are asking for "More books please!" Books never run out of battery power at a vital spot in the plot.

Aely

For anybody still checking in - not been online for a few days, but news is, daughter has a sewing machine repair place near her. She is looking into getting my ancient Singer back into working order, either as a hand machine or a new motor. Once fixed, it can go back into use, perhaps through the TWAM scheme.

I took my 2 machines to the TWAM collection point on Saturday. Lovely people.
He told me they send 15 shipping containers a year to Africa.
Thanks for that info BlueBelle

RedRidingHood

Oxfam always want books.
And so do most charity shops..Do try them.

They don't actually. I've tried most charity shops and they all have more books than they can sell. Might sell more if they put 20p on instead of £2 but I guess they know what they are doing.
One shop said they would take half a dozen books if they were popular fiction.
The book bank at the tip was overflowing and the man told me it hadn't been emptied in years.
I think people just read digital now like me.

As for china tea sets, in the hospice shop they were marked up for £5 for a whole tea set. I asked why so cheap and she said they get lots given and no-one buys them.

Our charity shops only want paperbacks. I take mine to my groups that have Bring & Buy tables.
As for old china tea sets, as you say, nobody wants them now except for vintage tea shops.

For anybody still checking in - not been online for a few days, but news is, daughter has a sewing machine repair place near her. She is looking into getting my ancient Singer back into working order, either as a hand machine or a new motor. Once fixed, it can go back into use, perhaps through the TWAM scheme.

B&Q also have a charity book table.

Some supermarkets, for example Morrisons, have a table/bookcase just after the checkouts, where you can leave books, to sell in aid of Marie Curie Nurses.

Oxfam always want books.
And so do most charity shops..Do try them.

They don't actually. I've tried most charity shops and they all have more books than they can sell. Might sell more if they put 20p on instead of £2 but I guess they know what they are doing.
One shop said they would take half a dozen books if they were popular fiction.
The book bank at the tip was overflowing and the man told me it hadn't been emptied in years.
I think people just read digital now like me.

As for china tea sets, in the hospice shop they were marked up for £5 for a whole tea set. I asked why so cheap and she said they get lots given and no-one buys them.

Your nearest pet rescue might take your old but cleaned towels and bedding.

yogitree, find/buy/repurpose a special and 'beautiful' box to store all of your family archives. Dispose/recyle the old containers. That way your treasures are all together and safe, and you can forge ahead with clearing your home.

Another large carrier bag away to Charity Shop today with clothing, bags etc. Started preparing another with kitchen utensils, pots, vases etc for tomorrow. On a roll!

Grammaretto

It's much easier with another person isn't it Madeleine. I find if I try to tackle it alone, I either get engrossed re- reading old letters or paralysed by the sheer scale of the task. I think I have been trying to declutter since DH died nearly 5 years ago. Progress is so slow.

I have an Italian helper coming in a week or so to stay and I hope, together we will make great strides.

What to do with 2 pairs of practically unworn Galloway clogs?

I can commiserate. My mother (who kept every receipt, milestone etc etc) died 10 years ago After 2 months clearing her house- selling, rehoming, etc I have since been gradually chipping away at the remaining items which are mainly sentimental, including a load of letters, passports, photos etc from early 1900's which I am loathe to part with partly because I have also started tracing my ancestry plus there are family 'secrets' in there They take up a lot of space and as you say it is easy to get engrossed and/or paralysed by the scale of it all.
Re the clogs, doorstep flower pots?

Just found this link if you are in Scotland (and can't access TWAM)and want to donate sewing machines, tools etc to 3rd world countries.

.https://www.tfsr.org/support/give-tools/

Mine is a bit of a Museum too, although some of it is actually still in use. Bits gathered from granny and mother gradually being sifted out applying usefulness/sentimental filters. As someone commented, things that are meaningful to me are turning out not to matter to my children so that's something to think over, however, I have found this thread very useful to help me prioritise and this morning have hefted a bin bag full of glassware, crockery, books, miscellaneous items to the local charity shop! I will try and keep at it - beginning to hate all this clutter!

My husband proudly announced to a friend. Since we got married I don’t think I have thrown much away.
How true and enough to make me cry.
The junk has moved with us a few times

TanaMa

Some charities find a use for old sewing machines - possibly for overseas. Better than putting in the tip.

BlueBelle posted that information on Saturday. Together with the name of the charity.

Kazzie19 please see my post further up Sewing machines and tools please consider TWAM ( Tools With A Mission) they pick up from your house and repair to send to third world countries to help start up businesses
Textiles Poor third world countries are drowning in our crap it’s awful the amount they have we HAVE to find something we can do with them I m on a mission

The Guardian article is truly shocking. There must be a better way of reusing textiles closer to home than shipping tonnes of unwanted stuff to Africa. Money is being made not from the stuff itself, but from the movement of it...and then it gets dumped.

To echo Lahlah65 -A plea re charity shop donations- if you wouldn’t wear it yourself in time of need, please throw it away and don’t donate it.
Anything personalised, damaged eg broken zips, soiled, heavily worn or smelly should not be donated.
That may sound like stating the obvious but judging by some donations it still needs saying.
Charity shops don’t make money from rags, in most cases they have to pay to get rid of unwanted unsuitable ‘donations’.
Please don’t be offended if the shop won’t accept your donation, most have limited storage space.

I’ve been making good use of Freegle lately to move on things from our own house and also from my mum’s as she’s having a big clear out. I try to give good descriptions and take clear pictures - I sometimes suggest how I think people might use things. Although there are a few time wasters, most people are friendly and reliable and I’ve moved lots of things on in this way. Mum feels so much better when I can explain where her stuff has gone. It does all take time though, doesn’t it? My next task is to put a lot of clothes onto Vinted and/or eBay. If it doesn’t go there, I’ll put it in the charity shop. Because I do gift aid, I get annual statements showing how much my stuff has sold for, and it’s really gratifying sometimes. I take the time to make sure that things are presentable and saleable.

But trying to get DH to clear things out is really difficult. He’s not too bad with his clothes, but his ‘collections’, electrical stuff, tools etc seem to fill up space as fast as I make room!

I would say to please be careful about what you sent to charity shops - it’s costing them a huge amount of money now to dispose of everything they can’t sell. They certainly don’t make money selling rags anymore - there is no value in discarded textiles. I’ve actually started to put things like worn out polyester cotton bedding into my black bin. There is absolutely no way of disposing of this, and too much of it just gets abandoned in Third World countries. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/18/discarded-clothes-from-uk-brands-dumped-in-protected-ghana-wetlands#:~:text=UK%20consumers%20discard%20about%201.5,Photograph:%20Misper%20Apawu/The%20Guardian

On a brighter note, the electrical retailer Curry’s has developed an extraordinary business based around recycling disused electrical equipment. There is a big mesh bin inside each of their stores, and if you put your disused electrical goods in here (you don’t have to have bought them from Currys) you can be sure that they will be properly recycled or disposed of.

I very seldom take anything to the dump - one man's trash is another's treasure and all that.

Every single fabric item goes to the charity shop - they make money out of rags.

I took some branches out of my apple tree. I thought they might do a turn as bean sticks, so offered them on my local help fb page. One taker wanted them for her hamster to chew, another was making a witch's broom for her daughter's costume.

When my aunt died, I called in a house clearer; I was stunned at the bits of what I would consider ugly old vases, figurines etc that he wanted to pay me for. When I cleared the parish rooms, I took this lesson and advertised everything. I made £100 for some broken old furniture and a couple of wooden ladders.

NannieChicken

Saltnshake, I'm trying to declutter my little sewing craft area as well. All those lovely fabrics I've lovingly stored for so long. Dare I get rid of them....No, I might use them one day.
The old VCR, together with so many so many cd's and old books and clothes have gone to charity.
My older sewing machine...hmm, what if my newer one stops working? No, I better hang onto that

My mother's Singer hand sewing machine? What if the electricity goes off, we need more clothes, just as well keep it! And the fabric, some of which has lingering under the stairs for years.

Best of luck Stillness! It stresses me out too, I’m the absolute reverse, as was my mother. Hope you feel better soon.

Oh Bazza, my husband hoards too.. He prides himself in having T-shirts from when he was 20…and he’s 70 now. I’m currently unwell and a bit bad tempered….he is finally getting the message that all this hoarding stresses me out and he has started throwing stuff out. It’s going to be a long journey!

Saltnshake, I'm trying to declutter my little sewing craft area as well. All those lovely fabrics I've lovingly stored for so long. Dare I get rid of them....No, I might use them one day.
The old VCR, together with so many so many cd's and old books and clothes have gone to charity.
My older sewing machine...hmm, what if my newer one stops working? No, I better hang onto that

My husband is a terrible hoarder, and yesterday I persuaded him to make a start to go through his trousers. He had 27 pairs, not including jeans. I very much doubt that he’ll ever get into them again, and even if he did where is he going to wear them? I convinced him that all he needs is one pair of smart black trousers and one navy. 23 pairs are now in the car ready for charity shop. Dreading the shirts which are next, and then there’s jumpers. He’s taken some encouragement but I keep telling him that it’s really not fair on our daughters to leave all his stuff for them to sort through. Then there’s the books, but one step at a time.