Clutter free help please

And little I ever price check on eBay is worth the effort of selling it so it goes to friends or charity. Did get rid of an old camera for £50:Buyer was thrilled
Gave my hairdresser DH telescope which had languished in our loft for 30 years He was thrilled too
The 35 year old cross country skis went to the tip-somehow dont think I'll be risking them again
It's very liberating

Hi, I find charity shops just throw items away. Go round the back of one and have a look. I have a page on my pc I can print that says PLEASE HELP YOURSELF. What ever I have I don't need, I wait for a dry day and put it outside. You'd be amazed at what goes. I do live on a road that's quite busy. I really really like to recycle and this is the ultimate recycling, no car needed or picky charity shops. My last success, after two dry days and a box of things, the last item, a small sheet of glass I maybe bought for a picture, was taken to be used by someone. Brilliant.

Hi, I find charity shops just throw items away. Go round the back of one and have a look. I have a page on my pc I can print that says PLEASE HELP YOURSELF. What ever I have I don't need, I wait for a dry day and put it outside. You'd be amazed at what goes. I do live on a road that's quite busy. I really really like to recycle and this is the ultimate recycling, no car needed or picky charity shops. My last success, after two dry days and a box of things, the last item, a small sheet of glass I maybe bought for a picture, was taken to be used by someone. Brilliant.

Forgot to mention that my big declutter was stimulated & assisted by a book. No not written by Marie Kondo - I don't thank socks! But by Cynthia Friedlob called 'Sorting it out - one disorganised woman solves the problem of too much stuff' I certainly identified with that at one point but not now!

She has also written another book about dressing yourself at a certain age 'How to get dressed without driving yourself crazy'.

Although Cynthia is from the US I like her down to earth approach.

Thanks grannyjack. I just bought both those books for my kindle fire. I desperately need to declutter. Now Ill sit around reading them but maybe Ill be galvanised into action! I know I'm just bone idle rather than hanging on to stuff for sentimental reasons but I'm also happier when things are tidy. Discipline! That's what I really need...

I hate it when my auto correct puts ill instead of I'll and I don't notice

Might take a bit of time to galvanise you as the decluttering one is quite anecdotal but there is some sound stuff in there. I did identify with her so that helped.
Bloody autocorrect! But what drives me mad is although I check the post over - & it still contains rubbish.

My husband and I have just finished clearing out our loft. We started this job last summer. Husband would bring down two boxes a week and that was our weekend for a good few months, it has been so worth it. We now really just have our Christmas things up there, and two or three boxes and bags which belong to our adult children , so it is their stuff to sort out anyway.
I wish we had done this years ago, but husband was reluctant. I insisted that I did not want our adult children left with the loft to clear. Husband and I had done the house clearing for three aged parents , after they died. My mothers house was small and she did not have much. My in-laws who were lovely people but came from and had themselves,large families ,it was a nightmare. They never threw anything out. I vowed I would not be leaving all that for my own children to do. So now it is done. I have not flung photographs out, BUT, they are all condensed now into albums in just one box, what a difference. We threw out loads, some of the people we did not even know, and there were other photos where they would have meant nothing. I wrote on the back who was who, along with date,time and place. The children may not keep them all but they will have alot less to go through. I feel relieved now it is done, and I am now starting the top of the house and working my way down. Yes, it will take time but will be worth it in the end.

Two bags sorted for the clothing bank (admittedly tip of the iceberg but it's a start) and the recycling bin is now half full (it was emptied a few days ago). Yip! Yip! I'm going to take a photo before I go any further so I have evidence to help prevent me from going back.

Marie Kondo's book inspired me to send 2 bags of clothes which didn't 'spark joy' to a charity collection and to have just one drawer of neatly folded tops, very easy to see. More room in the wardrobe so that I can see what I have!
Flylady's website encourages 'baby steps', routines, a big clear calendar and 'you can do anything for 15 minutes.'
Must go and tackle a 'hot spot' (those flat surfaces which attract oddments), Flylady again.

Such good suggestions from Gransnet on decluttering. One small tip I can add is that once you pick something up to deal with it don't put it down again until you have dealt with it and you have put it in its final destination.

Keep a hole punch and lever arch files to hand for immediate filing of papers then have the triage bags or boxes ready for: dustbin, give away, recycle, sell.

Walk around your house and take a realistic look at what you do have space for. Plan out what the storage place is going to be for each kind of item for all the things that cause your clutter such as clothes, coats, footwear and accessories, memorabilia and photos, Christmas decorations, books, important papers and instruction leaflets, display of ornaments and knick knacks, office stationery, vacuum cleaner and cleaning materials, fabrics and hobby equipment, extra crockery, linen, cutlery and glassware, luggage and suitcases, newspapers and magazines. Then you will be able to step back and work out what you have got room for and this will help you decide what to keep.

If you have a lot of things that are kept just in case they will come in useful or for various projects just remind yourself that you really can't store them any more and that someone else will use them. Then be ruthless!

Also as I found with my Morher's house when I cleared it, piles of things that don't get used deteriorate, attract dust, vermin and insects and just go out of fashion and not in a good way so they end up going to landfill.

Don't charity shop stuff too quickly. I have today taken out of the bag, two giraffes, a candle holder, and a small 'leaves set in glass' hanging ornament. And a wooden duck. Can't understand why I thought I didn't want them. Guess it was an after Xmas thing. (I have been thinking the living room was looking a bit bare. Better now. )

That might not have been very helpful.

One way that I'm really lucky is in not storing anything in the loft. Many years ago we upgraded to 10" of insulation up there and the installers just rolled it out right over the boarded walkway! That prevented us from refilling it with junk! I do blame the clutter in certain rooms on the loft being off limits though. The Christmas decorations used to go up there and now it's difficult to find a home for them.

But it might come in useful!!

If only DD would clear out her stuff we could put the Christmas decorations in her wardrobe.
Or downsize

Do I love it, Do I want it, Do I need it?

Jingl ??? Everyone needs a wooden duck in their lives!

We used to have a caravan in N Wales and once when D and SiL were visiting SiL saw and really liked a large wooden duck in a gift shop on Anglesey. The shop was closed so the next time we were there we went over, an hours journey to buy it for him for C******s. Within weeks every garden centre within 2miles had them in. ?
This has made me wonder who got custody of if in the separation.

Jalima - when I was small my mother used to say
'Do I want it? Of course.
Do I need it? I think I do.
Can I do without it?'

The final answer, for most things was 'I can.'

That was her way of getting through the 1940s.

That was about buying, not decluttering, I should add.

Jinglebellsfrocks - how do you accommodate 2 giraffes in the living room?

Is this some sort of joke? Like elephants in a mini?

You mean that not every home has giraffes?

I used to take great comfort from friends who said that they loved coming to my house because it was so relaxing. I'm not entirely sure that it was a compliment

At least they went home thinking how wonderfully tidy their own homes were

We need to downsize from a four bedroom house due to deteriorating health. How do I let go of sentimental things? I don't have a Kindle but love books. My art book collection Is worth a bit of money. I thought about Ebay but can't work out all the individual book postage costs. I have hundreds in a huge box in the garage.I gave a lot of art materials to the art college where I trained. How do you give things away without feeling like you're giving parts of your life away? Thanks for the tips. They're really helping.