30 bags in 30 days decluttering method

I started on January 1st following a thread on Mumsnet.
Day 1 one item ,day 2 get rid of 2 items etc.
16 items a day over the month. I’m struggling now as I didn’t have much stuff to start with.

Old receipts, job applications,contracts, payslips all gone after years of being filed away.

I was inspired by The Gentle Art Of Swedish Death Cleaning a while ago and made a start but ground to a halt…

Well I have made a start!

I have booked a slot at Oxfam for donations on Monday and have also 2 friends coming to help go through papers which have become too daunting a task. My late DH was keen to rescue archives from landfill but so far I have had no joy in finding who should be keeping them now

During lockdown my poor DD had a fire in an uninsured barn/ garage where much of their belongings were being stored between houses.
She was so relieved that noone was hurt, and said that it was just "stuff" and told people who kindly offered her money to donate it instead to a homeless charity. I am very proud of my girl.

I label my boxes, makes life and sorting so much easier. Freezer drawers too and I don`t have to search for contents. Matching boxes collected over a long time. Really useful, make of boxes, in garage and craft cupboards. Curver with lids in living areas

I'm in too although I would like to make my goal one bag a week. Sizes can vary and may include refuse bags. I am a perfectionist and even decluttering involves making decisions which I have trouble making and developing some system type of a system with a hierarchy and a rationale. Because I can't live up to these impossibly high standards I tend to procrastinate. BUT I am happy to be part of this group!

As I have said before, clearing the stuff out is not my problem - it's how to get rid of it. There are not many options available here in Germany. I could dump some in the rubbish, but our rubbish is charged extra if we exceed the 13 wheelie bins a year. Charity shops do not exist, at least not within 40 km of where I live.

Selling each individual item on eBay is very tedious.

I have heard that there are some local groups on various neighbourhood websites where you can offer stuff but there were about 20 people registered last time I looked at ours. The small ads in the local paper are always several pages, but I've never had any luck there. Car boot sales have gone out of fashion since COVID.

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Day 2: I took these to the village recycling hub only to find the clothing banks have been removed! We used to have a dog bin, tetrapak container, clothing/textile bins and bottle banks. First, the dog bin went, next it was the tetrapak bin. (Local authority explained that people were putting the 'wrong thing's into it. I hope it wasn't in response to the loss of the dog bin but it wouldn't surprise me 😳) and now the clothing bins have gone. Now I have a ten mile journey to dispose of my two bags. As it happens, I did take a few bottles down tho the local hub.... just one or two, you know... 😇
I also found a couple of £1 coins in the pocket of a pair of jeans I was taking for recycling. I've kept them! 😂

I have excess pots of paint, brushes - was thinking of binning, however elder GC came round to paint school project last night, so we're still hoarding.

I've only done 2 bags, must try harder😬

Nice to see lots of you are making progress . It’s so frustrating though when you can’t always take your stuff to somewhere suitable for recycling etc.

Day 4 - lots of paperwork sorted. I feel I’ve cheated a bit though as some of it was just household admin which everyone has to cope with - not just we hoarders!

Among the stuff were newspaper cuttings of recipes and exercise routines which will never be practised, so, at least those were what I call “clutter”.

I live on my own and hardly ever cook fancy meals and I’m too lazy to do any exercise - so, out they go!

I am constantly sorting out and have always got a carrier bag waiting to go to the hospice shop. Strangely though I don't seem to gain any space!
I made my husband watch the Stacey Solomon show the other day as he will not part with anything. It didn't have any effect! He gave up work after having a stroke 12 years ago but we still have a double wardrobe full of suits, shirts and ties. Along with about 30 pairs of shoes that don't fit now that his feet are always swollen and over 100 pairs of socks that won't fit anymore. He will not let me send any of this to charity as he might need them one day!
I'm not an angel though as I have about 300 books waiting to be read and boxes full of craft stuff that I'm slowly using up.
I will try the one bag a week system though.

Pittcity

I volunteer in a charity shop.😀We hardly bin anything. There are people who will pay by weight for clothing, shoes, books and bric a brac. This is mostly recycled and makes a few pounds for the charity.

I second that.

Even though it is a few years since I worked at a charity shop, we took in all sorts as we could get money from such people as 'the rag man'.

If you don't think clothing could be donated to the charity shop because it is damaged, take it anyway. Admittedly, this is 1980s prices, but we used to get £1.50 per bag (a bit bigger than the black bin bags) of clothing. Just make sure it is clean first - you don't want to know what kind of 'things' we "sorters" had to deal with!

Books brought in a few pennies from recycling so don't worry if they're a bit tatty. Just check with the shop if they accept books etc for recycling.

Many charities do home collection but often only for furniture or large items. Locally, Heart Foundation, Barnados and the Sally Army are the ones that spring to mind.

I often ask what the charity is accepting donations of when I drop of a bag off. That way I know who will take what and save myself lugging it around from place to place. No easy task now I don't drive!

Freegle is good for 'getting rid' of a lot of usable clutter, if the charity shops aren't interested - so long as you are comfortable with people coming to the house to collect it from you.

If you want to try and make a few pennies, car boots, vinted and ebay are good - just make sure you haven't chucked out things that could work as packaging, lol.

Another avenue to get shot of things that are in good nick but you can't/don't want to sell or the charities won't take them - pile them by the gate with a sign "free to a good home". A lot of people do that where I live and nothing seems to be out there for long!

There's an organisation near me (Hampshire) that takes old tools - hand tools as well as power - cleans them up/repairs them then sends them out to Third World countries. Well worth a quick google to see if there's an organisation like that near you.

Pittcity

I watched the Stacey Solomon programme last night. Does anyone, except for those who are on social media, actually live with everything in neatly labelled boxes?

A lot of stuff is in boxes but not neatly labelled.

I can't promise to do a bag a day but some days I could fill a bin bag, others very little or nothing. Yesterday I had a good turnout of old clothes and old toiletries.

Before Christmas we sorted out toys and bags of other items to take to the charity shop.

I find difficulty getting rid of things that have sentimental value, items the DC gave us, old books, old china from DM and DMIL even if I don't really still want them.

Can I put corroded batteries into the bins they have in shops for old ones? I do seem to have a lot of old batteries. I’m never sure that something isn’t working because it’s broken or the batteries are dead so I tend to hang onto them.

If you don't think clothing could be donated to the charity shop because it is damaged, take it anyway
I do that and stick a label on it "For the ragman" to save them going through it all.

We have an upcycling centre near us which renovates furniture and other items and then sells it all.

Callistemon21, I do too, only to get 'told off' last time I took a bag in - I took it to a 'new' shop and was told that it would have given them something to do. Weirdly, they seemed to be quiet on the donations front and were disappointed not to have something to sort through!

C minus - must try harder, here. It's an attitude problem, too. Why am I so very concerned about where my old clutter goes?

I don't want it, so should just get rid, but oh no - the agonising about the whether to leave it outside, which charity shop 'deserves' it - or to Freecycle etc. just doesn't make logical sense. I can put it in bags but they stay in the hall for a long time.

Georgesgran

The Ukraine collections here stipulate new clothing only. Ukraine was my first thought.

Very cheeky, I can't remember when I could buy new clothes, apart from underwear, everything is from charity shops or jumble sales. I am desperate for a couple of warm cardigans but cannot find any 'knits" in the charity shops.

Doodledog

Give them to your children?

I think you'll find that if you tell them that anything they want to keep has to go to their houses it will concentrate their minds.

Mr Dog has a garage full of tools. I have no idea what I'll do with them if they are left for me to sort out. My children are not of the DIY persuasion, so might take a screwdriver each, but as for the rest I have no idea. Do tools go out of date? He won't be persuaded to part with them, which I can understand really, as my knitting stash and paraphernalia fills a double bedroom.

A double bedroom full of knitting things? Are you sure that is not treasure lurking underneath

Tools are always useful, think carefully before you throw them out. I have many different tools and may need the odd one just once but it does save me getting a handyman in. Keep a variety and keep a good drill, plugs and screws. Any of us can do these practical jobs and if a mistake is made then a hole is easily filled and painted over. Keep any lightweight ladders too but not the ouside long ones, unless someone is capable of using them

I am not aiming to fill bags as such but do get rid of things, when I notice them. Last night it was hair and body products that I have had for far too long, at least half a bag worth

I started decluttering about 4 years ago. The last 18 months in earnest. Still going!
I dont think the house looked that bad. But the house is large enough that I could put things in corners and largely forget about them.
And one of the bedrooms had more in it than it should have done.

I started decluttering as helped a couple of other people empty out houses after a death.
Didnt want my kids to have to do the same after I was gone. And they wouldnt have known what may be important to keep and what not.

A double bedroom full of knitting things? Are you sure that is not treasure lurking underneath

Oh there is, without a doubt - and it's not all lurking. That's why I don't see it as clutter, but as a hoard of goodies. My point was that Mr Dog looks on his tools in the same way, with is why I can't complain about it (or not too loudly, at least )

RVK1CR

Georgesgran

The Ukraine collections here stipulate new clothing only. Ukraine was my first thought.

Very cheeky, I can't remember when I could buy new clothes, apart from underwear, everything is from charity shops or jumble sales. I am desperate for a couple of warm cardigans but cannot find any 'knits" in the charity shops.

When DD was staying she found some brand new clothes in local charity shops, still with labels. Apparently they had been donated as ends of ranges by firms, not by individuals.

Do tools go out of date?

DH stills uses some which were my Dad's.

Oh dear, I seem to be tidying cupboards rather than decluttering today.

Must be more ruthless.

Doodledog

*A double bedroom full of knitting things? Are you sure that is not treasure lurking underneath*

Oh there is, without a doubt - and it's not all lurking. That's why I don't see it as clutter, but as a hoard of goodies. My point was that Mr Dog looks on his tools in the same way, with is why I can't complain about it (or not too loudly, at least )

Perhaps I could give my bag of GC craft yarn, not in use, to help fill a spot in your room? I'd have removed a bag in my de-clutter quest.