De-cluttering, the never-ending process

Welcome to the Clutter Club, HelterSkelter! Honestly, if you make a start on the Big Sort you won't believe how much you can get rid of by this time next year. It's about 18 months ago that I started by clearing out a sideboard, and since then I've worked my way around the house, decorating and clearing space. It's made a huge difference.

I had a lot of time off between spurts, but when I decide to 'go for it' I've got quite ruthless. When I get the bedrooms back I will have another clearout of the various wardrobes, finding the things that survived the first round of sorting and getting rid of those. I'm hoping to make a habit of decluttering .

I’ve rearranged the kitchen cupboards so I can, hopefully put the mugs in there that I’ve bought over the years. Never use them: just display them in the dresser ( which I now have to clear).

I have kept so much stuff since we married. Loads of toys, but neither daughters have had children and not likely to now. I was able to sort out a large box with my daughters' agreement and they went to a neighbour with 4 children. So some space in that cupboard.

But I still have so much furniture, soft furnishings etc etc which the girls are unlikely to want. Like so many others I have some of my parents things as well. So many things hardly used so I shouldn't really miss them, but I will.

This is the winter for the Big Sort. Good idea to photo things before I say goodbye to them.

This year I was going to have the porch rebuilt and the garage re roofed so I could store things in it. I also planned to put a heated clothes airier in the garage. Because of the asbestos problem none of it has been done. But I am cleaning and tidying the garage ( my ex has finally moved his stuff out of it) and I’m going to store things there in containers. My house is full of the sort of things that most people store in their garage. I’m also going through several items of upcycled furniture. I git a bit obsessive about buying things from charity shops and Annie Sloaning them. I don’t want to get rid of it because, if I downsize at some point I might wish I’d still got some of it. There’s a bookcase that m ex’s father or grandfather made for him and a lovely wash stand with beautiful Mackintosh type tiles. The local bric a brac shop says no one wants them these days.

Well, the back bedroom is finished, the carpet fitter is coming in the morning, and all going well I will order a new bed when he's done and I have spoken to the shop. Progress is being made.

Tomorrow I have a few work things to do, but the weekend is going to be devoted to sorting out the room with the yarn in it. It's getting tricky now though. The back room is painted, but until the carpet goes down we can't put anything back in it, and other rooms need to be cleared. The decorator is starting on our room next (the one with all the wardrobes), so that will be out of action for a while. We're running out of places to put things, and goodness knows where all the wardrobes are going to go.

I keep repeating 'All things must pass' to myself.

Maybee, I understand that. I have got out of bed in the middle of the night just to look in a place that might have had a missing part. It disturbs me a lot if I cannot find something

I need to get some self-control, this being indoors while it is gloomy and raining out, I have done enough hobby crafting today and find myself yet again online and buying more sewing patterns. I will be making each of them and yes I already have the fabric. I think I need the endorphins, which I get when I buy patterns, fabric or wool

The dresser is full of exquisite little things that my daughter made when she was little and I’m going to ask her to take them to her house. I think I’ll shed a few tears when they go

Something I saw on, I think, House Doctor, Maybee, take photographs and put them in an album.

Although I'm not sure if that would help or make it worse!

There is a whole alcove (shelved) of stash yarn in a fairly large bedroom - it is beyond a joke

If you have a Knit and Natter or a U3A Craft group near you they might be glad of it because they will knit/crochet things for charity.
I gave a big bag of various yarns to someone whose mother makes blankets for care homes.

I gave my youngest grandson a chess set that I’d bought for my eldest grandson because he’d taken an interest in chess. They returned it to me. Was just about to put it away and found there was one chess piece missing. This will totally do my head in especially as I’ve got ancient chess sets that belonged to my ex husband that are probably 60 years old and all of the pieces are there! The pieces don’t fit the newer chess board, though. If I’d lost that piece at home I would now be turning the house apart looking for it. It has the same effect on me as seeing the corner of a page turned over in a book! I feel as if I need to lie down in a darkened room….

We had one of those Cash-for-any-old-things roadshows here today. Finally got rid of MrA's old train set and a load of camera equipment that hasn't been looked at for twenty years. Not a lot of cash but a nice hole in the cupboard for other things and less things sitting getting dusty 😀

While I was getting it out I found some old scuba diving gear in the cupboard that I didn't even realise we still had so that's gone in the skip.

I'm hoping that MrA can now learn to live without his old Scalextric as well 😀😀

I have bought a lot of it on UK Classifieds .

There is a whole alcove (shelved) of stash yarn in a fairly large bedroom - it is beyond a joke. A storage box wouldn't take a tenth of it. I don't know what all of it is, as it wan't carefully labelled, which will make selling difficult, and as with clothes I really can't be bothered with all the listing and bagging and taking to the PO. I'll worry about what to do with it later though. Maybe a care home would like it, or there is an upcycling centre nearby who runs classes on how to reuse things - I could contact them and see if they want it.

Same doodledog, I only ever buy good quality British made yarn and often from an artisan company in Devon but mine will all, eventually, be used. I am hoping to live to a grand old age

Ravelry is very good for selling yarn, costs nothing to sell and the forum you need is called uk classifieds. Upside of stash of course is the stash would cost a great deal more today and if kept sealed from moths will never deteriorate. I bought a large airtight cardboard drum for much of mine, costs from £27

I hope you can get rid of the mould, Maybee. I'm not sure what to suggest, but maybe a furniture specialist could advise on how to keep it at bay when you have eradicated it?

kl I am going to have to thin out a lot of my yarn collection. I have far too much of it, and realistically am unlikely to use all of it. It takes up such a lot of space that it is stressful, but now is not the time to deal with it! My plan is to bag it until the decorating is over and sort it as I unpack it. I can't resist 'bargains' when it comes to knitting yarn, but it is not saving money to buy yarn then get rid of it because I haven't used it. I I like to knit with luxury yarn, as I do it as a hobby rather than out of necessity, and shop-bought knitwear is always much cheaper than hand knit anyway. This means that my 'stash' cost a lot to acquire, but I am going to have to take the same approach as I did to my clothes, accept that the money is already spent, and be ruthless about the likelihood that I will use it. Now that I don't have a regular salary I won't be able to keep buying more in such quantities, so I should find it easier to keep on top of it all.

Maybee, a big hug from me. You have a daunting task ahead of you. Grit teeth and do it, you need that air flow

I get so tempted by fabric offers, I am only buying really good fabrics and just had one for 25% off linen, all too easy with the internet. It is my usual supplier and a known make of top notch fabric so I have bought two (relatively expensive) dress lengths.

I think, `so what`, sewing is a real pleasure and my garments are well made, would cost far more in a designer shop. To make up I am going to take 6 useful items from the house to my dd in wales, I have stashed them in the garage and I may travel next week

In the meantime, I am deliberately limiting myself to what I wear this autumn/winter, so they get more use and can then be replaced when they get past their best

I’ve now got mould underneath my dresser and have also found it inside the piano. I’ve got to somehow clear everything out of the dresser so I can turn it upside down and treat it. My daughter has borrowed a footstool which was taking up a lot of space in the living room so I have a bit more room to manoeuvre. Last time my son came here the first thing he said was ‘you’ve got too much furniture in this room’ and he was right. There’s no flow of air round the room. The dresser is full of exquisite little things that my daughter made when she was little and I’m going to ask her to take them to her house. I think I’ll shed a few tears when they go.

We've only had ours done, the others are ok!
And a new bed but that's another story.

I was tempted to get carpet fitted around the wardrobes and leave under the beds bare too . Carpets are expensive enough, but when you add the underlay (and you're right that it makes a big difference) and the fitting, the original calculations based on the advertised price are way out, and in bedrooms most of the carpet isn't seen.

I'll need new underlay for all but the back room, which should be ok with what's down.

The new carpet is lovely!
Especially when trekking to the loo in the night.

It's not the most expensive carpet but we chose the best underlay which makes a difference.

Thanks for the encouragement, chums. It's needed, believe me!

I have had all the bedrooms done in the same colours, kl, with your idea in mind. One spare tin of paint should be enough to touch up anything that needs it. That's the theory, anyway.

keepcalmandcavachon

*Doodledog*, you'll have 'Hotel du Doodle' all ready for the festive season

That's the plan. I might be in a recovery home, but the others can enjoy it

That sounds doable, Cal. I need to speak to the fitters on Friday, but it's good to know what's possible.

Doodledog, it will be so nice when you have finished, very well worth the upheaval.

I did similar all through last winter, it took me six months to have the whole interior decorated. I moved everything myself. I have quickstep flooring throughout and got everything onto felt pads, using a device that would help me raise the furniture. I could then just push furniture and even the heavy oak stuff moved. I slid big heavy chests of drawers into other rooms that way

Never again though, every wall and ceiling is in the same eco paint, matt soft white and it is lovely, a cosy shade. I have a roller and can touch up any area. I used that same paint in our last house and ten years later, was able to cover all the filled-in holes before moving out. It never changed colour or shade

Planning ahead, as always. I am never going through full decoration again

You are doing a fabulous job Doodledog.

Doodledog

It never ends, does it?

How did the carpet fitters deal with the wardrobes? Did you have to move them out of the bedroom, or was there a workaround/

We emptied the wardrobes, left clothes in drawers and moved the drawers into the next room then the carpet fitters moved the bed, wardrobes and other furniture and moved it all back again afterwards. I think we paid a bit extra but it was well worth it.

I did suggest to DH we had fitted wardrobes but he wasn't keen.

Doodledog, you'll have 'Hotel du Doodle' all ready for the festive season

It never ends, does it?

How did the carpet fitters deal with the wardrobes? Did you have to move them out of the bedroom, or was there a workaround/