De-cluttering, still at it, still no end

I used to read mine but not for a number of years now.

Allira

Redcar I still have a set of encyclopedias I was given age 11! My mother decluttered toys and clothes but not books.

I also had a set of Books Of Knowledge, filling up shelves on the bookcase.

Bought by my dad when we were children.

They sat there for years, I didn’t want them but felt guilty not keeping them.

Finally took them to a charity shop, they said if they didn’t sell they would go for pulping.

I felt great relief to be rid of them.

Good luck Redcar

My friend is clearing her mums house, her mum died at age 90+ and had lived in her house for 68 years and never done any de-cluttering. It is a nightmare for my friend

This de-cluttering malarky is not really for us but is to help our loved ones

The joy ( and tears) of receiving a long lost book in the post and remembering every word and every picture. The only things I’ve never found again are some magazines that I had called Mr Tasty Freeze. How or why I had them I have no idea as they were American. And I can still remember on the day we moved out of my first home a box full of old books that were in a cupboard. We didn’t take them with us and I don’t think they belonged to us anyway. I have a terrible memory when it comes to events in my childhood apart from when they were about books.

Oh there are so many books I would love still to own. Like you maybe70 my mum threw them all out😢.

I have a very long list. But I guess my offspring would promptly throw them out at my demise.

My mum threw out all of my toys and books when I left home. It took decades for me to find some of the books on eBay. She even threw away the photo I’d taken of my dolls and teddy bears although I do thankfully have a photo of me and one teddy. I’m sure it’s one reason why I’m now a hoarder.

Norah

Redcar

My parents downsized when I was 17, my mum was a bit of a hoarder and we lived the house she moved to when she was 6. It was a big house with plenty of space to keep things. My dad gave a lot of my outgrown clothes and all my toys and books away. He had a bonfire in the garden for weeks, burning old encyclopaedias etc.
I’ve lived in my house for 43 years and have accumulated a lot of stuff in that time. As my daughters have moved out, they’ve left stuff behind. I have a skip coming next week, my daughters and families are coming to help me clear the garage and some of the loft! Wish us luck!

Good Luck!

As each daughter moved out another moved back. I believe we're almost through -- my husband has their stuff in his buildings now. At least stuff is out of lofts and garages and ready to burn later.

Do his buildings have some sort of heater in them?

Redcar I still have a set of encyclopedias I was given age 11! My mother decluttered toys and clothes but not books.

The other day I sorted out my houseplants (not many now), those I kept 🤞 hoping they might revive and didn't have gone in the garden waste. There is so much to sort indoors but the garden's a mess as we can't tackle it as we used to. I started sorting out my herbaceous border and found three small trees in there (thank you squirrel!).
Perhaps I should stick to decluttering my wardrobe!

Having a cuppa and a break.

Redcar

My parents downsized when I was 17, my mum was a bit of a hoarder and we lived the house she moved to when she was 6. It was a big house with plenty of space to keep things. My dad gave a lot of my outgrown clothes and all my toys and books away. He had a bonfire in the garden for weeks, burning old encyclopaedias etc.
I’ve lived in my house for 43 years and have accumulated a lot of stuff in that time. As my daughters have moved out, they’ve left stuff behind. I have a skip coming next week, my daughters and families are coming to help me clear the garage and some of the loft! Wish us luck!

Good Luck!

As each daughter moved out another moved back. I believe we're almost through -- my husband has their stuff in his buildings now. At least stuff is out of lofts and garages and ready to burn later.

My parents downsized when I was 17, my mum was a bit of a hoarder and we lived the house she moved to when she was 6. It was a big house with plenty of space to keep things. My dad gave a lot of my outgrown clothes and all my toys and books away. He had a bonfire in the garden for weeks, burning old encyclopaedias etc.
I’ve lived in my house for 43 years and have accumulated a lot of stuff in that time. As my daughters have moved out, they’ve left stuff behind. I have a skip coming next week, my daughters and families are coming to help me clear the garage and some of the loft! Wish us luck!

Allsorts

After a massive matter de clutter I am still cluttered. If I had good homes for loads of stuff I wouldn't miss them, its giving away unused items that hurts to car boots etc where they get next to nothing.

yes Allsorts, I`m similar, much easier to rehome where stuff will be used. It was my ds talked me out of that difficult frame of mind, he said that the money was spent anyway. He was very good, I had that massive feeling of regret but I turned that around thanks to him.

The biggest release for me was letting all that pristine (expensive) workshop equipment go. The happiness came when I heard the men saying how much they appreciated that act of kindness. It was so nice to hear that. My husband would have been very happy with that decision.

I have been eyeing my 2 big planters by my garage door, stuffed full with whirly agapanthus, which need to be contained or they would be rampant. I will let them flower one last season and then I will have the difficult job of emptying the containers and getting rid of everything

After a massive matter de clutter I am still cluttered. If I had good homes for loads of stuff I wouldn't miss them, its giving away unused items that hurts to car boots etc where they get next to nothing.

Soroptimum

I really really want to declutter, with a view to downsizing in a few years time. But whereas I can be ruthless, DH is just useless. We still have his DADS teddy bears, coin, cigarette cards and stamp collection etc. etc. As well as DH cub outfit, car magazines and brochures from the 70s - you get the picture! Any advice gratefully received as I’m getting desperate.

Only thing I can think of, is, my DH will remove things if I have already done so.
I cant decide if he then feels guilty?

But I wouldnt be asking him to remove things if they were his sentimental things.
Only things he has left lying around, or could tidy/bin.

And me, Monica! My first one ("Cuddles") lost an arm. Still love him to death! And dolls. My children were born in the early Seventies and the girls were totally freaked out by my dolls! Why? I loved them and played for days with them. I still have two, once beautiful, china-headed baby dolls. Now somewhat battered an bruised. Sad.

A lot of my clutter is paper-based: scrapbooks, or stuff waiting to go in scrapbooks, brochures of places I have been to over the years, which I bought or picked up instead of taking endless photos which are later unidentifiable. Hard to get rid of as they bring back happy memories and are informative..

Talking of shoes and trainers.

DH couldn’t find a pair of his good sunglasses, we both thought we knew where they were. But no.

We searched high and low, ascertained they had last been with us on holiday to Barbados over a year ago. DH felt we must have left them behind, but I didn’t think so, we are really careful and check thoroughly before we leave anywhere.

I asked him whereabouts in the suitcase would he have put them, and it came to us, perhaps tucked into some shoes?

Sure enough, they were hiding in a pair of trainers, obviously never used last summer since we returned.

So pleased.

Thanks to St Anthony also. 🙏

Last night I started nodding off at 7, I had to get moving or I would not have slept all night. I had watched a youtube video about seniors and shoe safety, so I tootled upstairs and took all my shoes out of wherever I had stored them

Good unworn boots in that pile and they fit so they have been moved from hidden to accessible for next autumn. DB sandals, 6 pairs from under a bed, two pairs taken out to be worn all summer. If I alternate 6 pairs then I will end up not wearing any enough to get rid next autumn, so I will wear 2 pairs constantly. They are already slightly worn anyway

All I got rid of was one set of trainers, too stiff, too small and too white but I have made more sense of my footwear

In process I have sorted a bit in my wardrobe, not clothing just stored stuff and have cleared about 2 cubic feet into the bin, giving me that much space back plus I vacuumed in there

I accessed my sandals from under the bed and am very happy at how space is appearing, slow but steady

I noticed my cases on the wardrobe shelf, they will have to stay for now but eventually they will store, empty, under my bed. That will be a reason to celebrate

Soroptimum

I really really want to declutter, with a view to downsizing in a few years time. But whereas I can be ruthless, DH is just useless. We still have his DADS teddy bears, coin, cigarette cards and stamp collection etc. etc. As well as DH cub outfit, car magazines and brochures from the 70s - you get the picture! Any advice gratefully received as I’m getting desperate.

Arson?

I really really want to declutter, with a view to downsizing in a few years time. But whereas I can be ruthless, DH is just useless. We still have his DADS teddy bears, coin, cigarette cards and stamp collection etc. etc. As well as DH cub outfit, car magazines and brochures from the 70s - you get the picture! Any advice gratefully received as I’m getting desperate.

I thought I would join this thread. I am starting de cluttering tommorow, clothes and anything else that I have not used in a long time.
I am looking to do a boot sale and a tabletop sale in a church hall.
I de cluttered the garage last year. I had a good builder who done the garden for me, and took a huge dilapidated garage down for me. I picked what I wanted to save and he burnt the rest. Saved me £££on the skip. I don't know where all the stuff came from.

I like to give my stuff away, the local community shed has recently had from me an almost-new hegner scrollsaw and stand, a large dust extractor, a lot of top quality wood and so on. Three car loads from me and no rusty rubbish. It is very satisfying to give items that will be used by many people in my community. I believe my things were worth several 00s of £

Good karma always comes back to me

Well done!

Well done MOnica

Well, we did a boot fair today. What we were selling was mainly tools and DIY stuff. All the duplicate equipment we brought back tonthe UK when we sold our house in France last year, plus camping chairs and other such. We sold most of it for a£1.00 a piece.

DH put a lot of the stuff loosely into what he called 'rootle boxes'. It seems no man can resist a rootle box.

We made £60, £50 profit after paying £10 to get in. Better than dumping it all at the tip.