On Fridays at 365 Less Things I share with you my favourite comments from my wonderful readers and my favourite web finds of the week. I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did. Favourite Comments. Enjoy! I like this little story from Debbie in Alberta about her Freebie decluttering effort. It just goes to prove you don't know how things will work out until you give it a shot. Nothing ventured nothing gained as they say. I loved how Jane's kindness reaped an unexpected reward in this comment that she left on Friday. Seeing how other people live can be food for thought about your own … [Read more...]
Archives for June 2012
The freebie box and curbside decluttering
A couple of weeks back Sanna left a comment about how she used the Freebie Box method for the first time and was surprised and delighted how quickly the stuff disappeared. I was a little surprised that she hadn't tried this method before so I decided to write about it today thinking that perhaps I had taken it for granted that everyone knew about this idea and didn't need any coaching on the subject. Then there is the Freebie Boxes bigger cousin ~ Curb Side Decluttering ~ which is yet another useful weapon in the declutterers arsenal for getting rid of things quickly. The Freebie Box I … [Read more...]
Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom ~ Going Cold Turkey
Cindy's Weekly Wisdom Early last year, I wrote a post about The Black Hole. You probably have one in your house. It's the place where all clutter tends to accumulate . . . and never leave. Like the black hole in astronomy, it has such a strong gravitational force that even light cannot escape it. I confess, I too have a Black Hole in my house: my gigantic kitchen island. It doesn't look like a Black Hole, you may be thinking. You're right. It doesn't anymore. Anymore being the key word here. The half in the foreground seemed to always have a stray napkin, maybe a glass or two, and … [Read more...]
The Tea Chest Challenge ~ A guest post by Moni Gilbert
I love games that use imagination, so let’s play a game.  A friend of a friend, six times removed had the opportunity to move to an island on a two year volunteer construction project a few years ago, but there was a catch…..apart from their checked baggage and their carry-on luggage, they were only allowed one tea chest of belongings to be shipped in advance. They were given accommodation which included a table and chairs, a double bed and one set of drawers, a two seater sofa and a 14 inch tv, no DVD player.  The kitchen would have a stove/oven, basic toaster and electric jug, 2 … [Read more...]
Mini Mission Monday ~ Keep it Simple
Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and "fun" for you to achieve some quick decluttering. Today there is no gimmick to the mini missions just plain old simple decluttering. Just find one item to match the  description provided in the daily missions below. It you don't have such a thing just declutter something else that suits you. Monday - A home decor item. Tuesday - A pair of … [Read more...]
Simple Saturday ~ A reader’s unusual declutter story
The following story was sent to me by Madeleine, one of our fellow long time 365ers from Guinea in Africa. I have written of many ways to decide whether to keep or let go of items in your home but this one is unique to say the least. Without further adieu please enjoy... Madeleine's Story A few months ago, I decided to check if I could declutter something from my kitchen, I looked at the ustensils, and asked myself : do I really use this thing ? I answered yes for everything, but a long wooden spoon. I decided not to take a quick decision, but to wait a few weeks, and see if I would use … [Read more...]
Friday’s Favourites ~ 22June2012
On Fridays at 365 Less Things I share with you my favourite comments from my wonderful readers and my favourite web finds of the week. I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did. Favourite Comments. Enjoy! In this comment read Kimberley's story of how here mum saved everything for good and at 83 is still doing it. What a shame. Rebecca B.A.R. made some good points in this comment in relation to heirloom clutter as did GreyQueen in this comment. There were many more great comments than this but I have been so busy this week preparing everything for my medical time out that I haven't had as … [Read more...]
Where I am with gifts and gifting
Since we are on the subject of obligation clutter this week I thought I would do a quick post on gift giving, receiving and decluttering.  Not everyone will agree with what I have to say here but that is OK we are all entitled to set our own boundaries when it comes to this tradition.  What I prefer ~ which is what this post is about ~ is to avoid the likelihood of unwanted  and obligatory items entering my home not to mention the unnecessary addition to the supply and demand of products I don't need that have a detrimental effect on the environment. I have written plenty of post on this … [Read more...]
Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom ~ Just Let It Go
Cindy's Weekly Wisdom As I've told you (probably countless times), we remodeled our house, and the last of the workmen pulled away two years ago in July. There were a lot of smaller jobs and some very large painting jobs that needed to be completed, but the house itself was done. Two years have passed, and I still have a half dozen paintings, including a couple of pieces of expensively framed limited edition pieces, that have not been hung. About every three months, I get into the closet where they're stored and vow that today is the day that I'll finish figuring it out. And every time I … [Read more...]
Family Heirlooms
I received the following email from Jeff a week or so ago which is really what inspired me to focus on obligation clutter again this week. It is amazing the desperation we sometimes feel when faced with the dilemma of "I don't want this thing but it's family history so I really can't declutter it. What am I to do?" Anyway read Jeff's comment, where you will hear that desperation, and we will go from there. I really appreciate your wonderful posts. They, as well as other sites and books, have spurred me on to GET RID OF STUFF! I (we) have been successful in a lot of areas, but the one that … [Read more...]