Deb J

I’ve been taking an inventory of what we own. I’ve never done this to the extent I am doing it right now. It’s for insurance purposes but also because I really want to know. What do we own? Do we need to own it?

I’m not listing every little thing. For instance, I listed things like 8 place settings of Corelle dishes rather than each individual one. I listed 8 place settings of Oneida stainless. I made sure to take pictures so that I could “show” what we own. I have a long way to go to finish the list as we still own lots of things.

When I started this list I took pictures first, pictures of the big pieces of furniture, shelving units, behind doors and inside drawers in cupboards, and in closets. Now I am in the listing portion. I’m excited to say that we have two empty cupboards—over the refrigerator and the stove. Then it gets complicated. We have all these other cupboards that are full. Not full to the brim but well populated.

As I was taking pictures I realized that we still had too much. That’s when I began decluttering more from the scrapbook supplies, the books, and the shed. But still we need to declutter more. Where do I see the issues? Books. Ribbon. Plastic food storage containers. Specialty dishes we haven’t used in the 20 years my father has been gone. Clothes in Mom’s closets. “Stuff” in the two bathroom closets. Stuff, stuff and more stuff.

I am glad to report that my mother is beginning to see that we have too much. It helps to have the pictures and all the pages and pages of inventory. I realized something. Anyone can see what needs to still be done in their home without going to the time and stress of making an inventory. You don’t even need to take pictures. Oh, I admit both help. But, the big thing is just looking. Really looking.

If you open a door and something at the back of the shelf has you wondering what it is, you probably don’t need it. If the only time you open a drawer is to see what is in it, you probably don’t need that stuff either. If you were to sit down and just list the hiding spots (drawers, cupboards, other storage) in a room and you don’t know what is in each one, you might need to declutter. Think about it a while. Go through your house and do a mental inventory by taking quick mental pictures. How many new things do you see that you can work on? Good luck!!

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

When we think of big decluttering tasks we often get deterred before we even begin. But the truth is just about every decluttering task can be broken down into smaller tasks. Below are some suggestions as to how you might break a bigger task down into manageable and less daunting segments. These are just suggestions you, however, can tweak them to suit your circumstances or method of storing/arranging things.

Instead of thinking about decluttering…

• …a closet ~ consider breaking it down to decluttering one shelf at a time, one section of a hanging rail or one area of the floor.
• …the Garden shed ~ one day remove any stuff you can see that needs throwing in the trash. Next day sort through the big gardening tools. Next day the pots etc.
• …the kitchen ~ commit to decluttering one shelf or drawer a day until the task is complete.
• …the linen closet ~ One day sort through the bath towels, the next day the sheets, the next day the face cloths and hand towels and so on until you are done.
• … the living room ~ first sort through the DVDs, then the coffee table, then one shelf in the china cabinet… until all is done.
• …the garage ~ break it down to sporting equipment, car related stuff, separate sections of tools, paint cans, hardware supplies and so on. Or simply divide the area into quickly manageable section. For instance if you have a double garage whose floor comprises eight concrete slabs use those as your sections.
• …a bookcase ~ one shelf at a time, one author, one subject, a dozen books at a time using a marker to indicate where you left off. A ruler is good for this.
• …a desk ~ clear one drawer at a time and then the top or divide the top into sections depending or how big of messy it is.
• …filing cabinet ~ choose one hanging file at a time and declutter its contents. Leave a post-it note or similar marker to indicate which file you are up to, so the next time you have time you continue the task where you left off.

Be sure to not leave too much time between sessions or you may get confused as to where you are up to, or clutter things up again before you complete the task. Hopefully recluttering won’t be a problem because you will have learned by now not to reclutter while you declutter. This is best achieved by not bringing new stuff in.

So if you find a task too daunting just break it down and celebrate each section you complete.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

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.

Clutter isn’t limited to the physical stuff we have crammed into all the nooks and crannies in our homes. Sometimes our minds are  just as crammed full of useless stuff we wish would go away. This week’s missions are about decluttering some of that mental clutter. Knowing you have unfinished or unattended to tasks can be very draining. The only way to make the feeling go away is to get on with it.

In karen Kingston’s Book ~ Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, she writes:- “Every promise unfulfilled or commitment has a call on your energy and pesters you to do it.” So lets get some of those tasks out of the way so we can relax a while.

Monday – Return something you have borrowed.

Tuesday – Make that phone call you have been avoiding for whatever reason.

Wednesday – Get on with those mending tasks that have been awaiting your attention.

Thursday – Repay a debt or favour.

Friday – Declutter an item that exudes more negative energy than positive. You know the one, you have been procrastinating over it for some time now but can’t decide whether you like it more than you want it gone. If it is a close decision then you might as well let it go because it isn’t adding enough to your life to allow it to clutter up space.

Saturday – Return some out of place items in your home to their rightful place or reshuffle an area that just isn’t functioning efficiently theway it is.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

Deb J

We moved here to Arizona 5 years ago. We had very benevolent former owners. They just knew we could use a number of things so left them here for us. Along with a yard containing 6 fruit trees, two rosemary bushes, two grapevines, a jasmine, a honey suckle, 5 Texas Sage bushes, 3 western petunias, 8 rose bushes and a bougainvillea. They also left a couch, two garden chairs, a metal patio sink, and bunches of “construction/building” materials. Now, mind you, they had done a wonderful job of updating the house. The kitchen was “to die for” and the pantry and laundry area were very handy. They had screened the porch and then put lattice work around the patio so it was private with an arbor holding up the grapevines as the entrance to the patio from the yard. They had put in an irrigation system for all of the trees, bushes and flowers. It is a beautiful place that we bought for a song. BUT!!!! Why did they think we wanted their cast offs? Have you ever had this happen to you? You start moving into a house you think has been vacated only to find all sorts of detritus laying around. You aren’t sure what you might need and what is just junk. You don’t know the house that well yet. So what do you do?

I suggest you do what we did. We asked a couple of male friends to come over and gather all of the stuff from wherever it had been dropped. It was in the house, in the back yard, in the two sheds, and under the house in the crawl space. What was all of this stuff? Why did they leave it? Did we need it? The smart thing was to ask people to help us who knew construction and repair. They were able to decide what was important to keep and what was just junk lying around that the former owners didn’t want to take the time to dump. After a few hours the guys were able to haul off a pickup truck load of junk. One of them kept a good bit of supplies that weren’t even for our house but things that were used by the former owner who played neighborhood handyman. We still had a few things left that we didn’t need but we hung onto them for the next neighborhood rummage sale. These were things like lamps, a rug shampooer, two chairs, a side table, some indoor carpeting, some outdoor carpeting and some paint. When we were finished, the back shed was empty except for one piece of carpeting, some fencing and some replacement lattice pieces. The front shed was also empty of everything but some nails, screws, and special light bulbs. Under the house only held some extra piping for the irrigation system. The house, porch and patio were free of anything they had left behind. We found the couch to be so nicely made and comfortable that we gave our couch away and brought it in to use in our living room. It took awhile but it was soon all the detritus was cleared away and we had a nice decluttered house to move into. The next time I move I will make sure to tell the owners to take all their junk with them unless they explain why I might need something they want to leave.

Have you ever found yourself in this situation and what did you do to sort the wheat from the chaff.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

Should is just another word for obligation. The answer to all the following questions is NO!

• Should I keep this in case I need it some day.
• Should I keep this because (fill in the blank) gave it to me.
• Should I keep this, even though I have more of them than I need, just in case one day I actually have to cater to a much larger group than I normally would.
• Should I keep this because someone made it for me.
• Should I keep this because, after all, everyone has one.
• Should I use this only on special occasions. (Everyday is a special occasion, use it often or let it go is what I choose to do.)
• Should I keep this because it has been in the family for generations. (You can always choose to give it to another family member)

There is no should when it comes to decluttering. Should implies that you are giving your right to choose away to someone or something else. It is up to you entirely as to whether you find something enjoyable or useful enough to warrant a place in your home. It is your home after all, your sanctuary.

There is a big difference between “I should keep this because my mother gave it to me.” and “I want to keep this because I love it and my mother gave it to me.” Or… “I should keep twelve place settings just in case I ever have to cater to that many guests.” and ” I feel comfortable keeping twelve place settings because we cater to this size group on a reasonably regular basis.”

Should the giver, society, mistrust in the future or other external influence have any say in your decision to keep something that you, if having asking such questions, don’t really want. Would you keep the item without these obligatory attachments to them? If the answer is no them let them go.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

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.

It is a funny word SENTIMENTAL ~ of or prompted by feelings of tenderness, sadness, or nostalgia. However when it comes to clutter we tend to think of it as anything with some sort of personal history attached to it. To me the only items of “sentimental value” that are worth keeping are the things we really love or find useful. Not things that prompt feelings of sadness or obligation. On that note, this week’s missions are all about identifying and decluttering some items that hold negative sentiments that you could happily do without.

Monday – Declutter something that you keep only because someone gave it to you. Not because you love it or use it.

Tuesday – Declutter something that you keep only because it once belonged to a loved one that has now passed. Once again not because you have any use for or affection for the item itself.

Wednesday – Declutter something that brings you more sadness than joy or exudes more negative energy than positive for you.

Thursday – Declutter something that you don’t care enough about to put on display. How sentimental can you be about stuff that you have hidden away in a box in the attic, basement or wardrobe.

Friday – Declutter something that you made and really only keep because of the creativity, effort  and money that you invested in it.

Saturday – Declutter a family heirloom that you  no longer or perhaps never cared for. Pass it on to another family member who is glad to treasure it.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

I am breaking from the usual Friday post format to bid you all a fond farewell for a while. Tomorrow I embark on my seven week hiatus from blogging to enjoy some downtime. But never fear I haven’t deserted you completely as I have set in place plenty of reading for you while I am away.

During that time the blog will be running on a four day format as follows…

• Monday ~ Mini Missions as usual
• Tuesday ~ A post from me. (already written and set to publish)
• Wednesday ~ Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom (as usual)
• Thursday ~ Deb J will be writing weekly.

As you can see there will be no Friday Favourites while I am gone. It was too much to expect anyone to read comments and other blog posts, choose favourites and put it all together. I will also not be posting the Mini Mission or an Eco Tip each Day.

I will miss you all while I am gone.  Your contributions to each days post is invaluable so I hope you will all continue to talk among yourselves while I am not around.

So farewell my friends and I will be back refreshed and raring to go in October.

Today’s Mini Mission

 Declutter an item of furniture the is cluttering up your space.

Eco Tip for the Day

Consider getting together with your neighbours to pool your food growing resources. Share space, supplies & tools. If you have limited space each neighbour could grow something different to the other and then share between you.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

I got to the end of the day yesterday and realised at 10:15pm that I had forgotten to put a post together for today. Luckily for me Andréia had sent me another post she had whipped up this week. She has obviously been thinking a lot about clutter lately and likes to share her experience with us. She has titled this post “How to Equip a New Home” but she could just as easily have called it “How to Declutter Your Home to Suit You”.  Thanks Andréia. So without further adieu here is her post.

How To Equip A New Home ~ by Andría

I have been decluttering for a while and this question has always been on my mind:  What if I had known exactly what I needed when I was moving to my new home when I was just married? What would I have brought and what would I never ever had brought into my home?

These are very interesting questions. I have concluded that my house would be entirely different if I was setting it up now. It would put far less stuff in it than I did back then, 10 years ago. If I could go back I would be far more selective about what I would bring in so that my home would be less cluttered and easier to maintain.

I am not trying to tell anyone how to assemble their house, but these are the tips I would have given myself.

1)      Don’t buy loads of furniture. Work with the basics. You really don’t have to fill the house. No, really, just buy what you need. As time goes by you can make adjustment to suit your tastes but don’t waste money on things that just clutter up your space. For instance I had a big four door wardrobe, so did I really need to buy another 5 door wardrobe, or did I need less clothes? (I don’t think my old self would listen, but hey, I could always tell myself I told you so later… :D)

2)      How many kitchen gadgets does one really need? Looking back I would have advised myself to put to use all those nice gifts I got at my wedding instead of saving them for good. Many things I bought turned out to be redundant and had to be decluttered. I bought loads of stuff because I thought I needed them and because someone else had them and, in the end, I did not need them at all. They spent years in my kitchen drawers unused and wasting space. Again, work with the things you have, and buy only the necessary/everyday use items. So, as much as that bread pan looks great in the store, if you don’t like baking, don’t buy it.

3)      Return the wedding gifts you don’t want. Or exchange them for things you really need (that is especially useful if you got a whole lot of china as I did that ended up being decluttered years later without never being used). And don’t put in the registry stuff you are not going to use and is buying for someone else’s benefit (like the coffeepot I put in my wedding registry that got used like 5 times in 10 years, until I finally got fed up and gave it away to a relative who makes coffee every day). I love to drink coffee, but I never make it. Ever.

4)      Finally, I know we all have houses we look upon before having our own house, like our parents’ house, our grandparents’, but remember, this is your house and it has to look like you, to feel  like you, and not be a copy of someone else’s. I looked at other peoples’ houses and thought that a nice house had to have all the things I had seen somewhere else. Turns out I was wrong. Even if your Mom’s house is great, your friend’s house is cool, this house will be your home and it has to make you feel comfortable and look like you. If you like books, your house has to have a place for them (like mine should and doesn’t) and as I am not a really great cook, I should have a practical kitchen, for everyday stuff and not loads of different pots and pans I will never really use.

So, I think if I had followed these tips I would have a far less cluttered house than I have now. However I learned from my mistakes and I am working on having a dream house or a house that reflects who I am.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter two excess items from your choice of professional clothing.

Eco Tip for the Day

Decide what you need from the refrigerator before opening the door. Standing there with the door open while you think about what you want to eat just lets the cold air out. Then the fridge has to work harder and waste electricity to regain its optimal temperature level.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

How much space do you think is taken up in your home for the sake of vanity. What square footage is used to accommodate beauty products, hair styling formulas and tools, clothing that is excess to your needs, shoes, and fashion accessories.

I will admit up front that I am a bit relaxed when it comes to presenting myself. I only use make-up if going to work, out in the evenings or just because I feel like sprucing myself up a little. And even then I only use the basics, foundation, mascara, brow pencil and lipstick.

I don’t believe that most beauty products actually live up to their promises so I don’t waste my time and money using them, aside from a little moisturiser when need be and a chap stick. I think that genetics and good nutrition has more to do with outward appearance than man made products.

I have found that hair requires lots of grooming in order to look as wonderful as you see in advertising, no matter how effective they would have you believe the product is. If I decide to try a new hair product I wait until my old one has run out then use the new one until it is used up before reverting back or trying something else. Since they are all much the same I see no point in giving up an allowing half used bottles of product to accumulate in my bathroom cabinet.

As for clothes, mine are mostly practical, comfortable and casual with a few good outfits for evening wear. I am a bit of a jeans and blouse kinda gal in the winter and cotton dresses or capris and fitted T-shirts in the summer. I don’t go to work so I have no business attire.

Most of my clothing looks fine with either black of brown shoes of varying styles depending on the outfit or weather. And I only have one small black handbag and a black clutch purse.

Needless to say vanity doesn’t take up much room in my home. I guess though that most of my readers are somewhat less minimalist than I am in this area. However do give some thought as to how much might be a little too much when it comes to the above mentioned items. How much of your space, money and time are you willing to trade for the sake of vanity.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter two excess cooking or serving items in your kitchen.

Eco Tip for the Day

Stains ruin clothing, protect them with an apron while cooking in order to help them last longer.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

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.

My husband and I attended an open house on the weekend. It was a quite lovely two bedroom apartment and considering the small size there was a good amount the storage space. But my oh my, the occupants sure did manage to fill all that storage space and more. As a result I am basing this weeks mini mission on areas in this home that stood out as over stocked.

Monday – Declutter two excess items from your choice of casual clothing.

Tuesday – Declutter two excess cooking or serving items in your kitchen.

Wednesday – Declutter two toiletry or beauty items.

Thursday – Declutter two excess items from your choice of professional clothing.

Friday – Declutter an item of furniture the is cluttering up your space.

Saturday – Declutter and neatly organise digital media items that are scattered around your living space.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

Eco Tip for the Day

When shopping for groceries try to choose items that come in the least environmentally offensive packaging or preferably no packaging at all. I have mentioned this before regarding soap, I only buy soap loose or in a cardboard box. Individually packaged snack food such a chips and candy bars are also big offenders when it comes to this kind of excessive packaging.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow