So it seems that most of the excess in my home is crafting items. Not that that would come as a surprise to most of my long term readers. So once again today my decluttering turns in that direction.

This brings to my attention the problem of acquiring things that end up partly used or, worse still, not used at all. This often happens when one encounters things that they like the look of, and acquire them with the intention of using them in the future when an occasion or inspiration arrives.

Often the compulsion to acquire such things in the moment is the fear that if you don’t take the opportunity, then and there, that the item/s won’t be available in the future. Given we tend to do this over and over and often end up rejecting them at a later date. You would think we would learn from our mistakes. Yes we have success with this occasionally when we actually do use the thing’s but more often we don’t.

So what we need to do is resist the temptation because even if we miss the opportunity, so what! There are far more worthwhile things worth regretting in our lifetimes then whether we didn’t by that pretty dress or that lovely piece of scrapbook paper, etc. Because my experience is that something as good, if not better, will come along in the future to purchase when you actually have a use for it. And hopefully you might never have a need to purchase it at all, saving money and space in your home.

Anyway that is enough about that. Just give it some thought in relation to your stuff.

And here are my decluttering efforts for the last three days.

1. The first batch of Christmas cards I am sending out this year. You may wonder why I would consider them to be decluttering items. That is because I made so many cards to sell last year that not only have I had more than enough for my shop and to fill other orders I still have leftovers at home and expect not to sell all the stock I have. So sending these out reduces that excess just a little.
2. Cheap stamp pads that aren’t good for crafting.
3. Excess ribbon that I put in with the Freecycle giveaway before I delivered it this week.

 

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

So once again I have been into the craft supplies to find some items I am happy to relinquish. I listed them on Freecycle.org and they were claimed and should be collected on Thursday by a lady who is getting them for a friend who loves to scrapbook but lives on a low income. I so love it when my excess stuff goes to those who otherwise could not afford to enjoy them. In fact it makes it easier to let things go that I might otherwise cling on to. I hope to make a connection with this person so that in future I might be able to gift them some more of my crafting supplies. 

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

The item for day three is a batch of cleaning rags etc, from my laundry, that don’t perform very well. What use is a cleaning rag the doesn’t leave you with a perfect finish. So these are going in the bin. I’d donate them but that would only be foisting the problem onto someone else. 

The items form day four are a selection of greeting cards that I have filled out ready to post for the December birthdays. They may not seem like a declutter item to you but the truth is that I have been so slack at posting birthday cards this year that the stash I have has become like clutter to me as it is so slow moving. So actually getting around to doing this feels like decluttering. I hope to be more organised next year so I reduce my stash to a reasonable amount so it doesn’t take up much room in the house. To explain my slackness in the this area of my life I would like to point out that it takes Australia post about a week to get anything anywhere these day and my Google calendar has been set to remind me a week in advance about upcoming events. When it comes to sending cards one needs a two week reminder in order to fill out the card and get to a postal box in order to mail it and then there is the procrastination factor. Well that’s my pathetic excuse anyway.

I forgot to mention yesterday why it is, after so much decluttering has been done in my home over the years, that there is still excess stuff to be removed. And here is my explanation. 

My original goal was to reduce my belongings in order to fit into a smaller home. This goal was achieved with a little wriggle room. However I would like a little more than just wriggle room so the two bedroom apartment, that I now live in with my husband, feels a little cluttered to me. So this new goal of removing one thing a day for 30 days, and possibly more, is all about minimising further.

I imagine that this will involve a few harder decisions than before as I had reduced many areas to a point that I was happy with. Therefore I will have to get even more ruthless as to what I really get good use out of and what I don’t. I say this might be harder, but in reality I am keener to free up space than I am to keep things so it probably won’t be all that challenging for me. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Now a little about todays item. This pair of multi blade scissors was purchased, not so long ago, secondhand from a thrift store. I have a policy with items purchased this way and that is…

If it is cheap and secondhand then it is an eco-friendly purchase. If it used utilised enough within a certain amount of time then it can go back to where it came from.

I had purchased these scissors for crafting purchases for $1 at the thrift shop. They didn’t perform the task adaquately that I wanted them for so now they are being donated back.

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

It has concerned me for a while that my posting here at 365 Less Things has been very sporadic, and that even has begun to occur with the Monday Mini Mission posts. I put this down to a couple of things. One is personal commitments that seem to take up so much of my time of late. And the other is that my interest in writing about decluttering has waned with my lack of a decluttering goal. 

This goal concept has always been a thing here at 365 Less Things but I didn’t realise how much of an encouragement it was for me until recently. With the lack of an actual goal to work towards when it comes to decluttering I have become a little bored of the task. That isn’t to say that I haven’t been decluttering at all, because with my constant decluttering of craft supplies the task certainly seems to be continuous. However sometimes it is so continuous that it seems never ending which becomes both tedious and feels futile. A problem which I have encouraged so many other readers to overcome by focusing on the one thing a day method. Ironic right?

So, I have decided to start to declutter one thing a day again. My goal at this point will be 30 days in duration and we shall see where it goes from there. I will be going to Japan just after Christmas for a couple of weeks over which time I will be taking a break but I dare say I will commence again on my return.

My intention is to go back to my original format of post my thing a day. Perhaps not every day but at least more often that my pathetic effort of late. But we shall see how that works out.

Join me in my quest if you please by also committing to the goal of one thing a day for a period of time. It gives you two goals, firstly the thing each day and also the long term goal of whatever period you choose to stick to it for. You might be surprised as to how inspiring that turns out to be.

So my thing for today is an evening gown that has been in my closet since before my original challenge began over seven years ago. I guess I thought I would eventually use it but since I have another gown, that also hasn’t been used in quite a while, I most certainly don’t need two of them for those very rare special special occasions. So here it is and out it goes.

I have dithered many times in my decluttering journey, unable to make a decision about my stuff.  Two of the “ditherees” left my house this morning because I needed soft fillers to keep the glass bowls I was donating from clashing with each other.  One item was a top I bought that always looked better on my younger daughter than it did on me.  When she left home, she also left the top.  I thought this morning that I’m never going to wear that again and it’s not my other daughters’ style, so out it went.  The other item was a pair of nice warm slippers.  They didn’t have an indoor – outdoor sole, which bugs me, plus they were the type that you have to pull on with your hands.  I like slip-ons better.  So, in all the years I have had these warm slippers in a color I like, I have worn them only a handful of times!

All this got me thinking about how many things we dither about, meanwhile these things are taking up space in our homes!  I thought a good mission would be to gather all “ditherees” into a pile in the most spacious area of your home and think about them as a group.  Maybe when you see the volume of space that these items are taking every day, it will be easier to part with some.  If you want bonus points, you can decide ahead of gathering these items that you will commit to donating at least half of them.

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

I often get comments from people contradicting my suggestions regarding what to declutter and pleading their case on why they keep certain items or collections of things. Avid readers love their books, baking enthusiasts love a good range of pans and utensils, crafters, like myself, will cater to their craft, perhaps even over cater. There are also shoe lovers out there, fashionistas, modellers, family history caretakers, plant enthusiasts, collectors of all sorts of things…

The purpose of my blog is not to insist that we all live a completely minimalist lifestyle. I don’t, so it would be totally hypocritical of me to suggest such a thing. My intention here is simply to draw your attention to areas of your homes that may need considering when it comes to culling of unused and unloved items. And I am sure your intention here is to consider that advice in a bit to declutter your homes, which is why you read my blog in the first place. I don’t explain this in every article I write because I presume my readers are all aware of this however it doesn’t hurt for me to reinforce this, every now and again, in a post like this.

So lets talk a little about what decluttering is to each individual, because I would hate for people to spend time regretting decluttering items that they loved or were still useful to them, just because I suggested it in a post.  So here are a few examples to explain the concept of what is clutter and what isn’t to the individual.

I have one bottle of perfume is that too few? Some women would think so because they like to mix it up a little, something floral one day, something oriental the next. Some may even think I am very unsophisticated for this. I care little about their opinion because one is enough for me. I am sure also that they would have the same opinion of me because I only use one handbag and it doesn’t match all my shoes. Once again, I don’t care. I find life simpler with less choice.

On the other hand I have a plethora of craft supplies. And although I have way less than I did prior to my decluttering journey there is still an overabundance. To the less creative person my collection would seem ridiculous but to me they are a good variety that allows me to achieve the creativity I desire. It really is my only vice so I am happy to live with that. And I continue to use up supplies that I have no intention of ever replacing.

Someone else may only have two towels, two pair of shoes, one set of sheets but a display cabinet full of china handed down from a relative long passed. So what, minimalism is one thing to one person and something else to another. It is not up to anyone to decide what you care about and what you don’t, what is too much and what is too few.

Anyone reading my blog is here because they want to reduce what they own in order to free themselves of the restrictions that clutter can cause. Space restrictions, time restrictions, cash flow restrictions etc. Having the intention to declutter will set you in the right direction, then I am sure you are all capable of deciding in what areas you want to reduce and by how much. As momentum takes over you may get more adventurous but that is up to you. Be an individual and do it your way.

At the same time, if you are here reading my blog and defending every little thing you own as precious to you, while you home is cluttered to the rafters, then perhaps you need more help than I can give. Hoarding can be a serious issue and professional help is require to overcome such an issue. And in that case I would strongly suggest you seek medical help. Your GP is the first person to turn to and they will refer you on to the professional that can help you best.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

As you may have guessed, due to the lack of them, I struggle to come up with new posts these days, mostly because I declutter much less now, therefore the inspiration for posts isn’t constantly forthcoming. Today it occurred to me that I have been blogging about this subject for over six years now, so why not repost some of my old articles. They are still as relevant as they ever were, not everyone has read through all the archives and we could all do with a refresher of information previously disseminated. So without further adieu here is todays revisited post.

Take a look around your home to find items that you have been using constantly for many years. Items that you would never part with although maybe are outdated, getting a little shabby or just aren’t particularly aesthetically pleasing in any way. These items will likely have to reach natural attrition before they leave your home. Of course they don’t have to be shabby, they may be standing the test of time amazingly well. And thank goodness for that if they are items that are useful and/or beautiful to you. Think about what is unique about this item that causes you to appreciate it so much.

Think about what led you to acquire these items in the first place. Perhaps it was that you had a need for the items. Perhaps the beauty of the object was what attracted you to it. Perhaps you searched and bided your time until just the right items came along to suit your need or desire. Perhaps it was a combination of all three. Maybe someone you knew had one similar and you decided it was so useful or beautiful that you wanted one for yourself. Or maybe it was sheer fluke that brought you and the object together.

I know I certainly have objects in my home that fit my needs so well that I have owned them for many many years. Among them are items that fit all of the reasons for acquiring them that I stated above. But one thing that is similar in each case is my appreciation for these objects. Every time I see them or use them I feel pleased not only with the objects but for my “clever’ choice of them in the first place.

Now take a look around your home and identify other objects that you neither use nor find aesthetically pleasing. Ask yourself why do you keep each items. Was it an unwanted gift? Can you not afford to replace it? Do you feel guilty for wasting your hard earned cash on it, so are determined to get some use out of it? It is a family heirloom that you don’t really wish to be the caretaker of? Perhaps these items cause too much upkeep. Or worse still you have given up maintaining them and they are sitting idle and dusty. Whatever the reason, if an item brings forth negative feelings when you encounter it then this a something you should consider decluttering.

Your home is your fortress, your place of tranquility, or at least it should be. There are many thing that lower the level of tranquility in a person’s home. One of them is being surrounded by objects that evoke negativity. Another is the feeling of obligation to keep stuff the causes you work. There are only so many hours in the day, house that are better spent doing things you enjoy with people that you love. It is a shame to waste that time taking care of stuff.

So as you encounter these items that cause negativity ask yourself what is more important to you..

• The compulsion to keep them regardless or..
• To heighten the level of tranquility in your home.

Share a story about such an item you encounter in the comments below. Tell us what your decision is for keeping it or letting it go.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Clutter isn’t about what we have, it is about why we have it. 

We acquire stuff for many reasons, aesthetics, functionality, sentimental, recreation and entertainment and even societal, just to name a few. In fact those few reasons just about account for most of the excess stuff in our lives. So lets just take a closer look at them.

Aesthetics ~ The stuff we enjoy mostly because it is pleasing to the eye such as art and décor items, fashion accessories, jewellery.

Functionality ~ These are items we acquire that are useful to us in some way, generally to make our lives simpler or more comfortable.

Sentimental ~ Things we acquire because they bring back fond memories

Recreation & Entertainment ~ The stuff accumulated under this topic is many and varied, CDs, DVD’s, sporting equipment, toys and the list goes on.

Societal ~ This accounts for those items that we acquire because of the culture we live in. And of course they aren’t always necessities and as members of society we just end up falling in line with the trend and acquire them whether we need them or not.

So let’s now have a look at some very typical items that fall into one, or even several, of these categories…

Clothing ~ This falls into every category. Western society dictates that we don’t get around in public naked. So we wear clothing for its function of covering us up. And while choice of what we acquire is partly dictated by the situation the particular garments are required for (recreation, work, evening functions etc) a big part of what we choose is driven by our aesthetic preferences. Where this gets out of hand is when we desire an abundance of variety in that aesthetic and buy way more clothing than we really need. Also aesthetics gets us into trouble when we disregard what suits our “particular kind of beauty” and buy items because they just look good. These items often end up rarely if ever used. And then there can also be clothing items that we relate to special occasions that we keep for sentimental reasons long after they are useful to us.

Kitchen Gadgets ~ These of course have a function, the question is whether or not we actually have a “need” for that function. Once again Western Society tends to dictate that life is easier if we have a tool that speeds up performing every little task required of us. And it is the job of advertisers to convince us that such items can actually do this for us by only showing us the upside, imagined or not, of owning such items. Hence we end up with a gazillion single-use kitchen gadgets that we only “require” once in a blue moon that don’t really save us enough time to warrant the amount of room they take up, the time wasted trying to find the one you “need”  among all the others or the money wasted on acquiring them.

Entertainment Items ~ For a society of people who seem to work endlessly to “make ends meet” we sure do seem to acquire and require an lot of stuff to fill the spare time we are always complaining we don’t have. I often wonder how many of the dollars we earn from those hours spent working are used to acquire stuff we don’t really even need and sometimes don’t even use much before the novelty wears off. Although rest, recreation and entertainment are essential to a healthy lifestyle it seems counterproductive to work our butts off in the first place to cater too it excessively. Fortunately music, movies and games can be enjoyed digitally these days so we don’t actually have to clutter our homes with them. And although televisions screens seem to be getting bigger and bigger they are also getting slimmer and slimmer so they don’t really take up that much room. Computers, phones and also music players have also shrunk over the last 3o years however where once we used to have one of each of these things we, in Western Society, now usually have at least one for every person in the house. And then there is also the variety of of sport and exercise equipment available to us, the clothing to go along with that. And then there are the bags etc required to tote all this stuff around ~ laptop, tablet and phone cases, sports bags, handbags, backpacks… Yikes!

Keepsakes and souvenirs ~ Although these have a function, to remind us of special occasions, good times and loved ones, collections of them can often get out of hand. We even find ourselves accumulating them against our own better judgement because they are another one of those things that society tends to dictate that we should be passionate about. We go on vacation so we “should” get a souvenir from every place we visit. We go to a funeral or wedding and isn’t it respectful to keep the service booklet? Wouldn’t it be wrong to throw out even one picture your child brought home from school, their report cards or any of those band concert programs with your child’s name in it? The answer is no it is neither disrespectful, heartless to dispose of these things nor necessary to have a physical reminder of every vacation or event you ever attended. Sure keep some reminders, the most treasured ones, but not all. It is possible to be sentimental without being cluttered.

Décor items ~ A bed is a functional item that assists us in having a good night sleep. A pillow makes us that bit more comfortable and blankets keep us warm in the cold times. However that is where the functionality of the bed ends, throw rugs and cushions are décor items. Trinkets, art, artificial plants, etc, etc are also just aesthetic items we can either chose or not to adorn our homes. If they didn’t exist we wouldn’t care but once again society and advertising comes into play very much when it comes to the plethora of choice there is out there. And again, they cost money, they require maintenance and the novelty of them tends to wear off over time at which we spend more money switching them out for something new.

Today’s Mini Mission

I starting out writing this post to point out all those things in our lives that we think we need but really don’t and why we acquire them. And sure most of them do add to the enjoyment and comfort in our lives. However there is always a point where enough is enough and beyond that we are just working too hard to be able to afford all this excess and spending too much time maintaining stuff. Not to mention the detrimental effort that producing all this excess has on the environment.

So think twice about continuing to acquire at such a pace for your own wellbeing as well as that of the planet you occupy. And also pass on some of that excess while it is still useful to someone else so they don’t go out buying new. And I will leave you with a great quote I unexpectedly stumbled upon this week just to get life into perspective…

“We are not made rich by what we possess but by what we can do without.” Immanuel Kant

Wendy B wrote this very wise statement in a comment recently in regards to decluttering ~ 

“The thought of tackling the job is often more consuming than doing the job itself.”

How very true this is. I bet there are many of you out there who spent more time and metal energy putting off your decluttering than the time and effort that you actually needed to put into it once you got started. I was a little guilty of that myself to be honest. I knew, before returning home to live in Australia in 2007, that downsizing was our ultimate goal, but aside from the necessary ejection of stuff required to fit comfortably into our new home, and some extra bursts here and there, it was 2010 before I got on with the task in earnest.

And the problem with procrastinating is that you are wasting all that mental stress on getting nowhere. When it is as easy as putting one item aside each day, in the garage, or wherever you choose your transition area to be. Then donating the stuff to a charity when you have a pile big enough to make the effort to drop it off. And if you live in a place like the USA where the charity will come to you, it is even easier to get the job done, or at least make progress.

Of course you can complicate things by selling items via online auctions or similar, or by having a garage sale, but there is always an extra reward for your labours there, so it is often worth the extra effort. But that is entirely up to you.

We often procrastinate because we focus on the harder aspects of the task rather than just getting started on the easy stuff. How does the saying go? ~ “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” And there is always those things that are much easier to deal with than others. That is how I got started and in the end I got rid of far more stuff that I ever thought I would. Even things I had no intention of ever letting go. The more I decluttered the easier it was to part with things and the more things I realised a didn’t need to keep.

Actually just writing today’s post was a case of procrastination for me. That seems a little more than ironic. In the end I figured I would get a better night sleep if I took care of that and another small task before going to bed rather than leaving it until today. And I did sleep better for it I think.

The thing about procrastinating is that it makes you feel bad, then feeling bad makes you sorry for yourself so you self medicate by doing something else you would rather do. While actually by doing what you don’t want to do you can make yourself feel a lot better than avoiding it.

I know there are plenty of my readers out there, who are a long way along their declutter journey, who have been there and done that, so why not share with us your procrastination story, and how you overcame it. And those of you still torturing yourself with futile procrastination, hopefully reading our about experiences will help you start eating that elephant, one bite at a time.

Random Acts of Unusual Kindness

As a pedestrian treat the sidewalk as if it were the road. Keep to the side that the road traffic travels on in the country that you are in at the time. Don’t dart out from side allies and shops into oncoming foot traffic. And don’t walk three abreast. This ought to be common sense, but it doesn’t seem to be, and life would be a lot easier for everyone if we all adhered to these simple rules.