Each of us has a different day when we clean up all the decorations from the holidays.  One thing we all do though is repack and stash away everything.  This is a great time to declutter.  We have a great opportunity to look at each item and decide:

1. Did we use it this time?
2. Does it need repair or a toss into the trash?
3. Do we like it?
4. Do we want to change our style/color? 
5. Has our life changed in a way that requires our decorating to change?

Now is the time to declutter all of those holiday items you no longer need taking up space in your home.  Things like decorations, ornaments, decorative paper plates or napkins, towels, tablecloths, and duplicates of salt and pepper shakers or serving pieces.  I’m sure there are more items you can think of.  How about holiday books or magazines for: cooking, decorating, or crafts. 

This year we are going to be decluttering many things because we will be moving.  We will have two households but fewer places to display items.  Mom is not even sure she wants to decorate other than maybe a wreath on her door.  I will probably keep the small tree we have but not many other things.  If I could find a metal tree I really like I may get one to put the ornaments on because they are what I treasure.

Share with us your stories of decluttering as you clear away after the holiday season.

Looking for some last minute gift ideas?  Ideas which won’t clutter your friend’s and family’s home and will be happily received?  Here are a few consumable gift ideas from myself, Deb J and Idgy of the North.

Moni’s Lemon Honey (also known as Lemon Curd)
3 eggs
1 Teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 Cup Sugar
½ Cup Lemon Juice
50 grams butter

 Melt butter in a 2 litre microwave proof container.  Add rest of the ingredients and stir.  Microwave on high for 8 minutes.  Allow to cool then pour into hot dry jars.  Seal when cool.  Note: this recipe won’t work if doubled.

 Idgy’s Whipped Shortbread

1 cup butter (do not use margaine)
½ cup icing sugar
1½ cups flour

Cream butter and sugar.  Add flour and beat for 10 minutes.  Drop from small spoon onto cookie sheet.  Decorate with maraschino cherry pieces if you wish.  Bake at 350 F for about 10-12 minutes until bottoms are lightly browned.  Makes about 3 dozen small cookies.  Note:  This recipe doubles well.

Deb J’s Mocha Truffles    (Yield: about 5 ½ dozen)

 3 ½ cups semi sweet or dark chocolate chips
1 package (8 ounces) softened cream cheese
3 tablespoons of instant coffee granules
2 teaspoons water
1 pound of dark chocolate confectionery coating
 IN a microwave-safe bowl melt chocolate chips.  Add cream cheese, coffee and water; mix well.  Chill until firm enough to shape.  Shape into 1-in balls and place on a waxed paper-lined cookie sheet.  Chill for 1-2 hours or until firm.  Melt chocolate coating in microwave-safe bowl or double boiler.  Dip balls and place on waxed paper to harden.  Note 1: When shaping the balls, take only small amounts out of the refrigerator at a time so they will be easy to shape and not becoming warm and sticky.  Note 2: We melt small amounts of coating at a time because it hardens quickly.  We also take out a few of the mocha balls at a time because they are harder to cover with the coating when a little warm.  Note 3: Truffles can be frozen for several months before dipping in chocolate.  Thaw in the refrigerator before dipping.  They can also be frozen after dipping and thawed in the refrigerator.

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

A guest post by Andréia

So, there is Christmas just around the corner and the dreaded shopping season is on its way again. Some will start shopping now and not stop until Christmas day. Some will not shop at all. Some will spend way more than they can and have a January and other months filled with angst at unpaid debts and regrets at impulse shopping.

One way to celebrate Christmas, for those of us who celebrate it, is to not buy gifts at all. But we want to celebrate the season and gifting one another seems a very warm way to do it. But the gifting has to have meaning and be useful. Otherwise we end up cluttering up the homes others we love and taking clutter home in return. And by clutter I don’t mean bad stuff, or ugly stuff, but stuff that will lay unused and forgotten in our house, thus being…clutter.

Since I became the “Master of my own House” (aka. I am the one who does ALL the Christmas shopping, lol) I have designed strategies and ways to get what me and my family needs and come January, be debt free.

Here are my strategies:

1. First, foremost and always: Have a budget! That means, set aside money to spend and don’t go over it, with no excuses.

2. Select who you are gifting: Most of us have a network of contacts, that being at work, at your children’s school, at church or whatever other activity you are involved throughout the year. There is not enough money to gift every one of those people. If you want to gift those who are not close to you, but deserve some recognition, make a list of relevance (this list can include your child’s teacher, a monitor, a church member who made a difference to you…) and gift them with small, consumable things. Sometimes a small consumable item is more appreciated. Set aside a small amount of money (around 15% of your budget should be enough) to buy a bunch of nice little consumable for some people you appreciate, but are not close. A nice soap, a different sweet, something small, cheap, but nice, will show appreciation and not make you sink in debt. If you can buy local handcrafted consumables, it helps your local community and the prices are often modest.

3. Make a list of people you exchange gifts with: We have family members that gift us and to which we gift in return. Listing then is a good way to keep track of how many gifts you are buying and to allocate how much money you are spending on each person, within the budget you set aside. I suggest you only gift those people who are really important to you, and with whom you have a tradition of spending Christmas with.

4. Ask what the person wants to get at Christmas: Now that you have established a budget (how much you have and how much you are going to spend on each person), ask the person what he or she is needing, WITHIN THE BUDDGET YOU SET ASIDE TO SPEND ON HIM/HER. If you are gifting a child, it is always great to ask the parent what the child needs/wants, rather than buy a larger than life toy (believe me, I know…. “sigh”…). It may sound crude to say “look, my budget for you is “x” dollars, what would you like for that?”, but it does save some grief and money, and you might be very surprised with the answer. Some of you might say that takes all the joy of Christmas giving, because there is no “surprise”. Once I wrote this on a comment in this blog and was criticized by another reader. Well, let me tell you, I rather someone I love spends their money on something I need or want, than on something they want to “surprise” me with and I might or might not like, or is useless, or whatever other reason makes it…clutter. Seems a waste of money to me. Only time I did like the surprise was when I got my Star Wars box of movies. But my husband was sure I would love it. And he was right.

5. Do a Secret Santa, or suggest it to the family: According to the amount of Family members you have, it might be impossible to gift everyone nicely. If you have a Christmas party for 30 people, plus your family, it gets heavy on the budget… A secret Santa will allow you to buy less gifts but nicer ones. Again, it is important to set a minimum amount spent and a maximum amount. The difference should be no more than 15% from the minimal and maximal amount. And encourage everyone to a little sleuth work to find out what their recipient would really like. You could even create a closed FB page, so everyone can list what they want, WITHIN THE BUDGET, SO THERE ARE NO FRUSTRATED GIFT GETTERS or givers for that matter. And tell the avaricious relatives that should they gift below the minimal they will have to reimburse the aggrieved party (well, maybe not, but it is a good suggestion nonetheless…LOL).

6. And last but by no means least ~ Buy in cash or debit card: This is the best way to not over spend. No credit cards, just hard cash. By paying with money you have, not only will you be more aware of what you are spending, but you also follow the budget because once the money is gone, it is gone. If you are already in debt, consider downsizing your Christmas gift list and budget and instead gift yourself with a debt free Christmas this year, and maybe there might even be money left over to pay of some of your debt as well.

Hope my suggestions help and enjoy your Christmas!

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

It is that time of the year again. Christmas is approaching and with it comes the shopping season. But I am not getting too deep into that in this post. I want to talk about children and their gifts. I have three young children and a host of well-intentioned extended family. That being said, it means that my children get tons of toys, every single year.

I can´t seem to put a hold on my relatives, but I have developed strategies not to be sunk deep in new toys. Mind you, I might seem ungrateful, but one child can have enough toys. And sometimes a interesting and or fun experience, or something a child really needs, can be way better.

How do we go about reducing the toy gifts and converting them to something more useful? If you have a large extended family, maybe Christmas is the time of the year to ask for clothes or a good pair of shoes for your little ones. Or you could suggest a special outing. If you have to pay for school books, a good idea is to ask a portion of the money that would be spend on toys to be designated to buy school books, or even go to a college fund.

However, you will meet with plenty of resistance. The older generations were the ones that had one new toy every year, if they where lucky, or none at all. Sometimes they are not thinking only about this child they are gifting now, but remembering their own disappointments of never getting that special toy or game, so they tend to overcompensate. With that in mind, approach them with calm, way before Christmas shopping gets underway, and gently suggest that your child is not deprived of toys, and that an experience would be greatly appreciated, such as tickets to a child’s favourite cartoon character movie, a fun sporting activity like roller skating or wall climbing, a visit to a zoo, theme park or museum etc. 

On the other hand sometimes we, as parents, are very pressed for cash, and a few good clothing items and new pair of shoes would be a help, because children need lots of clothes! I would like to explain that a little better. When we are grown ups, we don’t “lose” clothes so much. We gain weight, we lose weight, clothes tear from too much use so we need to buy new items occasionally. Children on the other hand “lose” clothes all the time. Sometimes an entire wardrobe becomes obsolete from one winter to the next. That lovely pair of trainers you kept for outings, suddenly is not fitting anymore, in a short space of one month. Thankfully I get lots of hand me downs, but I am equally passing on a lot of things that my children have grown out of, so bigger clothes are always needed.

So, now the silly season is coming, think about what your children really need or would enjoy rather than toys and conveying that to those well intention relatives who would probably appreciate your suggestions. I am sure children would enjoy something other than just another toy to add to the pile.  I remember going on outings with my grandmother and other experiences we had together a lot more than any material gifts I ever received. On the other had I also fondly remember a real nice doll I got one Christmas. I certainly wouldn’t remember that one special gift  had I received a dozen similar year after year. Our children will enjoy the season all the more when not being swarmed by it.

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.

The holiday season is a great time for decluttering. It always seems to be the time of year where all the weird stuff comes to the surface or at least comes to mind. And now is a great time to send it on its way. So here are some items to be on the lookout for.

Monday – Declutter something glittery.

Tuesday – Declutter some old toys.

Wednesday – Declutter something red or green.

Thursday – Declutter an old unwanted gift.

Friday – Declutter someone from your Holiday card list that never sends a card in return.

Saturday – Declutter some holiday themed household items ~ towels, oven mitts, placemats etc.

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

This post was contributed to 365 Less Things by Deb J

Gift wrapping is one of the big “chores” of the Christmas/Hanukkah season.  A later post in this series will talk about alternative gifts for adults but for those who take part in gift giving among family and friends decluttering wrapping supplies can make a big difference.  Every year as you walk through the stores you see a big assortment of wrapping papers, bows, bags, gift tags and gift boxes.  I remember a time when we had a huge storage tub of wrapping supplies we would buy in the after Christmas sales and hold over for the following year.  We no longer have any of that.  We are gift wrap free and have been for about 10 years.  Of course, as I have shared before, we no longer give gifts as our family and friends have decided to “get out of the habit.”  Still, I’d like to share some ideas we used once we realized how much time, money, space and effort came with shopping for and storing wrapping supplies.

I think the biggest change we made was when we decided to no longer store wrapping supplies.  We decided to pick a theme color each year for paper, ribbon and bows.  We bought one huge roll of paper, a huge roll of ribbon and made our own bows.  Most of the time, we bought white paper or craft paper and then came up with the “color of the year” for the ribbon.  I especially liked the year we used craft paper and plaid ribbon. Even the gift tags were made of “craft paper” card stock with a swipe of color around the edges by a marker and tied on with thin strips of the ribbon.   Whatever you decide, it is much cheaper to buy supplies in bulk with the idea of buying only what you need for the one year. 

Many people have resorted to using gift bags.  We found a place where you can buy various sized ones in one color.  Then you can embellish them with stamping, stickers, rick rack, ribbon, etc. to fancy them up.  I know friends who make bags out of the paper sacks they get at the grocery store.  You just turn them inside out and either cut them to size or use them at their original size.  Lunch sacks work well also.

I think the best idea I have seen is a friend who made a variety of bags out of holiday fabric.  Every year she gives gifts in these bags.  She tells the receivers she will gladly take them back if they don’t want to reuse them.  She has found really cheap fabric in after Christmas sales and takes her time over the year making up the bags.  Another friend uses fabric to make pillow cases and then gives away gifts in them.  Nothing like giving two gifts in one.  She especially likes to make the cases in material that reflects the recipient.

Do you have any cheap, easy ideas for holiday gift wrapping that helps you with the prevention of storing wrapping supplies from year to year?

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

This blog post is by Moni Gilbert who is coordinating this series of posts.

As we enter the Silly Season I would like to kick off a series written by Deb J, Andréia and myself entitled “365-ing The Silly Season”.  So often women plan their holiday seasons to the nth degree with the goal of the ‘perfect’ day and while the home might look grand, the menu perfect and all the little details might be delightful, is there a tired, stressed out woman behind it all?   I would like to suggest the gift of going a little easier on yourselves.   Trust me, no one will notice the difference if you omit a few things.

I’d like to encourage you to decide what is actually important to you as far your preparations go, cull some not so important details and reduce your menu by an item or two.  I’d like folks to think about how their expectations and preparations would appear mapped out on the calendar.   If every single day in December has a huge to-do list on top of all the regular workload and commitments, add an escalated social whirl, its a recipe for stress.  Set yourself a limit of how many ‘extra’ chores you can realistically achieve in a day and stick to it.  It is realistic to have time to yourself to relax in the evening in the weeks leading up to the holidays.  Explain this new arrangement in advance to your family, they might have suggestions of what they’d be happy to forego or volunteer to do in your place.

What would you be prepared to forego this year?

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something that was really useful in the past but hasn’t been used in a long time. Maybe its time in done for you.

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

Last year one of your fellow 365ers, Michelle, was on a mission to reduce her Christmas supplies. Some bins she spent time on in consideration while others bins she just did a quick rush through. The following photos show the pile of stuff she had (on the left) and the end result of her decluttering effort on the right.

The third photo below is the stack of what she decluttered.  There was  more on the floor that isn’t in the picture. She told me that she could have spent more time and consideration in getting rid of more but this was at least a first step. Quite a massive effort for a first step don’t you think? 

Here is a recent comment that Michelle left at the blog regarding how she has simplified another big holiday season task ~ “…I used to spend so much time wrapping everything just perfectly, color-coordinating with bows or ornaments or whathaveyou.  It got tiring and now I have a traditional color scheme and no longer spend time thinking/worrying about how it all looks.”

So yes it is possible to simplify Christmas while still enjoying all the usual fun and trimmings of the event.

Thank you for the photos Michelle and please comment here and let us know if you have reduced more now that the silly season is on us again.

Today’s Mini Mission

Make finding your good underwear or socks easy by throwing away the ratty old ones that you avoid using.

Eco Tip of the Day

Today’s eco tip is brought to you by one of our readers Sher.

I thought of an eco tip yesterday…I do it without thinking but maybe others haven’t thought of it. When at the bank machine chose to NOT get a paper receipt…when at the gas station…chose NOT to get a receipt. Just those little pieces of paper are going to be tossed in the trash anyways or just end up cluttering your car. Or if you want to take the receipt…use the back of it to write your grocery list on or something to re-use it before tossing it 🙂

Thanks Sher. I am not sure why I hadn’t thought to write this one before because I do this all the time.

“In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy.” Brother David Steindl-Rast

Cindy

I was making my semi-monthly trip through Costco and what did I spy everywhere I looked? Christmas items! Christmas foods, Christmas wrap, Christmas decorations, Christmas gifts, even Christmas Kleenex. (Okay, let’s be honest, what do you think is going to happen to Christmas candy that you bring home in September? Uh huh, that’s what I thought.)

Well I’m here to tell you – it’s too early to shop for Christmas. I am convinced that the earlier you start shopping, the more things you buy – both for yourself and for others. You buy a book for your child and by the time Christmas rolls around, that little genius has already outgrown that reading level or has checked it out from the library or borrowed it from a friend.  I can’t tell you how many years I planned and purchased in advance only to have my efforts thwarted.

In addition, you shouldn’t be buying so much that you need three months leading up to The Big Day. Now if you’re making homemade gifts, maybe you should start now. But I’m talking about purchased (impulsively purchased) gifts. Don’t waste your time and money and build clutter in your own house or someone else’s by purchasing too much, too soon. It can wait. I promise.

Today’s Mini Mission

Eco Tip For The Day

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

Today I am going to share with you a little story from a relative of a friend which I found most amusing. It is in relation to unwanted gifts and goes like this…

One Christmas this mother whose children were grown and left home decided to do something a little different for Christmas. At sometime previously she had ceased purchasing gifts because they neither needed nor wanted anything. So prior to the Christmas in question she collected up things from around her house that the children had left behind. She then wrapped them up and put them under the tree.

On Christmas morning as the unexpected gifts were unwrapped plenty of laughs were had. Her daughter’s response to her gift of a porcelain figurine was ~ I didn’t want this when I received it for my 21st birthday, so I sure don’t want it now. The stunt had the desired effect. It was determined that neither of her daughters wanted their gifts but the son kept and took away his shirt and video cassettes. The unwanted items went to charity. This has become a Christmas tradition. As she finds things that belong to the kids she puts them aside for the next Christmas season.

I thought this was one of the most amusing and ingenious decluttering ploys ever. And there is no reason to wait for Christmas, why not give  your kids a gift of their left-behind clutter for their next birthday.

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