I have two telescopic tension rods, the kind you wedge between two hard surfaces to hang curtains from. The reason I still have them, even though I haven't used them since returning to Australia from the USA, is that they might come in handy one day. The excuse for falling into this old trap is that I don't think they are sold here in Australia which would make them nigh on impossible if not too expensive to replace should I find a use for them. Now how is that for a lot of rubbish. Oh, I admit to both that I do have these things for such a ridiculous reason. Â I don't even like curtains, … [Read more...]
Lingering Impulses
This post is especially for those with lingering impulses to do one, some or all of the following... Impulse shop. Keep things that you once loved or found very useful even though you no longer do. Have a had time resisting stuff you can be creative with, repurpose or revamp. Let me begin with a little example not related to clutter. I like a good cup of coffee or tea. I will admit I drink far too much of the stuff. This has been going on all my life. It is a regimented habit too, just like my eating.  generally I'll have a cup, of either, when I first get up in the morning, … [Read more...]
Putting NEED into prespective
I was chatting with an acquaintance recently about clutter and being environmentally friendly and she chose to share a story with me. Below is my rendition of the story as I remember it. The hot water system at her home went on the fritz and had to be replaced. Her husband, being a bit of a handyman, insisted that they buy one and he would install it. Being a busy fellow the weeks went by and he hadn't got around to doing the job. This acquaintance was born and raised in the Philippines where, for her family, the bathing routine consisted of a bucket of water and a cake of soap. One would … [Read more...]
Sentiment v Obligation
I know I have written about this subject before but it is one of those issues that are worth revisiting every now and again. Especially for those struggling with it or who have only recently started reading my blog and don't have the time or inclination to start at the beginning. I know I wouldn't have that sort of time up my sleeve. I think most people who read my blog would have a certain number of true sentimental items in their home. These items are often things like baby ID bands, a child's old teddy, the glasses you toasted with at your wedding, Grandma's engagement ring... We all have … [Read more...]
Share the joy while you declutter
About a month back Michaela, in response to the post Memeories Are Not Stuff, Â left this comment... "This week I sold one of my American Girl dolls. My grandmother had bought her for me, I had gotten different outfits with extra cash back in the day. I took good care of her, and then she stayed in my closet for years. The other day at work I overheard a lady I know talking about getting one for her granddaughter for Christmas, but she was sad how expensive they were. I immediately offered to sell her my doll. Yesterday when I took her in all the ladies fawned over what great condition she … [Read more...]
Memory triggers that aren’t clutter
If you find it hard to part with sentimental clutter I have a plan that may help. The thing that is important to people when it comes to items of sentimental clutter is the memories they evoke and not so much the actual item itself. So I have two suggestions. The first one is simple. Take digital images of your sentimental items, load them onto your computer and then declutter them. Include the image as part of your screen saver file so that whenever your computer goes into hibernation these memory triggers will flash up to remind you of precious loved ones, places and events in your … [Read more...]
Mini Mission Monday ~ Memorabilia
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. Last weeks post ~ Memories are no stuff ~ deserves a little more attention than just one post. So this week I will dedicate the mini mission and another post to the subject. I feel this is important because this kind of clutter is often the sort that most people have trouble detaching themselves … [Read more...]
Question your stuff
Cindy I. posed a three part question in a comment two weeks ago. It went something like this... Question. What makes you feel at home? Which little things do you need in order for you to feel good about yourself and your surroundings? Â Do you think they may be things that other people take for granted? This is a very good series of questions that make you think about what means most to you. Once you have formulated your answer ask yourself ~ "So why do I need all this other stuff?" Let this questions guide you in making easier decisions on whether to keep things or let them go. If you feel … [Read more...]
The dreaded decision
Ok folks, it is your turn to help me declutter, or not. Just over three years ago, as many of you will remember, I almost lost my son in a terrible bicycle accident. I am certain that he would not be here today had he been one of those foolhardy young people too stubborn to wear a helmet. I see them all the time, some riding along with the helmet hanging over the handlebars when it should be on their heads. Or worse still, perched on their heads with the strap undone ~ I really, really can't understand the mentality of that decision. Please keep in mind the we have helmet laws here in … [Read more...]
From the Archives ~ Day 294 The Wedding Dress
This week Cindy sent me a link to an article for Friday's Favourites. It is an article about what to do with your old wedding dress. Cindy had written a post about this subject back in 2010 so I thought I would share that with you today to get you thinking about the subject ahead of Friday. I have to admit I still have my wedding dress which I only retrieved from my mother-in-law's house last year. I tried it on at the time but of course it didn't fit as our wedding was 26 years ago. I am glad to say that it did however come close to fitting. It really is time that I figured out what to do … [Read more...]