July 9 Weekly Challenge: Summer Declutterfest
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PackerFanInGB wrote: »MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@PackerFanInGB How’s it going?
Getting there! I shredded old documets and cleaned out the file cabinet, so that was a great feeling. That's been on my list for awhile! I decluttered a few of my trinket/jewelry boxes in my bedroom which were not planned but were overflowing with junk. I decluttered my desk at work (unplanned). I decluttered two drawers in the bathroom (unplanned). I plan to hit the closets and tupperware cupboards on Saturday. They're going to take some time and I've been working later than usual this week!
@PackerFanInGB Awesome! I have to say I prefer doing “unplanned things” that catch my fancy!! Good luck on Saturday!!2 -
@prgirl39mfp I hear you. I found doing the kitchen in categories rather than locations really helped...
1st: Dishes, mugs (OMG- do they multiply like rabbits?!?!), glassware, bowls, eating utensils
2nd: serving dishes, spoons, pitchers
3rd: cooking (stove & oven) pots&pans, thermometers, potholders, baking pans
3.5: appliances: toaster rice cooker crockpot mixer, food processor, etc
4th: Cold Baking Center: measuring cups, measuring spoons, scales, spatulas, shifters, whisks, musing bowls
5th: Salad Center: knives, cutting boards, vegetable brush, garlic press, peelers, spinner, strainers
6th cookbooks/recipes
Then I did:
Vases
Spices
Pantry (in sections)
Cleaning supplies - sponges, scouring pads, soap, dishwasher soap & rinse, dish towels, brushes
Tupperware, Empty containers & glass jars
Saran Wrap, ziplocks, etc
This way it was not so overwhelming.
We worked 2 hours a day for 3!days one Xmas Break. Got through everything except the Vases on down... did those gradually over time. The biggest was the Pantry. I just did a half shelf each week
You will be Amazed how fun it is to cook when you are done- Truly!!! Cleanup is honestly a snap!2 -
MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@PinkyPan1 How did the closets go?
All done! A pain in the butt but I got them done and I am happy with the results.
@PinkyPan1 You Rock! And wow you work fast!!!1 -
Thanks @MadisonMolly2017 I will continue this weekend.
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My decluttering got off to a slow start due to some extra work stuff but it’s picking up steam.Yesterday, I tidied up my office which looks much better. I also decluttered my computer desktop, organizing files and folders and purging documents that serve no real purpose. its so much cleaner now!
I’ve made some progress on my dining room but most of it will happen this weekend. I’m also adding my bag to the list. I have a big beach bag sized bag that I purchased from an Etsy shop years ago. I bring in my breakfast, lunch, and thermos of coffee to the office and it’s in serious need of a cleaning! I’m a little afraid of what I might find in there....
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MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@prgirl39mfp I hear you. I found doing the kitchen in categories rather than locations really helped...
1st: Dishes, mugs (OMG- do they multiply like rabbits?!?!), glassware, bowls, eating utensils
2nd: serving dishes, spoons, pitchers
3rd: cooking (stove & oven) pots&pans, thermometers, potholders, baking pans
3.5: appliances: toaster rice cooker crockpot mixer, food processor, etc
4th: Cold Baking Center: measuring cups, measuring spoons, scales, spatulas, shifters, whisks, musing bowls
5th: Salad Center: knives, cutting boards, vegetable brush, garlic press, peelers, spinner, strainers
6th cookbooks/recipes
Then I did:
Vases
Spices
Pantry (in sections)
Cleaning supplies - sponges, scouring pads, soap, dishwasher soap & rinse, dish towels, brushes
Tupperware, Empty containers & glass jars
Saran Wrap, ziplocks, etc
This way it was not so overwhelming.
We worked 2 hours a day for 3!days one Xmas Break. Got through everything except the Vases on down... did those gradually over time. The biggest was the Pantry. I just did a half shelf each week
You will be Amazed how fun it is to cook when you are done- Truly!!! Cleanup is honestly a snap!
Oh my gosh, I love this list! Good for you! I now have added a few more declutter items to my list. LOL Spices is a HUGE mess! Outdated and multiples to say the least. That's a "must do". Cleaning supplies - under my kitchen sink! Oh my gosh. That is an area I always say is just horrible but is such a mess that I never even start. I just ignore it and hope it will magically go away. That's another "must do".
P.S. I agree with the coffee mugs. The first declutter challenge we had in this group, that was one of the things I did also. I could not believe how many coffee mugs we had...and we use maybe 4 of them on a regular basis. Crazy clutter and freed up a whole shelf in the kitchen!
I love this challenge! Can you tell?
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@TheMedalist Sounds like a great plan! You’ve got this!
I cleared the top shelf of our pantry, cleaned it, pitched one item past it’s due date, put a few things I know we won’t use in give away pile, put a nice tea towel down & organized the three starches I eat! Looks so pretty!
Over the past 3 years, I’ve decluttered (at least a first pass) almost everything, so I find it more difficult now to identify an area to focus upon.
The Categories that I’ve done just a first pass, but need more, are: basically Photos & Memorabilia. Just such big jobs that bring up so many emotions... I just find them overwhelming to even begin...
Photos, Photos on Computer, Travel Photos, Old Family Photos, slides, videos, memorabilia. Personal memory items of mine. Some items from previous jobs I’ve had. CD’s, VHS & videos
Suggestions appreciated.
In the mean time, I’m going to do a “real” Marie Kondo of my jewelry, scarves, purses, clothing, jackets - now that I’m basically at a Normal BMI for my weight. I’ll keep the few things that probably won’t fit yet (in case they will as I continue to s l o w l y lose a little more.) My fear: that I will have very little to wear!! Still trying to figure out where to shop & what styles I like & look good on me. Before, I just went to large size depts, and chose from a limited selection, which was pretty easy, but rarely clothes that I loved.2 -
MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@TheMedalist Sounds like a great plan! You’ve got this!
Over the past 3 years, I’ve decluttered (at least a first pass) almost everything, so I find it more difficult now to identify an area to focus upon.
The Categories that I’ve done just a first pass, but need more, are: basically Photos & Memorabilia. Just such big jobs that bring up so many emotions... I just find them overwhelming to even begin...
Photos, Photos on Computer, Travel Photos, Old Family Photos, slides, videos, memorabilia. Personal memory items of mine. Some items from previous jobs I’ve had. CD’s, VHS & videos
Suggestions appreciated.
Archiving family photos is on my to do list as well, @MadisonMolly2017. When my parents had their 50th wedding anniversary in 2011, I set up a Flickr account just so my siblings could upload their photos for the scrapbook we were making for our parents. It came in handy recently for my Dad‘s 80th birthday. One of my brothers was doing a slideshow for the party and he grabbed a lot of the photos from the account. I’m not recommending Flickr per se and in fact I’m thinking about moving everything over to Google. But before I do that, I’m going to research what is recommended for long-term photo archives. There must be some best practices for back ups etc.
Since you’ve made so much progress on decluttering in the past, my suggestion is to make your photo archiving project a year-long effort. Carve out 15 minutes a day just for that project. Most often, the stress and anxiety about a project comes at the beginning when we are contemplating doing something but haven’t yet started taking action. I think as you plunge in and chip away at this, your regular progress will alleviate your stress. And 15 minutes a day done every day is 91 hours year. That’s a nice chunk of time....you might even get everything archived by then!
And lastly, what you already know… not every photo needs to be saved. Digital cameras allow us to take lots of photos. But more of anything isn’t necessarily better.
Good luck! I know it’s daunting but you can make it happen!
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themedalist wrote: »
Since you’ve made so much progress on decluttering in the past, my suggestion is to make your photo archiving project a year-long effort. Carve out 15 minutes a day just for that project. Most often, the stress and anxiety about a project comes at the beginning when we are contemplating doing something but haven’t yet started taking action. I think as you plunge in and chip away at this, your regular progress will alleviate your stress. And 15 minutes a day done every day is 91 hours year. That’s a nice chunk of time....you might even get everything archived by then!
And lastly, what you already know… not every photo needs to be saved. Digital cameras allow us to take lots of photos. But more of anything isn’t necessarily better.
Good luck! I know it’s daunting but you can make it happen!
Great idea! 15 minutes a day is very doable. I've been thinking about this for a very long time...what to do with all the photos in the basement that are in boxes (not even in albums) and all the digital photos. More is not necessarily better. That is a good thing to remember when going through them. Also, if you break something down into small steps (15 minutes a day) it somehow doesn't seem as daunting, does it?
I love this group. You are all so insightful. I feel like I have so many "duh" moments! LOL0 -
Would you two - and others- be willing to do this GREAT idea with a discussion strand in this group, @themedalist @PackerFanInGB?
I should have thought of this solution!! Thank you Thank you!
And I agree on researching best practices for this, @themedalist !! I’ll spend 15 mins today researching that!!
THANKS!!1 -
@MadisonMolly I certainly would! This has been a project on my radar for probably 20 years, and it's so intimidating to me that I can't even get myself to start it!0
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MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »Would you two - and others- be willing to do this GREAT idea with a discussion strand in this group, @themedalist @PackerFanInGB?
I should have thought of this solution!! Thank you Thank you!
And I agree on researching best practices for this, @themedalist !! I’ll spend 15 mins today researching that!!
THANKS!!
I certainly would, but can we make it just a bit more generic? I suspect most of us have something or some project we’ve been meaning to get to. And it’s so hard to get started. I’d like the thread to be a space where people can post updates and get support for whatever project they are working on. Whatever project has been causing them stress and they now feel like now is the time to take the plunge.
Working on a project by devoting a few minutes each day to it is a great habit to cultivate and it dovetails very well with the mission of our group. And reducing our stress makes us happier and healthier.
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I love this group!2
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@themedalist
Yes! That’s an even better idea! Thanks!1 -
@prgirl39mfp oh yes, I do too!!2
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MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@prgirl39mfp oh yes, I do too!!
Thanks, @prgirl39mfp and @MadisonMolly2017, that means a lot to me! Knowing this group is having a positive impact on people makes me very happy and motivated to keep writing weekly challenges. I’m glad to have found others to believe as I do that true health and wellness extend beyond just diet and exercise. Yes, those are very important, but it’s more than that. And I think good habits are the building blocks for health and wellness.
Reading your comments as we progress through the weekly challenges makes me so happy! Thank you to EVERYONE who posts how the challenge is going for them.
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MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@themedalist
Yes! That’s an even better idea! Thanks!
Great! Let’s do this, then. I am starting to plan the August challenges. I’ll make this one of the weekly challenges and build into it that it will be a permanent challenge, just like Move It Monday.2 -
themedalist wrote: »MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »@themedalist
Yes! That’s an even better idea! Thanks!
Great! Let’s do this, then. I am starting to plan the August challenges. I’ll make this one of the weekly challenges and build into it that it will be a permanent challenge, just like Move It Monday.
Thank you so much!!!
You are doing great things for us, @themedalist !!!2 -
1. Put things in Recycle Bin from yesterday’s Hotspot Clearing.
2. Took other items to Second-Hand Charity Shop
3. Now, I am getting to Google where I can take old meds & other items...!! Hee!3 -
MadisonMolly2017 wrote: »1. Put things in Recycle Bin from yesterday’s Hotspot Clearing.
2. Took other items to Second-Hand Charity Shop
3. Now, I am getting to Google where I can take old meds & other items...!! Hee!
Nicely done! Many local police departments and hospitals have old meds collection sites. Thank you for keeping these out of the water system.1
