Let it GO! Decluttering (simplifying) your life of (people, places or things) success stories?
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I'm considering getting rid of most of my art supplies. I just can't really do it anymore. I have problems with my hands, and I don't have time/ my interests have moved elsewhere. I have a bunch of canvases and other art supplies. I'm thinking about keeping a set of pencils and a sketchbook, and donating everything else. IDK, it was such a big part of my life for a long time, but now it is all just sitting in my closet not being used.
In a few years, I may have time, and then I can have fun buying new stuff if I want to.5 -
I'm considering getting rid of most of my art supplies. I just can't really do it anymore. I have problems with my hands, and I don't have time/ my interests have moved elsewhere. I have a bunch of canvases and other art supplies. I'm thinking about keeping a set of pencils and a sketchbook, and donating everything else. IDK, it was such a big part of my life for a long time, but now it is all just sitting in my closet not being used.
In a few years, I may have time, and then I can have fun buying new stuff if I want to.
Sometimes local schools would LOVE to have your art supplies. Either the teachers can use them in class, or they can get them to a student who may enjoy art supplies.8 -
JulieAL1969 wrote: »
I gave away two fish tanks I wasn't using to a school. They often use them for small animals or terrariums.
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I am looking forward to reading here..Thanks OP!!2
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JulieAL1969 wrote: »I'm considering getting rid of most of my art supplies. I just can't really do it anymore. I have problems with my hands, and I don't have time/ my interests have moved elsewhere. I have a bunch of canvases and other art supplies. I'm thinking about keeping a set of pencils and a sketchbook, and donating everything else. IDK, it was such a big part of my life for a long time, but now it is all just sitting in my closet not being used.
In a few years, I may have time, and then I can have fun buying new stuff if I want to.
Sometimes local schools would LOVE to have your art supplies. Either the teachers can use them in class, or they can get them to a student who may enjoy art supplies.
Good idea! I'll ask around and see if I can donate them to one of the local schools.6 -
I have been talking about going through my cupboards since I got home but my yarn stash has been all I can focus on. I had 1 1/2 dressers plus 2 trash bags full of yarn. Not to mention shopping bags strung throughout the house. I finally pulled all the yarn I won't use into the spare bedroom and sorted it. I've been making pet mats for a couple months and realized that I have gotten rid of 1 trash bag of yarn! I'm going to donate the mats to a shelter when I have 10 made. I've been decluttering and didn't even realize it. LOL17
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I LOVE THIS POST! Very inspiring, OP - gave me some motivation and helped me remember where I've come from!
Two, almost three years ago now, I had a shift. I cut out drinking year one. I cut out smoking year two, and this year I've cut out relationships that no longer serve me. In that time I've also managed to let go of a lot of stuff - clothes, shoes, trinkets, school supplies, etc. And also, habits - no more going out every weekend, or having to see every concert that strikes my fancy. No more wanting for the weekend and wasting the week. I planted my roots firmly with my family and started cultivating a better relationship with myself first, and then with my partner. I realized that stuff does not fill me up - it just fills up my house. I can't pour from an empty cup so I had to find out what actually did fill me. It was fresh air. It was heart to heart talks with my partner. It was waking up early and earning overtime to save for a house. It was playing with my dog till we were both dog tired. I tripped - I stumbled - I got back up and I'm back at it! Do I have plenty more stuff I could still do without? Sure do! Will I continue to press on in the directions of my dreams? Sure will!35 -
I started my minimalism journey about 2 years ago. My mantra is get rid of stuff that does not being me joy. Every object, every piece of clothing, every person is held to the same standard. Some examples:
1. Sitting on my couch on a rainy day binging on Netflix make me happy so I keep the couch and the TV and the Netflix subscription. I got rid of an end table because it served no purpose, other to look nice.
2. I love to cook so the pots and pans stay, but only the ones I use frequently.
3. I have a memory box for each of my grown children. I only kept the stuff that really mattered, things with a memory attached.
4. I only use 2 glasses and a coffee cup at my house, but I enjoy having company over so I have enough wine glasses, drinking glasses, and coffee mugs for my friends and family. That's about 20 total, not the 50 or more in most people's cupboards.5 -
I am working towards a minimalistic lifestyle. My husband not so much. It’s not really that he buys excess but he doesn’t put things away. It stresses me out to look around the house and see “stuff” scattered all over the place
one time I spent my toddlers nap time going through all of his toys in the living room and removing about half of them to declutter and I’m not kidding a couple days later I come home from work and my husband had bought a giant inflatable shark and 3 or 4 new balls for him. I wanted to scream lol.
Areas in my life that I am working on are my wardrobe (I started doing a capsule wardrobe thing for each season) and beauty products/toiletry type stuff. I’m trying to go through everything in my linen closet so I can throw the damn containers away. I’ve honestly never been one to buy little decorative “things” or knick knacks so I don’t have any problem there. I’ve always considered those to be nothing more than extra stuff to dust around. But going forward before I make any purchase I’m going to try really hard to think about it. Is it worth the money and will this bring value to my life and/or my home?
Another area that stresses me out is my kitchen. I’ve gone through every drawer and cabinet and there’s nothing more that I want to get rid of. Everything brings value to my life. I love to cook. Except the deep fryer but my husband won’t let me get rid of that lol.
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JulieAL1969 wrote: »I grew up in a spotless house. My mom would stay up late cleaning many nights. I think it set an unrealistic expectation for me as an adult. My brain got wired to think it was the way you live .... with zero clutter.
When I got married, I saw that my spouse was messy and loves clutter; i think it makes him feel good. The clutter chokes me. It can be very hard on me emotionally to live in clutter. Our dresser in our bed room is cut in half- his side is covered in receipts, papers, and everything , and my side has a picture frame and a candle. I'm sorry to vent. He's not wrong for being that way, because that's how his brain is wired.
But for me, it's a source of discomfort seeing that junk in piles all over.
I just needed to express myself on this thread. I wont complain further, but i dream of having a clean house with only items we treasure instead of thousands of pieces of junk that isn't valued but still kept.
If it helps, you’re not alone. I’m not the neatest person but I don’t like clutter. My husband is a complete slob. I just typed out a really long reply on everything my husband does at home that drives me crazy and deleted it lol. It is funny because our bedroom is the same way. We each have a dresser and night stand. Mine are empty except for my one cup of water that I’m currently using and my phone. His is covered in receipts, pills, random pieces of paper, coins, 3 different cups, empty bottles of lotion, empty deodorant containers, a pile of clothes that are “too dirty to put back in the drawer but not dirty enough to wash” lol!! I try to leave it alone but every now and then I have to clean it off when it drives me crazy enough4 -
Glad I found this post.
I did a major garage purge back in January. 2 trips to the dump!
Then I purged 35lbs of extra weight from Jan to now. I feel like a new man again.
Now if I can convince my wife to purge her junk in the house I'd be in a really good place...lol12 -
JulieAL1969 wrote: »I grew up in a spotless house. My mom would stay up late cleaning many nights. I think it set an unrealistic expectation for me as an adult. My brain got wired to think it was the way you live .... with zero clutter.
When I got married, I saw that my spouse was messy and loves clutter; i think it makes him feel good. The clutter chokes me. It can be very hard on me emotionally to live in clutter. Our dresser in our bed room is cut in half- his side is covered in receipts, papers, and everything , and my side has a picture frame and a candle. I'm sorry to vent. He's not wrong for being that way, because that's how his brain is wired.
But for me, it's a source of discomfort seeing that junk in piles all over.
I just needed to express myself on this thread. I wont complain further, but i dream of having a clean house with only items we treasure instead of thousands of pieces of junk that isn't valued but still kept.
If it helps, you’re not alone. I’m not the neatest person but I don’t like clutter. My husband is a complete slob. I just typed out a really long reply on everything my husband does at home that drives me crazy and deleted it lol. It is funny because our bedroom is the same way. We each have a dresser and night stand. Mine are empty except for my one cup of water that I’m currently using and my phone. His is covered in receipts, pills, random pieces of paper, coins, 3 different cups, empty bottles of lotion, empty deodorant containers, a pile of clothes that are “too dirty to put back in the drawer but not dirty enough to wash” lol!! I try to leave it alone but every now and then I have to clean it off when it drives me crazy enough
Oh man I can also relate to the above! My husband is a super minimalist thank goodness, so he doesn't have a ton of possessions in general. But what he does have is a mess. He cooks our meals and makes the biggest mess of the kitchen (I'm ok with it because I clean up after dinner daily & it satisfies me to see the kitchen looking pristine again). His side of our dresser is a pile of receipts and headphones and change. We got this little tray for him to put it all on, but it's overflowing all of the time and piled up 8 inches high. My side has a large jewelry box, deodorant & 2 bottles of perfume. On the floor next to the bed he just piles up all of his shorts, various running shoes, sandals, even jeans or khaki pants are over there in a jumble. My clothes are neatly hanging or folded, and organized by color & type. Amazingly though he always looks presentable in public! He works from home and usually on the sofa so I got him a couple of really nice large decorative boxes to put his junk in and fortunately I'm able to just close the lids and/or stow them under the coffee table (they look like part of the décor) when we're having company.
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Reading some of these posts, I'm glad my husband and I have our own rooms!
(It's worked for 25 years.)
My room stays tidy, and I let him do what he wants with his stuff in his room. The rest of the house is pretty much organised now.
I've learned to "Let it go" of the resentment towards his mess in his own space.
Perhaps if others see their partners' mess as rather their partner's space, it might not hurt their feelings so much. Just a thought.
I do do some things to help him manage his clutter, like his laundry. He manages the meal planning and cooking, so division of labour is fair.
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I have seen this brilliant idea: Hang all your clothing on coat hangers in your cupboard(s) facing one side only. If you take out some garment, change the clothing hanger to the other side. Do this for 6 months or so. Whatever you haven't used in that time, will still hang "the wrong way" around.8
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I LOVE THIS POST! Very inspiring, OP - gave me some motivation and helped me remember where I've come from!
Two, almost three years ago now, I had a shift. I cut out drinking year one. I cut out smoking year two, and this year I've cut out relationships that no longer serve me. In that time I've also managed to let go of a lot of stuff - clothes, shoes, trinkets, school supplies, etc. And also, habits - no more going out every weekend, or having to see every concert that strikes my fancy. No more wanting for the weekend and wasting the week. I planted my roots firmly with my family and started cultivating a better relationship with myself first, and then with my partner. I realized that stuff does not fill me up - it just fills up my house. I can't pour from an empty cup so I had to find out what actually did fill me. It was fresh air. It was heart to heart talks with my partner. It was waking up early and earning overtime to save for a house. It was playing with my dog till we were both dog tired. I tripped - I stumbled - I got back up and I'm back at it! Do I have plenty more stuff I could still do without? Sure do! Will I continue to press on in the directions of my dreams? Sure will!
This is an inspiring post! Xo1 -
Y'all have inspired me to tackle my home! It drives me crazy that I can't properly close one of my kitchen drawers. It's the one that holds the big ladles, knives, pizza cutter, etc. I'm convinced that there are things I can declutter. Looking forward to getting home and exploring it!
One of my random thoughts-- I feel rested when I go on vacation and stay in a hotel room. But why? Maybe it's because that room doesn't have the clutter that I have at home. The hotel room has just the necessary basics.
Oh. What so what do I do with all the half empty bottles of shampoo hanging around my bathroom?5 -
WandaVaughn wrote: »Y'all have inspired me to tackle my home! It drives me crazy that I can't properly close one of my kitchen drawers. It's the one that holds the big ladles, knives, pizza cutter, etc. I'm convinced that there are things I can declutter. Looking forward to getting home and exploring it!
One of my random thoughts-- I feel rested when I go on vacation and stay in a hotel room. But why? Maybe it's because that room doesn't have the clutter that I have at home. The hotel room has just the necessary basics.
Oh. What so I do with all the half empty bottles of shampoo hanging around my bathroom?
The shampoo/conditioner thing really bugs me, too. Once it gets to the point where I can't stand it anymore I'll just combine them into one bottle. I've also moved them into the laundry room and I use a squirt or two in delicate wash cycles instead of more harsh laundry detergent.5 -
Pacing around, waiting for test results, throwing out random things. Time to clean a dresser!5
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