Help and advice for de-cluttering my home?

Question

I hate throwing things out.
If something brakes i'll have a go at fixing it + often succeed.
From dishwashers to mobile phones, socks to coats.
I have alot of things waiting to be fixed.I dont like waste+ tend to save junk which i think i could make use of(maybe 1day).
I realise this is a problem,as i am tripping over bags+boxes of stuff that needs sorting out.I have some things ready for charity+ recycling.But i'd be greatful for any advice.

Answer 1

Fire works, just insure everything first and stand clear... Joke

Answer 2

I do the very same thing, too. I get things that I just know I'm going to do something with, and then years later I realize that whatever it was that I thought I was going to do is now something that I don't need or want to do any longer....or even that I now know that I'm not ever going to get around to because I have too many other projects and I just know that I'll never get back to it.

I had a "craft" room literally full of boxes and trash bags full of stuff, it was only halfway organized according to what type of project it was. I decided I was going to get it under control and this is what I did.

I purchased an armoire and storage/organizing containers that complimented each other and would look nice and fit into the room. Then I emptied the entire room by going through each box and bag and making a decision about each and every item. I knew that whatever I kept had to be able to fit into an organized container or storage type piece of furniture (such as an armoire). Everything else I put into my truck to take to charity. I neatly put everything back into the room and now I'm telling myself that I have plenty of projects to do, and I don't acquire any new items or projects until I've finished one I already had on hand.

Answer 3

Do you have kids? Offer them an allowance or a treat for heping you sort through a few boxes and make it fun for everyone. Also, don't have a tv on because it is distracting, but a CD that you know all the words to the songs is always good to have on while you work. As far as being a pak rat, I am too. You'll have to part with some things. Make it enjoyable. Remeniscing through old memories or whatnot. Hope this helps.

Answer 4

With kids toys I have a policy that if it breaks it goes straight in the bin - encourages them to take care of their toys!

With socks and small suitable fabrics, if it gets a hole it goes under the sink for a floor cloth- single use, and throw away.

For decluttering the best time is the 2 weeks from full moon to new moon, as the moon wanes, so does the clutter.

Sunday is my sewing and mending day. My best 'mend' was fixing the immersion heater using a part from the broken one I saved up in the attic, saving a whopping £60.

Bet you're a Pisces too!

Answer 5

I, too, have tons of junk all over. What I've been doing is actually just CHUCKING IT. Here is a way to gradually break away from your clutter. First, start a pile in a corner, of stuff that you know you have not used in the past 6 months. You know you are not going to use in the next 6 months. Then take a box or trash bag, close your eyes....and chuck it all. Don't think twice, and don't look back. TRUST ME, you will not miss a thing!

Answer 6

First, consider speaking to a therapist or looking for self-help online (Squalor Survivors or Flylady--or both--are good places to start). Hoarding or problems throwing things away is sometimes seen as related to OCD or other mental issues. You aren't alone though.

Second, resolve that you will get your home decluttered. Make a letter to yourself convincing yourself of why you need to learn to let go of garbage. Cleaning is easier without having to deal with clutter. You are losing use of things like tables, closets, or even whole rooms of your home. Real useful things are getting destroyed from neglect because of your clutter. Any reason.

Then get to work. If you went to Flylady or Squalor Survivors, you will learn about methods other people just like you have used. Start small if you have to. If you can't work for 15 minutes at a time removing things, work for one minute at a time. If you can't do 1 minute, do 30 seconds.

How you proceed largely depends on your situattion. Good luck. There's support out there if you look for it.

Answer 7

send the hubby away for a weekend if hes the horder and toss all the crap, it feels good once its done. seriously are you ever gonna use that tread master from 1990 ect. if its you whos the squirrel go away for a weekend get the hubby and kids to have a garage sale clean out. be ruthless cause the crap has to go. recycle ect but some just has to be tossed. belive me
if it hasnt been used in a year or 2 get rid of it. never mind what it "might come in handy for" cause the likley hood is zip. gotta be cruel to be kind. dont be disposaphobic

Answer 8

Same thing here I never thought it a problem, my Father grew-up through the depression of the thirties and his parents saved everything even the wax paper around butter cubes.
I still have Things my Father saved thinking there will be a use and if you don't know what throw it out and after a while you will find a use and slap your forehead remembering you threw it out, I still have a curled yellowed newspaper clipping on my kitchen wall titled How to unclutter your life" someone read this and gave it to me I read it once and they put it on the wall in the kitchen to remind me,,,,,,,,,,,Didn't work,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Hope I got you to smile a little about it, your not alone.

Answer 9

Ok I have been going though the same thing.

1. Make a rule if you bring one thing in two things must go out
2. Have you used it in one year if Not toss give away or throw. You will not use it.
3. Freecycle.Org is great you just post it and some one comes and gets it. Within 24 hrs that way you’re not temped to take it back. Or you can sell it on eBay a little way of recouping your money
4. News papers or magazines just clip what you wanted out of them put into a note book and throw the rest.
5. Make 3 boxes one that says give one throw and one keep using the one year rule
6. Join a group like this one they helped me loads http://groups.msn.com/DomesticatedBliss tell them Diane recommend you
They take one room for 2 weeks and de-clutter it and post there pictures there.
7. Have a yard sale
8. Donate you get a slip for taxes
9. Take one room at a time going though it.
10 If you don’t have a place for it. It doesn’t have a place in you home.
11. Think of your storage as money if you had to pay to store this item properly what would it cost you. Storage is usually at least 50 bucks a month plus.
12. Go to the dollar store and organize your stuff like paint stuff all in one basket .paints in a plastic container Buy at least one see though container a week to help you organize.
13 think of yourselves as a little old lady or man and if you died tomorrow would you be mortified to be having people clean up your mess you left behind. I often think of my poor son getting stuck with cleaning my mess up. Or being reported to adult protective service because I wasn’t safe to get around my home. I made a rule I have to be able to get around in a wheel chair in my home. I work in home health and you should see some of the awful messes we clean up and that family has to do at death costing the family thousands of dollars to do each year.

I have a lady we work with that literally has only one small path in her house. She asked me to help her. I told her she has to fill one trash can a week with trash and one recyclable with her paper trash while she watching TV, sort though the crap until it got down.
I am currently moving and if something is broken its getting toss I have found over the years it just isn’t worth storing over one year.

Think of your storage crap as rocks around your neck weighing you down .are you the master or is your stuff.

Now get cracking and get that trash can full.

Diane

Answer 10

recognising your problem has shown you are ready to proceed.
for other clutter-bugs here is a method for clearing old crap lying around.
get 3 boxes and go through each room at a time sorting into
recycle
give away
keep

Answer 11

Join a group like freecycle.org...you can give stuff away through them. If you feel like it's not being wasted and someone else can use it (and maybe FIX it!), you'll feel better about getting rid of it. Just don't take on too much stuff from others on the site!