Welcome to the first day of our 30 Day Clutter Buster Challenge! I am so excited and I'm looking forward to hearing all about what you are decluttering!
There are no real rules to this (except that children and pets do not count as clutter!). However, having said that, try not to let the items pile up over the month. If you are throwing something out then put it in the trash right away and when the bag is full take it out. If you are donating something to charity then take it directly to your car and the next time you are out, drop it off. Don't allow your car to become filled with UFO's (untethered flying objects that can become dangerous if you are in an accident). Place items that you are taking to charity in a box or a clear plastic bag. Do not use a garbage bag for anything but garbage because there is a high likelihood that whatever is in there will be mistaken for garbage and thrown out. Now let's start decluttering!
My first item that I am decluttering is my large, electric roasting pan.
We bought it when we used to go camping. The trailer that we owned did not have an oven so we would use it occasionally to roast something like a turkey, usually for Thanksgiving. I think I can count on one hand how many times I have used this and it has not been used once in the past 2 years since we sold the trailer. In this house we have 3 ovens and a warming drawer so I find that I really do not need another roasting pan.
There are 5 questions you should be asking yourself when assessing an object that you are considering decluttering.
1. Do I need it? - I am NOT giving up my blow dryer!
2. Will I ever use it? - Some experts word this differently by asking, "Is it useful?" I prefer, "Will I ever use it?" Using my roasting pan as an example, sure it's useful, it could come in handy in many situations, but that doesn't mean that I will ever use it.
3. Do I love it? - Another way to ask this is, "Does it make me smile?" Do not have anything in your home that does not make you smile (unless you need it). I once had a couple of photos on my mantle of dogs that we had owned. These photos did not make me smile when I saw them since the dogs had passed away. In fact, they made me quite sad. Eventually I decided to replace them with photos of my kids that do make me smile when I see them.
4. Is it a duplicate? - Do you have a dozen white tee shirts? Maybe you have 14 pairs of blue jeans. Do you really need that many. Do they all fit perfectly and make you feel awesome when wearing them? Maybe some could go. My roasting pan is a duplicate of the 3 ovens that I already have.
5. What is the worst thing that will happen if I let this go? - Some day I may need to host a very large party (to which you will all be invited!) and I will not have enough room in all my ovens to keep things warm. However, I think that my mom has one of these roasting pans that I could borrow and I could always change the menu enough that we could have a few cold items too. In reality, nothing much will happen if I let this go.
Are you ready to start decluttering? Get rid of one thing a day for the next 30 days and you will feel a difference in your home and your life! And don't forget to share with me what you are getting rid of! Let me know below or wherever I have posted the link to this site. Let's celebrate our achievements together!
Great advice, Sherry. I love question 5. My version goes like this..."Did the Lord give me this? Yes. If I ever need one again will He give me another? Yes." This frees me up to let go of many things that I would keep 'just in case'.
ReplyDeleteI have decluttered part of a shelf and a hotspot. I'm going to find a pretty basket (or a 'manly' one) for DH to keep his meds in. He tends to scatter them about, always hunting for something. I'm sure I could train him in a few months..LOL He's really a sweetie and commented that it was so easy to find my meds in my basket when he has to call in prescriptions.
Hi Linda. I love your version of question #5! It gives another meaning to the phrase, "The good Lord will provide"!
DeleteI'll tell you what I did for decluttering our meds. I found a nice condiment basket at Home Sense. It's metal and has 3 separate compartments. I put mine and Mr. P's meds in one, pain meds in another and allergy meds in the third. I keep it in a kitchen cupboard and everything else is kept in the medicine cabinet in the downstairs bathroom (no humidity). I also picked up those pill sorter containers and every Sunday night I fill up the compartments for each day of the week. This sits on the counter so that we don't forget to take our meds!
I used to have all our meds that we need to take each day in an old Singer Sewing Machine drawer that sat on the counter. But my counter space is so limited and I found that the pill sorter container (what are those things called?) takes up much less room.
Way to go Linda! You are Flying!
Excellent, Sherry!
ReplyDeleteI got rid of a computer mouse that was no longer functioning. I drew a sloppy picture of it.
Yesterday, i sorted through a desk drawer of pens and tossed those which were dry -- even the cute ones!
ReplyDeleteToday, i'm not so much tossing as trying to re-home grocery bags: Out of the apartment and into Mom's car. i also have a vintage pressure canner which needs desperately to be posted on Kijiji. i'll try to take a pic and see if i can post that tonight.
Laura
Awesome Laura! Glad you're joining us!
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