Decluttering 2014

We actually had snow fall yesterday morning. It did quit and eventually the sun shone. It is cooler out but not bad; around the freezing mark.

We have spent a lot of time decluttering in 2014. Both upstairs and downstairs. Have we got it all done? No, we haven’t. But I want to get it done for several reasons that will unfold over the next year.

I will have to say that the upstairs of our home is 95% decluttered. That last 5% is going to be the death of us but we know we have to do it. I have spent 3.5 years getting to this point and it was hard work to start with. The  upstairs I did alone as the Spousal Unit was busy renovating. I literally made every decision on what to keep and what to remove. What I was unsure of or the Spousal Unit questioned went downstairs. It was added to the piles of stuff down there.

The downstairs was our priority in 2014 though we had done some decluttering in 2012-2013. We grunted and groaned, sorted and tossed, gave away, and put away many items. In the process a huge load went to a young couple for their new home, many loads went to thrift shops, and a few loads to the dump. I would say we are 75% decluttered down there. We will continue to work on the basement in 2015. There is still a lot to be removed that we literally don’t need or won’t use.

Sewing room 2009 the day after we moved in.

I am not typical when it comes to decluttering or purging. I bring it in fast and I can get most of it out fast. I do start the process slow as I form a plan in my head and give myself permission to let it go. Then I dig in and get the job done. I make piles for keep and donate and toss what needs to be tossed immediately. When in the groove, I can stay at it for hours. My road block is emotional attachment of which I have to work through mentally and emotionally.

But, like others, I had to learn how to declutter/purge and it started years ago. I have read a lot on decluttering and here are some of the websites I have read and followed.

1. Fly Lady is where I started. Way back when we lived up north and were moving and I was working full time. Those 15 minutes a day were great and I moved from room to room cleaning up the clutter. I then broke the house into zones and followed her instructions from the launch pad when we moved into a modular home. 

In the midst of using Fly Lady, I watched a lot of Peter Walsh’s Clean Sweep shows. He was an inspiration when I was feeling discouraged or defeated. I was able to move forward with Fly Lady but what I didn’t realize was I was putting a lot into storage to move to more total square footage (aka this present house).

2. Home Storage Solutions 101 came into existence after we moved into this house and I had to deal with a hurried up move and huge renovation. Shall we say that we unloaded the moving van, I set up what the Spousal Unit needed for 11 months of living alone and headed back north to work. I did that in less than a week. Literally, the house was full except for the room that was to become the sewing room. When I came home to visit, I prepped the next room that was to be renovated. That meant moving boxes and tubs into the newly renovated sewing room. And doing it quickly as I was always short on time. 

At first, I followed what Home Solutions 101 said for the room we were renovating upstairs. As we took the room apart, I purged, decluttered, and put only what we wanted back in. I used the 52 week challenge (found at the bottom of the page) and put into an order that suited us. It worked for us. Today, it is modified as I am getting things more under control.  

I found and read several other sites on home organization. Some were overwhelming, others a repeat of the above. Here are two sites I just found and am deciding if they are keepers or tossers.

10 Decluttering Principles to Help Anyone Clear the Clutter

I have not read any more but this page as I went immediately to the guest’s own blog.

365 Less Things

So far a good read. I will give myself a month to make a decision of keeping or tossing. What I like about this blog is the writer doesn’t take you down the road to minimalism. It is where you want to go. For us, it is minimalism and I know this isn’t for everyone.

2015

Our goal is finish the renovations and decluttering of the place. In some cases, such as the sewing room, I have literally called it purging. Where there is too much, we want less and have it under control. That will include organizing a lot of items both inside and outside of this house.

 

We also want to do some fix ups and repaint some of the walls. I will do a deep scrub again this spring and put a new finish on the laminate floors. Outside the fences need painting and some areas of the yard need finishing up. A new fence needs to replace an old one. We are preparing for the future.

Until tomorrow………………….