My favourite thing about being decluttered - add yours!

[tree_hugger]

I've been doing a HUGE New Year clean-out, and even though I've only gotten rid of a small fraction of what we own, I am seeing a huge improvement in the look and feel of my house and our day to day lives!

I though it would be nice to start an inspiration thread for all of us on simple living and decluttering journeys.

* I now take quick, purposeful strides as I move about my house. I realised this this afternoon as I was walking form the living room to the kitchen. I don't have to shuffle to avoid stuff on the floor or dodge excess furniture, boxes, toys or clothes. It sounds minor but it is huge!

* Now that my kitchen table is permanently clear, I actually took out my sewing machine for the first time in about six months to sew! I mended my sons jacket that has been waiting since last winter, and also sewed up the straps on his school bag so it fits him better - I am ashamed to say that had I not decluttered and subsequently had the space to sew my son would have been walking around all year with a very uncomfortable bag.

* When my thread got caught and I needed to remove part of the machine to untangle it, I knew EXACTLY where to go to find a screwdriver! Amazing! LOL

Would anyone else like to share?

[Shannie77]

* The more declutter and organized I am the easier it is to keep things clean and put away

* I like that my house is now pretty much "up to standard" for visitors all the time

* I feel more calm and peaceful in my home... although honestly until it is perfect I will still feel anxious about a few cupboards etc.

[woodchick]

I love not spending money by accidentally buying a duplicate of something we already owned, but couldn't find (or forgot we had!)

[*bejeweled*]

When I see something I like in the store, I automatically think about where it would go. If I can't think of a place, I don't buy it.

[treeoflife3]

My favorite thing is definitely how much easier it is to clean.  Fewer things to put away and fewer things to dust, vacuum, mop, and otherwise get nice and shiny around.  Makes everything faster!

[graceomalley]

My kids seem to be a lot calmer when the house is organised.  Chaos leads to chaos, I guess?

[Graceie]

I feel calmer more on top of things and the big one it onley takes me 20 minutes to clean my place !

[triana1326]

I am extremely affected by my surroundings, so the more decluttered the house becomes, the better I feel. We moved into a huge house a year and a half ago and I finally have the energy and drive to remove wallpaper and paint walls. This house is slowly feeling like ours now and is giving me even more motivation to declutter and organize.

[clutterwarrior]

I feel more in control....not completely yet as I still have a way to go, but the benefits so far indicate that mess and clutter equates to a loss of control, and decluttering and organisation makes me feel in control. 

The ironic thing is I always used to fight against organisation, because I thought that it meant having to be rigid and non creative, and that it meant being controlled by rules, but it turns out that it was the clutter controlling my life, thus not allowing me to be creative.

Definitely agree with all of you that it makes everyone calmer in the house, including myself!

I love how it opens up more space....I did some sorting of my craft room and it turns out I have more drawer space now.

[seawitch]

I just generally feel less anxious and less burdened down by the weight (emotional, psychological, etc.) of all the possessions.  There's less to worry about, even if it's on a very subliminal level.

There's also less guilt and shopper's remorse.  The less I have the less I WANT to have, and the less pressure I put on myself to get more, more, more.  I see that I have what I need and that's it.

It feels good to get rid of emotional clutter.  It makes me feel free to embrace the present and future, not be chained to who I used to be.

And I get to see my needed/beautiful/etc. objects more.  They're not lost in the shuffle.  Everywhere I look I see loved objects (and clear spaces!) instead of just STUFF.

[K'sMama]

Originally Posted by graceomalley 

My kids seem to be a lot calmer when the house is organised.  Chaos leads to chaos, I guess?

Definitely!

[*bejeweled*]

Originally Posted by MagnoliaDragon 

The less I have the less I WANT to have, and the less pressure I put on myself to get more, more, more.  I see that I have what I need and that's it.

[marinak1977]

I love how much easier it is to keep the house clean now that there is less stuff.
I also feel much more centered and calm in my cleared out house.
I am less pressured to shop and buy stuff because I know what we have and what we need, I can pass by sales and not by or even peek.

[Brees_Mama]

The feeling of accomplishment.

Hearing my 4yo tell me what a good job I've done <3

The extra space!

[GearGirl]

Having my 10 year old tell me "I'm not sentimental about these school projects, let's not hang onto them", and noticing clutter in other people's houses.  This might sound judgmental but I don't mean it that way.  I think I really had a problem where I just didn't notice clutter and mess the way most people do.  Now I see piles in corners and toys everywhere at playdates and I want to organize it.  That is HUGE for me.  I still struggle with making a mess and my garage, but I am really de-cluttered.  People always say to me "Oh, you own a toy store, your kids must have a ton of toys."  It's hard for me to explain that they don't.  The three year old does, but the 10 year old only wants to skateboard and ride his bike, so I don't have anything for him toy wise.  The 7 year old likes art and a few dolls, so I don't keep much around for her either, just a few dolls and then I bring home family games and art stuff, and she uses it up pretty fast.  If a piece of a game gets lost or chewed by one very naughty dog, I get rid of it.  Same with puzzles with lost pieces.  So, I don't have a ton of old games and puzzles either.  If something isn't fun for us anymore I pass it along to my babysitter who passes it along.  I actually hate toy clutter!

[MiniMum]

Let's see-- our 600 sf apt feels spacious and I'm not constantly pining for a bigger home.

It's easy and fast to clean.

I feel calmer and more joyful. There is serenity and peace and it makes me a better mama and wife too!

[jimblejamble]

Knowing that when we move, we'll have less stuff to pack and transport.

[*bejeweled*]

DD cleaned out the shoe closet and donated all of her too small shoes. She told me, "I don't want to be a hoarder."

[PeacefulSeams]

*Knowing exactly where everything is when I need it

*easier cleanup at bedtime...there are not toys all over the floor

*feeling calmer and less anxious

*hearing my 7 yr old DS say "I do't need this many toys...I have to many. Let's get rid of some."

* having a feeling that I have no attachment to material things....well, mostly :)

[JesKace]

I have to agree with most others.  I just feel calmer.  I like sitting on the couch at night to watch tv and look around the house and see everything put away, it just makes me feel like my job for the day is done and I can really relax.  If there is a mess I don't feel like I can fully relax because I constantly feel like there are things that I should be doing.

Also, I like to visually see space that I couldn't see before.  When we do a big clean of our porch or basement and I can actually see the amount of space we gained by cleaning and getting rid of things it's such a satisfying feeling.  I picked up our back porch today and moved some stuff around now the path to walk is double the size it was.  It just feels so good to see that space and not feel squished when I walk on the porch.  Also knowing that I didn't just pile stuff up, I actually either found a home for it, or got rid of it.  Once I get around to bringing things to a donation bin, I'll have even more space!
 

Originally Posted by woodchick 

I love not spending money by accidentally buying a duplicate of something we already owned, but couldn't find (or forgot we had!)

Oh my goodness we have done this so many times when doing home projects!!!  We've bought things in advance and figure we'd put them away till we got around to doing the job.  Then the time comes to do the job, and we can't find the stuff.  So we have to go out and buy the stuff again, only to find the item after we needed it :(