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Old "Get rid of___" decluttering list

3K views 25 replies 22 participants last post by  hopefulfaith 
#1 ·
Good Rules of Thumb:
* get rid of anything that requires you to purchase some kind of organization item for it. chances are, you don't need that crap to begin with.
* anything that ends up covered in dust--if you really loved it that much, it would get more attention.
* anything you can always find at goodwill for under a buck that you hardly ever use anyway.
* Get rid of duplicate things you have from when you got married that you thought you'd keep both of in case one broke
* Get rid of that box of stuff you might try to sell someday.
* get rid of stuff that just never seems to find a "home".
* get rid of "some day" things, as in "SOME DAY I'll use this for xyz".
* Get rid of things you would NOT want to pack up and have to move if you were moving to a different home.
* get rid of all of the boxes that haven't been unpacked yet from the last time you moved.
* things that "can be fixed" -if you haven't fixed it by now, it's probably not going to happen.

EMOTIONAL/SENTIMENTAL:
* Consider taking a photograph of a momento then getting rid of the actual momento.
* Get rid of ANYTHING that does not bring you some joy when you see it or use it.
* Get rid of gifts you don't like and things you keep out of guilt or obligation
* Get rid of anything that reminds you of someone who doesn't make your life joyful
* Get rid of thank you cards, birthday cards...that don't really have special meaning
* Get rid of things that make you feel like you're not the person you want to be (those reminders of things you'd love to do but never have time to and that only drain your spirit/energy)
* Get Rid of Anything You Don't Need or Love, things that aren't "you".
* If you pick something up and wonder whether you need it, you don't.
The things you truly need and love - you know that without hesitation.
* Ditch all your dried flowers.
* Get rid of balloons that no longer stay afloat

KITCHEN
* Get rid of kitchen appliances you use less than, say, once a month
* Anything in the kitchen cupboard (dishes, canned goods, utensils, you name it) that haven't been used in a year. (Other than the forspecial china and silver).
* Get rid of all but four pot holders
* all the extra measuring spoons and cups
* All those knives that don't really do it. you only really need 2.
* the cookie cutters that are never used.
* Get rid of food in the pantry that has sat there for a yr (find a new owner or toss it with an expired date)
* most of the tupperware can go

CLOTHING/LINENS:
* Get rid of clothes you don't look good in, don't fit right, or you don't love.
* Ugly, stained, ill-fitting, maybe someday I'll wear it again, itchy clothes. (keep one set for painting and crud)
* Get rid of clothing I won't wear or haven't worn in 2 yrs
* Get rid of the orphan socks and pairs of socks with holes in them - they're useless!
* Undies with holes even if they will last another year
*Get rid of all towels that are holy or frayed or excess (keep enough for 2 per person and 1 for the pets)
*Get rid of all bedding sets (keep 1 for myself and 2 per child)
* Get rid of your fat clothes, your skinny clothes ... dress the body you have and love it
*Get rid of hand-me-down clothes that you don't even like!
* Get rid of the 8 or 9 boxes of fancy baby clothes that will never be used

HOBBIES/MEDIA:
* Get rid of books/magazines you don't read all the time, will never read again, or no longer interest you (what's a library for after all?)
* Get rid of outdated reference materials
* Get rid of pictures and artwork you have no place to put - if you like it, then find a place for it - take something you like less down, but if it doesn't have a place what good is it?
* decorations you don't love
* craft supplies you aren't using
* Get rid of scrap wood from that last project, unless you have an actual plan in mind for it.
* Get rid of scrap fabric.

KIDS STUFF:
* all the extra markers and crayons. keep one set of new.
* Get rid of dried up play dough.
* Get rid of happy meal toys, toys that are overflowing out of the toy bins, toys the kids don't even know they have, noise-making toys that require batteries!
* all but 25 favorite toys for each kid (sets count as one thing). This one is hard.
* Stuffed animals. They are nasty and collect dust. Keep one or two special loves. but not 50.
* Get rid of poorly written, insanely annoying or duplicate kids books.
* Get rid of broken crayons (yes, I know you can melt them to make block crayons. If you were going to do that, wouldn't you have done it already?).
* Get rid of things you have been collecting to do "recycled art" with your kids, unless you actually plan to do it this week. There will always be more.

JUNK EVERYONE SEEMS TO HAVE:
* that bunch of random floating pens--give em to the grocery store clerk
* All those screws and nails that are leftover from everything. Can never find the one you want anyway.
* Get rid of blurry or bad photos (especially if they're duplicate prints), unless it's the one shot you have of a momentous event.
* Get rid of at least one rubbermaid of the Christmas decorations you don't like that have been heaped upon you because your inlaws can't imagine that maybe you want a simple Christmas.
* Get rid of the 9 extra cameras that haven't been touched since the digital camera was purchased.
* Get rid of the two "spare" computers that barely work, take 10 minutes to boot up, and sound like jet engines when they run.
* Get rid of the "spare" furniture (that entertainment center) that has been sitting in the garage and storage area since move in day, extra furniture, the ugly chair in my bedroom
* Get rid of junk mail!!
*Get rid of all outdated toiletries and make-up, products (cleaning and body) that are unsafe and lotions and potions you no longer use
* Get boxes loaded with books, DVD's, cd's and clothes OUT of here, before I start going through them and "finding" things I "need" to keep.
 
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#10 ·
Such a good reminder!! Thanks for reposting this!
joy.gif
 
#13 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by doubledutch View Post

donate/freecycle anything useful, and it's FINE to trash the rest. whether it's in your home or at the dump, it's trash (and will end up at the dump someday), so let go of the guilt and just get it out of your house.
Amen to this! Right now I'm Craigslisting, Freecycling and Donating a bunch. Everything else (i.e. broken, old papers, plastic bottles
dizzy.gif
(we reuse several for soaps, shampoo dispensers etc)) is getting either recycled or trashed.
 
#14 ·
Awesome list! This week I actually donated some things we "were going to sell" for months. These things have been floating around the house for too too long.

If in doubt take it to GoodWill and let them decide to keep it or not. I donated a basket of items but the basket itself was pretty trashed. I tried to take it back so I could toss it but the attendant said No Problem they would trash it for me.

Freecycle is also a great option!

Rhianna
 
#15 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by bonjourmama View Post

But where do you get rid of it too? Salvation Army? Goodwill?
I don't know about others but I get rid of things to charities here including Salvation Army, St Vincent de Paul and the Smith Family.

I sell a few things on ebay when I can be bothered! Only if they are likely to make a good price....

If the things are not good enough to even give away, I recycle or bin them.
 
#16 ·
great list. I agreed with almost all of it. Didn't agree with the kitchen appliance one. I don't use my mixer that often, but when I do use it I really need it. My food processor gets very erratic use, too, it might be 3 times a week for one month and then not at all of the the next month. I prefer more than 2 knives, too. And, my kids love stuffed animals. I could probably limit them to far fewer than 25 other toys, but stuffed animals are the one main toy category that gets played with around here. I know a lot of parents don't like them, but my kids love them and frankly I prefer them to something that has a jillion little pieces like Legos or Playmobil.

That said, I agree with almost all of the rest of your list!

I take my stuff to our thrift store, craigslist it (sometimes the "free" section if it's something the thrift store doesn't take) and occasionally consign stuff at the seasonal consignment sales.
 
#20 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by PeacefulSeams View Post

Awesome list!!! Although the amount of toys for me is a little high. My DS have 8 toys total that they share. They all fit into a cube organizer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lolar2 View Post

What are the 8 toys?
i want to know, too!

i stayed up way, way too late saturday night decluttering toys. i filled two boxes to donate, and one box for the trash plus a couple of bulky items to get rid of that didn't fit in the boxes. then i sorted and put away the rest of the stuff. these are the categories i ended up with:

legos

playmobil

lincoln logs

tinker toys

blocks

dress up (not just clothes, but also knight/pirate weapons, doctor kit, explorer accessories like compasses, etc)

imaginext forts

random - this is the bucket for "guys" and has some other random little toys in it that don't fit in any category, but that they would miss if i ditched

stuffed animals - ds2 is obsessed with very small stuffed dogs and, to a lesser degree, kitties (like beanie baby size)

play kitchen (doubles as play store, with a cart and cash register)

bakugan

littlest pet shop (ds2, again)

cars and garage

crap they have a lot of toys! this isn't even counting art/craft stuff, games/puzzles, or their bikes, scooters and other outdoor stuff that i have in the garage. my boys are 4 & 5.
 
#24 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by PeacefulSeams View PostMy DS have 8 toys total that they share. They all fit into a cube organizer.
If you don't mind sharing--what are the 8 toys? Also, how do you deal with ILs and friends who give your boys stuff? We are new to the de-cluttering world, but I am already dreading Christmas...MIL does get DS some quality items, but also feels compelled for whatever reason to do big Dollar Store runs and we wind up coming home with as many as 70 additions to our already-too-full home. I have started donating a lot of stuff, but whew...it's a lot of stuff. When we go to their house (several times a month), she always gives us "presents" of things she wants to throw away, free calendars she's gotten in the mail, etc. Typically, I either accept things and then donate/toss them, but I also sometimes just say "our house is really full right now" because I am tired of the dodges and the work it creates for me. Any suggestions on how to deal with offers of stuff we don't need and gifts would be appreciated.
 
#25 ·
That is a fabulous list! As our kids are getting older, our 1100 sq feet is feeling smaller. I'm hoping to use them being out in the warmer weather as an advantage to declutter. I have a problem getting rid of stuff :(
 
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