Tag: Declutter

Another crazy purge! And a very happy neighbour.

Last week, I must have inadvertently eaten a pep pill or something, cause I roamed around the house tearing stuff out of my cabinets, drawers and “loft” space. And ended up with a pile of things to get rid off.

I have a neighbour who just moved in, and since she pretty much came over with nothing but a few suitcases and boxes, from the US, I was hoping there would be a few things she could take off my hands!

A couple of days ago, she popped by to have a look, and I couldn’t believe it, but she took most of my stuff! She looked really happy with the stuff, and even came back to get me, to show me how the things fit in her house 🙂

When I counted up all the stuff that went out-the-door, I couldn’t believe the numbers!

Have a look…

  • 5 notebooks – for her kids to draw in
  • 2 “baskets”
  • 1 furry pillowcase
  • 1 furry blanket
  • 1 wool carpet
  • 1 file organizer
  • 1 Ikea storage box
  • 40 hangers – counted as 1
  • 4 packs of hanging “lamps” – now hanging in her kids play corner 🙂
  • 1 empty tea box
  • 1 roll of stretchable wire
  • 1 wineglass box
  • 3 presentation portfolios
  • 2 packs of table decorations
  • 1 sauté pan
  • 2 purple pillowcases
  • 2 large candles
  • 1 glass container for candles or flowers
  • 1 picture from Virgin Islands
  • 6 cloth place mats
  • 6 plastic place mats
  • 4 Texas cloth napkins – counted a 1
  • 1 plastic table runner
  • 1 red cloth pot holder
  • 2 green glasses
  • 1 bag of decorative rocks
  • 1 glass soap dispenser – given to a friend
  • 1 bamboo plate
  • 2 more large candles
  • 4 bags of decorative stones
  • 6 white wine glasses
  • 6 red wine glasses
  • 2 camping chairs
  • 4 flowerpots
  • 2 glass plant watering things
  • 1 outdoor recliner
  • 2 big floor flowerpots

That’s 81 items – and with the exceptions of a few items, my neighbour took them all! 🙂

How’s that for a purge 😉

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August tally

So let’s see, did I ever get anything out-the-door during the month of August?

Well yes, actually I did! Even though I’m still doing pretty poorly according to my intentions 😦

Remember; I did have a day earlier in August, where I got a few things out-the-door. And I tackled my “junk” drawer. And the last day of the month, a white tornado went through my house and I ended up with another pile of stuff that will be going out of the house over the next few days. Since that pile is still pretty much sitting here.. they won’t count much on August tally, but hopefully on September they will 😉

So lets see, what did August actually amount to?

AUGUST TALLY of things “out-the-door” =   45 items

24 – items on my day getting back on my declutter wagon

  • 1 jacket
  • 1 pair of pants
  • 1 thermal underwear top
  • 6 T-shirt
  • 2 pairs of knitted wool socks
  • 1 BIG piece of silk – bought in Malaysia in 1995, intending to have a dress made…. like that ever happened!
  • 1 clutch
  • 1 bed sheet that don’t fit any of my beds…?
  • 1 pair of boots – they seemed like a good idea when I got them, but they’ve never been used…
  • 1 book – Thor Heyerdal, the adventurer
  • 2 software CDs never used
  • 4 empty DVD boxes (count as 1)
  • 1 pair of sandals – never used, what was I thinking with those heels!
  • 1 plastic serving tray (broken)
  • 1 almanac – 2010
  • 1 shirt – dads – and
  • 1 cardigan – dads – they won’t ever get used and it’s been almost 1,5 years, it’s time to let them go!

Bunch of items – while clearing my junk drawer – (count as 4)

  • 1 wallet (worn out)
  • 1 flash-light (broken)
  • Several outdoor pieces (never used, and never will be used) – count as 1
  • Loads of paper/menus/business cards ++ – count as 1

In addition I finally cleared out some of my toiletries, that I talked about like forever ago in Thriftiness getting in the way of decluttering – I gave most of it to mum 🙂

  • 1 big box of hairspray
  • 1 box of night cream
  • 1 bottle of toner
  • 1 bottle of serum
  • 1 small bag of miscellaneous make-up/trial creams/++
  • 1 bottle of massage oil (it was so old it went into the trash)
  • Bunch of other stuff – count as 1
  • 1 bottle of shampoo
  • 1 bottle of conditioner

And a few things from my “white tornado” day have actually made it out-the-door 🙂

  • 1 Backpack (a friend of mine, way more sporty than me – took this one, and cover and Adidas bag)
  • 1 travel cover for backpack
  • 1 Adidas bag
  • 1 sports bag
  • 3 pc bags
  • 1 weight lift bar (given to a friend, who hopefully will use this more that I ever did 😉 )

So that’s it, for the month of August – 45 items. Not to shabby after all 😉

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A pile of “crap”!

I can’t possible be alone, I’m sure every home has one.

A drawer, a basket, a box, where you store things coming out if your pockets, receipts, take away menus, business cards, phone cover, sticky notes with scribblings on about something you want/need to remember, descriptions on how to change the battery in your alarm, pens, sunglass cover, notebooks, rubber-bands, and in my case also memory sticks and 2 small marbles!!! What the…. where the heck did they come from?

I’m sure we all have that “junk drawer”, that one space where crap seems to congregate!

I cleared mine today!

Good riddance, is all I can say 😉

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Back again…

As I told you in my last post, July tally, the last few weeks I have pretty much just relaxed and enjoyed my time off.

But enough is enough, it’s time to get back at it 😉

Back to my declutter task, back to my blog and back to getting some stuff done around the house!

So here is my first instalment, getting back on my declutter wagon!

  • 1 jacket
  • 1 pair of pants
  • 1 thermal underwear top
  • 6 T-shirt
  • 2 pairs of knitted wool socks
  • 1 BIG piece of silk – bought in Malaysia in 1995, intending to have a dress made…. like that ever happened!
  • 1 clutch
  • 1 bed sheet that don’t fit any of my beds…?
  • 1 pair of boots – they seemed like a good idea when I got them, but they’ve never been used…
  • 1 book – Thor Heyerdal, the adventurer
  • 2 software CDs never used
  • 4 empty DVD boxes (count as 1)
  • 1 pair of sandals – never used, what was I thinking with those heels!
  • 1 plastic serving tray (broken)
  • 1 almanac – 2010
  • 1 shirt – dads – and
  • 1 cardigan – dads – they won’t ever get used and it’s been almost 1,5 years, it’s time to let them go!

24 items, woohoo 😉

Now, if decluttering the rest of the house would just be this easy…

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July tally

I have to admit, July was an appalling month when it comes to decluttering, which you probably have noticed, since I haven’t written about a single thing I shed.

So what have I been doing with myself in the month of July? Well as I wrote in the beginning of July, I was taking an hiatus to focus on my health.

So July month have been filled with trips to the osteopath, loads of rest, beautiful days in the garden and not to forget…

Loads and loads of time occupied with Molly, my furry friend 🙂 With her around I seemed to get “nothing” done. When I sat down to read, she wanted to play. When I worked outside in the yard, she hated being on a leash so I made “borders” so she could go loose, but I still needed to keep an eye on her whereabouts, just in case… When I ate, she wanted food. When I watched TV or had friends over, she wanted to “play” or go out for a walk, or was hungry or something.

So you can see why I got nothing done… right? 😉

Even so, when I think about it, there are actually a few things that have gone out-the-door in July…  Not only have I not written about them, but mostly I have even forgotten to take pictures of them 😦

But let’s see if I can’t manage a small recap anyhow!

JULY TALLY of things “out-the-door” =   22 items

  • 2 reasonable sized Boxwood plants in planters – 1 given to a neighbour, 1 given to my step-mum for her new cabin
  • 8 plastic planters/pots – given to my neighbour
  • 6 books – I’ve actually read 12 as part of my read a book program – but, I’m getting into some of my favourites and they are harder to part with… maybe next month 😉
  • 1 roll of plastic flex pipe
  • a bunch of small plastic plant pots – counted as 1 (no photo)
  • 2 terracotta pots (no photo)
  • bunch of plastic pipes leftover from earlier garden constructions – counted as 1 (no photo)
  • bunch of wood bits and pieces leftover from earlier garden constructions – counted as 1 (no photo)

Let’s see… I think that was it.. I can’t believe I ended up with the same amount of items as in June! And NO it’s not a copy/paste error – it just turned out that way!

Hmm.. if I could part with one extra book, I could beat June tally… Nope, I don’t think so.. not quite yet, gotta think about it first 😉

So her we are – 22 items – just like June!

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June tally

We are all in agreement that the month of June have been a bismal month for decluttering. But even though I haven’t written about them, there are a few things that have gone out-the-door anyhow!

So let’s see what this month have amounted to on the declutter scale:

JUNE TALLY of things “out-the-door” =  22 items

  • 2 hanging baskets – given to my step-mum for her new cabin, including the
  • 2 linings for the hanging baskets and the
  • 2 hooks for the hanging baskets
  • 1 big bag of shredded papers – I normally do a yearly shred after I’m done with the taxes (late shred this year)
  • A bunch of kitchen drawers utensils no longer (or ever) in use – counted as 1
  • 1 red empty leather notebook – also for my step-mum
  • 1 toilet bag after dad
  • Some outdated medication – counted as 1
  • 1 indoor water fountain feature set
  • 9 books – I’m still chugging away at my read a book program
  • and another book that I read and gave to mum while I was in London in May – that I forgot to tell you about, but I’m counting it anyway 😉

Hey, this wasn’t quite as bad after all… for a non declutter month… 🙂

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Who the hell am I keeping it for?

I had a pretty interesting conversation recently, about what we keep. Why we keep it. Who we are keeping it for. And what interests will they have in what we leave behind!

As a woman with no kids and husband, there are not that much family left to give my family heirlooms to. The only ones left of my blood relatives are my mum, brother, half sister and some second cousins…

I have a large step-family (trough dad), but I’m assuming that whenever I’m not around any more, they might only be interested in some of my personal things. I can’t see that they would be much interested in things from my blood relatives, with maybe the exception of some of my dad’s stuff.

Thinking about this conversation have made me realize, that I’m keeping some thing from my past and my family’s past, that most likely nobody after me, will care one iota about! So who am I keeping it for? Well it turns out I’m obviously keeping it for me, and me alone! And that’s a pretty enlightening thought!

This morning I suddenly realized that keeping in mind, that I’m pretty much keeping things for me, and me alone, is going to make an big impact on my decluttering process.

I have a few bigger projects/tasks in mind for this fall. And I think the conclusion above is going to make these projects a whole lot easier to accomplish.

As an example I’ll tell you about – My huge photo collection. Tons and tons of albums, loose films, loose photos (not yet put into albums) and boxes of old inherited photos of people I barely know (or don’t know as it is). My intention have been to put the photos into albums (been working on it, on again, off again, the last few years) and the rule was, that what doesn’t go into albums will be tossed!

Somewhere along the way, I also decided I want to scan them all, so that I can have them as digital photos. Then I could clean up my albums. Since we are talking thousands of photos, this have seemed like such an undertaking, that I haven’t gotten it started yet.

Well this morning it dawned on me that, since I have no kids that will be interested. My half sister and my brother have no kids of their own (yeah we are really hopeless at producing kids). The family line is pretty much dying out with us (which is kinda sad when you think about it). So who am I keeping all these photographs for? Obviously no one! I can’t imagine my step family being interested in photos from my mums line of family, grandparents, their siblings and so on. Most likely they would just toss away the lot of it.

So what am I saying? Well for this instance, I’m saying my task of scanning suddenly got waaay less complicated. Conclusion is to keep a few key pictures as real photos (but only of people I know), scan a few more and then get rid of the rest. I mean seriously, I hardly ever look at those old photos, mum don’t ask for them and she is the only one left, who might know who they are. Dad have passed away, my brother wouldn’t care less, so why should I be so darned compelled to be the photos keeper?

So I just decided, I’m only going to keep the photos that are important to me! And me alone! So there 😉

Phew, I think I just went from several thousand of potential scans down to a third, hopefully less! But we will see how it goes when I start the job this fall 😉

But for now, I’m pretty happy with my conclusion.

I mentally decluttered a lot of things today! Especially since this doesn’t only apply to the photos…

What about you, have you ever thought seriously about what you are leaving behind, why and for whom? It might be pretty enlightening… and you never know, it might just shift a few priorities around!

May tally!

Well there it is, the month of May is over, and it’s time for my monthly tally.

If I may say so, I think the month of May have gone pretty OK when it comes to declutter items. Even though I had a week completely under the weather, and a week in London with more sightseeing than decluttering 🙂

Let’s see what this month have amounted to on the declutter scale:

MAY TALLY of things “out-the-door” =  126 items 

53 – items when running amok in my guest room

  • 9 snuggles (stuffed animals and bean babies)
  • 1 empty computer box
  • 1 empty camera lens filter box
  • 1 PC “desk” to use in your lap
  • 5 clothes storage “bags”
  • 1 decorative plate
  • 6 space bags
  • 5 books
  • 3 small paper pamphlets
  • 6 Christmas decoration items
  • 1 hanging shoe holder
  • 2 eagle creek travel gear pieces
  • 1 camera bag
  • 1 dirty linen basket
  • 1 decorative “garland”
  • 1 gym “bag”
  • 1 space saver set
  • 1 travel journal
  • 2 bathroom mats
  • 1 shoulder strap for a bag I no longer have
  • 1 bag of sticky carpet felt (to use under carpets to make them not slide)
  • 1 hanging bag for cloths

54 – items from my closet cleanup

  • 8 shorts – surf shorts and regular shorts
  • 1 swim top
  • 1 bikini bottom
  • 2 knee length pants
  • 1 bicycle t-shirt
  • 1 pair of indoor “shoes”
  • 4 office shirts
  • 3 sweater
  • 1 knitted hat
  • 1 fleece buff
  • 2 regular buffs
  • 1 scarf Stockings – a bunch (counted as 1)
  • 1 par of socks
  • 3 of my dad’s ties
  • 12 unused unmentionables
  • 5 pairs of jeans – 2 worn, 3 unused (but sadly to small)
  • 1 pair of office pants
  • 1 top
  • 1 T-shirt
  • 1 knitted jacket
  • 1 pair of insoles
  • 1 belt

1 pair of very high heeled shoes 😉
16 paperbacks
1 wooden box – and
1 keg/barrel – my brothers – as posted from London

And that’s it. The out-the-door tally for MAY 🙂

Not to shabby…

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Hand over!

Not much going on with our London trip today.

I spent the morning wrapping up a huge clock, that I bough here in London over Christmas, that I’m bringing back with me to Norway this trip. I’ll tell you all about it when I get home.

Today though, I’ve handed over a couple of my dad’s things to my brother. Items I’ve been holding for him at my house in Norway.

So what went “out-the-door” today:

1 wooden box, not sure where my dad got it, if it was from his travels or if it’s from grandfathers.

1 keg, made by our great grandfather or grandfather (not sure which).

The only way I could get the keg with me, was to break it down to its individual pieces.

Turns out 1 keg = 31 pieces as you can see from the pictures below…

My dearest brother said he won’t need any help to put it back together again, I wish him luck 😉

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Under the weather…

I’ve been feeling a wee bit under the weather the last couple of weeks, and all of last week I even had to stay home from the office 😦

I’m not sure what bug bit me, but whatever it is, it’s an energy zapping bug! All I’ve done is pretty much sleep and hang out close to the couch (to sleep some more). Never mind being able to muster up any energy to spend time on the computer, which is why you haven’t heard from me for a while… I’m really sorry about that.

The only good thing coming out of having to stay home, is that I’ve just about, been reading every book in sight, actually, about a book a day! While looking for books to read, I’ve come across a few, that I’ve decided I won’t bother to read, before I get rid of them.

As I have not really been working on decluttering this last week, I guess I’ll just have to claim these reads, as my third instalment, in the “pile of books, out-the-door, read myself out of my bookshelf” task 😉

Not very exciting I know – but here it is – 16 books out-the-door (hopefully the only used book store left in town will take them 😉 )

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