Best tips for purging?

[Deleted]

Or even how to not accumulate so much crap in the first place? And best ideas for storage and organization? I'll take anything. 

I've never been the neatest or most organized person, but over the years it's been something that I've worked on. Now I've gotten to the point that if anyone were to ever stop by my house unannounced I would be okay with that because the worst they'd see would be a sink full of dishes and maybe some mail on the counter. I've worked hard to have a place for everything and everything in its place. The problem is, that those "places" still kind of get out of control. It's like organized chaos. And sometimes, just chaos. Things end up getting stuffed in drawers and thrown in the closet to be dealt with later, and well, you can imagine how that goes. 

And no recommendations for Marie Kondo, I tried watching her show and it really wasn't my vibe. 

[sonrisa]

I like to listen to her podcasts while I clean.

www.aslobcomesclean.com/podcasts/

I don't necessarily use her methods but I like that she starts from imperfection instead of loving it all.

(my first decluttering question is actual an anti- Marie Kondo one: "does this thing annoy me?")

(I'm generally the opposite of you. there is almost always something that needs to be put away that is out and visible, but if you open a drawer I know where everything is. and dishes don't sit in the sink. But the clean laundry basket will in the center of the living room all day until I get it folded and put away.)

[devonpow]

I’m ruthless because I hate clutter. Things definitely still get there, though! We just accumulate a lot. What works for me is first having a recurring donation pick up (on my neighborhood there are three organizations that come and pick up donations you leave outside - Big Brother Big Sister, Vietnam Veterans of America, and the Epilepsy Foundation) so I always have a day things will be picked up and no excuse since I just need to put them outside. Then, I do a small area at a time (like on Saturday I did our bar/liquor cabinet area which was shockingly disorganized due to my husbands cocktail making hobby…EIGHT different bottles of various rum for example. God help us) and when going through things I’m ruthless. I don’t keep anything “because I might need it”. I don’t. If I’m not using it regularly or it doesn’t have a set place, it goes. I’ve never regretted not having something I have purged.

Because I pick small areas, it’s fairly easy to do in a quick amount of time. Then the results are so satisfying and look so good I’m inspired to do more I just reorganized my under kitchen sink area and I love to admire it now lol.

[bex1973]

To not accumulate so much stuff I have recently started thinking really hard before buying something - not only thinking about is it a want or a need but also how often will I actually use it and where will it "live" when not in use.

I really started being more strict with myself when I saw just how much stuff we put out for our garage sale - it was a LOT of stuff. It was incredibly ridiculous how much stuff we were keeping around.

I also stopped shoving junk out of sight because I would never go back and deal with it. Seems a simple thing but it really does help.

[waverly]

These are called Hot Spots. I learned this from Flylady.net. I am not a Fly lady convert, but I do like her Hot Spot theories. 1. Accept they exist and name them. Mine are my dining room buffet and my kitchen counters. 2. Take 5 minutes and tidy them. Fly lady would probably do it daily. I don't get there that often, and that is fine. Daily would be for the worst, like my kitchen counters are probably twice a day and include dishes. For mail etc. that would probably be 2-3 times a week. I actually don't have a ton of closets, so the one that gets the worst is the front hall closet. That could potentially be tidied weekly, but in terms of actually purging it I probably am not getting to it that often.

I am not trying to be perfect with my closet or my junk drawers. There are a lot of people that could potentially have better organization. If you are looking for better organization with either, I would suggest the Home Edit. They have a book and a show. I can't really get to that level, but we did organize our baking goods, pasta and cereal with their methods.

ETA- I agree with bex1973 , deal with it "now" rather than later.  Like I just used to allow to remain the leaves that blow into my house until I cleaned once a week.  Then I saw my friend pick it up immediately, and I was like oh is that what I am supposed to do.  It's weird I didn't just know that automatically.  So that a lot of times was my moto.  Just do it now or better yet do it now since I remember now, and if I wait I will forget it. 

[cattledogkisses]

If you tend to hang onto things for sentimental reasons, a tip I saw is to take a picture of the item. Then you can save the picture, and get rid of the item that's taking up space.

I used to save cards from my grandparents and other special people figuring I'd want them someday, until I'd accumulated a whole box of cards that I didn't know what to do with. I took pictures of the sentimental ones so I have those messages, and then was able to toss them.

[sonrisa]

I also:

1) keep a piece of paper on the inside of a closet door with a pencil on a string. Every time I purge something, I make a tick mark. I strive for 90 items a month. That is about three times as much as comes into our house so over time it diminishes our clutter. (It's lined paper with four columns. Each holds 25 tally marks (five groups of five). Each month gets a new line. Easy but I can see if I'm not keeping up.)

2) Try to take something (or multiple somethings) with me every time I move around the house to put away or purge. 

3) "Close" isn't good enough. ie. I try not to take something to almost where it goes - set it on top of the dresser or desk, shove it in the general drawer, put the dish into the sink instead of the dishwasher, etc.  Usually it's almost the same effort to put it at the place it actually belongs but so much more effort to go back later and fix it/move it/rinse all the dishes later to put in the dishwasher. 

[waverly]

It looks like she puts out the hot spot 2 times a day for 2 minutes each. I expect it to take more time if it is allowed to build up. www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-31/.  And additional time decluttering as part of the daily routine.  I almost think in this case, decluttering could be taking out recycle and trash.  At least it feels that way to me. And if it gets really bad, I walk around with a trash bag. 

[al dente]

I also love A Slob Comes Clean and recommend her esp if Marie kondo isn't your thing (I can't do the Marie kondo method it stresses me out). I'm also not great at decluttering, but I get in moods where I will. A big thing that helps me is always having a donate box going and put stuff in there when I come across it. Then I have a place that I can drop stuff off 24/7 so when I'm heading that way I bring the box and drop it off.

I really make an effort to not bring stuff into the house. When I do I try to immediately get it put away and get rid of stuff if needed.

I also try and do a 5 minute pick up everyday. It doesn't seem like a lot but being consistent makes a big difference.

[wowhead]

For me it is a mood thing. I take on one project/area at a time and set a time of day I’m going to start. The minute I find myself just shuffling things around and not getting rid of anything I stop for the day because I know it will be fruitless. The next day I try again. I also set a limit for a week. When the huge rolling garbage can is full I’m done until after garbage day.

[konapoppy]

Another vote for a slob comes clean! Do the dishes daily and do a 5 minute pickup.

[babsbunny]

Echoing a lot here.
1. Take pictures and purge (like old t-shirts)
2. Have a place set aside for things that will be donated
3. Do small organizing when the mood hits
4. Carefully considering all purchases (Go Green!)

and new

4. Exit gift receiving - stop exchanging gifts where someone might get you something you don't really want. Or give them lists to stick to. (I let my parents know that I'm trying to reduce my belongings, and we don't exchange xmas gifts.)

[melmo1122]

A thing I saw on Tiktok that I have been really trying to do is “Don’t put it down, put it away”. So when I take out one of my 2000 hair products depending on if I do curly or straight or pony tail, I put it back in the basket instead of leaving them to accumulate on my counter.

[fn2187]

Nov 15, 2021 16:38:17 GMT -5 fn2187 said:

Join buy nothing group. Life changing.

Not only did I become addicted to listing things, I also find things people are requesting that I had tucked away somewhere and forgot about. Takers have been incredibly kind and grateful to receive and it feels good to give.

I also keep a donation box in my closet and drop stuff in there when I come across something we know we’ll never use.

Edit: with buy nothing group, I look at an item and ask myself if I appreciate it or would someone likely appreciate it more. Almost every time I ask myself that, it ends up getting donated.

[af1212]

I echo the previous poster sho said they have a regular donation pickup.

I have purple heart come on the first Friday of the month. I keep white trash bags that are only used for this purpose. As soon as one is full I label it and stick it on the porch under my bench.

[circa1978]

In addition to some of the above, I don't keep things that are given to me or handed down out of obligation. Many Christmases with my more is more in-laws, this means the gifts go back out the door to donations as soon as the holiday is over. With two sets of parents downsizing, I am very good at repeating, "Thank you for thinking of us but that's not something we have room for."

[lust2hart]

Do not ask yourself, "Will I use this someday?" Because the answer to that question will always be yes. Instead, ask yourself, "Have I used this within the last 6 months (or 12 months)?" If the answer to that is no, get rid of it.

I really love this video from The Minimal Mom about creating boundaries for your stuff - www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1YOP0Cuelo. When a boundary isn't being respected, it's time to purge!

[CurlyQ284]

I really just kinda deal with things gradually. I go through the mail each day and toss the junk (90% of it) bills go to my desk immediately.

If I'm about to take the trash out, I peek in the fridge and see if there are 3+ day old leftovers to toss. Every season I paw through my closet and toss what I dont wear into a donation/recycle pile.

I hate clutter, it makes me anxious. I do not keep things I'm not using, it makes me insane.

[fumbalina]

I used to follow Flylady as well but no longer do because of some problematic rants that turned me off her.

However I have kept the 15 minutes at a time. If my house needs more work I just move room to room. That was also from her site but I forgot the name of it. That way I don't get too overwhelmed or focused on a particular item. If the timer goes off, I put it down until the room is back in the cycle. There is another site I used to reference but it seems to have gone dark.

[noodleoo]

I need to bookmark this thread. Our house isn’t huge and we don’t have enough storage space. This means our dining room has become a “hot spot” and is where a lot of stuff gets stored. How do you find space to store stuff you need when there just isn’t space for it? I hate it, but we have nowhere else to put stuff.

[sonrisa]

Nov 16, 2021 0:14:40 GMT -5 noodleoo said:

How do you find space to store stuff you need when there just isn’t space for it? 

I know this is meant to be rhetorical, but I'm answering anyway:  Find something else, something you don't need and purge, consolidate or outsource that.

An existing drawer emptied is better than a new one purchased.

[Leeham Rimes]

I just watch hoarders and then I’m motivated to power clean all the things all day long. Apparently, it’s also how I de-stress. My general rule of thumb is if I can’t remember the last time I used and and can’t think of the next time I’d need it, it doesn’t need to be in my house.

[icedcoffee]

Nov 16, 2021 1:34:20 GMT -5 Leeham Rimes said:

I just watch hoarders and then I’m motivated to power clean all the things all day long. Apparently, it’s also how I de-stress. My general rule of thumb is if I can’t remember the last time I used and and can’t think of the next time I’d need it, it doesn’t need to be in my house.

😂

I visit my parents. And then I come home and get rid of tons of shit. Junk makes me so anxious.

[Doggy Mommy]

Some things I’ve accepted but made it look better. Like I accepted that there will always be shoes by the front door, so I bought a big round basket and we toss them in there.

Some things I can’t bring a new thing into my house without getting rid of an old one. For example my T-shirt drawer is full. I just bought a new one and will donate an old one.

The biggest has been house projects that force us to move all our things. We got new carpet and got a huge donate pile out of that. Kitchen cabinets are being painted in December and I’m planning for another big donate pile. Or I’ll remove everything in a closet to organize it and find 10 things I don’t need or want.

[flygirl]

When I think about holding onto sentimental stuff, if it’s not good enough to be displayed somewhere and it’s not something my DS would want or would have to deal with someday, I get rid of it.

[boiler717]

I follow the best, favorite, or necessary method. Only keep things that fall into one of those 3 categories.
Also, stop keeping duplicates for the few times you use more than one of an item. I find this super important for kitchen items. I used to have 3 crockpots. Maybe twice a year I need more than 1 (Halloween and a soup party). I purged 2 and borrow for those events rather than store 3 year round. I only keep 2 spatulas and the few times I year where I need to use more than those in a day, I just was by hand. Beats digging through a drawer of 5 the other 360 days of the year.

[livinitup]

1. I admit that it is hard and allow myself to do it even though it is hard.

2. I stop referring to the stuff as valuable. If I have too much stuff, it is no longer valuable.

3. If I toss something that I end up needing in the future, I buy a new one. No big deal. So far, this has not happened.

4. Donations get put in my car’s trunk and don’t come back into the house. When convenient, I drop the donations at the donation center.

5. I toss things in the trash that we no longer use even if they are still usable. (I am looking at you pencil erasers, stickers, playing cards, baskets)

6. After a purge, I toss big things or filled bags into the dumpster at my husband’s office (we have permission for this). Twice, we have gotten a dumpster for our driveway to clean out the basement.

6. I enjoy the space that purging gives me. I really look around, take it in, open a draw, easily find something in a closet, and acknowledge that this good feeling is the result of doing hard purge work.

7. I recognize and acknowledge that as I live my life, we buy stuff as our needs change, so I have to purge in small and big ways from time to time.

[jennistarr1]

Well I'm no expert...

but I try to think...okay, there's two many things on this (coffee table, shelf) to look decorative so something has to go

there are too many things in this drawer/closet for it to be functional so I need to get the number down

and when I'm aiming to declutter, I go for 50%...like I look at something and I'm like 50% of you all are getting thrown a way and I'm sorry

what holds me back is things that can't be donated and probably are just going to straight to trash...guilt comes over me. Like stuffed animals!