I’ve de-cluttered and I’m baring it all! Sorry about the mess – but here’s the thing: I thought I had a very simple wardrobe until I pulled out every single bit of clothing, every bag and pair of shoes and laid it all out in one big bile. I stood there shocked!
I’ve learned 5 things from De-cluttering for Good and I hope it inspires you to start tackling your clutter too!
1. The pile works. It’s not enough to just tidy up bit by bit – you need to go hard. There’s something that clicks when you’re faced with all of your stuff at once. You really need that mental shift to de-clutter for good.
2. It’s faster than you think. It’s not often that you get to completely empty out a space and make a big pile of stuff. You kind of get into it and you’ll find that it takes a minute to do. Sorting and putting things back – is admittedly harder – but once you’ve made that pile, you just finish the job.
3. Ask the right questions and you get the right answers. If you have a hard time parting with things – I found that instead of asking yourself, will i use it again, change the question to: does this bring me joy? You’ll be surprised what a very different response that brings.
4. You take better care of your things. Everything feels new and special again and it changes the way you handle your things. Now that I have a selected wardrobe – I’m not tossing clothing into the laundry after one use or leaving it lying around. Of all the jobs around the home which are loathed ironing must be on top. It feels like a time vacuum so you should make it as quick and painless as possible. Investing in a decent steam iron will help because they can deliver powerful jets of steam to loosen clothing fibres fast. The end result is you ironing takes much less time. Which can never be a bad thing.
5. Space gives you clarity. You get a real sense of what you want in your life – and start really curating the things that you buy. There’s no feeling of need, or rush to buy new things. There’s a real sense of pride in editing your life.
http://www.novingate.com/barriers-access-control/
Just a little note…as I was de-cluttering my email and unsubscribing to tons of useless emails that were overwhelming me I came across this email and looked through it to decide if it was something that I could use or should lose…First the artichoke recipe caught my eye:) then the decluttering your closet by piling everything up…then sorting through as “does this bring me joy?” And for the first time…an article about decluttering and minimalizing made sense to me!
For obvious reasons I did not declutter littlegreendot from my email bix but also marked it ad important in my emails. Thanks for your great information…you bring my joy and make me smile:)
Macy
Hi Macy! We are clearly on the same path!! So happy to have connected with you! Thanks for bringing me a smile :)
I went beyond decluttering. Few month ago, I decided to completly empty my house and my past. That was quite an undertaking to create 4 silloes:
– What I want to keep,
– What I want to give,
– What I want to sale,
– What I have to throw.
I am now left with 1 piece of furtniture, few pieces of arts, and of course clothes, shoes, paperwork and misc. All could fit in half a small bedroom. I am staying with a friend for a few month until figure out what I want next.
Must admit I had sort of a post-partum shock but do I regret anything? 90% no. I feel lighter and relieved. We do not need that much after all. Food for thoughts:)
Hi Muriel! That’s amazing – what a journey you’re on!! Sometimes we get used to living a certain way and I definitely think that adding contrast to your life is a great way to get a fresh perspective and think about what you really want out of life. Thanks for the inspiration!
I love the de cluttering ideas and you can use it all over the house. I like to do it at the start of winter and before summer, great chance to get rid of things I no longer have a use for, I’m sure others will be able to get use out of things I no longer need.
Hi Sonia! Absolutely – so good to pass these things along!