Challenge: Declutter Time!

I've been looking around my home and am amazed at the sheer magnitude of "stuff" we have accumulated. Some of this "stuff" is things we use... but a lot of it is things which just sit there gathering dust, and, in all honesty would not be missed.

You know the sorts of things I mean... those gadgets filling up your kitchen cupboards which you just 'had  have!'. The trinkets lining your mantelpiece covered in an inch of dust. The CD's you haven't listened to in years (and quite frankly are now rather embarrassed to admit you actually own!). Toys which have been buried at the bottom of the toy box and haven't seen the light of day for months or even years. The mountains of clothes that no longer fit, or that you just wouldn't be seen dead wearing in public...

I'm sure if you REALLY looked around your home, you could come up with quite a substantial list of things that you don't really need. Things that you are holding on to 'just in case' you need them... although you haven't needed them in over 5 years. Things which you paid too much money for just to throw away. Things that are sentimental for some reason or other, but now they only really help add to the clutter.

Clutter only creates more work and helps contribute to stress. I have therefore made it a mission to rid myself of these items, which in turn will hopefully create a more harmonious and stress-free home. Purging my house of this unnecessary "stuff" will also have a flow on effect to our budget, as I'll now look at things more closely before buying them and assess whether we do really 'need' them, or if they are merely a 'want' which will eventually just become clutter.

I have decided that each day, I will go around the house and find 10 things that need to go... and if I find more than 10 that day, great! Also, for every new item which is brought home, an old item has to go. For example, if a new pair of shoes is brought, an old pair must go, etc.

I have already made a start by going around my house and gathering together things that don't get used... a set of 6 red wine glasses which I received as a gift, only I don't drink wine... countless tea light candle holders... scrapbooking and craft items which have never been used... computer games which haven't been played in years...

I have dedicated a box to place these items into. It is in my walk-in-robe so that I do not have to look at the pile of clutter before it leaves the house, therefore it already feels as if its gone.

I've been listing some of these items on Freecycle some of which have already been happily claimed by people who DO actually need/want them. It feels good to know that they are not just going into the rubbish and adding to landfill.

Sure I could probably sell some of this stuff to make some money back, but quite frankly, I've tried selling things on Ebay in the past and it only ended up being a hassle. The amount of money made (or in some cases lost) was not worth the effort. I'd rather have the immediate benefit of removing the clutter from my home.

I'll end up donating a lot of this "stuff" to charity for them to either give to people who need them, or sell in their thrift stores to raise money. Charity needs the money more than we do.

So, now that I'm feeling all inspired... I'm off to declutter some more :) Care to join me?