Decluttering

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED

Kitchen and contents of cupboard under stairs

I rose very early this morning and completed the emptying of the cupboard under the stairs, carrying some items into the library, and littering the kitchen surfaces with others. Take no notice of the clock. The photograph was taken a bit later.

Jackie and I then began the process outlined yesterday by

Garrulous Gwendoline

I’m a good declutterer, and willing to travel if you provide the airfare
Suggest you start with the age-old trick . . . have I used this in the last year?
Then you could move on to – if I hold on to this, will I know where I put it if I ever do need it?
The four-box method is also useful. One for must keep, one for throw, one for thrift shop, one for not sure. Repeat the process with the fourth box until there is nothing left. Then go back to the first box and re-assess your choices.
You could also create a box for items to sell if you like eBay or such sites. Or have a collection of something that will sell at auctions (eg my brother’s Dinky Toys)
If you keep “special things” because of sentimental or other reasons, make sure you use them and don’t keep them for those special occasions that never roll around.
If something is beautiful but serves no purpose, and you decide to keep it because you get pleasure from seeing it, make sure you DO have it somewhere you can see it, and not packed away in a box.
And its helpful to designate a small area at a time to work on. The old, “break the overall project into small achievable goals” strategy.
Good luck.
ps – I’ll understand if you prefer the ironing
Cupboard under stairs
 Soon we had piles in the library and the beginnings of the most organised under the stairs cupboard ever.
Chicken doorstops
 Some objects, like these iron chicken doorstops bought for our Minstead flat, are destined to spend the rest of their lives as garden features.
Kitchen
 By this evening Jackie had her kitchen back, and was able, on the hobs, to produce   her tasty beef stew, boiled potatoes, carrots, and cabbage.  She drank Hoegaarden, and I drank Wolf’s Leap merlot 2016. As I pulled out my dining chair, I narrowly avoiding sitting on a meat carving board destined for Oxfam that had been left thereon. Since it contained spikes that was probably just as well.

78 comments

  1. WOW! I wish I had the tenacity needed to declutter we have inherited so much stuff! Ugh. It’s sometimes hard to tell what’s what!!
    I love your kitchen, so bright and cheery!
    Blessings~

  2. Derrick, I can personally relate to the decluttering. Have fond memories of doing just that in our former Dallas home.

  3. Well done! My last house was ten times bigger than my current home so I had to do a lot of letting go. That was almost 20 years ago so perhaps I should think about sorting again – just thinking…

  4. I’m a big decluttering fan and tend to do it annually – it keeps the house clean and tidy, allows the air to move and takes a huge weight off! And, you know, one man’s junk is another man’s treasure…… or woman’s of course 🙂 The kitchen looks so very nice – I bet it’s a complete joy to work in!

  5. What a beautiful kitchen! Must be wonderful for Jackie. Sounds like the decluttering is a great success.

  6. A new kitchen is a great incentive to have a clear out. Stocking our new cupboards last week we came across a jar of something with a best before date of 2004 which means it had moved house with us twice in 2011 and 2017. It won’t be moving house with us again!

  7. You could launch an inter-galactic enterprise from that kitchen! As for the failed effort to occupy the meat carving table, it is a manifestation of the illicit desire to hoard the impossible. You have been warned…

  8. You are an impressive declutterer, Derrick. I do need to do this here, but somehow I never get to it. 🙂 I’m glad you didn’t impale yourself.
    The kitchen looks stunning!

  9. This is inspiring me to clean up my daughter’s room now that she has left for University. Glad you avoided the spikes of the meat carving board!

  10. Both bloggers gave amazing hints! This was such a lovely way to get going. The four boxes method and have we used it lately were both a combination of practical and realistic purging strategies. . .
    My own choices hingeon mainly, “Will the kids ever use it?” and
    “Will they appreciate the history?”
    Thank goodness, you didn’t sit on the spikes! Yikes! 😮

Leave a Reply