Purging - updates?

[lioness13]

I know a few of us have mentioned wanting to purge. What have you gotten done so far this year? What is your goal?

[lioness13]

I need to hold myself accountable. So far I have purged our pantry. I have a list of areas in my home to purge and I'm doing a little at a time. At first my goal was to have Goodwill come pick up a bunch of stuff at the end of the month but I kind of want to wait until I'm done. I need to think about that. Here are the areas in my home that are on the list and the stuff in them that needs to go:

Linen closet 1&2 : donate unused bedding and towels
Woman cave/2nd closet: clothes and old junk
Office/bonus room: holiday stuff, books, old TVs & baby stuff
Garage: everything
Storage dormers in master bedroom: clothes, shoes, old luggage
Master bathroom: nail polish, hair stuff and costume jewelry

[daffy2k]

I've got 1/2 way through the Master Bedroom so far. My closet is done, but I haven't tackled H's, the dresser or master bath yet. My list is pretty similar to yours, although no specific goals on what to donate, I did take a big bag of clothes to the Women's shelter after I finished my closet.

We are hoping to find out the sex at Wednesday's ultrasound and since we are two and through I'll go through all the baby stuff after that. Donate all the clothes and any girly stuff if it's a boy, probably just pick through what I actually like and would use again if it's a girl.

My office, basement storage area and garage are all on the list. Throw away, sell or donate as much as possible and get those areas organized. Particularly the garage which is a disaster zone right now.

[heelibrarian]

Thanks for doing a check-in lioness13! Man, purging feels gooooood. The thought was just overwhelming until I just got busy and did it. Let's see.

Kids' rooms: done, with clothes sold and donated.
My closet: done, need to donate (I have like 6 bags worth, yikes).

Still need to do: pantry, linen closet, guest room closet (where all our old college/school stuff is), and basement storage. A lot to go, but I'm on a roll and want to get it all done by the end of this month. Tired of all the junk!

[sctiger]

I've done my room, Amelia's room, the coat closet, kitchen cabinets, and H has done his closet. I think we are set for now but I'm going to keep an eye on the clutter and not let it build up again!

[sctiger]

And the guest room too. It was awful, but we cleaned it and it looks great now.

[sympkin]

Ooo, I like this topic, hopefully it will keep me motivated.

We've spent nearly 8 years in the same apartment and are hoping to move this year so I just want to clear out the junk from everywhere because I don't want to pack it up.

Have Done:
- My clothes
- El's clothes
- El's toys
- Finally got rid of my school materials.
- CDs - digitized the collection, getting rid of the physical media
- Hallway closet

Still Need To Do:
- Uh, everything else? There will be no item unturned in this household!

[lizzybizzy]

I haven't gotten very far:

Pantry and fridge, cleaned the fridge which seemed like a good idea until I was halfway through.

The space under my sink because I thought I was out of lipstick. Silly me.

B's clothes that don't fit but we don't have a great place to store them.

[lioness13]

Jan 19, 2015 13:25:01 GMT -5 lizzybizzy said:

I haven't gotten very far:

Pantry and fridge, cleaned the fridge which seemed like a good idea until I was halfway through.

The space under my sink because I thought I was out of lipstick. Silly me.

B's clothes that don't fit but we don't have a great place to store them.

Try vacuum bags for the clothes. That's what we are doing.

[lizzybizzy]

I want to really go through my closet again after I lose more weight. Love the idea of a capsule wardrobe. The attic and garage need reorganizing. I really just want to move to a new house and take time finding a place for everything.

[babygsmommy]

My goal is to do all 4 rooms, bathroom, garage, pantry, kitchen and closets.

I've done my closet, office closet, M's closet and dresser. The office, guest room, M's room and master bedroom. I have yet to do the toy box because I'm being lazy. Too many toys! I still have the kitchen, pantry and garage and the big places I have to do.

[heelibrarian]

I'm struggling with how to motivate DH. He doesn't really have as much time as me and doesn't seem to care as much (?) but I don't know what I can toss out of his multiple piles of crap in our room. Plus he seems to think he'll use his old college/Marine corps paperwork again. Right.

[vasc]

We don't have much to purge, as we did most purging before our move over the summer, but I have been selling items on Craigslist that we no longer need, mostly furniture and household items. I used the cash to supplement our Christmas budget. Now my earnings are going to new curtains and rods for all of our windows.

[babygsmommy]

heelibrarian I took piles of stuff to dh and made him go through it. I said here's a pile for stuff you would like to keep and make a pile here for crap that goes to the yard sale. I literally stuck stuff in front of him. He went through it. If I waited for him to go through his stuff, it would NEVER happen.

[sctiger]

I had such a hard time purging clothes but I told myself if I couldn't picture myself wearing the item in the next couple of months I would just donate. I got rid of some perfectly good clothes that just aren't my style anymore. Im going to a clothes swap in the spring with some work ladies so I'll take some of my clothes to that.

[lioness13]

Jan 19, 2015 14:47:24 GMT -5 heelibrarian said:

I'm struggling with how to motivate DH. He doesn't really have as much time as me and doesn't seem to care as much (?) but I don't know what I can toss out of his multiple piles of crap in our room. Plus he seems to think he'll use his old college/Marine corps paperwork again. Right.

My DH is also holding onto college books. They are in 2 trunks his parents sent him to college with 20 years ago. It's crazy!

[huckleberry08]

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I finally purged some old pajamas and shirts that had stains and holes in them. We got new bedroom furniture and I had to downsize to organize the new dresser drawers, and that was the excuse I needed. Some of the stuff was sooooo ratty and yet I've been holding onto it for years. It was awful. How can I spend $5 on a Starbucks latte but then wear PJs with a hole in the butt? (ETA: Maybe because I've spent all my money on fancy coffee?)

[daffy2k]

Jan 19, 2015 16:48:06 GMT -5 huckleberry08 said:

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I finally purged some old pajamas and shirts that had stains and holes in them. We got new bedroom furniture and I had to downsize to organize the new dresser drawers, and that was the excuse I needed. Some of the stuff was sooooo ratty and yet I've been holding onto it for years. It was awful. How can I spend $5 on a Starbucks latte but then wear PJs with a hole in the butt? (ETA: Maybe because I've spent all my money on fancy coffee?)

 I was terrible for holding onto ratty pjs, I just didn't see the point in investing money in something I just wear to bed.  Until my mom got me hooked on the a Simply Vera collection at Kohl's.  The sleepwear is sooooo soft and comfy!  I'm getting her to buy me a couple new pairs when she's in Arizona on spring break (you know, since it's one more thing I can't buy in Canada)

[lioness13]

Jan 19, 2015 16:57:57 GMT -5 daffy2k said:

Jan 19, 2015 16:48:06 GMT -5 huckleberry08 said:

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I finally purged some old pajamas and shirts that had stains and holes in them. We got new bedroom furniture and I had to downsize to organize the new dresser drawers, and that was the excuse I needed. Some of the stuff was sooooo ratty and yet I've been holding onto it for years. It was awful. How can I spend $5 on a Starbucks latte but then wear PJs with a hole in the butt? (ETA: Maybe because I've spent all my money on fancy coffee?)

 I was terrible for holding onto ratty pjs, I just didn't see the point in investing money in something I just wear to bed.  Until my mom got me hooked on the a Simply Vera collection at Kohl's.  The sleepwear is sooooo soft and comfy!  I'm getting her to buy me a couple new pairs when she's in Arizona on spring break (you know, since it's one more thing I can't buy in Canada)

I LOVE Vera pjs from Kohls! 

[smittie]

I was asked to reply to this thread since I'm a Professional Organizer. The question was where to start...I recommend starting with either the easiest room/space or the room/space that is bothering you the most. That way when you finish, it creates a snowball effect and you get excited and continue the process.

Also, a few simple, but impacting rules:

1) If you haven't worn it in a year...donate.

2) One in, one out. In other words, if you buy a new pair of jeans, donate an old pair.

3) Never buy anything unless you already have a place for it. Especially for decor items. If not, don't buy it, it'll just end up in the back of a closet somewhere.

4) Create 'homes' for like items. Bins, baskets, etc are your friends. No need to buy expensive stuff. If it's in a closet, use a diaper box for containing stuff. Get creative!

5) If the spouse is an issue, put questionable items in small boxes and have him sort through one box a night/a week/whatever. Tell him you are both going to live by the rules above, and stick to it!

I hope this helps. Oh and if you need help, don't hesitate to search out a Professional Organizer. NAPO.net is a great place to start.

[lizzybizzy]

Jan 22, 2015 14:55:52 GMT -5 smittie said:

I was asked to reply to this thread since I'm a Professional Organizer. The question was where to start...I recommend starting with either the easiest room/space or the room/space that is bothering you the most. That way when you finish, it creates a snowball effect and you get excited and continue the process.

Also, a few simple, but impacting rules:

1) If you haven't worn it in a year...donate.

2) One in, one out. In other words, if you buy a new pair of jeans, donate an old pair.

3) Never buy anything unless you already have a place for it. Especially for decor items. If not, don't buy it, it'll just end up in the back of a closet somewhere.

4) Create 'homes' for like items. Bins, baskets, etc are your friends. No need to buy expensive stuff. If it's in a closet, use a diaper box for containing stuff. Get creative!

5) If the spouse is an issue, put questionable items in small boxes and have him sort through one box a night/a week/whatever. Tell him you are both going to live by the rules above, and stick to it!

I hope this helps. Oh and if you need help, don't hesitate to search out a Professional Organizer. NAPO.net is a great place to start.

I love this, thank you!

[sctiger]

I purged stuff in my office today. It felt so good!

[huckleberry08]

I purged my email inbox! 600 meg and 2500 emails later....there are still a ton left. But hey, it's a start.

[catalinapink]

I've done our pantry, kitchen cupboards, my closet, R's closet, gift wrap station and our bathroom closet. It feels so good!

[heelibrarian]

Jan 22, 2015 23:32:28 GMT -5 mcbush said:

Just saw this tip: when organizing your closet ask yourself "if I were shopping today would I buy this" if the answer is no, get rid of it.

I used that and got rid of like 7 bags of clothes! It was awesome!