T-minus...
Aug. 21st, 2019 10:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
totchipandaIDK how many days. I haven't made my plan of attack yet. I want to work on decluttering before the end of the year. It's intimidating when I think about how much stuff I have. She also says to throw everything you don't want away, and I'm not sure I can bring myself to do that.
Clothing
On Sunday, I hung up a pile of clothing that had been living on my bed for up to a week. I had pulled it all out looking for something that wasn't in the pile after all, but instead of re-piling, I hung. I apologized to each item as I did so (yes, it felt totally silly), especially since three of the items were my hand-knit sweaters. Yesterday I got a new article of clothing, which I have not yet de-tagged (as the book says) but i did hang it up as well.
Clothing is the first set of items she recommends tackling, and I think its a good place to start. I don't QUITE agree that I don't need to separate seasonal wardrobes, if only because Japan does not experience 80-degree temperature shifts. I HAVE been thinking about ways to incorporate more of my regular clothes into a less disparate seasonal wardrobe though.
I can think of a lot of things that I have, that I don't wear for Reasons, things that are stuffed in the back of my closet or in a bin, that I don't use. That are just really collecting dust. The things in the bin have been there for almost 2 years and I clearly don't miss them that much. All of these, at least, I can dump into bags and into my car, and take them to a thrift store. Some of my FEELS about clothing are tied up in "fast fashion", so I would rather take anything in good condition to a place where someone might be able to give it a new life.
Books
This one is going to be haaaaaaaaaard because I looooooooooove books. But I don't read as much as I used to, and I read more discerningly now (wow that sounds pretentious). My books have been largely packed up since I moved in nearly 6 years ago. SIX YEARS.
I have some books that I picked up for free, or because I had a coupon, or because I was reading the series, or because I wanted to support the author. I am likely never going to (re)read them, so it's time to go. A lot of those can go to the thrift store too. I'm more worried about the artbooks and magazines and the like. I was thinking this morning about how to condense and store all that paper, maybe reducing or changing those bookcases. It's... a lot. I know she says to do all of the decluttering in one go but I think i will need to spread it out over a few days.
Sewing
All of the sewing stuff will need to be its own categories. Fabric, trims, patterns. I still wonder about keeping the one table, which really should inform the decision to let it go. You're going to pry the desk my grampa made out of my cold dead hands, but the other one, while it has a folding top and cute stool, just doesn't fit any of the current machines and has barely been used in the 7 years I've had it.
Do I try to sell the patterns on Etsy? The fabric? The trims, many of which are vintage? Do I just bung it all in a box and drop it off with everything else? I'm going to toss all the old and cheap threads, some of which was 20+ years and were bought 3/$1 at Walmart.
This is why I need a plan of attack before I start lol. Anxiety will get the best of me.
Clothing
On Sunday, I hung up a pile of clothing that had been living on my bed for up to a week. I had pulled it all out looking for something that wasn't in the pile after all, but instead of re-piling, I hung. I apologized to each item as I did so (yes, it felt totally silly), especially since three of the items were my hand-knit sweaters. Yesterday I got a new article of clothing, which I have not yet de-tagged (as the book says) but i did hang it up as well.
Clothing is the first set of items she recommends tackling, and I think its a good place to start. I don't QUITE agree that I don't need to separate seasonal wardrobes, if only because Japan does not experience 80-degree temperature shifts. I HAVE been thinking about ways to incorporate more of my regular clothes into a less disparate seasonal wardrobe though.
I can think of a lot of things that I have, that I don't wear for Reasons, things that are stuffed in the back of my closet or in a bin, that I don't use. That are just really collecting dust. The things in the bin have been there for almost 2 years and I clearly don't miss them that much. All of these, at least, I can dump into bags and into my car, and take them to a thrift store. Some of my FEELS about clothing are tied up in "fast fashion", so I would rather take anything in good condition to a place where someone might be able to give it a new life.
Books
This one is going to be haaaaaaaaaard because I looooooooooove books. But I don't read as much as I used to, and I read more discerningly now (wow that sounds pretentious). My books have been largely packed up since I moved in nearly 6 years ago. SIX YEARS.
I have some books that I picked up for free, or because I had a coupon, or because I was reading the series, or because I wanted to support the author. I am likely never going to (re)read them, so it's time to go. A lot of those can go to the thrift store too. I'm more worried about the artbooks and magazines and the like. I was thinking this morning about how to condense and store all that paper, maybe reducing or changing those bookcases. It's... a lot. I know she says to do all of the decluttering in one go but I think i will need to spread it out over a few days.
Sewing
All of the sewing stuff will need to be its own categories. Fabric, trims, patterns. I still wonder about keeping the one table, which really should inform the decision to let it go. You're going to pry the desk my grampa made out of my cold dead hands, but the other one, while it has a folding top and cute stool, just doesn't fit any of the current machines and has barely been used in the 7 years I've had it.
Do I try to sell the patterns on Etsy? The fabric? The trims, many of which are vintage? Do I just bung it all in a box and drop it off with everything else? I'm going to toss all the old and cheap threads, some of which was 20+ years and were bought 3/$1 at Walmart.
This is why I need a plan of attack before I start lol. Anxiety will get the best of me.
no subject
Date: 2019-08-21 10:35 pm (UTC)Thrift shop donation is always a great help to let things go.
Not sure if your library has a donation area. Ours sells donated books and magazines to help fund programs for the library. So, makes it a little easier getting rid of things when it is for a good cause.
no subject
Date: 2019-08-22 02:49 am (UTC)But it sounds like you're off to a really awesome start on getting things sorted out! It's good to have a plan of attack, because it will make the sorting part so much easier. Go you!