Wednesday, January 15, 2014

De-Clutter Project 2014 - Week 3

I've spent a lot of time in bed this week. You can't get very much de-cluttering done that way. But I've been recuperating from a sinus and lung infection. I have an excuse. The linen closet will have to wait until next week.

Those antibiotics can really knock the stuffing out of you but as I lay there, fuzzy headed and teary eyed coughing up a storm, I realized that I could do a bit of clean up in my moments of lucidity.

The headboard of my bed is a bookcase (junk collector). Perhaps I should take a few minutes to sort through the miscellaneous books and other items that have gathered there. If I get dizzy or tired, I’m already in bed. I can just lie down again.

Here are a few things that I found and what I did with them. This is so embarrassing! Please try not to laugh too much. *smile*

1. Table centrepiece from a doll convention I went to about eight years ago: I still can't part with it for some reason, so it went into a big bin of other doll stuff to be sorted through 'later'.
2. Large red pillar candle, cranberry scented, unwrapped: That went into the candle bin.
3. Several empty plastic applesauce bowls: I brought them home from work to recycle and they did not make it to the bin, until now.
4. One porcelain Christmas ornament, broken: Into the trash.
5. Two stones: given to me by a child at our camping trip last year: Into the trash. I feel kind of bad about doing that but it had to be done.
6. One mini M&M dispenser, with candy, unopened: It was part of a package deal at the cinema over the holidays. I took that to work for a co-worker to give to her daughter.


7. A Belgian Milk Chocolate bar, 400g: That's a lot of chocolate! To eat or not to eat.
8. Four different tarot card decks and two tarot card instruction books: I'm going to learn how to use them some day. They went on the top shelf in my workroom.
9. Several sewing patterns: They went into their designated bin.
10. A small collection of trinket boxes, each with a piece or two of jewelry in them: I put all the jewelry in a small cardboard box until I can get a proper, partitioned box to store them in. I'm keeping two of the trinket boxes and donating the rest.


I could go on but this is too painful. It doesn't sound like I'm getting rid of much, I'll admit, but I do seem to have a vague strategy in place. I seem to be consolidating 'like' items in one spot. That's progress!!

What area do you intend to tackle this week? What do you think you will find? More importantly, what will you do with it?

11 comments:

  1. As you get things together you can then decide what's the best of the best and just keep that. Sometimes cleaning out is a multistage process.

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    1. I know it won't happen overnight. It seems like it will never end though. Are we ever completely 'done'?

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  2. How I wish there were an easy way to separate our "stuff" from the emotions we have attached to them. I remember reading once about taking photos of these items prior to de-cluttering (I think that is supposed to make the "loss" easier?) Of course, if you post everything here, that would have the same benefit.

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    1. I read the same thing, Monique. I'm working on convincing myself that I could live with that.

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  3. If something has emotional value to you, no picture could replace it! I am not sure why is this trend now with throwing everything out. Don't take me wrong, I am all for de-cluttering... but some pieces are more than 'things': ultimately they are history (even if it's only family history) .
    And no, we are never completely done :)
    Hope you're feeling better, Bonnie... your project is going well! (I love your trinket boxes, BTW)

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    1. For me, organizing systematically is probably just as important as de-cluttering. As you can tell, a LOT of things are in places where they should not be.

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    2. I agree with you Alicia. I was sorting papers today and came across some letters. I can't throw out hand written, personal letters. They are peek into someone's history. I have letters from grandparents and aunt's as far back as from when I was a small child. I have letters from friends who have passed away. I have letters from various family members through the years as they scattered themselves across the country. They are all bundled and contained. I think I'd rather give them to family members of the people who wrote them than throw them out.

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    3. I agree, Yabut, I would never get rid of hand-written letters. In years to come, they will be invaluable to family history researchers. Honour them with a special storage place, closed off from the dust and moisture.

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  4. I just love your doll centre piece! It's so darn hard to get rid of things that have meaning so I think you've done very well! Personally I would have eaten the entire chocolate bar (good flu remedy!) and left the decluttering until I was germ free. Crazy lady you!

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    1. I made a commitment to post some progress EVERY week. No excuses. It's too easy for me to procrastinate and, typically, any reason will do. Not this year, not if I can help it!

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  5. I am sorting through seed and cylinder beads. Size 14's and 15's have to go - to small even with trifocals and also seed beads that are ambivalent colors (meaning I might use them some day if I have to) ... I like peyote and I want to learn to loom with beads, therefore I need to concentrate on cylinder (Delica/Miyuki) styles.
    ~cryssT

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