2016 brings the chance to have a fresh new start – to get rid of anything we no longer need and to set ourself some realistic goals that we hope to achieve. For many, decluttering is on the list of goals and I’m definitely one of them.
I actually meant to get a lot of decluttering done before Christmas but due to unforeseen circumstances, this never happened. I now have a mountain of toys to sort through to work out which Jack no longer plays with, which are beyond repair etc. But I’ve now got to work around everything he got for his birthday and Christmas – yay!
With me being on Slimming World and Steve also on a diet, our wardrobe could also do with a refresh. We both have kept clothes that are either too big or too small – either in the hope that we will once again to fit into them or using the bigger ones as comfort in case we do put on weight – and they are taking over our bedroom. I want rid of these and to streamline our wardrobes down to the essentials we need and a few more items.
I’ve even been going through my books and beauty products – yep, I’m being ruthless.
I’ve already made a start on decluttering and donating – the past few days have been spent putting stuff away for the charity shop, chucking things away or putting things on Ebay for pennies to add to my savings account. The problem I now have is that our bin service is obviously completely off kilter due to the Christmas holidays and my black bin is already full up with my recycling bin soon to follow. With all the decluttering I am doing, bags are piling up and I know that as soon as it has been collected, the black bin will be full again. I’m actually considering hiring a skip to make it a little easier – then I don’t need to wait for the bins to be collected to get decluttering again or wait for Steve to be off work to take bin bags to the dump. It means I can just get on with it.
I find that is often the problem when it comes to decluttering – when I run out of space for bin bags/donation bags, I give up and then it easily piles up again. I don’t want that to be the case in 2016. I want to be as minimal as possible and that means getting rid of a lot. I’m glad to have already made a start and will be continuing to do so over the next week – I want to be all done before my birthday at the end of January.
It’s important to have a regular schedule for rubbish removal so trash doesn’t build up too.
Have you been decluttering recently? Do you donate, throw away or sell?
Don’t forget decluttering can often be very emotional – check out this fab guide on how to deal with emotions when decluttering.
Oh god. I have one daughter who won’t part with anything without a tantrum, it drives me absolutely crackers. It’s always a stress. The other daughter thankfully isn’t too bad.
I tend to sell anything worth selling, or if its not worth much but got life left in it then it goes to charity.
We need to do so much sorting!
I love to have a declutter, I did one a few months ago and got rid of loads of things, if they are my daughters things I try to sell them and spend the money on something she has asked for or a treat
We did a major declutter when we put the decorations away. I filled an entire bin liner of just tots to take to Oxfam. I also posted 100 items of baby clothes on Ebay! The scary thing is it won’t stay “decluttered” for long.
It seems like everyone is decluttering this month which is a great idea as I have so many things to sort through!
We are about to start and I am donating all the kiddos old clothes, I have so many clothes sitting aroung but sadly most dont fit, it is irritating
I can’t wait to refresh my wardrobe for 2016 – just need to lose weight first!
I have decided to have a massive clear out, but I am dreading it as I am a bit of a hoarder
Ive visited 3 charity shops and the PDSA already since Boxing Day and still have a tad more clothes decluttering to do x
I started decluttering on New years day, now have 6 bags for the charity shop and 2 bags of things I’m putting on Depop (makeup mainly). So much more stuff to get rid of haha!
I am currently decluttering but I find it hard, I get quite attached to STUFF and don’t like to get rid. So it’s a slow process here!
I’m a ruthless decluttered but I can’t convince my other half to be ruthless with his belongings. We tend to bring our bits (mainly mine)to car boot sales or to charity shops. Anything beyond human use obviously goes int he bin though lol x
I do all, I love decluttering. Can’t stand clutter at all.
What better time to declutter – both mentally and physically. Great post.
I had a mini declutter before christmas but seriously need to get another one done but like you have the issue of what to do with it! Mostly I put anything which others can use up on freecycle saves on the excess bin bags as I don’t have a car to do tip runs!
It’s a never ending decluttering here for me hun haha. I actually started before December came and I have stuff to give away here including clothing. It does feel good to be on top with things and just organize and my space looking less messy.
I did it before xmas and it was best thing i did! I know have to find charity that can pick up everything!