Do you have more crap than any human person should be able to accumulate in one lifetime? I do! And if you're anything like me you constantly look at all this crap and wish it would all just go away--but when you actually go to get rid of it you suddenly have a deep emotional attachment to everything and you leave the endeavor disappointed to say the least. So after my closet declutter I have some tips and advice for all the budding hoarders out there to help us all avoid the embarrassing but seemingly inevitable moment where authorities have to bulldoze their way into our homes and physically remove us.
Tip #1: Clear. Remove everything from the space. Everything. Even the stuff you know is going back. Get it out. This will help clear your mind and start deciding what you want and need for that space.
Tip #2: Clean. This gives you more time to decide what you want but also helps to reset the space in your mind. This really makes me view it like I'm moving in again and starting fresh. Viewing it as my space for some reason clutters my mind and I can't focus on the fresh start it needs, but if it's new I can look at it without the past confusing what I want now.
Tip #3: Replace & Reorganize. This is endgame am I right? This is what we've been waiting for, but it's also the hardest. This is the nitty gritty looking at each item and deciding what to do with it, which is where most of us start to feel attached to everything all over again. I have the hardest time with this, but I've complied a list of questions that really helped me get rid of things I haven't been able to in the past.
-Do I want this?
-Do I use this?
-Why is this here?
-Am I excited about this?
-Would I buy it now?
-Would someone else buy it now?
All of these really help to pare down. For example, there was a Mickey Mouse shirt I've had for years. It was adorable. Classic Mickey and I loved it--but I didn't try it on before I bought it and subsequently never wore it because it clung funny. I felt uncomfortable in it because in addition to it sticking to every curve the wrong way it was too baggy. The material was too thin and I just didn't like the way I felt in it. I've had this shirt for probably 5 or 6 years and I could never part with it so I'm going to roll through these questions with this shirt because this was the hardest to get rid of.
Did I want it? Yes. Absolutely. Because I wanted the picture of how it looked in my mind because that was freakin' cute. Casual, comfortable and it was great.
Did I use it? No, because that picture in my mind was just that--a mental image. The reality was not awesome.
Why was it there? Because I kept expecting that mental image to become reality. But this wasn't a matter of losing weight it was a matter of the material. It was too thin and too stretchy combined with it was too baggy.
Am I excited about this? By the time I got to this question, no. I wasn't, because now I just felt disappointment when I looked at it. I'd finally accepted the fact it would never be what I wanted it to be.
Would I buy it now? Not if I tried it on first. The shirt was impossibly cute, but again had I tried it on I would not have wasted money on something I didn't feel comfortable in.
Would someone else buy it now? Probably. I'd never really worn it aside from the first 10 minutes of getting ready before realizing I was not going to be able to feel that uncomfortable all day. It was in great shape and the material issue was personal. There was nothing wrong with it.
Now, if by the time you get the end of this list and still just love it too much to get ride of--that's ok. Pack it away if it's not something you want to look at or just something you need a break from. Then whenever you see it again, go through those questions. You'll either be happy you kept it or wonder what past you was thinking. Of course there's always items of sentimental value so don't feel pressure to get rid of those things. You're allowed to have things you don't use, you wouldn't buy, no one else would buy but you just love it and you want it. We're only people. That's allowed, it's just when we start to feel that way about everything--shit goes downhill fast.
Then once you've sorted through everything--decided what get's donated and what just needs to be trashed, take the stuff to the donation place of you're choosing. Get it out of there ASAP. It will stop you passing by and rethinking. I can guarantee you I would go get the shirt if I passed it again. I would never wear it and it would just take up space in my closet, but that picture of what I wanted it to look like would make me save it just in case one day it fulfills that image. But the fact it's not here anymore prevents me, and I'm glad. I don't regret that it's gone. I am so happy that my closet isn't packed full of crap I just don't ever wear.
So :) Do you have any tips? What is the question you ask yourself that pushes you over the edge and helps you to get rid of stuff? What are the things you know you should get rid of but can't? What are the sentimental things you keep just because? What is the one area of your home that you need to declutter the most? Comment down below :)
Now, go get rid of one thing you don't want/need anymore and I'll see you next week :)
Sincerely,
Cori
Tip #1: Clear. Remove everything from the space. Everything. Even the stuff you know is going back. Get it out. This will help clear your mind and start deciding what you want and need for that space.
Tip #2: Clean. This gives you more time to decide what you want but also helps to reset the space in your mind. This really makes me view it like I'm moving in again and starting fresh. Viewing it as my space for some reason clutters my mind and I can't focus on the fresh start it needs, but if it's new I can look at it without the past confusing what I want now.
Tip #3: Replace & Reorganize. This is endgame am I right? This is what we've been waiting for, but it's also the hardest. This is the nitty gritty looking at each item and deciding what to do with it, which is where most of us start to feel attached to everything all over again. I have the hardest time with this, but I've complied a list of questions that really helped me get rid of things I haven't been able to in the past.
-Do I want this?
-Do I use this?
-Why is this here?
-Am I excited about this?
-Would I buy it now?
-Would someone else buy it now?
All of these really help to pare down. For example, there was a Mickey Mouse shirt I've had for years. It was adorable. Classic Mickey and I loved it--but I didn't try it on before I bought it and subsequently never wore it because it clung funny. I felt uncomfortable in it because in addition to it sticking to every curve the wrong way it was too baggy. The material was too thin and I just didn't like the way I felt in it. I've had this shirt for probably 5 or 6 years and I could never part with it so I'm going to roll through these questions with this shirt because this was the hardest to get rid of.
Did I want it? Yes. Absolutely. Because I wanted the picture of how it looked in my mind because that was freakin' cute. Casual, comfortable and it was great.
Did I use it? No, because that picture in my mind was just that--a mental image. The reality was not awesome.
Why was it there? Because I kept expecting that mental image to become reality. But this wasn't a matter of losing weight it was a matter of the material. It was too thin and too stretchy combined with it was too baggy.
Am I excited about this? By the time I got to this question, no. I wasn't, because now I just felt disappointment when I looked at it. I'd finally accepted the fact it would never be what I wanted it to be.
Would I buy it now? Not if I tried it on first. The shirt was impossibly cute, but again had I tried it on I would not have wasted money on something I didn't feel comfortable in.
Would someone else buy it now? Probably. I'd never really worn it aside from the first 10 minutes of getting ready before realizing I was not going to be able to feel that uncomfortable all day. It was in great shape and the material issue was personal. There was nothing wrong with it.
Now, if by the time you get the end of this list and still just love it too much to get ride of--that's ok. Pack it away if it's not something you want to look at or just something you need a break from. Then whenever you see it again, go through those questions. You'll either be happy you kept it or wonder what past you was thinking. Of course there's always items of sentimental value so don't feel pressure to get rid of those things. You're allowed to have things you don't use, you wouldn't buy, no one else would buy but you just love it and you want it. We're only people. That's allowed, it's just when we start to feel that way about everything--shit goes downhill fast.
Then once you've sorted through everything--decided what get's donated and what just needs to be trashed, take the stuff to the donation place of you're choosing. Get it out of there ASAP. It will stop you passing by and rethinking. I can guarantee you I would go get the shirt if I passed it again. I would never wear it and it would just take up space in my closet, but that picture of what I wanted it to look like would make me save it just in case one day it fulfills that image. But the fact it's not here anymore prevents me, and I'm glad. I don't regret that it's gone. I am so happy that my closet isn't packed full of crap I just don't ever wear.
So :) Do you have any tips? What is the question you ask yourself that pushes you over the edge and helps you to get rid of stuff? What are the things you know you should get rid of but can't? What are the sentimental things you keep just because? What is the one area of your home that you need to declutter the most? Comment down below :)
Now, go get rid of one thing you don't want/need anymore and I'll see you next week :)
Sincerely,
Cori
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