Hello!
Hopefully by the time this blog goes out we'll be in our new home and I'll have some more interesting updates for you (update since writing this: we're not in our new home.. more on that in this blog), but as I'm writing it's moving day for Chris's mum and I've found myself a quiet corner to get some work done. The good news is we've got a place to stay for the next few days with internet so I should be able to prepare things a little more before I disappear to the land of no net!
One of the biggest considerations I had once I'd decided to move to Belfast was how to get my stuff here. I knew I was bringing the car with me so I would be able to bring some stuff along with me, but would it all fit? Would I have to ship some of my stuff? How much would that cost? After a mental run-through of everything(ish) that I owned I decided that if it didn't fit in the car, it wasn't coming. Not only would it prove far too expensive to ship (we're talking between £1-200 just for a small pallet of things), I was convinced that a significant portion of my belongings were just filler. I wasn't using them or getting any lasting value from owning them, so why was I storing them?
Over the course of about 3 months I systematically went through all of my possessions (seriously, all of them) and sorted them into the following categories: bin (this was stuff that just wasn't good enough to be passed on in any way), sell (things that had a rough value of more than a few pounds), charity (things good enough for re-use that would be tricky to sell) and keep. The keep pile was then sorted into must come to Belfast, would like to come and could probably wait until someone visits.
I estimate I got rid of about 60% of my possessions in some manner, as what took us multiple trips in multiple cars to move out of the flat took me just one (very full) car to transport to Ireland. But getting rid of anything you own can be tough - it doesn't matter if it's clutter, at some point you decided that you wanted it in your life so letting go of it can be tricky. There were some things I threw away with no remorse and others really tugged at my heart strings before I set them aside. So today I wanted to share with you my top tips for decluttering!
1. Set yourself some rules and categories
Before you even pick up the first item, decide what your goals are. If you have a very limited amount of space (the back of your car?) you'll need to be more strict than if this is just a space-clearing exercise for a new home. Set up your categories (along with keep/sell etc. you could also have a re-gifting pile, or a pile for things that you 'acquired' from friends with the intent to give them back...years ago!) and then set some simple rules to go with them. Examples could be getting rid of anything you haven't used in a year, items that you could easily borrow or rent (eg. DVDs), or setting a limit on how many 'skinny clothes' you can keep (because you really might fit back into them one day!). If you are the kind of person who will actually mend things instead of putting them back in a cupboard for months you can also make a pile of things to fix, but be really honest with yourself on this one or you might just be throwing it out in 6 months..
2. Have back up
Have a close friend or family member with you when you're doing this and let them know all the categories and rules you've set. Pick someone who can be supportive through the process, but also remind you of your rules when you stumble across that sparkly top from 8 years ago that didn't even really fit at the time.. This isn't an opportunity to reminisce though, so don't pick someone who will get stuck down memory lane with you.
3. Set up your space before you start
Have some boxes prepared in advance labelled with each of your categories. This will allow you to keep everything organised and by labelling them your "keep" pile isn't going to accidentally end up in a charity shop. It has a secondary benefit of letting your companion put things in boxes while you do the decision making so they're not sitting around bored. Yay for teamwork!
4. Break it up
Don't try to do it all in a day, or even work through an entire room in a day, unless you really have to. Decluttering is a draining process so pace yourself and break your possessions down into logical groups to sort through; room by room or by item type (clothes, kitchenware, memories box etc.). I had a giant clearing session early on when I moved out, followed by another sorting session about 3-4 weeks later, and a final push in the last 2-3 weeks before the move. I knew when I was getting overwhelmed and needed a break because I'd start getting snappy with my partner (try not to do this!) or I'd feel the beginnings of a migraine. Know your limits and make a plan beforehand so you don't overdo it.
5. The decision making itself
Hopefully by preparing as much as possible before you even look at your possessions this bit should come a lot easier. You know your rules, you know where you're going to put items as you sort, now it's just time to do it. Key things to remember here are; you're not there to reminisce, if you find something you want to talk about or look through set it aside for a later date or during a break time. No one is forcing you to do this! When you get to a tricky item to get rid of it can help to remember that you've chosen to do this for your own peace of mind and space. Remember all the positive benefits you'll get from this extra space rather than the negative of not having the item anymore. You don't use things half as often as you think - borrowing is a legitimate option in a lot of cases.
6. Have a plan for where it's going after
The keep and bin piles are obvious, but where is everything else going when you're done? And how frequently will you deal with it? If you have set a number of sessions aside to sort through everything there could be days or even weeks between them where items can easily sneak back into your cupboards. Out of sight is out of mind and that's exactly what we want here! Know which charity shop is getting your stuff and take it there immediately (or as soon as is realistic). Plan sorting sessions before a car boot sale or a day off when you can list everything you want to sell online. You might need to do this a number of times, but it'll be well worth the extra effort when you see all the space you have after!
I was really lucky that a family friend enjoys selling stuff on Facebook in her free time and was willing to sell my things for me, so I made a giant (and I mean really, super giant) pile of bags and boxes that went over to her one weekend. As far as I know she's still going and has already made £40 from my stuff! If you know someone who sells online already ask them if they'd be willing to split the money with you in exchange for doing the work (after all, it was just going to sit in your cupboard anyway!).
7. If things get tough..
Take a deep breath and think about why you're getting upset. Do you really want to keep the item in question, or does it have an attachment that isn't healthy for you? Many people hold on to things because of a memory or feeling attached to the item rather than the item itself (think of souvenirs from other peoples' holidays) and it's not always good for you. If you're struggling, try to work through the cause of your emotion rather than avoiding it altogether. One solution could be to take a picture of the item, write the memory on the back and keep that instead.
If you're still getting upset or start to get overwhelmed then stop immediately. This isn't an exercise to traumatise you at the thought of getting rid of your things, it's a clearing process that will be good for you mentally and energetically in the long run. It'd be counter intuitive if you hated every second of it! Take a break, do something completely unrelated and come back to it when you're fresh and ready to start again.
8. Don't let things slip
Once you've gone through everything and each category has found its' new home it can be tempting to treat yourself to a few new things. You've got all this new space (and if you sell some things some extra cash too) so it couldn't hurt, right? Stop! It's best to adopt a "one in, one out" rule or something similar at this stage - for every new item that comes into the house another has to be donated or sold in its place. Otherwise in 6 months or a year you'll be back to square one and need to go through this all over again, only this time the things you kept in round one will still have valid reasons for staying and you've only just parted with your cash on the new items so you'll be loathe to throw them away.
The only exception to this rule is what we've had to do, and that's anything you need for the new house that you can't borrow or source some other way. We currently have an entire garage full of stuff for the new house - from cookware to bedding - but not all of it is new. We've been lucky that Chris's mum donated her sofa and a few other bits and pieces when she moved, along with anything I could fit in the car with me (I somehow managed to bring along my slow cooker, blender, tagine and a new knife block from my Nan in amongst my many belongings). As for the rest, we've gone for budget items on anything that was essential but not worth splashing out on and saved the majority of our furniture budget for things we'll get the most value out of the extra cash for. Since we're creatures of comfort at heart this has mostly consisted of extra fluffy towels and comfy bedding. Are you surprised?
Those are my top tips for decluttering, but what are yours? How do you cope when it's time to pare down your possessions? I'd love to hear in the comments below, especially as I still feel like I need to own less stuff! (I don't know where this minimalism drive is coming from but it better go away soon or I'll have nothing left!)
Have a fab day!
Love,
Have a fab day!
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