Where to start?

[Deed]

Hi my name is Deed and I am a packrat!

I'm not kidding ladies, I am just about the worst packrat I have ever met. This is embarrassing but I have so many of just EVERYTHING!

Clothing, shoes, purses, fabric, yarn, books, patterns, TINS. You name it, I probably have it. Can I wear or use all of this in the next 10 years, most likely not.

I know all the organizing and decluttering sites say to start small, but how do you even know where to start?

I would love to make some $$ off all this stuff, but a yard sale isn't feasible for me. People (tradesmen) can't even find our home when they come to deliver or repair something. We have to meet them in town and bring them out. I have thought of having one at my parents home, they get lots of traffic as they are in the suburbs.

I'm terrified of ebay as I don't have a clue what I am doing.

So where do I start? Help please! I have to get this disaster under control, it is making me nuts!

[Admin]

Deed,

My suggestion, for what it is worth is to start in only one room. It is easy to get side-tracked if you try too many rooms at once. Start in a small room that won't overwhelm you.

I would start in the closet of that room. Remove everything. Make boxes that are tagged for throw away, give away, sell and keep. Really think as you pick up each item. Do I need this, how long since I used it. Can others use it more than I

Try not to do too much in one day as doing too much will make you not want to go back in the next day. (ask me how I know that tidbit)

Work slow and methodical. Pace yourself. A good rule of thumb is get rid of anything that you haven't used or needed in six months. (holiday decor and craft supplies are the exception) But I found I could even downsize my holiday decor and am in the process of doing just that now.

Collections, while they are nice...they soon become too much and just keep us dusting and other work. Set a number you would like to have. Choose the ones that you like the most and keep those. Only those that bring you great joy. If it is hard to get rid of the rest, one good way to keep them is in a photograph. Take a picture of all the ones gathered together that you want to sell. Then you will have an instant memory that will make you smile each time you see the photo. Remember memories are in your mind and heart.

As for having a sale, I don't do ebay cause I am too chicken, but if you can have a sale at your mom's I would do that. I bet you would do well in a suburb.

You might also try consignment shops. Some will put your things onsale for you and take only a percentage when they sell it. Others will buy your stock outright. You get less money this way but at least you get something for it. I find yard sales alot of work. I use to do them alot when I was younger.

Do you have a flea market close that you could rent a booth at in the spring? That might be another option. Here you can rent one table for 10$ and sell whatever you want.

Let me know how you do and I will keep encouraging you. You can do this and you will feel so much better once it is done. You won't be overwhelmed anymore and trust me, you won't miss one thing you get rid of. I have never missed anything I sold, gave away or trashed.

Sometimes things hold us back from being ourselves. And trust me, your not alone in your feelings. Everyone, (for me the first time I down-sized I was in my early 40's) goes thru wanting to downsize and simplify their lives and homes.

Good Luck

[Admin]

Oops wanted to say that a good place to start might be a bathroom, or the entry way. These are small and less overwhelming!! Or a closet!!

[Deed]

Thank you for the encouragement and advice Car. Yep a closet sounds good to me, maybe the front one as I don't think I have gone in there in a loooooong time!

Wouldn't it be neat if I made room for my vacuum cleaner to be out of site when not in use?

[Admin]

You can do it Deed. Getting started in the hardest part. So..go open up that front closet. But first, get those marked boxes ready...Now, open the door.....and pick up each item. Try not to handle each item too long or think too long about it. Just make a decision what your doing to do with it and then put it in the appropriate box. Remember though, once an item goes in the trash, sell or give box it can't come back out!!!.

Let me hear how you do and I betcha a while you will have that vacuum stored away.

Ok, I am going to go do as I say and get in that master bedroom and start to put back the smaller items and then I am going to clean out the dresser and chest drawers.

I will check back in with you later.

[daddys3chicks]

Yes I am kind of the same way - DH is much worse - you should see our garage! We have a car buried under stuff in there - I kid you not! His first car. When we bought the first used van he started driving the Saturn to work because it got better mileage. So he put the other car in the garage. It has since become a shelf for stuff. If I could get to the doors I would probably store stuff in there as well! LOL!

Take it slow. Like the Flylady says it didn't get that way over night, you won't get it all out in one day. My first trigger was that I was constantly doing laundry and the drawers were full. So, I started by purging clothes BEFORE I put clean stuff away. Especially the girls stuff.

I took one toy box at a time. Went through a section of my scraping stuff one day. Yarn the next. The medicine cabinet always makes a great place to start. Under the bathroom and kitchen sinks. Smaller spots - easier to get done.

Set the timer and when it goes off - quit! Good Luck!