Selling the "stuff": netted $2,886 so far.

[iris lily]

In 2010 I started to get rid of "stuff" that I no longer wanted, stuff I had hauled around from state to state in my various moves. Childhood stuff. Family stuff. Some vintage and antique.

I sold dishes and family silver and toys and dolls and a few books as well as general decorative stuff. Oh yeah, and some gold jewelry. I am up $2,886.78 on this "stuff." I'd like to sell just a bit more to reach an even $3,000, just so I can remember the amount. But at this point I'll be donating other stuff to our Park Conservancy's sale of Antique and collectibles.

I only sold 2 things on ebay, all of the other stuff was sold through going to shows (toy show) and contacting vendors (Silver Queen for the sterling, local China buyers for the pottery & china) and finding the local doll collector's society. I just didn't want to deal with ebay. Part of this was a booth DH and I had at our local Anitques on the PArk event that netted $800 of this amount.

I feel lighter to be rid of this stuff because I wanted to dispose of it in a responsible way. And it took 4 years! It's not a fast process. At the time when I started this, our Park Conservancy didn't have their sale I would likely have just donated it all.

Now all of my stuff (I'm not talking about DH's huge load of objects--that is another whole issue) are things that I really like or else are things that I could give away tomorrow. Well, I'm still always culling and setting up piles to be gone, but I really am MUCH lighter in the stuff department. I am not sentimental about it. For instance, this year I sold for scrap the gold ring my mother gave me. Horrors! But I just didn't want it any more. OTOH I love and wear the family piece that she gave me, that will leave my finger only when I am dead. And it goes to a young relative.

[happystuff]

What an inspiring story! Thanks so much for sharing. I have been doing the same thing for the las tcoule of years also. I am down in the "stuff" numbers, but still have a ways to go. You have re-motivated me! Congrats on your success!

[catherine]

Thanks for mentioning Silver Queen. I have a lot of old silverware and I didn't really know how to get rid of it. I'll have to check into it and see if what I have matches what they are looking for!

When I looked at their site, it reminded me of a sterling silver tea set I had inherited from my favorite aunt. It was stored in my MIL's attic. Her brother became addicted to drugs and one day she noticed that my silver set was missing. We assume he stole it and pawned/sold it. I remember how upset she was and afraid to tell me. I guess it's a good thing I had no clue what it was worth, because I just said, "Oh, it's OK. It's just a silver set." She was SO relieved!

But thinking about that, plus the fact that I've had my diamond earrings stolen, plus I had one diamond drop out of a setting and get lost, and plus one time my DH bought me some nice jewelry when he went to Venezuela and that was stolen out of his suitcase just makes me feel that I am simply not meant to own nice things. What I relief.. I can go about my simple life without yearning for them, because if I get them, they're only going to disappear somehow.

Sorry for straying off the topic... that is awesome about the sales, IL! Very motivating!

[pinkytoe]

This is something I want/need to do before our big move coming up. My dilemma is in not knowing where we are moving to - would I possibly enjoy keeping some of this stuff in our new environment or would it be best to start anew? An example would be my collection of anthropomorphic salt and pepper shakers. Perhaps looking at it from the money angle would make more sense.

[gimmethesimplelife]

Good for you, IL! I have been slowly getting rid of my stuff myself, too, mostly via the ebay route and by giving some of it away. It is amazing how much of our stuff can be given away to constructive causes - case in point - eyeglasses from my time working at a hospital where I actually had vision coverage ten years ago - these glasses can be donated to a charity that gives them to the poor, and I think it's wonderful that I have been such a pack rat with things like glasses as this is a cause I fully support. Like so many other things, for glasses now I go to Mexico but at the time I was so dazzled by having vision insurance I had them made here. Turns out they would have cost less in Mexico anyway lol. But if someone else can use them, I'm glad. Rob

[iris lilies]

Good for you, IL! I have been slowly getting rid of my stuff myself, too, mostly via the ebay route and by giving some of it away. It is amazing how much of our stuff can be given away to constructive causes - case in point - eyeglasses from my time working at a hospital where I actually had vision coverage ten years ago - these glasses can be donated to a charity that gives them to the poor, and I think it's wonderful that I have been such a pack rat with things like glasses as this is a cause I fully support. Like so many other things, for glasses now I go to Mexico but at the time I was so dazzled by having vision insurance I had them made here. Turns out they would have cost less in Mexico anyway lol. But if someone else can use them, I'm glad. Rob

That's another batch of stuff I got rid of last summer: about 4 -5 pairs of eyeglasses. And my eyeglasses are usually in pretty good shape. My optician collect them for that charity.

[iris lilies]

This is something I want/need to do before our big move coming up. My dilemma is in not knowing where we are moving to - would I possibly enjoy keeping some of this stuff in our new environment or would it be best to start anew? An example would be my collection of anthropomorphic salt and pepper shakers. Perhaps looking at it from the money angle would make more sense.

I think that if you can picture your new place with your salt shakers even vaguely, you aren't ready to get rid of them. Most of the stuff I got rid of was packed away for decades. It wasn't stuff that I had actively collected here in the last 20 years (well, most of it.)

Now my "own" collections, I'm not getting rid of!

[Sad Eyed Lady]

There is such a feeling of freedom when we can get rid of "stuff" that has accumulated and we no longer have a want or need for. Like gimmethesimplelife I have sold most of my stuff through ebay, and also end up giving some ,(like clothing mainly), to local missions to resale. I also have donated old eye glasses to the Lions Club which repairs (if needed) them and they are then used for others in need.

[awakenedsoul]

That's a lot of money, congratulations! I live very near our local Salvation Army. I usually just donate to them. I've bought a lot of my furniture there, so it feels good. I wish I was more motivated to sell my stuff. I don't have that much stuff, though. But it's that time of year...

[Spartana]

This is something I want/need to do before our big move coming up. My dilemma is in not knowing where we are moving to - would I possibly enjoy keeping some of this stuff in our new environment or would it be best to start anew? An example would be my collection of anthropomorphic salt and pepper shakers. Perhaps looking at it from the money angle would make more sense.

This is the situation with my sister and I (we own a house together that we will - hopefully - be selling soon). I am a minimalist who plans to get rid of everything I own because I don't plan to settle down right away (will travel full time for a bit). But my sister is a packrat and has a huge amount of stuff she wants to keep. She has already found a new place to live near her work and can't take much in her tiny space, Yet she won't sell off anything - keeps saying she'll do it when we sell the house. Problem is the entire garage, spare bedroom, her room (master) and the back patio has all her things piled up floor to ceiling and it's hard to show that way. Not sure how to motivate her to start selling stuff without turning into The Naganator but she seriously needs to do something. I tried to entice her with the money angle (look at all the money you'll get if you sell! Look at how much it'll cost you to put it in storage) and the freedom from stuff angle (just think at how freeing it will be to not have to keep all that stuff and probably have to store it - stuff you never use) but nothing works. Sigh...