Teacher Terry, it sounds like you and your hubby are accomplishing a lot!
Teacher Terry, it sounds like you and your hubby are accomplishing a lot!
Did another hour today. New total: 25.5.
Still puttering along here. Squeezed in another 1.5 hours today so new total is 27.
I won't reach my goal of 40 hours by August 27th (Monday), but I hope to reach it sometime in the next three weeks or so.
I'm realizing one big benefit of these 40-hour intensive purges is that they force me to find places for things I have never bothered to find places for. For example, I've been in this house for 8 years but still don't have a place for sewing stuff (thread, needles, spare buttons). It's such a small thing, but it means whenever I get spare buttons with a new item of clothing, I just toss the buttons in a pile of clutter somewhere. Multiply that by about 50 and voila, my messy house.
So little by little I'm establishing homes for different categories of things and continuing to try to move stuff out the door. And trying to create more storage space in this house that has so little. There is lots of problem-solving to be done, but I'm getting through it. And it's definitely the case that the spaces I've organized and the "homes" I've established around the house for different types of things over the last three years are helping me stay more organized. I need to jut keep putting one foot in front of the other. It does feel interminable, but I know in a sense, it is not. I'll always have problem solving to do, but at some point, I do believe I'll get through that last box of clutter, even if I "relapse" a little from time to time later on.
You will do it!
Thanks, Teacher Terry!
Tonight I ended up tackling the sort of "half-closet" I have in my bedroom. It's a small closet with a sloping ceiling so really only good for storage. I've been thinking the last few days about how to create more storage and realized I had just thrown a lot of junk in that closet without really dealing with it and if I dealt with it, I might be able to use it more efficiently to store stuff.
I was scared to even look in there and see how bad it was, but actually, since I'd made a pass through it in my winter purge (clearing out a bunch of my ex's stuff that was still in there), it wasn't so bad. I realized there were about 5-6 categories of things in there (e.g. travel toiletries, old jewelry, extra dental supplies, extra makeup, etc.) and that all I really need to do is figure out what kinds of containers I need for each category and then organize them all. There were two stackable clear plastic drawers in there that are perfect for old make-up and various eye-related stuff (contact lens containers, extra eye glasses and eye glasses cases), and I think if I buy one more of those drawers and find maybe two or three file-box sized boxes, I'll have the containers I need for everything. And when everything is in its home, I think I'll be able to store a box I have of picture frames and a box of photos I hope to frame eventually.
I *know* that a lot of the stuff I'm storing in there I could get rid of, but I did throw out a fair amount tonight as I went through it, including two fairly large clothes hampers that were in there taking up a lot of space (they will go to Goodwill tomorrow). And I think once all the things in one category are in one place (e.g. extra makeup), it will be easier for me to see what stuff I can let go of.
In any case, I'm feeling pretty excited at the prospect that that closet will be relatively organized fairly soon because I think it's one of the clutter hot spots I've felt especially ashamed about over the years I've lived in this house, so it feels very "cleansing" to face it head-on. Really, at moments like these, I find decluttering very therapeutic.
Just one hour today. New total: 28.
That’s great! You will figure out what you want to keep. So glad I didn’t work on the garage without DH and trusted him now that he is finally ready to get rid of some stuff. He asked today if we could start working on the garage together. I was shocked. But happy!
Hi ejchase,
i have a question about the make up. I don’t actually use make up, so this is totally an outside perspective, but the phrase “old make up” caught my eye. Doesn’t make up expire after a certain period of time and risk growing bacteria or something if it has been opened and used? Are you sure you want to buy storage for something you aren’t actually using, or would it be better to cull the make up before you choose a storage system?
To me “extra make up” sounds like “make up I don’t need to open now, but will use in a time period appropriate to the product” and “old make up” sounds like “make up I used to use but am now done with”
in either case, good luck with your closet!
Teacher Terry, that's exciting news about the garage. Your restraint paid off!
Chicken Lady, thanks for the info about make-up expiration dates. Most of the stuff is unopened, but I googled it, and it does look like I should throw away the opened stuff, so that's good to know!
Last edited by ejchase; 8-23-18 at 11:25pm.
I didn’t realize until a few years ago that makeup goes bad. I rarely wear it since retiring.
Another hour today: 29.
I went to the Container Store, returned two containers I bought that really didn't work anywhere, and bought three clear plastic stackable drawers. I normally don't like clear plastic storage, but I realized that almost everything I'm organizing in the half-closet in my bedroom is some kind of toiletry that could spill, so the drawers are perfect for that, and it's nice to see what's where at a glance, and since the drawers are hidden behind the closet door, it doesn't matter that they're not beautiful - though they look pretty beautiful to me right now!
Then I came home and organized everything that I just kept tossing in boxes in that closet for the last several years. I threw out a lot too and since I pulled out those two hampers to take to Goodwill, the closet is still half-empty which is great because I was hoping I could create more space for storage in there. I still have boxes of stuff in the hallway, and once I go through them and get rid of everything I can, it's nice to know I have an out-of-the-way spot to store some stuff I can't part with yet.
In any case, organizing that closet has had a huge psychological impact on me. I really felt like I would never be able to face it, but dealing with it wasn't that bad. I think what really helped was having made one previous "pass" through it over winter. Having gone through it once imperfectly made it easier this time around. It's a process.
I always feel during these purges like I'm excavating my life - getting rid of all the dross layer by layer, and once it's all gone, I'm starting to see what's really important. It's a really good feeling.
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