Get Rid of the Stuff!

I don't like a lot of stuff.  There- I said it.  Nothing bothers me more than having my house full of miscellaneous things.  Especially if I don't use or won't use or it holds no value or meaning to me.  Yeah- no thanks.

What you might not know is that I have a fairly small house.  Roughly 1400 square feet of living space and I'm pretty sure the garage is included in that estimate.  Now, I fully realize that living space is all relative.  Those of you in Manhattan would probably kill for 1400 square feet while some of you in the country have master bedrooms the size of my entire house.  I get it, really I do.  But for me- this is small.  Would you believe we actually recently downsized from a 2100 square foot house to our current one and that I did that on purpose!?!  Crazy right?  But there's a method to my madness and that was that I wanted to get rid of all the stuff.  When you have a bigger house, you tend to fill the bigger house.  I wanted to simplify and reduce our volume.  There was simply no need for all that stuff we had accumulated!

So today- I want to share with you how to downsize.  Get out your comfy clothes because it's going to be hard work!  Please allow yourself plenty of time to do this right.  You don't want to throw away anything of value or get careless and toss the sentimental items.  So here goes...

1. Start by focusing on one room at a time.  I suggest beginning with the main living room and then moving on to the next busiest and most trafficked room.  Don't overwhelm yourself by working in several rooms at once.
2. Get 4 big boxes or large bags.  Label them- Keep, Trash, Sell and Donate.  Then simply file things away in the appropriate category.  Tip- I always use plastic trash bags for the trash items but for the keep items, I make sure to use boxes.  Trust me on this.
3. For the items that you will be throwing away, make sure that once you have filled up the trash bag, that you toss it immediately.  Do NOT keep it laying around your house.  Get rid of it asap!
4. With the items that you are keeping, designate an area in your house where you can place these boxes and come back to them later.  If you are moving, label the boxes & tape them up.  If you are not, simply stack them neatly and be prepared to revisit them later.
5. The donation items are pretty easy.  As you fill up the bag or box, either place it in your car for donation drop off or call and have them pick it up.  Oh yeah- did you know that many local thrift shops and non profits will actually come to your doorstep and pick up your donations!  Seriously- I have several of these in my contacts list and call them several times throughout the year.  Now that's awesome!  
6. And finally, for the sell items- you will need to decide how you are going to sell them.  For larger, bulkier items I suggest Craigslist.  Things I have sold on Craigslist include strollers and other big baby items, bikes, pet cages, a trampoline and furniture.  For shoes and clothing- your best bet is Ebay.  Just make sure it's brand name and in good condition.  And for random household items and other things, do a garage sale or even an online garage sale.  For items that don't sell- donate them immediately.  If your goal is to get rid of things, don't hold on to them in the hopes you can one day sell it.  Just get rid of it.
7. Repeat steps 1-6 for each room in your house.  This process, if done right- will take at least one month.  At least.

When you are done, you will only be left with the keep boxes.  If you have time, go through these again.  Now that you've successfully gotten rid of so much stuff, I have a feeling that you'll be much more critical of what's in your keep pile.  Then organize it.

Break down your keep pile into things that you will either put away somewhere hidden, like a closet, picture album or filing cabinet.  For the things you will be putting away- spend some time getting this all organized.  If you need file folders for paperwork, go buy it!  If you need picture albums for all those family photos- then by all means, get it done.  And then start another pile for those items that you want to put out on display.  Seems easy enough, right?

Now, for things you want to put on display, work on finding the right place for it in your home.  Sometimes it starts with just a framed photo or two, or perhaps a green dog made out of jade that once belonged to your husband's grandpa (yeah, we have one those!) or maybe it's a basket collection or pile of precious moments figurines.  Whatever it is- if it's important enough to display, then you need to take the time to find the right spot for it.  Many times, you may need to invest in shelves or display cabinets or switch out frames so it matches with your existing decor.  And don't feel that you need to rush out and do all of this immediately.  Take your time- because these items are what will eventually make up the fabric of your home.  These memories and sentimental items are what truly makes a house a home.  So take the time to do it right.

Well there you have it.  Sounds exhausting right?  But follow the steps, keep at it and you'll be amazed with the results.  Oh and don't forget to allow yourself just a little bit of mess.  For me, it's the coat closet under the stairs.  That's where I keep my miscellaneous wedding keepsakes, wrapping paper, gift bags, old photos and vintage video games.  Oh and coats- yeah, there's some coats in there too.