So after seeing a lot of magazine covers about tackling the clutter in spring cleaning I decided today was the day. I went to the dollar store and bought these plastic tubs- I decided that I would keep no more than this in my office clean up. I have basically accumulated a lot of stuff in my plastic drawers from college and have hauled them from dorm room to dorm room, apartment to apartment, and the multiple places I've lived at since I've been home from college. I have a cute little office off of my bedroom that is an enclosed porch- it has been a catch all for paid bills, paper products, art supplies, and JUNK!
It is a major understatement to say that I have a lot of things- which is okay but I try to clear out as much as I can. I have already gone through all of my clothes and shoes as I switched out my winter clothes to my spring clothes. I have 2 big bags of clothes and shoes to try to sell to a consignment shop and donate to the thrift store. The problem is they have been sitting for a few weeks now all bagged up. I don't have as hard of a time getting rid of clothes, but I have a harder time getting rid of little random things- I've read all of the articles and have seen all of the shows, but I still have to talk myself through it that just because I am getting rid of something that someone gave me doesn't mean I care any less about them or just because I am getting rid of something doesn't erase the memory or the emotion.. blah blah blah. It isn't that dramatic, but sometimes there is no reason to hold on to something except that someone you love gave it to you. Here are some pictures of all of my stuff..
I grew up in houses that had lots of closet space and extra hidden storage- old houses in downtown do not have either of those things- so I think that is why it seems like so much :-)
Okay so here are my before and after pictures of my clutter clean up tonight. DON'T JUDGE ME!!!
I had those bins for things to keep that got put back in the plastic drawers or stored in the closet, a trash bag to throw stuff away, a bag to donate, and a bag for things that had a place in the house, but just not in the office. Once I got rolling and filed all of my papers the sorting moved pretty quickly and I was done in just over an hour.
Here's my after pictures:
Much better! Now I just need to bring those bags to the thrift store. The reason I choose Angel Thrift over Goodwill is because the proceeds benefit the Covington Food Bank.
O Magazine had some suggestions for organizations to donate your clutter to:
Clothes:
Vietnam Veterans of America- they pick the stuff up from your house!
Stuffed Animals:
SAFE- donates gently used stuffed animals to homeless shelters, hospitals, and emergency aid workers
Soap: (this one is my favorite but would need a bigger donation than just a household's worth)
Delivers soap to areas with widespread and communicable diseases that can be contained through hand washing
Kids Movies:
Kid Flicks- a library of family friendly movies for children's hospitals and pediatric departments
Garden Produce:
Ample Harvest- donates excess produce to local food pantries
Old Cell Phones-
Flipswap- gives you money for your old cell phones and they resell them or recycle them- they plant a tree for each phone they receive!
Children's books-
The Children's Book Project has given more than 1.5 million books to schools, homeless shelters, and community centers. They accept any gently used children's books.
What are your secrets for getting rid of the clutter?
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