Everything must Go-Reduce, Resell, Reward!
Dear Readers:
Do you enjoy getting rid of stuff as much as I do? I have a little thing inside of me that hates excess-having too much “stuff”. If I am gifted or I buy a new shirt, a dish, pair of shoes, etc.-I have to get rid of something the same. I believe I am petrified of becoming a hoarder.
I’ll get to a point where nothing is off limits in our house in an effort to reduce our excess. I’ve been known to clear jars of pickles and sell them at a garage sale. I begin to question the need for area rugs, kitchen sponges, umbrellas, the cats…and I begin making large piles of stuff we no longer need.
Biceps got in on my crazy over the weekend and together we scoured our closets, home offices and the attic looking for anything and everything we could get rid of.
Including our banana costumes from one of our greatest Christmas card photos ever.
We piled our findings into four categories:
1. Salvation Army
2. Craigslist
3. Ebay
4. Garage Sale (PS-if you are in the Tulsa area, I’m having a G-Sale on Saturday!)
There’s something so liberating as our closets breathe a sigh of relief and our attic looks a little less cluttered. I have a theory, if you haven’t worn it in the last year, it’s time to get rid of it. Plus as we get rid of things we don’t need, we’ll make a little extra cash-and that never hurts.
I mean, who really needs to own a DVD copy of “Bedazzled”?
Knick-knacks, books, jars, vases and clothing were all in the running to be reduced, resold and we would reap the rewards. The cats are safe-for now. But there is one that bit me last night that’s on the fence…
So, Dear Readers:
Do you enjoy getting rid of stuff and if you do, what’s your favorite way-throwing it all in a bag and dropping it off at Salvation Army? Taking the time to list it online? Or do you-like me-love setting up a garage sale, brewing coffee and physically watching as the money rolls in?
oh my heavens…you mentioned the cats as an item to declutter – HEElair
Amy- after I was bit twice last night, don’t think it didn’t cross my mind….
Am just the opposite! I prefer to keep stuff in case “I need it” in the future, whenever I feel the place is a bit overstuffed I pack it and put it in our beach house, the look am going for in that place is: mismatched furniture, old tv, old fridge, etc. just lovely 😉 but in both places everything must be in order and have a place, I don’t like it when there is clutter everywhere
I’m the same way. When I start getting stressed out, I head to the closets, cupboards & basement & start cleaning out. I get twitchy if I have too much stuff. I Craigslist & Freecycle or take to the consignment store-no garage sales for me! Now, if I could just find a market for all this dog hair I sweep up, I’d be a wealthy woman!
Trena-
I said the same thing months ago, and much to my chagrin-a friend gave me a book on how to knit with cat hair. Gross. Be careful what you wish for…. 🙂
Hey! Rebekah Perhaps it was the touch of fall weather we enjoyed last week that started the decluttering bug. We, too, spent several hours over the weekend going through closets, drawers, & the garage for a Sept. garage sale. It became very apparent just how serious my cookbook addiction of the past few years has become. Around here Garage Sale $$ = Vacation Gas $$ !:)
Have a great Wednesday!
Oh I need to purge my closet in a big way! We often take things to our ‘community dropoff’, but I hope to have a garage sale in Oct. and must begin cleaning out now. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and inspiring me to move ahead and get going on this project! =)
Mrs. Baker-
Anything I can do to help you purge is my speciality! Hehehh.
[…] is the big day. The Garage Sale day. I’m not only looking to make a few extra bucks, I love purging my home of all things […]
The trash or Goodwill are my preferred methods of getting rid of things. Goodwill donations often sit in the trunk of my car for weeks before I swing by a donation center and drop them off though.
The time and effort to organize a garage sale or take pictures and post on Craigslist or eBay (then you have to go somewhere to SHIP it!) is definitely not outweighed by what little money there is to be gained. Plus I’m an introvert in my personal life so I don’t want to have to talk to strangers who might come by for a garage sale.
My favorite way to get rid of large items is to put them at the end of our driveway. Nothing lasts out there more than an hour. We once sat on our porch and watched two very opinionated ladies argue over a dilapidated couch we put out. The winner ended up sitting on the couch until her friend came to pick it up so no one else could take it.
All in all, I prefer to give/throw things away so that they are gone quickly. I don’t really care about recouping any of the money that I originally spent on most items.