Stuff. It clutters our lives in so many ways, physical, mental and even emotional. You know that I’m a minimalist, and I’ve really been working to cut down on our unnecessary junk. But the million dollar question is, “What do I do with my excess?” When you’ve decluttered (and a big high five if you have), how do you determine what you should keep, trash, sell or donate. Here are my thoughts {and while I occasionally deviate from this, it’s how I almost always determine an item’s future!}:
Keep: The stuff I keep I do so because I use it, and frequently. That’s the key here. Do you use it? Not “I MAY use it someday,” or, “I USED it once.” If I pick something up and I haven’t used it in the last 5 years, it goes. Period. If I find multiple items that do the same job {I mean who really needs 15 pie plates, regardless of how pretty they are!?!}, I pare it down. I might actually bake 4 pies at a time around thanksgiving, so 4 pie plates is not excessive for me. Your decisions will vary based on your lifestyle. Don’t declutter and minimalism to the point you end up spending money to replace items you should have kept. I’ve made that mistake a few times.
I also keep things with sentimental value that I know I would regret throwing away, but I’m not excessive with it. Having every single art project little Johnny ever did might not be the best use of space. I like to hold onto some mementos, but for me, parting with them isn’t a big deal. I prefer picture memories!
Trash: This one is easier for me. If it can be of no use to anyone in any re-purposing or recycling option, and if the item is broken or damaged beyond repair, I toss it. I would say I use this option very infrequently, as I have found I can sell or donate almost all of my stuff.
Sell: This one is a little trickier, because I have to weigh the potential profit vs. how much time, energy, expense it will take to sell it. If I’m going to hold a garage sale, it’s easier for me to toss things into the sell pile, because I’m going through the trouble and spending the time for a massive collection of smaller item things. Each item alone might not be worth it, but collectively, the sale profits will justify the work.If you don’t have the time to invest or if the profit will be minimal once you factor in fees for selling on ebay, etc. you might want to toss it into the donate pile.
Donate: This always ends up being the largest pile when I’m decluttering. There are so many great organizations to donate to and so many people in need. The thing you need to be considerate of is that the Goodwill is not a dump. It’s not a place for your trash or broken items. I try to only donate gently used things in good condition. If the reason I’m giving it away is because it’s beyond repair, the donation pile is not the right choice. I also donate items in various ways depending on the items, for instance this is how I recycle used clothing.
So that’s a simple way I try to sort when I’m decluttering. How do you determine what stays and what goes? What you sell and what you donate? Any tricks you’d like to share?!
Do tell!
~Mavis
Suzanne says
As far as grown up clothes go I only sell nice brands in good/great condition. I use a website called Poshmark. I see if my friends want my old kid stuff then take what they don’t want to a consignment shop and donate what the shop doesn’t take.
Jennifer says
If it takes me more than five minutes to straighten a room then we need to get rid of stuff. If our family of five has more than five loads of laundry (counting towels, not counting sheets), we have too many clothes. I am becoming minimalist enough that I do not even want pictures hanging on my walls because I think it looks too cluttered. I don’t do knick knacks (beyond a few heirlooms) or pillows with no function. I would rather have a new tool for the wood shop.
We donate a lot, mostly outgrown clothing in good condition. Last year, though, I donated my antique dining set and my great-grandmother’s not antique dining set. We have a folding plastic table until I repair my Grandmother’s table (complicated repair, requiring tool purchasing). I will say, paper clutter overwhelms me (because hubs, mostly) and I have a hard time getting rid of any books. I have hundreds, perhaps thousands…and I reread each and every one constantly.
Not to be morbid…but having sorted through enough people’s lives after they have passed, I would like to leave my family the gift of simplicity.
Lunchlady says
I don’t want to leave my family with the burden I was left with. I have items from my Mother, Father, Grandmother. How do you deal with the guilt of getting rid of family items? I have terrible guilt. After all my grandma kept “it” to pass along but really? Do I need to keep it too? I am torn. By the way who takes sets (yes, plural) of dishes I suspect have lead in them? I can’t toss them into landfill can I? I don’t want anyone to eat off them. Anyone know?
Linda says
There are a ton of people who do all sorts of mosaics on Pinterest. Dishes can be cut and used for this purpose. Put up a posting there.
Or if you know of a local artists group, contact them.
I’m guessing your dishes will be loved by throngs of people.
Erin says
Guilt is the reason I think most people hoard things (that and the thought that it might be useful one day). What helps me is to realize that if I can’t use it or don’t like it and it just sits gathering dust or hiding in a box somewhere, then it’s not being appreciated as it was meant to be. Makes far more sense to donate it to someone else who can use and appreciate it. And anyway, once the giver has passed on, he/she won’t know or care what you did with it, right?
Lydia says
Ironically, I just watched The Minimalists documentary (free on Netflix), and have picked up many useful decluttering tips. I like that photos can be taken of sentimental items not being used and taking up space. They speak of the 20/20 rule too, which I find liberating: almost all items you minimize can be replaced for under $20 and in less that 20 minutes. I’m a lifelong student of decluttering and have only regretted minimizing something once or twice. If your interested in pursuing a more minimal, decluttered life i highly recommend The Minimalists’ documentary. (In addition to Mavis’ blog, of course ).
Cheri says
Like other posters here, I am interested in simplifying my life more and more. I am at the point where I constantly look for things I can get rid of without causing a family uproar. There are many things I wish I could get rid of but can’t, because my family would be upset. One thing I have always done to help me declutter, though, did not derive from my interest in simplifying. Every year, I “spring clean” during the spring and/or summer. The way I do it encourages me to simplify, because I strip each room completely (one at a time), except for furniture. I pile everything in a hall or another room, which is messy, so I’m motivated to get the room done. After I clean it thoroughly, I have to put things back. Here is where I find myself getting rid of things, because I hate to put everything back when my room is now so clean and relaxing to look at. It is easy to get rid of excess possessions then and put back only what I really care about. The trick, though, is in stripping the room completely. I usually donate everything at that point, because few of my things have resale value. Plus, I am in a hurry to get them out of my house! I have had a couple of garage sales, though, which has earned me several hundred dollars at each one.
D Lovely says
This is an excellent idea! I imagine the first couple of times it can be a big chore to completely strip the room. As you purge it should (theoretically) be easier each time. How often are you tempted to re-paint the room while it’s empty? I think that would be my downfall, lol.
Cheri says
It is a huge chore that takes me weeks for the entire house, although it’s a little easier now that my kids are old enough to help. But it feels good and ensures I will find every lost item and every little thing I’ve forgotten about, because I literally go through every single thing we own except stuff in storage and my husband’s personal things. I don’t repaint, though, because I’m too tired afterwards to think of such a thing! Good idea, though!
Erin says
Something that might help with the “what if I need it someday” thing – consider if you know someone that has the item that you could borrow. I was gifted my husband’s grandmother’s Kitchenaid Mixer years ago and kept it in the cabinet gathering dust. I never used it because I am not a baker, but I felt bad about donating it. I finally realized that I know several people with big mixers that I could borrow if I ever needed one, so I gave it away. Years later, I still have never needed one, lol!
Sheri says
well I come from a family of collectors..we will always have THINGS and to a point I like my things. My Great Aunts taught us the ‘trade up’ idea -find something you like better or in nicer condition, go ahead and buy that and get rid of the other.I am however sorting through a lot of those things this past year selling a few on ebay and I have sent boxes to a local auction house.I didnt get much but at least I told myself I was trying to get some money back from things I thought I HAD to have
Now I wanted to comment on the remark about donating things in GOOD condition..yes PLEASE!! My Mom worked as a clothing sorter at a small local thrift ( they have I think 3-4 stores in the state.Not GW or SA by a long shot but pretty big and known for clothing) I have heard the horror stories about things people donate. Do people not know what a TRASH can or WASHING MACHINE is ???for..Yes what you are imagining is probably what she had to sort through. No gloves because they had to make sure items were not wet.. People are disgusting. Also some thrifts do make money from recycling bad clothing, call and ask if you have some that are to stained or beat up to wear, ask then if they take them for recycling
Brianna says
I have always been one with few possessions, but my other half is a different story. I am always struggling to get him to part with things, he has too many hobbies and interests. We have been married 13 years and I am really starting to point out to him things that we have been continuously moving and not using. We have moved 11 times in those 13 years, 5 of which I got the joy of packing for. We have another move coming up in late June and I am planning on an epic garage sale in May. We are done with babies and I check for gear recalls and consign the gear or sell it on eBay, my daughters clothes mostly go to eBay and I donate those in ‘play’ condition (some fade or wash wear or a faint mark). Undergarments I toss (although I had someone joyously snatch up my daughters 2T panties from a free box at our last garage sale). My boys clothes I donate because they are a bit rougher on them. I sell some stuff on eBay too if I believe it will sell better there then my next garage sale. If I consign and it doesn’t sell, then I give it as a donation. I also donate any decor items because decor is personal preference and the odds of a buyer at your next garage sale wanting rooster decor or Parisian market scenes is small. Clean linens I donate to the vet clinic because sick and injured animals can soil many linens during their stay and they are always changing them out. Opened toiletries I toss and unopened I donate to the YWCA. Old glasses I donate to the Lions club. I take the unopened duplicate toys or new toys my kids have, but weren’t interested in to the fire station in December and put them in the Toys for Tots (my kids do fishing derbies and always win prizes, but we don’t need another fishing pole or kid tackle box). Office supplies, craft ribbon, and other crafty items I may not use again I donate to my kids school.
When it comes to people gifting me or inheriting me stuff, I have learned how to say in a kind way that I appreciate the item, but it just won’t work for me. If I accept the item, I always ask if it doesn’t work for me if they would like it back. It gives me the reins to either give it back or pass it onto someone else who can better appreciate it without guilt.
In regards to China….life is too short not to eat on china every day. I even have my kids using it everyday (2,5,7) and we might as well enjoy it. When it gets chipped or broken, I bite my tongue and let it go because at least we used it and didn’t just look at it in a nice hutch. My everyday dinnerwear is china and my kids friends always ask for a kids plate or plastic plate when they come over, but we don’t have any.
The item I have trouble figuring out what to do with are all the cheap kid meal toys and goody bag trinkets that come in my house. Also old cell phones, any ideas?
Amy says
If the Fast food toys are unopened, take them to a teacher for their “treasure box”
Maria says
As I start my journey into reducing clutter this New Years, I constantly ask myself, “Does this item add value to my life?” Most of the time, it doesn’t. Clutter and excess can really trip me up mentally, and can even make me ill. I find that as I purge/declutter and organize, I feel TONS better physically and mentally. Thank you Mavis for inspiring me to do my own “get rid of 1000 things” challenge!
Julie says
Thanks for reminding that Goodwill is not a dump, my husband work at the donation trucks and sometimes it’s a nightmare for him. They have to sort out all the donation so when you have to go through a bag a real trash it’s a nightmare. You won’t believe what people can bring them, it’s disgusting! Just to save on not paying trash…
jill says
I am helping my son move . It seems we are moving all of the same stuff we moved before. So my question is my son and family have so much of what I call junk that it has taken over his trailer and his daughters (who lives next door). The yard, the shed , the back of all vehicles everywhere is ‘ ‘ stuff’ which I have helped him move at least five times. Alot are parts for race cars, tools and things he says are useful to him but no one else . Like a broken drill can’t sell because he can make it work where as someone else couldn’t. He has multiple drills in same condition. How do you get him to decide that the broken ones should go? His wife’s has over 200 candles most are dirt ridden and have never been used but she has them on display. . How can you motivate someone to get rid of a few? Cant use the ‘makes more to dust’ on her ‘ because she doesn’t. Help! Any suggestions? Maybe this should not go in reply?