Decluttering Slump

This adequately illustrates the current state of my decluttering efforts

Much like my recent blogging efforts, my decluttering efforts have seriously dwindled to, um, nothing though it might not look like it since I was decluttered way more than an item a day a few weeks ago. Part of this is due to time and focusing on other things right now, and part is due to pain levels since most, but not all of the easy stuff is already gone. Note that I didn't say it's because my house is decluttered, because although there's been some improvement, it decidedly is not.

I've been trying to figure out why it's so hard for me to let go of certain items of clutter. I'm not even talking about items that have sentimental value. So what am I talking about?

1. Wooden dish drying rack - I haven't used this in at least three years, not since I fixed my dishwasher, and yet, because there is space for it in my cabinet and I "might need it sometime," I can't manage to discard it.
   
   
2. Gameboy - I haven't played my original gameboy in years and years. But it still works and hey, it might be worth a lot someday to some videogame nut. Regardless, I just can't let it go.
   
   
3. The rest of my fat clothes - I've lost several sizes in the last year, but somehow I can't quite part with all my fat clothes yet. Because what if I gain the weight back? I have managed to part with the clothes that are now three sizes too big, the ones I never wore, and the ones that needed repair or were stained. That still leaves way too many though.
   
   
4. Plastic plates - For all of those dinners outside I never have. I don't even think I've used the darn things.
   
   
5. Books I want to get rid of, after I read them one more time - You know, just in case they suddenly became uncrappy in the last several years. Olivia Jules, I'm looking at you.
   
   
6. Last year's IKEA catalog - I used to keep every IKEA catalog I ever received, which wasn't that many really. I've purged a couple, but still have more than one, which is silly.
   
   
7. Those ugly dark green towels - I bought these for college, which was, I'm not telling you how many years ago. I keep hanging on to these because they are so useful: gym towels, rags, etc. Guess how many times I've used them? Yep, none.
   
   
8. (to be continued)
   

This is just a sample of course, there is much more stupid crap I'm still hanging on to. So how does one overcome this?

• Try, try again. Things change and one thing that works for me is persistence and regular decluttering efforts. I've been going through some of the same boxes of mementos for years and I've found that what seemed incredibly important a few years ago, I might be willing to let go over the next time.
  
  
• Limit yourself. Set a limit for how many things you don't use but still want to keep that you're willing to hold on to.
  
  
• Check for substitutes. Check and see if your local library has a copy of a book you don't love but might want to keep, or maybe a neighbor or friend will let you borrow that tool you have but hardly ever use.
  
  
• Write about it. Seriously looking at the list above is making it sink in just how silly some of these things are. While the Gameboy is safe, Olivia is on her way out.
  

Obviously, I'm still struggling with this myself, so what tips do you have for me?

Conquering the Paper Clutter

Photo by sindesign: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sindesign/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

I still have the decluttering bug, but it's definitely getting harder to find things I'm willing to let go of easily. One thing that should be easy is paper clutter. We all know the rules, right? Keep tax stuff for seven years (or forever), bank documents and statements for one year, bills for one month to one year, etc. So why is my two drawer file bursting at the seams?

I keep way too much paper just in case. Just in case I want to remember how laughingly small my first paycheck was, or just in case I want to know how much electricity cost two years ago, or in case I finally want to input my expenses electronically (hahaha!). Sure, occasionally I do look up something, but most of it is just taking up space.

Recently it finally sunk in that I can easily clear out a few files by switching to electronic statements. This was first suggested by the teller at my credit union and I was appalled. How long would they be available online? Seven years? That's not forever! I must have those records and I know I won't print them out, so no, they couldn't stop mailing them to me. But I finally checked out their online statements and guess what? They're available as PDFs, so I can keep everything electronically, just in case, and finally ditch the paper. Same thing with credit card statements. And if you pay your bills electronically you may have access to even more.

Now that I can safely save my statements electronically, I can stop having paper copies mailed to my home and save a few trees in the process.

So to recap, here are some quick tips to reduce your paper clutter:

• Sign up for electronic statements, bills, etc.
  
• Save your statements electronically
• Once you're sure you have a backup, discard the paper files you no longer need
  

Mini Spruce-Up: Bedroom Edition

Being a stylist is harder than it looks. Yesterday I got out the comforter the boy got me for my birthday and went to work sprucing up the bedroom a bit. Mikko supervised.

As you can see, the bedroom needed a little love.


It took a few tries, but finally I a look I liked.

And it's kitty approved too. I don't know what it is about cats and new things, but they've been laying on the new comforter (and no other part of the bed) since the minute I finished.

Frost is Coming, Are You Ready?

last harvest of 2009

Well, it's officially fall: gloomy, rainy and chilly. And now that the first frost is coming tomorrow night, I can no longer deny that it's the end of a another garden season as well.

If you're a noob like me, I'd like to offer some words of wisdom I learned the hard way: don't take the first frost too lightly. It doesn't take much to turn those green tomatoes, veggies and flowers to mush, so if a frost is coming to your area get ready to cover up your delicates or pick them early.

Picking the almost-ripe produce is a no brainer, but what if frost is headed your way and like me your garden is bursting with green tomatoes or other unripe produce? Don't despair, those green tomatoes need not go to waste. Just pick them and either fry them and enjoy, or wrap them in newspaper and place in a cool, dark spot and they'll still ripen. I haven't tried ripening green tomatoes indoors yet because last year I thought the first frost wouldn't hurt and I lost a LOT of tomatoes, but I'll let you know how it goes this year. I've already got some green lovelies tucked in the basement and waiting, just in case, even though the frost won't hit tonight.

Don't forget about annuals or other flowers either. If you want to cover them go ahead, but if not, cut em and bring em inside to enjoy for a little while longer. Afterall winter is coming and it will be a while before we enjoy them again.

What a Difference a Rearrange Makes!

It always bothered me that there was no room in my kitchen for my cookbooks, because afterall, what better place for cookbooks to live than in the kitchen? But with no pantry, my cabinet space was filled with food, dinnerware and other necessities.

Then, thanks to some online inspiration and a quick rearrange, I found a way to squeeze my cookbooks into the kitchenNow the corner cabinet is more than just display space, it's functional too.

The Garden's Not Done Yet

This hasn't been a good summer for blogging, too much to do too little time, but it's been a great summer for my garden! I didn't want to miss yet another Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, so here's a better-late-than-never trip through my September garden.


Pic details: 1) zinnias*, 2) zinnias*, 3) roses, 4) poppies*, 5) snapdragons* 6) globe amarath* 7) lavender 8) Irish-Eyed Rudbeckia* and 9) nasturiums*.

I especially love that most of these flowers were winter-sown (everything marked with an asterisk). Winter-sowing is a super-easy way to get loads of interesting and cheap plants without having to babysit seedlings.

Want to see more blooms? Visit May Dreams Gardens every month on the 15th to see what's blooming in gardens around the world.

Note to Self, You Can Compost a Lot More!

Thanks to Apartment Therapy's link to this handy list of 75 Things You Can Compost, But Thought You Couldn't on Planet Green, I can start diverting a lot more stuff from the trash to the compost pile. Which is great, because despite composting and recycling, we still produce way, way too much trash. I blame the cats (because I can).

I routinely compost coffee and coffee filters, tea bags, veggie scraps, egg shells and non-weed plant material. But I'm not sure why I never added expired grains, cereal and bread. Also, until the leaves fall I'm low on browns, a need which cardboard can fill nicely. However, I'm not too sure about composting cat food, it's full of meat so I'm afraid it would attract rodents; or used paper towels and tissues, besides being gross what about the bleach and chemicals?

But stuff in the compost, means more nutrient rich brown gold for my garden and more flowers for me, like those yummy Zinnias pictured above. It's a win, win.