letting go

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Too Many Books?

 

too many books

TOO MANY BOOKS

I don’t think I ever had a lot of books of my own. I used the local libraries, borrowed books from friends (all of which had to be returned), and went through phases of collecting some self help, fiction, mystery and fantasy books. Most of which I gave away over the years. I do enjoy buying fiction at yard sales as they are very low priced, and also exchanging books at the Little Free Library ‘take a book, leave a book’ boxes in front of people’s local houses to feed my reading needs.

And, I did have a fair amount of gardening books which I had purchased over the years to further my expertise in my gardening business. The gardening books took up 1.5 shelves in the built in glass door cabinet in my former apartment. With my upcoming move to another home, I sorted through these gardening books, and donated about 20 of them to be sold at the Somerville Garden Club’s annual plant sale. I reviewed the books again, and donated 18 more that I knew weren’t that necessary to keep. I gave away more than 1/2 of these.

Do you love books but have too many? Are they overflowing the bookshelves, taking up space on a chair or couch, or piled on the floor? I’m sure that some of these fiction, non-fiction, art, music, and other book topics you’ve collected over the years mean a lot to you, but most likely many of them are just gathering dust.

Why not share your wealth and give some away! Set aside an hour per week, and sort through at least one shelf on your bookshelf, or a couple piles of books. If you bought it a while back and haven’t yet read it, maybe it’s time to let it go. Fill a box (or boxes) with the books you no longer love, want, or need, and share the joy of reading by donating them to your favorite charity, library, local prison, or to ‘More than Words’.

‘More than Words’ located in Waltham, MA, is a nonprofit social enterprise that empowers youth who are in the foster care system, court involved, or homeless, or out of school to take charge of their lives by managing the organization’s online and retail bookstore and cafe. Check out their website – http://www.MTWyouth.org  or call 781-788-0035. Recently, a client I was working with to cut down on his hundreds of books, had the crew from MTW pick up 84 boxes of books! If you have at least ten boxes of books to donate, the organization will pick them up for you.

I’d love to know how many books you’ve got, and how you let go and distribute them.

For a FREE 1/2 hour phone consultation
to discuss your clutter issues, contact Judy at:
ClutterClearerCoach@comcast.net or 857-919-4735

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Make ‘Getting Organized’ One of Your New Year’s Resolutions

xmas wrap      Suitcase & wrappings

I stick to a pretty simple New Year’s resolution in regards to organizing. Rather than make it complicated or difficult for myself, I follow three simple resolutions; Clear, Sort, Store. And, I make a list of what task I am going to do first and when to do the task. Because of my work and social schedule, I allow several weeks in early January to take care of all these things.

Recommended organizing tasks for the New Year:

– Back and front hallway entrances: Unclutter the vestibules that lead from the house to the exit doors. And, unclutter landings that lead to the basement or other areas. For good Feng Shui energy and safety reasons, be sure to keep the area behind the doors clear of all things. (the photo used in this blog shows a back hallway before clearing)

– Kitchen Pantry: Go through the shelves and drawers and throw out any food items with an old expiration date. Re-organize those shelves/drawers as they most likely are out of order.

– Bedroom: Sort through your clothing. Pack away any summer clothes and accessories still in the closet and drawers. Donate or give away clothing you haven’t worn in the past year.

– Living room, Study or TV room: Recycle magazines, newspapers and junk mail that is cluttering these rooms. Magazines can be donated to physician and therapist offices. Take mugs, glasses & plates lying around to the kitchen to be cleaned.

– Home office: Tidy up your desk. Test all your pens to see if they still have ink. If not, throw out. Recycle and re-organize the papers on your desk (including those little scraps of paper you’ve written notes on) and in your files. Delete all of those hundreds of emails that are taking up too much space.

– Address book: Update the addresses in hard cover and virtual address books.

– Holiday Gifts: If you know you won’t use particular gifts, and can bear to part with them, either exchange them for something you’d prefer or give them away instead of having them take up space.

– Holiday Decorations: Don’t let holiday decorations, gift wrappings, or cards sit around for too long after New Year’s Day. Avoid clutter by packing them up and putting them back into storage.

Send me a message to let me know what you are going to accomplish.

You’ll feel lighter, have peace of mind, and freedom from clutter!

For a FREE 1/2 hour phone consultation
to discuss your clutter issues, contact Judy at:
ClutterClearerCoach@comcast.net or 857-919-4735

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Easy Things to Part with While De-cluttering

too many shoes         outdated hotel toiletries

It’s easy for some people to let go of items with sentimental value. But, others hold on to items knowing they have no real value. Do you relate to this latter reason?

What are some of your best excuses for holding onto clutter?

• I might need it someday?
• I may read this sometime?
• I could fit into this again?
• Its in good shape to use again?
• It was a gift; I can’t let it go?
• I’m saving it to give as a gift?

Below is a list of some unimportant things to part with.

• Old notes on small pieces of paper
• Old shopping receipts and unneeded invoices
• Recipes cut out from magazines but never used (take digital photos or scan)
• Cookbooks on the shelf that are no longer in use
• Outdated cosmetics and toiletry items
• Old pieces of wrapping paper being saved to use again
• Letters and birthday cards that don’t mean much anymore
• Gifts received and kept due to guilt rather than pleasure
• Scrapbooking supplies that haven’t been used in ages
• Desk clutter; too many pens, paper scraps, highlighters
• Clothing that’s gone out of fashion
• Clothing that doesn’t fit anymore

If you have items that are just taking up space, give yourself the guilt-free incentive to get rid of them.

For a FREE 1/2 hour phone consultation
to discuss your clutter issues, contact Judy at:
ClutterClearerCoach@comcast.net or 857-919-4735

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30 Things to Get Rid of NOW!

hotel toiletries

It can be really difficult to let go of things.
But you say; I might read that book someday, I might wear that
dress someday, I might need that item someday.
You know what? You probably will never wear that dress,
read that book, or use that item again. So be realistic,
and get rid of stuff you don’t use anymore.

Here are 30 items to get rid of:

  1. Single socks with no mate, or holes in them
  2. Pencils with worn down erasers
  3. Last years magazines that take up space
  4. Checks to accounts you no longer have
  5. Shoes that are worn out, or don’t fit
  6. Clothing you haven’t worn in the past year or more
  7. Makeup that’s expired or you don’t use anymore
  8. Rusty tools and outdoor garden gear
  9. Toys kids have outgrown
  10. All those screws in that jar you will never use
  11. Last years pay stubs
  12. Old cables filling up that box
  13. Single earrings and necklaces with broken clasps
  14. Jigsaw puzzles with missing pieces
  15. Old schoolbooks and college notebooks
  16. Books you know you’ll never read
  17. Expired medications and vitamins
  18. Broken camping or sports equipment
  19. Storage containers without lids
  20. Greeting cards from years ago
  21. Hotel shampoo and conditioner bottles
  22. Unfinished projects’ craft supplies
  23. Torn towels & washclothes
  24. Old, worn out canvas and reusable bags
  25. Or, all those extra bags you hold on to
  26. Dried up magic markers
  27. Cookbooks you don’t use anymore
  28. Expired coupons
  29. Flat, stained old bed pillows
  30. User manuals to defunct appliances

There are many more things you can throw out,
donate or sell. Ignore what you want to keep,
Sell what you can, donate what won’t sell, and throw out
unimportant damaged things. Having less stuff makes it
easier to get organized!

I’d love to know what other things you can get rid of now!

If you live in the Boston area, and would like a
FREE 1/2 hour telephone consultation to discuss your
clutter issues, contact Judy at: clutterclearercoach@comcast.net

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Too Many Mugs and Drinking Glasses?

mugs.jpg

How many mugs and drinking glasses do you really need?

I will be moving to a new home sometime in the near future, and have begun to go through my kitchen and pantry cupboards to see what drinking glasses & mugs I can give away.  I’ve got some beautiful mugs and decorative glasses that I’m hesitant to let go of.  The person I am moving in with has lots of nice ones too.  I can absolutely identify with so many of my organizing clients who are reluctant to part with things. But, it has to get done. So how do we make these decisions?

Here’s a suggestion: Pull all of them out of your kitchen cupboard, and set aside 12 of your favorite mugs and glasses. You know, the prettiest, most functional ones. Perhaps a couple of them you feel nostalgic about.

Now donate at least 65% of what’s left. Give them to your local charity, such as the Epilepsy Foundation, Big Brother- Big Sister, the Salvation Army, the Veterans Association, Goodwill, or to a non-profit office in need of mugs and glasses. Once they are out of sight, you’ll most likely never miss them.

If you live in the Boston area, and would like a FREE 1/2 hour telephone consultation to discuss your clutter issues, contact me at clutterclearercoach@comcast.net

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Seven Days of Organizing TIPS – Day # 6 – ‘Shabby Towels’

DAY # 6 – TIP # 6

Shabby Towels

Do some of your towels look like something the cat dragged in?
I have had some pretty ratty looking towels. Usually, I use them until their terry cloth is pretty bare. And, then it’s time to use them for other purposes; like for dusting the furniture, to clean up spills on the floor, or to line the cat carrier interior for comfortable trips to the vet for my cat.

If your towels are overused and shabby, search the house/apartment for them, and reuse for other purposes like I do. Or, fill a box and deliver it to your local animal shelter to provide comfy resting spots for furry friends. Whenever you purchase new towels, donate an equal amount of old ones. You can also donate the old towels to be used as rags to your local GoodWill type organizations.

What do you do with your old towels?

If you live in the Boston area, and would like a FREE 1/2 hour telephone consultation to discuss your clutter issues, contact me at clutterclearercoach@comcast.net

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Seven Days of Organizing TIPS – Day # 4 – ‘Overhaul Your Wardrobe’

DAY # 4 – TIP # 4

color coded clothes closet

OK, so it’s time to let go of/get rid of some of the clothing that you haven’t worn in a year or more.

Pull out items from your closet (clothing, shoes, accessories) that don’t fit or you don’t love. Arrange a clothing swap with friends. Once a year, my housemate and I coordinate a Women’s Afternoon Tea and Clothing Swap. We invite our friends, and friends of friends to attend and bring items they no longer wear to trade with others.

It’s fun!  We talk over tea, try on lots of clothing, and leave with a free new wardrobe! Whatever clothing is left over, (and there is a lot left!) we donate to a local women’s charity. You can choose any charity that appeals to you.

Here’s a tip regarding clothing swaps:  Bring less clothing home than you donated to the swap. Bring a bag that can hold only so much clothing, so you don’t add more to your wardrobe than you already had.

What clothing and accessories are you going to get rid of? I’d love to know where you are donating it to.

If you live in the Boston area, and would like a FREE 1/2 hour telephone consultation to discuss your clutter issues, contact me at clutterclearercoach@comcast.net