Tag declutter

New goals for 2017 – Some ideas…

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Most people are thinking about New Year’s resolutions, however, it is better to think about possible improvements and changes. Otherwise we are all disappointed are we not? Instead of persevering for one whole, arduous week we can think about long term changes and be proactive. Consider last year’s bad and good experiences and see what really stands out and either eradicate, improve, change or just start something new.

Here are some ideas and you may want to activate some action within 48 hours haha…

Food

If you received a new cookery book recently, plan one new recipe a week

Try having a vegetarian day or even a vegan day/s

Eat something completely new

Learn the source of the product used

Challenges 

Have one screen free day

Have one television free day

Write down new ideas daily

Write a journal

Write about 3 things that you are grateful for

Compile a vision board for the new year

Declutter – (Play the minimalism game Day 1 of month clear out 1 thing, day 2, two things, day 3, three things and so on)

Exercise

Exercise 30 minutes a day (Walk, run, gym)

Do one press up or/and squat, increase daily

Start walking/running

Exercise daily and blog/tweet about it

Go to they gym and be positive

Get up earlier and devise a new morning routine

Just do it

Read a book a month

Read about a new topic

Learn something new (language, art)

Start a new venture (business, job)

Join a meet up or evening class

Write – book, blog, etc..

Simplify your life – mindfulness meditation, declutter your wardrobe, kitchen cupboards, friends…

Listen to a new album/podcast/radio station

 

Phew, that should encourage you to think about the new year, what you want to achieve and why. Hopefully, I will ascertain some inspiration too! It is great fun to make some changes isn’t it? Have a great time everyone!

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Minimalism – Wardrobe Declutter

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As with all things relating to minimalism, it is best to activate over time.  This is why I’ve taken so long re-organising the wardrobe.  The home was never really cluttered but when I discovered minimalism, I decided there are ways to clear the home and have less stuff.

My focus became to cut the clothes that I don’t wear.  With this in mind, I took everything out and organised into 3 piles (Out/In/Maybe).

Over the last few months the maybe pile, has been radically reduced and when I had less clothes, I bought some white coat hangers and organised the wardrobe so that it was not only arranged by type but colour too.

Although this goes against the minimalism ideal, for me it made everything tidy and saves so much time in the morning when I am deciding what to wear.  Honestly, the wardrobe has never been so tidy and it is lovely and does save an enormous amount of time.

So for me the key points are:

  • Deciding to reduce (IN/OUT/MAYBE)
  • Organise by type (skirts, trousers, tops, jumpers)
  • Colour co-ordinate
  • Don’t worry too much about the Maybe Pile because you can consider and reduce over time

Do recycle items and pieces of clothing that are good enough should taken the charity shops.  As a nation, we throw away enormous piles of clothes, so this is the sensible thing to do and best for the environment.

Also, attempt a one in, one out policy and stick to it.  My proposal is to buy better quality clothes but a lot less and mix and match more.  During the colder times, scarves are great to jazz up clothes plus colourful, matching jewellery too.

Anyway, I hope you like my tips and here’s to a clearer wardrobe which will save you time and money.

Latest declutter – Minimalism

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Recently, I spent a couple of days clearing some bedroom areas and eradicated clutter that was languishing in the bottom of my wardrobe.  This does, I admit, sound boring but it was quite liberating.  The house looks clearer as does my head!  The plants have been tended, stuff has been recycled or put away, parts of the house have been redecorated and I’ve had some exercise in the process.

This minimalism malarkey  is an excellent idea, but it doesn’t happen overnight.  This time, I found bits of paper that I thought I may need and realised that they just needed to be cleared. It is astonishing how many bits of paper you keep, thinking you will read it again one day!  I had three piles and got rid of loads of stuff…

  • Pile 1  Stuff to keep, but reorganise.  This included reorganising jewellery and recycling a wooden box that was very large for the tiny amount of jewellery in it.  (I put it on Freecycle and a very happy lady collected it.)
  • Pile 2  Dispose
  • Pile 3  Dispose but recycle – Sorting paper work that I knew I would never need or read, but kept, because I thought I would find it useful.  Put into the paper bank.

A friend remarked that my house isn’t cluttered, so why worry?  She also told me that I mustn’t go for the sterile look!  The trouble is, one tidies when you know you have visitors coming don’t you?  Most of the clutter is behind the scenes.  Not anymore though because over the last year I have got rid of loads of just-in-case items.  The items you keep because you may need the information in the future.  The future that does not exist.  None of it has been missed.  Not one book, piece of clothing or bit of paper.  Anyway, anything that I find I need I can replace for a few pounds but I’ve never needed to activate this hypothesis.  You can’t get rid of your clutter overnight and need to keep revisiting areas over time to really scale down on stuff.  It is a long process isn’t it?  But it is worth the effort.  What do you think?

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Minimal minimalism…

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There seems to be interest in this subject so I’ve decided to continue, periodically, to write about my experiences.

Recently, I asked a male family member what his plans were for 2016 and he looked blank. This is fair enough as we don’t plan ahead but it did surprise me.  After all, life isn’t a dress rehearsal and we need to crack on and try to make the best of it.  Don’t we?  One of my aims for this year, is to eradicate life’s clutter.  At the moment, I feel a fraud talking about minimalism as I sit in a room surrounded by books and stuff all over the floor!  Aaahh but come the weekend we are planning an exciting trip to the Oxfam charity shop.  They know we are coming…

My key reasons for embracing the minimalism ideology are:

  • Growth
  • Contribution
  • Experiences
  • Clarity
  • Contentment
  • Writing (finally)

This evening, I managed to fill another sack full of clothes.  However, I did grab back some blouses and a dress.  But, wow, my wardrobe looks quite reasonable now.  Aaah the time saved as I can see all my clothes.  Everything, is colour co-ordinated and organised.  Ha!  Lets see how long that lasts.  Also, the bedroom feels more chilled now the telly has gone to the British Heart Foundation.  Hopefully, it will do somebody some good.  Also, the e-reader is getting used because I don’t want to keep buying books too often.  Not sure if I will be able to stick to that one?

The trouble is it is a slow process and at the moment parts of the home still look quite messy but the cleaning is easier and everything does feel a lot clearer.  Should have done this years ago.

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