Recently my family and I pared down. We got rid of 10 bags of trash, several bins of recycling, and have a few boxes of stuff to sell and/or donate.
It feels good to have less stuff-to have pared down, and gotten rid of the excess. Of course we still have more to go. Excess weight, excess commitments, excess stuff haunting the basement, and excess jungle like plants in our yard.
It got me thinking about stuff and how much it has a hold on us-a topic I come back to again and again.
For awhile I made a part-time living organizing OPS-other people’s stuff. I was mostly fascinated by the stories people attached to their things, and how seemingly careless people can be with things of real value. The majority of my clients literally found money in the form of gift cards, savings bonds, cash, and even once in the form of a family heirloom.
When we were living near the poverty line with barely two cents to rub together, and a young baby at home we were constantly given stuff. Well meaning people from family to friends, from family friends to long distance relatives sent stuff to us for the baby.
Maybe it strikes some people as rude, or insensitive, but I often returned gifts. Whether it was the noisy battery powered toys that started showing up at birth, or the clothes that were just too fancy. I learned to very pragmatic about stuff. Living in a 500 sq foot apartment with another adult and an infant does that to you.
For 2 years I was able to clothe, and buy everything he needed simply by returning stuff we couldn’t use, or consigning items and then purchasing what we needed next.
Even now that we have a larger brood, it’s still the same, but with so much more stuff, and more coming in all the time, we have a tendency to get used to too much stuff. Decluttering was a necessary step for me to clear my head, and our home to make room for being. Now instead of seeing stuff piled high on every surface the house feels a little more empty of stuff, with a little more room for love. Cheesy, I know, but so true.
Of course I’m like everyone else too, I struggle with wanting to get rid of everything, and wanting everything all at once right now. I have appreciation for design, so much so that I have been known to spend a little extra on product A over product B because A is just prettier to look at.
I also struggle with wanting it all right now. When it comes to things like a working wardrobe, or remodeling our house, that doesn’t happen overnight. Sometimes I wish it did though.
When I asked my twitter followers what their experiences with stuff is like I was overwhelmed with responses about struggling with stuff. Almost everyone mentioned a need to declutter, buy less, and a desire to live with less.
More on Stuff
While I couldn’t do it, some people strive to live with only 100 things. I think I have more than 100 things in my wardrobe!
My friend Jo Lynne wrote a short piece on Stuff, and the comments were interesting to read.
This video- The Story of Stuff - will get you really thinking about how stuff. Very eye opening.
What’s your take on stuff? Do you struggle with stuff or have you learned to live with less?
Kelly
This post was inspired by Kim from I’m Not the Nanny who commented on twitter that she was woken up by a battery operated toy.
FinCar says
Having to set your own challenge would help in systematically eliminating the stuff you want to get rid. The practical timing plus the constant effort takes an initial step of further big activity.
Thien-Kim says
I totally on board with you! My mom keeps buying clothes for the kids, and while I appreciate not having to buy any clothes for them, she is addicted to buying. Thank god she lives far away so she has to ship them-so that limits on what she can buy.
I go through and declutter every now and again. Or if I trip over something and it makes me mad.
A friend once told me, the less stuff you have the less there is to clean. So right. I got rid of a lot of my dishes, cups, mugs, etc. I put the extra dishes waaaaaaay up high so I have to get a chair to get them-that way I still have them when I have dinner guests.
BTW, I’m giving that stupid exersaucer back. The baby hates it.
Sometimes failure can spur progress. I like that you’ve been inspired to choose another method that works for you.
Minimalism is definitely something I aspire to, but it’s near impossible right now with 4 kids in the house.
Oh wow, Carol. My heart goes out to you. I really need to make a go kit of all the important stuff just in case.
I’m so sorry you went through that-I’m sure it wasn’t easy.
I hear that, Melinda. My husband and I both are guilty of project piles. I think I’m finally learning that it’s usually cheaper and faster to just buy whatever I’m trying to make-or pay someone else to fix something. I just don’t always have time to follow through with 4 kids at home.
Great stuff here, no pun intended. There is nothing more awesome than getting rid of “stuff!” Personally, I’m bad at getting myself to do it because I dread the actual process of not only choosing what stuff to get rid of, but what to do with it (charity, craigslist, throw it away). It causes the job to get bigger and bigger until I finally force myself to do it. But it’s totally worth it in the end.
Teehee. Andrew, I recommend being ruthless. Have 3 bins and just toss things in. If you really feel you can’t decide what you want to do with something, you could always add a 4th bin. Usually once you get into the process you end up being more critical.
I also try to manage stuff as I put my hands on it. So clothes that are outgrown go right into a bag for Goodwill I keep in the laundry room.
LindyMint says
You’re right, it’s amazing how much stuff piles up as soon as you have kids. I was thinking of doing an experiment to see just how many new items came into our household in a given month - or even in a week. When my kids were young enough I used to periodically thin out their toys. But now, they are old enough to notice the disappearance of toys - and the funny thing is, I find myself not trusting them to choose which toys to throw out, like they would pick something that had meaning to me. Goofy, I know.
What a great idea to count things. Kind of like inventories people usually do for their time. That could be a really fun process- I might try it too!
I understand that-my kids are all over 4 so they have certain things they are attached to, but while I generally trust them I do go through the stuff they choose to toss just in case they throw out something special I want. 😉
Anonymous says
I’m a little torn on this. I’m a constant purger and I hate clutter so I usually don’t feel overwhelmed by stuff. But clothes are another thing, I do buy too many clothes and since we moved I haven’t figured out a way to sell the ones I don’t need. My wardrobe challenge (15 things for the whole month) is intended to help me be more mindful about my clothing choices.
I totally understand. I think we all have our own things we can’t get rid of. I LOVE your challenge! Great idea. I really think it’s all about challenging our own assumptions and rethinking things we do.
Anonymous says
My friend Faiqa and I have ENDLESS conversations about Stuff and how much it actually costs us in time, energy and money. We’ve both resolved to have less stuff and both of our families are actually looking to get out of our big houses so we have less room to accumulate stuff.
I LOVE that you are downsizing. Someone literally laughed at me when she realized the house we’re in now is less square footage than our previous home. It was all about the layout for us.
It’s great to have a partner to work with too-keeps you motivated!
My feelings about stuff are that I like having stuff I love. I hate having stuff I don’t. I am constantly rotating and decluttering to get things how I want them. My tastes change and I like my home and what is around me to reflect me today. I don’t have places to store things so it’s either out for all to see or gone in the donation box. I don’t think there is anything wrong with having things you can afford and you love. I do think sometimes we can accumulate so much stuff, that it’s hard to see that there is useless stuff in with the things we love. So, there is nothing like taking a black trash bag through the house and paring down, making space for more to do. Everyone in my home does better with less stuff around. The kids can see their rooms and toys when we’ve gone through everything and they enjoy both the space and things. Same with me. I can’t relax in a cluttered space with too much stuff.
I love that it’s either in or out with your stuff. I try to maintain that but not having a budget to play with sometimes makes that harder.
I completely agree that less means more space to be, and create, and play. My kids are so much happier with less stuff.