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[SXMGirl]

Today, I took everything out of one of my china cabinets and washed everything.  I am now in the process of putting things back.  I looked at everything that I have had for many years and thought it might be time to start getting rid of things.  The problem is that I love everything in my china cabinets.  No matter that I don't use them on a daily basis, I get joy just looking at them.  There will come a time when most will go, but I dread that day.  I probably am like most of those people televised today, but I do not have a storage unit and there really is no junk--just antiques, china, and my Polish Pottery, which I do use most of the time.

[Spurt]

@homedecor1

Tell your DH this....my sister is constantly purging and de-cluttering....she keeps just what she needs , she has a FEW pieces of decor, and the only time she really decorates is Christmas and again it's minimal....BUT where she gets hereself in trouble is she realizes that some stuff she has donated or given away she needs,(whether it's clothes, shoes, kitchen items, or a decor piece) so she ends up re-buying things.....sometimes she even borrows things from me or her friends and has given away our stuff too.......But everything  is neat and tidy--------- and a bit unpractical.......and re-purchasing the same items isnt good for the budget!...

[Catiele]

It is a work in progress for me. I feel the process is ongoing. As far as my husbands things I have to remind him every so often. He’s mister fix it. He says I can fix that and I say no we are throwing it away. Mostly we throw away but there are times when he fixes it. We call him Mr. Fix it.

[Mary Bailey]

I decided I'm going to get rid of the huge armoire in our master bedroom. I'll have to either dump items or find somewhere else to store whatever items I decide to keep. 

DSs won't want the armoire so I will sell it a the town garage sale for the first offer.

[Mominohio]

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@gidgetgh wrote:

I just finished watching the segment. If you’re interested, just go to you tube and search CBS Sunday Morning and filter for today. 

In addition to making my anxiety rise a little, it actually made me sad to see people with so much stuff. Just hurled into basements and bursting out of closets. I absolutely couldn’t live like that. I just don’t understand it. I don’t find anything remotely funny about it. 

I am by no means, or by any stretch of the imagination, a minimalist. We have stuff. Everyone does. Our house is comfortable and very organized.  But we have some cabinets and drawers that are nearly empty. We have space in drawers. We don’t need additional storage bins and things just crammed everywhere. Our basement has things in it, but really not much compared to some people. We have a two car garage and...and...we park our cars in it!

 What I saw in that segment, in addition to just an over the top amount of things, is the lack of respect for their own possessions.  I found the segment very sad. 

I did like what the woman at the end said though, after she cleaned out her closet. She said she found it “freeing” to get rid of the excess. That’s exactly how I feel. 

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I watched the segment as well @gidgetgh and thought the exact same thing you noted. 

Absolutely no love or respect for the 'stuff' they had accumulated. 

I'm not saying I expect everyone to love every single thing they own as a lot of what we have we just need and use, but the lack of respect for being blessed enough to have things (shown by simply piling and dumping them in closets and basements) really stood out to me as well. 

I noticed the organizer made a point of telling the one person she wasn't a hoarder, because she was easily and readily disposing of her excess things. I found that interesting. There must be a part of the definition of hoarding that relates to one's relationship with too much stuff, and just actually having it isn't the only criteria. 

[Mominohio]

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@SXMGirl wrote:

Today, I took everything out of one of my china cabinets and washed everything.  I am now in the process of putting things back.  I looked at everything that I have had for many years and thought it might be time to start getting rid of things.  The problem is that I love everything in my china cabinets.  No matter that I don't use them on a daily basis, I get joy just looking at them.  There will come a time when most will go, but I dread that day.  I probably am like most of those people televised today, but I do not have a storage unit and there really is no junk--just antiques, china, and my Polish Pottery, which I do use most of the time.

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@SXMGirl

I think there is such a huge push for 'decluttering' and organizing, and people are being made to feel that they are in the wrong place, have misplaced values, are in need of professional help, or are doing themselves a disservice if they have and like their stuff. 

Everyone should have and enjoy the level of things that makes them happy. I too have way more of some things than many people would find proper or necessary. And I don't care. I have things I love, that mean a lot to me, that I enjoy using, displaying, and creating with. 

There are other areas of my life, where I have significantly less than the average American woman (mostly clothing, shoes, handbags...I own three now....beauty products etc.) because I don't find joy in them, or of any value in my life. 

People should feel free to choose what kinds of things are special to them, how much of those things they have, and know that we are all not in the same place in our lives, or journeys, and may never be. We are responsible to our own selves and comfort level, and I'm not going to be guilted into scaling back to someone else's definition of what is the proper amount of things. 

[Mominohio]

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@Spurt wrote:

@homedecor1

Tell your DH this....my sister is constantly purging and de-cluttering....she keeps just what she needs , she has a FEW pieces of decor, and the only time she really decorates is Christmas and again it's minimal....BUT where she gets hereself in trouble is she realizes that some stuff she has donated or given away she needs,(whether it's clothes, shoes, kitchen items, or a decor piece) so she ends up re-buying things.....sometimes she even borrows things from me or her friends and has given away our stuff too.......But everything  is neat and tidy--------- and a bit unpractical.......and re-purchasing the same items isnt good for the budget!...

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@Spurt

I think this is the concern of many when decluttering and downsizing time comes. And it indeed makes no sense to rid oneself of things, just to have to buy (or worse yet, borrow) them again at a later time.

There is a balance to be reached between having a comfortable and functional living space and over clearing things to the point of not having what you need or want. 

[SXMGirl]

@Mominohio. very well said.  I love my things and I realized as I looked at each item that I had collected most of them when I was a teenager and young adult.  I remembered where I got them or who gave them to me, and I just enjoyed this afternoon, even though I am tired.

[homedecor1]

@Spurt

I am "guilty" of that on occassion!  I did the "spree" to find those perfect pieces on Saturday ....today, I'll have something to do -- take it back to store now that I "found buried treasures" in his closet!!!

When I moved South I "thought" entertaining, cooking and more was ending because I was heading to "Paradise"....hmmmmm still cooking, entertaining (on small scale) but so many things I thought I'd not use/need after selling with house I needed!

I just kept "updating" and rebought...those days are long gone...it's just the 2 of us now and beautiful "paper plates, serving pieces, etc."  are my new go to right from the Dollar Tree!  

Crystal "Plastic" is my new version of fancy tableware - LOL

[gidgetgh]

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@SXMGirl wrote:

Today, I took everything out of one of my china cabinets and washed everything.  I am now in the process of putting things back.  I looked at everything that I have had for many years and thought it might be time to start getting rid of things.  The problem is that I love everything in my china cabinets.  No matter that I don't use them on a daily basis, I get joy just looking at them.  There will come a time when most will go, but I dread that day.  I probably am like most of those people televised today, but I do not have a storage unit and there really is no junk--just antiques, china, and my Polish Pottery, which I do use most of the time.

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@SXMGirl- I'm a big de-clutterer.  But..... I kind of follow the Konmari method of decluttering and am of the belief and practice that you keep what brings you joy.  If everything in the china cabinet brings you joy, then you should keep those things.

I donate a lot of things that do nothing for me or we don't have a need for.  But I kept an old white bank envelope that belonged to my mom and would never, ever, ever get rid of it.  Seriously, a bank envelope that the teller puts your cash in.  

So, it's all about your needs and what brings you joy.