apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I find it hard to get rid of crafting things and stuff that I may or may not use "someday". I used to be a hoarder of books, but I have gotten loads better about them. It also helps that I have a salvation army only 2 blocks away. :O)

I am finding it hard to get rid of two sentimental peices of furniture. One was my grandmothers dresser. Its a lovely 3 drawer blond wood dresser with a long narrow mirror attached. Looks like its from the 40s. For the past several years it has acted as a home for my altar, sewing materials, and board games. The board games need to go out in the next yard sale but I need to find a new home for the altar and the sewing materials. And I don't really want to get rid of the dresser but it doesn't really fit anywhere, not really. the other is my gorgeous but much too large MCM dining room set given to me by my great aunt. It was given to her by a doctor she used to clean house for. I am not getting rid of either but I would like to put them in storage until I can give them a real home...with me.

Books are probably the hardest for me ... or rather, the hardest that make a major impact. There's some small things that I've gotten quite sentimental about, but the books take up a LOT of space and I tend to be very much a collector (I can think of 5 distinct book collections I have immediately). And once it's a "collection", it starts to be all-or-nothing. With other books, I can consider them individually, but a collection I have an impossible time considering splitting up.

The ultimate prom fear is showing up to see your Prom Dresses on every other girl there! Good thing you’re a trend setter and will be showing every girl how to dress for their next big event. When shopping for Prom Dresses, remember, this is your fashion show. Begin with an unexpected style, perhaps a mini or short prom dress for the big night! Pair your dress with textured metallic tights to complete the look. A unique color or print Prom Dresses makes a chic statement while keeping you fashionable withProm Dresses. It’s all about the details! Remember you’re going for the fashion forward look and that means trying something new and adventurous. This season there are more fashion forward Prom Dresses than ever so you will have a fabulous time editing your prom selections.

Prom Dresses for 2009 look fresh and exciting. ShortProm Dresses from Betsey Johnson and Sherri Hill give you poofy, princess style dresses while Scala has sophisticated, embellished short prom dresses with full skirts and fitted bodices. Long prom bridesmaid dresses are available in every color under the rainbow. Shop blue Homecoming Dresses, green Cocktail Dresses, pink Evening Dresses , red Prom Dresses and more. Each color is represented by many gorgeous shades of the colors. Print prom dresses have never looked for more vibrant. Prom Dresses have amazing print Prom Dresses. Styles in Prom Dresses this season range from classic, elegant to sexy and romantic Prom Dresses.

Dress4dancing.COM have got the hottest Prom Dresses and you will like it.

I have some really great, all rosewood nightstands that I just can't imagine replacing with IKEA or anything else I can currently afford. Even though I'm a grown woman, in my head I can hear my mom chastising me for just the thought. I'm trying to repurpose them, but they may have had their day. I also love my bed even though its chunky frame makes it wider than necessary and every inch seems to count in our bedroom. Still, I'm going to try to work around it.

Hypocrite though it makes me, I think my husband has a bizarre attachment to his old creaky queen bedframe that he had as a bachelor. I want to replace it with a smaller bed or futon, but he insists that it will fit into our itty bitty guest room. Technically it will fit...if nothing else goes in the room and he reverses the door to swing out and removes the folding closet doors.

i have had a hard time letting go of books for years, but the other night, my boyfriend and i went through our 6 bookcases jammed with color-coded books (it's how i remember the books, not by title or author), and i donated 4 boxes. 4 boxes of books, gone! we moved in here with so much stuff, and the one thing i never even thought about thinning were the books. i'm ready to get rid of some more "stuff".

Oh, all of the above - books, craft supplies, kitchen stuff, electronics - basically anything I paid good money for and that could still be useful. I hate wasting, and getting rid of something that still has value is really difficult for me.

Can anyone say greasy dust?

I have shelves and pretty glass jars holding foodstuffs over my unvented stove.

If it weren't for the Cure, I wouldn't clean them, it is so, so gross.

That's where I started this weekend: I'm going to try my best to declutter and clean a wall every two days. That would include the shelves, appliances and/or cabinets up against them, too. So, hopefully it won't take more than a week.

I have trouble getting rid of everything but expired coupons and rotting food. Probably I'm worst with things for projects I haven't gotten around to yet. I'll be retiring in 5.3 years, so I might actually get around to stuff.

But I'm getting quite good and not bringing stuff into the house. Now that I have just about everything I want, I don't buy more unless I love it and it fills a gap or replaces something obviously inferior. Maybe for each item I go through, I should ask myself, "If I didn't already own this, would I buy it?"

I think I'm really going to like the outbox concept (except that there are no corners of our house that we're not using). You give yourself time to see what a space with only things you love feels like.

Clothes that are two sizes too small. Get over it already, right?

My fiance does not like to get rid of electronics. That'll be a challenge. He likes to bring home "cool" old speakers....

Also, I manage to put things in a box to bring to Goodwill, and the box sits next to the front door for...uhhh...like a year.

So, so sad.

Oh, how can I forget Tupperware?

Are we not doing group flickr accounts?

I understand we're to send pictures to YOU if we want to be featured on the main page. With so many sign-ups and folks' participating, that makes sense.

But, I missed where we're to post pictures for each other--or is that not done anymore?

Clothes
I have multiple sizes and multiple styles. I've got heels almost every color you can think of and Wranglers and cowboy boots. One side of the closet is filled with suits from my previous life and the other with casual pants and tops from my current.

Alana in Canada, there is a flickr group! You can find it here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/homecure

I have about 2000 LPs, and tend to bring 5-10 more into our home each week. I've become much less attached to books and other media, keeping a small number of each and giving away most. But culling my vinyl is tough...made worse since when I'm ready to eliminate some albums, my partner will go through them and add them to HIS collection....so it ends up taking a tour of our apartment but never leaving....sigh...

I find it hard to get rid of children's things. Especially if their grandparents have given them to them. We have about 30 puppets and about 25 stuffed animals living in one room with two little boys. Books are another one for my husband and I, but I have started swapping the paperbacks.

This weekend, we're finally having a yard sale, taking the leftovers to the Salvation Army, Goodwill or a local charity and/or the dump. I am PSYCHED.

I have a hard time letting go of books. A REALLY hard time. I mean, one day, I'll have the time to read them all, right?

Otherwise, what I'm confronting during this (my first!) Cure is letting go of small items that still attach me to my former marriage. In particular, a coffee grinder and set of mugs that my ex gave me. I think the coffee grinder was his first present to me while we were dating. I even got it to Goodwill once, but snatched it back out of the box. I'm not supposed to be drinking coffee at all, so....it's probably way past time to let the coffee grinder and coffee mugs go!

I find it hard to get rid of fabric and craft supplies -- paint, glitter, brushes, notions, and scrapbook supplies that I haven't used in years but might some day.

Also, books. But I'm getting better. I'm not afraid to get rid of a paperback that I have already read.

I also find we have a lot of cheapy clothes. Lots of cheapy t-shirts and such that take over the house. And too many old towels. I'm also reluctant to get rid of expensive cosmetics and lotions -- even if I don't use them.

Yesterday I did a big clear out of the kids' room. We're having a garage sale this Saturday. We set up all of our folding tables in the garage and have putting things out there for a couple of weeks. It's amazing how much stuff can accumulate in a small house.

Books! I have books out the...well, you know. I have so many that they are double stacked on the bookcase, lined up on the window sills, shoved in the closet. I need to go through them and get rid of them, but I can't bare to throw away a good book and have no idea where to donate them. I've put a lot on paperbackswap but they're still just taking up space and one gets requested every so often. Arg.

I have a hard time with craft supplies, old nice clothes, and furniture.
I'm looking forward to this cure-but I'm getting over the flu-so this week and next might be a bit spotty for me...

The most difficult things for me to get rid of are those things that were loaned or "donated" to me when I was in a very "mobile" state in life. I lived in 3 different apartments in 4 years that I knew were temporary when I started thus I did not invest in tons of decor. When I got married, my husband actually had the matching furniture (b/c his parents turned the old dairy barn behind their house into his bachelor pad after high school) but I still did not get rid of the "random" furniture I had in the apartments. Now as we slowly invest in "sets" (i.e matching lamps, matching/color-coordinated towels, matching place settings), there's a part of me that begins to feel guilty for getting rid of those things that were given to me when I was in need - things from my mom, my grandmother, several generous couples at our church. Thus, things are cluttered instead of looking "put together". I have a hodgepodge collection of things that turn out to be duplicates (i.e. I have 3 sets of measuring cups/spoons) and don't add any value to the space.

i find it hard to get rid of (and stop adding to) my sewing, knitting and other supplies for making. i do actually sew and knit on a reasonably regular basis, but i could quit my job and sew/knit/make for a year and possibly not burn through all my supplies.

and this is after a massive purge 18 months ago. seriously massive. it's just that, when i see these supplies (especially vintage fabric or even clothes that i want to use for fabric), i buy them. so my stash grows.

i have myself convinced that when my sewing space is more usable (and my home in general is more functional and my kids are a little bit older), i'll be doing a lot more of this kind of thing. we'll see.

I guess I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I want to get rid of "the" couch. I have to call it that because it's my boyfriends and, well, its not mine to throw out. Its 90" long or some absurd length that is longer than a normal couch and takes up a lot of space. Its modern and tan and blah. Not "me". Not what i want in my living room space. So the hardplace? Our relationship is deteriorating and he creates a bad "air" about the place. He has threatened to leave several times which throws me into a tizzy with wrapping things up financially and being able to support myself and my two children alone.
I have come to the decision that I will remove him, and he can take his furniture. Its hard to tell a childs father to leave but its a bad environment and I am strong enough to go it alone. My happiness and my childrens happiness is my goal and I dont see him in our "happiness" future. Sorry to ramble, but "he" is the hardest thing to let go of and when he is let go of, the heart of my home can begin to heal and flourish. 'Nuf' said.

@CynHendrix

Perhaps if you give them away to others in need (either people you know or through a donation program) it wouldn't make you feel so guilty? Then you know someone, like you back then, will be grateful to have them.

As for me, I have a hard time getting rid of anything that potentially could be useful. Containers of various sizes, unused or partially used notebooks, gift toppers (bows, fake flowers, tags, etc.), cereal boxes (need cardboard to make drawer dividers!), and so on. I'm not a hoarder by any means—my apartment is usually on the tidy side—but I can't seem to easily toss what others would consider junk.

The hypocritical thing is, when I'm helping someone else clean/purge their house I have no problem tossing these things and convincing the person why they should be tossed. But in my own house...

items that were gifts from my late mother. Although I don't like the gifts that she thought were just perfect for me, its still very hard to get rid of them because they remind me of her. I've decided to give back. Sell these gifts and use the money towards a charity. At least that will warm my heart.

suggestion 1 - take pictures of items you think you can't do without that hold sentimental value. At least then you can have a record and still keep those memories when you finally let it go.

suggestion 2 - when the time comes to clean out your childhood home, only allow yourself one rubbermaid bin full of childhood memories. I recently had to do this and it was a relief to only bring into my home the most cherished items - yearbooks, first teddy bear, diaries, newspaper of when i was born and family photos... I wanted to take everything but it would sit in my basement and collect dust.

final note - Hold onto the memories - not the stuff!

As many others, I am having a hard time sorting out my books. Still, I need to weed out some 200 books. As I just cannot decide, I will now try it the other way round.

I will pack all the books in cartons and get rid of 1/3 of my bookshelves (I need to repaint the room anyway). After renovation, I shall store those books, I really want to keep and get rid of the rest. Hopefully.

I am struggling over what to do with sentimental items from the past 5 years. I have a few small boxes of random items such as menus from restaurants where my boyfriend and I celebrated our anniversary, b-day cards, or mementos from jobs I have had that have been meaningful to me. I never take them out to look at them but I know they are in those little boxes, just staring at me. Do I chuck these items? Take a picture of them and then chuck them? How do people deal w/ these types of clutter?

I can't identify any one category of items that I can go to to purge. It all seems necessary, but I know it can't all be. I guess this may be easier in some respects because I can purge a little from each group.
I organized/purged my closet this weekend. Only the maternity clothes that fit me are accessible. My next step could be to go through all my regular clothes and purge. I have waayyy to many of those. I love how few clothes I have right now, and they still take up a lot of room.

I got a late start to the Fall Cure, but have a designated evening to work on things each week, plus time off and on throughout the week to squeeze in a few moments.

Hardest thing to get rid of: clothes. They multiply. I'm a bad shopper, and don't think I have a well defined style, my tastes change over time, so clothes accumulate. I hang on to them way too long, thinking I'll like/want/wear them again sooner or later. One goal I have for this Cure is to weed out A LOT of old clothes, then make smart decisions about a few new things I can really enjoy wearing, that will take up less room in my closet and dresser.

Oh I'm loving this cure. I started cleaning yesterday. Cleaning in the clock motion, I started at 12:00 and I'm at 4:00. I found so much dust! I moved our TV armoir from the diagonal to straight against the wall. The kids now can't watch TV while they eat very well. I think this is a good thing. It really opened up the space. This change feels different and good. I took a load of stuff to the good will too. Today, I will deep clean the bedrooms.

Through a lifetime of frequent moving, I've learned that becoming attached to "stuff" really makes life difficult. Clothing, I manage to get rid of with the greatest ease. "Does it look good? No? Gone!" The only exception has been a hoodie I stole from my boyfriend and have been using as a weight-gain security blanket for 3 years. THAT is hard to let go of...but I did it. I took the first step and put it away in a storage closet where I won't be tempted to yank it out in my rush to get to the bus in the morning.

Stuffed animals and gifts are exceedingly hard for me to part with. Anything someone's given me, I feel like they'll notice missing one day...

Oh books, I love you so.

I did finally break down and purge over 100 books from my shelves (which didn't make that big a dent, which may be some indication of a greater denial on my part... saving that for a later day)

I dusted them and packed them in boxes and even looked up delivery times for a place that will take them... and there they sit, in my car.

It seems that there are several stages of the letting go of stuff.

Clothes for sure...usually clothes that I love but are getting really worn out, I have a very hard time tossing. I've gotten really good at being honest with myself about clothes I just don't really wear and need to donate though, so yay! As for books...they make me feel cozy and they sure make moving a great workout as well :-).

I, too, have difficulty getting rid of 'craft' items. Be it fabric, mason jars, beads, thread, ribbon, pipe cleaners, etc... I end up using the items occasionally in a genius way (usually), so I feel like I should hold on to them, even if I don't have any current plans for them. For example, I used several of my ribbons I kept from my cheerleading days (about 10 years ago now) that we wore in our hair for decorating items for my wedding this month, DIY-style. My husband also wore a vintage tie that I had been storing for roughly 6 years in my fabric bin on our wedding day. It worked perfectly with his suit and our color scheme!

Just work in a library and it will somewhat cure the book thing. Of course, I still have loads of books, but I no longer go to as many book stores. Who wants to look at more books on their day off? Donate them to your local library, or better yet, take them to your local used book store. My husband and I have so much credit at the used book store. We take friends or family members on a regular basis to pick out books that they like. Then we have lunch. Great day and problem solved for us!

That being said, I am a pack rat unable to get rid of clothes that no longer fit and are even worn out, multiple dishes, sentimental items and old college term papers. I have copies of tests and lesson plans I used as a teacher over twenty years ago. I am so afraid that if I get rid of something, I will need it desperately.

Maxwell, will you ever finish this post? We're waiting...

My daughter's toys. My mom used to ruthlessly purge ours (without our consent) and I remember one time going to the thrift store and seeing my missing toys on the shelf. The problem is she sees her grandparents multiple times a week and they bring her something EVERY time. So the toy clutter is getting out of control.

The only thing I have trouble with is fabric. I fix up and sell vintage furniture so I pick up fabric bits everywhere I go to save for future projects. Hoping to do a good weeding out this weekend.

For the hubby, it's any video game system. We have in boxes -
Nintendo x 2
Sega Genesis
Atari
Intelliviion x 2
Dreamcast
Nintendo Cube
and allllllllllllll the games!

And his magazines, books and clothes.

@Haus Proud, you could get your daughter to help. Maybe take all the toys out and let her put her favorites away. Then, wherever you're taking your extra things, she can take her extra things, too. And if _everything's_ her favorite, then you're in no worse shape then you were before, but she'll know that she has the power to keep anything she really wants and may be up for a real decluttering next time. Having the decluttering be voluntary would make it a very different matter than what happened to you.

Ditto the craft items.

And books.

And bulky, old, wooden furniture that doesn't match, but it was my grandmother's and has sentimental value.

And the cosmetics. I did a big purge recently and got rid of an entire large sized shopping bag of toiletries. Still overflowing.

And lots of other things I "might" use or need someday.

I'm very much a warm personality (read: pack rat). My whole family is...

Reading the last commenter reminded me that I really want to get rid of a bunch of cosmetics. I wear almost no makeup and basically want to keep: mascara, my two eyeliners (brown and black) the 6 colors of eyeshadow I wear (golds, silvers, and then 4 really fun blue/green ones) and the concelear I keep for when its needed. I hve about a thousand lip glosses I never use, most of which are like 6 years old. Gross!

I also hoard memento tshirts. I hate those quilts made from them (sorry) so I just keep them to wear to bed but I have far more than needed. Everytime I purge I make myself get rid of some, but never enough.

Books and condiments. I have many un-read/used of each.

I am doing the one-room remedy for my bedroom and I think I am getting rid of the nightstands (a wobbly half-moon table and a step ladder) and use our small matching dressers on either side. I just did some measuring and think I can swing it. This will allow for a lot more surface area for nightstand type stuff - lamps, books, clocks, etc. and also free up some wall space in our bedroom.

I'm going to donate the table and relocate the step ladder (it's a vintage rad orange one) to another room.

I've done a lot of decluttering over the years and through the Cures and I've got some stubborn areas left. Two things I haven't been able to deal with is a boatload of letters accumulated over a lifetime and a bin of articles I published years ago. I need to sort the letters into trash and keepers, but it's daunting to think of going through it. And I just don't know about the writing. I don't really like to look at it, but it was an important time in my life.

I know I can scan some of this stuff, but that's daunting too. So, these large vats of paper just sit there and irritate me.

I hang on to art, especially if I paid a lot for it at the time. I also have way more photos than I need. I once started making a photo album starting with my baby pictures and going in approximately chronological order. I'm about 30 years behind right now. I got rid of about half of the remaining ones, but there's still so many it's overwhelming.

Seems I'm not alone with books, though I have made progress in not keeping everything I've read. It's the though of having a bookless emergency where I can't just pick up an old favourite to reread in the middle of the night.

The other great clutterer is the things that might be useful to make things out of, doesn't have to be craft or proper materials, it can be any repurposed stuff.

Both my husband and I are engineers at heart and computer people by profession and the scrap materials collections have been used over the years, but what to keep and what to throw is always a struggle.

Books mostly, but I did inherit a lot of stuff from my grandmother that I can't get rid of because it reminds me of her. I'm sure I'm not the only one dealing with this. Of course, the cedar chest she left me is helpful, but I'd like to repaint it. My mom threw a fit when I suggested painting it black or red to fit my bedroom decor. I have a large Victorian framed mirror that I thought would look amazing in black or purple but mom says she'd rather I gave them to her than paint them.

I'm also noticing an attachment to VHS tapes. While I could get rid of the ones we've replaced with DVDs, I have a lot of movies and documentaries taped off tv that I just can't seem to give up, even though I'm sure I'll never watch them again.

Anything that isn't used up or too old to work still. I have leftover toiletries, makeup, nail polish, cleaning supplies, gifts (that I never use), candles, etc. I've always had a lot of room to store stuff and I am good at organizing, but I tend to want everything to be like a store always with some back stock, since I hate running out of things. I also feel bad buying new stuff for my home, if the current stuff still works i.e. towels/sheets/blankets/kitchen utensils. So I end up with like 5 of everything.

Ironically if I haven't worn something for a year I easily get rid of it.

we have moved recently and began purging while packing, but one thing i always struggle with is clothes (that are too small- pre baby days) and cosmetics/toiletries. i always get ready to toss things then i find myself saving everything "just in case" i ever need it/fit into it. i need to just let go!

I recently move from a house with very little living space and an infinite amount of storage to an apartment with twice the living space and NO storage.

I am a pack rat by nature but a purger by habit. My husband is just a pack rat. I used to move every year which kept my things to a minimum, but when I settled in to one place for four years I managed to revert back to my roots. When we moved we got rid of 40% of our books and 60% of our clothes... what a good feeling to let go of all those "what ifs"...I should call it the great purge of '09... but I need the cure to push me into finishing (set up the office, decorate the bedroom...)

Thank you Harlie!

I don't seem to have such a hard time throwing stuff out, it's just the "kicking myself in the butt and begin" part and then the "taking it out of my home" part that are difficult for me.

This is my first cure, and it amazes me how different everything looks when it's just properly cleaned and when I know all the repairs that need to be done (lots to do in the Bones department). They're not done yet, but just having a plan makes the world so much better!

@Pixie, can you bind your articles into books, like libraries do? Or just write up a bibliography of them (so you can look them up later) and let them go? For your "daunting" letters, you could resolve to read one a week--I wouldn't try to go through them all in a sitting or a weekend. You may quickly realize that you love them or can never imagine wanting to read them again. If you decide to get rid of them, you could try offering them back to the person who wrote them to you.

Pixie, I had a similar issue: I had every letter received since I was 8 years old... So I went through them and I got rid of the ones that I clearly didn't need to keep (I birthday card with just the person's name signed in it). In addition, what made a huge difference was to get rid of the envelopes. I only kept the envelopes for the letters that the writer didn't date because the envelope had the postmark. After hours of work, all of my letters fit in two relatively small bins. Within the bins, I organized them by year.

I don't have a problem getting rid of stuff, but I am in denial about the stuff I have, I just ignore it. So it's more like a large elephant in the room nobody seems to look at. I find it overwhelming and it kinda get's the best of me. I have the problem of my home feeling too cold and I would like to warm it up and try to make the awkward layout more cozy and inviting. How to do this I'm not sure...