Once again I find myself staring down Optimus Prime. He's sitting on his little shelf all cocky and dusty, and I know he thinks he's coming with us on one more move, but he's got another thing coming. It's time to make some hard decisions, and he's not getting on that moving truck.
I seem to have become a person who moves around a lot. Six years in New York was my longest stretch anywhere since high school. But mobility doesn't jive with my acquisitive personality—a trait shared by my husband—and every time we move I swear that next time will be different and I'll stop collecting things. Where did that Sailor Moon Thermos come from, and why did I think it was a good idea to start a Barbie collection?
But in the meantime, here are some things I try to keep in mind while moving:
• Where is this going to go in the new house? If the Autobots haven't been unpacked after three moves, get rid of them.
• Am I keeping this just because I can? Just because something's tiny and can be squashed into the corner of a box doesn't mean it should be. Psyduck the 2" Pokemon has made it through six or seven moves at this point, just by virtue of being small enough to squash in with the spoons.
• How replaceable is it? It's possible to make mistakes when moving and cull something you should have kept (more on that later). If that happens, how easy will a thing be to replace? If you haven't looked at something in three years, it's generally safe to get rid of. Sure, I've had to re-buy Arthur Waley's Monkey five or six times now, but that's easy and inexpensive to do, so culling it was the right choice. Give irreplaceable objects more consideration. I haven't looked at my wedding album, like, ever. But it still gets a spot on the truck.
• Is it really worth a ton of money? Take it from me: After 20 years occupying one square foot of my closet space, those Beanie Babies definitely did not earn their keep.
• Is it either practical or fabulous? I have an affinity for vintage clothes, so I'm very skeptical of the old "if you haven't worn it in a year, throw it out" chestnut. If my mother followed that logic, I'd be bereft of a closet full of fabulous disco dresses. By my rules you're allowed to keep something if you wear it all the time, or if it's just that awesome. (I'm told Sarah Jessica Parker has an off-site storage closet for excess clothes. Memo to self: Look into that.)
• Am I decluttering, or going crazy? Getting rid of unnecessary objects is great, but it's possible to go too far. During my last move—a particularly frenzied one from New York to Beijing—I got carried away and threw out all my makeup. Don't do that. Give yourself enough time to take breaks when you need them, or you might wind up having to spend a ton of money at Duty Free.
What are your tips for determining what stays and goes during a move? Let us know in the comments.
(Image: Shutterstock)
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This could not have come at a better time. I am moving into my first real place out after living in a college dorm for 4 years. Do I need 20,000 pens? NO! And they are easily replaceable! Seriously, thank you for these tips.
weeeellll if you must get rid of him, maybe I can adopt poor Optimus...
I don't agree with tossing something just because it may be inexpensive to obtain again when you want it. I have books that I haven't touched in a year or two, and finding a used copy would cost maybe $2? But why go through that effort when it's one book that I have re-read a few times already and will again in the future? That $8 for the book when it was new off the shelf will cost you $10 after you've replaced it with used copies five times.
Now if it's a book that I really haven't touched in years and wouldn't read again, I send that to the donation bin.
I love this. I've moved a lot, and I share your approach to saving nice clothes and other vintagey things. My mom never saved anything and I always wished she had, so I keep that in mind. That being said, moving is the best time to really purge and decide if you really want to haul this or that to the next place. Whenever I clean and toss things I like to pretend I'm organizing for a move! It really helps me figure out which things I actually value!
Agree completely about hanging on to the "fabulous", particularly in fashion, particularly if it can be stored in a smallish amount of space.
Last move, my guy tossed all the spices. All. Including the saffron. It was sad but not life threatening. (You can go overboard!)
I hope to not move again in this lifetime. (Or maybe once if we win the lottery and build our dream castle!) (HA!) So now, I'm less concerned about collecting things, although with limited storage, it's still a better idea to get rid of anything not used or not loved.
Moving is a great time to declutter. You go through stuff that you'd be amazed at how you can purge easily when you're angry and trying to unstick packing tape from your hair. There are things we moved that I'm still like WHY is this in my basement still? Ask yourself if there were a fire and you could rescue it...would you? Your first instinct is usually your true keep or donate answer.
It helps me to donate as much as possible. It makes you feel better about getting rid of things I probably shouldn't have bought in the first place, or things I very likely won't use again but someone else might. Just imagine how happy someone is going to be to find those nice things at Goodwill.
When I'm thinking of buying something that isn't a necessity, I ask myself, "Years or months from now, am I willing to put this on Craigslist for a fraction of what I paid for it?". That often prevents the purchase. Or, if I think I need it, I'll see if it's available
on Craigslist before buying it new. Often seeing it in pictures of someone's else's home (where it never looks as new and shiny) converts that "need" into "never mind".
Having a 24-48hr cooling off period helps too, to decide whether it's a true need, and after that I'll decide whether it makes sense to buy new or used. Being lazy, more than 1/2 the time I can't even be bothered to go back to the store - decision made!
I'm in the process of downsizing - half of my belongings are in storage at a friend's place. Anything I've forgotten about 1 month from now will be put out for sale at the community garage sale. It's a financial hit, but the liberation from "stuff" will feel good.
I love moving! It's a great excuse to truly declutter everything. It's also nice if something is just so-so or needs replacing then moving is a great time to do it.
Ive lived in my current home 10 years and am considering actually clearing out one room at a time and - for lack of a better term - re-moving-in to each one in order to declutter, forcing myself to consider each object large or small as it returns to my space. Is it useful, beautiful, valuable or loved? That is the question.
Two years ago I sold the investment property where I stored a bunch of stuff that wouldn't fit in the smallish rowhouse I shared with my partner. I thought about renting one of those door-to-door storage pods and then I realized it would cost about $1000 for one year. Which would I rather have - my bunch of stuff, or $1000? If you guessed the $1000, you're right!
@tspinteriordesign - excellent, eloquent summation. "is it useful, beautiful, valuable or loved?" covers everything, from a re-read novel to a beloved mug.
This comes at a great time, as I plan to move in less than a year, but just started culling stuff for my next yard sale (in June). It's gonna be epic. I'm a complete maximalist and I think I've culled, cleaned and priced 1000 (small!) items from just my art room alone...in the past 3 days. I keep asking myself, will I miss it if I don't have it? If I do, can I get one again? I'm being very firm with myself, and trying hard to purge.
(Short blog post about the purge!)
http://bohohouseandhome.blogspot.ca/2012/04/great-purge-of-2012.html
(Money-makin' Yard Sale tips...if yer interested!)
http://bohohouseandhome.blogspot.ca/2012/03/someone-asked-me-yesterday-how.html
Just had a discussion with a new friend about moving and having things in boxes 6 months+ later. If it's in a box you obviously can live without it. So why is getting rid of it so tough?
Why would you keep re-reading the same book over and over again when there are so many amazing books to be read? If you move around a lot, just get an e-reader and download your favorites.
I agree with a number of you who are thankful for the timing of this post! I am moving out of my house on Monday. Culling through items can be tough (sorry, Grandma, but I have to donate that Christmas present), but it is also very exciting. As my husband and I have purged our belongings to move to a new state (the first out-of-state move for both of us), we have been picturing what our life will look like in our next home. We hope to be more organized, to cook at home more, and to entertain new friends. Moving is a rare chance to tweak those habits and items that you aren't so proud of, and to embrace the things you already love about your life.
@Sonje, do you have friends? Do you like to spend time with them? Why? Don't you know where are six billion people on the planet, so why are you wasting your time with people you already know and are familiar and comfortable with when there are so many strangers out there you haven't met yet?
Also, 1) amazingly there are actually many books not in e-reader form, 2) some of us think reading on an e-reader sucks, and 3)why should I have to rebuy my book collection when I already own them in a tangible form that I enjoy looking at and is far less enticing to thieves.
@Sonje "Why would you keep re-reading the same book over and over again when there are so many amazing books to be read?".
Because we love them so much we need to go over them again (it's like sleeping with someone you really like, once is never enough), they are good enough that one read doesn't cover the many layers of meaning inside, because they are comforting when one is sick, because we might actually need them to do some work (writers, academics, critics need them) and as someone pointed above, in case you haven't noticed yet, many books are not available in electronic format. Also, you don't need a charger to use them.
Maybe you will be surprised to learn there's also an enormous amount of information that isn't available on the internet.
And to go back to the post, as someone who has done a fair share of international moves, I'd say you need to do some basic calculation as to whether it will cost you as much to move everything, or to buy again once you're settled. If you have to buy many things to start from scratch at the new location, it quickly add ups even if you buy all your furniture at IKEA. Kitchen items especially, if you cook a lot, end up costing a lot to buy again.
I cannot abide the rule to toss something just because it's inexpensive (to some inexpensive is still expensive) to replace. My cookie sheets can be had for under $30-50, but why would I toss them? I know I am going to want to use them.
@Parnassus - Goodwill is actually really bad place to donate since they are really only in it to make a profit. Just donate to your local homeless shelter, humane society, children's hospitals, etc.
@Sonje - Not everyone is into e-readers and willing to rebuy the book for download. I love the feel of an actual book in my hands. If a thief broke in, I figure the e-reader (which I don't own) would get stolen where my books will likely be safe. This is asking why people hang with their friends even those there is a billion people out there....I prefer my friends. My actual books never need charged so I can read them at my leisure, not the e-reader's.
As a fellow vintage clothes/pottery/furniture lover, I definitely operate more by your philosophy that the "if I haven't worn it in a year..." one. But my books give me such a feeling of comfort when I see them lining my shelves, that I wouldn't feel like I was home without them.
Last night I started packing up all my books for my move next week. It was slightly horrific just how many boxes I now have filled with them. I have an e-reader but as a former art history and architecture major I have quite a collection of books that just can't be replaced in electronic form. There is no way I'm parting with those books (and I work in the field now, so it's not like the books are just coffee table materials). Plus I have to listen to my dad's frequent reminiscences of the time he loaned someone his H.W. Janson History of Art and never got it back.
I've definitely donated clothes and shoes due to the 1 year rule and regretted it later. Thank goodness I haven't applied this philosophy to my Pee-Wee Herman action figures!
@Greenwoodgal, I'm not sure what you mean by "only in it to make a profit." Goodwill employs a lot of people with physical, cognitive, and other disabilities; senior citizens; single mothers; and lots of other people who have trouble finding employment elsewhere, and gives them on-the-job training to learn practical skills while earning a living. Sure, they have to make some money on the goods they sell, but they put that money back into their programs. People may want to donate to other worthy organizations, but with Goodwill it's not exactly like buying you're furniture from WalMart or another big corporation that's all about profit. (Not affiliated with Goodwill; I just donate there and buy from them a lot, and from what I know of their mission, I think it's worth supporting.)
Anyway, I'm definitely not one to give advice about clearing out stuff when moving. We still have a couple of boxes of old videotapes that were never unpacked after we moved four years ago. This article has motivated me, though - tonight I'm going to go home and clear them out!
I downsized a 3,000 sf house into a small truck for a cross-country move. I picked out things that had sentimental value (only) to me, and gave them to my best friends, who could use them. I had my children pick out what they wanted. I condensed eight wedding albums into one photobook, which came out beautifully. Then I had an estate sale, where people bought everything, including my laundry soap and the mat in front of the front door. I have so much less stuff now, and half-empty closets. I really don't miss much of it!
My husband and I are smack in the middle of our first joint move, and he's lived in the current house for over a decade. Needless to say, these tips are quite helpful, and I get to purge to my heart's content!!
I'm typing this sitting next to four bags of books that are going to Powell's to sell, and a pile of coats that are Goodwill bound. It's been a productive day!
Hence my troubles ;) my movers usually do all the cleaning.
Dear Husband and I are not only preparing for a move BUT downsizing a large home of 26 years. At first the actions of getting rid of possessions was bittersweet, BUT once the items are out-the-door, rooms start appearing larger, memories will last, you just to do not need the "thing" to give you a visual reminder.
Less stuff is very freeing!