Oh my god, yes. I have fantasies about starting over. Whenever I get "down" I fantasize about selling everything except my cat and whatever will fit in my small VW, moving to the beach and being a waitress/beach bum. Midlife crisis? I'm only 35.

Starting over can be both exciting and stressful. I do dream about getting into a van with nothing but a camera, laptop and hubby and going across the country doing odd jobs and buying clothes at thrift-stores. Particularly old prom dresses. :)

I would love to do that! And I agree with Kit_Kat. My quarter-life crisis wish is to also pack up my car with my cats and few possessions that mean everything to me (and probably a uhaul of books) and travel to a new city to start over. If only I had the money.

This is exactly what I did when I moved from NY to Chicago (and again from one apt to another). After my last move, I feel a bit more settled and I've started to build a home. While my results aren't nearly as polished as the examples in the OP, I'm happy with the slow process of creating a place I love.

Some people don't have a choice in the matter:
Whether it's due to a fire, a divorce or some other personal tragedy or natural disaster - people start from scratch all the time, oftentimes with a better perspective of the objects that they choose to furnish their homes.

amen leen! i've already sold everything but still looking for job/place to live/money to move... it's a weird weird place to be in life, but i guess that's what post-grad is for, right?

i love living with less; i believe it keeps me flexible.

I was laid off back in March and am currently applying to jobs across the US. Fact of the matter is, when (not if, damn it!) I get a job that's NOT in Miami, I will be packing up my Corolla with whatever will fit and move to my job and an empty apartment.

I'll have to buy everything and I! Can't! Wait!

Even if I have to Ikea the entire place or thrift the entire place, it will be 100% MINE, without anyone to stick their nose in and bug me with their opinion.

We've done it a couple of times, so I know we could do it, but we just recently got to a point where we really like 95% of what we have. We took our time finding things we really like on CL or eBay, and I would hate, hate, hate to have to do it all again. That said, they are just "things".

We just did that from NYC to Miami Beach with only a few choice items, and the pets in the truck. I'm a big advocate of following through on the dream, leaving out the "if only" part. Just do it! If you want something badly enough you will find a way.

i spent 5 years in LA after undergrad and acquired so many things - mainly vintage pieces and flea market finds that i LOVE and make my rental space "home" (plus all my A.T. household project components - soooo many, too many unfinished!).

i recently moved to Chicago and well, that move was painful. definitely need to go through and downsize some being that my space here is smaller. and also, especially since i'm possibly relocating overseas. the thought of starting all over again is truly exciting/scary at the same time!

something to throw out there - as i was leaving L.A., my landlord said something that stuck: "love people, not things." (similar to what matt in kc said "That said, they are just "things".") definitely made me feel a bit guilty but when designing/creating/making spaces visually beautiful (not cluttered!) makes you happy/who you are, why should one feel guilty? obviously torn on this.

I moved continents!

I took a position as a year-by-year contract English teacher in Japan one year ago. Ever since then I've been struggling with my apartment. The best and worst part is that the my employer rents my apartment for its teachers, so I actually inherited a lot from previous tenants. The teaching materials were a great find. The hideous bookcase that my predecessor painted while housebound and drunk was not. The couch is too big. The table is too big. The storage is minimal. Most of it I can't get rid of because it belongs to the Board of Education. Oh, the challenges.

Most interior walls in houses on this side of Pacific are concrete (go further south and all the walls are concrete), and the stuff they put on those walls can only be compared to linoleum. All my light fixtures are fluorescent. My kitchen is robin egg blue tile and 1940s(?) style cabinetry. There was no bed, just the traditional futon (think Mattress on the Floor, westerners); I have to leave a big open space in the middle of my bedroom to lay it out every night.

The Japanese as a decorating group are not much for DIY, landlords are not very forgiving, and I don't yet speak much Japanese. It's been a battle to do anything in my apartment that I like. The major challenge is knowing that I'm going to be moving back to the U.S. in one or two years. How do I fix the design problems without overspending on a temporary space? I want to create a comfortable, well-decorated space that my successor can easily customize. My other major challenge is creating a space that I want to keep clean and organized. The kitchen and genkan are getting there. The rest of the house…er…you'll probably see me up on Good Questions soon enough.

So far, my favorite added elements are a keyboard (thrift find!)and a pet rabbit (a gift from a local school). I also bought my first Ikea in a thrift store. I just "wallpapered" a door with computer paper, IndieFixx Feed Your Soul artwork, Webdings font and tape. I'm waiting on a couple of blog comments to see whether I should rip it down or use it to solve my ugly wall problem!

http://ijapango.blogspot.com

I'm trying my hardest to convince the UK to let me in and work. If I get a visa, I'm selling my condo and everything I own and moving to the smallest, cheapest bedsit or studio I can find in a cute London neighborhood. I actually have a spreadsheet cataloging all of my possessions and what I would ask for them.

I'm excited to start fresh with a brand new life. I'm ready to go already!

We are going to be doing this just that - starting over. We are moving from 2200sq ft to about 900sq ft. We will be getting rid of all the furniture (people in DC should contact me!). I look forward to starting over but our next place will probably be just a stop over before we settle down again in about 4or5 years. We now have an eclectic but beautiful mix of antiques and Crate and Barrel,vintage, etc. I want the next place to be more open and modern but am still trying how to do that without it looking like an Ikea showroom. If I go hi/low I will have things I will feel bad about leaving when we move on again. Any help?

Starting over was the best thing I ever did. I gave up a house and a good career that would have assured me an easy retirement for an RV and more financial uncertainty than I'm sure is wise for someone in her 30's. But I get to travel, meet new people, earn my daily bread in a variety of ways, know that each day is truly an adventure.

I moved into a house a while back about the same size as my last apt and I'm glad it's small. I just down sized and got rid of a lot and I love living in a small place. I've slowly traded my furniture out with cheap finds off craigslist that are much better quality than the things I had. I just read Peter Walsh's book on decluttering too and love the Philosophy. It's not necessarily about starting over, but reassessing everthing and seeing what's really important and of value to you.

I moved across country with only what could fit into a old Saturn.

I just moved again at the start of the month, and went from that (about 250 objects) to four small SUV loads. (Mostly books a couple of nice pieces of furniture, and my sparse camping gear).

Simple is good and makes my life better. That said its an extreme understatement to claim that women aren't impressed by it at all.

I'm actually moving in the opposite direction. I've lived on several continents and am back here for good. I've given it all away so many times that I could be an NGO. This week, I'm moving to a place I hope to stay in for a few years. And I bought a couch! In addition to cement walls foiling decorating schemes elsewhere, you can count on a lack of comfortable sofas in the rest of the world. Go USA!

Anything I wish I still had didn't fit into a suitcase, like the furniture I had made in India. But textiles travel well.

I started over completely when I moved to Austin from L.A. about 4 years ago. The first couple of nights I slept on the floor of an empty house. The house stayed practically empty (except for a bed, a couch and a dining table and chairs) for a year while I saved up and started looking for pieces I really loved. I just sold that house for reasons and downsized slightly, but I kept the things that I love and that can work in pretty much any space. What I liked about starting over is that I moved with no baggage (literally and figuratively) and I had a million possibilities open to me when I started creating a place where I felt totally at home.

I would start over in a min, but who has the money to do that anymore.

I did this once, moving from Florida to Las Vegas with just what would fit in my car, and am doing it again in January -- to San Francisco (thank GOD!). I'm looking forward to moving into a teeny studio, cleaning said studio, painting the walls, and then slowly and carefully bringing things in. I definitely don't make a lot of cash, so I can attest that it really doesn't have to be about money. Its all about discipline -- saving! I'll be eating like a peasant and minimizing my socializing for the next 6 months just to do this. Did the same before the last move. It is way easier for me though, because I don't have a marriage/family/anyone but myself to worry about! Now's the time, I guess!

I would be utterly devastated if I had to.

I just can't get the "only stuff" idea. It's MY stuff and I love it. How would I possibly replace my antique lacquer owl I bought in Rangoon, the clock that my grandfather removed from the dash of his plane when he was an outback Flying Doctor and had mounted in a jarrah surround, the oil painting of the USS Hart moored in Hong Kong harbour in 1923 that I found on eBay?

But I've moved countries six times, so maybe I just cling to my stuff to make me feel settled.

I moved continents too. From my humble little 1-bedroom in Brooklyn to a humble little 1-bedroom in Singapore.

All i took with me were some clothes and my dog. I shipped the rest of my warm weather wardrobe and books and some kitchen stuff.

I did leave behind, at my friend's brownstone basement, my Knoll credenza and my Room & Board bed which breaks down into individual slats and flat head/foot board pieces. At some point when I am more flush, I'm sending for them through an international door-to-door shipper.

Currently my 1-br is an unfurnished rental, so I had to Ikea everything as that is all I can afford presently. i'm hoping to be able to buy a small 2 bedroom sometime next yr, and truth be told, I'd likely rip everything out and put in Ikea kitchen cabs and bathroom fixtures and wardrobe. Say what you want about Ikea, but they certainly help someone who is broke off her @$$ to comfortably furnish a cosy home.

Yes, oh yes. If money were no object, that is. However, I have a problem letting go of things I no longer need that I'm also trying to work on. I wish that were easier.

Talk about timing...I just decided today that despite my anxiety about giving up my beautiful 1200 sq. ft Craftsman house in California, I'm moving back to Brooklyn--been missing friends and family and although NY's been hit by the tanking economy too, not as hard as California, and this girl needs a job. A friend just offered the truly tiny furnished garden apartment below her house (bed=futon couch, oh boy!), and because it's in the neighborhood I most love, I may take it. But...first I have to find someone who wants to rent my furnished house because the market is terrible and it's so not the time to sell. I'm an artist, and have taken my time creating this magical space, and though as all have said, my things are just things, I do love how it feels to be in this house. So...anyone looking for a charming, fully furnished rental home 15 minutes from downtown SF? Sheesh. I'm getting nostalgic and we haven't even started packing yet.

I did it once, for a move from San Francisco to Limoges France with nothing but 1 heavy suitcase for each of the 3 people in my family. I've regretted it ever since.

After all of the yard sales and Goodwill drop-offs I feel that I have been less ecological and wasted more money than necessary on furnishing my home. On the other hand...Oh the lessons I've learned!

I did this when I moved from Toronto to Vancouver 13 years ago, and it was fantastic. My husband and I sold all our stuff (except the books), and schlepped our cat and our camping gear across the country in our hatchback.

We couchsurfed at a friend's house for a couple of weeks until we found an apartment. When we moved in, we spread our Thermarests and sleeping bags on the living room floor (in front of the cute little fake fireplace), which became our bedroom for the first few months.

We were grad students and didn't have any money, so it took us a couple of months to save up for a bed. We cooked and ate using the pots and pans and utensils and plates from our camping mess kit. We kept our clothes folded on the floor of the walk-in closet (yep, we couldn't even afford hangers) in the otherwise unused bedroom. It was a pretty spartan existence by modern western standards, but we didn't mind at all. We went for long walks in our new city, met lots of great new people, and had a blast.

Everyone should do a massive purge at some point in their life. I love my stuff as much as the next person, but this experience always lurks in my memory as a reminder that stuff really is just stuff.

My husband and I did this last year when his company permantly transferred him to their Paris office from San Francisco. We weren't married yet and so had to sell off the contents of two small apartments.

A few things I learned:

While it is "just stuff" and it was really freeing to get rid of a lot of things niether of us realized were weighing us down, some things I'm really, really glad that I shipped: my great grandfather's cast iron skillet and griddle, my huband's record collection and turntables, my baking dishes and kitchen tools (non-electric) - all things that were both useful and had sentimental value. I'm still desperately missing my KitchenAid (no, you cannot just hook it into a converter) and sewing machine. We're now living on one income and so just replacing things all at once isn't within our means.

I also learned that taking your time to find the right place in a new city is invaluable. We stayed in three different temporary furnished apartments in three very different neighborhoods before moving into our current place - an unfurnished 17th century 30 sq. meter triplex.

While looking for our current place, we spent every weekend either going to open houses/apartment showings or walking around neighborhoods we were considering - eating in the restaurants, checking out the markets, hanging out in the parks, taking the Metro to check for convenience.

Though it was exhausting, I feel like we ended up with a very clear idea of what neighborhood would be a good fit for us.

Finally, after sorting through the entire contents of our lives pre-move, we were very aware of our pack rat tendencies and what kinds of things that we were apt to keep. We've now become much more careful about what comes into the apartment and won't buy something "because it's cool" or "just for now" or that isn't right for the space - even if that means going without for a while.

Best of luck to everyone to takes this on - it's been a fantastic experience for me and I can't recommend it highly enough.

Our move was perfect timing – we were struggling with handmedowns, his stuff and my stuff and a lot of bad-quality Ikea-ish stuff.

So we moved from Tampere, Finland, to San Fran, CA. With a few suitcases of clothes.

A fresh start and our first "together"-home. Just OUR stuff, not YOURS or MINE.

Loving it!

Only if I had enough money buy to buy replacement furniture.

berryblu - are you posting on Craigslist?
We're actually looking for more space (not less like other posts) as we think about having a family, so I get to think about furnishing rooms we've never had before, like a dining room or even a place for guests to stay. I'm trying to think of styling these rooms as a "fresh start" - and what style that will be. I doubt I'll get it right the first time, but I think it will be a bit more fun than our same-old student-bought furniture.

I'm 31 years old, and since the age of 18, I've moved seventeen times. This last move, cross-country to Los Angeles, was the first time I ever did it starting from scratch. It was and still is an agonizing process, and I've made a lot of "mistakes" furnishing my place out here. But I wouldn't trade it for anything, because I've finally gotten to learn what it is *I* really want and what my tastes are. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Furniture that is foisted upon you ends up being so much baggage.

YES! if only i had the cash to do so. There are a couple of vintage pieces i've collected over the years but everything else lets chuck and start anew!

I want to do this once we move back across the country. We knew that we had to bring a good amount with us here because we wouldn't have the money or time to start over. But next time...

Yes yes and yes! especially because i'm a student all my furniture is cheapo ikea.

I moved from FL to Jamaica and made an expensive mistake by bringing everything from a house to an apartment. Needless to say, I made a lot of people happy with my donations and it made me happy too. I love living small because I have more time to relax and play. I realized only the basics are needed...bed, table, chairs, etc and yes a laptop with internet access. I do however need a helper to assist with ironing...I might splurge and pay for the service!

I wouldn't start over from scratch at this stage of the game if there were an easier way. However, knowing that it may become necessary with hurricanes and other acts of God, or the economy, helps me not to get overly attached or rigid. Knowing that whatever I buy or renovate can be damaged or totalled any storm season also helps me to choose economical, sturdy options.

In some ways, yes, it seems very liberating. On the other hand, it throws the old adage about "taking time to find and collect pieces you'll really love" right into the crapper. The risk is - unless you have a lot of money like
Dave from the examples obviously did or you aren't moving to start a new job and you have all the time in the world to scour Craigslist and estate sales plus you have the incredible good fortune to stumble on some goldmines - you're going to either have to live in design chaos for a long time, or you are going to have to fill the gaps with cheap and/or matchy-matchy pieces. Not to mention the environmental impact of buying cheap furniture and then junking it. I think I'd rather just haul around those wonderful pieces I'll always love, that will last my lifetime and then some, and that I took so long to curate in the first place.

How about, rather than a complete sell-off, something more modest and do-able? An accessories purge. Get rid of everything that's not foundational, an expensive piece of art, or family heirloom-ish, then start over with a new design aesthetic.

Actually I am finally getting to redo a major part of the house- kitchen/den/ breakfast room that was there when we moved in 25 years ago.

Yes it is expensive- but as my husband and I have decided to leave as little as possible to our relatives we have splurged.

The place was quite nice but a small half bath blocked the kitchen from the den/breakfast room and it never reflected my style.

Out went everything, couches, cabinets, tables, rugs, appliances- everything. Yeah!

It sounds extravagant in these times but we decided since this house will work when we are even more advanced in age than we are now- it was worth it to add a few amenities like a laundry on the same floor and a railing for the step down to the den. My studio is here as well as my husbands home office.

This place was invaluable for ideas- better than those flossie magazines. I bought a high-end sectional, had some Tibetan rugs made to my design (cheaper than you think- find a Tibetan store- most of them will be able to make you a rug) and custom kitchen cabinets.

Since this about broke the bank- I had my Gio Magistretti table refinished and found matching Carimate chairs on Ebay for $150 each- they were $650 at Conrans. I am refinishing a $137 solid wood telephone table I found on Overstock.com. I watch Gilt and One Kings Lane like a hawk for accesories like pillows.

berryblu - by any chance have a chandelier you want to unload?

Been there many times, don't want to do it again. For years my worldly possession fitted into a '79 Regal Buick as I traveled cross country working in national parks. My sister called my car The Turtle. Once the Regal Buick was retired I filled my apartments with awful veneer furnitures that I thought looked nice at the time until better sense caught up and then purge happen with move, and the next move, and the next move...Maybe all those mistakes taught me what my tastes really are and now I'm happy with my choices, just wished it didn't take so dang long.

@berryblu - I'd love to check out what you have! My partner and I just moved locations and it's been a slow process of outfitting our tiny tiny capitol hill basement.

We're definitely still in need of a lot. My biggest challenge is patience - I always just want to fill up the space. I am trying to learn not to just buy whatever fits, and instead take the time to pick items that really speak to our asthetic.

I've started over fresh twice... and I'm barely 25. As long as I can remember, I have never been able to stay in one place too long which is a habit my grandmother always attributed to "gypsy-blood".

The first time I did the haul shouldn't really count. I was barely 17, had a diploma and wanted to be on my own. Instead of moving down the street, my aforementioned grandmother helped me pack up two trunks filled with clothes and books and I moved from FL to Long Beach, CA.

At 20, I had come back to FL and after getting the itch, I picked out Miami on a map because of the fact I have never been there and didn't know a single person. Thanks to craiglist, during my mere two weeks of planning I had scored a job through various phone interviews and had wired money for a deposit on my apartment. I packed up my car with only books, clothes, art and my cat for the 14-hour haul and while it is the most exciting, exhilarating feeling, I learned the importance of asking my vet for sedatives.

Since then, I've moved back to North FL for uni and started over yet again. While I am still getting my place just right, I like knowing that if the mood strikes, I can purge everything but a select few items with emotional attachment and start afresh.

I know a lot of people don't have the same feeling about purging and starting over and in fact, only consider it an anxiety inducing experience. There is no denying the first few weeks are always a bit rough, but perhaps everyone should try it at least once.

@dakini123, Can you will or trust your estate to someone you like? That would keep it from relatives better than risking going broke well before you pass. If you were just joking, then never mind. Either way, renovating to age in place is smart and increasingly popular.

this post has come at the right time. i recently had to switch rooms with a roommate and, although i wasn't moving out, it has been an anxiety filled experience even more so than moving out. i spent the last 2 years and so much time arranging and rearranging, adding and deleting items out of my previous room that i did not realized how hard it would be to leave it. true, the room is just downstairs but once your stuff is out of there (and your style), it is like you weren't even there. in the past 15 years, i have moved around over 10 times and between two coasts, this move has been the hardest in recent memory; perhaps, it is the time commitment i spent on this space and length of stay. now that i had 2 weeks to unpack and is working on settling in, i am realizing how easy it is to become too comfortable and, speaking for myself, it is time to shake things up.

After moving into our first house last year, my husband decided that the ONLY way he'll ever move out of this place would be if we *could* start from scratch, because he never ever wants to deal with moving all our stuff again. ;-)

I don't think I could totally start from scratch though. We have some furniture that falls under the "family heirloom" category: my great-aunt's piano, his great-aunt's dining room table, a wrought-iron baker's rack that my mom originally bought for her first apartment... I'd never want to get rid of those things, so they'd have to come with us if we ever have to move again. :-)

I do it all the time!

Well... that is to say that I *have* done it, maybe two or three times. I've sold everything I own - I mean everything; every spoon, lightbulb, dish drainer, you name it - and started brand new from scratch in at least 2 homes in the last 10 years. And I'm doing it again right now as we speak.

Miami's Elaine

it IS a bit of a stretch for us but- my husband has been a frugal Freddie all these years and has a decent retirement fund. After a certain age it is better to spend it rather than have Uncle Sam take it.

It makes him way nervous but I am having a ball. He has a lot of ye olde family stuff that I have sent surreptitiously out the door over the years. I am stacking the rest of the dreadful clanky old stuff as high as I can stack it in the basement. He hates giving up ANYTHING. For 18 years we used an old 1820 dresser his great, great grandpa made down on the farm in Pennsylvania. You had to open it by putting your foot on it and pulling on a giant glass knob.

No, I do NOT want to leave ANYTHING to my relatives. There will be enough left for us to live on comfortably.

Thank-you for caring.

Not unless I had to - several antiques I would hate to lose.

I just helped someone start pretty much from scratch: http://retrogradesf.blogspot.com/2010/08/starting-from-zero-got-nothing-to-lose.html

When you start over, it can be liberating but also nerve-wracking since it takes so much time to accumulate all those little things that make your space feel like "home."

But in the meantime, you can at least set up a good foundation, which is what I helped this person do.

@ Berryblu- as a few others have said, I'd sure be interested in seeing what you have. Please let us know first when you're prepared to have folks come and view the goods!

@dakini123, You're welcome. Too many people have to leave homes they love after stairs or whatever become obstacles, despite there being ways to avoid it. Check the latest universal design developments. Making a good home even better is fun and worthwhile.

Wow, this is perfect timing for this post. I am starting a new job sometime within the next two months, will be in Georgia for 6 months after that, and then will most likely move to a new city if I cannot get a position in the city I am already so comfy in and have been in my whole life.
I was soooo timid about starting over at first, but the optimist in me can also fall in love with the possibilities and how to execute them! I already have my plan to sell my condo while I am in Georgia. (My mom and dad will be responsible for helping with coordinating viewings and getting my kitty outtasight for that.)
I read someone's post about creating a catalog for what they would sell and what they would keep. Thanks! I am gonna work on that tonight. Creating a plan will make things smoother and easier... I am attached to the people in my life, so will probably get a two bedroom place so that everyone can visit frequently...
So, whether I wind up in Puerto Rico, San Francisco, Austin, or some other city, or just stay here, I am getting excited about the possibility of change as I near birthday "32." :)

I'm currently without a lot of "things" due to my new job/move. I love living with less and I am indeed starting from scratch. 9 months now without a sofa because I am going to save up to have one made just for my space. My new place will most likely take about 2-3 years before it's completed!

I'm all about starting fresh but my current apartment is my fave so far as seen in the small cool contest (http://bit.ly/tscool). I found great unique thrifty finds that fit great in my space but I was laid off recently and am really looking into moving overseas to teach English. I think its difficult to let go of the unique/vintagey finds but I am hoping to store the few pieces that I want at my parents or brothers and get rid of the rest.

Sometimes I think I'd love to do this, and other times I look around and think that I do love some of the stuff we have. I think I would like to be able to get rid of about 60% of the things we have and keep the rest. Partly it's because I am no good at shopping so replacing it with other necessaries would be tedious and I would be all 'what if I buy the wrong thing'. At least already owning the 'wrong thing' won't cost me!

We are starting major renovations soon, so I plan that will mean a major purge before things get packed up, and the chance to upgrade some of the furniture after the work is done as we will need more things for the new rooms.

I moved to Holland (from Texas) two years ago with nothing but clothes & books, and now I'm moving back to the States with clothes & books, plus a lamp that I love enough to re-wire upon arrival.