I save things. I'm not a whorder by any means, but I save things that most people wouldn't save because I think "someday I will make something out of it." 80% of the time it just takes up space in my art/craft room. I need to go through some of it and toss it, which I'm actually in the process of doing this week.

I also have to edit my decor. I feel like I do it weekly, but then I end up finding new things to decorate with and have to declutter my desks tables and shelves.

...Oh and my parents are always trying me to take stuff I have stored in their basement. Me: "I have no room!"
Parents: "neither do we!"

The day my mother handed me all of my stuff was a sad day indeed. I didn't want it all, but I couldn't seem to part with any of it! That's why I don't encourage my kids to save anything. Either they get rid of an old toy now (when they stop playing with it) or they risk opening a box in twenty years and saying, "That was my favorite toy! I can't get rid of this!!!" Things tend to take on more meaning (for some crazy reason) the longer they sit in a box.

I have a shoebox full of my 'stuff'. For some reason, I'm not into saving. I'm worried I may regret it one day, but haven't so far.

At this point, I only bring in new items if they're upgrades or replacements for broken things.

It feels so good when I purge my home of unneeded "stuff." I post my items on Freecycle, an online place where you can give your items away to people who actually want them (instead of a landfill). This is a local group in the Austin area, but I'm sure they have groups in other locations. Look 'em up, it's a Yahoo group.

I still live with my parents, but I know that the way my father is everything that's mine in that house will have to be out when I am so I'm currently going through the process of clearing out my stuff ahead of time.
It's taking so much longer then I thought it would! But getting rid of it now is a lot nicer then having to toss everything in a rush like I know I would have to do if I left it for later.

My boyfriend has been getting rid of some of his things. I think I might love him a little extra for it. You would never think about a guy hoarding things, but my god, mine does.

I'm working on not buying anything that doesnt fit in with the design of my house.

@roygbiv - "Whorder", LOL! A whore who hoards?

Last fall my husband cleaned out his office and closet and got rid of things that he has been carting around for years - a truly disgusting high school football letterman jacket, for instance, and heavy sweaters from the 90's when he lived on the east coast and grunge was in. It was a wonderful feeling to have all that old crap gone! The only thing I can't convince him to get rid of are a stack of old dead laptops that are not longer usable. That may be a resolution for 2010...

Several years ago, my dad gift wrapped boxes of our old stuff and presented them at Christmas. We took the hint. Most of the stuff didn't make it into our current homes because we didn't want it in our current homes.

We've taken over half of my parents two car garage, and half the attic space. Things haven't really hit the basement yet, but we're moving to California (from Providence RI!) in a month or so. I have no idea what the rents are going to do with all my stuff!

I spent the past year and a half successfully editing (most of) my belongings into a 500 sf apartment with minimal visual clutter. This year my parents died unexpectedly within six months of each other and I am now in the process of closing up their home of 30 years. Although my parents had a lovely home, their tastes in decor were different than mine so I'm struggling with some related issues over the next few weeks:

1. Claiming items now instead of regretting that I didn't despite my current space limitations (fortunately the few pieces of furniture I am keeping will be kept with friends and family instead of paying to take them 500 miles only to keep them in storage)

2. Adding my newly acquired items into a small space while maintaining appealing visual organization

3. Deciding what to keep of my parents' memorabilia (fortunately there isn't a lot but what to do with my mother's wedding dress, my father's prized varsity jacket, wedding goblets, my mother's collection of cards from my father, photos) and how to split with my sister

4. Separating the sentimentality from the tangible. My parents were both very talented and our home is full of their works of art. I'm taking a bunch of their works but I'm finding that I'm experiencing emotional attachment to items I don't even particularly care for because they were made or owned by my parents. Keeping these feelings in check and being realistic about what to take vs. what to let go has been much easier said than done.

I've always thought the 'take a photo of it then let it go' advice a bit weird. But in the case of childhood toys, I think it would work brilliantly! If you're a good photographer, do it yourself, or take it somewhere and get an arty shot. Then hang it on your wall. I can see that being really beautiful.

@ clevelandparker, could you do this with your mother's wedding dress, etc? That way you can look at it every day, and you and your sister can each have a copy. Personally I wouldn't be throwing it out after that! But it might make it easier to split things between you, and easier to store it without it feeling like a huge guilt hanging over your head - something you can't let go but don't use. Would making an albumn of nicely done photos of the things that you don't want to take but don't want to forget (from your point 4) help? You could leaf through it and remember, and maybe keep the more tactile things.

This process must be so hard - my dad died year before last, and there were squabbles over things like his binoculars - which none of us are ever going to use more than once, but which have particular memories. Luckily my sister and I are attatched to different things, but my mother got very possessive whenever she realised we wanted something. I actually snuck in and took some things out of the shed - not nice, I know, but she hasn't missed them yet, and I'm not entirely sure she won't have an emotional fit and burn everything!

I still have stuff in boxes from before my husband and I got married. We've been married three years in May, so my goal this year is to get every box unpacked. We each get a small tub to go in the top of our closet for our childhood faves...things we can't part with. The rest of it is going. If we haven't gotten it out of a box yet, then we probably don't need it!

Most of my detritus comes from projects, supplies, food containers etc rather than bric or brac as I've not bought much of that in the past while but I DID get my best friend's old TEAC reel to reel deck and a bunch of black tapes to go w/ it as I have some old tapes I need to go through and digitize that my Dad did of my middle sister to preserve for posterity.

I have a small storage locker and it's mostly seasonal stuff or stuff I have had to store due to no other place to put it. I will be going through it in the next couple of months to clean it out and organize it. I DO keep the boxes both of my LCD computer monitors came in and the one for the LCD TV as I would like to move and these are delicate items so best to be moving them w/ their original boxes otherwise, I've been getting rid of boxes as I go along.

The only other thing I have elsewhere is one half of a pair of lamps my Dad had made for their living room that I got years ago when they got my late grandmother's brass lamps and it's in a box in a spot in Mom's garage, out of the way as I have no place to put it right now, the other one is in my living room as I type.

I used to have more but over time a lot of that got cleared away or donated and I will have to go through my clothes, take stock of what I have that fits and make a list of what I need to replace.

It's a never ending battle unfortunately.

er, BLANK tapes is what I meant

I have so much stuff in my mom's basement! This past weekend, I sent her home with a bookcase and a pair of doors from my den (I removed them to open up my small, 500 sq ft space).

One of my goals for the next few months is to relieve her of some of the clutter. I've been decluttering my condo for the past month and it feels great!

Emily the Cat

Oh my gosh, I usually pride myself in being a good speller. Haha, whorder, a whore who hoards! I was trying to hurry...(at work.)

Cleveland Parker, I could not imagine finding a balance between what to keep and what to purge. I would end up being a creepy and dedicating an enitre spare room made up of parental memories. My parents are pretty young so I'm still really attached to them in many ways. Good luck with your decisions and don't be too hard on yourself.

I'm with most - I'm trying to only bring in things to replace things that are going (aka end table with a slightly broken leg). I do have a box of photos and old letters (from my mother or someone who is/was important in my life) that I can't part with and there's no where to display that many - I have a feeling I will have them forever because I just can't part with them. The fiance has a big box of hats that he never wears...just somethings its harder to part with.

On storing things elsewhere, I am proud to say the only things left at my parents is a little bit of camping gear I've bought that they actually use more than me. So its left there both because I have no space for it and they would be borrowing it several times a year anyways.

I think I need to do a purge of my own place pretty soon (I'm pretty sure there are clothes, bedding, books, etc. that I don't need). But I was good about getting rid of the stuff at my parent's house. I slowly purged everything over the four years I was in college. There's still some stuff in my old bedroom but it's more them clinging to it than me. I'd rather chuck it all.

Emily the Cat, your husband and my boyfriend should never meet. He also has a pile of random IT stuff. We have an entire box of cords... yes cords... that dont go to anything. They sat in our livingroom for 6 months before i had a coniption. ugh.

Thank you @Kaviare and @roygbiv for your kind words and suggestions.

At the moment, the plan is to take photos of the items and then pack up and store the dress, varsity jacket, and letterman sweater (as well as some of our mint condition toys we're not quite ready to give up yet) in my grandmother's attic until we figure out what to do with them.

I've been taking photos of every angle of every section of our home, including closeup shots of items made by my parents or wall borders painted by Mom. I'm thinking of making up a small book and/or notecards from photos of my favorite vignettes.

My parents' decor was country/traditional whereas my apartment is mostly mid century and contemporary clean lines. Most of what I'm taking are holiday decorations (my mother loved snowmen and had decorations for every holiday and season) and dishware so I'm hoping I can incorporate these items into my small space without too much clutter and confusion;)

My parents were both in their mid '50s and died rather unexpectedly so I believe that has made this a slightly more difficult process. The next three weeks will be overwhelmingly sad but I'm grateful I have been able to take my time to distribute their belongings thoughtfully and with consideration.