Junk that you keep, junk that you throw out

[Larry of the Lawn]

I hoard empty peanut butter jars to hold sort out all the random screws, nails, etc at work. It's because you can see what's inside.

[Iskaral Pust]

Move house every few years. It provides great discipline on recognizing and disposing of junk. Even more effective if you move to a smaller house, or one with no garage/basement/attic, or have a very expensive moving company.

Specific steps for Trisk:

- Every time you buy new clothes or shoes, donate some old ones. You should stay at neutral volume. Old fabrics contribute to dust -- get rid of.

- Every December donate some old kids' toys to make room for the new presents.

- Get nice closets and storage fittings and then ruthlessly dispose of anything that does not fit neatly in them. It means you have a constant fixed capacity budget to remind you to get rid of stuff and force you to prioritize. Don't start encroaching on space outside the closets. Good closets and storage fittings are definitely worth the investment.

- Anything seasonal, e.g. seasonal sports equipment, outer clothing, decorations, should be relegated to a storage facility (basement/attic/storage unit) in their off-season. Then rotate as seasons change.

- Your storage facility should be organized with large plastic bins, with lids attached and big labels affixed. Do not have stuff lying loose. Any plastic bins that don't get opened for more than 12 months can be disposed.

- As a one-time step to improve existing clutter: do a cursory inventory of everything you have, one room a week, and dispose of anything you haven't used or even thought of in the past 12 months, or anything that can easily be repurchased at low cost if/when it is needed. Your home is not a warehouse. This only takes 15-30 minutes per room, and many large garbage sacks.

- Digitize whatever possible -- books, photos, old binders of university notes, etc. Paper especially contributes to dust and mustiness.

- Everything should have an assigned location in a storage fitting - closet, drawer, etc. Put everything away after use. Make it a habit. This is the key to defeating clutter.

I know it sounds OCD but every day when I arrive home from work: I remove my nice dress shoes, put in cedar shoe trees, put them in cloth bags inside their shoe box and put the box back on its shelf in the hall closet; hang up my coat/jacket in the hall closet; put my wallet, cash-clip. keys, watch and BlackBerry into a nice-looking storage caddy with organizers; I brush my suit and hang it up to air for 24 hours on cedar hangers; I hang up the suit airing from yesterday back in the closet with the other suits; I drop my shirt and under garments into a laundry bin (neatly recessed in a laundry closet) and put my laptop bag in it's assigned spot in my closet.

I never had that kind of disclipline until a few years ago. It take 5 minutes to do all that. But if you make it part of your routine, then your home is clutter-free. Also, taking good care of your shoes and suits will make them look much better.

[Fragile Bird]

Absolutely excellent advice!

Now, to follow it....

[S John]

I can't do digital books. I've tried several times and I need the real thing. I have a hard time getting rid of books too, but recently I did manage to part with some out of a desire to not move them across the country.

I have a small collection of vinyl records. The way it started was my parents gave me a whole bunch that they didn't want and I have added my own stuff over time. But probably half of the records in the original lot were records that I knew I would never listen to. So I listed them on craigslist and sold some of them. I almost instantly regretted it. Anyway, I'm not too much of a hoarder, but the books and records stay with me.

[Eponine]

My relationship to junk in one sentence: I'm not sentimental; just lazy.

Having gone from a house to a one bedroom apartment, I need to get rid of more stuff if I don't want to keep paying for a storage unit. I store my skis, snowshoes, tent, camp chairs and sleeping bags in my car all year round.

I need to take a box of unwanted books to donate to the library and a box of duplicate vinyl records to the record store.

I'm going to put my stained glass stuff in my in-laws' garage (and hopefully there'll be room to set it up there too). I hope I'm not lying to myself about that - it's both something that I've hauled around from place to place and something that I actually really do when I can. The thing is, you need ventilation and a place where you can clean up glass grindings.

[Castellan]

I approve of throwing out in principle but am very bad at it. I moved the bed into the smallest bedroom so I could sleep without junk around me (my ideal is a bedroom that's got a bed, bedside tables and nothing else). But the master bedroom I abandoned is now completely jammed as that's where I throw things. Literally, when I clean up the rest of the house. Which means I lose track of what's in there and never use it.

[lovelikeangels]

i have packrat tendencies and i tend to hold on to pretty much everything for too long.

i've been doing better in recent years with cleaning out my shit, especially with clothes. i got rid of about 17 overstuffed bags of them this past spring due to losing weight and no longer fitting into half my wardrobe.

miscellaneous stuff? that's harder to get rid of. i had to buy a second Expedit bookcase from IKEA a few years ago to store stuff like fabric, craft supplies, paint, photos, etc.

i try to periodically cleanse my room, but it's hard, man, it's hard.

[Pendergraft]

4 years ago I moved in with someone who had 3 pairs of shoes and they were contentedly happy. Then here I was with 300 pairs of shoes and half of them I don't even remember wearing more than twice, really put me in the straight and narrow. I've given most of my shoes and clothing away. Some expensive items that I don't use anymore are sold on eBay or Tradesy. Now I only buy classic pieces for clothes and shoes, things that I know the cost per wear will last for years. Selling items and not purchasing unnecessary items, saved me more money for creative activities. Now less stuff means less time to declutter, usually 15 minutes for me each day.