Living With Less Stuff 2016 - August

This month, I haven't really done a lot of decluttering.  I've put the odd item on the donation pile, as it's occurred to me to part with it, or in the case of books, when I've finished reading them, but other than that I've made no real concerted effort to increase my current pile of unwanted stuff.

As a consequence, I really can't take credit for this month's total, as it has largely been down to LB alone, who whilst feeling bored in the summer holidays, went through her bedroom with a fine tooth comb and extracted a huge pile of items she no longer wants to keep.  Three cheers for LB.  Hip Hip Hooray!

Due almost solely to her efforts, 171 items will be leaving the house this month, which when added to last month's total of 604, brings us to a new running total for the year thus far of 775 items.  I'm really pleased with our progress and it will be interesting to see if I can match last year's total of over 1000 items, despite setting out to realistically donate only 500 this year.

It just goes to show that decluttering has a kind of snowball effect.  The more you do, the more you find yourself able to do, as the ease of letting go of stuff that you don't use or enjoy, increases over time and  (hopefully) you are left with only the essential things you need in life.  In addition, when other people in your household see you getting rid of clutter, they join in and do the same, which is all good. There's still quite a way to go, when I look around the house and see how much 'stuff' it still contains, but progress has been and definitely is being made.

Having said this, I'm not necessarily aiming for clear surfaces or any kind of extreme minimalist home, but a few empty spaces would be quite nice.  The thought of having an empty or part empty shelf that isn't crammed with 'stuff', is quite an appealing thought and although I'm not there yet, I'm getting there slowly.

Although I've taken a break of late, I know that once the pile of donations in the spare room has been taken to the Give or Take in mid September, and following my sister's visit in October, I'll probably get a renewed passion for decluttering and will eventually start the process off again, continuing until I get to the point where I'm happy with what we own and there's nothing in the house that we no longer want to keep.

For September, I will continue to pick out items that I no longer want to hold onto, as I come across them, and I'm sure I'll come across a few things, as I clean and prepare the house for my sister's visit. I will also continue to donate some of the books I finish reading.  There are very few that I keep for reference these days or with a view to reading again, as I just never really do read them a second time.

I may also sort through the odd cupboard here and there, but I don't really have any plans for any serious decluttering sessions this month or next for that matter, so I'm sure the pace of clearing stuff will definitely slow for a couple of months, but that is fine by me, as there's no particular rush. I may just do a joint September/October post on progress if it is limited, so as not to bore you too much with the minute details of my progress.

Until then...