You know I met my goal of purging 1000 items from December 1 thru December 31 in the first quarter of 2015?
I haven't stopped. We had long term house guests in June and several boxes and bags found their way out of the house. After they returned home we unloaded some big items that we needed to unload. I now hate holding onto something that I don't use and someone else might not only use, but could be blessed by receiving it. We have a ministry thrift shop down the road plus a homeless shelter in a neighboring city that need and want our stuff and they use it to help. So it's a win. Win.
My closet population continues to diminish. I haven't followed the ruthless advice of those who say pull every item out and make three piles. I have too many things I wear infrequently, or need to keep on hand. NEED is a word that I have to consider and act on, ehhh?
I have taken to looking at an item I pull out of the hanging rack, try on, or put back and ruthlessly decide right then and there if this item does anything for my life. If it doesn't, it goes right into the bag in my closet. Right now I have two of them that are half full. Here's the kicker. When that item goes, so does the hanger. If something comes into my house that needs a hanger, something already living here goes so I don't have to put out any new hangers.
While Rob was hospitalized and I was visiting I also did something I've been thinking about doing for months. I have too many scarves. Yes. (I also love purses, note the one, the RED and ADORABLE one in the giveaway bag...it doesn't work anymore for my life. So it has to go.) I decided I'd wear them if they were infinity scarves.
So I shoved them in a big bag with two colors of thread, needles a thimble and scissors and simply stitched the two ends together in a blanket or hem or hidden stitch. I got most of them done in the first two days and they are all infinity scarves now. If you think that's useful, make sure they are long enough or you'll just be annoyed. Compare them to the favorite infinity scarf length to be sure. Now, if I don't wear them I either donate as is, or I snip the simple stitches, pull them out and give them away for someone else to wear. Win.
Again. I have to say I have very few items I even remember to miss. Purging has been excellent for soul and house. Cleaning is easier because I have space to put things away where they belong. I do kind of want to get rid of kitchen bowls and pans and crockpots because I have multiples of each. But just when I get brave something big comes up and I'm glad I have all those duplicates. Darn. And I keep looking at Tiny House stuff on the computer. I'd love a 700 sq foot or slightly less house with 2-3 bedrooms. Oddly, our first purchased house was a duplex and we lived in 900-1000 sq ft and were very comfortable even with 2 kids. And our current house started out at about 1100 sq ft when we moved in and we were cramped but comfortable with 5 of us under one roof. The second story was a great thing. But two of us do not need that much room. Hmmm we'll just have to see what happens with that.
