De-Clutter your Wardrobe

I don`t know about you, but I have made numerous attempts to de-clutter my wardrobe. I`ve taken every single piece out and had a long look at each garment - before putting it back in. Little or nothing was ever taken out, including things which I hardly wore, e.g. because they no longer fit, need mended or because I simply didn`t like them any more.

Most women wear "20% of their wardrobe 80% of the time", and some people recommend ditching everything which has not been worn for a year. I would not be this ruthless. I`ve developed my own method which I feel works, is fun and not at all time consuming:

1. First of all, you need a lot of clear space. Hanging space, shelving space, shoe space.
2. After you have cleared space you need to do absolutely nothing! :-)
3. The next morning, chose any outfit you want to wear. Over the day, be very aware how you feel wearing this outfit. Does it make you feel good? Does it make you feel the opposite, maybe because it does not really fit or you simply don`t like it any more?
4. If you liked wearing the garment, put it into the empty space. Anything that goes there is for keeps! :-)
5. If you did not like wearing the garment, determine why you don`t. If it needs mended and you feel you would want to wear it again, bring it to a tailor. If it does not fit or if you dislike it, get rid of it: either put it on ebay or to a charity shop *right now*. Don`t put it in a corner to deal with "later". If you are anything like me, these things will sneak back into your wardrobe. 
6. Do not immediately replace the things you have just given away. I am often tempted to do this, but over the next few weeks, you may notice that you still have plenty and maybe really don`t need three pairs of black trousers after all. You can replace the items later, but before buying any new clothes, I`d recommend assessing what you have alrady got if you are serious about de-cluttering. The goal is to have a wardrobe which only contains things you really like and wear, and therfore, it is crucial to finish the de-cluttering job first. Depending on the current size of your wardrobe,this excercise may take you a while.
7. The next morning, chose another outfit from your wardrobe. Things you have already put away for keeps cannot be selected again. The goal is to, over the next few weeks, try absolutely everything in your wardrobe and assess whether you still like it. You can take a garment out of your wardrobe and have a long hard look at it, but this will not show you how it feels, whether it still fits, etc.
8. Common sense, of course, must prevail. Going out clothes are not needed as much, and you may be used to wearing the same three jeans all the time. Do however try to wear everything you`ve got over the next few weeks, as far as your lifestyle allows.

A chapter about replacing things will follow at a later stage - not there yet myself...

fantastic old fashioned kitchen gadget

There was ony very little I was given when I moved into my own flat, but there is only one which I still use today:

"It`s an old thing," said my granny. "It won`t last you long..."

Yoghurt

I make my own yoghurt.

I have bought a starter culture to make it with milk, and although instructions are readily available on the net, I have not got round to trying it yet.

I have however been making it since a few months with this

and this

(both available from Lakeland)

The receipe is fool proof: you mix a pouch of powder with a prescribed amount of water, fill it in the tubs and leave it in the yoghurt maker for some 8 hours or so.

The powder consists of powdered milk, yoghurt cultures and flavouring, although it is available in plain. (Tipp: I found the flavoured one to sweet and the plain one too sour. I now mix 1/2 bag of each which gets it just right!)

Why I love making my own yoghurt:

1. it tasts good - loads of different flavours
2. it is cheaper
3. small individual glasses = portion control!
4. re-usaeable glasses = no waste
5. purchasing/carrying/expiry date no problem

Accumulating Stuff: Cleaning Agents

My husband is a typical hoarder.

When I moved into his home, he had 18 shower gels and shampoos around the bath, all almost empty. When I asked why he does not use one up before replacing it he came up with a valid explanation for every single one of them: "Janet has given me that for my birthday the year he died!", "This one, I had with me when I met you!" and "This one is now discontinued!"

We now have about 10 things between us, and although I still don`t think we need 5 half empty bottles at once, I`m satisfied with the progress and don`t ask for more. He`s however still hoarding: "It`s almost finished!", "Reduced!" or "Never goes wrong!"

The other day, I  tidied up his cleaning agents underneath the sink. He denied that we have everything twice, and I wanted to see who was right. Plus, I wanted a less obvious space for our composting. What I found confirmed my worst expectations.

Carpet Cleaner

Okay, we`ve got cats. And okay, one of them was particularly prone to vomiting. But she died in 2007.

for whiter washing

White washing should remain white, I think we all agree on that one. Only that neither hubby nor myself wear much white. He`s got a shirt, I`ve got a blouse. I think that`s really it.

Cream Citrus Cleaner

There is about 5mm left in two of them and 1/3 in the other.

I feel if you find yourself buying the same things that often because you don`t know what you`ve got, its definitely a symptom of you having too much stuff.

I also found an impressing number of bottles which were empty. They were binned, otherwise, I put the almost full ones to the back and the almost empty ones to the front and asked hubby not to replace anything until those at the back are used up, too. I guess that`ll take us a few years...

Bra Size

Approximately 80% of all women wear the wrong bra size, leading to back pain, ill fitting clothes and low body confidence. Make sure that you are not one of them!

Most department stores (Marks and Spencer, Debenhams) do now offer a free bra fitting service, with no obligation to buy. It`s quick and easy and should not take more than five minutes!

 

You`ll really feel the difference when you wear the right size of bra, and it does not even need to be an expensive one!

Also: Buy your bra so the hook fits the outer hole, not the inner one (even though this may feel better as it feels a size smaller...). As the bra stretches over time, you can still wear it by simply using a tighter hole at the back!

 

Simplify

My interest in de-cluttering my life and minimising material possessions is fairly new, and therefore I was especially excited to be able to receive an advance copy of the e-book "simplify", for sale here as of today, and review it.

The 77-page e-book has been written for myself, the sceptical newbie who feels that she has too much "stuff" in her life but doesn`t yet know how and where to start reducing it.

Becker shows how and why, his tips are general enough to apply to anyone while "deep" enough to be of use to everyone. Not everybody has, like the author, two young children, but everyone has a kitchen (which is usually full of clutter).

After the tidying up and decluttering is sorted, our shopping habits are examined and the money saved through changing them (and time saved on organising and tidying "stuff) planned for more meaningful things: "Spend your money on things which you value more than material belongings."

Elsewhere, I have read that experiences (such as a foreign holiday) give much more pleasure than material belongings, and I believe that this is true. Belongings are a wonderful thing, but I think if we have too many, we no longer value them as much. I`ll definitely continue to reduce.

I would have loved to read more about how the Becker family has experienced the process of decluttering, but personal experiences and more hints and tipps are available plentifully in the author`s blog http://www.becomingminimalist.com/

Media Fast

A fellow blogger is doing it for lent. And a book has recently recommended I do it, too: A media fast. A day, a week or a month without television, radio, newspaper, magazines and... internet and mobile phone.

Up until the "..." the thought appealed. I, too, feel overwhelmed by the flood of media available to me. I listen to the radio in the morning and in the car, but otherwise I have little time to read all the papers in the office and at home, browse the magazines in the staff room and read those which I subscribed to. Or watch a TV programme without being on the internet at the same time (as I`m actually doing right now).

I think it would do me good to do without television, radio, paper and magazines for a while. But no internet? I couldn`t imagine it for even one day*, which would probably make me the ideal person to follow a media fast.

* I can to it when on holiday. Always, and usually without thinking about it.