2021 Declutter Stuff & Organize Your Life

[startsmart]

Welcome to the 2021 Declutter thread!

If you are ready to simplify, get more organized, clear the clutter and track bigger projects in your life then you're in the right place. Members track everything from gift buying, grading assignments, phone calls, laundry, bills to pay and keeping papers organized.

Jump in at any time to share what you need to get done, encourage each other and track your wins.

How does this work?

Post your goals - lists and pictures are welcome and "progress pics" are always fun!
Share questions when you have them and support and encourage each other.
Please don't post simply to lecture, mock or stir things up.


Basics for the thread:

1. Be encouraging to one another

2. Updates as often as you wish

3. You don't need to respond to other posters but it is a great way to participate and support each other

4. Feel free to track anything to stay motivated however there are dedicated threads for losing weight, saving money on groceries and eliminating debt so check those out if you want more in depth discussions.

5. Remember when giving advice that we rarely know the whole story and this is not a place of judgment. Try not to take offense when others make suggestions to you and use the private message feature if you'd like something to remain private. You may always edit or delete a post but doing so will not remove quotes from other posters.

Set a Goal

Some posters will be attempting to downsize a specific number of items, it's not required or even necessary, do what works for you. You can also set a goal like "have a peaceful office space" or "keep the kitchen table clear" if that's more realistic for you.

Moderators: Please keep the 2020 thread live through Jan 1st

[ners]

I utterly failed to meet my modest goal in 2020.  

Setting the same goal for 2021.  

Hoping for a better outcome this year.  

[moneysquirrel]

I will be in again.  It helps to report to this group.

[Ombud]

When cleaning out my closet I found jeans, 1 complete outfit, and a dress still with tags on. I don't know why I lost track of them

[WholeLottaNothin]

I haven't been on the boards for quite awhile but I'd like to join in again. I'm setting a goal of 1000 items. I usually shoot for more than that and fail so I'm trying to be more realistic. Here's hoping for a better 2021.

[Rukh O'Rorke]

I'm in too! Not sure where I may begin with the current chaos that is my present mind.

as an initial brain -

basemment redo - including new slab and flood control
Central AC
Deck or patio
new roof garage - maybe over kitchen (kitchen is only 1 floor, rest of house is 2 stories, the 2 story roof got redone 16 years ago - think the kitch roof is just 5-10 years older than that - but getting due. Garage roof, at least a repair piece, is urgent)
Other garage repairs

have 2 misc rooms upstairs, want 1 to become a yoga/meditation/reading place, and the other a nice office

more house plants! and not to kill them!

new fence, new potager set up, path and new stuff on side yard.


Could be a 2 year or 3 year plan here, and that's ok. Been waiting on a refi and finally pulled the trigger. have about 100k to start this off with.

on the other side of things:

declutter every room in the house, closets too.
get on top of paperwork
keep up with my new and nifty planner
bullet journal for day job organization
get organized with RI paperwork, think about trying for new customers? So far - just 2 that came to me, just as I was about to give up on RI. Both continuing with me in 2021.

[Opti]

Dec 31, 2020 13:43:11 GMT -5 Ombud said:

When cleaning out my closet I found jeans, 1 complete outfit, and a dress still with tags on. I don't know why I lost track of them

I've misplaced two sets of stamps.    The one set is only four stamps, but it still makes me upset. So some decluttering and filing is in order for today.

[startsmart]

Despite thinking I’d keep Christmas decorations up until the 6th, I started taking them down today and it’s nice to have the boxes stacked up and ready for storage. Considering that I have 3 full bins of just ornaments, it’s probably unrealistic of me to expect everything to fit into 4 bins and a Christmas tree bag.

Once Christmas is packed and put away I should be free to bring in on the laundry room floor which is severely unlevel. I have the plywood to create a new subfloor and the mix to level it off. If I level before installing the new plywood I have a lot of small holes to patch.

I am hopeful that I can buy a washer and dryer at some point in the next few months so it’ll be nice to get those installed with the floor already done.

[TheOtherMe]

I'm shooting to declutter 2021 items this year but I will not be tracking it here.  I've printed off the sheets and will track it that way.

I have no idea if that is attainable.  There is definitely that much stuff that needs to go, but I have to find the motivation to do it.

[Iggy aka IG]

Thank you for starting the new thread, startsmart!

moneysquirrel, I scheduled lunch breaks in my calendar for all 2021 business days.  There will be times when I am out of town, or have the day off, but the commitment reminder is there.

My first post on last year's thread:

"My first post of the year here. Saturday I "de-cluttered" about half a billion dust mites. Much to my rebellious chagrin, I decided to set up a routine of cleaning house Saturday mornings. IF we are in town, that is. This way I will do as much as possible that day, and then try and relax the rest of the week. Accomplished, week 1:

{snip-and, boy, was it a long list!}

This year I want am going to finish purging my home office desk and closet, and the coat closet shelves."

In review:

~I generally do most chores and laundry on Saturdays, in order to avoid putting clean sheets back on the bed late Sunday evenings, for instance.

~I did purge the home office documents via the burn party I mentioned last month.  Throughout the year I also donated many items from the desk and closet via Goodwill and friends I thought would appreciate them.  The coat closet has also been purged, and kept items are organized in separate bins such as hats/gloves/scarves, ATV/camping gear, etc.

2021 goals:

~Complete and delete the many random to do lists I have

~Diversify fun activities

~Paint the dang master bedroom and my office already!

Happy New Year, friends.  See you next week. 

[Lizard Queen]

Shooting for discarding 2021 or more items, though I'm going to start out slower there, and focus on cleaning and organizing in January. Things will get tossed as I come across them during these other activities.

Finishing home projects--trim, paint, stuff like that. Our remodeled-this-year kitchen is not quite done.

I've learned to use my planner a lot for scheduling my kids activities/school/daycare when they went. Maybe see if I can build on that skill for my personal goals.

[chiver78]

my primary goal for 2021 is to open and go through every single tote and box I have in the basement. some of them, I have moved untouched, more than once. I have joined a local "Buy Nothing" group on FB and have already given away a few things. more to come for sure. 

[Malarky]

My goals this year include actually using my agenda book for the entire year.  I had about a 50% success rate last year.  There was no point when I was in lockdown for 3 months, every day was the same. I was only sporadic in going back to it when life returned to what passes for normal.  Keeping track when I have actually done so has been invaluable at work.  I've taken on a lot more responsibilities the past couple of months and it's good to have info at my fingertips.  I used to organize/manage at work via scrap paper and post it notes.  

My biggest goal is to ensure that as each room is finished upstairs it is organized.  Most importantly that when I move from our current bedroom to the one we will be using that no clutter follows.  I have a connected small room to use as a closet.  I have no excuse for not having my clothes organized at all times.  I'm pretty sure that a great number of them won't make the journey across the hall to the new bedroom.  

And the same New Year's resolution I make every year.  To not say everything I think.  

[empress of self-improvement]

This year I will be sorting through DH's comic books and looking around for some knowledgeable people in the world of comic books, Transformers and Star Trek: The Next Generation so I can unload all that and find the front room again.
I also need to work on the kitchen since I ripped the paneling off the walls. That's my project for now. I'm still debating pulling the rest of the cabinets off and going with open shelving above and a couple of tables below. Who knows.

[finnime]

I have a bunch of decluttering and organizing in pretty much all areas, but a priority is decluttering/organizing paperwork into the newly cleaned out filing cabinet and establishing the habit of staying on top of it. That one thing will make others easier.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Dec 31, 2020 20:24:08 GMT -5 Malarky said:

My goals this year include actually using my agenda book for the entire year.  I had about a 50% success rate last year.  There was no point when I was in lockdown for 3 months, every day was the same. I was only sporadic in going back to it when life returned to what passes for normal.  Keeping track when I have actually done so has been invaluable at work.  I've taken on a lot more responsibilities the past couple of months and it's good to have info at my fingertips.  I used to organize/manage at work via scrap paper and post it notes.  

My biggest goal is to ensure that as each room is finished upstairs it is organized.  Most importantly that when I move from our current bedroom to the one we will be using that no clutter follows.  I have a connected small room to use as a closet.  I have no excuse for not having my clothes organized at all times.  I'm pretty sure that a great number of them won't make the journey across the hall to the new bedroom.  

And the same New Year's resolution I make every year.  To not say everything I think.  

If you figure this one out, please let me know the secret. 

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

 I'm going to try and upload my deep cleaning lists for this year. 

[Malarky]

Dec 31, 2020 23:47:54 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

Dec 31, 2020 20:24:08 GMT -5 Malarky said:

 

And the same New Year's resolution I make every year.  To not say everything I think.  

If you figure this one out, please let me know the secret. 

I get slightly better over time but it's a struggle.  Particularly at work. It's hard to remember that I'm not the boss of everyone anymore.  Not that I want to be, I chose to go in a different direction. 

Love your bullet journal pages.  I've been emulating them on a smaller scale.  Having everything spelled out makes me realize how much I actually do accomplish on a daily basis.  And it's a good reminder when I don't reach my daily goals I actually did have some successes.

[Sharon]

While I didn't get as much done last year as I had hoped but I still got rid of stuff and that is progress.  I was able to give DD 5 empty totes to use for moving.  Room was made in the garage to be able to store all the usually used Christmas decorations.  No more climbing in the attic.  I need to look at the positives and the fact that things were accomplished and keep moving forward from there.

[startsmart]

We kicked off 2021 with freezing rain and snow (just a couple inches) so it feels sorta magical to me. I spent some time re-securing the window covers upstairs for the broken panes, they are coming open frequently thanks to 15-30 mph winds.

Yesterday I cleaned up a bag of debris from upstairs which had been on my to do list for far too long. I’m just about done moving artwork to the third floor as well, my little impromptu gallery.

Today I’ll be cleaning the fridge, tossing old food and making a list of pantry items & meals for the month.

[nidena]

Today, I need to clean the cat domain.  It's been a couple weeks and it's pretty gross.  If only I could get rid of this headache--12 oz of wine last night is kicking my ass today.

[vetswife]

I've made some progress over the past year but not nearly enough.  I'm trying to not leave a mess for my kids to clean up when I'm gone.  The sewing room and guest rooms are the next on thelist.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

All of the Christmas stuff is out away. I have left up a small portion of the “winter” stuff. The snow folk ⛄️ went back into their storage tubs. DH wouldn’t agree to them staying up any longer. 32 of them is a lot I suppose. 😆

The napping room is reset from its rearranged Christmas tree status.

[Lizard Queen]

Daily Goals for January:
1 item decluttered -- at 9 so far today. They're just jumping out at me today.
1 area cleaned &/or organized --bathroom sink
1 flight of stairs -- down & up from basement

1 veggie --done
1 ounce of plain water -- 4 ounces

Yes starting small-- Tiny Habits

[nidena]

Jan 1, 2021 14:22:56 GMT -5 nidena said:

Today, I need to clean the cat domain.  It's been a couple weeks and it's pretty gross.  If only I could get rid of this headache--12 oz of wine last night is kicking my ass today.

It took an hour but it's done.  I also got all the dishes washed that I hadn't washed in a few days.

[nidena]

I went through my clothes again.  I realized that many of the pieces I was hanging on to, worked for me when I still worked at White House Black Market but not so much now.  Plus, most were pieces that I was hanging on to for when I lose, oh, say, 40lbs.  That's gonna be some time and I'm sure my body will be in a different configuration than what it was the last time I was 175lbs.  lol

[laterbloomer]

I have FINALLY gotten motivated to declutter my room. So far I found $145 in gift cards from 2 years ago, meat thermometers that were supposed to be part of some father's day gifts last year. homemade gift cards GW gave me Christmas of 2017...☺

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Jan 1, 2021 20:48:26 GMT -5 laterbloomer said:

I have FINALLY gotten motivated to declutter my room. So far I found $145 in gift cards from 2 years ago, meat thermometers that were supposed to be part of some father's day gifts last year. homemade gift cards GW gave me Christmas of 2017...☺

$145!! Nice!!!

[laterbloomer]

Jan 1, 2021 20:52:58 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

Jan 1, 2021 20:48:26 GMT -5 laterbloomer said:

I have FINALLY gotten motivated to declutter my room. So far I found $145 in gift cards from 2 years ago, meat thermometers that were supposed to be part of some father's day gifts last year. homemade gift cards GW gave me Christmas of 2017...☺

$145!! Nice!!!

Yes, but embarrassing too lol

[Sharon]

Today I did a lot of puttering but did manage to get stuff done.

YNAB is up to date.

Paid a couple of bills

A couple of spreadsheets that I use for taxes are completed, totaled and printed

Created spreadsheet needed for 2021

Last week I signed papers for estate planning (Will, POA, etc) got those sorted as to which ones need to go to the safe deposit box, which ones still need a signature etc

Sorted through some other financial paperwork and got it handled

Put the last little bit of Christmas stuff away

Kitchen is clean and dishwasher is running

Transferred all the birthdays etc from 2020 calendar to 2021 calendar

Found places to store DD's good china for a few months.  She dumped it all on the bed in the spare bedroom yesterday, which is what I told her to do.  I found a home for everything today.