Month #2 for my 1,000 Item Declutter Challenge! In case you missed it last month, here were my ground rules:
- Only spend 10 minutes at one time and only in one specific area.
- Monday through Wednesday, seek out items that we no longer need and make a pile. Then Thursday through Saturday, make a plan for how to deal with them. (This worked so well and avoided that dreaded box of “what should I do with these?” items.)
- Possible places to find new homes for items: Ebay/Poshmark, Facebook Marketplace, Trash Nothing website or the local Buy Nothing Facebook group and as a last resort, Goodwill
I feel a responsibility for the things I have and want to be intentional with how I dispose of them. Questions I asked myself: If it’s here, what purpose does it serve? Can I use it up? Can I enjoy it vs. keeping it tucked away in drawers and boxes? And if not, can I let it go to someone who may need it more?
I lost a bit of steam this month. Thankfully, because of all the work I put into the project in October, I managed to still make a nice little profit. Two months in and I’m realizing that with our crazy life, decluttering is going to ebb and flow…and that’s okay. It’s a marathon, not a sprint! Something is always better than nothing.
WHAT I DECLUTTERED THIS MONTH
- 19 books.
- One Halloween costume and one Halloween-themed shirt.
- One educational DVD. I really hoped my kids would click with this Times Tales DVD after hearing so many moms rave about it. Unfortunately, we watched it once and it just wasn’t for them. It’s just been sitting on the shelf ever since, so I decided it was time to let another family try it – hopefully with better luck! Sold on ebay overnight for (after fees) $7.
- 2 teacher guides. Sold both on ebay in less than a day!
- 1 math answer booklet.
- One pair of boy’s pants and one boy’s dress shirt. Sold on Poshmark.
- One pair of soccer cleats. The kids have no desire to return to soccer, so after holding on to them for years, I’m finally getting them out of the house! Sold on ebay.
- 4 pairs of kids shoes.
- One car seat. TJ moved up to a booster seat, so we’re down to only one kid in a five-point harness car seat! Our Diono Radian still had seven years of life left (did you know Dionos don’t expire for 10 years?!), so I was able to pass it on to my sister-in-law.
- 2 old magazines. Into the recycling bin.
- 3 winter coats. Sold two on Poshmark and one on ebay.
- One faux fur bridal shrug. From my wedding 14 years ago! It’s in near perfect condition (I wore it for less than an hour) and has just been collecting dust in my closet all this time. It’s ready for a new bride. Sold on Poshmark.
- 12 pieces of a Christmas-themed porcelain dinner set. This was another hard one. I remember purchasing this four-person dinner set shortly after we were married and setting my table at Christmas. And then I blinked, I have a family of 8, and this set just sits in a box! I posted it on Trash Nothing and am happy to give them to another lady who will use them.
- 11 pieces of math flash cards and manipulatives. I’ve held on to these boxes of flash cards for years and years, but am finally realizing that we just don’t learn math that way in our homeschool. I made a post on Trash Nothing and a sweet lady took them for her son.
- One game.
- One Vera Bradley cosmetic pouch.
- 6 pieces of various clothing. Off to Goodwill. These are pieces in good condition, but don’t have much resale value and weren’t substantial enough to warrant a post on Trash Nothing.
- Two bags of shredded paper. Junk mail and other personal paperwork that needs to be shredded counts as clutter too! I’m counting each full container (which is the equivalent of a plastic grocery store bag) as one item. And bonus: I can use most of it in my compost pile.
- One pair of men’s shoes.
Items decluttered this month: 73
Money made this month: $196.62
P.S. To “count,” the item had to physically leave my house. So while I have listed a handful of things online, those aren’t counted until they have sold.
That's really a decent chunk! And fun too that you can sell so much of it and put that money toward your debt challenge. Keep up the good work!
Thanks! Many of these items are things that I've had stored away "just in case" and it's time to let go. Personally handing them to someone who is excited to have them or selling for a little money definitely makes parting with them easier, hah! Every bit helps pay down those pesky student loans.