… you will fill it.

Today we have started on the outbuildings.  While the Boss emptied plastic storage containers of stuff we didn’t need I filled them with books to take to Borderline Books.  I have no intention of taking them home again but I think Amira can actually put them to good use.

While the boxes were at our house we used them.  We put things in them and then put them away out of sight.  Quite, out of sight and never used or seen again.  I am not suggesting that you empty your house of every storage unit.  Most people need a wardrobe, a bookcase, somewhere to keep their knitting/fishing tackle/whatever rocks your boat.  Nobody needs boxes of books or clothes or toys that live in the attic or cellar or outbuilding.

photo courtesy of NY Times

Decluttering is not the same as organising.  I know.  I am a champion organiser.  Before I started this journey I would have a regular declutter.  I took everything out of a cupboard put some of them into the charity bag and then tidied up everything that was left.  Sometimes I got really enthusiastic and devised a new storage system.  This was often combined with a trip to IKEA for some funky cool storage boxes.  As you can see, what I was doing was reorganising the stuff I already had.  The boxes in the outbuildings and the kists full of books were testament to that.

One way to force yourself to declutter is to go around your house (inside and out, outbuildings and attics) and remove 50% of your “storage boxes”.  If you haven’t got anywhere to hide the clutter it has to go 🙂