50 Ways to Clutter Control - Part 1 of 5

50 Ways to Clutter Control -

"The wise man does not lay up his own treasures. The more he gives to others,
the more he will find his own" - Lao Tzu

Letting go of clutter is a key element in decluttering your home. It is important
to declutter for clarity, or even a nicer, newer version of "something else"

Why is it so Hard to get Rid of Clutter?

Why is it so hard to get rid of clutter?

Whether you have bought, found, collected or even been given your clutter
it really is irrelevant. You have it and it is time to get rid of it. If you
admit to having clutter (which you probably do as evidence by reading this
blog) than it is about time to start doing something about it. So why is it
so hard to get rid of clutter?

Top 10 Types of Clutter

1. Wardrobe Clutter - This is probably the most common of all clutter areas.
   If you carry items in your closet or other areas where you store your "this
   season" clothing and find it difficult to locate specific items then you
   suffer from wardrobe clutter.

Top 10 reasons why you should Declutter!

Top 10 reasons why you should declutter!

1. To Feel better - Get rid of those frustrating feelings, guilt hopelessness,
   and disorganization. Start feeling energized when you can regain control
   of your home

When does a collection become clutter?

When does your collection become Clutter?

Collections are a wonderful source of enjoyment. They only become clutter
when they are through serving their purpose, you no longer enjoy them, and
they are taking up valuable room needed for other purposes.

There was once a lady I knew who was really involved in a doll collection.
She had been collection dolls for years. At first it started out innocently
enough with a glass case then 4 shelves, then the china cabinet. Pretty soon
it took over the whole room and eventually the entire house.

Finally 1 day she decided that it was no longer reasonable to find new places
in her home for the dolls that she was collecting because no matter where she
put them they became dust collectors and created a cluttered junky look. She
accepted the fact that some of them had to go. So She "retired" some of the
dolls. Initially she had tried to stop buying the dolls but she soon regretted
that decision. She enjoyed the thrill of finding a rare bargain or filling
in a gap in her collection but once she had taken it home and shown it to all
her friends she didn’t pay much attention to them. So she decided on a new
plan.

Getting rid of Mementos and other prized possessions

I have recently received many e-mails regarding precious items and mementos and
how to let them go. Here is a story that might help with this process:

A friend of mine had just lost her mother and she didn’t have the luxury of
allowing much time to pass as she lived in a completely different state. Her
home had to be emptied so it could be sold otherwise it would have incurred
huge expenses including mortgage taxes, utilities and insurance. She also had
to prevent the problems associated with an abandoned home such as vandals and
burglars. Since this time was not a very easy one I offered to go with her to
help her with this very difficult burden. She happily agreed as she did not
want to be alone during this very rough time.

As we sorted out the stuff, she laughed and cried sharing her favorite memories
of her mother with me. Reliving those moments uplifted her spirits some. I
am sure it would have been torture had she had to do this alone. For such emotionally
draining work I am sure that she was happy that I was there to support her
through this.

Mental Exercises to Help you Declutter your life!

Getting rid of Clutter can be a very tiring and tedious process which requires
a lot of laborious hours and mental anguish depending on your level of clutter.
Here
are a few exercises you can do to workout your brain mentally to ready it for
decluttering your home.