The DeClutter Project Report - Week 1

Here ends four days of decluttering.  Phew! I am exhausted but I'm excited about the progress I made.  I completed five of the tasks on my list in the four days and I took a very full carload of stuff to donate to Value Village today.  It feels really good to get all of that unused stuff out of my apartment and my life and I hope someone else will enjoy using the things that were just taking up space in my home.

I didn't pick my weekend tasks randomly this time around, I had a plan.  I wanted to clean the spaces I use most regularly - the storage closet (where cleaning products, cat supplies - including the litter box - and miscellaneous seasonal items like Xmas decorations are kept) needed to be tidied before my cleaning lady comes back tomorrow and in case I am bringing home a new cat or two in the near future.  I also wanted to do the bedroom closet and dressers, as I use them every day as I get dressed and it was becoming more and more of a challenge to find things.  And the linen closet, just because the mess bothered me every time I opened that door!

I started on Friday with the storage closet. I did it first because I knew I had several suitcases to get rid of that I don't use any more and I wanted to fill them with stuff I was going to be donating, like clothes and sheets.  Here are some before (on the left) and after (on the right) pictures:

As you can see, I now have 2 completely empty shelves as a result of my decluttering, that is pretty exciting!  As I work my way around the apartment in the next few weeks, I'm sure I'll find things to store in those spaces.

The next day, I worked on the linen closet.  I don't actually keep any "linens" in this closet, I use it to store tools and soap and shampoo, stuff like that.  Before, it was a jumbled mess.  Every time I needed something, I had to dig through a bunch of stuff to find it. 

Now, it's tidy and organized and I can tell right away what is there and what isnt'.  I also know that I don't need to buy any body lotion for a while, since somehow I have two big full bottles already!  That is also one of my plans for 2011, to use up what I have on hand before I buy anything new.  For example, I have several half-empty bottles of conditioner for some reason, so I will only need to buy shampoo next time I run out.

On day 3, Sunday, I made a start on my bedroom closet.  But first, I tackled the three dressers I have in my bedroom, one of which I use to store sheets.  I still haven't answered the question of why bottom sheets are so hard to fold and always seem to take up twice as much room as the tidier top sheet, but I did determine that I wasn't using half the sheet sets, duvet covers and pillow shams I had on hand so those unused ones are now gone to a new home and I am left with only my favourites.  Ditto for the pyjamas, underwear, workout clothes, turtlenecks and sweaters that were crowding the rest of my drawer space.  Every drawer (except one, which is a bit of a junk drawer and is now earmarked for a later date) is now tidy and organized and loosely filled, easy to close - no more wrestling to close an overfilled drawer!

Today, the last day, I finished organizing and tidying the bedroom closet and did a general tidy of the rest of the apartment.  The job of tidying the closet turned out to be easier and less time-consuming than expected.  I still have boxes of summer clothes on the shelves above but I plan to sort through them when the weather is warmer.  In the meantime, my walk-in closet has a clear floor, room for 3 laundry baskets to sit until filled and everything is hanging neatly and organized.  (now if I could just figure out what to wear tomorrow when I have to go back to work?!)

I've also made a list of things that need be done at a later date, like the sorting of the summer clothes.  I also want to sort through my several boxes of Christmas decorations but I figure there is no point in doing that now. If I save that for the fall, I can donate what I don't want and someone can use it for the Xmas season.  But the major job is done, the 5 areas I worked on are tidier and cleaner and no longer seem to be weighing me down emotionally with the thought of all that clutter.  That feels good.

As a reward, I'm going to take tonight off and just wind down and relax, probably watch a movie.  I figure I've earned a little time to goof off!  Until next weekend, when I will stick my hand in the job jar and pull out my next assignment.