The Big Declutter
Stuck at home I'm noticing more and more that every cupboard I open is like a lucky dip, or a conveyor belt on Bruce Forsyth's Generation Game. Am I the only one who has a cupboard dedicated to cuddly toys, fondue sets and hot water bottles?
Having braved the supermarket and social distancing, I could still die of starvation trying to locate that bag of rice I was sure I bought. Maybe behind the biscuits? If this resonates with you then you may be a candidate for a good therapeutic Spring Clean. We are living in an age where we are striving to streamline our lives for the good of the planet, and if the current climate has taught me anything, it's how little stuff is actually important. So I'm dispatching things off to more worthy quarters. For me at least, this phenomenon is seen only once a year, its far too much work any more regularly
Be Ruthless
When I’m in this mood I have lots of energy and so my family tend to take cover, lest they stand still long enough to get bundled in a black garbage bag and dumped in the garage for the famous Dubai “Take my Junk” to collect.
The ruthlessness with which I pursue this invigorating chore is catching. My daughter will relinquish the T shirt with holes that pass as PJ's to the rubbish pile in favour of the nice PJ’s with unicorns she had from Santa. The children especially grow out of clothes so quickly. To clog up limited storage with things that I don't need makes no sense. Children's clothes are always a welcome donations so ship them out to worthier causes.
Even my husband will part with half of the white work shirts that grace his wardrobe whilst insisting that “they are all different!”
Not all my junk is "donate-able" however. My make up basket could double as a science experiment. I have lotions and potions that expired months ago, and I realise I actually am probably poisoning myself. Fact is in reality I only use a handful of items every day.
Storage
I’ve also discovered that if you are lucky enough to have garage storage, then this can save you a million “junk drawers” in the house. Those drawers that house batteries, lightbulbs, left-over wrapping paper, the manual for the microwave and 45 hair scrunchies? You know who you are! IKEA (online!) have great plastic bins and wicker baskets for storage, (check out the Fladis Seagrass Basket in our BUY NOW section). This can mean the difference between searching every cupboard in the house for a tape measure and knowing just where to find it.
I get great satisfaction saying the screwdriver is in the toolbox
Hope you like The Big Declutter. Keep checking back to our lifestyle pages for more inspiration.