The  more I read to find the secret of unclutterment the more I think simple is the key. So simple you think why aren’t I doing it that way already. For example the answer to stopping stuff hiding at the back of fridge only to be found when well past its use by date is to ……  Check the fridge once a week. Amazing. I  can no doubt programme smartphone to tell me to do this and annoyingly remind me again and again when I press snooze.

Next ‘secret’ is to buy no more of a food than can use before it will go bad and/or  will be sick of eating it. If wish to start getting sophsticated/complicated then can also freeze stuff which may allow a little more time/less waste  …. as long as don’t let it hide there instead.  Smartphone needs to remind regularly to check what’s hidden in fridge too. There is a little more but you get the idea. Here a link to a checklist and method developed by SimplyBeingMum. Her weekly #foodwastefriday ritual can help stop you wasting food. Following a weekly plan every week till it becomes as habitual as cleaning your teeth really is key to success.    Of course if you’re a real Stuffoholic your cupboards will be prepared for famine too. Just check them as well and learn that an empty cupboard can be a thing of beauty and not a cause for concern. Tricky balancing trick but it can be done… or so I’ve read.

I would be remiss though to leave it at that without a warning about potential pitfalls. Food plays such an important part in our culture it is not only seen as a means to keep us alive. For example, that desire/need to be hospitable or accept gifts graciously may put you off track. I’ll say no more but remember this picture and these words. How you handle lapses from your plan will determine whether you happily get back on the less food waste trail or decide after that takeaway/box of chocs/impulse buy it’s not for thee.

Food though isn’t really top of my ‘clutter that’s drowning me’ list.  I therefore wondered whether I could apply any of the food waste tips to reduce my ‘real’ stuff stash. My first response was , of course not , after all this stuff doesn’t have best before and use by dates it can’t go bad, it’s not rotting sitting in that corner/cupboard/space. On further consideration though I decided there just might be something in this approach. Do you remember that other stuff on my desk  I’m going to slap on that stuff ‘use by’ labels  for 3 months hence and if it’s not shifted by then consign it all to the bin. Well maybe not the bin but will at least as we head to winter ask and answer the question is this item like a tin of beans preparation for the apocalypse and can have an extension or akin to a (now) mouldy piece of cheese which will have to go in bin but could have been eaten by someone else if I’d given it away 3 months ago. Like any plan this needs to be fuelled by hope and chocolate. Enough for today let me start sticking on those labels.

you just never know when you’ll need/repurpose a broken …….

Recently the Stuffoholics have been thinking about things on a global level- from consumerism to littering to excessive packaging- but this week I’m bringing our blog back home. It all started with this tweet by @easydecluttering:

Magazine buying is a habit I’ve (mostly) managed to kick, but my home still has an accumulation of assorted reading matter. Rather like the books, I find it difficult to part with anything I’ve not quite finished or might want to return to some time. Which brings me to my bed:

Stuff

more stuff

yet more stuff

There are many, many magazines under there. And many other things too. One thing’s for certain, there’s definitely no room for monsters to hide under there! Deep down, I knew @easydecluttering could see straight through me; I was never going to make use of this stuff.

So, out it all came…

Pretty boxes

Save 5, get 1 free

Broken Glasses

Nail Varnish Galore

Unwearable Shoes

Growing Soldier

Badge Maker

Christmas Lights

Lotsa Letters

Some highlights: 1)Pretty boxes I thought might come in handy one day. 2)Lush pots, save 5 to get one free- I have 4. 3)Broken glasses waiting to be donated to a recycling scheme. 4)So many nail varnishes. 5)Shoes I loved which are broken & shoes I hated which don’t fit. 6)Growing Soldier, who’s been outgrown. 7)Badge making machine (wondered where that went.) 8) Festive candle holders (forgot to bring them out for Christmas.) 9)Lots of letters.

Oh, and some magazines…

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Over 150 of them. The oldest was dated 1995. It was quite sobering to think I’d owned that particular magazine for 22 years, especially as it really wasn’t all that interesting. There were also 50 writing magazines (15 never removed from their plastic cover.) “Out of sight out of mind” springs to mind.

What now? Well, I expect some of that stuff will be going back under my bed. Where else would I keep my nail varnish/ seasonal tealight holders/ badge machine? But the gardening magazines have been given away. Maybe the Mslexias will sell on eBay. And I can leave random magazines at a local Give & Take, or on the free book shelf in my local train station.

As for the rest, who knows? I’ve made a start. And, at least for now, there’s a yawning space beneath my bed. I’ll be checking for monsters tonight…

That’s where my lens cap went!

Of course in the good old days there was no doubt about the meaning of the idiom – Half a loaf is better than none. We were all sure that bread is better than no bread. Today though we might ask but, is it wholemeal? is it gluten free? is it low GI?  before giving a still hesitant yes. What you may ask can this apparently random thought have to do with this blog. Well in the modern world where the existence of facts to measure truth is in doubt , it is difficult to judge if a step in the right direction will be seen as just that ie half a loaf or a ‘sell out’ which will just mean progress halts at the point reached.

Still too theoretical. Here the practical example I wanted to share . I knew from myzerowaste site and my own checking of packets from time to time that the inner bags for Weetabix are ‘Not currently recycled‘. An annoying category which misleadingly gives the impression that it’s a short matter of time before they will be. When, in practice Hell may freeze over first (maybe as a result of climate change). Imagine therefore my surprise when folding the cardboard box (ready to recycle) and seeing in very fine print.

Just in case,much like on pack, if you can’t read it, it says ‘Recycle with carrier bags at larger stores. Not at kerbside’.
I thought this a fluke and felt need to check Weetabix site.  There it was in FAQ’s ….

At the moment our plastic-based packaging is not recycled by many local councils. The inner bags used for most of our cereals can be recycled with shopping bags at larger retailers. We are however, working closely with a number of organisations and our suppliers to improve the recycling of these materials.

I can’t imagine why when it is such a step forward they don’t make more of this. I’m sure only the most vigilant would spot the fine print and its common knowledge (don’t ask for even fake facts to support this assertion but I did ask a greenish friend) that the liners have to (eventually) go in bin. I know, I know there are at least 30 things you can do with them  first but I had been still sure they were destined for the great trash pile in the sea.

I was keen to celebrate this and point it out to others who like me might have missed this update but then thought ah… but…  a true zero waster would want the inner bag to be made of edible paper or at least be compostable not plastic at all. Was I letting Weetabix off its responsibilities too easily and in so doing sleeping easily when I should be campaigning or boycotting them ( easy for me as I don’t eat boxed cereal . This box was one my son had left in house but that’s not the point).  What to do. So much plastic, so little time. I decided that this was not a battle for me when there are so many non recyclable plastic bags out there to focus on. For my sanity I chose in this case to believe half a loaf is better than none… for now.

But don’t let me stop you doing otherwise. Email consumerservice@weetabix.co.uk

Bon chance!

…. a blog post is never quite finished till you press send. Sleepless night , counting bits of litter as one does to fall back to slumber remembered the likely food waste claim that this type of liner for a ceral box is best way to avoid waste … and that thought (whether true or not) unlike the litter allowed me for now to sleep.

This week I’m hundreds of miles from home. How will I tackle my accumulated stuff? I could always have a go at sorting out the heaps of mental/emotional stuff which have no doubt accompanied me to my new location. To be honest, this doesn’t sound like much fun. Instead, I’m going to sort out someone else’s stuff.

Litter- things left behind by one thoughtless person, which quickly become everybody’s problem. This week was the perfect opportunity to try out the Litterati app

It’s very easy to use. Simply take a picture of the litter, tag it with a description (#can #waterbottle #coke #mcdonalds etc) and upload it. You then recycle the rubbish, if possible, or bin it. And that’s it. Thanks to you, the environment is better off than it was five minutes ago.

You may ask what difference it could make, picking up that one crisp packet. Well, it makes all the difference in the world. My 33 pieces of rubbish are a small contribution towards the 648,266 items already collected by Litterati users. It’s a promising start. And collecting very real litter makes a lot more sense to me than collecting virtual, pixelated pocket monsters!

Still not convinced? Jeff explains it far better than I can…

I used to keep the rest of a 6 pack of toilet rolls in the cupboard under the sink. ……..

Not the most obvious line to start an entertaining blog with but to cut a long story short, the wheelchair means there is no longer a cupboard under the sink and the shelves, at a height I can reach, are premium space.  I therefore in an idle moment and in the spirit of clear floor space googled ‘toilet roll storage’.  The result was to discover a  post  that has some pictures which tempted me to fleetingly consider buying something which I don’t need but could want.  A toilet roll tree for the wall,  stylish almost practical but at $180 I would have to not eat (and not just cake) for several weeks to justify its purchase. So I put the thought aside.

But there was more,  what of the wall mounted cloud toilet roll shelf . Far more practical (though in this house there might be an issue with putting up a level shelf and a lopsided cloud almost inevitable)  and still Art too. My cloud would be a thing to spark conversation and at last I could claim to possess something designery in my humble abode. Would it be worth not eating for several weeks for such a prize. After all I could even paint the shelf silver so my cloud had a silver lining (groan!!!) . Alas, it was not to be. I thought wait a minute as soon as you use up a toilet roll you have lost that cloud shape . Does that mean you have to keep another spare spare pack to fill this cloud up. In which case where does that spare pack reside. Would I ever in my new streamlined decluttered world need 13 toilet rolls. What sort of crisis means I need more than one spare roll let alone 13. How would I refill it so toilet rolls were rotated so I didn’t end up with grey dusty rolls at the bottom. Enough . Reductio ad absurdumm. Sense not shillings decided me.

Hmm …  so what is the lesson for this week. Simple! Simplicity means just that. On this ‘decluttering’ journey I’m going to have to be clear the difference between needs and wants  but also I must not get seduced by other people’s apparently perfect lives. I must live my own.  Repeat after me , There is nothing wrong with a neat pile of toilet rolls in a corner of the bathroom.

Mind you , still feel free to contact me if that giraffe you no longer love is in need of a new home.

Keep Britain Tidy have been around since 1960, campaigning to educate litterers and convince them to dispose of rubbish in a more thoughtful manner.  Their poster campaigns should be familiar to anyone who grew up in the UK. Personally, I find it more than a little depressing that this environmental charity is still needed in this day and age… but a quick look around our streets & countryside clearly shows their message needs shouting louder than ever.

Keep Britain Tidy app

In the 21st century, a picture of a friendly lion or popular comedy duo is unlikely to convince anyone to care for their environment. But everybody loves an app; though it won’t actually pick up the litter & bin it, this can be used to report environmental issues to the relevant local council at the click of a button.

More phone apps:

Littergram, “Using the power of your phone and social media to clean up Britain.” Simple to follow:  Snap It (take photos of litter and other incidents with your phone) Share It (upload your photos to LitterGram and share on social media) and Sort It (councils identify litter grot spots and clear up the mess.)

Litterati “Join the community identifying, mapping, and collecting the world’s litter.” This app aims to identify the most commonly found brands and products. This data will be used to work with companies and organizations to find more sustainable solutions. At the time of writing 606, 905 items of litter had been photographed, tagged and removed.

Find them on twitter:

@KeepBritainTidy

@Litterati

@LitterGram

Though these are handy tools for tackling a growing problem, they can’t beat the least technical solution in the book…  putting your phone away, picking up the rubbish & disposing of it responsibly.

Pick it up!

This post was going to be a blank screen as my efforts this past week to ‘responsibly’ declutter less blogworthy than I would hope. It is as I’ve discovered easy to throw it all away but once I changed the ‘rules’ so now also avoiding landfill it has becomes a real challenge. No matter life is about how we tackle the uphill not just the flat and effort counts as well as achievement. Fine words but I remained unconvinced I had anything to justify putting pen to paper or rather fingers to keys when I recalled a favourite post from If I were my own best friend … blog . After all as  the author  says “If I were my own best friend I would tell myself to…..celebrate small victories (even if they may not actually seem like victories).“ and she then goes on to recount this tale.

***I grew a small plant! A seedling actually. But still, a small plant! And I grew it! All. On. My. Own! This is a big deal – I have struggled to grow plants and to keep them alive. And this plant even lived for a few days. Until I decided that growing a small plant out of the side of the sink I never remember to clean……”

The plant is not the small victory , though I’m tempted to leave it at that. No to end the post the promise is … “Moving  forward I plan to celebrate small victories – like wiping down the side sink on a regular basis and maybe even growing another house plant (in a pot with soil).” Wise words to make small actions count.

So what is (I’d like to say are but not so) my small victory this week.  Well, not that you would notice but I  have actually managed (albeit by a little emotional blackmail as I cannot climb a ladder anymore) to get those dangly bits in the pic back on the shade.  No idea what I’m talking about click here.

I would include here the pic to prove the task done . I understand in an Instagram world words are not suffice though of course I argue in a Photoshop world what is truth anyway. But that will have to wait . My time limit for this blogging task run out. Enough soul searching . I will finish with a quote from the same blog by an influential ‘philosopher’ – Cookie Monster from Sesame Street

“Today me will live in the moment unless it is unpleasant in which case me will eat a cookie” 

Looking around this cluttered house, I see a lot of things in a state of limbo. Some are recyclables, waiting in heaps to be taken to various holding zones (the cellar, the porch) before heading off to the local council or supermarket recycling facilities. Others are waiting (often in vain) to find their way back to their rightful homes… carefully folded clothes balanced on a chair back, not-quite-finished- and- yet-abandoned art projects & games, stuff waiting hopefully on the bottom stair (ignored & sidestepped by my family whenever they head upstairs.) An even sadder sub-group of dispossessed stuff is the weird & wonderful collection of items waiting patiently to be fixed.

I don’t chuck out broken things. I know that holes can be sewn up, cracks can be glued, and lost screws replaced. It might be a generational thing. Having experienced the hardship of the war years, my parents knew how to make things last. Theirs was a world of hand-me-downs, make do and mend. Consequently, the next generation also grew up knowing how to care for and value their stuff. At Christmas time, we would open our presents very, very carefully so the wrapping paper could be saved and reused the following December (and this didn’t even seem odd to us.) Nowadays, it is far too easy not to fix and reuse. Things can be replaced on a whim, with little thought to the consequences.

It was with a sigh of relief that I read about Mend It May. Across twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and numerous blogs, #menditmay stories and pictures have entertained & inspired me; people demonstrating their ingenuity, artistic flair & determination to revamp a well-loved cardi,  kick-start a grumpy appliance, or fix that wonky whatever. Here was the timely nudge I needed to sort out all those mending chores!

Well, I didn’t exactly go to town on the long list… but I’ve made a start! My first job was fixing a favourite rucksack which I’d stopped using because the front pocket was hanging off. Once the needle and thread was located, this really didn’t take long. On a bit of a high, I also sewed up a big hole in the pocket of my favourite jacket. No more struggling to remove a ringing phone from the hidden depths of my coat! Finally, looking down at the skirt I was wearing (a clothes swap fave) I fixed the three small holes which I’d been ignoring. An hour of tackling these jobs seems nothing compared to the hours of irritation saved.

When my son arrived home from work, I asked for his coat so I could sew up the holes in his pockets too…. but he was horrified at the thought. Apparently, he prefers to have a mega pocket which goes all the way round his coat!

Today’s post was originally inspired by a daily google wander, now several weeks ago. The gentle author at Spitalfields Life is a writer whose blog I drop in on from time to time. I must I thought share his post about a legendary junk shop closing its doors. It seemed a perfect fit to a tale of drowning in stuff.

So Long, Des & Lorraine’s Junk Shop …   Spitalfields Life

I planned back then in this blog to ask and answer the question ” When I look at this picture from his blog am I horrified or delighted? “. A short post, with the answer a simple enchanted but …, then comparison with my own world and encouragement to keep to my 5 a day. However, since then found this story about junk on the BBC News  too.

Up to 600 tonnes of rubbish has been dumped under a bridge near a regional park.    BBC News

The BBC article made me question the direction this decluttering journey was taking me. My response and I suspect yours dear reader was very different to the two articles Why is that? I think one reason is because in the first (even if you disagree whether it is true) there is an assumption the stuff still has value, that it can still be re-used, repaired even upcycled.  It is a tale with hope for the future. In the other the stuff has been discarded and is useless rubbish. Instead of being a valuable resource ‘that stuff’ is now a problem to be dealt with. I questioned whether that difference is right. In that pile of rubbish , wood, a chair, useful stuff … if only people (that’s you and me by the way)  had made a different decision when it was time to let go of their stuff there might be no problem to solve.

I have thus come to realise that I’m ‘drowning in stuff’ in part (other reasons are for another day) because it really isn’t that easy to repair, repurpose, recycle stuff in the twenty first century.  Unwittingly,  ‘labour saving progress’ has instead made it so much easier and cheaper to just throw stuff away with no regard for where away is or the environmental price to be paid.  Quite unintentionally, this journey appears to have taken me on the road to eco warrior rather than consumer minimalist.  In seeking to de-stress by destuffing  I’ve come quickly to realise that just throwing stuff away might be an easy solution but ultimately not one that will make me feel any better about myself , one of the reasons for travelling on the road to unclutterment in the first place.

So what to do. I’m a bit of a perfectionist so its not enough to recycle. Ideally I would repair or re-purpose first and if necessary make my own recycled plastic stuff like this West Virginia dad does too.

My mission from now will to clear my space not by  just throwing stuff away but somehow  I will do so while reducing the amount of  de-cluttered stuff being buried for future generations to discover. I know this will be a challenge and expect to fail more often than I succeed.  A more modest one a day re-somethinged will be my aim or even one a week saved from the tip.  I will comfort myself with the thought that even one a week could start to bring the waste juggernaut to a halt even if there is still a long way to go to turn it around and get back to where the wrong turning was made. As ever words easy, action more of a challenge. Time for blogging done but I will let you know how I fare if you return another day. 

This quote from William Morris is pretty popular amongst declutterers online. They could hardly hope to find a more concise or apt mantra- if it ain’t useful or beautiful, you shouldn’t be giving it house space.

I first read these words when I visited the William Morris Gallery in East London. Maybe I’d been dazzled by the sheer beauty of his fabric and wallpaper designs, but I was suckered right in by the simplicity and absoluteness of William’s assertion. Useful, or beautiful… why would I ever consider hanging on to stuff which could lay claim to neither of those adjectives?

Did I rush home from that epiphany and empty my house of all superfluousness? Dear reader, I did not. And some years later, though the wisdom of his words still resonates, I’d say William’s statement was just too black and white.

My own home contains many things which might be useful, or could be beautiful… they just haven’t had their time to shine. Things which dwell on tops of wardrobes, under beds, in the random drawer, down in the cellar, up in the attic, mostly shoved out of everyday view- the things which might come in handy one day- have all earned their place in my home. Challenge me as to the intended purpose of any of these items & I can only point out that you would at some point rue the day you threw out this un-useful, un-beautiful object. In the distant future, you would be faced by a problem which could only be solved by the timely application of an old door key/ worn toothbrush/ copy of She magazine from 1983/ <insert random clutter here>

Maybe I’m not entirely disagreeing with Mr Morris. Useful and beautiful are quite possibly the only criteria required. I’m just saying that almost all things are potentially useful & also quite possibly beautiful…. it’s all in the eye of the beholder.

I’ll leave you with a thing of beauty I came across whilst wandering around Greenland Dock in Rotherhithe. This sanctuary welcomes lost or disowned gloves and provides an opportunity to make a fresh pairing and become part of a beautiful & useful new partnership.

Now, where did I leave that odd glove?