Reasons

Why do people declutter their homes, lives, and environments? I'm sure there are myriad reasons for simplifying.  Colleen's post The Joys of Decluttering over at http://www.365lessthings.com/ got me thinking about why people have been writing about simplifying their lives and decluttering their homes.

• Anger.  Years ago I read the book Messies Anonymous by Sandra Felton.  She relates in the book that she first started decluttering because she was angry.  Angry at herself.  Angry that she had allowed so much clutter to live all over her house that she did not even notice the water leak in the kitchen until it had caused major damage to her floor and walls which required a very expensive repair.
• Freedom from Fear.  Many people hold on to all kinds of items out of fear for the future.  What if they can't afford to purchase another "...(you name the item).."?  They 'need' to keep either the old one or an additional new one around 'just in case'.  Usually this ends up not being cost effective because of disintegration from disuse or because when they do need the stored item, they can't find it in the clutter.  In addition, they've had to spend the resources to store whatever it is.  If you deal with the underlying fear issue, you can free yourself from fear of the future and the accompanying clutter.
• Moving.  People move. A lot.  It's unusual to meet a person who has lived in the same house or even the same neighborhood all her/his life.  Lugging all that stuff around from house to house, city to city, gets expensive.  Do the math.  If a new bed, sofa or table costs less than the price to move it, it's a better financial choice to sell it and purchase a different table, bed or sofa in your new location.  Schlepping three sets of dishes, five boxes of holiday decorations, or 25 boxes of books out of the old place, into the moving van, and back up the steps into the new spot is exhausting and expensive.  People are asking, "Do we really need all that stuff to make us happy in the new home?"
• Cleaning.  It's so much easier to clean when there's less stuff in the way.
• Desire for Peaceful Living.  Face it.  Living in clutter is not peaceful.  People who are decluttering and simplifying their physical spaces are finding out just how much their surroundings affect their ability to relax.  When their space is uncluttered, their minds can be at peace.

If you're on a decluttering kick, what is your motivation?

Week 1 Update for Project 333

After sitting around in the living room shivering while I was correcting student compositions, I realized that yes, I had underestimated the number of layering sweaters I would need. (Here's where I again plead the excuse of 105 degree weather the last week.)

Therefore, I have added to my list:

31. turquoise fleece pullover
32.
33.

We are one week in to the challenge.  My initial reaction is that it's easier to do laundry. 

And that's a good thing.

Minimalist Fashion Project 333

I quietly joined Minimalist Fashion Project 333 on October 1st.  When I first read about the project on Courtney's blog BeMoreWithLess, I thought, "Hey, I could do that. No sweat.  I don't have that many clothes, anyway."  Then I walked back to my closet and took an honest look.  I certainly had more than thirty-three items hanging there.  So I began to glean and declutter the clothes I obviously would never wear again and dropped them in to a big black trash bag to take to the thrift store.

Here are the original rules for Project 333:
•When: October 1 – December 31 (It’s never too late to start so join in anytime!)

•What: 33 items including clothing, accessories, jewelry, outerwear and shoes.

•What not: these items are not counted as part of the 33 items – wedding ring, underwear, sleep, in-home lounge wear, and workout clothing (you can only wear your workout clothing to workout)

•How: over the next two months, outline your 33 items, by the 1st of October, box up the remainder of your fashion statement, seal it with tape and put it out of site.

•What else: consider that you are creating a wardrobe that you can live, work and play in for three months. If you purchase items for project 333, stick with the one in, two out approach. Consider the essentials and stick to 33.

Now it is October 5th.
I'm posting my list:

  1. black dress slacks
  2. black capris
  3. grey jeans
  4. tan jeans
  5. navy fleece jacket
  6. long sleeved black knit top
  7. long-sleeved white knit top
  8. navy skirt
  9. navy short-sleeved knit top
10. teal cashmere sweater
11. purple cashmere sweater
12. turquoise cardigan
13. print blouse
14. black camisole
15. white camisole
16.-22. various colored t shirts
23. black shoes
24. black flipflops
25. sterling silver earrings
26. watch
27.-28. two necklaces
29. gloves
30. lavender 3/4 sleeve sweater
31.
32.
33.

These last three slots I am reserving for scarves and a sweater that I've nearly finished knitting.  Or maybe another pair of earrings (I do love my earrings).

Five days in to this and I'm thinking that because I made my final list last week and started the project when the weather was presenting us with triple digit temperatures I may have over estimated the t shirts and under estimated the sweaters.  This week we are having rain, clouds, fog, and temperatures in the 60s. We shall see.

And now I'm wondering if anyone besides my husband will notice that I am only wearing 33 items for 3 months!