Learning to do away with clutter

Bright Ideas

I recently watched a documentary on Netflix called “Minimalism,” and one thing co-author Joshua Fields Millburn said was something to the effect of, if an object holds no value to him in his home, he gets rid of it.

Simple enough, right? Wrong. For the next few days, I wanted to come up with a fairly large donation for Providence House, but each item I grabbed was overshadowed with the thought of, I might need that one day.

So instead of focusing on many things all at once, I decided to set a more achievable goal for reducing the clutter in my home environment: Find one thing a week to donate or throw away. (Bonus points if I get rid of two things in a week, right? Sure.)

Since then, I’ve done pretty well with it. Whether I’m sweeping my home office floor or cleaning my bathroom, I’m taking a look at my surroundings for things that are quite simply collecting dust. If it is, and I haven’t used it in the past six months, it will either go in the donation pile or trash.

When it comes to my clothes, I’ll try to find one article of clothing a week to send on its way.

This practice has yielded results. As the donation pile grows, less clutter surrounds me. It piqued my interest on more ways to do less with more.

I came across simpleorganizedlife.

com, and found 10 tips on how to reduce clutter. Familiar ideas included have a place for everything, purge once or twice a year (think spring cleaning), starting small (don’t overwhelm yourself with the amount of stuff that could potentially go), and making lists.

New ideas, however, included boxes, the online marketplace, unsubscribing from magazines, and buying a multi-function version of a product.

I have several large, plastic bins in my home and garage that house a bunch of random things, and the blog post explains that instead of buying these bins, use free storage containers – shoe boxes, shipping boxes and the like.

“If you have it, someone else is willing to pay for it,” the post points out, as the point of selling items on Craigslist, Ebay and Amazon is made. There are also a few Facebook groups in the Shreveport-Bossier City area that are available to sell items to local folks. Check out Shreveport~Bossier Buy, Sell, Trade on Facebook. This is a great way to get rid of that old TV, books, CD’s, fishing supplies – you name it.

I did like the point made for unsubscribing from magazines and catalogs. I think of this like my e-mail inbox. If something comes in digitally, I open it, click unsubscribe, and move on. Well, the idea in the tangible world is to end the subscription, and read and/or shop online.

In fact, if you have a library card, you can use the Flipster app on the Shreve Memorial Library Web site to download hundreds of magazines in several categories, from home and garden, to food and cooking. Visit shreve-lib.org, and click “Flipster” under E-Branch services. (If you don’t find it online, chances are the magazine is at one of the branch locations). By doing this, you’ll save money and space. This applies to anyone in Caddo, Bossier or surrounding parishes.

Finally, the idea to buy a multifunction version of an item makes sense. Who knew blenders could also work as a food processor? Probably more people than I imagine, but it’s new to me! Of course, you could find a remote that will control your TV and stereo, or a coffee pot that grinds the beans before making the coffee.

There are also some great ideas at idreamofclean.net, namely one thing in, one thing out. It’s a simple but powerful process when it comes to decluttering your home. Try to find one thing in your home to get rid of each time you bring something new inside.

Just like the documentary I had watched before this all began, this “10 Foolproof Ways to Reduce Clutter” list includes “If it doesn’t add value, give it away or trash it.”

Hopefully, one or two of these tips come in handy as you begin your spring cleaning. Perhaps a few will stick with you, and before you know, it’ll be weekly cleaning, and you’ll be in a de-cluttered space in no time. Trust me, it’ll be worth it.

Karen E. Wissing works in Shreveport-Bossier City and loves her community.

E-mail your questions, comments or suggestions to [email protected].