I want to get rid of (via donations, craigslist, ebay, freecycle, etc) at least 100 things before moving day. On one hand the number sounds kinda high, but on the other hand, I know there are at least 100 things in our house that we never use, need, or should spend time and effort moving. And I actually plan to keep track, writing all 100 items down on a piece of paper in list form. Why? Because I’m weird like that.
To kick things off I went through my shoes (pun intended). Amazingly, I realized that I hadn’t worn a good amount of them since leaving NYC and moving to Richmond 4+ years ago. How embarrassing.
I ended up with ten pairs of shoes in my toss/Goodwill/ebay pile. Not too bad considering I had just 18 in my keep pile (although my definite-keeper Puma sneakers were out in the sunroom for a grand total of 19). That means I’m ready to say “hasta la vista” (in my best Schwarzenegger accent) to over a third of all the shoes that I own.
Sidenote:The blue-gray bedroom wall looks so green in this picture- clearly I still have a lot to learn about the new camera.
So although that’s actually 20 things I’m getting rid of (since there are two shoes per pair) I’m counting the shoe purge as ten items just to be fair. Now to find 90 more things to get gone. Somebody wish me luck. And stay tuned for an update to see if I’m able to reach my weird little goal…
Is anyone else out there cutting the fat at home and pairing things down in a major way? Let’s commiserate.
Barbara says
So just where did you keep all of those shoes? I didn’t see that many when you showed your tidy little wardrobe. You’re holding out on us! Where did you hide them?!
Barbara
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Barbara,
Many of them fit in my wardrobe, but I also stored some of them on the floor of the bedroom’s original closet.
xo,
s
nicole says
1. Love the Simpsons reference. I say “Smell ya later” quite often, but I’m afraid that most people just think I’m strange.
2. My family and I are moving soon, so we trimmed the fat in a MAJOR way a few weeks ago. After all was said and done, we ended up taking 2 XTerra-full loads (as in, only the front seat wasn’t taken up with stuff) to the thrift store. I didn’t think it would, but I have to say that it felt SO GOOD to have all that stuff out of my life. This is my new mantra: “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”
Joanne says
100 things sounds like a brilliant goal! I decided today to do a home purge – even before reading your blog. I’m using the end of the year as my deadline. Plus I’ll keep a charity give away list for taxes.
NK says
I’m just about to move too. I know I have shoes and clothes that I no longer wear. How do I know this? Well they haven’t been unpacked since the last move 14months ago. Now that I know I’m moving in 2 months for work I am eagarly awaiting the weekend so I can commence sorting.It’s a time consuming task but it feels so good in the end.
I think you will be surprised how easy it will be to reach 100. There are mysterious things that hide in the back of kitchen cupborads!
Tracey says
I admit i’m a chronic purger. I’ve been transitory for so long that now that i’ve been in the same place for almost 2 years i’ve started to accumulate things again and i’ve been purging weekly. My goal is to never fill up all the closets or drawers in my apartment.
Emily @ NewlyWife says
That’s awesome! Moving is the best time to purge stuff. When my husband and I moved in after getting married, he moved everything he owned — including years-old mail. I’ve spent tons of time going through it in the two years we’ve been in this house. One person’s moved trash is another person’s chore.
Bethany says
You can set a custom white balance each time your lighting changes by purchasing a gray card or cloth from a photography store. I don’t know if it has been mentioned…I didn’t read all the comments but did search them for “gray card”.
Its very easy to do. You just take a picture of the card/cloth in the lighting you want to use. Then you go into your menu (I have a canon, so I don’t know how your camera works.) and select that image to use as the white balance. Then you select “custom white balance” from the options. It does amazing things! :)
leah says
We have been on the purging and decluttering program for a couple of months now. We had a yard sale a few years back and got rid of soooo much stuff (and made $250)! It feels so good. But I am still getting rid of stuff as we speak. It feels good to sort of streamline your life, ya know.
The Daily B says
We moved recently and did a big purge beforehand….and to our surprise, we purged EVEN MORE after we moved in. Even though our new place is twice as big as our old, we found a lot of things while we were unpacking that we just never use. So out they went! Feels great.
Donna says
We just got around to switching over the summer and winter clothes today. Husband and I spent several hours not just moving over, but purging. Convenient that our church is having a clothing drive. We’ll have two bags of men’s clothes and two of women’s to donate, at least, plus some teenager’s clothing.
I usually organize my closet by type of clothing, and within each category by color. But this summer, I started putting clean clothes in the front of the closet. That way, the less frequently or never used ones migrated to the back. So it was easier to make those decisions today.
April says
We’re in the midst of a major purge around here. We, however, stupidly decided to do it AFTER we moved. Heh. It took us six weeks to move. Fortunately for us, our new house is only five minutes from our old house, and we weren’t selling our old (and completely paid-for) house.
The current purge involves listing on craigslist the appliances we removed from the new house’s kitchen when we remodeled (no success yet…anybody want a gently-used wall oven? ;-)). I’ve also been listing some of my sister’s cake decorating supplies (pans, books, etc.) on eBay, with much more success – 25 sales so far! I also have a big box of my grandparents’ old 45’s to sell (here’s hoping some people are buying them for Christmas presents!), and a big box of my dad’s comic books from his boyhood in the 1950’s.
The one good thing about selling your stuff is that you have the satisfaction of knowing that someone, somewhere, wants and is happy to get something that was just cluttering up your house before. In the case of my sister’s cake decorating books, there’s also a good feeling of knowing that it will help someone else pursue their hobby. Those are at least a little positive motivation in the middle of the annoyance of getting stuff sold (the money doesn’t hurt, either ;-)).
Tatyana says
We live in a 750 sq. ft. apartment in the city and are forced to have only the necessary. So, purging is something we do often. I usually go through my clothes/shoes twice a year and put things I don’t wear in a bag that goes into the attic for 6 months. It gives me time to figure out if I really need/want the stuff or not. When the next purging time comes, whatever I have not taken back out from the bag goes to charity. I have not tried selling any clothes on e-bay, craigslist or posting it on freecycle. Maybe I should. Is it worth the time and effort (taking pictures, writing up the description, etc)?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Tatyana,
We definitely think it’s worth it for items that we believe will sell well and be worth the trouble (we usually search ebay for something similar and see if it’s a hot item before bothering). Otherwise it’s easy to bring things to a consignment shop or have a yard sale or even list them on craigslist. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Cindy says
I tend to be a pack rat. I want to join you and also get rid of 100 things, POST-move a year ago. I need some motivation — what is your deadline?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Cindy,
Well we’re supposed to be moving by mid December so that’s our goal. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Lindsey says
Hi Sherry,
Though the hubby and I haven’t made a big move since intially coming to our apartment, we try to make a regular habit of purging things/crap/clutter around our house. When we got married, in-laws gave up lamps without shades (that seemed like cool DIY projects, but down-the-road never happened) and endless seasonal decor. On top of that, we both have clothes we never, ever wear, and house items we may never find use for.
We have a great place nearby called ECHO that recycles textiles if the clothes cannot be used for local donation, and accepts all kinds of household items. It always feels great to give, and is certainly incentive to root through our closet and drawers for a few minutes to fill a donation bag. It feels wonderful to just get rid of “stuff” cluttering our happy little apartment life.
Now if we could just get in the habit of driving the donations straight to ECHO rather than the 3 months they might spend in my trunk…
Liv says
I just spent a couple of hours today organizing my dresser and it felt so good. I had two bags of things to donate and one bag of things for the trash. It’s liberating to free up so much space and let go of things I haven’t worn in ages.
Jill says
This is BY FAR my favorite part of moving. The urge to purge is so wonderful. Embrace it! Good luck – I’m going through the same right now for my own move.
And a tip: if you get low on motivation, fire up the Netflix on-demand and watch an episode of Hoarders. Your 100 things will turn into 500 from raw, unadulterated fear.
heyruthie says
i am purging! the silliest little “game” has really helped me! I realized that when “purging” in the past, I used to ask myself “Can I still use this?” Well, the answer was almost always “Yes! I’m sure there’s SOME way that I can still use this!” Instead, I’m now asking myself (I know, it sounds dumb, but it works!)
“Do I *love* this? Does it make me feel great?”
I’m SHOCKED by home many things I get to trash! And (oddly) it’s the second question that gets me! It makes me analyze how I feel about an item, and I’m amazed at just how many things I’ve held onto that do NOT make me feel great! For example, things that I *wish* I fit into, but make me *feel* fat right now, or gifts from a friend that I’m out of touch with, and I feel guilty about not seeing as much, or even family items that I’ve never loved. Anyway, my two questions have helped me send out about 8 black plastic trash bags of donations (and countless bags of trash) so far!
Erin says
I don’t want to make this a morbid comment or anything, but my mother-in-law passed away a few months ago. She was a… how shall I say… “prolific shopper.” When my husband went to help his dad with the difficult task of sorthing through all her things, he realized none of the STUFF really matters… you can’t take it with you. The only thing you take with you is memories.
So this past weekend we went through our closets and filled 5 large garbage bags of stuff for St. Vincent de Paul. It felt so good to get rid of stuff, and help people in need. The kitchen is next! Love a good purge.
Samantha says
Sherry! What a great idea. I’m moving in late January and I am going to join you in the getting rid of 100 things challenge. Can’t wait!!!
Charity says
You know what’s crazy? We moved last year from a two-bedroom apartment to a (small) five-bedroom house. We got rid of SO MUCH stuff, just paring down and getting rid of all the college (ahem, ghetto) stuff we owned. What surprised me was that as we unpacked boxes, I found even more stuff I didn’t want and needed to get rid of. It seemed like I’d already pared down, but I guess there’s always something else you find you just really can live without. Have fun purging. Cathartic, isn’t it?
Ashley @ A {Blonde's} DIY Life says
So I’m totally going to try and do this with you! We live in a pretty small one bedroom apartment, and things can get out of control in no time at all! Since I have no plans to move anytime soon, my goal is to get rid of 100 things by the time YOU move! haha Wish me luck! I’m off to start MY list!
jenn says
I love purging. I have been in my house a year and 8 months (!), and I purged before packing, during packing, while I unpacked and every time I clean house. My mom and dad, whom I love dearly, are packrats. I know it’s in me, so I definitely fight it. In fact, I’ve gotten to where I enjoy it. I went through the other day with a box, picking stuff up that tends to move around because I don’t just love it.
Plus, you guys have encouraged me to have baskets all over, so I go through those to see which dog toys have bit the dust and what else has accumulated there. I love having a space for everything and everything in its place.
Kari says
The picture of the shoes made me laugh out loud. Counting winter boots (2 pairs so when one i soaked the other is dry) and my workout shoes (2 pairs) I have 8 pairs of shoes. Yes, 8. My husband has more shoes than I do (12 pairs including boots and workout shoes). I guess the “shoe gene” missed me.
Good luck on the clean-out. One of the things that I really like about moving is it allows you to look at things with “new” (“will this fit in my new place”) eyes.
Jennifer says
This is sort of on topic. I wanted to know what your cleaning system is like for upkeep of your home. Do you clean daily? Weekly? Do you break up the chores to be a little every day? I’m currently in a scheduling crisis for keeping my home clean and beautiful. Maybe you could post a blog on this? I’m curious as to what works for you.
Thanks,
Jennifer
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Jennifer,
We clean as we go for the most part. Check out our Projects page (see that tab under the header) where you’ll find a cleaning category full of posts on the subject. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Gina says
I like the idea of purging 100 things, rather than purging down to owning just 100 things. The latter is too unrealistic for me.
I’ve been purging and de-cluttering since moving to Pittsburgh, PA in July 2009. Currently, I have a bag designated for donation, and I will aim to fill this (plus another bag or two) with 100 things by the end of November.
Jennifer says
I think you will be shocked at how fast 100 items adds up!! I am pretty sure you can do this easily!!
I think you should do a reader challenge and get everyone to send you their list! I bet I have 100 pieces of kids clothing ready to go to our womens shelter now. So, clothes might be a little too easy to count as one piece?!
Best of luck!
Sarah says
I am totally on the purge wagon and actually, getting rid of/selling things is kind of addictive. Craigslist is my new best friend and I will pretty much take any offer anyone sends me. The crazy part is that I’m not just getting rid of clothes and shoes (though there are a fair number of those items leaving)…I am selling anything we don’t need/use/want to baby-proof. I just finished selling 2 coffee tables (why on earth did we have 2?), a loveseat, a toy chest and a small collection of electronics that used to be in our bedroom. Best of luck as you continue with your goal…maybe I should start writing this stuff down.
K says
When I moved from Houston to Salt Lake City (over 1,500 miles)it was a necessity to get rid of everything we didn’t use. Since we were planning the move for a few months it gave me lots of time to see what I didn’t use/want/need. My favorite giveaway (to one of my best friends) was all my pantry items like flour, sugar, spices, that didn’t make sense financially to move. I hope she has made many yummy things with them!
Catherine MacLean says
Wicked Idea. I’m the total opposite of pack-rat I compulsively purge (I have the tiniest wardrobe for a woman!). If I have to think about something for more than 2 seconds I toss it. This makes up for my husbands inherent pack-rat traits though. He keeps EVERYTHING (So I purge for him when he’s in the shower…only if I know its garbage like keeping gym pants from the 9th grade as a ‘memory’…)
As for your 100 items check your kitchen out! If you’re anything like me you’ll be amazed how much stuff and small kitchen items/appliances you accumulate and don’t need or use. Good luck and I like the personal challenge idea!
Katie Carroll says
Hey Sherry! If you haven’t sold your shoes yet, and you’re a size 8-8.5…wanna’ sell them (semi) locally? :) Some of them are super cute!!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Katie,
Alas, I’m a size 5.5-6.5 (I’m short). So sorry!
xo,
s
Tara says
I read a book recently titled “Throw out 50 Things” and it was much more tough than it sounds. Of course, your 10 pair of shoes would only count as 1 thing (simply ‘shoes’) based on that method. Blasphemy! I applaud your goal and look forward to seeing you make it!
rd shugart says
We’ve been doing this consistently since the beginning of the year and honestly, made a fortune off Craigslist on furniture, donated a ton of things to Goodwill & have a huge pile of girls clothes to sell at my sis-in-law’s consignment sale. (We have 3 girls!) If we didn’t use it in the last 6 months, it was gone! Very freeing!
Deborah says
My personal rule is one in one out. If I get a new pair of shoes another pair must go. It is the same for every room, closet or storage cabinet something comes in something must go.
Cat@BudgetBlonde says
Ohhh please share e-bay listings. That would be super exciting and awesome! I know I’d love everything from you guys so let the bidding begin!!
Lorie says
This week is actually really low key around here, so I took the free time and switched out all the summer clothes for winter clothes. This also meant cleaning out the drawers and closets of all 5 people in the house (well, I let DH do his own!)
I am pretty sure the t bags and three boxes we are taking to a local donation center has at least 100 things in it! But I probably have a few hundred more I could get rid of! We have way too much stuff and for some reason I am in a very unsentimental mood, so it is a good time to purge!
malibou says
How can you possibly be getting rid of those two adorable pairs of sneakers? Silly girl.
Carly says
We have a baby on the way. I think the 100 things list is a great idea. We’ve already gotten rid of a chair and dining room table. Although those things have been replaced, I know there are 3 more things to go.
Julie says
Sherry, I have been bitten by the purging bug as well. Maybe it’s this gorgeous weather in Austin right now. I took 3 bags of clothes to Goodwill, and then 2 shopping bags to Plato’s closet…I walked out with $100 cash. The pieces I feel like they didn’t give me a knockout price for (designer bags, shoes, and dresses), I posted pics of on FB for my friends after they begged me not to sell on ebay first. It’s ALL GONE. It took 2 days and all my friends bought all my clothes! Best part? If I get homesick for something, I can invite my friend out in it…OR borrow it!
Cathy says
We’re getting ready to sell our house and planning to move into a much smaller space so I am having to go through 30 years, 3 sons, and a packrat husband’s worth of stuff to get rid of. Oh, and I have so many books I could start a library.
My oldest son is 30, married and has two kids, but just last month I gave him his old Legos (literally thousands of them), Hot Wheels, Magic: The Gathering cards and Spawn figurines. His son loves the new toys!
My middle son just deployed to Afghanistan. I sold his bedroom suite (massive Colonial poster bed, dresser with hutch and an armiore hand-me-down from my parents) to a second hand store 2 hours after he left. We boxed up the rest of his stuff and stashed it in his older brother’s basement until he gets back next year.
My youngest son got to give all his old toys to his 3 year old nephew and move into his brother’s empty bedroom and now he has room for his guitars, drum set and keyboard.
I have 10 years of a science fiction magazine I used to read I am going to sell on eBay, some Star Trek collectibles and books I might be convinced to part with for the right price (but not my Klingon dictionary), an embarrassing amount of shoes and clothes to give to Goodwill, and donating hundreds of books to our local library.
We have three sofas, three rocking chairs, three side chairs, two benches, two refrigerators, and two dining room sets. We need only one of each.
I purged my kitchen of all dishes and appliances we use less than once a month. Punch bowl? Gone. Who needs 4 coffee pots and 6 skillets and 4 tea pitchers? Gone. Etc. I did the same in the living room and master bedroom. No more knick knacks or stacks of books or odds and ends that belong somewhere else but never got put away. The clutter is gone! It’s like someone else’s house in here!
My problem is my husband. He doesn’t want to get rid of any of his stuff. Old electronics (broken VCRs, computer parts, miscellaneous adapters and cables that goes to who knows what), 2 go-carts, 20 Monopoly games, tools and tools and tools from 30 years of being a mechanic, a closet full of t-shirts he never wears, and jackets and baseball caps. He has hundreds of caps and at least a hundred jackets. Never wears them. Why keep them?
Most of the stuff in the basement has been packed in a box for 30 years and just moves from place to place. Some not even opened once in all this time. It’s all gotta go. Give it away, throw it away, or sell it off. I am being ruthless. I don’t want to tote this stuff around anymore and I don’t want my kids to have to sort through it all after we’re gone. Clean slate! Unburden our life of all this junk!
Except with my Barbies. Star Trek Barbie and Ken are going with me to the new house! :P
Heidi H. says
Ohh, I WISH we were paring down. We need to badly. It takes some time though, & we’re short on that these days. A couple of months ago, Ed & I went on a purging kick & got rid of a TON of clothes/shoes/closet stuff. It felt great, so I look forward to doing it again.
Have you ever heard of the minimalist trend of living with 100 items or fewer? It’s very interesting– we made our 100 list & then decided minimalism to that extreme wasn’t for us, but it was fun to read up on & daydream about.
Am REALLY looking forward to your future posts on this subject. Great idea!
YoungHouseLove says
Ooh, to live with only 100 things sounds amazing! Maybe when we retire and downsize after the kiddos leave the nest…
xo,
s
Aurora says
I really NEED to do this so badly. I’m gonna try and keep up with you. My goal will be a little smaller.
I’ll try getting rid of 50 things. When is your deadline?? A month?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Aurora,
We have to move by mid December so yes, about a month sounds right!
xo,
s
Amy S says
ps I love Deborah’s “one in one out” rule. I think that will be the new law of the land around here!
Amy S says
I am totally doing the same thing! Ok, not moving and not specifically tossing 100 things, but I am on a mission to purge. I left my job about a month ago and my first project is to sort through every closet, drawer, etc. It feels SO good! So far in just a few weeks we’ve made over $500 on Craigslist and ebay, and I feel like I have just scratched the surface. Good luck!!
Jess says
I’ve enjoyed your blog for sometime now! We are about five weeks behind you in selling our first home / baby that we put a lot of hard work and tears into! I have been going through major closet cleanings and just tossed several shoes and think my list is probably well over 100 now. Don’t forget the sock drawer, that will get you close!
Kelly says
We are closing on the sale of our house on November 23rd. (YAY!) We hired a company to handle a moving sale for us so we could get rid of ton of stuff. We are downsizing (the almost-empty nest) and want the next phase of our lives to be LESS SPACE. LESS STUFF. MORE LIFE. I heard that on Oprah a year or so ago and we adopted it as our motto. Anyhow, the packing process became a massive sorting and packing process (WHEW!)…and the big moving sale is this Friday and Saturday. To inspire you, follow this link to see just SOME of the things we are selling! Everything that doesn’t sell will go to charity. :)
http://www.mustc.org/NostalgiaEstateSales2008/lakezurich.html
YoungHouseLove says
I love “Less stuff. More life.” – I remember mentally filing it away when Oprah said it. So true!
xo,
s
Jess S. says
Please get rid of your spare bedroom (turned office most of the time) brown quilt by sending it straight to me! I’ve been loving that since I met you(r blog). Jess :)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, we think we still have a spot for that…
xo,
s
eileen marie says
I have a goal of getting rid of 10 things per day (but we have a lot more clutter than the 2 of you!) Some days, it’s 20+ things, some days it’s..0.
We are downsizing b/c we AREN’T moving -we are going to have to have our 1st in our tiny condo. (Can’t sell our place in the hideous Chicago housing market.)
Tricia B. says
I’m getting ready to make a long-distance move next month, and I’ve been trying to get rid of stuff. I think I’ll join your crusade and find my own 100 things to “get gone.” :)
Kaitlin says
We just moved, and while I didn’t think of/have time to pare down BEFORE our move, the lack of storage in our new home is suggesting to me to do so now. So far I’ve got 2 laundry baskets worth of items worth donating. I’m not sure number wise what I’m looking at yet, but its always great to try to live a little simpler! Thanks for the inspiration.
Ps- I would totally do something like keep a list of the items- I’m weird like that too.
Deborah says
Over the past six months I’ve given away six years of little girl clothes and four years of little boy clothes, lots of toys and plastic toys from our backyard. I guess I’ve finally caught up on sleep to to get it organized to give away. Now I’m going through my stuff and have an embarrassingly large amout of shoes and clothes to give away/consign. If only I could figure out how to organize my kids paper and projects!