Whether you are moving to a new home or decluttering your
existing home, the simple, good old-fashioned, sorting system of ‘three’ is a great
rule to follow.
Start with three boxes and label them:
1.
‘throw away : Or possibly this box is two
boxes; one for rubbish and one for recycling. Now to get started, this will be
obvious – or at least it should be. Sometimes it’s easy to tell when you need
to throw something out - it doesn’t work anymore or it’s damaged beyond repair.
However sometimes you’re just keeping stuff for no apparent reason. If you’re
uncertain, get a friend to help. And, remember, one person's trash may be another person's treasure, so there will be some things you can give away - hence the second box...
2.
‘give away’: If you're not asking people or charities to "please take this", maybe you could mark this box
‘sell’. Or is this also two boxes? Then there’s those things which are good
enough to sell but you just don’t have the time or inclination to do so. Essentially
though, all this is stuff that’s still worth using or keeping, it’s just that
you don’t need it anymore. Someone else might. Simple. Give it away.
3.
‘keep it’ : OK, now for the stuff you’re keeping. You need boxes. Do you need lots of them? Or just a few? Either way, think about what size boxes you want. All those big fluffy soft toys can go into a tea chest size box but don’t put the all books into one, you’ll never lift it. Get a smaller book box instead. There are boxes designed with particular needs in mind - like porta-robes for hanging clothes and special boxes for mirrors, and so on. This is where we come in. You can ask us for advice before you start packing.
Work your way through each room, taking out the ‘throw away’
box straight away. Once you’ve made the decision to throw it away, do it.
Place the ‘give away’ items aside and take them to your closest op-shop ASAP. If you’re selling stuff put it in a designated place – not hidden out of
the way - and get them sold without
procrastinating – the sooner you do, the sooner you will see that space empty
again.
Now to the stuff you are keeping, it's time to pack this properly. Get some clean paper - like butcher’s paper - to wrap the
trophies and trinkets before popping them into a box. And get some bubble-wrap
to protect the glassware you got for your twenty-first. Tape the boxes up well and remember to label them.