Sort and Survive – part two – how to go about it
A few weeks ago I wrote a piece on why you need to sort what you have and maybe declutter. That word that we now hear so often. I thought you might like some hints about how to do this.
De-cluttering is surprisingly tiring so select one drawer or one room or part of a room at a time. When sorting paper or small items, handle each just the once. Take the decision whether to keep it or dispose of it. File documents and find a logical place for objects. Resist the temptation to just put them back on the pile! Boxes labelled ‘keep’/’recycle’/’charity shop’ might be helpful and keep a big rubbish bin to hand. The following questions might be helpful as you make up your mind about each item:
When did you last use it?
Will you need it again?
Is it replaceable?
Is it useful/beautiful/especially significant to you?
Here are some of my favourite tips
- Store out-of-season clothes in a suitcase until you need them again
- Any clothing that doesn’t look good on you/doesn’t fit (and is unlikely to ever fit) or you can’t imagine wearing again, should be put aside to go to a charity shop
- Clear out newspapers and magazines at least once a week
- ‘One in one out’ is good advice. It is hard to get rid of certain items, for example books. Personally, I usually keep non-fiction but with fiction I keep a book only if I definitely know I should like to read it again or I want to gift it to someone
- photographs- identify individuals before you forget who they are. For groups, trace around the figures using a soft pencil and tracing paper and write in the names.
I hope that I have inspired a few New Year Resolutions!
