5 Things I'm Not Willing to Declutter

by Mandi on April 15, 2011

Things I'm Not Willing to Declutter/Simplify

source: asteegabo

Some people shop as a hobby. I prefer to declutter.

I started decluttering four years ago as we packed to move into our new home after I realized how many things in my kitchen I rarely used. Since then, I’ve continued to declutter every few months, always getting rid of more and more stuff.

I’m always surprised by how much stuff I find to give away each time I go through our home. At some point there won’t be any left…right?

That said, there are a few things that I’m not willing to declutter. In no particular order:

1. Children’s books

Although I love to read, I have very few books in my collection. I’ve given away all but my very favorites, and I only purchase the Kindle version of books now. That way I can keep a copy without adding to the clutter in our home.

However, we have lots and lots of children’s books, and I refuse to declutter those. There’s nothing I love more than watching my girls (even the baby) sit down with a pile of books to “read”, and I think it’s an important part of developing a lifelong love of reading. I’m sure that as they outgrow some of the younger books, we’ll start giving those away, but until then, I’ll continue to make more room for any and all books that come our way!

2. My husband’s stuff

One of the hardest parts about making the decision to simplify or declutter is getting the rest of your family on board. Trying to force other people into it is a good way to cause tension…and it probably won’t work anyway.

Although my husband is pretty laid back about the decluttering I do in the main areas of our home, I never declutter his clothes, tools, magazines, etc. without his permission. He has more of all of those things than I would prefer, but they’re his, so while I encourage him to declutter — and offer to help — I don’t force the issue!

3. Photos

The advent of digital cameras is one of my absolute favorite technical developments because I’m able to keep thousands of photos without worrying about them getting lost in a flood or fire or trying to find space to store them. Although I try not to keep a dozen versions of the exact same shot, I generally err on the side of keeping pictures rather than trashing them because I know I will treasure all of the memories that go with each picture in the years to come.

4. Magazine subscriptions

As much as I love the internet and blogs, I still really enjoy flipping through a real magazine. I have several subscriptions, and I look forward to their arrival each month. Sometimes I feel guilty over the waste of paper or when they start to pile up, but they’re one of those tiny luxuries that I’m not willing to give up.

5. My kids toys…without their help

Most kids these days — mine included — have too many toys. We regularly declutter our kids’ toys to fit in the toy cabinet, but I don’t make those decisions on my own. I involve my kids in the decluttering process from the time they’re 2 or 3 years old because I want them to learn to make those decisions, and because I’m always surprised by the things they feel strongest about, and I don’t want to give away something that means a lot to them.

So, there you have it…my list of things I’m not willing to declutter!

What aren’t you willing to declutter?

http://embracinglife-rose.blogspot.com Rose

I keep nearly every photo I take because I just can’t bear to erase that little moment in time.

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

I’m guessing we’ll never regret keeping them, but we might regret getting rid of too many!

Mariahbadura

where do you guys store all of your photos and how do you organize them; I want to tag them so I can find them easier, but an just starting to research storage of all those digital pictures!!

http://profiles.google.com/annealagna2 Anne Alagna

My digital photos are tagged upon upload and saved chronologically on my HD. My printed photos are either in scrapbooks or saved chronologically as well. I scrapbook chronologically rather than by theme so I file them the same way to make it easy.

http://fimby.tougas.net Renee @ FIMBY

I’m pretty much the same especially about photos and the kids toys. I would never give away or remove stuff they weren’t aware of. I too, want to teach that skill to them. I don’t have any mag subscriptions but that’s mostly because I prefer to read books.
http://profiles.google.com/robyndstone Robyn Stone

Love this post, Mandi! I won’t declutter my son’s room without his help. It’s so important to make sure he’s participating in the decisions of what to keep and the skill of donating and giving as well.
http://profiles.google.com/annealagna2 Anne Alagna

I cant declutter my husband either. He whines that he has no place for his things, but he doesnt realize he has the entire master bedroom walkin closet, the garage, the attic, half the basement, 3 dressers full of more clothes… 2 vehicles when he can only drive one at a time… even things like socks and underwear that are past their time are difficult for him to toss. I have to literally force him to go through things. When we met in 93 he had stuff from 83 in his wardrobe. Unfortunately, he still has all that minus the acid wash jeans that I was able to pry from his fingers. *sigh*

I will, however, declutter my children. When they were little I tried to do it with their help but once they hit a certain age, it was obvious which of them were hoarders and which were capable of cleaning out on their own. Using that as a guide, I adjust how I declutter their rooms. One of my kids needs tough-love.

I do not declutter photos. I have them organized, though, so that helps. And now I have my MIL and FIL photos. Those I intend to start scanning this summer, burning onto DVD and passing through the family.

I dont get rid of books unless they are absolutely so attrocious that I couldnt finish them.

And magazines get passed down the street to a friend who cant afford such luxuries on her $10,000/yr income.

But luckily I dont have a ton of clutter to contend with… unless you count my husband’s stuff. Please dont count that against me.
http://simplemom.net Tsh @ SimpleMom.net

Yep yep! We have tons of kids’ books for the same reason, and well, you know how I feel about husband things.

I do still get magazine subscriptions; I’ve just learned to let go of them after a few months if I no longer refer back to them.
http://twitter.com/lifeoutloud Kymbe Foster Seabolt

My kids stuff. I truly believe some “hoarders” are born from that desire to grip tightly to every last thing “because someone might take it away!” I know many parents believe in cleaning behind the kid’s backs, but to me that takes away the power and feeling of “I can learn to decide if this still works for me, serves my purposes, or would best be passed to someone else (or trashed). I want them part of the decision making process, not just coming home to the unsettling feeling that “something” is missing.

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

I think this is a really good point, and I’m sure you’re right!

http://joyceandnorm.wordpress.com Joyce and Norm

“I’m always surprised by how much stuff I find to give away each time I go through our home.” Yes!! So true! I workout in front of our Billy bookcases, and every once in awhile I see a few things that I need to part with.

My list is pretty much the same as yours.
1. Children’s books – My parents still have all the books that we owned when we were growing up and my girls love to read them when they visit with my parents each week. Berenstain Bears…classic! I get rid of my books but we have about 300+ children’s books that are read often and loved much.
2. My husband’s stuff – Same thing over here, unless I really think there’s something he will never ever use/need…then I build a pretty good case against it. =p Hubby’s pretty good about letting things go.
3. Photos – I can/will not get rid of any photos.
4. Magazine subscriptions – My younger sister’s SIL passes down entertainment/food mags to her, which she passes on to me. My older sister passes down parenting mags to me…from a deal I told her about…$1 for a yr subscription. I usually donate to the library, or put it on the freebie table at MOPS.
5. My kids toys…without their help – I am just saving them for a future nephew/niece…and I was just able to loan out a few things to my cousin who just had a baby last yr.
And 2 others are old letters and my old journals.

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

Ooh, old letters and journals are a good addition — thanks, Joyce!

Norell

I keep children’s books even though both of my daughters are adults now. I know they will want to share them with their children. I am much better at giving up my own books after I’ve read them. I know many others who will enjoy them too and then pass them on. I learned the hard way – never touch my husband’s “stuff”. I did it only once and that was quite a while ago. I don’t think he has forgotten yet. Now I just bring him piles and ask him to go through them. One pile a month seems to be about all he can handle!!! I made a huge step several years ago and purged a good ten – fifteen year collection of magazines, after pulling out favorite photos and putting them in notebooks. It was easier than I thought it would be. Now I subscribe to only 2 magazines and pass them on to office friends when I am finished.
http://www.facebook.com/jody.dahlseid Jody Johnson Dahlseid

I am so with you on these. I figure until I cannot declutter any more of my own stuff I can’t complain too much about my husband’s and it is my job as a parent to teach my kids life lessons. The books are important to have in your house, especially with kids. As a literacy specialist, I teach parents to keep baskets of books all over the house to encourage kids reading.

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

It’s always good to know I’m doing at least one thing right! My girls definitely love books, and I know having lots and lots of them contributes to that because there are always some to read that they haven’t looked at in a while!

Anna Wegner

Mine are similar.

1) Kids toys- They have a choice whether to help me or let me make decisions about what to get rid of. They always choose to help.

2) Husbands stuff- although I will help sort and organize if he wants. He doesn’t really hold onto a lot of things though.

3) Books- This is the one area where my husband doesn’t like getting rid of things- even if they’re my books. But we moved to Africa and left about 4/5′s of them in storage. We also got a Kindle for Christmas, so I think that will help.

4) Pictures.

5) Crafting/Sewing things. I do go through and get rid of things, but I keep way more than I need. This is the only area where I have decluttered in the past, and then regretted it.
The Label Lady

I am in the same club with you! Although I am much older … 58 … I do the same thing! When we were transferred to Florida from the mid-atlantic states back in ’88 I had to adjust to a smaller house with a smaller garage, no basement and a small space over the garage they called an “attic” … so needless to say I had to learn how to live large (and uncluttered) in less space … and I can say I have successfully done that … even when I had my girls living at home I was able to keep things uncluttered … my husband does not throw anything out either … old ink pens, clothes that he doesn’t wear any longer … (when we moved in ’88 … he was in his 40′s and I found in his closet clothes and shoes from high school!) you name it and he will just find a space to throw it in … but I, like you, will purge every couple of months particularly when things start to get cluttered … when I began couponing in mid January and everything I read said to “stockpile” I panicked (I’m not talking about extreme couponing!) … I thought where in the world would I store more … but guess what … by just shuffling things around and weeding out unnecessary items I am able to store my items in my pantry and in a “linen” closet down the hall … not in the garage and not under a bed … I am also a “labeler” … I get teased about it from my friends but when somebody wants to find something in my kitchen it’s very easy. An 87 yr. old friend of mine from church has nicknamed me the “Label Lady” … lol!
http://livingthebalancedlife.com Bernice Wood

I won’t get rid of my hubby’s stuff, but neither will he! His closet is bulging (and he is not a male fashion diva) he just doesn’t get rid of anything. I have been the same way in the past and I attribute it to not wanting to make a decision to get rid of things. I am working to purge my stuff, hopelly he will catch on soon enough!
I helped my kids when they were younger to declutter there things. Now that they are all grown, I have purged my collection of childrens’ books. It was difficult, but I did it. I kept a shelf full here for my grandkids, sent quite a few to my daughter’s house (which is difficult because she has 6 kids and a real problem with clutter and organization!) I love children’s books myself, especially old ones!
Oh, and I don’t even want to talk about magazines! I love them!
Bernice
Does having less stuff make life easier?
http://gottobesimple.wordpress.com/ R Scott-Norton

Maybe this is where I’ve been going wrong in the last few weeks. I’ve been on a bit of a simplifying spree and that involves de-cluttering. However, I think it was a mistake to try to de-clutter my daughter’s toys without her involvement. I ‘removed’ her power rangers walkie talkies, as I’ve never seen her use them, only for to notice they were missing as soon as she woke up and looked in the toy chest.

Having a few areas where it’s OK to not de-clutter sounds useful advice. From now on, my daughter’s toys and books are out of bounds.

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

It’s so hard to know which of their toys are important to them and which they’re willing to give away — I never, ever guess right!

gues

I desparately need to declutter because right now, my category of what I don’t declutter includes basically EVERYTHING.

I would LOVE some tips or links to blogs on how to save digital photos. I have mine all over the place – some on sites where I print my pics, all of them on my hard drive (which seems like a waste of space since they go back to 2003 or so) and then CDs of photos just in case the hard drive crashes (it did once but we had a friend thankfully recover them). what is a good way to store photos digitally (is it CD? is it something else) that is economical and EASY for a non techie?

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

We’ll be starting a series from professional photo organizers next week, and I’m hoping there will be some tips for organizing digital photos as part of that series!

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http://www.facebook.com/organized.natalie Natalie Conrad

I love this post! I’m an organizer but yes, there are a few things that I am not willing to declutter.
1. My husband’s stuff
2. My tea pot and accessory collection
3. Children’s books: the ones signed by the author or that are Indian folktales
4. High school yearbooks ( I don’t know why but I can’t part with them)

Glad to have found your blog!

Brenda

I am with you on the yearbooks — but I think I know why. At 55, it is just hilarious to go through them when you have old highschool friends touch base!

Amriley

Our basement flooded and my yearbooks got all wet and moldly. Although I do sometimes wish I still had them, I don’t miss them like I thought I might. Of course, I always have the option of asking my husband or sister-in-law (went to school with both of them) to look at theirs.

Lex

While I love to clean things out, the recent popularity of decluttering got me thinking. Is decluttering just an excuse for us to get rid of stuff that we have needlessly accumulated in the first place? What if we didn’t buy more than we needed – would we still need to declutter?

http://lifeyourway.net Mandi @ Life…Your Way

You’re absolutely right — and I think I buy a lot less now that I’ve
decluttered our home because I try to always think about where something
will go and if it’s really something I need or love before I purchase it!
Mostly I’m still getting rid of stuff that was purchased 3+ years ago, but
there are definitely times that I look back and realize I purchased
something and I shouldn’t have!

http://www.declutterdaily.com Megan at declutterdaily

I want to, but find it difficult to pare down my kids art projects and school work. I let my husband do his own stuff too. Smart move there.

Amriley

I know this is an old post, but one way I have gotten the kids on board with getting rid of art and school work — take a picture of it. It doesn’t take up any space and they can still look at it when they want. Then when they are older, they can decide to trash or keep the digital pictures of them.