Hermes Cafe Bon Temps~Good Times Cafe
- Thread starter mistikat
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I use a Kindle and love it! I don't read books on my iPad I prefer my Kindle. I love being able to buy books at 3am and have them downloaded quickly.
Last few days been thinking about general downsizing- this has been brought on by 2 things-
1. Moved 95 year old MIL into assisted living last weekend. She was able to take her favorite things and some furniture. Even though she had been living in a fairly modest house, and had been good at getting rid of some things over the last 20-30 years, there are still lots of items remaining that we need to decide what to do with. We only took a handful of items, as DH is not sentimental, and said "we have plenty of our own stuff" . SIL and nieces took quite a few items, but it felt sad that things she treasured in some way, no one wanted.
2. Read an article in the paper yesterday about baby boomers( which is my generation), downsizing and their adult kids don't want a lot of the family heirlooms like crystal, fine china, sterling, Hummel figurines, etc. ( ok I don't want Hummel figurines either).
All this is making me think I need to clean out some of our closets of stuff we never use, and my other big challenge PAPER, and photos! Oh and old electronics.(Silicon Valley nerd here)
A few questions for you chatsters:
1. If .you haven't used something in X years or Y months, when is it a candidate for giving away?
2. What categories of items are easier for you to get rid of?
3. Do you have a magic question that helps you dispose of excess?( besides the Marie Kondo joy)
1. Moved 95 year old MIL into assisted living last weekend. She was able to take her favorite things and some furniture. Even though she had been living in a fairly modest house, and had been good at getting rid of some things over the last 20-30 years, there are still lots of items remaining that we need to decide what to do with. We only took a handful of items, as DH is not sentimental, and said "we have plenty of our own stuff" . SIL and nieces took quite a few items, but it felt sad that things she treasured in some way, no one wanted.
2. Read an article in the paper yesterday about baby boomers( which is my generation), downsizing and their adult kids don't want a lot of the family heirlooms like crystal, fine china, sterling, Hummel figurines, etc. ( ok I don't want Hummel figurines either).
All this is making me think I need to clean out some of our closets of stuff we never use, and my other big challenge PAPER, and photos! Oh and old electronics.(Silicon Valley nerd here)
A few questions for you chatsters:
1. If .you haven't used something in X years or Y months, when is it a candidate for giving away?
2. What categories of items are easier for you to get rid of?
3. Do you have a magic question that helps you dispose of excess?( besides the Marie Kondo joy)
I had a friend organize with me and that helped a great deal because she was very organized herself and had no attachment to my things. Or as she said acerbically, "You do NOT need another grey sweater ever!" So she was the voice of reason.
When it came to clothes, her rule was if it hadn't been worn in the past six months and was unlikely to be worn in the coming six, to put it in a pile for donation. Then we set up three boxes - trash, donate, keep. I sorted everything and left it there for a week. At the end of the week, I went through everything again to see if those categories were still appropriate and acted accordingly.
Many thanks, Scarf1 and Mistikat! (I'm not on Facebook, twitter or Instagram, in case anyone was wondering.)
Scarf1 it's a constant process for me. I keep making additional passes through my clothes. Why on earth would I ever buy an Eileen Fischer cardigan? I look like a bag lady in it.
If we downsize our house in a few years I will definitely try to downsize our home goods. I have several sets of dishes, silver crystal etc that I rarely use.
If we downsize our house in a few years I will definitely try to downsize our home goods. I have several sets of dishes, silver crystal etc that I rarely use.
Me tooUnfortunately we have no kitties in our home right now, but my mom has 8 that will eventually come to live with me. I do miss having cats around.
Oh rainneday! 8!
Bless you! Kittens?? 
Or general rabble rousers? Oh my goodness Cordeliere! I think I would run if that were in the horizon...
Ah. Yasssss! The best place for bling pics. Under trees! Beautiful!
I had to go back and look for this Prepster. I think I can ammass enough to do this. I can either post it in the how to wear your scarves library thread, the new thread or a thread all it's own (though it's a limited topic so might be best combined elsewhere).
Haha! Well I do have several Eileen fisher cardigans.. I know you are into more tailored clothes currently.
Clothes aren't so difficult for me. I keep making passes through the closet so that i have enough room for my scarves. I do have 2 St. John jackets that I never wear, but can't quite get rid of because I remember how much I paid for them... And I keep thinking I will wear again. I also lost about 10 lbs this year, so I realize I am still holding on to some bigger clothes.
I do get this email, Nicole, but like you I need to refresh my profile as not a lot tempts me. I also get ideas from Vulture, Digg and some other emails I get daily.
I had the pleasure of seeing this beauty in person a few weeks ago. MadamB certainly has an enviable jewelry collection.
Good for you losing ten pounds!
If it helps I sent a bunch bag of St John to consignment and did well on it.
My kitchen is a big problem. We are fortunate to have a lot of space including two islands with storage, a butlers pantry, an extra bank of cabinets plus the storage in the formal dining room.
I used to entertain more when I had more time so I have accumulated at least 3-4 sets of dishes, crystal, silver serveware. I think I have three caviar servers. Plus I like to bake so I have a lot of baking supplies. And three ovens that rarely get used at the moment.
I have read the same article about baby boomers not wanting their parents things. Dear MIL gifted me a lot of stuff and I didn't want to hurt her feelings by declining. The more space you have the more you fill or the more other people want to fill it up for you.
If it helps I sent a bunch bag of St John to consignment and did well on it.
My kitchen is a big problem. We are fortunate to have a lot of space including two islands with storage, a butlers pantry, an extra bank of cabinets plus the storage in the formal dining room.
I used to entertain more when I had more time so I have accumulated at least 3-4 sets of dishes, crystal, silver serveware. I think I have three caviar servers. Plus I like to bake so I have a lot of baking supplies. And three ovens that rarely get used at the moment.
I have read the same article about baby boomers not wanting their parents things. Dear MIL gifted me a lot of stuff and I didn't want to hurt her feelings by declining. The more space you have the more you fill or the more other people want to fill it up for you.
I have read some of these same articles about baby boomers, their things and their kids' lack of interest (or sentimentality) in their parents' things. Getting rid of things is something that I think about since I have stopped working. I like to think that my kids will find something of mine that they want at some point.
Clothes are the easiest for me too. Most things are easy to cull, especially the things to donate -- if you hold onto something too long, it is out of style and not an especially useful donation. Shoes too -- I gave away dozens (really!) of pair since quitting work and have about a dozen pairs of heels left (not counting boots). I know I should give a bunch away but it's hard as I still like them even though I don't wear them.
Getting a friend's help is a good idea Misti. DD2 and I have each gone to DD1's house to help her purge. We can be unsentimental about stuff she has a hard time parting with. When you have kids, it's a constant battle to get rid of stuff as so much is always coming in -- new clothes, toys, etc.