I’ve had an epiphany, and it’s making me uncomfortable.
At 53, I’ve reached “peak stuff“.
And my backup plan for downsizing – donating it to charities – has hit a hurdle. They don’t want most of my “stuff”.
It all started with our holiday viewing of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix. The show was simultaneously inspiring and terrifying in equal parts. In one episode, the family who were decluttering sent 150 giant bags of trash to landfill. That’s just the stuff they weren’t able to donate – there was a mountain of bags going to charity as well.
Anyway, Pete and I were inspired to sort through our old clothing. We culled ruthlessly, ending up with six bags of good quality (albeit very dated) items to donate. And then we hit stage two, which was trying to find a place that would take them. The CEO of the Salvation Army might well berate folks for not donating, but he’s obviously never been knocked back when trying to donate to their North Parramatta store like my friend was last week.
Other friends fronted up to Vinnies in Leichhardt with lightly worn, undamaged clothing that their children had grown out of, only to be told that they weren’t accepting donations at that time. The charities are fussy because they have to be – they’re spending millions of dollars each year managing waste. We might feel good believing that our donated items are going to a worthy cause, but there’s a strong chance that much of it will be deemed unsaleable and sent to landfill. According to this article, more than 30 per cent of charity donations end up there.
I was already aware of this problem as a result of the rescued socks. I finally found a refugee support group who are incredibly grateful to have them, but none of the big name charities would touch them, even after I’d sanitised them to within an inch of their lives. Even those working with the homeless didn’t want them. The Exodus Foundation reluctantly took some last year and said they’d call me back if they wanted any more (they never did). Vinnies’ night patrol were happy to take the beanies we made, but they received a regular supply of new socks, so weren’t able to take any from us. It was a real eye-opener about how affluent and privileged a society we’re fortunate enough to live in.
Which leads me back to my epiphany. I have two difficult tasks ahead of me now.
Firstly, I have to be accountable for my stuff. I’ve never really done that before, but our waste reduction efforts this past year have focused my attention on this point. What happens to the things I own when they’re no longer needed? Throwing an item into landfill has to be an absolute last resort and only done after every effort has been made to extend its life.
An example – the base of our car phone holder broke recently, but the cradle was still fine, so we attached it to a shelf in the kitchen. Nothing lasts forever, but this will at least save part of it from the bin for a few more years…
More importantly though, is that I have to start buying things with a different mindset.
Whatever comes into the house needs to have an exit plan.
Will it have a long life? Can it be repaired? Donated? Repurposed? Recycled? Will it biodegrade, or live in landfill for eternity? What about the packaging it comes in? Asking these questions inevitably lead to…do I really need it? Do I really want it?
I have to work much harder at this. It’s far easier to type than to put into practice, because like most extroverts, I like new things. I am, however, trying my best to improve. Last year I assuaged my guilt by shopping mostly at op shops and places like Reverse Garbage, telling myself that I was already further down the landfill ladder by buying items that had already been used and/or discarded. But what the Kondo show made me realise was that even this stuff needs an exit plan. And I have to consider that before I think about bringing something new into the house.
Secondly, I have to figure out what to do with the things I already have. There is a room full of fabric and craft supplies that needs rationalising, and I want to do it in a careful, considered way. On the show, folks worked through their houses in a whirlwind fashion – the premise being that you start tidying and don’t stop until you’re finished – but I don’t want to simply throw out items without giving them a great deal of thought first.
I have a responsibility to do more than simply hold an item in my hands to see if it “sparks joy”. I have yards of boring green polarfleece (leftover from school jumpers) that I can turn into beanies for the homeless over the next few years rather than discarding for the sake of clear floor space. And having to buy something to replace a perfectly good item that I threw/gave away previously drives me bonkers.
I have to make a greater effort to repair and extend the life of items. In her book (I haven’t read it, but I’m quoting from this article), Kondo writes that “when a button falls off, it’s a sign that the particular shirt or blouse has … reached the end of its life.” I find that incredibly disturbing. Our goal is to repair for as long as possible – made easier if we choose well in the first place. Although I must admit that my sock repairs are starting to drive my poor mother to despair…
So those are my new goals for 2019. Tidying up in a careful, considered way. Minimising new purchases as much as possible. Buying only when necessary, with a view to longevity, and with an exit plan. It won’t be easy, but I’m going to try. ♥
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
I find the button quote is disturbing as well. I have bought several clothing items and a button came off after only one or two wears. Replaced the button and I was still able to get many years of wear out of the clothes. So it isn’t always true. I noticed buttons sewn on with a machine and not knotted afterwards always unravel very fast.
I am surprised that so many charities refuse donated articles. I have never heard of that problem before. What an eye opener. I will start to think twice about what I donate from now on. Looks like I may need to follow your lead and think ahead before purchasing items and recycle more clothing articles when possible. Thanks for an informative post!
Invariably, as soon as I buy a pair of trousers, I get needle and thread out to secure the buttons properly. It’s such shoddy craftpersonship to sell clothes with unsecured buttons.
Agree. A lot of the spare buttons inside clothes are placed just where they irritate me! I reinforce buttons before they fall off, much more efficient.
It’s the way to go I reckon. If the original button was sewn on tightly, a lot of spare buttons aren’t necessary.
Manuela, I’m not sure about Canada, but it’s starting to be a real problem here as the charities don’t hand out goods to the needy anymore, they fund their operations by selling donated items. That makes it hard as they’ll only take things they think they can resell!
When we downsized last year and moved to a smaller house with less storage, this was a real eye opening. Not only was it difficult to find places to donate, but we wanted the items (in good condition, family heirlooms) to go where they were needed and appreciated. We ended up bringing them to a hospice charity shop in our new hometown, which is much smaller than the city of Oakland. They really appreciated the items. Books went to support the library, craft items we donated to schools, we have friends who are lower school teachers, they were much appreciated.
Liz, that’s the big thing isn’t it – we don’t want our treasures to be treated as trash. I get that completely. I’m glad you found places to donate so thoughtfully! xx
I have heard of this and some places have boxes where the clothing goes to scraps to be made into…….yup, more clothing. I have clothing that dates back 35 years and because I don’t wear it very often…I STILL have it!
Goals! Not just to have clothing for 35 years, but to still be able to FIT in them after 35 years! :D
YES. My weight goes up and down – old clothes suddenly fit. I buy strides every 5 years or so…I don’t wear narrow legs, I have big feet and I look like a clown with stovepipes, so I get lots every time wider legs are in. With waists not hip bands. I just unwrapped a 10 year old pair with new labels still on them. Office wear, I’d paid $60 for 4 pairs, they are now $89 each. For low riders. Ick!
I think you’re doing an amazing job! We have lots of charity shops here and they take pretty much everything and it’s either used, sold or turned into rags to be recycled. I hardly bought any new clothes last year but repurposed older stuff..a good feeling!
T, Jo mentioned rags as well – I need to look into that some more. Thanks hon!
There are one or two contradictions with the Kondo method, not the least of which is having the author of a hugely best-selling book telling her followers to reduce to only about 30 books.
And chucking out a shirt because a button has fallen off is simply profligate.
Re the charities not taking your donations – I read a news article last week that said ALL charities, nationwide, had been overwhelmed as a result of Kondo enthusiasm and have stopped accepting donations.
I think making sure that anything bought into the house has an exit plan is a great idea, but will take such a lot of commitment.
And, in this house at least, that wouldn’t extend to books! :-)
I’ve tried to solve the book issue over the past few years by mostly (not totally) buying my books in kindle format. I prefer reading that way anyway, but I do love a hardcover cookbook and will still indulge occasionally. Having said that, I now buy almost all my cookbooks on iPad and just put up with the slightly annoying swiping – Em’s sourdough book and a couple of Jamie Oliver’s were my only exceptions last year. And I consider e-books a free pass in terms of exit plan – I can delete at any time! 😉
Such an interesting post. My parents lived through the depression so I was taught to be frugal and even today I still turn shirt collars, turn sheets, patch garments and darn socks. I can’t believe that any one would throw out a garment that had lost a button as most buttons are so insecurely fastened by machines that they easily come adrift. Thanks again for your posts.
Merle, good for you! I have no idea how to turn collars or sheets (although I know what it means, at least) but I do now know how to patch and darn! :) xx
One thing about clothing – you are so good at re-purposing other things, like jeans, maybe you could try and find solutions for clothing, rather than trying to give it away..I too dislike the idea that as soon as something is slightly below par, it should be thrown – and as for only 30 books – is the woman mad???? I probably have nearly 30 books by my bed! I have books from my childhood that I read to my grandchildren and some books that I love and will never part with – throw away The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe? Never! I do recycle some, mostly paperback fiction, but there are books that come into my life and I want them there, to refer to, to recommend and not to leave….
Her ideas may be helpful to some, but I have no plans to buy her book or watch her show!
Carol, thank you – clothes aren’t actually a problem for me, it’s my accumulation of craft project supplies. To be fair, I don’t think Marie Kondo actually said folks should only have 30 books, I believe she said SHE only keeps 30 books. But yes, parting with books is a hard thing – I’m just working on not bringing in too many new paper ones (I mostly buy everything on kindle now).
I try to buy good quality items and then expect them to last forever (i have some electrical items over 40 years old and going strong). I was shocked to learn that a well known electrical goods store considers anything under $500 will only last a year. For the almost $500 i paid for a top of the range satellite navigation i expected it to last for a few years at least, but it went on the fritz just after the one year warranty ran out. Manufacturers are now making disposable items which contribute to our waste. Perhaps if they had to pay for their disposal they might make things that lasted !!
I’ve actually been saying that too – manufacturers should take back dead items and be responsible to dispose of them. Then they might be more careful in production. Mind you, they take away fridges and dishwashers when you buy a new one, and I was told that they just have them crushed into scrap metal. I’m sorry your GPS died so soon after warranty!
Such a wonderful post, Celia. Thank you for showing me a way through my stuff.
Recently I came across the Western Welcome Wagon. It’s in Melbourne, but there is bound to be something similar in Sydney. They take donated goods to help refugee families set up households, so they are particularly looking for crockery, saucepans, other kitchen things, couches, beds etc. Another avenue to extend the life of our things.
https://www.westwelcomewagon.org.au/donate/
Anne, it looks fabulous, but sadly only operating in Melbourne at the moment. I’ll keep my eyes peeled for something similar here. Thanks!
I am sure something will come onto your radar!
The local churches have a refugee and migrant group setup that teach english, job finding,provide homework help, craft group etc.
There maybe something similar in your area.
Terrific, thoughtful post. You have very eloquently framed the issue that you are facing and want to deal with. Makes me realise that I need to make a few changes.
Thanks Cathy. I know I’ve got to make a lot of changes!
Boomerang Bags groups in Australia may be interested in accepting fabric for making shopping bags, although my local group has plenty at the moment – perhaps because of the Kondo phenomenon!
Oh I’d forgotten about them – thanks Melissa! I’ll investigate again!
In Hobart we have a group who use old absorbent clothes etc they tear up for rags to sell to home renovators and painters as clean up rags. Useful employment for some people taking buttons off etc and a second use for old clothes torn sheets etc
Helen, that’s a very good suggestion, thank you. I’ll look for painters who might take rags and see if anything comes from that!
A very thought-provoking post…Celia, I am with the one button and throw it away brigade what a thoughtless, stupid comment…I have no plans to watch the show or buy the book either. But agree that the more we tackle waste it will become a disposable problem…Not easy is it? :)
Carol, not at all. I think it’s going to be a slow process for me!
Me too, Celia but every little helps :)
Goodness that’s good for thought. We are in the process of downsizing, particularly my kitchen stuff. Our current kitchen is very comfortably equipped with all manner of do dads, appliances, equipment, including 4 white dinner sets ie my German 10 place setting I bought in 1968, Mum’s Japanese 8 place setting, a gorgeous 6 place set of heavy railway style china and our 6 place setting very day set, glasses of every type and so on and so forth. Blankets, doonas, linen, tablecloths, embroidered doileys from my trousseau from 1964 the day excess is overwhelming. Our new house has a much smaller kitchen and I don’t need all this stuff for large crowd entertainment any longer. But who wants all my treasures? None of my daughters in law or any other family member. It seems a crime to send it to land fill. Today I researched which Air Fryer to buy. We’ve been thinking about it for 12 months or more but after reading your post I’ve had a change of heart. The only exit plan for such an appliance would be to send it to landfill. Your post was a wake up call, thank you.
Sandy, you’ve actually hit the nail on the head. It’s the items we TREASURE that we struggle to pass on. I’m happy to let things go, but I want them to go to someone who will use them and LOVE them. I hope you find a way to do that as you downsize! xx
I was amazed when I read that no-one wanted the socks. And even worse when charities won’t take previously loved clothes. I donate to our local community who are grateful for anything. And I replace buttons. I also try and buy only what I need. A very thought provoking post xx
Tandy, I’m starting to realise that we in Australia are in a unique position in terms of donations being difficult to make!
I’m now officially annoyed with anti-rants about Marie Kondo rants… What hoops do we need to jump through to validate our own points of view ffs…
I think we arrived at peak stuff stage together. I like, value and use what I have. But there’s not much more I want, need or can accommodate. I already was quite but am now being very discerning about any acquisitions. Everything must have meaning, a use or place and be here for the long haul. When we combined our city and country households there was some excess. We kept much of it, sorting it into tubs on shelves in the shed. We call it our “shop” and we dip into it for assorted household items, wine glasses, crockery, clothes, jars, plastic containers etc. We gave away some things, sold a few items to the local antique shop and via Gumtree and Facebook. We put out a pile of what we though was unuseable hard rubbish on the foothpath just before council cleanup collection, and there was nothing left when the day came around. Often what we can no longer use in the house goes to the G.O.’s workshop where it gets another life reused or recycled. Fortunately the few unneeded or unsaleable items from our odd sorting activities have gone to our local op shops which have been ok with our occasional small donations. When we lived Sydney’s inner city & inner west what to do with excess household items, and even some clothing, handbgs, shoes etc was never a problem. It either went into the recycling pile in the apartment building adjacent to the rubbish area or just outside on the footpath. Everyone contributed and also helped themselves. “Footpath shopping” is one of the things I miss about city living. Which is why I have enough stuff now… I stocked up back then! Plus like you, I am a keeper and mender. I have wearable clothes & shoes older than some twenty-somethings I know… hmmm. Conversations go like “Oh I love those boots.” “Really… I bought them before you were born…”
Don’t be annoyed, lovely, I haven’t really read any rants or anti-rants. I don’t agree with everything the KonMari method outlines, but it’s certainly been thought provoking. You and the G.O. really seem to have your heads wrapped around the green lifestyle and it’s wonderful to see you both enjoying your “new” life so much. I remember you telling me about the recycle pile at your apartment – pity we don’t all have that on our streets! xx
Yes Celia, such a thought provoking post. Over the last nine years I have downsized twice and have faced the same thing. Just a few months ago I moved in with my partner and had beautiful good quality items like a custom made sofa brought from Ireland which I loved and was well looked after but had to give up. Couldn’t sell or get anyone to take it on gum tree or Market Place on FB. None of the charity shops would take it as it had a faded coffee stain the size of a 20 cent piece on one of the cushions. My country style dining table and chairs was reluctantly taken by St Vinnies. Un used and some pre loved bed linens didn’t get a look in. I don’t know how we are supposed to apply and persist with the principles of reuse and recycle when this happens. Marie Kondo’s philosophy whilst well meaning, does not sit well with me. Your post has made me think very hard this weekend about all of the “stuff” I still have. As always I find you so inspiring. Thank you😊
Jules, if you still have the bed linens, they really do make the best beeswax wraps if they’re 100% cotton! :) I’m sorry about the sofa because it sounds both beautiful and a treasure to you. Did you manage to move it on in the end, or is it still in storage?
Yes, yes and yes, Celia.
I hope the tide is turning and that more and more consumers will become more conscious about what we choose to bring into our homes.
Not only whether we really need/love/will use it, but the entire life cycle of it – ‘cradle to grave’.
By this I mean the ‘exit plan’ you mention, but also its life before it came to us, how it was made, where, the materials used etc (which feeds into the exit plan re biodegradability etc)
Highly recommend Richard Denniss’ book Curing Affluenza for more thoughts on this and why we keep buying stuff!
Cheers, Sally at One Family, One Planet blog
Sally, absolutely, thank you for bringing that up. I thought about mentioning it in my post, but it got too difficult and unwieldy, but absolutely we need to consider manufacturing processes as well. What we really need to do as a society is to start making conscious decisions on how we spend our dollars…
And please only buy natural fibres, at least they break down in landfill a lot quicker than synthetics, which take FOREVER
In the 90s, we were all encouraged to make things with polarfleece because it was the “environmental” option as it was being made from recycled PET bottles. We knew nothing about micro plastics back then! I still have rolls of the stuff, which I’m now sewing into beanies for the homeless every June/July. I’m guessing they won’t be washed too often, so hopefully less leaching of micro plastics into the waterways.
I’d never heard of Marie Kondo, and it sounds as if I won’t be adding her book to my already vast collection. I don’t own a book I haven’t read at least three times, and generally I’ll borrow from the library before I decide to buy if at all possible. I have clothes which are over 30 years old and only now becoming so paper thin I have nothing to stitch the patches to. I have boots and shoes over 20 years old, but as I now live almost entirely in thongs, they’ll probably last as long again. I’m fortunate to live in north Queensland and off the beaten track as far as op shops go; our are still delighted to receive clothes and small household items, but are bound by legal obligations when it comes to furniture, so donating large items is harder. We’re about to downscale from 4 bedrooms and 3/4 acre to 2 bedrooms and 1/4 acre, one shed instead of two, etc. As I’m married to a pack rat, a lot of the editing of our possessions is going to fall to me (ie, while he’s at work and unable to ‘save’ things), so this post is a timely reminder to be a responsible recycler. Great post…
Kate, I’m intrigued that there are legal obligations around donating furniture! I know there are around underwear, but what’s the problem with used furniture? Good luck with the move, I hope it all goes well! xx
Mainly fire restrictions, I’m told. We tried to donate a sofa, wardrobe, chest of drawers and side table, without much luck. Apparently they’d been manufactured too long ago and didn’t comply. Of course, it could all be nonsense and they just don’t want the stuff!
I can’t believe that anyone would really throw away a shirt because it had lost a button. Maybe people can’t sew them on any more – apparently there’s concern because medical students have little experience of sewing, which is a bit worrying if you need them to stitch you up after an op! I realised my husband finally got the message about accumulating stuff when he came back from a trade show and had turned down every offer of a free pen, bag, mug, hat … At last. Sometimes, it’s not buying new things that are the problem but stopping the habit of taking things because they’re free. Your goals sound excellent, even if they’re easier to type than do.
To be fair to Marie Kondo, I read that quote in a Guardian article – I didn’t actually read her book. But I do know lots of younger adults who would bin an article of clothing with less “damage”. Oh and yes, please don’t start me on the free stuff. I have trouble saying no to freebies at the best of times. I have to learn to start refusing! Wish me luck! :) xx
Hi Sweetie Presumably you have been through all the suggestions on https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/news/display/2614 ? Marie Kondo is being made into a straw horse I feel by so many people. I don’t quite understand it myself. I read her book years ago, roll my socks and the result of reading her book was that I give away clothes to friends, have you ever had a swap party for example? and just buy less clothes being old and not very interested in fashion just in comfort. . Do you not have rag trades in Australia? Here people put clothes in bags marked rags and the charity shops can then pass them to the rag trade. Some clothes get baled up and sold on in vast bulk to traders in other countries. And what happens to all the people who rely on work in the clothing industry to feed their families etc etc, nothing happens in isolation does it? On one level we are told to consume less and on the other hand if we did then people lose work… As children in an affluent western society some of us grew up knowing there would be new shoes when we grew out of our old ones or if we needed to look smart for some family do there would be clothes buying, our mind set was formed by these early experiences that it was ok, even your duty to have new stuff so that you looked the part and didn’t ‘shame’ your family. So much of what we do is based on these parental /societal/class attitudes and they are hard to shift. But I tend to look at these things from a macro point of view which doesn’t help when you are looking at pairs of elderly worn out pyjamas and your stripy socks does it? xx Jo
Hi lovely, I joke a lot about living with too much stuff, but the Konmari show was actually a good wakeup call that I need to change my ways and try to minimise. My only concern was there was no real thought given to what to do with the stuff you don’t want. I have been through our council’s very detailed recycling site, but I don’t really want to recycle – Australia has problems with that already, as we tend to ship a lot of it overseas and at the moment, China is refusing to take our waste. Plus from an environmental perspective, recycling is a very earth expensive option in terms of energy and resources.
I don’t actually have a problem with clothes personally (it’s not what I’m obsessed with), it’s craft materials that are my achilles heel. And as we have very little local manufacturing, rags aren’t in high demand here – we don’t commonly have rag bins, although I have seen a few of them around. I’m going to make an effort to search them out a bit more. Our big problem here (and admittedly, it’s a great problem for a country to have) seems to be that because of our small population and strong welfare support system, it’s getting quite hard to donate stuff because charities don’t want it. Very few of our charities actually hand out goods to the needy anymore, most of them only sell it to the public and then use the funds to pay for their operations. So they really only want things that are in near new and saleable condition. Your last comment made me laugh – I actually do have torn old PJs of Small Man’s that are now beyond repair and stripey socks (always!) to deal with at the moment. But I’ll now put them all into a bag and hunt for a rag bin. Thank you! xx
Great post celia – I recently heard someone on the radio from block texx who were looking into recycling clothing and it was depressing to hear them talk about how much clothes that went to charities actually went to landfill. I am at the point where I don’t have much room for more stuff so I only buy stuff if I really want it. I have many more books than 30 but we also use our local library a lot because we love reading but don’t have room for all those books. I have thought it would be great to have a kitchen library where you can borrow a popcorn machine or a bread maker or any of those things that we buy, get excited about in the short term and then let gather dust for years.
Johanna, wouldn’t that be great? They could have that pie maker I bought 15 years ago that’s still sitting in my pantry… :D
Awesome post (as usual), Celia! Thoughtful and eye opening. I regularly cull my household and donate to charities, very rarely do I buy anything brand new, but need my books – even those are second hand. When I’ve finished, I pass them on.
Good on you! I need to cull more, but I’ll have to do it carefully…I think it’s going to be a drawn out process…
I’m always inspired by these posts of yours! We’ve had the same problem trying to donate recently older items recently. We were told they are just overstocked at the moment as everyone seems to be clearing out after Christmas and they will be able to eventually accept our items at a later date. So the goods game back home with us, waiting for that later date,
Hopefully that’s the case, Annette! But it does mean you have to keep storing it for now!
I greatly admire your efforts to repair and recycle. I had no idea that 30% of donations end up in the landfill, that is an eye-opener.
Becky, I’m not sure whether it’s as high in the US, but apparently it’s about 30% here and in the UK. Either way, it was enough to make me pause and think before zealously piling everything into the donation bag!
Hi Celia, you might like the group Sewing for Charity. Each month they have a project such as school library bags or beanies for cancer patients in the Northern Territory. They also take donations of fabric that other volunteers use for these projects if you can’t participate yourself
Thanks Bec, I’d never heard of them before. I’ll check it out!
Mechanics are always looking for rags for their workplaces.
Thanks for the suggestion!
The big recycle store, Savers. will take anything, and so we tend to cart our unwanted treasures there, after making sure that they still are reasonably attractive/useful/ not dated/ functional. Most op shops in our neighbourhood sort through the donations and pick out the more desirable stuff. With regard to new clothes, I try to buy linen and cotton, which can be composted if need be. Old twoels get chopped up into squares for floor cleaning. I have removed at least 100 books from the shelves, but still own at least 1000, a number that makes me feel very happy and comfortable. A home without an array of books would not be a home for me. They are stacked in little piles about the place, as well as in shelves. I also belong to four libraries and look forward to my train trip into the city to collect my pre-ordered books. I have virtually given up on kindle reading ( still load it up when going OS) because real books make me happier. I like to go backwards and forwards, read the footnotes, fondle them. Yesterday when I went to buy a nice second hand summer frock in savers, ( $8.99), I also grabbed two books, and my husband grabbed three. Straight to us via someone’s Marie Kondo clean out.
We all have our passions – mine is fabric, and I fondle it and plan projects. But I’ve got to cut back – there’s more in the sewing room than I’ll ever get through! :) Glad you’ve got great opshops in your area! xx
Your goals are helpful, in particular, identifying and “exit plan” on an item before it even comes into your home. I have been downsizing for a couple of years and it’s been very challenging to find homes for many things. I have a lot of furniture that was once considered “antique” and valuable. For instance, I have a beautiful turn of the century pump organ that absolutely no one wants. That’s just an example. If we cannot donate items, I really don’t know what to do with them. But the fact that we are all trying to make better decisions in the first place is likely a step forward. Marie Kondo is inspiring and terrifying many of us. LOL!
Debra, where are the American Pickers when you need them! ;-)
Clothing and fabric that op shops won’t take might be taken by local car mechanics to be used as rags. We send all our old clothes that we don’t need as rags to our mechanic and he is grateful as it saves him buying bags of rags
Thank you, that’s a good suggestion. I was thinking the car wash places might want them too…
You might have some luck with the Salvation Army at Tempe.
We deliver bags of clothing, bed linens and towels there with slightly embarrassing regularity and they’ve yet to turn anything down.
The only thing they don’t seem to take is text books, magazines and coathangers. We’ve not attempted to donate furniture though.
The Bower at Marrickville *sometimes* takes things, sometimes not. Reverse Garbage has taken decent-sized fabric remnants from me before – some I’d gotten from them originally years before!
Like most people I’m trying to cut down on my consumption of *stuff*.
Reverse Garbage will always take fabric, I think! I’m just having trouble parting with it! 😆 Thanks for the tip about Tempe – I’ve had luck with Salvos at lidcombe as well. Have an old PS2 to go there as well.
I’ll follow your progress and advice on this with great interest, Celia. It’s a very real dilemma. The charity shops were very strict about what they’d take when clearing my Dad’s house last year. I think the best solutions (which I’m following) are to keep clearing gradually (and ruthlessly!), but less (and throw out an equivalent item for each new), and use sites like Freestyle etc to give stuff away. For Xmas we only gave Vinnies books (fabulous selection and fun choosing)! Also throw out 1 item every day – in a year that’s 365 items!! x
Vick, the one item a day suggestion is great – I’m trying to sort one box a day at the moment. It’s going to take a very long time though…
Thanks for this. It came at just the right time. Currently I am dealing with both my own and my father’s need to ‘de-stuff’ but do so responsibly and non-wastefully. My father in particular wants to deal with my late mother’s possessions but does not want simply to discard them and as you say it can be hard trying to find a place for them.
Good luck with it all! It’s hard to part with sentimental treasures…
Celia, if you have things like outgrown kids clothes some of the women’s shelters might be glad of them. Particularly in rural areas. I assumed the opshop thing was post-Xmas but understand it could be ‘decluttering.’ Agree supersavers, but I also put aside a lot of my opshop books (I buy them there & return if I don’t hand on) and clothes for more rural opshops which are sometimes looking for donations, and whose populations may not have access to fashion stores and libraries. I know a (non-charity but inexpensive) opshop in Coober Pedy is struggling to get stuff particularly clothes at a price they can afford to buy given the prices the locals will pay! Also https://www.freecycle.org/
Diane, we have an opshop nearby that isn’t charity run – you’re right, I hadn’t considered whether or not they’d take things. I’ll ask them.
We have an organisation called Freecycle in the UK which I have used to pass on things that were too good to take to the dump but difficult to work out where to find a new home. It has worked every time – the absolute definition of one mans trash being another’s treasure.
I’m being much more selective about what comes into the house but it’s going to take a while to rehome everything we no longer want/need.
Kim, a couple of people have mentioned Freecycle, so I’ll investigate. I wish we could sort our sewing rooms together, but I suspect we’d just end up trading and adding to our stashes! :D
You’re almost certainly right! 😂
I love love love this article! I am always trying to downsize but in this same sort of way! I hate just throwing things out that can be reused.
Just a little suggestion, the beanies can almost always be donated to chemo places also. A lot of times they forget their hat and get cold so the clinics like to have extras. Or you could create rice sacks. That is what I do with my old material, and donate to the elderly. (If you don’t know what these are, they are like heating pads you heat up in the microwave.)
Thanks for that – I used to make kids beanies! Will look into it…
Shabby towels and blankets etc welcomed by RSPCA shelters too. Oh that’s a thought – Celia, I think some of the WIRES and other wildlife rescue facilities like fleece fabric ‘pouches’ for rescued joeys & other infant marsupials.
ooh that IS a thought Diane! Thank you!
Diane, I looked into this and WIRES won’t take pouches made of synthetic fabrics. That’s ok, I’ll just keep making beanies. :)
Oh! They were begging for things a few years ago after the fires, including mittens for koalas; don’t recall that. Sorry.
(I hope this is not a repeat comment. I scanned through most comments but might have missed a reference.)
I have always been a very reluctant Facebook user but have found a number of sites which are great for moving on ‘things’ we no longer need/love/bring us joy/ fit etc ‘Buy Nothing’ – https://buynothingproject.org/find-a-group/ is very useful. Mission is to ” offer people a way to give and receive, share, lend, and express gratitude through a worldwide network of hyper-local gift economies in which the true wealth is the web of connections formed between people who are real-life neighbors.”
You can only join the group close to where you live so you can ‘gift’ to your local community. I am always amazed at what other people can make use of.
That’s really good to know about, thank you!
It’s a challenge. Being just behind you on the birthday curve, I totally get where you’re coming from. We stopped buying ‘stuff’ a number of years ago and I’ve finally convinced most of my friends that I don’t need gifts (just donate to the Leukemia Foundation). But still there is stuff. I wrote about it last year before everyone went Netflix Kondo crazy; Here’s at least some ideas to donate to people who really need it…
http://www.tiffinbitesized.com.au/2018/10/23/3-ideas-for-donating-with-purpose-reduce-your-footprint/