2 More Hefty Bags OUT THE DOOR!

I am so thrilled at the progress I've been making in the basement! I keep dragging people downstairs so they can inspect it. Today is trash day and last night I hauled two heavy bags of stuff OUT! I'm making yet another pile of stuff for Freecycle; I've got two bags of things going to my mom's (she's taking some bubble wrap for some gifts she'll be mailing out, plus a drip coffeemaker I never use, for when they have guests and need to make more than 4 cups at a time. I also have a few outgrown clothing items to pass along to a couple of nieces.)

There will be a few more trips to the garage today with stuff that really does not belong in the basement. And then it will be down to the last few trouble things: the baskets (where the HECK do I keep those?) and the "miscellaneous" that I will just have to walk around the house with, putting each thing into the right spot. After that, I will have that whole big dresser top for folding laundry or wrapping gifts.

I even got rid of the disgusting old "came with the house" curtains. When I was cleaning out, I found a box of curtains, some of which don't fit any windows we have here. There were two chambray "toppers" in that box, so I washed them and hung them on the basement windows. More light is coming in, and they look much nicer--and not quite so '70s!

Today or tomorrow I will be getting a couple of containers. As I suspected, I won't need TOO many! I do need places to keep the gift bags that we reuse, and the brown grocery bags that we recycle our paper in. I know what I want to store the brown bags in, and where to get it. The gift bag container is one I haven't figured out yet. Maybe I'll get inspired when I'm shopping!

Still Plugging Away At It

I'm still working on it and still making progress! The boxes of clothes are scheduled for pickup. I've posted four separate items on Freecycle already, with more to come.

Today I spent most of the morning working on the "household tools" area. I put all the lightbulbs together, put nails, screws, and eye hooks in separate jars, and got a box together of "things that really belong in the garage." I also took some books upstairs so I could list them on half.com, or sort them for donation to the library. I put the snow boots that Little Brother hasn't grown into yet, upstairs in his closet. I also started a list of the types and sizes of containers I will need to finish this job. Finally, I intend to move the suitcases upstairs. Everyone can keep his/her own suitcase in the bedroom closet.

I'm excited to be making progress!

30-Day Challenge: The Beginning

As if she doesn't have enough to do with her famous Menu Plan Monday, Laura the Organizing Junkie has started up a 30-Day Organizing Challenge!

I'm up for it. Anything that can help me improve my basement/pantry/laundry room/graveyard for assorted, miscellaneous "stuff" will be a great blessing! If nothing else, putting this out in public will shame me into doing something about it.

Here's the mess at hand:














As for the plan of attack: I'd love to do what they do on "Clean Sweep" where they empty the whole room into the backyard and sort the stuff, but that's not practical--and I don't have my own personal bunch of burly movers and camera crew! So I think my plan will be to "sweep" around the room twice. The first time will be the Get Rid of What We Really Don't Need sweep. The second time will be the Find A Home For Everything We Kept sweep.

I am going to allow myself a budget of $50 for any containers I might need--but there's a good deal of storage space in this room that I am not using well. I hope I won't need to purchase too much of anything.

(And tomorrow's Recycle Day, so I'm going to get all those cardboard boxes out of the way right away.)

UPDATE: (April 4) I have 8 boxes ready to go to the recycle pile outside. I have 4 boxes of outgrown stuff piled up to donate, and I will be calling to have those things picked up, later today. I am starting an area for "Things to Freecycle." I'd have stayed down there longer, but I swept around the furnace and hot water heater to evict the Dust Bunny Colonies, and kicked up so much dust that my asthma started acting up.
I have also figured out a better place to keep all the soda, and a place to store the wrapping paper. Those things will be taken care of soon.

CLICK ON THE LABEL "30 Day Organizing Challenge" and you'll see all the posts on this subject!