I can go 3 Months without Washing My Underwear....

For clarification: I can go 3 months without washing my underwear AND wear clean underwear EVERYDAY!  And that is AFTER having removed 53 pairs!!!!

Maybe no one will get this , or maybe it will really help somebody get started . Sometimes I just need a small manageable project that will make me feel good so here's what I did today . Here's the question how much underwear, how many pairs, do we really need? I figured that when it's difficult to shut the underwear drawer it is time to sort through it and declutter.

So we probably need at least seven pairs. And you probably want to have 7 pairs that are best pairs for you know that time of the month. However upon counting:

8
I have eight pairs of underwear in my drawer that don't even belong to me.

27

Yes that's right 27 pairs that only deserved to be in the trash can.

10

10 pairs that I really haven't worn, these will get donated.

So far that was 45 pairs of underwear I'm not using taking up space in my draw.

Also have one pair of underwear that I hadn't been wearing because I bought it new, love it, washed it at a hotel and it turned dingy gray. those are being soaked right now, if the gray doesn't  come out I'll toss them in the bin.

48

Turns out I put 48 pair of underwear in my love it keep it then bin. I'm thinking I probably don't even need this many pairs of underwear. Meaning that really I should be able to Chuck everything in my middle, maybe keep box. I won't do this today because, I don't want to burn my decision making power out, I'm on a roll.

41

Pairs that made it through  a second sorting to the maybe bin. 

8
More pairs getting tossed, as I was putting them into purgatory I decided they really didn't make the cut.

HELPFUL CRITERIA:

THROW AWAY: 
These are my criteria for throwing something away. These are  the easy to toss items, they don't fit well, they are well used and don't look good anymore, I've never worn them, or they are not comfortable.

DEFINITELY KEEP (this time) :
So the things that I put my definitely keep box were the things that when I picked them up I said, "this is something that I've worn recently, know that I like and fit well. It was in good condition and I know I would wear it again soon without hesitation.

MAYBE KEEP:
As this was the first cut and I did not want to slow myself down, I gave myself the middle zone. I put items in this is one that I thought these are useful, and I remember really liking , are in good shape, and I probably paid too much for. This box will go in the front of the draw and I will use only these for the next few weeks. If I pick something up in the morning and I think I don't like that because _____,you fill in the blank, then I will get rid of it. However, if I wear it and like it it can stay, if at the end of the day they were uncomfortable it is out. Since starting to clear out, I have been known to actually take something off mid day and get rid of it.

All that said, I highly doubt that I actually need 89 pairs of underwear! So obviously I have a long ways to go. However by being easy on myself I now have a lot more room in my drawer. & I am NOT stressed out rather I am elated. Even knowing there's more to go I cannot work at it slowly, or do this again on another day when I'm motivated. Now if I just said its only reasonable to have seven pairs for that time, and maybe 14 pairs for all the time, I would probably stress myself out and be unable to make any more decisions.

And I got rid of an amazing 53 pairs of underwear. As ridiculous as I feel writing this, I bet I'm not alone in this.

Making Space!

I tackled another kitchen cabinet!  I went to get the cork screw this morning (to pull a rubber stopper from the cod liver oil)  and realized somehow our utensil drawer had become jam packed.  One look and I knew there were at least a few things that did not belong there.  Right on top was my husband's slider press.  Silly, yes, perhaps...he could use his hands to shape, and not this tool. BUT it makes him tremendously happy (just like the Legos my kids do not need), and he does use it frequently.  So for now it stays.  This is a process that everyone needs to be happy going through.

I figured i would just find it a new home, JUST?!  I could find no happy home.  Something had to go!  At first glance I saw nothing obvious to leave.  In fact, I thought I had done a pretty good job maintaining the kitchen stuff.  Not so.  I found this cabinet, and i set to work :)

I found a great Vitamix on vacation last year, and so the Osterizer has sat dormant ever since.  For Now--those fateful words, this will go to the camper and take the recently vacated place of the waffle maker.  We did really enjoy having smoothies while on vacation-they are simple, quick and nutritious.  Not sure if this one is up to the task, but if I am using it, and it drives me crazy I will be motivated to get rid of it.  Then I will just take our Vitamix with us, a bit of a hassle, but worth it.  I also found a new Oster lid that doesn't even fit this model!  I set it aside for a friend who has one that it might fit.

I gave the Brita Filter to my grandparents, I hope it turns out useful to them.  We have been using the more expensive fridge filter because it is there, saves space, and saves spills, also we drink a LOT more water that way.  Not sure about the waste issue with the filters....wonder if they could be recycled?  Or at least backwashed for reuse.  They do last a long time, and make a huge difference in our water taste.  At any rate I no longer needed the pitcher.

The 4 brown bowls are now in the donate box.  I do have a friend that has a similar set, but not sure if I will get them to her, which ever happens first is where they will go.  I also have a table cloth that makes me think of that same friend, and so I grabbed it out of my linen closet and threw it in with the dishes, it will either finally make it to her or not with the dishes---oh, it would make a good skirt though....

I would love to get rid of the Parafin Spa for hand wax....but the kids and their friends love it.  I recently refilled it--i know it is not a good step in waste reduction to use this product--but I bought the wax a year ago.  I will donate when this wax is all used up.  Maybe it will at least keep someone else from buying a new unit.  For the moment we will enjoy this gift from my grandparents (my grandfather's therapist thought it would help him with the pain in his hands, but he did not like it).

Well it felt like a lot more when I was doing it...but still I cleared off one whole shelf's worth of things in the process of finding a place for a 2"x4" by 2" tall slider press!!!