Keep the pretty green plates. Next time you send food to someone, put it on the pretty plate with a note to fill the plate with a treat and pass it on to someone else.
Oooo I actually think that would be so cool to share with friends and family. Like a gifting plate. Any time you want to give someone food the plate goes with it and see where it ends up every so often. 😍
I keep a lot of things "just in case" only if I have room or a place for them. Things get tossed if they get in my way or aren't used in 5 years. I loved the ideas for the green plates people gave, use for Christmas, etc.. My favorite videos are when you shop, open boxes from Thrive, or the veggie boxes, and when people send you stuff. You have a lovely family and it is fun to see how great you all get along.
I agree, I think they look like good serving plates. You could put cookies or brownies or muffins on one. It would be perfect for serving a cheese ball with crackers. Or maybe a cake like a birthday cake if you make a homemade one? I think they would be great for every once in awhile when you need a nice plate to serve on. You seem to like them very much so I think keep them at least until next year if not forever. And if not they would make a great gift. Give away a nice food gift with one of those plates. Another thought is to keep one or two and give one away! They are beautiful plates. 😍❤
I love that method -- when I discover an item I forgot about but think I like, I give it a deadline of usefulness before donating or officially keeping, lol
Christine, I don't know if you this would work for you, but I have two shelves on my walls in my living room because I wanted the freedom to change the pictures and frames when it wanted and I wouldn't be tied down to something if and when my style changed again. You go girl with figuring out your new style!!! Woot woot!!!!
Totally start putting together Hailey a hope chest for when she goes to college or moves out on her own. Nothing big but a designated tote where good functional items can go. Example those mixing bowls. Someone just starting out would be delighted to have them. Wish my parents would have done that for me 😀
Today is saturday and I went to a corner of my formal dining area that had piles. I am leaving in a few minutes to donate 2 boxes of puzzles and 4 bags of large print paperback books. That was my 15 minute declutter for today. Thanks to you and minimal mom for the motivation. Thanks Dawn!!!
Thanks for this video... I have been starting do some 15-minute declutters and they ADD UP!!! Even just doing a couple of kitchen drawers, or one messy dresser drawer is a HUGE benefit, and really encourages me to move on the next area in my next free 15-minute chunk. I call it Decluttering Chunks.
A couple days ago you posted your pantry redo…. At 4 o’clock in the morning when I was watching RU-vid I couldn’t sleep (yay insomnia ) so I decided to do our baking cupboard and cereal/snacks cupboard. Girl!! We had 6 Open boxes of stale cereal to throw away and five open pancake mix boxes that had almost none in it. And yet we just needed to keep all of them. 😑 I felt really good after I finished that. Thank you for your honesty big families are a lot of work and I for sure can relate! I just finished watching this video it’s about 3:45 in the morning (again yay insomnia) thinking i’ll do our linen and medicine cupboard today haha. Thanks again! Sarah
Yes, keep the green dishes for fruit plates or buffet meals. Since the plates are very generic you could use one plate on a sink counter to hold hair products and lotions, etc.
Donating is great, but I've read several things lately from places like Goodwill that accept donations and they are saying to please not donate broken or ripped or other unusable items. They do not have the resources to fix or mend things. Only donate things that, for example, you would give to a family member or friend. There are also people who are donate/dumping their junky items during hours when the donation places are closed! Just leaving the stuff sitting there. This makes so much work for the people working there. Good, clean, usuable items are much appreciated, of course! (Just posting this in general to get the word out. It's not directed at you, Mindy! You're obviously doing it right!)
I grew up with a "just in case" mom. She grew up in the 1930's great depression when you had no money for anything so you saved everything just in case you might need it. Some times it spills over to the next generation:)
@@marjoriejohnson4559 I was just going to say that! It's definitely a 'depression' mentality, which I understand. My grandmother always said 'it's a sin to waste' and that's in my head no matter what. I try very hard not to buy things unless I really need them and not to throw things away if someone else can use them.
My mother in law kept a single roll of wall paper that was metallic images of couples engaging in "the sex". One roll was not enough to even paper a small space...she would need 2 rolls...so she saved the one..Thank the heavens she never found a second roll, or that bathroom would never have been fit for company
Re the plates: one philosophy would say “if it’s not a firm yes, then it’s a no.” It doesn’t sound like they are contributing to your life, just your inventory. They’ve become another what-if item. Love your videos-of all stripes!
DV shelters will take the conditioners. Also, save any unused travel bottles of shampoo, body wash, etc. that you collect from hotel stays. Those are great for DV shelters and toiletry kits for teens going into emergency foster care placement.
You hit the nail on the head with saving stuff “just in case”. I was so guilty of that. I used Dawn’s quarantine tip for my iffy items and it has been so freeing to go donate those boxes. Making housework much more manageable.
FYI inexpensive hair conditioner is the best thing to shave your legs with it actually conditions your legs and is abeautiful smooth cut. Great job on the declutting
if you still have cloudy glass hanging around, try running your dishwasher with a couple of kool-aid packets. I used to do this periodically when I had hard water and it works magic. It cleans the dishwasher too. There is a lot of acid in that little packet of drink mix.
Gift bags? Those are perfect for sorting extra soaps and lotions from your bathroom closet...then donate the whole bag. For some reason, I can only get rid of a few bottles or tubes at a time. Slowly thinning it out. Also good for excess pens, pecils, sticky notes...
To get rid of that foggy glass baking soda and salt paste apply to the glass..after a little bit rinse...the glass should be clear...good luck from Florida
having worked in 4 different op shops/charity shops id encourage you and everyone to not donate anything that is like those glass bowls, cloudy or stained. they just sit on the shelf and take up space and don't sell. you could use them for dog water bowls or planters. better to recycle them instead and save the charity shop the $ they pay to get rid of them.
I love this strategy. I have a get out of the house bag in my closet. Anything I done want goes in the bag right away. When it’s full, I just grab and donate
I love this! We are moving into a smaller home while we build our dream home. I am so nervous about downsizing! I've been trying to declutter small areas each week. I definitely need to shed the mentality of "I'm keeping it for just in case". Thanks for the motivation!
I inherited a glass vase that was my grandmother's. It's very narrow at the top, and wide at the bottom, so it's impossible to clean and has had the same type of cloudiness in it for years. I recently used it for some flowers, and then the flowers died and the vase was pretty yucky. I washed it twice with dish soap and hot water, and it was still cloudy, so I finally poured in about a cup of white vinegar, then added more hot water and let it sit for about a half hour, rinsed it out and after a good scrubbing on the outside, it looks nearly new!
Take the conditioners to a local church that has a food pantry. They can give them out to folks in need. Our church has a table of items donated by people that people can pick off of. If I find things on clearance- make up, feminine hygiene products, toys, shoes, stuffed animals new with tags on, underwear, etc (you get the point)-little treat type things that food pantries don’t typically give out, I donate. Everyone needs little pick me up type items to brighten their day. Not saying conditioner and feminine hygiene products are treats but you get my point. It’s not canned veggies or beans and rice.☺️
for anyone watching who is not as privileged.. I just want to say it is absolutely ok to keep things “just in case”. Not everyone can afford to get rid of things and replace them later if needed. It’s ok to keep back ups and just in case things if you’re financially strapped.
Plain old vinegar eats through hard water deposits (acid + base = clean glass); it doesn't work on glass that has been actually etched by the water (at least the ones my parents have - I tried), but it's perfect for those plain annoying mineral deposits.
I just declutter my house and I'm having a yard sale tomorrow! I also had a set of glass mixing bowls I got 10 years ago from my wedding and I HAVE NEVER USED THEM!😳😳😳 They're going bye, bye!
This is the best habit ever. Also if you have some sentimental stuff that really is useless clutter. Organize it nicely take a photo for the scrapbook and get rid of it😁 you can’t miss it if there’s a picture of it in the scrapbook🤣
Use the green plates for gifts of treats at Christmas. The conditioner I would donate to a food pantry. Personal items are usually in short supply and are so helpful to get. Another idea for a food pantry is to create birthday cake kits. A box mix, a tub of frosting, candles in a disposable pan wrapped in plastic wrap. You could put a gift card in for a small gift if you like as well.
Well thanks this this quick bit of sunshiney-motivation, I have 3 grocery bags full waiting to go to Goodwill now! I have stayed on top of clutter pretty well the last few years but of course it's a never-ending process! I was in the right kind of mood today, after watching this, to not overthink things and just be at peace with letting them go if they were serving us no purpose and just taking up space. The wulda, coulda, shouldas, weren't enough to justify those items here anymore!
Your spice rack: amazon has those exact ones but they also expand like your old one. So I got an expander one and it takes up my whole cabinet and looks exactly like your new spice rack.
I will take those plates 😃😍😁. Any chance you can bring them on over…I ‘m just down the road from you a little…Hill Country Texas 😆. They are gorgeous, and really fit my decor vibe. Otherwise, I say like a couple others have said. Clean them up and keep in the kitchen, until another declutter round. If they are in your lune of sight, you may start grabbing them for lunches or snack trays, etc. or, use them as your presentation plates for your many food videos.
2 rules I use: If you haven't used it or wore it in a year, get rid of it. And when I declutter/clean, I act like I'm moving and ask myself would I need it or use it.
Me too! When I declutter/clean, I also act like I'm moving and ask, "Would I want to pack it in a box, pick it up and move it?" Nope! Ain't got strength in my back for extra stuff. xD
I so love to watch your videos! I just realized I don't have things hanging on my walls in the house, and I like it this way. Good thing I'm not the only weirdo. Haha! #fromGermany
Put things you are unsure of in a opaque box and store it in the basement. If 3 months go by and you don't remember what is in the box... donate it without looking inside. Dawns tip.
My hubby was in the hospital. I reorganized his clothes chest. He never knew what he had and it was a mess. I got rid of a bunch that he’ll never miss. Sneaky and totally legal after 62 years. 🙄🙄
We’ve been in our house over 5 years. Other than a calendar in the kitchen and an atomic clock, I’ve only hung one mirror in the living room (because great grandma gave it to us 😁) and pinned a Frank W. Benson print in the master. I’m very slow about decorating. Now, we’re replacing windows and updating interior paint. So, I hope to hang some things in the next year. Haha
I would keep the green plates and wash them up and if you don't use them in a couple of months then get rid of them. Also conditioner is excellent to use to shave your legs with....it makes your legs really soft.
I’m the process of decluttering my house. I have different sections broken down so it’s not as daunting. When I’m done, I’ll go back through and skim the top again, so to speak. I don’t feel like I’m getting rid of as much as I’d like to.
You can remove the buildup caused by calcium and magnesium ions in hard water by swabbing the glass with acetone (nail polish remover), and then scrub gently with a mild detergent. Soaking the glasses in plain white distilled vinegar for 15 minutes is another effective home remedy.
Thanks for this video. I'm currently trying to declutter so it's motivating. I'm sure you know about the hint of using conditioner instead of shaving cream, if not here you go! I don't use shaving cream to shave anymore, I prefer to use conditioner!
I love decluttering videos, they do help with motivation haha haha.... you can use conditioner as a washing machine softener. Just add some water :-D. I love the walls like this, so restful.
I’d keep one green plate to be my designated cookie plate to bring to parties. If I forget it or it doesn’t get returned, no harm done. The other 2 can get donated.
