practicing wifely skills - how to de-junk!

So, quick moment to catch you up on me, I married my best friend for time and all eternity the weeks ago today...

So this means I'm now a wife... and I feel a constant need to act like a 1950's wife, it is actually oddly satisfying!  For example, I cleaned his room today!  And that was a HUGE task!  Yeah, you're probably thinking "you don't share a room?"  We do, but due to certain circumstances beyond our control, we are stuck living in his parent's basement until the tile is done where we are supposed to be living.  Now, some family friends will be coming to stay for a few days in June, and his room is needed to house one of said people, but his room was AWFUL!  We couldn't possibly let anyone stay in there

Do you see how bad it was?  You could barely get to the bed, and getting into the closet was impossible.  So, since I had the day off, I decided to clean it up, cause I know his mother will be mad if she has to do it.  And now it looks like this:

Woohoo!  Maybe I am weird for being so proud of myself, but it took a lot of lifting and re-arranging, and don't even get me started on making that loft bed.  Loft beds are fun to sleep in, but they are awful to make up.  Ah well, it's done now and I don't have to do it ever again.  Also, I did lots of laundry and made our bed look all pretty :

So, moral of the story, don't be a pack rat like my husband and hold on to tons of useless stuff, cause you never know who will have to clean it up.  So, to help you de-junk, I will teach you the fool-proof method!

First, you need several boxes.  Label them; "need to keep," "garbage," "donate," and "emotional attachment."  If the space you are clearing stores seasonal items like Christmas decorations, having a specified box for seasonal items would be a good idea.

So then you open up this drawer, closet, nook, whatever it is that needs to be taken care of and start sorting!  If it is an item the you use often, then put it in the "need to keep" box.  If it is trash, put it in the garbage one.  If it is the watch you have had since you were three years old that does not work but you just have to keep it because it is so special to you, put it in the "emotional attachment" box.  And then if there is anything that you are willing to part with, that is still usable, put it in the "donate" box.

Now is the easy part.  Take the "need to keep" box, and put everything back in the drawer or closet in an orderly fashion, put the "garbage" box in the garbage, take the "donate" box to D.I. (really, do it then or it will sit around cluttering up your space for ever!), and then get some tape.  Seal up the "emotional attachment" box, put it on the top shelf of your closet, and five months later, throw it out!  Do NOT open it up and look in it, just throw it out.  If you didn't grab anything in there in five months, you can definitely live without it.

There is my tip for you!  Happy de-junking!  It really makes home a better place!