2009: Identify and Rid Myself of 43 Items of Überclutter

Took 14 gallon containers’ worth of old paint to the hazardous waste dump, along with a box of dead batteries.

Hurrah! I did it!

Tossed a pile of old, very ratty clothes I had put aside to paint in. That was over a year ago and I still haven’t used them, so out they go!

Just one left!

Took back online ordered clothes that didn’t fit from Old Navy and exchanged them for a fleece jacket that does.

Just two more things!

Took two bins of used plastic grocery bags to the library for use on rainy days.

Just three more items to go!

Took about 100 books to the used book store for sale. Managed to aquire only 6 new ones and retrieve only one from the sales pile. Rejects were donated to the library.

Sent a big, fat box of beautifully illustrated children’s books to my sister-in-law and new nephew in the U.K.

Six more to go and two months to do it.

Twenty years ago, when I embarked in a failed-before-it-started entrepreneurship of making bags, I bought these button-makers and buttons by the thousands.

They have managed to move with me at least ten times, even to the Yucatan Peninsula. But there’s no way they’re crossing the pond, so they’ll have to go as soon as I’m done with all my fabrics.

Some of them will be easier to dump as I have moved on and have no more interest in them. But I know myself, and I know I’ll still browse through them instead of just directly recycling them.

Yet some will be harder to get rid of as they have practical info I need or are beautiful works of art.

The first “sifting” of prints and negatives resulted in 11 kilos of unfocused, uninteresting, duplicated, moved photos, or give-aways.

This is my full pile of items to repair, sew, and cut & sew. This is not nearly a quarter of what I used to have —although I must admit I have some others back in Seattle.

Some of these fabrics are 20 years old!! And a few are so out of style. And all of them are at least 11-12 years old :P So this is my last chance: anything that doesn’t get sewn before spring, will be given away, as I won’t be lugging fabrics that won’t be turned into garments for another 20 years!