Ok you guys, we are almost done with our 30 days of de cluttering. How about let’s move the rest of it on out.

Here’s a great idea I found at sketchblogs. The idea is to slowly but surely remove 200 things from your house. Either throw them away, or give them away, or put them up for sale on eBay or in a garage sale. As you do this, the idea is to keep track with a list so that you know just how many more things still need to go. I think it would be really fun if we keep track of our list by posting right here on this specific post. I’ll make a link for us, and put it somewhere easy to see and remember. As the year progresses, we can keep track of how well we are doing.

Another idea I found somewhere was a kind of “out with the old and in with the new”. The concept being that before you can bring something new into the house, room must be made for it by releasing 2 or 3 items that you no longer need. In this way, you are not sabotaging your own efforts at a clutter free home.

Another cool place to visit for good information is Zen Habits. There were some great ideas on de-cluttering there, and I urge you all to go and visit. He also has a nice little list of links as well, all on the subject of de-cluttering.

Clutter is related to instincts of self-protection and hoarding, on the one hand, and to feelings of insecurity on the other. Clutter corresponds essentially to the Earth element. If Earth is negative, you worry. Positive Earth nurtures. The person who clutters needs nuturing, or needs to be provided with nourishment and support. If you tend to clutter, you should ask yourself what you need to feel secure and happy, and what it si that you believe about yourself that prevents you from having it.

Clutter near the doorway always indicates resistance to going out into the world. If you have doorway clutter, you have to struggle through a lot that seems to stand in the way of your goals. You tend to barricade yourself in and fear letting go.

Cluttered shelves overhead, or things piled up to the ceiling indicate that you are apprehensive that something unwanted might befall you.

Clutter caused by things stored under your bed causes chi to stagnate and generates “sha”, which your body absorbs when you sleep. If you have things stored under your bed, even if they are neatly stored in boxes, remove them and store them somewhere else – your health will improve.

Your home breathes like a living body. Its breath, or chi, comes in and out through the doors and windows and flows through the corridors and rooms. When it flows unobstructedly it imparts the sensations of ease and comfort. But when it’s flow is obstructed due to clutter, the opposite happens: your chi becomes obstructed, the elements in your body become unbalanced, and your health and affairs suffer.

From Feng Shui, Step by Step
by T. Raphael Simons

Breathe You Are Alive

Following the breath breathing in,
I calm my body.
Breathing out, I smile.
Dwelling in the present moment,
I know this is a wonderful moment..

Declutter activity for today:

Find three items that are worth at least $5, that you have outgrown or that you never liked in the first place, and put them in a box for our group’s garage sale this spring.

If you think you may change your mind and remove the items from the box, and put them back on the shelf, email Shirley and we can store the items for you so you won’t re-clutter your home with things that you know you do not need.

This should take less than five minutes. That’s it for today!

This idea is from our very own Melissa!

Declutter activity for today:

There’s one item that every time you walk by it, you think “I’ve got to get that taken care of.” It could be a piece of paper on the floor, and every time you walk by it, you think, “I should pick that up and throw it away.” Or perhaps it’s a button that you set aside meaning to sew it back on your jacket. Right now, take just a minute and go take care of whatever that one thing is. You will feel so much better when you’re done!

I bet “mama” was pretty big in the “take care of it now” department!

This decluttering idea
came from our very own Melissa