I try very hard to talk the talk and walk the walk about clutter but there are times it creeps up on me. so this post is going to be a bit different, i'm not feeling my usual "got everything under control" when it comes to my stuff lately.  

 I have done so many massive declutters and then it feels there is too much yet again 6 months later.  over the past 2 years because of quarantine I have drastically reduced my fun thrifting and estate sale-ing so one would think if things aren't coming in then problem solved. But there were several factors that played into this timeframe that did contribute to extra clutter. One being i sold my vintage travel trailer which i had for over 20 years.  I never used it for traveling, it was basically decorative yard art and storage.  the other being my inheriting 2 truckloads of stuff from my mom.  the items that were in the trailer ranged from craft supplies, resale items, collectibles to empty boxes and packing material.  the stuff from my mom ranges from sentimental to guilt clutter.  

 i have been trying to look at clutter reducing in different lights and just really understanding why I can never get it under control for an extended period of time.  How I have approached decluttering has been in two forms. 1: small spot decluttering, picking a room or section and reducing.  2. huge overhaul, such as Kon-Mari, doing the entire house.  And what I think i have hit on is that I just reduce, never fully eliminate or get down to basics.  Also when i reduce I tend to turn around and fill those spaces that were just freed up by shifting clutter from other spots.  

here are a couple of questions that i have been trying to implement lately to help me with my decluttering:

1.  would you buy it again?

2.  could you replace it in 20 minutes or for 20 bucks or less?

another thing i have been trying to work into my thinking is the possibility of complete elimination of certain groups of things, or at least get them down to just basics.  I took this approach recently with my hair dye stuff. I had all sorts of stuff in there that i bought and used just a few times: hair bleach, protein treatment for over bleaching, color remover, a full bottle of blue-green dye (my old go-to color before I switched to red)  various applicator bottles, clips, tips, foil.... stuff that I used to use every other month but not for the past 3 years.  they weren't really old, expired (ImO), or broken.  but it was a big basket of stuff that i always had to push these things out of the way to get to the handful of items that are now relevant to my hair dye regime.  Normally i would have maybe reduced a few items/multiples and then tried to organized things together in little bags.  But i decided to try "minimalist", meaning only keep what i used.  i know that probably sounds like a 'duh' but for all i knew maybe i may have wanted to go back to bleaching my hair, i do things like that on whims all the time. But i chunked most all of it.  the next time i went to dye my hair it was a world of difference.  i didn't have to empty out the basket of items i don't use, it was just all ready to go.  this whole long story applies to question 2 above as well.  All of the items i threw out aren't special and are right down the road at Sally's.

I went through the trailer items and donated a huge amount of stuff to thrifts stores and to friends that do resale.  the items i was left with i divvied up between my inside storage area and our shed.  the items from my mom have been a bit more difficult to deal with.  i have been working on 'jenga' packing items that I really do want such as photos, old letters.  But actual items/belongings for the most part are an issue.  i inherited a lot of things that belonged to past family members (example:a huge set of china with place settings for 13 people) that i took on.  all of these items were so treasured by her.  but the truth is I didn't really know any of these family members very well.  the items don't hold any special memories for me, and maybe the most important and practical...i don't like these items, they are not my style.  If I saw them at an estate sale, would I buy them?  Absolutely not.  so i am doing my best to slowly reduce these things out of my home.  i don't think i can just pull the bandaid off and eliminate them all at once.

So what is going to be my new approach to decluttering?  Try to lean more into minimalism when it comes to things other that decor.  (I love maximalist with my decor and that isn't changing!)  I will probably take everything on in sections once again, like Kon-mari does...its just daunting.