Ouch! This article hits close to home! Time magazine wrote a nice feature story about the movement for people to get rid of clutter. There’s a 100 Thing Challenge underway, for people to only own 100 things. WOW! I think this is extreme but necessary. On the good side, a pair of shoes may count as one item. Rejoice!
Every year when my mother comes to visit, we tackle a clutter project. One year, it was my drawers. I felt like I had done a mall run. So much stuff in the drawers I forgot I bought. The other year, we cleaned out the trunk in my car. You DO NOT want to know what I found in the trunk. Think college notebooks. After chucking the clutter, I felt AWESOME.
I live in a small space and even the tiniest item can be overwhelming. I’m all for getting rid of stuff. The actual act of it is serious work
Dave Bruno is running a blog on his 100 Thing Challenge. Check him out at guynameddave.com.
Could you live with just 100 things? Where would you cut first? Does clutter make you feel comfortable? Are you a minimalist or pack rat? Are you going to do the challenge?
Thanks Deborah for the tip!
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{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
I didn’t hear about this, thanks for keeping me in the loop. 100 things, it sounds like a small number but if we are counting shoes as 1 item then I may be ok. It would also depend on how smaller items would be counted. I will not be joining this challenge. I hate clutter it makes me feel uncomfortable, I like things to be well organized and I like to see open spaces not every inch of a counter being used to hold up and unnecessary item. That is not to say that I have not had my clutter moments because I have, but I always have to find time to address the cluttered area. How does that old saying go? A cluttered space means cluttered mind….something like that.
I suppose I COULD live with only 100 things but why the heck would I want to? I wouldn’t call myself a minimalist but I hate clutter so there’s never too much around at any one time. I clean out my closets and everything else on a regular basis.
Hey Natalie
Thanks for the mention. Just as a heads up, the 100 Thing Challenge is not so much about clutter as it is about “putting stuff in its place.” What I mean by that is, consumerism does not so much make our homes a mess (though it does do that), rather consumerism makes our lives messy. Things take us away from what is really important.
I don’t think a person needs to live with only 100 personal items to be focused on what is good. But I figure it might be worth seeing how living outside the world of consumerism helps me make more time for the important things in life.
Best, Dave
Um, OK, Dave. Sounds deep. I mean, I think too much stuff is bad for the home environment. If I can’t find my shoes because of clutter, that’s less time I spend talking to people who matter. But, it’s all good. Best of luck. Don’t ponder too much, Dave. I think it’s a fun challenge. When I went a month without eating out, getting my hair done, or spending money on entertainment, I was WAY introspective.
That’s a great idea, but there is NO WAY I am getting rid of excess jewelry. I mean, what IS excess jewelry, and even stuff I don’t wear any more will only give me pennies on the dollar.
But the point is that we need less stuff, and I totally agree with that. I’m trying to double the amount of stuff that I donated last year in this year’s donations. Even if I don’t get a huge tax write off, someone gets a chance to use the item again, and hopefully it helps them out.
OH – he’s not counting dishes and cookware. Interesting.
Frugalista, Product, stop cheating. Y’all know damn well that “shoes are only one item” is as big a red herring as there ever was. You own 200 pairs of shoes, i.e., 400 individual shoes, and you’re counting the whole collection as one thing? Um, no. If the point is to get rid of unnecessary things, my guess is there’s a whole lotta women who need to start on the shoe rack. Sexist? Maybe, but let’s be real here.
This is making me think about what I could get rid of at my place. My solarium is full of stuff that I haen’t used since I moved here, so most of that can probably go. I go thru my closet every season and give away a bunch of stuff to goodwill. I also have a lot of clutter in my office. That stuff can go, too.
I suppose I could live with 100 Things — but that would call for tossing out (or selling) memories: dozens of family photo albums, autographed first editions books, favorite dvd films, cherished letters, collections of my work, etc.
I guess now that Time Magazine is as relevant as VHS tapes, they have to publish stupid features like that. No exclsuive interviews with world leaders. No investigative stories. Time Magazine is McDonald’s for the mind.
Keef, I think a pair of shoes counts as one item. I’m going to clear that up.
I understand the point of this but this seems tough. I am a pack rat and I need my stuff. I don’t think I could do this challenge. I do regularly go through and get rid of clothes for my tax write off.
I had a friend who first introduced me frugal lifestyle. Every time he bought something new he got rid of something. To me, he was something like an urban monk but was a little unrealistic.
looks like you’re going to have Shoe-gate on your hands! Haha…but they have to be one item because they are purchased together!
I have become a minimalist ever since I moved to a one bedroom apartment. Nothing comes in without me thinking about it first. My mother-in-law offered me some jewelry cases over the weekend and they were pretty — but I turned them down. I just don’t want to deal with clutter. (note, I did not turn down jewelry, and I came home with a skirt, so really I’m bringing junk in…but carefully!)
I’m a pack rat…I’ve tried to get help…from my mom to an ex-boyfriend who thinks alphabetizing his dvds is relaxing…I even contemplated hiring a person that does seminars at mediabistro about dealing with clutter.
My mom says just take it one box at a time but one box can be overwhelming…I find it hard to throw things away.
I need a very compelling reason to deal with my clutter.