Do you have a lot of extras in your house?

[Miss Sparkly]

The inlaws got me thinking about this. They have a 3,500 sq foot house, three car garage, storage area and still need to rent two other outside storage units for all their stuff. Crazy! DH and I keep only what we use. Our favorite DVD's, we only have one TV, our computers, etc. The only stuff we actually store for any length of time are the winter clothes and books. We have a 1,000 sq foot house and I feel like that's perfect

 

[iLander]

We are collectors.

At least that's what we said the last time we moved and it took two full semi's and a large truck to move all our junk.

We had a HUGE yard sale, called an auction company to haul away stuff for auction, and used over 100 giant yard and leaf bags to throw stuff away. We stood by the trash pile with $20 dollar bills, ready for the trash guys.

And still, 2 1/2 trucks. Just so you know, we have a perfectly clean house, no towering piles of newspapers or anything like that. We had a few more yard sales after we moved, I sold a ton on ebay, and I think we're down to one semi's worth.

Interestingly, I don't miss any of the "stuff".

I agree, you're perfect at 1000 sq ft. and the amount of stuff that fits into that.

You're not missing anything.

 

[that_someone_special]

yah

I sold $699.04 worth of extra junk on ebay this weekend. All stuff I would either toss or donate or just leave around the house collecting dust. Getting rid of this stuff is hard though. It's just stuff but I am attached to it. I feel better about selling it though and putting it into savings or towards the house.

And no, I didn't sell any diamonds or jewelry

 

[4ever]

BF likes stuff. His parents attic (in the UK, on the other side of the world) is full of his stuff which will be "worth somthing one day".

I hate extra stuff. I like only what is being used and am pretty ruthless with selling, donating and chucking stuff which hasn't been touched in a while.

 

[Miss Sparkly]

yah

I sold $699.04 worth of extra junk on ebay this weekend. All stuff I would either toss or donate or just leave around the house collecting dust. Getting rid of this stuff is hard though. It's just stuff but I am attached to it. I feel better about selling it though and putting it into savings or towards the house.

And no, I didn't sell any diamonds or jewelry

ah darn! I would've been first in line for your beautiful rock Don't think I could've got a deal like Kenny's friend though

 

[Jennifer W]

Ah, stuff! How we love you.
There are whole rooms in my house you can't get into. Stuff.

I have no idea how many square feet we have, but we have around 40,987 metric tonnes of stuff...

It comes of moving two complete households into one - DH and I both had our own homes(with stuff) when we moved into a new place together. A lot of the stuff is inherited furniture and antiquary books. We can't throw it out, but we can't fit it in either.

Bigger house?

 

[Gypsy]

I hate all the extra crap we have bit am too lazy to do anything about it. We have a storage unit full of stuff that I could probably get to nil if I actually spent some time on it.

​

 

[zoebartlett]

We do have a lot of extras, and I try to go through everything a couple times a year and weed out what I/we don't need. Actually, I think the majority of the extras are my things: clothes and books/files for the most part. I have a ton of school related things in our garage. I could bring them to school where they'd probably get more use, but I don't want to clutter up my classroom. Right now, I just go through the boxes as needed and bring what I know I need for a particular unit.

Our house is 1400 square feet. I'm glad we have a garage because all of our extra stuff wouldn't fit in the house.

 

[soocool]

Our home is 3000 sq ft. We never finished the basement , but I do have exercise equipment down there and lots of stuff.

Ok we accumulated this stuff as a result of new technology. DH still has his stereo system (30+ years old), receiver, turntable, tape deck, huge speakers. I still have myoriginal receiver, speakers, tape deck. We haven't used these in years, thanks to the advent of cd players. Now VHS is defunct and while I still have my VCRs I am sure someday they end up down there as well. Old 35mm drop and load cameras no longer used (still have my 35mm SLR and use it). Old furniture, old pots and pans that have been replaced. DD's crib and changing table(my dad made it). Old paint cans, our bikes, etc.


I am not a person who hoards things, but DH would keep every speck of paper if he could hide it from me. I finally got him to agree to get rid of all the old stereo stuff. I will donate it rather than try to sell on ebay as he has suggested. We even went through our Christmas ornmanents this weekend and had 3 piles, keep, donate, and throw away.

I am keeping the crib, changing table, stroller, playpen, DD's baby books, Beanie Babies, some classic toys.....in case of grandcildren in the next 10 years or so DD can have these or I will use when grandkids come to visit.

The old tvs, paint, VCRs and other unusuable electronics will be taken to a recycling center the next go around. We plan on downsizing in the next 10 years and have already decided what will stay and what will go.

 

[soocool]

The inlaws got me thinking about this. They have a 3,500 sq foot house, three car garage, storage area and still need to rent two other outside storage units for all their stuff. Crazy! DH and I keep only what we use. Our favorite DVD's, we only have one TV, our computers, etc. The only stuff we actually store for any length of time are the winter clothes and books. We have a 1,000 sq foot house and I feel like that's perfect

You're still young and have many years to accumulate stuff. We were the same when we were around your age! lol

 

[ksinger]

The inlaws got me thinking about this. They have a 3,500 sq foot house, three car garage, storage area and still need to rent two other outside storage units for all their stuff. Crazy! DH and I keep only what we use. Our favorite DVD's, we only have one TV, our computers, etc. The only stuff we actually store for any length of time are the winter clothes and books. We have a 1,000 sq foot house and I feel like that's perfect

You're still young and have many years to accumulate stuff. We were the same when we were around your age! lol

Yeah. Stuff. My mom got ill, so we moved her into assisted living, and sold off some of her stuff. Then I had a garage sale with the stuff that didn't sell the first time round. Sold loads of stuff, but still a ridiculous amount of stuff left - only enough room for one person to walk down the center of my garage. Then the MAN shows up. We decide to live in my house, so in comes HIS stuff, and we really haven't gotten rid of my mom's stuff at that point. I had a bit of stuff, and growing, but I could get my car in the garage and had a tidy house before those two events. Now? I sometimes despair of all the stuff. And at some point we'll end up with his DAD'S stuff, and all the stuff of the hubs that is still stored at his dad's.....like a safe....and more BOOKS. Books. I love them madly, but they do take up insane amounts of space.

On a happier note, I was able to get rid of a linear foot of books from the shelves, so some of the books that had no shelf space, will now. But it's such a thrash of a process, getting rid of stuff.

 

[Tuckins1]

No. Our house is from 1923 and does not have much storage space AT ALL!! Even if we did, I have an OCD thing with clean, clear surfaces. The slightest *hint* of clutter, and I get anxious and panicky. When I watch the show Hoarders, I get so creeped out!!!

 

[April20]

We dont have extra stuff. We've moved three times in four years and every time, I've gotten rid of tons of "stuff" that we didn't need/use/want. I hate moving all the junk! I also have a rule that if we moved it last time and the box it was in was never unpacked and we didn't miss it, it goes.

My grandmother has STUFF. When she moved out of her house in the city- a small house- and into her larger country home, my grandfather got a decommissioned school bus to move all her "stuff". This small house had three small bedrooms in the front, all of which were filled stem to stern. So full you couldn't get in. She filled that bus end to end and then they parked it on the farm. In sight of my mother's house. It's been sitting there since the early 90s. They've never unpacked it and saplings that were near the bumpers grew up and behind them into grown trees. She couldn't get on there if she wanted. I venture a guess she has NO idea what's there. My mother loathes being able to see it in the winter. My grandmother's larger house has every closet filled- and some of them are very, very large. Her garage is also filled. I've threatened to rent a dumpster and just chuck every last thing in the garage. It's all J-U-N-K.

 

[gemgirl]

We have far too many extras in this tiny 1200 sq. ft. house. I always thought we were going to move to a nicer, bigger house, so I've been saving things in my attic for a bigger house. Now it's looks like we'll never move from this house and stay on Long Island, so this summer..... BIG garage sale! I can't even move around my attic to find anything anymore. Every storage space inside and outside of the house is over full. We've definitely got to lighten our load somehow. Even our closets. I need to do a major cleaning out and packing up for Good Will. Now when my husband wants to buy something, I ask him to figure out where he's going to store it first, before he brings it home. (His stuff tends to be big, bulky and heavy because he's a contractor).

 

[elrohwen]

We have a 1400sqft townhouse and for the most part it's the perfect size - the only thing I would add is a room to function as a "library" to hold our books and give me a place to go when DH plays video games. I don't like that we only have one living room so if he wants to play games or watch a bball game I don't have anywhere to go. It would also be nice if we could have a dining room table and the bunnies in different rooms (I'm thinking an eat-in kitchen would be nice, then put the bunnies in the "formal" dining room area). I don't want more rooms for "stuff", I just want more functional rooms. The bunnies take up a lot of space and have a lot of clutter, unfortunately. I love them, but I don't love their stuff! Nobody likes decorating with chewed up cardboard boxes

We don't have many extras. We have one personal laptop that we share (or often DH uses his work laptop, since we bring them home anyway). We have one tv. We have a small basement storage area and we use the space efficiently - plenty of open floor space in order to access our stuff.

My mom loves to throw things away and hates stuff, so I think I've inherited some of that mentality. DH has always been more of a saver, but in the past few years he's come over to my way of thinking and throws out more things than I do.

 

[dragonfly411]

I was just thinking this weekend that I really have a lot of stuff.

 

[tyty333]

No, we dont like to have a lot of stuff around. I've pretty much figured out that once I put something away (like a purse, or
home decor) it never gets used again so...might as well donate it and get it out of the house. Its fells really good to get rid
of stuff (IMO).

 

[ForteKitty]

I have a bunch of stuff too. Used to work for disney back in college, so i bought all sorts of stuff w/ my discount, especially when they had hoilday 50% off coupons. There are stacks of lithographes- signed and reg, snowglobes- big and small, picture frames, watches, jewelry, pins, vase, rugs, household stuff, school stuff, office stuff, robes, PJs, costumes, stuffed animals, tons of mugs. I even have some props from advertisements, like a 6 ft x 4.5 ft gong from Mulan. We've been giving stuff away to kids but there is still so much stuff that my 2 car garage is full. Our cars are parked outside. i reaaaaally need to sell stuff on ebay.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

We're in an odd situation because we moved from a 2300+ sq foot home with a two-car garage, with A LOT of tools, to a small apt. with no garage. So, all my DH's tools, etc., are still in his parents' house right now. Those don't really count though because dh needs his tools and plans to bring them to the next place we move to b/c we'll again have a garage. He is not a hoarder!

I'm also not a hoarder but do have a difficult time getting rid of shoes, books, makeup, and clothes. Everything is organized, but I do have a lot and box up summer clothes and put them in the closet.

Over the last year, I've sold over $4,000-5,000 worth of stuff that we didn't need. This week, I plan to sell more. Just so much stuff that we've replaced or realized just takes up unnecessary space.

We watched a few episodes of Hoarders a couple weeks ago and the show FREAKED me out. Having a lot of stuff is one thing. Some of those people had mice living in the garbage INSIDE their houses though...!!!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

[ Books. I love them madly, but they do take up insane amounts of space.

On a happier note, I was able to get rid of a linear foot of books from the shelves, so some of the books that had no shelf space, will now. But it's such a thrash of a process, getting rid of stuff.

Ksinger - books are kind of an odd one. We have A LOT too and I sold some to a local used book store. We had 10 boxes and got something like $70 credit which bummed me out. What I've been doing is selling some on Amazon. I found one book that I've looked at only a few times selling for $180 brand new! I have it up for 1/2 price! I sold 4 others and made $40, which is much better than what the used book store gave me.

One reason we sold them was because we've frequently moved. If I've counted correctly, eight times in 10 years, so I've become a pro and getting rid of "stuff we don't need," as my dh calls it. I've started buying books again and DH is mad at me. lol After posting that Dystopian thread, I've been ordering books like a maniac and now they're about to begin piling up. May have to hide them under the bed. hahaha

 

[Ninna]

I can't stand extra stuff. Like other poster, it feels good to donate stuff kids and I haven't used withinn a year or two.

 

[movie zombie]

yes, lots of "stuff"....because i know deep down inside my heart of hearts that one day i'll find a use for it. and i do. for the most part.

i'm much better at getting rid of clothing. i see it as something sitting not being used that someone RIGHT NOW would love to be wearing. motivates me when i think of it that way.

re the "stuff", though, time after time i find a use for it. however, i've got too much of it now so its time to be ruthless and keep those things that i know i've kept and then reused in the past.

MoZo

 

[Haven]

NO!

I hate clutter, and I can't live happily in it. We live in a 1300 sq ft single family home with three small bedrooms and a one-car garage. Our house has very little storage, and a crawl space that can't be used to store things. (This was a major selling point for me, by the way.)

DH was 38 when we married, and he had been living in his condo alone for ten years. He had a lot of stuff.
I can't be happy in a cluttered home, so we went through all that stuff together and made sure that not one extra thing made the move to our home. We do have a lot of books, but they line the shelves along our walls and thus become the most beautiful decoration I can imagine having in any home.

I just can't be happy living in clutter. I need a space that feels calm and warm and cozy enough so I can create. I can't create amidst clutter. I know some people are just the opposite, but that's me.

We give the house what we call a "deep clean" every six to eight weeks, and the first step of that deep clean is to purge anything that we don't use.

We have shelves lining two walls of our garage, and a large shed in our backyard. That is where we store the things we don't use regularly. Our closets in our home are very clean and only hold things we use on a regular basis. The only things we store in the garage and shed are equipment for maintaining our yard and cars, extra paint and other things for the house (trim, batteries, light bulbs, etc.) and out of season clothing and decor.

Our home isn't sparse, it's definitely cozy. It is decorated with things that we think are beautiful or inspiring, such as books, artwork, small pieces from our travels, handmade ceramic pieces, and large wicker baskets filled with throw blankets.

My motto is: When in doubt, throw it out! (by "throw" I mean recycle, of course. It just doesn't sound as good.)

ETA:
I was raised in a very cluttered home and hated it. I wonder if that has something to do with my aversion to it as an adult.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Yes and No.

Yes, I have extra stuff...things that I've bought and loved but have no perfect place for *right now*, things from our wedding I can't part with it, in general things that mean something to us but don't have a permeant home. However the "no" comes into play when I mention that I have a nifty storage system of bakers racks in my basement, color coded totes and laminated labels breaking down what's in what box.

 

[Amber St. Clare]

My husband is a hoarder so this topic is causing me some discomfort....I haven't been to my basement in several years because it is piled with crap. He does the laundry because I refuse to set foot down there. Our whole house used to look like something like you see on "Hoarders" until I realized we were at the point of doing something or divorce. He has ONE room--the dining room--in which he is allowed his mess and I have reclaimed the rest of the house.

I have to stop now, Im getting upset.

 

[Shoopy]

FI is a pack rat. I am not. If I haven't used something in 6 months, it's gone (donated or thrown out). I don't even keep my daughter's things! There is a family in Dominican Republic whose daughter is 6 months younger. Every 4-6 months, I send her my daughter's old clothes (that are in good condition). I just gave away half of her toys as well.

FI has things (magazines, clothes, etc) since the 1990s that he won't get rid of. Once we get into a house though, he knows it all has to go.

As far as space though, I want BIG. Maybe because my place is tiny and I hate it.

 

[zoebartlett]

No. Our house is from 1923 and does not have much storage space AT ALL!! Even if we did, I have an OCD thing with clean, clear surfaces. The slightest *hint* of clutter, and I get anxious and panicky. When I watch the show Hoarders, I get so creeped out!!!

I know what you mean. Just out of curiosity, do you have a lot of school stuff? If so, do you keep it there or at home? I have so much school stuff and I don't know what to do with it. I cleared out my classroom when we moved last year, and now that I'm back in my old room, I love how uncluttered it is. I don't really want to bring more stuff in, although it would get rid of the clutter in our garage. What to do, what to do...

 

[zoebartlett]

We have a 1400sqft townhouse and for the most part it's the perfect size - the only thing I would add is a room to function as a "library" to hold our books and give me a place to go when DH plays video games. I don't like that we only have one living room so if he wants to play games or watch a bball game I don't have anywhere to go.

I feel the same way. Our condo is the same size as your townhouse, and for the most part, it works. We only have 2 bedrooms though and they're both pretty small. Our guest room currently has a large couch and a full size bed. There's no room for much else, which frustrates me. I'd get rid of the couch and that would free up some space, but I hope to have a place with a 3rd bedroom someday and the extra couch will go in there. That will become my husband's game room. I hate that the only place he plays XBox is in the living room. I'm always in one of the bedrooms if I want to get away, and I don't like to hang out in the bedroom. So yes, more functional space would be AWESOME.

 

[diamondringlover]

We have too much stuff, we live a 100 year old farmhouse and there is not alot of storage..my husband and my son are packrats they just cant get rid of anything...it makes me crazy, we are out of space in our house and a storage locker will be next...my husband has automotive crap in the garage that he moved from our old house and his Mom's house...the man is 55 years old, the crap is old, he will never use it...if its worth something sell it if its not worth anything get rid of it......can you tell I am somewhat frustrated

 

[rosetta]

No.

I have moved house over 20 times, and the last 3 times was completely single handed.

That tends to focus the mind somewhat.

There is no way i'm letting surplus to requirement stuff come with me.