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Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Live Simply : Project PURGE

My New Year's Resolution was to "LIVE SIMPLY"... simply put: less stuff, less worry, more appreciation, more creativity

To start the year off to a clean start, I decided to get rid of 100 things in January!
As daunting as this seemed at the start of the month, I easily completed my goal & if I am honest with myself, I could easily do it again!
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I donated un-loved books. Passed down clothes to my family & friends. Tossed out stacks of magazines. Sorted through all the stuff that had been weighing me down.
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Is living simple on your agenda for 2013?
Are you looking to clear out the clutter from your life too?

Here are some PURGING tips I picked up this month:

- Do 1 round of BRUTAL purging & pick a collection place (I had one of those giant blue Ikea bags for mine)
Ask yourself: have you used it in the past 6 months? Is it clean & prominently displayed? Do you love it?
If you answered NO to any of these questions, put it in your collection zone, be brutal

- Over the next two weeks (give yourself a set time period), if you miss any of the items, pull them back out of the collection zone & enjoy your rediscovered item

- Anything that is left in the collection zone, figure out what is the best resting place for it (i.e. trash, donate, sale it on Poshmark, given away to a family/friend) & then act on it. DO IT THEN. Don't wait, or else those things will slowly find their place back into your home (no bueno!)

- Bonus round : now that you have started to get rid of the junk, you will be able to see what you have, what you need & what is just bringing. you. down. Use the joy you have from rediscovering some of your long-lost possessions to keep them clutter free!

- Make a rule for bringing in future stuff. Maybe institute a 1-in-1-out rule, or only buy things that you LOVE, that you will USE, & that will add VALUE to your life.

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Let's all stop accumulating stuff & start curating a life of simplicity!


What is the junk bringing you down right now?
That dark hole corner of your closet you have been meaning to clear out?
The stack of books you know you should pass on?
The desk top that you can no longer see?

31 comments:

  1. I have been purging a lot lately and it feels so good! This is inspiring me to do even more! I don't think I want to get rid of any more clothes at the moment, but I am re-purposing them to get more wear in the upcoming seasons. I like the idea of 100 things!

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  2. I (weirdly, perhaps) kind of love doing an occasional purge of this sort, and even though I do it a few times a year, I'm still amazed that I can find things every time that need to go. In my closet maybe that's a result of needing a 1-for-1 rule in my wardrobe, because without it things just pile up between purges. How can a girl figure out what to wear when she's staring at SO much stuff? Now you've got me excited to go back through the whole house....

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  3. I need to do that too!! especially my clothes!!! forlaurenandlauren.blogspot.com

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  4. i did the same thing last night! still trying to figure out what to do with all my older clothing. have you ever used poshmark? i had never heard of it before.

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  5. oh man, i totally need to do this. i usually do a clothes purge about twice a year, but i know i'm not brutal enough (there is definitely stuff i haven't worn in years - oops!) considering our closets are tiny, i need to just let go!
    -- jackiejade.blogspot.com

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  6. I'm a borderline hoarder... so the idea of purging sort of frightens me. But it is so necessary sometimes! I think I definitely need to do this, I bet it will feel awesome after! :)

    xo, Yi-chia
    Always Maylee

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  7. I LOVE THIS! Live simple is one of my resolutions too. I love the idea of getting rid of 100 things. I did a closet challenge a few weeks ago and was able to get rid of soo many clothes that I never wore, or had the right fit from the beginning. It felt so good! I should really try to get rid of mags, bags, and other random things around the house.

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  8. That's so true! I did some major purging when we were moving. If we didn't use it, didn't love it or simply didn't know where should it go - I tossed it. Still you would be surprised how much 'stuff' I have.
    I nominated you for Liebster Award over at my blog! Check it out!


    happymedley.blogspot.com

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  9. I did my last closet purge in 2010 when I moved to my new place, a big and brutal closet purge is long due , sine I gained weight I can not fit into a lot of stuff I previously owned so I know Bags and Bags of stuff is waiting to reach the orphanage. Well you have inspired me to do this ASAP.

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  10. I have used Poshmark (@jesshereandnow), I only sold 1 necklace, but it was super easy. I actually got the confidence to start after hearing rave reviews from my friend Lauren (of Seventeenth & Irving), she has a post here with more about it (at the end)
    xx

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  11. Great tips! You know I love a good clean out ;)

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  12. Haha, my boyfriend calls me the "anti-hoarder" because I get SO MUCH satisfaction from cleaning out, organizing, streamlining anything in our house, but I still am beyond AMAZED at how much STUFF I continue to have. I think I need to start working on the other end of the problem - what I am actually bringing into the house!
    xx

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  13. Agreed, I found a pile of clothes to take to the tailor so they can get new life breathed into them! Enjoy your "re-purposed" items!
    xx

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  14. This is too funny because I just did a post today on starting to get myself organized, which of course involves purging and cleaning stuff out. I'm not ready to tackle my closet yet so I started with one drawer!

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  15. I just sent one of my readers a couple of your links about a focus closet clean out & info on Poshmark sales! We are always on the same page lady! It's freaky but awesome at the same time :)
    xx

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  16. Jessica, love this post! It's definitely one of my resolutions to use what I have and only buy what I need! Beautiful images too. Glad you mentioned brutal because that is essential. I'm seriously impressed that you've already downsized by 100! Good for you girl!

    perfectly priya

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  17. Oh goodness. My closet really needs this to happen!

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  18. I had to do this a few months ago and it was great - yet I find myself accumulating crap again! Time for a Round Two it seems...

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  19. I love the line about curating a life of simplicity. I have been slowly purging, but I have much more to do. I need to hold onto things for a bit and see if I have the urge to wear them, if not...off they go to someone else's loving closet.

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  20. I really love this! I am trying very hard this year to be more simple and be less busy. It is slowly but surely becoming a part of every day life. I have gotten rid of a lot this year already and plan to do more!

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  21. Oh my gosh good for you! I feel like I am constantly going through stuff to declutter! And there's always still so much stuff...it's like a loosing battle! Haha...keep it up, sounds like you're doing great!
    xoxo
    Erin

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  22. Yes, I definitely need to do this! I always go through my closet twice a year, but always feel like I still have too much stuff and that's probably because I'm not being brutally honest with myself! I need to purge, purge, purge!
    ~Sara
    sarastrauss.blogspot.com

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  23. What a fantastic idea! I also keep all my "to donate" things in a blue Ikea bag. If I don't ever miss the items in there, I figure they're safe to donate. My husband and I moved this past summer and threw out/donated so much stuff, and were still pretty disgusted with all the stuff we own. Before we move again, we really want to focus on paring down on our belongings and living with the "essentials" :)


    theoriginalbrynn.blogspot.com

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  24. This is such an amazing idea! I'm going to do this come February!

    xo, Megan
    indie flower

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  25. Oh, I love your blog layout and the content of this post! At the beginning of this year I told myself that I need to do a major room cleaning project to get my bedroom to look exactly the way I want :( But I have yet to really get into it.. I'm looking for a new desk and bookshelf as well as other ways to organize my things and that jewelry drawer is such a cute idea with all those plates and little cups!

    Thanks for stopping by my blog by the way, I am glad I got to discover your's!

    -Sarah
    The Weekend Diary

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  26. Hey Jessica! You have such a cute blog here. And I thank you for stopping over to visit Classy Ever After.
    I'm your newest follower.
    XO, Gina
    http://classyeverafter.blogspot.com

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  27. Purging my closet has become almost an addiction for me! I'm adhering strictly to the one in, one out rule in 2013!

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  28. This is a fantastic post! Good for you! I totally agree with the 1 for 1 deal :) I just did a similar post on Maximizing Space! http://passionpinkandpearls.blogspot.com/2013/01/design-principles-and-elements.html

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xx