365 Days of Stuff (that I don't need)

Remember a few weeks ago (or was it longer) when I posted about 'the great purge' that was occurring in my house?  Well, I got through one room - my bedroom, and I quit there.  The rest of the rooms just seemed SO overwhelming!  This prompted me to go about things in a different way, I started to take at least one thing EVERY DAY that we don't need, and put it into a box in my closet.  When the box is full - it goes to the thrift store.  So far, I am amazed at what I have been able to come up with: 2 boxes of perfectly intact 'burner trays' for back when we had a stove with coil burners (!)  I guess we don't need those anymore!  What else?  There are a few more of my clothes in there, some candles, some dishes, etc.  I am sharing this with you simply because I know that there are some of you there who would love to 'purge' but just get overwhelmed by the thought and never start.  If you are one of those people, then this is a strategy for you!  Also, don't be afraid to limit yourself to just one item per day... some days I go through a drawer for instance and pull out two or three things for 'the box'.  The way I see it, one drawer is a lot less intimidating (and way less time consuming) than tackling an entire room!

One more idea: as you are going through your closets, cupboards and drawers, don't be afraid to set aside some 're-gifts' as well.  I have already freely admitted that I am a re-gifter (I am trying to bring it into the mainstream).  Contrary to popular opinion, I believe that re-gifting actually can be a way to show your affections for another, especially if it is done with a great deal of thought.  Sometimes someone gives me something that I really like, but that I don't need, and I think, 'I know someone who will appreciate this even more than me'.  What I am saying is, don't just set aside random 'stuff', but have a person in mind who you think might really enjoy that item (that way, it also ensures that it will eventually leave your house!)  if you are interested in re-gifting but worried about the etiquette, click here for a list of suggested 'rules' for regifting.  I will admit that I don't always follow these rules... I have been known to re-gift stuff like appliances (espresso machine, bread maker, etc.).  The key to my re-gift was to make it a lot more personal: I added specialty flours with the bread maker, bread machine yeast, and some hand-written recipe cards and with the espresson machine: some specialty coffee, etc.  I was also upfront about the fact that it was a re-gift and that it had been used... (don't worry, I cleaned them both up just like shiny new!)  Think what you want about re-gifting, but I am sold on its virtues!  Agree or disagree on this issue, I would love to hear from you, so I am once again going to poll the audience (this time I refuse to abide by the results however, I am a die-hard re-gifter!)

So, this week's poll choices are:

• You should NEVER re-gift.  It is thoughtless, cheap, and rude.
• Re-gifting is acceptable on certain occasions, as long as it is done with thought and some degree of re-gifting etiquette is employed.
• Re-gifting is the best.  Anything is fair game!

(For the record, I would vote for number 2...)

There's no such thing as bad regifts, just bad regifters. - Quote from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Happy re-gifting (or not if that's the way you roll)

Marebare :)