How Much Do You Need?
Exactly how many cups does a family of four or five need? No, this isn’t a Zen riddle. How many coffee or tea or even hot chocolate drinkers are there in your family?
If you’re like many of us, you probably own several distinct sets of cups and glassware. Brace yourself emotionally. You’re about to decide if you really need to keep them all.
At least four to six of those cups undoubtedly belong to a set of dishes. If you have the dishes and use this set regularly, then you automatically know you’re keeping the cups as well (First decision made!)
If you don’t have the entire set, then perhaps you really don’t need those particular cups or mugs. Be brutally honest with yourself and toss them or give them to charity or the local recycling depot.
Do the same thing with any “souvenir” mugs and cups you’ve collected from your vacations (or others have given you) that just don’t appeal to you anymore. I’m not going to make you toss mugs that your grandchildren or children have given you. Some items are worth their weight in sentimental gold!
Use the same process with every other item in your cabinets. Go through your glassware. You still have that sippy cup? If there’s no sentimental value to it, toss it. But be honest about why you’re keeping it. Perhaps it’s better suited to living in the attic with the children’s old things. But then… why are you keeping those?)
We all have dishes we seldom use because they’re chipped or mismatched. If you don’t use these dishes – and have plenty of others for your meals – then either toss them, or give them to charity.
Pots and pans… casserole dishes… pie pans… all live and die by this rule. If you can’t remember the last time you used it, or you have three of them, then you probably don’t need it.
Remember, the clutter in didn’t happen to appear overnight, and it won’t just disappear on its own overnight. This takes some work and some decision-making. If you’re holding on to things you don’t need, figure out why. Memory? Hope? Gift? Inertia?
Now, recognize and celebrate every shelf and space that you’ve cleared. That will motivate you to continue.
