I am giving away most of my clothes..

[SoCalDem]

At 56 I have finally come to the conclusion that the clothes I have been tenderly keeping in the hopes of them fitting me again...ARE NEVER GONNA FIT ME AGAIN :cry:

I could almost open up a second-hand store... I have all sizes, and all are in excellent condition and some even still have price tags:(
There's no way I'd ever have a garage sale, and I am too lazy to do the e-bay routine, so I am boxing them all up and giving them to a friend who has two daughters..and he Mom lives with them too.. Between the 4 "girls" in that household, surely some of the clothes will find a new home :)..The ones they do not want, they can just haul to Goodwill, and give me the donation receipt..

We are going to do some serious "home improvements" soon, and I want to re-claim all the space these things have been taking up..

My "hang-up" closet has exactly 2 things hanging in it :)

Anyoone else ever just get rid of EVERYTHING??
I feel better already.. and if I ever do lose the ton and a half I want to, I'll just buy new stuff :)

[Skittles]

1. it actually sounds like a good idea

perhaps I'll go through my closet and donate to a thrift shop all the stuff I haven't worn in a couple of years - that will accout for 75% of what's in the damn closet.

[SoCalDem]

3. I have been watching HGTV.. and the show "neat" has convinced me

The hostess of the show is ruthless..she makes people ditch all kinds of stuff, and the trade-off?? Lots of space and a clutter-free environment.:)

That's what I am aiming for :)

[emulatorloo]

17. Which show are you watching on HGTV? Mission Organization?

You are right - get rid of it all and buy new fashionable clothes when you feel like it.

[SoCalDem]

23. Since the election, I am watching a lot of HGTV..never watched before

but we are planning some renovations, and it never hurts to get ideas :)...and some are pretty darned funny too (without trying to be)..

The clutter-people are so extreme it actually makes ME feel better too..

I even taped one to show my husband.. "See I'm not as bad as THIS person ".:)... His comment.."Yes you are ".:)

[MADem]

2. My first thought, reading that headline

...was, Are you moving to a nudist camp???

Sometimes a fresh start is a good thing! Good luck with your home improvements!

[SoCalDem]

4. OH MY GOD...NO.. People would be gouging their eyes out

Everyone would sue me :)

[Jamastiene]

5. You do realize

that the minute you give those clothes away, you'll find yourself fitting into sizes just like them again... I've been there. Ah, if you get new clothes when it happens, you'll always be wary, if you look at it like I do, I guess. And you'll probably enjoy the shopping, I hope.

[SoCalDem]

6. That would be worth it..

I need to lose so much now, that I am discouraged, and my "always flat" stomach is no more:cry:

Mother Nature kicked me hard during menopause, and I just let it happen :grr:.. Now I am just accepting it, and getting on with my life :)

[Jamastiene]

7. Honestly,

I actually don't get the "flat stomach" is "good" idea at all. I don't care about a person's stomach. I'm a face person. Compassionate looking eyes and a warm smile matter so much more. Some people say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I say beauty comes from the eyes, the windows to the soul...

[SoCalDem]

10. Not flat, as in emaciated.. I would NEVER have fit that mold

It;s just that I used to have a waist and my belly only stuck out 3 times when I was pregnant.. :)

[neweurope]

8. Same with me... I admire you for "just accepting it". That's

the only way to handle it - I really have a big problem with that however. Don't want to look in mirrors anymore. I'm really suffering. And I'm still holding on to all these old clothes... *sigh*

-------------

b]Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[msgadget]

9. Donate them to a battered woman's shelter.

[SoCalDem]

11. Any DUer women with small feet? I have lots of realy cool shoes

I am getting rid of too.. mostly 7,7 1/2 & a few 8s.

I never wear dressy shoes, and I bought some new work shoes, just before I quit working.. never even wore them.. I am a birkenstocks & Clark's person these days.. loakers & slip ons and of course I do love the sandals too :)

All my friend here seem to wear 9 & 10.. maybe California women went barefoot too long..:)

[KittyWampus]

16. I'm A 5 1/2 And Your Post Totally Inspired Me To Cast Aside Unworn

clothing.

I am ruthless with paper, photos, art projects, unfinished craft stuff. But the clothes closet still reflects me from when I was 98 pounds.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

21. 7 to 8 is average foot size I thought...

I wear either a 7.5 or 8.

[LeftPeopleFinishFirst]

27. I'm anywhere from 8-9

my mom is a 7/7.5, I envy her because she can find all the styles of shoes available... and my sizes are always sold out :(

[ikojo]

12. I just gave away a bunch of cassette tapes I had

not listened to in many years. They included hundreds of Grateful Dead shows. I did it through here http://freecycle.org/

[JVS]

13. Hang on to them

People tend to shrink in their 60's

[seabeyond]

14. it does feel good

we have so many many things and a huge house that collects it all. i do periodic garbage bag collection and have a charity that comes to home and picks up. has been a couple months, but time to do again. i have sister in law that sends me her boys used clothes adn though nice, just more stuff in house. so i am always collecting and giving. books, videos, as the boys out grow. i am not a saver, i have no desire for things, so my closet is pretty clear. and i rather give then get money for

good for you, as i said, always feels good to me

[babylonsister]

15. My closet sounds like your old closet.

Loaded with stuff. I need to sift and chuck myself. Every time I go in there, I think, "You can only wear one outfit at a time."
Good for you and your new beginning, and please be kind to yourself. I'm trying to embrace my age, wrinkles, and girth. I'm even letting my hair go grey. Screw anyone that doesn't like it!:evilgrin:

[Lars39]

18. There's one thing I've never seen the "neat" people suggest:

photographing the item that you know that you need to get rid of
because of lack of space, but that is still special.
Like a t-shirt collection never worn, a worn out teddy bear, chipped cup, etc.
Sometimes just being able to see the items is all we need,
and a photo album or computer file is much easier to store than the actual items. :)

[SoCalDem]

22. Oddly, I was never "attached" to clothing, but photgraphing

other stuff that we finally pass on to others is a great idea..

The hard part is getting my husband to "allow me" to give away all those UGLY bookcases that we have been holding onto for YEARS.. The first thing he said when I told him what I had planned... "You're not getting rid of the bookcases, are you?"

That man is on my case constantly, since it appear as if I am the hoarder....when in actuality, I just have NO PLACE for MY stuff.. He has the ENTIRE garage..and I DO mean the ENTIRE garage..the bonus room is earmarked for his model train "playroom" (antique American Flyer...hundreds of them:(..), he has the largest spare bedroom for his drafting table and desk ...and most of the dining room is devoted to his stuff that he has not yet found a place for.. I have a teensy kitchen and the other family room.. The other spare bedroom is his "closet"..
He has more than enough room for HIS stuff.. waaaaaah !

[Lars39]

25. Maybe you should call the neat crew in on him? :^)

My husband's the pack rat, too; his deal is tools and camping gear.
Are the bookcases being used,or is he saving them 'just in case'? :)

[SoCalDem]

26. Mine has more tools than Sears.. That's what our garage is FULL of

the bookcases are being used.. to store more JUNK :)

[Lars39]

28. We built a house a few yrs ago,

so we've got tools coming out the ears. Tools never seem to count toward clutter, though. :)

[AlCzervik]

19. I did the same thing last week, the reality purge

i'm putting my house on the market so things need to be uncluttered. I went through my closet and came to the conclusion that i will never be a size 6 again, why am i hanging onto to these clothes when someone in need could actually use them? I ended up donating 5 huge trash bags full of clothes and it felt damn good.

[The empressof all]

20. I just did this on Sat.

I cleaned out a big walk in closet and liberated myself of 15 white garbage bags of clothes. I did allow myself to keep 4 or 5 old outfits that I'll never wear just because they held memories for me. Otherwise it all went. I have to say it was painful to let all of it just go. Some of it was expensive stuff that I splurged on at the time when I needed to dress and I had the money. But for the most part it was stuff that was never gonna fit or I was never gonna wear again. I've kept much of this stuff with me for years. Now if I can just convince SO to do his big junk closet and the (heavens forbid!) the Garage that no one can walk in.

I'm off to the clothing bank to make my drop off.

[Pithlet]

24. I still have some of my maternity clothes.

Even though I don't plan to have any more kids. I wonder if part of me is afraid I'll get pregnant the moment they leave the door :scared: