Inherited clutter is definitely my primary issue - in my case it’s from the death of my spouse a couple of years ago. I’ve made it through the easy stuff, but there’s still a lot of more meaningful things - books, framed diplomas and awards from his university office - that it’s difficult to know what to do with, especially since they’re meaningful not only to me but to our son. And it can be difficult to know how to maintain physical reminders of his memory and his place in our family without creating a shrine.

I’m also interested in the spiritual discipline of simplicity and especially in passing along to kids resistance to a culture of acquisition and consumption. In spite of this, I’m fiercely pro-gadget and love reviews and articles that help in separating the truly useful from the junk.

1. I’ve been “doing” the process for a number of years, now, digging my way out of the ingrained cluttering mindset and habits. What I’d like to know is how to help others struggling with the same issues. How do I articulate what I’ve lived and learned, in a way that will help others who admire the end result and would like to do the same for themselves?

There is so much shame built around being cluttered, and a lot of underlying emotional “stuff” that has to be brought to the surface and processed by the person seeking to unclutter. Even when they WANT to break free of the mess, they find themselves meeting emotional blocks, not to mention the pragmatic “I just don’t know HOW to do it” obstacles.

2. Following from your recent post about work-life priorities, I’d like to see more posts about work-life balance and issues related to that. For example, one way I’ve simplified is to get rid of my car and arrange my life so that I now live where public transportation is good, many things are within walking distance of my home, and my job is directly on a bus line with an average commute of about 15 minutes. And it appears that a lot of people are interested in discussing HOW to go about creating work and a life that they would love.

I would be really grateful for a new tip or new link every day, even if it seems nearly trivial to you. Your writing style is very gentle and positive. It is like having a personal coach for this stuff which is very encouraging.

I especially love your Minimalist Monday. And I love the inventory of your brother’s long haul trucking kit and that discussion.

Thanks for doing this blog. It is a big help!

I am a lifelong packrat who has finally recognized that I’m much happier when I can see the surfaces in my house and the things I choose to display and also find things that I want to use. I still have a long way to go, but I’m working on it. My husband is a packrat, too, so I would also love to see more on how to get the people you live with into the “unclutter” mindset.

@PrairieGal: HP offers free online classes, many of which have to do with organizing your digital photos. They have different classes every month, so keep checking back. Here’s the link: http://h30240.www3.hp.com/inde.....73e747b836

Must second what Claudia mentioned above, as I have a husband who was raised to save EVERYTHING because he might need it someday. I can’t get rid of anything, except on the sly. Add to this the bad habits of accumulating things as memories (emotional clutter) as well as not following household Golden Rules (if you get it out, put it away, etc.), I don’t know where to start. No matter how much I clean or declutter or systemize, it just keeps coming, and nothing I do or say changes his mind about this situation.

I love this site; it makes me feel like I’m not the crazy one.

I like this blogs writing “feel,” the great ideas, and the controlled content why mess with a good thing?

This weekend my aunt asked me about organizing ideas for the piles of cards, prayer cards, and religious tokens that have been sent from all over the place in my cousin’s memory.

I made a few suggestions as far as burying religious tokens in meaningful spots, like a garden or beneath a tree (of course, holding on to those with special meaning). But maybe because it’s family I was at a loss for how to deal with clutter that is so personal, and at least at this stage quite painful and important at the same time.

I would love suggestions that would honor and simplify the storing of these items - or any other ideas you may have…

superiorhabitat.wordpress.com

A forum is a neat idea, but I admit, I read comments more than forums these days. There’s room for both, though.

I agree about the multitaskers idea! It’s nice to know when shopping which items will really be more useful in the long run. I also love repurposing things I already have. (Along those lines, I’ve been gathering a lot of repurposing ideas for FruWiki.com, the site I launched to collect, organize, and share all the frugal tips out there.)

BTW, my husband and I started tackling our office last night. Aside from the back room full of yard sale stuff, it’s the last room for us to declutter. We’re working on it again tonight. We’re hoping to yard sale a lot of things Saturday so wish us luck. We’ve always been big about donating to Goodwill or Freecycling stuff, so we’re both astounded about how much stuff we managed to still find to declutter — especially books.

In related news, on three of the book cases we have, I’ve now organized by color, and then by height on each shelf. It looks great — but my friends think I’m more nuts than ever.

More non-permanent ideas for renters would be great! Recently a “workbench in a closet” idea was posted, which is perfect for my husband who needs to tinker but has no garage. We love ideas that can be rearranged to fit in our next place, and won’t put 20 holes in a wall that eat up our security deposit later on.

Lise - Here’s a tip. My grandma does this to me too. You can say “thank you” then drop it off at goodwill. Or do what I do and say “No, I don’t need Auntie Elsie’s old tupperware and homemade dresses, and if you give it to me, I’m going to donate it to goodwill.”

I need help with digital photos too. I don’t know how to organize them so I can find them later, and I would like to put together digital photo albulms (or slideshows), but I’m not sure the best way to do this.