War On Waste - Series Two!

It's back on! The War on Waste is back on for everyone to take part in and you can see it on the ABC on Tuesday nights at 8:30pm.

I caught it by chance and loved every minute of it.

I remember the hype it got during the first series last year and totally went all out talking about it to everyone, so much so, I think all my friends and relatives got a little tired of hearing about it from me.

But I've been working on this blog and on my own personal war on waste around my house and life, making sure I recycle what I can and up-cycle as well. 

It's well worth a look into to see what you can do around your place to see what little things - which can turn out to be big things - to make your life easier and more likely change everything.

This year, I have stopped using plastic straws to see how many I used to use... and believe me I found out that in the past two months, I used to use 2 straws per day, every day! In the two months I'd normally use 2 straws a day there'd be 56 straws going to landfill! This plastic doesn't break down, and more often than not sticks around for decades. So, I have a pantry filled with straws which I have no use for - I might give them to my art school and see who grabs them first to recycle into an art installation. 

Now, the next thing which was boycotted from my home was single-use plastic bags. I collected them all together and put them into the big green recycle bin outside my local Coles Supermarket. 
I now only use the reusable shopping bags and my folding bags... they are now housed in my bag-holder in the kitchen, which is great! The best thing is that just as I boycotted those single-use bags from my Coles, they stopped using those very bags themselves! What a great place, right? 

Anyway, these are the two big - or little - plastics which are now vetoed from my house. I no longer use them and don't want them in my house. The straws are going to be dealt with next Monday - and I'll have more space in my pantry - and I'll be looking out for paper straws to stock so they break down.

So, do tell, what is your war on waste you're going into battle with? Have you boycotted something in your house and stuck with it? These aren't the only things which have been boycotted from my house - chemical cleaners, like bleach cleaners, is another - is another I'm working on getting rid of from my life and house. 

It's All In the Planning

Decluttering does work well when it's planned... and with my garden and its facelift, I had been planning that for around 2 months. 

So, when I walked inside the back door and realised my home needed another facelift, well, of course, this meant I'd be tossing out things in a big way... and also replacing some items with more sturdy items too. 

Even though my house is full of items which I've hand-picked from op-shops, I still go through it from year to year making sure I use those picked-out items. Sometimes if I find something I no longer use, I give it away; and you know? I don't miss it. 

This seems kinda cold, I know, but really it's a good thing to do around the house - in not particular order - to keep your place in good working order.

I mean, look at what I did with my books earlier this year. I cleaned them out in March and gave away 40 books! Yes, I gave them away without thinking about it... but I also gained just as many. This was something I had to do with the place to make it work out well. But, still I'm struggling to store the books where I need them. 

My art area is in great need of a make-over now. And by October, I'll have enough money set aside to work on it. Just like I planned ahead with the garden facelift, I have to plan ahead with any kind of facelift I do with the house. You see, I don't have a credit card, and don't wish to have one either; as I hate being in debt to anyone or any bank. It hasn't really worked out the way I thought it would... as I can't for the life of me get a home loan. Sad but true.

Anyway, not having a credit card means I don't have to be worrying about debt or paying off things all the time... or money. I plan head better for things that's all. And when you have the luxury of planning a few months in advance, you can sometimes come into your next part of your project with clearer eyes and a better idea of how it's going to work out. This is because you've given yourself the time to plan.

A Couple of Weeks

It's been a couple of weeks since my last post; and I must apologise for this. I have been cleaning out and looking at what needs to be done to fix up my place to make it better over this time.

However, I've also been working hard on my garden - and it's really coming along well. But I don't wish to bore you with the details of that until the time is right.... yeah it does get boring when one thing is talked about.

I have been working on the art area again, as I have been given two sets of plastic drawers from Oma's house and they're really coming in handy to store all the little things which need to be put away. In turn, that frees up the space on the bookcase in the hallway to the kitchen.

But I'm looking at replacing that with a larger one which will store everything which is leaning against the walls and blocking the way in a big way. This bigger one will be my birthday present to myself. Sure it will take up more wall space, but it'll also be a good thing for me too. I'll be able to get rid of that thin bookcase and spread out my books on art, shift any blank canvas' I will be using soon and store anything needed on top easily. Not a bad purchase really. 

I've got a few things to do in the next day or so in the way of donations. I have to get in and donate at my local Vinnies and then drop by to a Life Line Super Store and look around to see if they have any second-hand shelves (big metal ones are what I'm looking for). And if they don't, I'll drop off to Bunnings and see how much they are there... and see how much I have to save to get a set there. 

Yes, this will be a matter of me not spending up big on anything for a while; but it'll be worth it to save up on space. 

So, over the past couple of weeks, I've been cleaning up, cleaning out and planning. I know planning doesn't seem much; but it means I'm looking into working more on the house and how I store things. So, do tell, how is your decluttering journey going? Mine has slowed a little, but planning does that to the journey. 

It's Not Just The House

Over the past month, I've been redesigning the backyard. This means I've had to move all my potted plants, repot some of them, back-fill others and move another few still to new places around the garden to make room for something new to be added to the garden.

I bought myself a brand new greenhouse. Now, it's cheap one but it's going to serve its purpose until I save up for a nice bigger one where it's made from stainless steel and has bolts and is nailed to the ground properly. But until then, this little green walk-in one will have to do; as my delicate plants are being attacked by the possums and, well, I really want my garden to look and feel different after this year.

Also, it really needed a complete clean-out... I have plants in it which weren't doing my garden any favours.

Just like a house, there are things in a garden which need cleaning out once a year or so; and it's very healthy to get in, get your hands dirty and make your garden into something you want it to be - just like your house. 

Years ago, I had a white table in my garden and it really worked its mojo in the place. But it rotted very quickly and I got rid of it after around a year of having it and it was out in the weather. The day I tossed it over the fence, it opened up the shade area in a way I never thought was possible! Then, I bought a steel 2-chair bistro table setting and it looked gorgeous and gave the garden a totally different feel. 

Anyway, I built the shade garden around that freer feeling and made my garden look and feel just lovely after that... and that was 4 years ago. 

I've been sprucing up the garden every few years, in Winter when the garden is sleeping and dormant, and it's really paid off in the Summer months when I can sit back and know it's going to jump up and grow for me! 

So, have you stepped outside your home and looked into your garden area? Are you potted plants rootbound? Do they need bigger pots? Does your little courtyard or postage stamp backyard need a complete make-over? Well, now is the time (if you're in the Southern Hemisphere) to work on it. 

Use Everything

Back in the old days, you had Good China and Company Plates and you only used these sets of dinnerware when you had people come over for special occasions. However now, it's rare for people to have dinner parties and use the good china or company plates anymore... it just doesn't happen. 

I'm not sure why this doesn't happen, it just doesn't; and it's a shame.

I've been donating to op-shops lately and taking a walk around to their shelves and finding more and more large sets of the dinnerware given to the places by families because they think they won't use them. 

However, I love having people at my place to have a meal, making pots of tea and just sitting and talking. It's and old-fashioned way of communicating without computers, without the smart phone, without the television blaring in the background. It's how I was brought up: turn off the television, sit down with us at the kitchen table and let's talk. 

In today's world it's so hard to get people to put down their phones.

Yesterday, I had my parents over to help me put together a new greenhouse I bought from Bunnings (a gardening warehouse here in Australia) and it was fun! Earlier that morning, I put on the slow cooker and started on making a vegetarian stew/soup for lunch. They were looking forward to having lunch at my place as they hadn't eaten here for a long time. So, I opened up my Chiswell Table and set it and made sure the house was as tidy as I could get it... as I don't have a lot of space. 

We spent a good hour putting the greenhouse together, putting the plants back where I wanted them, putting the plants which the greenhouse was for inside it and then we had lunch. I brought out the bowls for the soup. I bought a whole dinner set from Life Line at Slacks Creek for $10 it's a pinkish red one and looks gorgeous. I used a lazy susan in the middle of the table so everyone can get to everything... and the soup went down well; seeing the day wasn't as hot as they told us it would be on the radio.

Then it was time for a pot of tea. Everything from the teapot to the cups and the tea canisters were second-hand; even the sugar spoons were second-hand and were proper sugar spoons from all over the country (and all over the world as well) all polished up and ready to use. I brought out some chocolate biscuits and we had a good chat about things as we drank our tea... Dad looked around and Mum said that it's the tidiest I can get my house because there's just no room for my art stuff. 

And that's the thing. If you don't have room to expand your passions, it's something that needs work. I've worked on my house so much and I use all my things I've collected - I make sure of it - and still I have a room problem. It's always good to use everything you own and everything you collect from anywhere... don't be shy about it. 

And that's this weekend's challenge: have a look at what you use and what you don't. If you haven't used something in your house in over 2 years, donate it - you won't miss it. I am donating a set of mugs, with matching spoons, as I haven't used them in over 2 years. I got them for free and used them at first - because I didn't have any other mugs - but now, I have a good collection of nice mugs; and I no longer need these old free ones. So, what are you going to let go of? 

Morning Work

I've been busy in the past few weeks working on my garden and working through grief... which seems to pop its head up at the worst times. So, today, I woke up after sleeping in and thought it was high time I got in and did some of the smaller stuff around the house.

Two loads of laundry were done and hung out on the clothes horse - as we had the prediction of rain later today, and I don't want to be running out in the yard pulling it all in half wet. And then, I washed up everything, threw out food I no longer need in the fridge, in preparation for shopping tomorrow, and then put out the rubbish into the bin outside.

After that, I wrapped up some spoons, which match a set of mugs I'm giving away and put them in to the Donation Box. I then sorted out the rubbish in front of the entertainment unit. I pulled out all the shoes which need bringing upstairs into my room, found all the books which need bringing back into the library and then put away anything which was going to be put away into the entertainment unit while I had the space free there. 

Seeing I've gotten rid of all the plastic bags in my house, I searched out any last ones hanging around and put them into a blue recycled bag and hung that on the back of the side door to take shopping with me tomorrow. This will be taken to Coles to their recycling box outside the store where any plastic bags will be taken to a recycling center. 

I folded up my shopping bags and put them into their own little bag, put that away into the drawer by the side door, took the bag of books upstairs into my library, have all my shoes I'm not currently wearing in a pile to bring upstairs and put away and I've also got laundry to sort and fold and to put away as well... this will be done this afternoon, along with the making of my bed, vacuuming and dusting. 

The house has been overlooked lately because I'm either painting, gardening or just been lazy. But the kitchen has been looked into over the last week or two; and I'm happy to say that it's looking better. On Saturday, I washed the car and it's so much cleaner than it was last week. 

So, what have you been up to lately? Are you decluttering a little and cleaning up a little - like me? Or have you attacked a big section of your house? Keep us updated with how your decluttering is going. Until next time. 

Weekend Challenge

Hey I know I'm late in coming into the challenge this week, but I've been busy over the last few days organising myself around getting things done with my decluttering.

My garden is being eaten by the local possums at night, so I've had to cover one of my plants with a big bag; thus making it look like a teepee... it's looks funny, but it works a treat!

Anyway, this weekend, it's time to clean out that car! I washed mine after around a month of it not being washed; and it's come up a real treat! However, I went into the boot/trunk and tidied up the blankets and sorted out everything in there. I've got a box which holds all kinds of things to keep it neat, but there are things in there which do go out of date, so I've gone and cleaned out that box to keep everything tidy in there.

It doesn't seem much to clean out the vehicle you drive every day, not until you really do have a good look at what is hiding in the back seat floors, and find that you've been tossing all kinds of things in there... so it's a good idea to clean out that motor vehicle and vacuum it out too. And seeing I've washed it today, I'll be vacuuming it tomorrow because the car port is still wet.