12 THINGS TO NEVER THROW OUT WHEN DOWNSIZING

That was the headline of something shared on Facebook from Country Living magazine today. Since I had just written a post speaking of decluttering for the new year, I just had to read it.

http://www.countryliving.com/homes/home-maintenance/never-throw-out-when-downsizing?src=spr_FBPAGE&spr_id=1453_125966035

I will list the 12 things here, but you will have to check out the link to see the descriptions of each one.

1. Family heirlooms 

2. Electronics of any sort 
       (until you wipe them clean of all personal information)

3. Photographs

4. Important paperwork

5. A landline phone

6. Collections

7. Fine jewelry AND the boxes they came in

8. Extra kitchen and bathroom supplies 

9. Decorative and sentimental items that bring back precious memories

10. Emergency supplies

11. Tags from expensive handbags

12. Medication and toiletries that haven’t expired yet



How do you tell what is TRULY meaningful? 
Watson says this is her favorite trick: “In any given category, like artwork, ask this question, ‘If I could only take three pieces with me, which three would they be?’ With books, the question might be, ‘If I can only take 20 with me, which 20 would they be?’ This will help you discover the items that are the musts to take with you; the rest is negotiable." 

I don't have to worry about numbers 7 and 11 since I don't have either one. I do like the favorite trick on what to get rid of in any category.

Many on the list are obvious keepers, but sometimes we can get carried away with tossing 'stuff' that we wish we had kept later. And when we move and unpack, we wonder why we even bothered to move some of the others. Right?