At a mom’s group meeting several years ago I heard a speaker on home organization say that you should make a rule to remove one old thing every time you bring something new into your home.
Everyone else nodded knowingly.
I had absolutely no concept what she was talking about.
I’ve finally figured out why I didn’t get it.
In my house at the time, and up until I started this blog, there was so much clutter that swapping one for one wouldn’t have had any effect. If your drawers won’t close because you have 20 more pairs of shorts than you need, why would you remove one when you got another pair? 21-too-many looks about the same as 20-too-many, so you might as well just shove a little harder and keep them all.
I got out my summer clothes last week. As I designated one of my drawers for my shorts (a new concept for me), I realized that I have some really ugly shorts. Old, mommy-waisted, not-exactly-the-right-size-anymore shorts. But I also don’t have the money to go buy myself a new wardrobe – one of the mixed blessings of having lost some weight. So, I decided that as I find new shorts – on sale or at garage sales, I’ll swap them out one for one. And suddenly this tried and true organizing concept made sense. It only works if you have what you need, not what you need . . . plus 35 more.
I’ve also been thinking of applying the same concept to my cookbook stash. I read a while back on Orgjunkie.com that she likes having a shelf designated for certain things, so she can be conscious of how much she has. I’d been thinking about my cookbooks since reading that.
I have a cookbook shelf in my pantry. But I also had a shelf-thingy on top of my fridge with more cookbooks “on” it.
It was a pretty lousy little shelf, so the cookbooks fell off (obviously) and it was in an incredibly inconvenient spot. Since I’m not one to use cookbooks as regularly as I should, having to get on a chair to get to them made it even less likely that I would use them.
So I took everything off of the top of the fridge (including the pot that I debated removing pre-picture since it belongs to one of the three real-life people who read my blog, and I’ve had it for probably two years now, sitting up on the fridge so I’ll remember to take it back . . . . ).
I took the shelf out to the garage sale, and I windexed the ultra-nasty-probably-never-before-cleaned fridge top. Lest you think that no one can see up there, we do have a 6’7″ friend who comes over regularly. Seriously.
I replaced the pot, you know . . . so I’ll remember to give it back. Here’s the fridge top now.
I don’t have the room for 500 cookbooks, and I really don’t need 500 cookbooks, but with my excessive personality, I could easily end up with 500, filling up every shelf of the pantry and spilling out onto the floor and into boxes if I don’t set up boundaries.
Terrific job – looking at your cookbook collection it is obvious that you absolutely "get it" now.
Careful – cleared spaces like the one above your fridge become addictive!! 🙂
Not mine…
I sent you the meal in that particular pot because I had no need of it. You can throw it out, sell it in your garage sale, or keep it for yourself. It isn't the greatest pot. I'm sure laughing though!
But I do want my Susan May Warren book back. Reading your blog all these weeks, and I'm finally understanding why I haven't gotten it back yet. But the top of my fridge is nowhere near as clean as yours is! I'm getting the windex…NOW!
Popping over to visit from WFMW. I am also a reforming slob and so I relate to being clueless in the past when organized people talked about their strategies.
Your new cookbook shelf looks great! Congrats on baby steps. 🙂
What a wonderful concept! Thanks for sharing.
I'm going to clean the top of my fridge now, too! Thanks for sharing.
I have a very organized friend. She has curio cabinet that she uses for her Disney snow globe collection. A few years ago, I asked if she had gotten anymore lately. Her response? “Oh, no. I’m not collecting those anymore.” Her cabinet was full, so she stopped. It was a revelation to me. I never knew you could stop collecting something! She’s the same person who made me realize that you can read a magazine, then throw it away. Really! You don’t have to save it forever on the off chance that you’ll want to read that article again, or do that craft project, or…. She’s my go-to person for “what should I do with this?”
I’ve read your books and started listening to the podcasts and so much of this is so familiar to me I decided to read the blog from start to finish (so just another 12 years to go … eek).
I’m not only surprised by how many of the blog posts are ‘so me’ but also so many of the comments from different readers. This one really resonated with me “You can stop collecting things?” “You can throw a magazine away after reading it?” Really!
I am so glad I found this blog, thanks so much and I can’t wait to read some of the more recent posts.
Thank you for your blog! If only I knew how much we “need”! There should be a number for how many pants etc kids and adults should own lol
T
And if you put some paper towels on the tops of refrigerators or cabinets that don’t reach to the ceiling, etc. , when they get dirty you can just toss and replace them!
Great idea!
Just read this entry about clearing off the top of the refrigerator of cookbooks. Here’s a tip that helps even though I know you don’t nromally traffic in tips. Put sheets of paper towels on top of the refrigerator, on top of high curio cabinets, on top of cabinets that don’t go to the ceiling, etc. Then when they get dirty, just throw them away. You might have to still clean off the tops, but most of the grease/dirt will be on the paper towels!!!
OK, I just read the entry above mine that has the same idea. Then read that it was me that posted it. This is a bad sign. I really need to “get a life.” :)))))))))))
Oh Helen! I was thinking how great of an idea that was, and then read this second comment and laughed aloud! So funny!
He he he – I so understand everything you write!! I am looking at my (husband’s) cookbook shelf (since I NEVER use them!), and it is overflowing. He just got a new one for Christmas, so I am going to test out this concept on him & tell him we need to purge the cookbook shelf so they all fit tidyily on one shelf! The problem with that is that the four shelves above it are filled with my books, I love my books. I tried having a purge before xmas, to tidy it, but I love and read all my books so often that I ended up with only 3 books I didn’t mind never reading again. The other books are full collections of authors, so how could I get rid on one without the others!
I did laugh at the pot on top of the fridge! I kept a pick axe by my front door for almost 2 years before it moved to the garage and has never been seen since!
I have the same problem with books, they are like old friends you can always turn to. That being said, I have two dressers full of old friends that could be holding my 21 or of shorts instead of the furniture I end up using now
Hmm. Reading this post reminds me that I haven’t seen my cookbooks since buying this house…in January of 2008. Fortunately I have my important recipes in the box in my spice cupboard but I guess I don’t miss them too much. Thank God for the internet, lol.
Love the way the top of your refrigerator looks. Mine is full of cereal boxes…and the gluten-free stuff I need for my meals. I have very limited cupboard space, and the pantry isn’t large either…and filled with boxes of things I don’t have room for. It’s probably where my cookbooks are. 🙂
I think you must be a gift from God!
I am so over the stuff, but I am also overwhelmed. I am going to buy your books and tackle this house one day at a time. I am so inspired by you and I wish I was on board with you at the beginning of your journey. I am at the beginning and I need reinforcement. I need to know that the things I get rid of won’t be needed in 2 weeks. I need to learn logical ways to address the stuff that “means so much” and learn how to let go. I am fine with the departure until I am holding it and then all of these creative uses come to mind. I can’t wait to learn what you have learned. Any advice to help me get a kick start? I need it!
That’s where the books are really helpful. They focus on what you need to get going, as opposed to the blog where it’s me figuring things out!
I’ve paired by cookbooks down since the internet seems to have so many options. I think I’m now down to five or six! And yes, they all fit in their designated cupboard above our microwave.
I used to collect cookbooks and the thought of tossing one was unthinkable since there would always be at least ONE recipe I would occasionally go back to. (Duh! Why didn’t I just write it down or type it into my computer document file, listed “recipes”?!) I quit buying cookbooks now because……ANY recipe I want or am thinking about can easily be found on the internet and usually, several variations to choose from, not to mention pictures, MORE comments, etc.! So there is my little, helpful, housecleaning tip!
Whenever my husband is selected for a sport team or is invited to run a coaching seminar he receives a new shirt. One day I spread them around the living room and asked him when he came in “How many t-shirts does one person need?” He, ,thinking of an impossibly high number, replied “Forty!” My response, “Oh good! That means you can get rid of 16.” He ended up saving one of each kind, which I folded to show only the logo and packed into a vacuum bag to live under the bed, but it was a start.
In my own wardrobe I designated the number of coat hangers I was allowed and set a rule that I was not to buy any more. It forces me to use the ‘one in one out’ rule.
But my cookbooks? Hmmm, that’s a job that I’m getting to…
I am…
Really….
One day…
Soon
i come from a family of recipe clippers but I threw away my piles of magazine pages because I never look there for a new recipe. I go to the books or the Internet now. It was hard to let go though.
I had a collection of cookbooks made by church groups as fundraisers. I realized I only used one or two recipes from each one. And so one day when I was feeling brave, I tore out the pages with those recipes and threw the books away. And nothing bad has happened yet.
Recycled the books, of course.
purge my cookbooks? ack!! I have my grandmother’s cookbooks, my mother’s cookbooks, my step-mother’s cookbooks and all of the ones I have purchased/been gifted with for the last 40 years. Plus all the recipes Mom wrote on the backs of things, clipped recipes from magazines/newspapers and now the ones I’ve printed from the internet. I’ve put some of the copies/clippings in binders, which helped and am going thru trying some of the new ones each week. I’ve copied favorite recipes and put them in a binder which I keep with my meal planning stuff, and put the cookbook in a bookcase in the offce. But toss my Mom’s books or the ones with her handwriting on them….noooooooooo way!
I’m glad you reposted this to facebook, it’s given me motivation to clean above my fridge, which hasn’t been cleaned in WAY too long. I’m in the process of reading your posts, but I haven’t caught up yet, I can relate so much!
Before we moved out of our old house, one of the ways I could tell if the clutter was under control was if I could easily keep the top of the fridge empty, and under the beds. If I had to start storing things in those two spots, it was time to declutter!
Don’t ever throw away old cookbooks. Donate them to thrift stores so new cooks can enjoy old recipes.
When a 6’6″ out of town friend came to visit infrequently He would clean it for us! What a pal! Lol –he hasn’t been here in years though 🙁
When you clean the top of your fridge, put down a pice of shelf paper liner, cabinet liner, an old towel cut to fit, just whatever and you won’t have to clean it again. Just toss when it gets dusty up there again and repeat. Wish that was my tip but it isnt lol.
That makes so much sense to me. Thank you for speaking my language!
This was the most relevant part of your book, for me. I have to figure out how to make myself set boundaries!!!!
I’m wondering how many cookbooks the average person has. I know I have way too many.
My mom collected cookbooks and tried new recipes all the time. I selected a few cookbooks when she passed away almost three years ago at age 83. I also brought home her recipe boxes. Mom was known for her pies, candy, and cinnamon rolls. My niece recently volunteered to put together a cookbook with everyone’s favorite recipes from Mom’s collection. This will be a sweet reminder of how she blessed others through baking and cooking. I miss Mom so much. I never lived near her since being married almost 40 years ago, and I called her on a regular basis with cooking questions. We included her recipe for sugar cream pie in her funeral service program, and everyone thought that was a real nice way to honor her! I agree, it is difficult to part with cookbooks. The ones I have purged are ones I have purchased myself. Every once in a while I pick out one or two more to donate to our local used bookstore.
Ah-ha, we witness the birth of the container concept!