Costco Connection - February 2011

for your home

MEDIA BAKERY

De-cluttering 2.0

Taking a fresh look at your old stuff

By Andrea Downing Peck

Is your home a collection of overflowing closets and barely recognizable countertops? Do you hang on to things that “might be valuable one day” or are “too good to throw out”?

If so, you are not alone. Clutter to one degree or another affects everyone’s life.

Fortunately, there are ways to overcome three of the biggest obstacles to de-cluttering: finding the time, knowing where to donate your goods and determining whether an item is worth hanging on to.

Finding the time

Because deciding whether long-held objects should stay or go can be time-consuming, Darnita Payden, a life-management specialist in Washington, D.C., says you can speed the process by asking yourself five questions:

• When was the item last used?

• When might you use it?

• Does the object enhance or hinder your life?

• has it affected the quality of the life you are living or want to live?

• Is it replaceable?

Payden, a Costco member, recommends
focusing on smaller, manageable parts when
de-cluttering a room so success is tangible.
For example, rather than tackling an entire
bedroom, start with only the dresser or bed.

Donating and repurposing

Thanks to the Internet, finding organizations that can use your unwanted items is not

The Costco Connection Costco members will find a variety of organizational items in the warehouse and on Costco.com, including shelving, storage containers and bins of all sizes, racks and more. California Closets, available at the kiosks, can help you keep your things organized.

FEBRUARY 2011 The Costco Connection 43

difficult. While Goodwill and salvation Army continue to accept a broad spectrum of goods, other organizations can find new uses for items ranging from prom dresses to crayons.

here are several unique options for repurposing discards:

• Dress for success accepts interview-appropriate women’s clothing and shoes for disadvantaged women. To find a location near you, go to www.dressforsuccess.org.

• use eBay Giving Works, givingworks. ebay.com, to sell unwanted items and donate up to 100 percent of the sale price to a nonprofit organization in your area or nationwide. eBay refunds seller fees equal to the percentage of the profits donated.

• The Glass slipper Project, www.glass slipperproject.org, collects almost-new formal dresses and accessories and gives them to Chicago high school students in need.

• Depending on which state you live in, the military order of the Purple heart, www.purpleheart.org, will schedule pickup of donated cars, rVs, clothing and household goods. Proceeds from sales of donated goods support veterans programs.

• Cell Phones for soldiers, www.cellphones forsoldiers.com, provides prepaid shipping labels when accepting donations of old cell phones. Proceeds from recycling phones are used to buy calling cards for deployed soldiers.