I think that was a really clever way of getting a shed all cleaned out without nagging. I am going to have to use that to get our garage cleaned out.

Getting everything cleaned out is ok, if somebody else is the one doing it, LOL. Here it was me who had to do the whole sheebang, husband manned the telephone.

A friend of mine passed this summer and her kids are now trying to deceide what to keep and what to throw. She was an artist and a gardener and kept everything, whether it was useful or might be usefull sometime. The kids are going nuts trying to sort. I'm sorta like her, I have lots of "stuff" and my kids tease me that they will just bring in a dumpster! But I do consider it wasteful to throw something that someone maybe can use! This includes, garden stuff, art stuff, sewing stuff (the one who dies with the most fabric wins!), scrapbooking and card making stuff, canning jars, storage containers (to put stuff in), knitting, crocheting and embroidery stuff, books about just about any subject (might need to know that someday), shelves of books, some read, some going to read, phonograph records, and that's about all! I am improving through and sent 6 large boxes to our second hand store this summer. Now have several boxes ready for our churches rummage sale coming up. Oh, I did get the garage cleaned this summer, now we even have space for the car! And my Garden Club is going to have a sale, so I really am going to donate a few dozen items for that. I tell my kids "that I am improving with age!).

We are trying to clean out the attic and the basement and the garage. We are having an electrician coming Monday to do a little work and dh was galvanized by this to clean out his basement room. The breaker box is in that room and he was suddenly conscience of the godawful mess it is in. I am going to have to find some more work that needs done by outsdie help. Maybe the roof needs looked at from the inside, Though we have made great strides in the attic, Finally bought some cheap bookcases for all my boxes of books. We have room! You can see the floor! And I can see my books to re-read, something I love to do.

If one of the kids want to borrow something in my "domain" I usually know where it is so no problem. If they want to borrow something in DH's domain, I hand the phone to DH.

posieh, I have many of the same hobbies you have so I also have "stuff", but none of the children have these hobbies. I have told them that I intend to live with my stuff until the end. They seem OK with that.
I have suggested that they hire an "estate" sale business and have them put on a sale at the house. It is very common here in CA.

Though my family accuses me of throwing out anything that hasn't been used in the last five minutes, I really do have too much stuff anyway. And I'd like not to live with all of it to the end of my life. So I do a lot of freecycling: Nearly every area has freecycle, where you post offerings to a site, folks say they will take it, and then they come and pick the stuff up. It's free, your stuff has gone to someone who can use it, and your house is cluttered by one less item.
Which does not mean, despite my family's denial, that there is not way too much stuff in this house.

In our house my "stuff" does no mean "clutter".

I don't necessarily think of "stuff" as "clutter", b/c my house is not cluttered -- BUT, I still have way.y.y.y too much "stuff". :>)

mwheel, in the knitting world, the term for having "extra" yarn is "stash". I started building up my stash about three years ago and I keep adding to it. Lol, the person with the most stash,wins.

West Gardener, knitting "stash" should be soft, thus able to be condensed. One could get lots of it in a few plastic bins, couldn't they? My "stuff"--shoes, purses, old pictures, knick-knacks, etc.--takes up way too much room in my closets! :>)

mwheel, you're correct in that yarn is easy to stash in small amounts. But one can get in trouble with yarn. Take a look at the link below. I'd luv to go to her house and fondle the yarn and dream about how I can use it. But I'll try to contain myself.

Here is a link that might be useful: World's biggest stash

Whooee, that link shows some good stash! While I don't even come close to that amount, I do have a lot and several years ago, I inherited a roomful [literally] which noticeably increased the amount.

Yarn stores nicely in those vacuum-pack bags. Just open and shake the skeins when you want some. My stash is squished down to a large closet full and some boxes in the attic; fluffed to normal it would be at least a room full. I work on afghans during the cool/cold months, so it's almost time to begin the 2010-11 season. Yesterday, I actually managed to look at an almost-finished afghan without breaking into a sweat.

Wish I could use Anneliese's clean-out method, but we're just organized enough to find everything.

meldy, I would offer to trade stash with you, but I have such a small amount and it is mostly man made fibers. I bet you have all kinds of goodies.

OMG!! I could never have imagined so much yarn, even in a knitting store! That person (female, I assume?) would have to live two or three lifetimes to use it all. Plus, she'd still probably be acquiring more as those lifetimes went by!

After I posted, yesterday, I thought to myself: "I know how I've heard 'stash' used before" -- but it wasn't in regard to yarn! Guess I watch too many cop/crime shows and have picked up the lingo. :>)

There are tons and tons of yarn available from all over the world. And a lot of it comes togheter at "Stiches". That's a convention of yarn lovers and it comes to my area once a year.

I find language and mental references so interesting. I've been knitting fingerless gloves for years, because they are so helpful when it's cold but you need your fingers to work without hindrance. Like taking pics and having your trigger finger free to hit the button, or while working in a cold computer room etc..
DS came in one day and saw my gloves and asked me if I was trying to act like Michael Jackson with a fingerless glove.
That was his experience and reference to fingerless gloves. Mine is totally different.

Here is a link that might be useful: Yarn and fiber convention

mwheel, I think I know what you mean about the word "stash". I can just see it now, some cop enters that word as a key word into a search computer program and comes up with thousands of hits, showing ladies with "sharp" "pointed" objects. Oh my.

That stash of yarn looks like a hoarder has run amok and actually makes me feel queazy!
My stash is beads and jewelry making supplies. That doesn't take up too much space but every once in a while I go through it and realize that some stuff I bought that looked interesting at the time now looks like I must have been nuts to buy it, lol! Most of the discards go to a good home through freecycling.