I feel one large lesson I learned is to buy fewer but higher quality things and then to take care of them well...fix them if they break, mend them, keep them clean, etc....that way, if/when you do need to rehome them you'll be able to more easily. I did one very large "Marie Kondo" style declutter when we were downsizing to a much smaller home. It included furniture, housewares, clothing, books, etc. I used Nextdoor, FreeCycle, garage sales, eBay, friends and family, and FB Marketplace to rehome things and I'd say at least 95% was re homed. None the less, there were things that could not be rehomed (broken, stained/ripped, etc.). Some of these things we were able to take apart and recycle (like things with metal parts)...but still there were things leftover that were useless. At the end of the day, I decided that these things were already existing and would either continue to "exist" in a landfill or exist in my home, which is not a landfill. As to your point, though, since that declutter, we have remained minimalist and not replaced those things with more stuff and we have not had to do a major declutter since. When we do get "new to us" things, FB marketplace and eBay and Goodwill are always my first shopping sites.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Thank you for listing even more helpful avenues to responsibly declutter and loved reading more about your personal journey with it! Moving is another time of "stuff re-evaluation" for sure.
@alcnwonderlnd
4 ай бұрын
I agree, declutterring videos have gotten out of hand. There are so many on KZitem and it’s sad to think of all that waste. I’m part of the problem as well, I’ve thrown away garbage bags full of cheap tshirts or random things. I usually give my better quality clothes to families at my grandmas church or I give them to my dad so he can sell at the flea market. And some of it I give to my sister so I try to find a home for these things but realistically some of it is just crap that has to be thrown away. I recently did a declutter of my clothing and it was so depressing to physically see the negative impact that these cheap clothes have on the environment. It’s just bags going to a landfill and to think everyone is doing this makes my head hurt. I understand they served me a purpose at the time I bought them but I need to make better decisions going forward. And the same goes for makeup, skincare, and lotions. There’s a creator Kyra Ann and in one of her videos she said how she has stopped experimenting with new beauty products, she just buys what she knows what works and I’m planning to do the same.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
3 ай бұрын
We live and we learn, I've had similar experiences seeing the impact of my wasteful decisions and resolving to never get to that place again. And that's a good point regarding experimenting with new products. I guess the old saying has something to it - "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"! And with beauty I find there's a greater chance that I don't like the new thing better than what I already had, and then I'm stuck using it up before I can get the one I liked originally!
@testing1-2three
Ай бұрын
I propose that decluttering is not as bad as it seems. I mean, it is bad. It's a sign that a wrong/bad decision was made in some or many cases, but for most of us we learn from our mistakes and it can be a wake-up call. I say, it's a phase in the consumerism addiction cycle. then we go through a "no buy" then we learn what we can and can't live with and what suits us best. So it's not a never ending "declutter". Hopefully we are learning and feeling gross about our past indiscretions. I would suggest that this problem is as old as time, ie.; the TV Show "Hoarders" comes to mind. Hopefully we, in this life cycle; can do better.
@Snowbittn
3 ай бұрын
I have very little possessions, just enough to fit in a suitcase. But I am still a heavy consumer, I will still mindlessly watch videos, play video games, eat junk foods, what I would class as distraction activities. So externally I look perfectly minimal, but the distraction activities mean I am kept artificially busy, and I don't deal with the internal clutter. The emotions or moods that I suppress by keeping my mind distracted. I wonder if other people can relate to that. Recognizing this I am trying my best to limit distraction activities and try to slow down, meditate and reflect. I started journaling too. The negative suppressed stuff is starting to bubble to the surface, and it is hard, but I feel mature enough to stop running from my feelings, and I feel strongly this is the path to an inner peace.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
3 ай бұрын
You're very perceptive to realize that you have areas of mindless consumerism even in non-physical items, and congrats on doing the work to improve your habits! I've been coming to this in my journey of becoming a more conscious consumer too, and starting to use my phone less in general, unsubscribing from some KZitem channels I used to absolutely love, and trying to prioritize work towards my real-life (or offline) goals. So I can definitely relate!
@kell_checks_in
2 ай бұрын
Relate and how! Maintaining focus is the challenge of this era. Screentime debilitates everyone's ability to stay on task or to think deeply. Fortunately, we can retrain ourselves a bit. Some recommended reading: Victoria Nelson's On Writer's Block (Not just for writers. Great for understanding and processing the "negative suppressed stuff") and Jarone Lanier's You Are Not a Gadget.
@roguestowl2280
2 ай бұрын
I’ve gone through my own de-cluttering processes many times, and it can feel good to create space in my home. But I often wind up regretting getting rid of items. My style tends to go through cycles, and it’s better for me to hold on to items I haven’t worn in a year or two as long as I have the space. It allows me to essentially shop my own wardrobe when I start to get bored of the clothes I wear often.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
2 ай бұрын
Yes! This time around for me, "when in doubt" I DON'T throw it out. I do have space right now and want to make sure that this "final declutter" endeavor won't lead to future regret or repurchasing, so in reality it's a very slow process!
@acertree1980
4 ай бұрын
I'm a new subie and have binged watched your content all day while I've been decluttering🙄 Firstly I'd like to thank you for your great content and reminding me that I Neeeed to start a NO BUY year TODAY!! I've got a huge shopping addiction and there's nothing that I need to buy ever! I understand that a lot of companies use Influencers because it's cheaper for them to do that than it is to make constant advertisements. The big Influencers also get a commission for each click and/or purchase besides an upfront payment so I don't think that things will change anytime soon, sadly. I've resisted paying KZitem to go ad-free but I think I'm going to have to so I don't get triggered during my NBY (at least for the next 6-9 months at least) 🤞🏾😅
@Alexas.nobuyyear
3 ай бұрын
If KZitem is your media of choice it may be worth it! But I will say, I have started to think of advertising differently, and even influencer marketing to some extent too. It can be helpful to try and pinpoint the triggers the ads are trying to activate and detach yourself from being affected - easier said than done at the beginning, but I think practicing it as an exercise can strengthen your "no-buy" muscle if you have the energy to think about it and reflect on why it used to work on you (or perhaps still kind of works on you). Please keep me posted on how your no-buy is going! Love to hear the ups and downs and welcome along on this journey 😊
@cjevans6365
2 ай бұрын
🌸
@bthomson
4 ай бұрын
Well! Deep thoughts! No really! It is very true that much of what we buy is junk! It isn't beautiful or long lasting! We tend to get tired of our stuff and want new stuff. But both time and money are wasted and the landfills fill up!
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
I've been thinking as well about how sometimes we shop for an escape from worries or stress ...but then the thought of filling the landfills, the environmental destruction and labor injustices that come from a lot of the fashion industry come back to bite us with MORE worries of a different sort! Just trying to remove myself from the cycle!
@bthomson
4 ай бұрын
We do the best we can and strive to do a bit better. I believe in patting myself on the back for trying and not being too hard on myself when I fail. Being human is a silly crap shoot but truly I do not believe in perfection either.
@cindyklempner7203
4 ай бұрын
Love your channel.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Glad you're enjoying it!
@gigihanley9757
4 ай бұрын
Love your philosophy.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Thank you, it's always a work in progess, constantly learning and being exposed to new ideas 😄
@bthomson
4 ай бұрын
This channel proves that the "right" kind of influencer teaches important lessons!
@Elena-ip1cm
4 ай бұрын
Such a good video. This point is never talked about. Decluttering should be about consuming less and "donation" is not a fix-it-all solution.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
3 ай бұрын
Thank you so much. I really hope the mindset towards "consumerism" is going to shift, as it feels to me like we have reached the breaking point (certainly on medias like TikTok anyway!)
@amykatrina7542
2 ай бұрын
Excuse me using your comments section as a confessional... But I broke my no-buy yesterday. Not in any big way, but I'm kind of annoyed with myself. I was buying a t-shirt from a friend's market stall (they have a new business) as a birthday present for my mum, but they had a deal if you bought two and there was a really nice one in my size 🙃 I didn't break the bank and my husband says I was supporting a friend so I should cut myself some slack about it, but I kind of wanted to stick to the letter of the no-buy this time around 🙈 On the topic of the video, I have pretty much paused decluttering for now. If I hadn't cleared out as much as I have the last few years we wouldn't be able to physically move in our house without being knee-deep in clothes 😅 but there are so many things I wish I had back that I realise I'm not good at making the right decisions. At the moment I'm just packing things away that don't fit, I'll do a big try-on somewhere down the line after pregnancy, anything that really won't fit again I'll send to Thrift+ (reselling without the hassle, but I think it's a UK thing). I also host clothing swaps with friends every now and again, it's always a brilliant day, love doing that.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
2 ай бұрын
Please feel free to use comments as confessions! It's partly what I'm here for after all. I think your situation touched on a ton of very specific reasons that make it super hard not to buy and I don't think it was "wrong" of you to do so! Especially in support of an "in-real-life" friend it would be incredibly difficult to say no, when you have budget for it, when it's an extremely practical and pretty item and you're already shopping for a present - it's exactly the scenario where making the purchase makes sense in so many ways. I also wanted to stick to the letter of no buy this year and since I "failed" I've been debating whether I want to try again next year just to "prove that I can" - but, ultimately the end goal is to have a better relationship with shopping in general and more control over buying things I don't need, so, in many ways the "no buy" is kind of an arbitrary challenge to serve a larger purpose. If not for "no buy" I think that sounds like a purchase you could otherwise feel really good about, so as far as I'm concerned you may as well feel good about it (or at least, don't feel bad about it!) and focus on the "progress over perfection" path of the no buy 🙂 Making the right decluttering decisions is tough! It always comes back to the feeling that I bought it in the first place for some kind of reason, so how can I be sure the reason/feeling that I need that thing won't come up again? And then so many declutters we see on social media are done by influencers who are getting rid of PR they got for free or hauls they used for content, knowing they are making room for more PR or products for content - we "regular consumers" are trying to break out of that cycle! So yes by all means hang onto anything you have doubts about, I'm doing the same this year!
@rhosymedra6628
2 ай бұрын
I think part of the "why do we have so many things we don't love" is that we buy something and then it turns out to be much lower quality than we'd thought, so we end up buying another later, and so on...in addition to the cycle of advertising and influencing I think a (probably more minor) part of the issue is that things aren't made to last anymore so that we are forced to replace them. I guess I'm thinking about clothes specifically - I have tees from high school (20 years ago!) that are in great condition, and ones I bought 4 months ago that have holes.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
2 ай бұрын
For sure! Especially since so much shopping is done online these days and we don't see the stuff before it's already paid for and arrives at our house 👀
@lovelasnow
4 ай бұрын
This reminds me, I’ve declutterred a few times and I’m at the point where if I get rid of more my anxiety tells me I have too little. Also my wardrobe is curated to the point where I have trouble finding pieces I’m not attached to, which is fine but it also means I don’t have appropriate clothing for looking simple or blending into the crowd
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Well hopefully you don't need to blend in too often and you can enjoy the pieces you love everyday! I can relate about feeling that you have too little if you pare down too much...still working to find the happy balance for myself.
@SimplyKatieWalks
4 ай бұрын
Im doing intentional buying. Its slow, very slow, but im happy with it this way. Losing all this weight and starting from scratch has been so free-ing!🎉
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Yes congrats on the weight loss and slow intentional buying is the way to go! Great job!🙌
@paulat5921
2 ай бұрын
I think decluttering can be helpful in stopping the buying cycle.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
2 ай бұрын
Absolutely! I'm doing it myself too, I just want to make sure that these are the last "bigger declutters" I ever have to do, if I successfully manage to stop bringing as much new stuff in!
@missedem
2 ай бұрын
Guilty: I've definitely watched declutter videos because they're satisfying, even after I had all the techniques I was using in place already. Most of the time they're not about encouraging sustained change (which is something I think you're doing really well), but about getting engagement from people who want that vicarious feeling of 'virtue' from decluttering without thinking about, as you said, the reason why that clutter is there in the first place. I've stumbled into 'haul' videos or 'I bought dupes of these famous dresses online' videos, and while some mention what they're doing with the items after the video, most don't. And if they're releasing these videos all the time, I'm just like...where is it all going??? It's just so much waste. I'm so sorry for all the comments. I'm still knitting (gift) and it's easy to have your videos going in the background. Plus I'm getting the benefit of all your introspection!
@missedem
2 ай бұрын
But now I'm like, do I get vicarious 'virtue' from your videos, or am I going to make sustained changes? And if I do make sustained changes, have I truly thought about my own motivations, or am I piggybacking.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
2 ай бұрын
Please don't apologize for comments, seriously! I and others who find themselves here may benefit from reading them. For example here when you say "have you thought about your motivations or are you just piggybacking" - this is a much more clear way of articulating something I've been thinking a LOT about recently, about how so much of what we are "told" is surface level advice and while we can DO these things it doesn't really have true effect unless we FEEL them - i.e., have our own motivations! Thank you!
@melocoton7
4 ай бұрын
We have a WhatsApp group at work for people to swap and sell stuff. I've rehomed many nice items that way and I am happy that they bring someone else joy. I do hold on to things for as long as I can, but for one my weight fluctuates a lot and my style is constantly evolving. I just did a wardrobe check and I thought "if you had to move house right now, would you take this with you" all the "no" went onto selling on or donations. Those things I genuinely loved and wore/used often when I got them. They just aren't for me anymore. It's good and necessary to think long term, but it's impossible to know if you'll really end up loving it forever.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
That's a great idea, having the group at work! And agreed - it's so interesting to compare the feeling when you buy something to the feeling after using it for years, and there are many circumstances where things just don't fit your current needs. It sounds like you are doing a great job! 👏 If you'll allow me to think out loud for a moment - We can try to be more intentional as individuals and our behavior and choices are hopefully in our control...but, I think the bigger problem is when fashion companies design clothes that will fall apart after just a few wears and washes, and even tech companies have been pulled up for planned obsolescence, and then we still see big influencers promoting the "Sheins" and "Temus" of the world who are making and selling this kind of junk.
@bthomson
4 ай бұрын
We do have to be a bit careful though. Some people ( many too many!) really can't afford good quality and must buy what they can afford. This leaves them with the junk.
@msbluesky
3 ай бұрын
love the Whatsapp group idea!
@daniiwuu
4 ай бұрын
Love your channel! After coming across you, I've finally told myself I need to actually be conscious instead of saying "After buying this I'll be more conscious". Please keep making videos, I'm rooting for you.
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Thanks so much! I've definitely caught myself in that exact pattern in the past...which is partly why I decided to do these videos for accountability this time! Happy you're here!
@isabellerininger6249
4 ай бұрын
THANK YOU for bringing this up! I’ve been worried about this same thing for so long-people need to buy with the intent of using it up, not decluttering. ❤❤❤❤❤
@Alexas.nobuyyear
4 ай бұрын
Yes! Trying to reshape the social media landscape so we see more "responsible consumerism" instead of content that leads people to consume. Thanks for your comment!
@bthomson
4 ай бұрын
This is the reason for your channel ( beside wanting to curtail shopping?) It IS a worthwhile target ( pun intended!😎)
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