Is there a way to gently downsize before it’s time?
As we go through the cycle of life from renting our first apartment, to owning our first place to expanding to a home because children have come along. Some of us continue to move around due to jobs and other factors. Others create a ‘family home‘ that becomes the ‘go to place‘ for all birthdays, holidays and other events.
Whatever your situation there will come a time when you and your significant other will decide its time to downsize from ‘the big house‘ to more ‘compact space‘ that better matches your current lifestyle.
A few years ago, my husband and I had to go through this very event. It wasn’t easy going through each space ‘de-personalizing‘ and ‘Staging it‘ to sell. It made us nostalgic and grateful for all the memories created in our home. Once we got into the process it actually felt liberating to go through each room and determine what we wanted to take with us to our new place.
Here are a few quick tips we used that may help you:
Begin your downsizing a ‘Room at a Time‘ by going through your treasured items – furniture, accessories, clothes, photos etc. As you go through them, Place the item into one of 3 piles:
- Must Keep these items (furniture, accessories, photos)
- Maybe the Kids will want this (then involve them in the clean up)
- Time to Go to another home to enjoy (places like Value Village, Big Brothers, The Kidney Foundation and others are always looking for donations)
Once you have gone through this ‘room at a time‘ downsizing process, when the time comes to take the moving plunge it will be much easier.
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PS: We didn’t end up moving – wasn’t the right time. But, when we do – we will be ready.
By Jan Addams – DAT Girl (Designer, Author, Trainer)