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Anybody grasped the nettle and downsized?  Getting rid of furniture, cherished possessions, etc.

And NOT been sorry?

I am thinking of downsizing and there again, I don't want to think about it.  I do believe that once I get my head round it, I will be glad I've done it.

Lots more time to go boating (boat still to be bought), play my piano, go on more pilgrimages (LOL, perhaps NOT), lots more dog walking, reading, learning French, skiing, etc.

OH can have more time to play his violin, play table tennis, draw and paint, etc.

If anybody has done this very brave thing, please share your thoughts, experiences, regrets (if any) with me.

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We downsized in England once the youngest finished school. The move exactly paid off the mortgage.

It was a wrench and I found it really difficult at first.

We moved from a 5 bedroomed victorian detached house where our 3 children had grown up to a two and a half bedroomed modern box.

I've never been good at getting rid of stuff.

However, once I got into the swing of it I found it liberating and was giving all sorts of things away - fridges, beds, sofas, pianos, coalscuttles - stuff we wouldn't have room for.

Amazing how little you really need.

We certainly didnt take anything and put it in the garage or loft of the new house.

That is a big, big mistake.

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Bubbles, what is a "big, big mistake"?  It's not clear from your post.

Big mistake not to take stuff and put it in the garage or loft of the new place or big mistake to take your junk with you?  Which?

I'm thinking of all my beautiful leather shoes, handbags, evening dresses, etc?  Never have occasion to wear them again and perhaps Ebay might be the answer?

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I've done it twice and am doing it again. Clothes were the first target. It is very satisfying. But then, in another life I moved almost every year so it is a bit of a habit.

But all those bl**dy hobbies you and your hubby have - why not dump them too; seems a hell of a way not to think?

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Think of it as a chance to embark on a new life. We have moved 14 times and usually to something big enough to accomodate friends and family on visits. However,being at everyones beck and call for many years we ,as OAP's, have decided that it is time to do less housekeeping. Now moving from a 6 bed Longere to a 3 bed bungalow which after I have finished knocking it about will be a 2 bed en-suite with a decent size lounge and dining-room plus the needed kitchen and loo etc. We are selling/giving and disposing of 95% of everything so that a completely new start can be made for a new life. Safely say we are looking forward to it.I would add that although the children/grandchildren and majority of our friends will be nearer to us we don't have to consider anybody but ourselves and do not have any animals to worry about,
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Sorry not to be clear.

Big mistake to take stuff with you which will then just be transferred into the loft or garage of the new house and never see the light of day again.

It will still be there in the packing boxes when you move the next time.

E-bay sounds a brilliant idea.

Satisfactory on so many levels.

Your things will give someone else pleasure, will actually be used and will generate a nice little slush fund for future shopping trips!

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[quote user="Théière"]Ditto, A friend who recently downsized said if there was a fire what would you save first if you only had 30 mins and that's how they managed it.[/quote]

Well Theiere, I did have a fire and saved (some) photos and documents and a couple of sticks of furniture.'Minimalist' is a wonderful way to live even if you don't downsize.

Sweets, La Camino will make you see things differently (materially speaking)  so wait until you get back to make any decisions. Who knows, you might find you want to live with just the 6kilos you are carrying to St. Jacques[:-))] 

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Well, guys, thank you for all your thoughts.

Krusty, chez toi is definitely fab and I congratulate you on your garden!

Gem, I think the 6 kilos is optimistic, even for the Compostelle!

Well, have slept on it and now need a "frank and....(oh, what's that term that politicians use when they mean a slanging match)" discussion with OH and an internal dialogue with myself.

Sounds attractive to have less housework and less gardening and fewer possessions to look after.

So..........watch this space, might be back later!!![:-))]

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Wooly, I've been thinking about your predicament (as opposed to my own, see how selfless I am?)

If you like moving around so much and you also want to downsize, why don't you go get a barrel like Norman's?  You can then roll around next to his or roll away completely tout seul?

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Downsizing  we often think of....If we can live a minimalist life for weeks on end in a two bedroom  house in  France we should be able to do the same in the UK. ...Then we look round the house and the question is "Where do we start "   I have been told if you have anything in the house that you have never used in 2 years ..chuck it away you are never likely to use it again..I have a hell of a lot to chuck away if I do that .

We have lots of room if one of the kids wants to come and stay with their families ..it has happened  one reclocated and stayed six months .so we have this  "Family base ."  we are here for the kids feeling about the place  .

Then I look in the garage ... outboard motors . garden furniture .bits for cars once owned ..like a new constant velocity joint for a mini  thats been in its box for over 20 years .All still valuable stuff ... Then I   think  "  Oh well .perhaps next year  "

 

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Being gluttons for self-punishment, Gem and I are doing the whole 8 hundred and whatever kilometres and then some as we might have to walk to do some sightseeing, walk to and from the path for accommodation and walk to the sea at Finisterre.

Of course, Pacha, if you'd like to join us for the last 100?[:)].....

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

Being gluttons for self-punishment, Gem and I are doing the whole 8 hundred and whatever kilometres and then some as we might have to walk to do some sightseeing, walk to and from the path for accommodation and walk to the sea at Finisterre.

Of course, Pacha, if you'd like to join us for the last 100?[:)].....

[/quote]

Shall I pop that in this years agenda or next years.[:P]

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Having downsized several times, I find the time consuming examination of all the emotional baggage the worst, from 6 to 4 was easy, Daughter was setting up flat[:D] and daughter was ruthless ''anything that had not been used since the previous season is binned, clothes, nick-nacks, even inc Furniture!''; from 4 to 3 was achieved by putting everything into store and just picking what was wanted for the 3 but now the stuff that's left, has too many memories to go through, let alone chuck[:$] but that monthly storage bill is starting to nag . . .
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We have been a total failure at downsizing! The house we lived in the last 30 years in East Leics was quite big with a very large garden- stocked to the brim with wonderful plants by moi (many are now here with us). And then we fell in love with this place here in the Jura - an old farm/vicarage I'd always admired and was put for sale 2 years ago by the Synod, which is monster size (yep with a big barn) - first it got filled with all my parents stuff after their demise and before our move.

 We managed to give tons of stuff from our UK house, books, furniture, clothes, pot plants, plants, etc - all to friends, charity shops and Free cycle. Giving things rather than throwing them in a skip made us feel so much better- although it does take a lot more time and energy. We could then have sold all the good stuff, and bought new again here- but many of the things were heirlooms and of good quality, or things we really liked - so they came with us. Moving abroad, (even if in my case was coming home to my roots) is a big enough change without also loosing all the stuff you feel comfortable with. After all the trauma of last year- we are finally ready to start getting rid of all my parents stuff, and just keep the good bits. We like having space for friends and family, and for ourselves ... so downsizing is not for us. Parts of the house remain unused for much of the time, minimum heating and practically no cleaning - and I just love pottering in the garden. I am tackling all the big projects now - give myself another 10 years - then will just maintain- and get help if I need to. Not easy making choices - I've always allowed fate, guts and heart to lead my life- and so far it has sort of worked well.

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When I moved in with Mr. Nectarine I had a clear out of all my stuff. Scary at first, you have considerations about how much you paid for it, what it's worth now, might I ever need it, etc. A few listings on Ebay, a couple of bootsales and two enormous garage sales and everything was whittled down to the bare necessities. And someone has said, it is actually VERY liberating (after you have bitten the bullet). I looked honestly at stuff I had and thought (a) is it essential (b) do I like it (c) will I feel awful if I get rid of it, like sentimental stuff) and (d) if I needed something like this again, could I get hold of it.

It's really only sentimentality that keeps you holding on to stuff, like great-aunt Agatha's sewing box and the like. Decluttering is hugely therapeutic and clears your head so well and what you are left with is really just the essentials and the stuff you want in your life.

Mr. Nectarine, on the other hand, moved 30 years ago and then, when we moved to France two years ago, insisted on pretty much everything being brought. That's why we have a loft FULL of boxes of stuff. I could cry when I think how much we spent transporting this storage stuff to France but, heck, he needs to get his head around decluttering. I suspect this is going to be a long job, though.
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[quote user="just john "] but that monthly storage bill is starting to nag . . .[/quote]

Tell you what, JJ, I won't downsize so will buy a big enough place where all your stuff can be stored and you can pay me instead of the storage company.

That way, it will be win-win:  you still get your stuff stored and I won't have to downsize [I]

Nectarine, if your OH is anything like mine, you're on to a hiding for nothing.

It took me MONTHS to persuade the OH to part with his first briefcase given to him by his father, his mother's old watch, his own watch (no longer working, of course) bought with his first pay packet, the bible that was used by his grandfather in the chapel he attended, scrolls of drawings on linen from his first days at work, etc etc.  I could go on but it's all too depressing.

I think perhaps a bonfire (if the mairie will allow me to build one) is the answer.

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Just a thought, shrouds don't come with pockets and you cannot take all this stuff with you when you depart this life.[:)]

That said, I have to say that I am one of the worst offenders and keep everything, you just  never know when you might need it.[;-)]

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Problem is I usually end up throwing it. A few days later something goes wrong and I think ' got just the thing' - ooops too late. And same with clothes - give them away usually about 1 year before they are back 'in'! One of my daughters just love all the antique furniture, dinner sets, etc, from her great-grand-parents, so at least they will go to a good home one day.

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If you are moving to a new home in France from, say, the UK, it is the ideal time to downsize. Now living on the Mediterranean, I am amazed at the stuff people have hauled from the UK, furniture that makes their beachside apartment look like a Birmingham front parlour. I lived for 30 years in my last apartment in central London but always on the principle I could chuck everything into the back of a Ford Transit and be away within 20 minutes if I chose. I brought nothing with me here that would not go into the back of the car.

Aother secret is never to own a garage. Everyone I know who has one has filled it with junk and leaves the car outside........The French homes I visit are either huge and empty, apart from an Odeon-size flat screen TV, or tiny and stuffed with furniture I would not accept as a gift. De-cluttering is the first step towards downsizing. You can end up living in half the space you think you need.  

P-D de R.

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