18 Useless Items We’ve Kept For Years But It’s Time To Throw Away

A year ago, I participated in a marathon online house reorganization, carried out by a friend. For three weeks I scrutinized every corner of our two-bedroom apartment. I collected 11 bags of unnecessary things. Some of them went straight to the recycle bin, others to charity, and some items sold over the Internet. The apartment gained space and even became easier to breathe.

The main thing is to look at your home as if for the first time. Take a look at every box, magnets on the fridge and scraps of paper; ask yourself what is really needed. I decided to share my experience with the readers of awesome.club and show you the things in your apartment that you can get rid of right now, without a second thought and without regrets. At the end you will find a bonus on how to organize things in the virtual world.

Bedding not only adds flair to the bedroom, it affects the quality of sleep. We’ve grown accustomed to old sets as if they were part of family history, but we must give them a second look: one is pitted, the other is torn, and the rose print on the favorite duvet is too faded. For starters, pick some more worn-out sets and say goodbye to them. So you’ll feel encouraged to update all of your bedding.

It’s not worth throwing old bed linen and towels in the trash: they are welcome in nursing homes (to be used as cleaning cloths) and in animal shelters. Thus, you simultaneously get rid of your worn-out things and do a good deed.

The habit of not throwing anything away many of us inherited from thrifty parents, but today, it might not make much sense. The flimsy hangers you get when shopping for clothes or after sending your clothes to professional dry cleaners aren’t very sturdy or pretty. It’s worth putting some money aside to replace them with more presentable ones.

No matter how much you love a pair of socks, gloves or earrings, if you lose your pair, there’s no point in keeping them any longer. Gold, of course, is better to hand over to a pawnshop or melt it down to make something new. Take courage and immediately say goodbye to gloves, socks and jewelry that have lost their pair.

Many stores and services offer discount or loyalty cards, flyers for participating in promotions and other things. If you did not like the service or the point of sale is located in a place where you are unlikely to return, then it makes no sense to keep them. It also goes for random business cards, especially if you received them a few years ago and have never used them. If you believe they will be useful at some point, store the number on your cell phone and throw the cards in the trash.

Even if I’m the only one to see your lingerie, doesn’t mean you should wear stretch bras or polka-dotted panties. This attitude of devaluing yourself greatly lowers your self-esteem, because by agreeing with the worst, you deprive yourself of what you really deserve.

Also, the average lifespan of a bra is about six months to a year, when it ceases to fulfill its function of supporting the breasts.

It’s hard to explain why we keep boxes. It’s like a bag of bags: in case…? Let’s be honest: we are unlikely to ever need a new TV box, roller skates, children’s toys or a sugar bowl again. All of them can be handed over to a recyclable waste collection point. Not only do they help care for the environment, but they can make some money.

Before, I loved wearing miniskirts and short dresses. Today, although my body still allows me to wear these clothes, I no longer have the desire to show off my legs, and it is unlikely that I will. Therefore, I ruthlessly rummaged through my entire wardrobe and got rid of clothes and shoes that no longer matched my current style.

Everything that was in good condition I sold online, the rest I donated to the support center for needy families (charitable institutions exist in almost every neighborhood). It’s really nice when jackets you don’t like anymore, hats bought on impulse or blouses on sale get a second life and become welcome pieces in someone’s wardrobe.

It’s worth taking a good look at things: covers from an old cell phone, which you’ve probably already said goodbye to, are unlikely to come in handy. The chargers can still work if you use similar models, otherwise it’s better to give them to colleagues. You pen drives and broken cables are of no value, so you can get rid of them.

I like bijouterie for the variety and affordable prices. In this regard, I can afford not just to choose the classics, but also something that is at the height of fashion. However, after a year, it becomes clear that these jewelry are outdated and I definitely won’t be wearing them for another 20 years.

The rule also applies to cheap handbags, scarves and shawls, which were bought for a certain occasion and now don’t fit my current style ideas. These things must be sold or given away without regret; let them please someone else.

Expired bills, 10-year leases, old notes and other paper waste are often kept for many years, as a matter of habit. All this, like the boxes described above, can be taken to the collection point or simply thrown away, but not transferred from one place to another.

I immediately discard expired foods. When I decided to pay attention to the expiration date of medicines, cosmetics, cleaning and hygiene products, I ended up having an unpleasant surprise: half of the things had to go to the trash. I don’t know what the risk might be of using an expired face cream or bathroom cleaner, but why try and risk your health?

It is not always easy to convince a child to get rid of some toys, even those that he has not paid attention to for a long time. Children grow up, their interests change, and there is absolutely no need for a ring pyramid for a third grader. Therefore, at home we have a “two-box rule”: when toys no longer fit in them, we conduct an audit.

Broken toys are thrown away. Those that become uninteresting due to the age of the child are donated to kindergartens or sold on the Internet. With the money earned, we buy something new without spending part of our salary on another toy truck or construction game. In addition to saving, we avoid cluttering the apartment with unnecessary things.

Chipped kitchenware isn’t just unsightly, it’s also unsafe. For example, when cooking on a baking sheet or in a frying pan with a damaged Teflon coating, transfer of metals from the pan to the food occurs, which is harmful to health. You should not think twice and need to get rid of these items immediately. Roasting pans and pots with damaged enamel, straight to the trash.

The tea set, which my relatives gave me 10 years ago and which all this time was gathering dust on the shelf, was sold too. It was so far from my taste that there was no point in keeping it in a box for another 20 years in the hope that one day I would come to like it. All this takes up space and does not bring pleasure or benefit. Chances are you also have something like that at home.

I love books and I often buy them. However, in my collection there are some that I read once and I will hardly want to open them again or pass them on to my children. I don’t see the point in keeping them, but I can’t throw them away either. I collected all these copies and took them to the nearest library. There they were gratefully received. I’m happy thinking that someone might be interested in them.

According to experts, you need to change your toothbrush every three or four months, or even more often. The useful life of sponges is, on average, six months, after which they become a fertile environment for fungi and bacteria. Remember the last time you renewed your hygiene items and replace the old ones with new ones. More than pleasant, it is also good for your health.

A burnt-out coffee maker, an electric kettle that stopped working, a clock that has stopped working for years and boots with funky heels. Perhaps something of this kind is stored in the hiding places of any apartment. All of this wasn’t thrown away just because “I’ll fix it one day”. You need to take all these things and honestly answer the question “Am I really going to fix it? It is worth it?”. If so, take it in for repair or fix it yourself. Otherwise, make no mistake and take them directly to the trash.

Cheap trinkets given away by colleagues or relatives who have returned from a trip are often kept for years just out of politeness. All those plastic mascots of the year or fantastic magnets from Rio de Janeiro, are not at all pleasing to the eye and collect dust. Look at party favors one more time and keep only what you really like. The place for the rest is in the wastebasket.

As a child, I never threw away pens, because I could always buy refills and exchange them. Now, the price of standard office supplies is so low, it’s easier to buy new ones than to find the necessary components. No one uses cologne to refill felt-tip pens anymore, so if they don’t write anymore, there’s no point in putting them away. Proofread and throw away everything that has already dried, starting with nail polish and ending with highlighters.

It is also worth throwing in the trash bottles of your favorite perfume, which have run out or have been on your shelf for a long time. According to experts, the eau-de-toilette it should not be stored for more than three to five years, and even less if the sun’s rays fall on it. Expired fragrances change the smell, and trigger allergies, so why take the chance?

It’s hard to imagine modern life without internet communication, but around here it would also be nice to put things…