Day 31 & 32 - Sir, Could I Interest You in a Plaid Tie?, Fabulous Weekly Wrap Up

Well folks, the time has come. My boxes in Purge-atory have reached their expiration date, and I can't even really remember what's in there beyond the basic label of "clothes" or "shoes" that I put on the outside (trust me, it's easier that way - you'll talk yourself back into ALL SORTS of things that you'll never wear because you never did). So, what now? Well, throw them out, right! Not so fast there, Speedy. We have to get rid of them in a Responsible Manner. This means giving them to someone you don't like donating them or selling them.

Here are some suggestions:
- FreeCycle - this is my very favorite. You post the items you want to get rid of by email, and people come to you to take them away. It's a great way to make sure your things find a good home with someone who really wants them. BTW - if there are things you need, you can also post "wants" - you'd be surprised what people are giving away! I've gotten everything from books to clothes drying racks, all for free + the effort of going to pick them up. Awesome!

- host a "Naked Lady" party - Relax, it's not nearly as naughty as it sounds. Get all your (similarly sized) girlfriends together, and have everybody bring all the clothes and accessories they no longer want. Put the clothes in a pile, and stand back and watch the fabric fly as everyone snags what they want! It helps to place a few mirrors around the room. Everything that's left over gets taken to Goodwill, and everyone leaves with half a dozen fabulous things!

- Goodwill - pack it up and drop it off! Salvation Army is another great option.

- consignment store - Fabulous if you have items that are a bit more high-end and still in excellent condition (ex: those Manolo Blaniks you bought when you still had a job and only wore once because they nearly crippled you for life). You drop these items off at the store and, if they sell, you receive a portion of the selling price.

- Craigs List or EBay - Particularly good for "lots" - bundles of baby clothes, skirts, shirts, etc. There are rules for sellers, and you really have to watch for scam artists on Craigs List. The upside? You might get a nice price for gently used items. The downside? You may have to pack your items up and ship them out, post detailed pictures of the items, etc. If this is something you can trust yourself to do without going INSANE, have at it. I tried to get it together enough, but I had so much stuff to get rid of, I got overwhelmed & the boxes sat for two weeks in my hallway. Not simple, not good, not for me.

- yard sale - If you have a lot of fabulous items (and a yard), this might be worth it. Yard sales aren't exactly an option for New Yorkers, so that's out for me. It's also one of those options that, in this season of my life, requires too much effort for too little return.

This round? FreeCycle won out - I just want the bags and boxes out of my hallway. In the future, I may try to make some money off my things as I get rid of them, but for now, I choose my sanity over cash (if I didn't have two huge corporate shows to design this month, it might be a different story). At the end of the day, the "lift" and sense of freedom I get from flinging and purging is what I need right now. And a massage, I need one of those too. And a kitten. Or a cannoli. With chocolate.

Day 32 - Fabulous Weekly Wrap Up

Well kids, this week we:

- paid homage to our crock pots
- pared down the traditional medicine cabinet
- beefed up the hippy-dippy-homeopathic-herbal-but-no-chanting medicine cabinet
- freed the exiles from Purge-atory

Next week? Brace yourselves - we're tackling Housecleaning. Get out your tiaras!