Be More with Less

simplicity is love

The Reverse 100 Thing Challenge

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As I mentioned in my original 100 Thing post, this challenge was only for my personal belongings and not household items. It included my clothing, sports stuff and work stuff. Household items like art on the wall, kitchen stuff and furniture are not included. That said, living with less inspired me (with my family’s blessing) to further reduce our household items.

We’ve gone through several stages of decluttering over the past few years, and now that we are talking about selling our house and moving into a smaller space, we are ready to downsize our possessions again.

We could wait until next year. January is a great time to declutter, but the right time is right now. That goes for life and work. Why spend the rest of the year planning when you can get to it.

Let’s get the excuses out-of-the-way

  • The holidays. Yes they are coming. You can still do other things.
  • The weather. It’s changing, but since you probably don’t live outside, that shouldn’t matter.
  • No time. You can carve out 5 or 10 minutes a day for this challenge.
  • Just in case. You think you might need that thing, but more than likely, in 2 weeks, you won’t remember what you gave away.
  • Your family is not on board. That’s ok! Focus on your own stuff first.

To help your decluttering efforts, I’m launching (drum roll please)

The Reverse 100 Thing Challenge

The point of the 100 Thing Challenge is to live with 100 things. The Reverse 100 Challenge invites you to dump 100 things before the end of the year. If you’ve always thought that the 100 Thing Challenge is extreme, and that it would be impossible to only live with 100 things, then giving away only 100 things should be a breeze.

If you need help with your clutter, consider the Clutterfree ebook or Clutterfree course that I created with Leo Babauta. If you join the course, the book is included, along with access to the Clutterfree members only forum where I can help with specific needs.

Comments

  1. “Just in case. You think you might need that thing”

    This is my problem. We already live a minimalist lifestyle but could definitely do better if I could overcome the ‘just in case’ mindset.

    Thanks,

    Dan Garner

  2. I wouldn’t want to keep 100 things while I’m decluttering 🙂 Always trying to get rid of stuff I decided to dump as fast as possible.

    Oh, and my favorite place to get rid of most stuff are free shops (in german that’s “Umsonstladen”). My living-town Berlin has a couple of them. They are places where you can just bring stuff that you don’t need but that might still be good for someone else. And others can just take it without any payment. It’s a great thing, as it’s very likely that most of the stuff I decide has to leave my household will be used by someone else.

    • … but anyway I’m in and I start with an UMTS surfstick I haven’t used for ages (because I use my phone for mobile internet now) and I wanted to put on ebay for a while.

      I’ll picture the items separately and will create a collage or something alike.

  4. I’ll play! I recently relocated to Rwanda for a few months and will be moving again after the New Year, but I firmly believe that even while travelling and living with much less these days I have at least 100 more things that someone else can use. Blog post and picture to come.

  7. joining in – and starting with pretty table top candle holder…that is too big for my room.

  8. I’m in. Starting with those shoes I never wear that my toddlers keep dragging out of the closet!

  9. I’m so in. Just last night I told Neal I want to cull my book shelves. So my first thing will be a book (not home right now, so I can’t say which one…and I’m sure there will be many!). Love this idea!!

  11. I’ve actually kinda been doing this for a few months now! I started giving away one item a day on my personal facebook account…I take a picture of it and post it to an album called “100 days of decluttering”. My friends claim the items, and pick them up next time they see me, or suggest someone they know who needs the item. I’m now on day 92! It has been so much fun..I think when I get to day 100 I might just keep going!

  13. I’m going to try. Having issues with doing something that requires repeated efforts…like once-a-day or 10 minutes a day. But I SO needed this challenge to kick-start my motivation. So the first thing? How about the perfectly-good HP printer/fax/copier that has already been replaced and I saved “just in case.” It’s huge!

    • …wow…I really thought this challenge would be difficult for me, but I went through boxes of off-season clothes and cleaned out one of the 4 closets I’d planned to tackle…I’m at 91 items already! And as I see those unneeded clothes stacked in my garage, ready to be donated, I feel such relief! Maybe I can do another 100 items! Or maybe I could do 100 items a month until Dec. 15….or what if I could do 100 items a month for a year? I feel hopeful.

      As a person who was married to a hoarder for 10 years…and was under stress attack from it for at least the last 6 years…AND started to take on some of his characteristics…like…”we might need this one day”…I’m finally feeling like I have some control over my environment. Thank you for your inspiration!

    • At the end of the weekend, I had gone through 3 closets and had 261 clothing items to donate. I still have more to tackle, but this is a great start. I feel like a rockstar. Thank you…

  14. Joining! At first I looked at my current pile of donations that needs to leave this week, and thought – “That’s so easy! There’s 80 things right there!”…so instead, I want to make it harder by starting from scratch and not including that pile…I will start with a bread book and a christmas table cloth

  16. This is just what I needed right now! I’ve gotten down far enough that it can be really hard to identify what needs to go, amidst the boyfriend’s belongings.

    I do have a question, though: would it be fair to count items that you *use up* and don’t replace? (For instance – I journal. I have…ahem…accumulated 6 very pretty journals. I need a maximum of 2 at a time – one to write in, and one for when the current one is full. Does using up and getting rid of my full journal count toward the challenge, since now I’ll only have 5 journals in the house?)

    Either way, my first item is a tiered shelf extender I was using to display our action figures. I realized I could display the figures in front of my bookshelf and reclaim that section of shelving.

    • You throw away your journals when they’re filled up? What’s the point of writing? (I’m not being facetious, I just don’t understand).

      • For me? I use it as a way to clear my head and organize my thoughts. It gets my worries out of my brain and onto the paper.

        If I write something worth keeping, I transcribe it to a blog, expand it to a story, or archive it digitally.

        Others keep records of their lives; I’ve never really had the desire to re-read a journal. I lived it, now I need to live the next thing. But a pen is a great way to find clarity.

        • Thanks for replying. I can agree that writing things down helps me to remember. It makes me feel better to know that you save the important parts in another way though! I have a long way to go to be a true minimalist! G’day!

          • Don’t get me wrong; getting rid of my journals isn’t part of my minimalism, really. For some people, keeping them as keepsakes is really important. I’ve never been super into sentimental stuff, though. Over half of mine are filled with things like “I still need to clean the litterbox…” or “Dammit, I forgot to pick up onions when I went shopping. What else did I forget?”

            Not the stuff of wonderful memories. More a slowed down stream of consciousness.

  18. Yes, yes, yes!!! I love this idea. With two small children and a packrat husband, the 100 things challenge isn’t really realistic for me right now, but getting RID of 100 things? That I can do.

    I’m starting with a corner TV cabinet.

  20. I’ve got about seven or eight pieces of clothing that I’m going to take to the consignment store. Does that count?

  21. I’m in. Not sure how much things I would be able to give up from my quite declettered apartment, but actually, there are still some stuff I left at my mother’s house when I was moving three years ago. I know, shame on me. So if I’m out of stuff to toss at my place, there’s another one to work on 🙂

  23. I have been in the process of decluttering for the past few weeks. I began with my childhood snow globe collection…

  24. Whoa, what a mistake to think that I don’t have much to toss! I notice at least ten hot candidates in the last ten minutes!

  25. I am definitely joining this challenge! I am going to start with a pair of fancy dress shoes that I have only worn a handful of times. This is exactly the motivation I need right now and I love the fact that there is a deadline. Thank you for creating this challenge!

  26. Getting rid of 100 things is totally doable. Thank you for the idea. I am starting with a box of old books. Happy minimizing to all of us!

  27. I’m in! This is a challenge I can definitely get into~ My first thing is actually 3 pairs of jeans that I don’t need. Don’t know if I can hold on to everything until I have 100 items to photograph, because some of them I’m offering to my son’s girlfriend & she could use them now… but I will definitely have 100 items GONE by December 15th. What I’d love to do is 100 items per month, so I’m going to work on that.

  28. I am joining the Challenge~!
    Letting Go Of ….1st…Large Head Stuff Dog 🙂
    Happy Thursday~!
    Tammy 🙂

  29. I so like this better. I’m up for the challenge. The first thing that I’m getting rid of is a very bulky ski jacket. I don’t ski right now and I”m moving to England. I already have 2 peacoats that are great for this weather type. Plus, if I want to go skiing, I will buy a new smaller one that will not take up so much space.

  30. What a great twist on the 100 thing challenge. I’m not sure I have 100 things to get rid of, but I do need to reassess a few areas in my home so I will be joining in as well. First up are two books I thought I needed to hold on to when I made my big move last year.

  31. Joining in too! Just donated a big bag 2 days ago. Here’s to starting afresh!
    My first item will be a pair of shoes!

  32. My bedroom has been building up clutter too long~!
    I had given the whole closet to my husband, and moved my clothing to my son’s empty side of the boys closet when my 18 year old moved out.
    I have a tall dresser (3 drawers have none clothing items)
    and 3 drawers in a shared dresser with my hubby, and he has a tall dresser.
    I also rotate my seasonal clothing, and put my out of season clothing
    in 2 “30” gallon Rubbermaid totes.
    One of my Goals is to “Not Keep None Clothing” in the dresser,
    but have no place else right now.
    I hope I can go look through the none clothing and let some GO~! : )
    Also I am a Book lover” but with my severe carpel tunnel,
    I no longer read as much, and I could start my own Library~!
    One whole 4′ tall bookcase, on top of my dresser in my bedroom 🙁
    So I do not even like being in my bedroom.
    So I am going to see what books I can Let Go of too~!
    I will be back…with my list~! : )
    Tammy : )

  33. Ok. I’m in! I’m getting rid of my lace curtains that I’ve taken from house to house and never seemed to find a window for them!

  34. I’m joining too! I’ve been doing this for the last month (getting rid of stuff – 3 or 4 items per day), and I’ll continue. As someone else said, I won’t take a picture of all the 100 things together, but I’ll be making a collage with pictures of the 100 items.
    My first item is a green coat that’s in great condition, but which I never wear!

  35. I’m in! We are a family of 4 and I know this will be a great start toward living a simpler life. I am always overwhelmed by how to start. This is it….thanks! =)

  36. I am definitely joining and the first item that I am getting rid of is a pair of jeans that is now 3 sizes too big for me!

  37. I’m in, and I’m going to start by getting rid of our Burley bike trailer. (The child is now 13 years old!)

  38. I’m between apartments, and I just moved all of my things into storage. The heaviest thing was a four drawer ikea dresser (probably because it is made of particle board). So, I’d like to see that thing leave my life! There is a donation area in my storage facility, so I will simply leave my castoff there rather than moving into my next place.

    I’m betting that offloading the dresser will result in a heightened resolve to offload all the other things that were inside the dresser!

  39. I was needing this challenge!! I move to a new apartment and I have so many things that didn’t fit my needs and style anymore!!
    I will start with 2 jeans that sit unused for months!

  40. Having been decluttering for months and taking boxes and bags of stuff to thrift shops, I may not be able to find another 100 items but I’m going to look in every nook and cranny.
    I will start with six new sheets or poster board which will be offered to local homeschoolers and a homeschool spelling book which I am posting for sale. More to come I’m sure!

  41. I’m in too. In fact, I was in the mood for a declutter so two hours later I have my 100 items photographed. Thanks to my daughters 5 and 7 who helped!

  42. ~I am back~!
    I decided I do not like the feeling of being Crowded.
    So I took all books off the purple bookcase on top my dresser.
    Had my son carry it (he has muscles!) to the LR and I moved
    the furniture on my wall, put away a deco table and put the bookcase
    against the wall next to my recliner….
    …..MINUS…30 books~! 🙂
    “10” ARE GOING TO A FRIEND …..THE REST TO DONATION~!
    THAT IS NOW “31” ITEMS lESS~!
    Tammy : )

  43. I’m in. My first item is a Bluetooth that worked great with my last phone. I was inspired by one of your recent posts in which one lady pledged to get rid of 10 things a day, but this is more reasonable for me I think.

  44. I have been doing this decluttering gig for years now…. but there is always more to go. So I will have to say my first thing on my list basket filled with little bits of toys and “stuff” that is not being claimed by anyone. Out it goes!!!!

  46. I’m in! Put out three garbage bags full of clothes and some small furniture tens for Purple Heart yesterday – – just a warm up. I’ll start anew with a cookie pan.

  47. I gave away my 3 month old Mother-of-the -Bride gown. Yes, it was beautiful and costly, but it will be worn this month by another mother. She too will feel beautiful, and the gown will continue to spread joy instead of collecting dust in the back of my closet.

  48. As a Professional Organizer I already live with less and my husband and I have always been of the mindset to simplify. Reading this blog and other minimalist blogs I think we can simplify even further and this is the challenge I need. My first thing to purge is these flower placemats I was holding onto for “that” party my daughter is going to have today.

  49. Perfect timing. As with others here, I have just given some things away. I will start fresh. First item is a business suit that I haven’t worn in at least a year, maybe two. (In fact, for the past 8 days of work I have worn the same pair of pants. So I’m not doing Project 333 – yet – but I’m checking it out 🙂

  52. I’m in! I started my own personal challenge recently. For every item I purchase, I get rid of two items I already own. First item in this challenge: donate a winter coat I only wore a handful of times. It’s too big, but extremely warm!

  53. ‘The weather. It’s changing, but since you probably don’t live outside, that shouldn’t matter.’
    I do not agree with this statement, unless you live somewhere in a southern, nice climate.
    The winter is coming where I live and it does matter a lot, unless you are fool, as everybody here needs proper, warm winter shoes for -30 degrees C, as we need to embrace ourselves financially for the big heating bills season, dark days, long nights, etc. etc. Prove me that I’m wrong please 🙂

    • What does that have to do with decluttering? If you would get rid of your winter shoes in summer, then you probably don’t expect to need them come winter. No change.

      The weather has a big impact on what you might wear while you’re decluttering, and what you might still own when you’re done…but unless you’re working on a storage shed or other outdoor area, I doubt it will impede your actual work.

      Actually, moving around quickly, picking things up and putting them down, bending, cleaning up as you go; decluttering could be a fairly effective way to keep warm if you get all energetic about it. (Full disclosure: almost anything but ice water bathing can be an good way to keep warm, if you are energetic about it.)

    • Hi Beata,

      I live in Utah and the weather is starting to get chilly with more to come! I only meant that the weather shouldn’t be an excuse not to get started on a decluttering project. I understand that it comes with other issues, but you can still declutter! 😉

  54. I am starting by giving to the thrift store two bags i’ve got ready to go. i’m continually decluttering. i moved in May, but have yet to fully unpack and keep clean. it’s such a great feeling to just pitch or giveaway things i realized haven’t made a difference in my or my daughter’s life. working on keeping to working on my own clutter. it does feel great when surfaces are cleared! 🙂 thanks so much for your lovely, encouraging website!!

  56. I started this yesterday, we’re currently living in a rental but in January we’re going to start looking for our own home.

    I’m going to be doing some decluttering, dismantling furniture and putting it into storage this weekend. Hopefully when we do move we’ll clear out some more. At the moment we’re just worried because we don’t know what we have and need.

    This challenge is do-able… even for us. 20 DVD’s/Blu-rays and 5 x-box games all being taken to a swap shop tomorrow.

  57. I absolutely love this idea……and I am going to begin collecting my 100 things this weekend !!!! What a perfect activity leading us in to the Holiday Season. And donating the items is always a good way to help others . Thanks so much for the idea !!

  58. I will be taking this challenge!

    I have been de-cluttering all year, and I honestly don’t think my family quite understands when I tell them I have been “getting rid of stuff.”

    My sister will be staying with me for Christmas and I would love it if she noticed a difference, or at least felt more at home in my roomier house. I think it’s amazing how much stuff I own that just collects dust.

    Thank you for your blog, it is my favorite of the simple living/minimalist blogs and it has inspired me in many ways

  60. I seem to be constantly decluttering and frankly our house isn’t too full – but I’m sure I can find 100 things! I’m starting with the 2 pairs of slacks my husband decided to donate while I was on a business trip this week.

  62. I’m in! I’ll start with the kids’ playroom. I won’t count the trash that seems to accumulate in there in my 100 items, though! There were some cheap toys tossed to the side I’ve had my eye on for a while!

  63. Been wanting to do this but . . . needed a push. Thanks!!! I already pulled 5 shirts out of my closet and that’s just a start.

  64. Count me in. I am currently decluttering my junk/stuff in my moms basement. I have moved around a lot and most of the stuff I originally moved with and since I have not used or really needed any of it in over 10 years it is time to get rid of it.

  65. Having been decluttering for months and taking boxes and bags of stuff to thrift shops, I may not be able to find another 100 items but I’m going to look in every nook and cranny.
    I will start with six new sheets or poster board which will be offered to local homeschoolers and a homeschool spelling book which I am posting for sale. More to come I’m sure!

  66. I just got rid of a couple bags last weekend but I can surely find more stuff to jettison. Count me in starting with that one t-shirt that is just too small even though i love it still.

  67. I’m in! This is just what I need. My organizer/friend is moving, so I’m on my own now. Well no, because I have this web site! I think the comment about “just in time for Christmas” is so true! I have so much stuff it is hard to find a place to hide presents, not to mention a place for guests to sleep. My first thing is the laundry bag I used in college, my mom made it, I’m sure someone else could use it.

  69. I’ve been thinking about doin something like this for awhile. First item: a broken elliptical sitting in my office.

  70. My first few items: a full length wool coat that I don’t need living in the southern SoCal desert, cassette tapes taking up valuable drawer space and costume jewelry that I inherited last year.

  72. About 50 things so far between children’s books and cookbooks! If only I could get the kids to join in!

  73. I’m just at the beginning stages of my decluttering journey. I suspect I’ll pull together a list this weekend. Thank you for the inspiration to stop just reading blogs & actually take some action!

    • I did it!

      My 100 items came from three sources:
      1. My kids out grown clothes (about 25)
      2. My own closet (about 60) — this really surprised me. I’ve already taken a stab at the 333 project. So I’ve whittled down the clothes. I didn’t examine my shoes previously (about 8 pairs donated). The rest was books, files & projects. My closet was organized. This exercise has really caused me to think about how much extra I keep simply because I can make room for it.
      3. I still needed about 15 items so I attacked the kitchen junk drawer.

      This process felt great. I plan to do again at least one more time before December 15th.

  74. I am to the point where we don’t have one hundred things to get rid of!! Then my eight year old and I decided to go through all of HER toys and stuffed toys- ta da…….close to eighty items for donation!

  76. Taking part in this! My first unclutter challenge :3
    The first item to go: A jeans handbag that I got for free but never used.
    Next I’ll go rummage through my closets, I know there’re plenty of good clothes and accessories that I never use, but can be donated to a the local UFF or clothes gather bins.

  77. Hi….I would like to do this but really don’t want to keep things around long enough to take a picture at the end of 100 items. I like to be rid of them as soon as I make the decision where they are going. Then it feels like I am making progress. I would be willing to make a list of all I get rid of, if you would be interested in seeing it. Otherwise, I’ll play and just know that I made the deadline with everyone else! My first thing is a set of placemats and napkins given to my mother.

  78. Count me in, with one caveat: I am travelling until December 4th, so my acting on the challenge will be condensed although I will make a list of my stuff as the weeks go by. Already have one item for today: a pile of packages of new, unopened stockings that I don’t need (don’t work in an office any more! yeah!). They will go to Dress for Sucess when I get home. There are 5 packages – does that count as 1 or 5 items??

    Thanks for the inspiration!

  79. I am participating in the Reverse 100 Giveaway! By Dec 15 I will have 100+ items to giveaway in the New Year. This comes at a perfect time. Thanks.

  80. First item is a book. In fact, I think all 100 items will be books! The joke is that I need to get rid of at least that many for anyone to maybe notice a difference!

  83. I’m in! We’ve just moved to Germany, and even though we decluttered before we left and are fairly minimal already, we still shipped waaaay too much. 22 boxes will be arriving this Friday and I’ve been stressing out just thinking about it. Add to that the fact that we are in a temporary apartment on the *5th floor* (with no elevator!) and will need to move everything again once we find our own place…The less we have, the better it will be.

    My first item is a pair of brown lounge pants that are a bit too big for me.

  84. I’m in.Really nice way to motivate me for something I wanted to do anyway 🙂
    First goes a book (Well more like 50 or 100 books but not sure how i will count them yet:))

  85. I’m in 🙂 First thing going out is a huge massage-table I no longer use because my Reiki-practice is out of practice.

  86. Count me in. I’ve been clearing away my excess for 4 years now and I’m always amazed by how much I missed in my previous projects. I’m starting my collection with 2 empty medicine bottles that have been sitting in my bathroom for over a year.

  87. I started with a batch of children’s books that we have read already and then threw in a few games that my children no longer play with. It only took 45 minutes to gather up 100 items. The process was so quick and painless, that I think I will try it again next weekend.

  88. I was inspired by a friend who joined and posted on Facebook. I started with a large fancy three sectioned laundry hamper that was fabulous in our last residence but has been in storage/ basement since we moved into this house – 8 years ago!! That was the biggest item, gathered over 120 things- lots of books/ movies. Loving the extra shelf space and the clean shed & basement. Did in 3 days- the hardest part was not taking the first 50 things to goodwill the 2nd day. Goal of 50 more this week & 20 week to donate from now till the new year. Thank you!

  89. I startes decluttering in July this year and wozld like to participate in this challenge. To make it more meaningful for me, I would like to declutter some of the “emotionally hard” stuff to give away. One if these things I’. thinking to gibe away is my wedding dress – just to get the momentum to achieve this goal: do you still posess your wedding dress? If mo – where did you give it away? ( You or someone else here 🙂 ) – or is rhis just to hard, to give away?

    Renate

  90. I’m sorry for all the typos in my post just a few minutes ago – didn’t realize them as there is just a candle light to see what letters I’m tipying. Hope you will be abel to understand what I intended to comment on…

  91. I can get to 100 items just by cleaning out my jewelry (costume) box!! I’vd been putting items that I wear in a separate space with the goal of identifying what I actually wear. I will accelerate the process and see what I can add.

  92. I went through my things for the past few days and I found 150 items that I will be getting rid of tomorrow. About half of it is clothing and the other half small household items. I will be writing a blog post soon! Thank You

  93. I have done quite a bit of decluttering lately but it shouldn’t be too hard to find 100 items. First to go is a little playmate cooler I have never liked. Count me in!

  95. The little plastic gadget to hold a hard boiled egg while you slice it. I’m in. I need the motivation to actually get me moving on decluttering.

  96. I did this last year. I got rid of 10 things of mine every month and 10 things of my daughters every month. I don’t even remember what I got rid of now. And it certainly helped when I had an unexpected move and had to pack up my entire house. I got rid of a bunch of things while packing, too. And then while unpacking, I realized how much junk I had packed that I didn’t need. Now I have very little storage so if it has no place to be, it gets evicted.

  98. I’m in. We actually just did a huge purge, but we have so much further to go. The first thing – the dead computer tower from 2 years ago.

  99. I’m participating in the Reverse 100 Thing challenge starting with…
    1. Culling my book collection.
    2. The bookshelves no longer needed.

  100. I’m in…first item is 2 printers we have that aren’t being used. We just got married and we each had printers, but we decided to buy a new wireless printer. We have many duplicate items! Having a full household of stuff and moving in with a man that had a full household of stuff has been quite the challenge! We have TONS of STUFF! Not to mention storing stuff for our adult children. The challenge of sorting and organizing is overwhelming…and it has been a little over a year since we decided to move in together and three of the four bedrooms are still a mess, not to mention the garage, and we have a storage unit in town. To make matters worse, we are repainting the entire house and putting down new flooring in the bedrooms as we go and we both work very full time jobs, have horses, cows, dogs and a huge yard/property…finding TIME and ENERGY is my biggest challenge!!!!

  101. I’m in! Game on! I have been decluttering for a few years, but I’ve come to a bit of a stagnant point. This is just what I need to get me going again. Let’s see…. I’ll start with 1 pr. of Superfeet inserts & I’ll raise you 1 black sleeveless sweater. 98 items to go… though I hope it continues & I lose count!

  102. I started the challenge a few days ago, started with an old football sweatshirt and a baseball hat. I am probably close to 2/3rds of the way there so far. My wife was inspired to join the challenge as well and we’re going strong. The initial goal was to finish before December, it seems like we’ll beat that goal, and perhaps start the second Reverse 100 Thing Challenge!

  103. I love how you decided to reverse the 100 thing challenge. I alway believed the actual 100 things challenge is not for me. I live a minimalistic life and the 100 things challenge would make me feel pressured. I would not make me happy.
    Please see my blog about the Minimalism. Feel free to love a comment and give me feedbacks, I truly enjoy your blog.
    Paris.

  104. I love this idea and will be participating. It’s so great reading all the comments too, i started with 3 dvds and have almost 10 things so far. Yay!
    Don’t need to be entered in the drawing by the way, already read that book 🙂

  106. And the winners are … Sylvie, Carla and Meri. I’ll be contacting you today via email for more information. For everyone that is participating, please email me your images and links to your Reverse 100 Thing Challenge post by (or before) December 15th for the big round up post! Send to bemorewithless@gmail.com.

  108. So, I have a pile of things ready to go. The first thing to go though, is a box of books. How very freeing to be ridding self of things that hold us back!

  109. Just went through my kids playroom and bedrooms, and with their help got rid of 4 large garbage bags of donations alone!!!! Plus another 3 of garbage. Lost count at over 171 items…woohoo!! Things to go include books, video games, clothing, shoes, stuffed animals ( think WEBKINZ), other toys, scrapbook supplies and stationary!!!

  110. A little late to the party, but I’m in! My first item is a small blue vase full of several craft project flowers my kids have created in the past two years. They were looking kind of sad. If my kids bring home any more in the future, I’ll put them in a canning jar.

    • Here’s a suggestion I read for kids craft projects~ When they make something or bring a project home from school, take a photo of them with the item. They will be proud of your interest in their efforts and you’ll have a record of it for later, so when the item is old and you need to get rid of it, you’ll still have that memory. I sure wish I’d done this with my kids when they were younger!

  112. I am really late in putting my name in. I started this when you first made the post, but forgot to reply. The first two things that came to mind were: “I think I do that every month–maybe I should do this and actually count” and “those cheap winter tee shirts I bought last year that shrank oddly do not need to be altered, they need to go.” So the tee shirts were first into the the October pile.

  113. Great idea this 100 item challenge, I took 20 pairs of jeans to a thrift store last week. Didn’t think to take pics. Felt great.

  115. I think I’ve exceeded the 100 items limit, though I donated things in several batches and kind of lost track of the count toward the end. If you count magazines & catalogs I was holding on to, I’ve definitely gone over. I’ve cleared out clothes, books, household items, makeup… but still lots to go.

    At this point I’ve got to focus on finishing the Christmas prep on gifts & house cleaning for our family party, but I’d love to revisit this challenge in January! I’m hoping to clear out some Christmas decorations and there are still lots of things that need to go!

  116. Ah, just read this AFTER I brought almost 100 items o a consignment store. Didnt take any photos. : ( but this is only the beginning for me, I am sure there are hundreds of items in my future that I am going to get rid of!

  117. Ah, just read this AFTER I brought almost 100 items to a consignment store. Didnt take any photos. : ( but this is only the beginning for me, I am sure there are hundreds of items in my future that I am going to get rid of!

  118. Just found this. I have spent the last few months doing exactly this. Started with clothing – took 2 large ‘leaf bags’ to a charity store. Next is books – took 4 book boxes to a temple having a book drive. Still working on both. They were the easy things and I will continue with them. Now for the harder aspect – most of my belongings are books (estimated 70% during my move last year) – but what else can I shed.

Trackbacks

  1. […] At one point I took a break from my cleaning and purging mode to check my email.   Some days things just happen for a reason, today was one of those times.  I found Courtney from Be More With Less, suggesting a reverse 100 thing challenge.  If you haven’t heard of the 100 thing challenge, it’s designed to get you to pare down to 100 things or less to live with.  For most, even me, that would be pretty drastic. Life happens and I just need some “stuff”.  But Courtney is challenging us to eliminate 100 things before the end of the year, check it out here. […]

  27. […] The Reverse 100 Thing Challenge. The point of the 100 Thing Challenge is to live with 100 things. The Reverse 100 Thing Challenge invites you to dump 100 things. If you’ve always thought that the 100 Thing Challenge is extreme, and that it would be impossible to only live with 100 things, then giving away only 100 things should be a breeze. […]

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