Swedish Death Cleaning for Very Much Alive Guests

 JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: We've all heard about Swedish Death Cleaning, yes? I confess, I'm not sure how it got it's name - I don't suppose Swedes as a group get ready en masse for the end. On the other hand, we've all seen clips of Ingmar Bergen's The Seventh Seal, so maybe they are?

 

The goal is to declutter and organize, not just for you, but to make it easier for your family to deal with your home and possessions when you go toes up. But it's also an absolutely prime way to get your house more ready to put on the market. I'm not planning on either in the immediate future, but I am sick of having a huge house where I still can't comfortably have guests sleeping over because the bedrooms are still crowded with the kids junk precious things.

From Just A Girl and her Blog. My tubs, sadly, don't match...

At any rate, this spring, I decided to combine the traditional seasonal deep clean with a real deep clean, tossing bags and bags of old clutter from the kids' rooms, shoveling out the depths of a closet that went back thirty years (dear reader, I found perfectly preserved baby clothes there!) and finally sorting my Christmas decor by type, giving away ornaments that no longer sparked joy, as Marie Kondo says. It's so perfectly organized now, I plan on including 'The Christmas Closet' as a regular part of the house tour.

 

 If you have a keen eye, you may notice that I'm writing about this as if it's still going on, despite the fact we're in late August and getting perilously close to the Fall cleaning season. Yes! It is, and I am still working on it. But now I've run into a difficult contradiction.

 

This Saturday, my daughter Victoria is getting married! (You can read more on that this weekend.) Some of you may remember I've already referred to my daughter's wife, and mentioned their November trip to city hall in the comments. They're doing this European style, separating the civil service and the religious festivities. 

 

As a result, my house is going to be topped off with guests. Along with Spencer and Virginia returning to the nest, I'm putting up both Victoria's godmothers (plus one godmother-husband.) In addition, I'm having a dinner party Friday night!

 

The issue, of course, is that Swedish Death Cleaning involves careful consideration, organization, and sorting. Here Come The Guests cleaning involves putting everything into boxes or laundry baskets and shoving it all into a closet or unused bedroom where no one will see your shame. 

 

This will VERY MUCH not be me.

But there are no unused bedrooms! Heck, I'm putting myself on the blow-up bed in the family room. And I'll be darned if I'm going to sully those carefully emptied closets with yet more odds and ends. What to do, what to do? 

 

Dear readers, tell us your techniques for in-depth cleaning versus Quick! Guests! cleaning. By the time you read this, I will have hopefully succeeded in prepping for my visitors without disappointing the Swedes. Or Death. If not, I'll let you know in the comments.

From Our Closets: Stay or Go?

LUCY BURDETTE: I know we've talked quite a bit recently about decluttering and downsizing. But here's the problem I run into over and over: I have some items in my closet that I have not been able to throw out or recycle. Then I had a brilliant idea! I need some girlfriends to tell me the truth (OK can be boyfriends too) about these articles of clothing. And I figured the other Reds might have some items they want to model as well. So please, be kind, but be honest.

I heard last weekend that overalls are cycling back into style. I used to wear the denim kind in my 20s. I've saved this short pair for a long, long time. What do you think? Hold or go?



And here's one more. I know I wore these once to an Anthony awards brunch for which Six Strokes Under had been nominated for best PBO. I thought they were cute back then… And who knows when a pair of bright green silk capris might be needed again? Hold or go?



HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I love you madly, Lucy, but trash the overall things. You may be connected to them emotionally, but you have outgrown them intellectually.

 Green capris? Keep. Totally.  See? This is why it's a problem. I think the green pants are beautiful, with a crisp white tunic and chic sandals?  Gorgeous.

And now, checking my closet.  

And I know just what you mean. I am madly giving things away these days, but there are a few items I'm not sure of. Okay, how about these.  SO hip. And they were hugely on sale. (Often a preface to an unfortunate purchase.) These actual Chanel boots were such a steal that I couldn't resist.  (I will tell you the list price and the sale price if you are interested, but I fear the backlash.)  I have never worn them. I just look at them. I love them. Look at the colors, the quilted leather, the cool buckles, the soignée Parisian ultra-stylish style.  So punky and cool. (Can you tell from the photo?) But no matter what I do, I can't make them look right on me. If boot-cut jeans were in style, that might work. Hmm. So--I save them for another fashion swing. Should I just consign them?

HALLIE EPHRON: Lucy: Save the overalls. For Halloween. Actually those aren't overalls; they're rompers. And they look pretty cute on you. The pants? Too shiny. Weird length. Call Goodwill. Hank: Save the boots...just because.

I have very little in my closet that I don't actually wear. The oldest continually worn thing is probably a straw summer hat which squashes down to nothing in a suitcase. Once upon a time it was blue and purple and pink and red... now so faded. So useful. I will be sad when it gets holes.

I've also saved the hat I wore to my daughter's wedding. It does not squash and when I look at it, it screams CHURCH CLOTHES. Still, I keep it. What think? Is it time to give it the heave-ho?

HANK: Hal, that that does not say church clothes to me at all. I think I recognize the designer--but wear it to outdoor concerts, to shade your face on summer days, even wear it to the beach. Seriously!

JENN MCKINLAY: I don't have much that I keep as I LOVE decluttering. Truly, the Hub and Hooligans hide their stuff from me because I have been known to be a teeny bit overzealous in my hauling of things to Goodwill.

That being said, I have had this dress (that I never wear) in my closet since Hub and I honeymooned in Maui eighteen years ago. Yes, he has the matching shirt, which we also still have although he no longer wears it either. For some reason, I can not make myself part with this dress (or his shirt) even though the skirt is WAY too short for a woman solidly in middle age and his shoulders have become too broad for his shirt. Why am I keeping them? Sentimentality? How long does that last? Maybe I could make pillows for the patio furniture out of them...hmm.

HANK: Jenn! Wear his shirt over your dress. Tied at the waist. SO cute!  (And it is not way too short for summer. You look adorable.)

LUCY: Cute, Jenn! You could always add leggings. Or so I was told about a dress that is too short but I bought it anyway. And have worn once…

INGRID THOFT: Like Jenn, I generally don't have trouble getting rid of things, but the timing of this post is perfect since I just put this suit in a bag to go to Goodwill.  I don't want to keep it, but I certainly need more encouragement to get it out the door!  I wore this chocolate brown satiny suit at my rehearsal dinner almost 17 years ago.  It still fits, but unless I'm auditioning to be one of the Pips in Gladys and the Pips, I think its day has come.  I've known for about 15 years that it needed to go, but it was my rehearsal dinner!  I suppose that as long as I've decided to keep the husband, that's all that matters.  And Jenn, you look great in that dress.  You should keep it; you never know when you might get invited to a luau!

HANK: Ingrid—can you keep the jacket? Wear it open, with a white t-shirt, over jeans?

LUCY: This is hysterical! I have a brown satin 3-piece thing too, Ingrid, so we can both play Pips. Hank, you are not helping us throw things out!!

HANK: I know. I am part of the problem. Can't help it. xoxo But sometimes you have to think of clothing (like Hallie's hat, or Ingrid's suit. Forget about "suit") in another way. That's what friends are for. Or something.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I declutter once or twice a year, too, and had just done a big round last week. And once again I hesitated over this dress, which I haven't worn in ages (um, years...but I'm a good bit thinner now...) I just can't talk myself into giving it away. It's a gorgeous fabric, and I love the wild print. But it's awfully bare, so it needs a little something. Cardigan? Jacket? And it's a weird length, just below mid-calf. So what shoes? (It's also clingy so needs major no-line undies.) Maybe I'll try it on with some linen sandals I have on order, and, you know, I happened to see a cardigan in the shop last weekend in just that color blue... 

What do you think of our problem clothing, REDs? Keep or toss? And tell us about something you can't quite part with?