Sunday 27 April 2008

Stockpiling

I try to buy things that I need when they are at their best price. I allow a little extra in my budget each week to make sure I can take advantage of any good deals which I spot. Today I made a visit to the 99p shop in town. I stocked up on toiletries and also bought a pack of 48 pencils and another of 25 pens (they disappear in my house, I am sure visitors must take them home with them). When I got home I started to unload into a metal contained which I keep in the bathroom. I just have too much stockpiled for the storage which I have.

However my stockpiling isn't the problem I think, the storage or shortage of it, is my problem. Our house is very small and this storage issue is a recurring problem for me. I have started to clear out everything that we really don’t want or need & I have definitely found an improvement. In fact so much has gone from the house that the lady at the Salvation Army HQ now knows me by sight. So what am I going to do about it?

The kitchen will shortly be refurbished. We are (of course) re-using & recycling wherever possible so the overall cost is not so high but it is a time consuming job. As we change around the downstairs of the house we will finally have a laundry area, small but also including space for some storage. I also end up with larder. We used to have a larder in a previous home but in this house it is just a few fitted cupboards. I am really looking forward to being able to store and organise my food supplies. I always have enough food in the house to last us for some several weeks, maybe months, but I really feel like I can be n control of the situation when I have my larder. There should be plenty of room in the larder for a big freezer and I also hope to keep another freezer in the shed. That means that my only storage problem is the toiletries situation in the bathroom. (and the linen cupboard actually but that is also bathroom related). We are building a second bathroom downstairs & I have designed a good sized cupboard into the specification. I just have to hope that beloved doesn’t make some change as he is building. That has been known to happen and I don’t really think he understands the importance of storage, and definitely not of stockpiling.



In the mean time I am searching out a large enamel box to fill with all my lovely bathroom goodies. This one must have a lid, unlike the current bucket type design, as otherwise everyone seems to want to start new toothpaste, shampoo etc before the old one is finished. I can’t wait to move it all down stairs out of their way - out of sight should hopefully be out of mind……….. & out of desire to open before necessary.

3 comments:

  1. hi lizzie,
    I am another stockpiler, or as OH calls me a squirrel.I had the same issue with storage space in the bathroom for stockpiled goodies and eventully ended up sourcing a chest of drawers to put in the bathroom specifically for toiletries.Now i can get a years worth of stuff stored in there without it looking cluttered. The only thing I don't stockpile is toilet paper as it is just too bulky to store.
    I'm just starting a project to turn a floor to ceiling cupboard into a food store/pantry so I can bulk buy dried and tinned goods and hopefully beat the food price increases.Eventualy i would like to be able to stockpile 6 months worth of ingredients for scratch cooking and baking.

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  2. Oh yes, Sophies Mum, thats exactly what I need. The bathroom doesnt have much floor space though. I think a small cupboard would fit between the basin pedestal and the bath. I always thought the gap around the bath would be good too but OH would not entertain a hinged bath side!!
    My larder should be about right for me but I wonder if you ever stop wishing for more space. Are you MSE, that names sounds awfully familiar to me?)
    Best wishes
    Lizzie

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  3. Hi,
    Yes another MSE member here, funny how we all tend to seek out the same places on the net.lol

    ReplyDelete

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