Ask:
Ladies, we really need to help support each other in not re-filling our house with useless junk once we get the de-cluttering done.
I know I am making a conscious effort to not buy just because...it's cute...I might use it some day...it's on sale...it's on clearance...I have a coupon for it...my sister might like it...etc.
In the last few months the amount of crap coming into my home has dwindled to almost nil...let's all help each other keep it that way.
Answer:
Absolutely. I am very wary of buying things now... I still clearance shop, but given the number of "bargains" that I have decluttered from my gift closet lately (the kind I never had the right person to give them to) I now think long and hard before buying something just because it's on sale. Sometimes it feels like no matter I how hard I work the clutter rebuilds itself (arghh). It's an ongoing battle.
Answer:
I have also cut down on clutter coming in, now I have to work on clutter going out!
As far as the gift closet goes, I try to only buy if I can name who and why it will be given. Ideally I would have a list, but right now I don't.
Answer:
I hear ya about the gift closet! I bought a bunch of toys last January when Target had theirs 75% off...I mostly bought with specific people in mind but I still have a few extras stuck in the gift closet. The upside is the extras are large advanced lego sets, dinosaurs, advantix, and Harry Potter, so they will definitely get used somewhere down the line.
My weakness is the "cute" junk I see at Target on clearance and never have an appropriate occasion/person to give it to.
Really need to watch that...