The Organised Housewife » Tips, ideas, inspiration and motivation to help keep you and your household clean and organised

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Oct 07 2010

Challenge: Throw 5 from your handbag

Category: Challenge

Handbags aren’t just a fashion statement, they are perfect for carrying around all our ‘stuff’, but they are also 1 thing we forget to keep clean and organised. 

Do you store way too many extra ‘things’ in your handbag?  Does your phone ring and you can’t find it because of all the ‘stuff’?  Do you loose your keys??  I have more paper clutter in my handbag more than anything – shopping lists, receipts, specials brochures, to-do lists.

So I thought today’s challenge be as simple as throw away 5 things cluttering your handbag.  But please don’t stop at 5 though,  if you have 8 or 10 please continue.  What do we really need to keep in our handbags you ask, here is my example:

  • Notebook
  • Pen
  • Keys
  • Purse
  • Mobile Phone
  • Lipbalm
  • Sunglasses
  • Ladies product (zippered away, for emergencies)
  • A fold up bag for shopping at places like Target and Spotlight that are now bag free
  • + all things baby if you have a nappy bag.

I keep things like nail files, hand moisturising, anti-bacterial gel, hairties, first aide-kit in my car rather than my handbag and use them while sitting at traffic lights.

I cleaned out my nappy bag/handbag of almost empty tissue packets, fruit stick wrapper, 4 pens (!), woolworths receipt, extra chewing gum that was lose in the bottom, a heap of coins just thrown in, clothes for bubs that could do with a wash and an empty popper. Sorted everything into groups and put them all back in in ziplock bags or similar. Very neat and tidy now!!

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  • Michelle

    I actaully can't throw anything out of my handbag as earlier this year I moved to a handbag half the size of what I had for the reason of too much crap in it. So now I have my purse, lipstick, pen, security pass, tissues. My phone has it's own pocket on the front of the bag, so I know where it is at all times and there is also a zipped pocket on the front for my car keys.
    Fan – Organised Housewife – tick
    Fan – Yvette Walker – tick.
    And this probably doesn't count as I only took 1 pen out of my bag, as I don't know why I would need 2 in there.

    • http://www.jewelsbylulu.com.au Lisa

      My bag was LONG overdue to be cleaned out, so thank you for inspiring me to do it.

      The following things made it to the bin from my bag:

      -Old receipts
      -Brochure
      -Empty hand sanitizer (At any given time I can find 3 bottles of this in my bag, lol)
      -Lolly wrapper
      -Broken pen

      After cleaning out my bag I decided it was time to purchase a pocket organiser for my handbag, am so fed up with hunting through my bag to find keys ect.

      Love your blog, thanks for posting :)

  • Jenni

    Thanks for this challenge – Didn't even realise it needed doing so badly!!
    I cleaned out –
    lipstick
    disinfectant wipes
    several cars (thanks to my son!)
    several in emergency packets of lollies/lolly pops/biscuits
    a good handful of dummies (so that's where they were!!)
    a bunch of hair ties
    teething gel (there were two tubes in there! Only one needed)
    old receipts
    old shopping lists
    bits of packaging (where did they come from??!!)

    As you can see i really needed this challenge so thanks so much!!

    Love your site and so glad I got put onto it!
    Keep up the great work.

  • Faith

    I had
    old receipts
    bits of plastic
    a plastic cord clip (from my two month old)
    a frayed piece of ribbon
    too many pens
    and jewerly.
    enjoyed the challenge need to do this more regularly.
    thanks
    Faith

  • Sarah

    Likes – done :-)
    Have cleaned out:
    - old shopping list
    - headphones (ipod is elsewhere)
    - instructions to cook pork from the butcher
    - receipts
    - pen (had several)
    thanks for the inspiration!

  • Samantha Savva

    Thank you for giving me motivation. I lost my mojo this week with the long weekend and daylight savings. So first things first my handbag needed desperate cleaning out.

    1) 2 pens – left one in there.
    2) Mobile Phone charger – have been travelling with it all week and still havent managed to use it until 5 mins ago.
    3) Receipts
    4) Carnival Brochure
    5) Empty Poppa
    6) Last weeks dinner plan and shopping list
    7) My duaghters purse

  • Carol Hill

    Hi, thanks so much for all the tips, I wish I had found you a couple of years ago. I am now busier than ever working part-time and this keeps me motivated. Love the small things that you can do so quickly but make a big difference. Thanks Thanks Thanks.

    Fan of organise housewife – yes
    Fan of Yvette Walker – yes

    Things Removed
    1. Recipe a friend gave me
    2. A bar of scented soap I purchased yesterday (recommended by a friend)
    3. Salad Bar brochure
    4. Shopping listssss
    5. icy poles sticks (thanks to my son)
    6. Tissues
    7. Jewlery in a pouch
    8. General shopping receipts
    9. Camera from recent holiday

    Now onto my work bag… :)

  • Naomi

    likes done :)

    Threw away ;
    many supermarket reciepts
    a few to-do lists
    catalogues
    hair bands
    jewellery

    Thankyou should do it more often next I might tackle my purse..

  • Lisa R

    I just changed handbags this week, so things I threw out in between –
    Lolly wrappers (I carry lollies as bribery for my 2 and 5 year olds LOL)
    Receipts from ATMs, supermarkets and petrol stations
    Spotlight catty
    Ticket stubs from seeing Cats and Dogs 2 in the school holidays
    Paper wristbands from a calisthenics competition

    Off to "like" Yvette now :)

  • Leeanne

    I cleaned out my nappy bag/handbag of almost empty tissue packets, fruit stick wrapper, 4 pens (!), woolworths receipt, extra chewing gum that was lose in the bottom, a heap of coins just thrown in, clothes for bubs that could do with a wash and an empty popper. Sorted everything into groups and put them all back in in ziplock bags or similar. Very neat and tidy now!!

    Likes done too :)

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  • Stacey

    Challenge accepted. Mission complete!

    My Nappy bag/handbag can now be easily done up & it's much easier to find things.

    I threw out:
    Plane tickets
    Receipts
    Crumpled tissues
    Scrap paper

    I took out:
    Extra nappies (dont need so many of each size now we aren't travelling.
    Dirty t-shirt
    Hair brush
    Crayons
    Airplane headphones
    Ear plugs
    Crayons
    Hubbies sunglasses case
    Pamphlets from our trip

    I replenished the wipes & tissues & put our everyday change mat & sling back in.

    So I now have 4 nappies, wipes, nappy sacks, bib, fold up reusable bag, hand sanitiser, lip balm, sunnies, purse & kids activity case. With space for a water bottle & snacks.

    Took me longer to type this than it did to sort everything!

  • Jodi Deuble

    Long overdue clean out for me! I took out

    *Old shopping dockets
    *very old lipgloss
    *some play jewellry of my daughters
    *some old buttons?
    *a light bulb from a torch that I keep meaning to replace
    *hairclips
    *bobby pins

    Have also visited Yvette's FB page and "liked"her – wasn't hard, she has some beautiful stuff there :)

  • http://www.phoenix-trading.com.au/web/yvettewalker Yvette Walker

    Don't put me into the competition because I want to give away the cards, not keep them. But I REALLY needed to do the challenge so here goes.

    1. Old dockets (first had to check there was nothing I could take to Medicare).
    2. Ventolin inhaler (I haven't had an attack for about 8 years).
    3. 6 pens.
    4. A stray key (???)
    5. A fruit knife (I'm sure that's illegal).

    Thank you and I'll be back to compete in more challenges.

  • kylee

    done the cleanup
    got rid of :
    a bunch of bobby pins
    a hair tie
    a nikko (from work)
    a carton cutter(again from work)
    lollypops (used to keep missy moo quiet at the dance recials)

  • Nikki

    Thanks for the timely 'push' to clean out my handbag. I have done the above tasks and when it came to my bag I was able to ditch:

    *about a bazillion empty Mentos wrappers (I am totally addicted)
    *some yucky old hair ties that were floating around the bottom of my bag
    *old receipts
    *antique chewies I didn't realise I still had
    *a plastic whistle
    *a used glow stick

    Just on those bottom 2, no I am not a raver lol. Just a mum hehe.

  • Elisha Squire

    Oh wow, this one was a good one! I finally got around to cleaning out my bag and it was shocking
    Thrown into the bin were many things
    * Lolly wrappers
    * old pens
    * Old receipts
    * Stamp book ( with no stamps)
    * bread bag tag?
    * 1/2 a museli bar ( dont you love kids)
    * some old store cards from another state
    * Tipped crumbs into the bin ( ewww)
    * Hair lackeys
    * Some pamphlets i picked up shopping

    I also managed to put all the kids coles sports docket things into an envelope – and decided to use the little organiser thing that comes with my bag to seperate things.. Now its all organised and clean! Thanks very much!

  • Kylie

    I did this challenge as soon as you posted it, but never got back to reply. So here I am, finally, with my list.

    * Tape Measure
    * Kids sticker
    * Bobbin (for matching up when buying new ones)
    * 2 extra pens
    * 2 lipsticks (been there since my sisters wedding in July – I don't wear lipstick everyday!!)
    * 1 extra lip balm
    * old pack of butter menthol
    * 1 straw unused in wrapper
    * 1 open straw wrapper
    * Fuel receipt
    * 2 x grocery receipts
    * 2 napkins
    * 1 old shopping list
    * muesli bar wrapper
    * foil top off a small juice bottle

    Fan of both organised housewife and Yvetter Walker on facebook.

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  • Kathryn

    Oh my, so much junk lurking in my bag. I managed to get rid of:

    a dozen tissues floating around the bottom
    a phone charger
    three rubber bands
    a bunch of old hairties
    a highlighter
    a nasal inhaler
    old chewing gum wrappers
    three old shopping lists
    a dozen receipts
    my ipod
    an empty pot of lip gloss
    an empty panadol foil packet
    a star wars action figure
    two business cards
    three pens

    • http://www.theorganisedhousewife.com.au Katrina

      Love it, great work will make it easier to sort through now :)

  • mary

    I love the handbag – gotta have one :)

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ruth-Meschko-Myers/1471028500 Ruth Meschko Myers

    All I had to throw out is 4 receipts.  I carry a very small shoulder bag (about 5x5x2) and am able to get all of my makeup, credit cards, small scissors, cash, nail file and clippers, lotion, cell phone, post-it notes, and pens in it.  I try to take the receipts out daily.  My purse is probably one of the most organized things in my life!  LOL!

    • http://www.theorganisedhousewife.com.au Katrina

      Wow that is still so much to fit into a little bag. It makes it alot easier at checkouts when having a tidy bag

  • http://www.facebook.com/meljlord Mel Lord

    I have only just down sized my bag from a nappy bag to a “nice” handbag. In my bag I now have
    Wallet, reading glasses, sun glasses, phone, keys, shopping bag, a little first aid kit (I have been caught going somewhere in a friends car and needed it but its only the size of a band aid box), hand sanitizer, and diary for work…..
    Does your Chapstick go soft and yuck in the heat. I have my fav lip balm, but it has been going really yuck t the moment, and I thought I may purchase a chap stick

    • http://www.theorganisedhousewife.com.au Katrina

      I remember that feeling of finally getting back a handbag, enjoy!!