Less is More, Revisited

So, I sort of fell off the wagon with my decluttering efforts. Part of the issue is akin to the stars aligning for something spectacular. In my case, the following has to happen:

1. I have to be motivated to purge
2. I have to have a chunk of time available
3. I have to make a decision about what area I will purge
4. I have to not be hormonal.

That last one probably doesn't count. If I am hormonal, #1 will be but a distant memory, at best.

When the first three align nicely, I'm then able to tackle the clutter in my house. But it can take awhile. Like waiting for Halley's Comet to come back into visibility. Well, maybe it's not quite that bad. Which is a good thing, otherwise, there'd never be anything getting out of this house.

I had thought awhile back that perhaps I should just start at the front door and work my way through the house. And since the top three were in alignment today, that meant tackling the coat closet. After I cleaned up the entry area. I must say, I have a lot of coats.

Well, I did just say it. I think I cut that down by half. I still probably have more than I truly need, but it's the best I can do right now. And the closet isn't jam-packed any longer. Not only that, there's a floor in there. Who knew? I think I saw it once, about five and a half years ago. Oh yeah, when we looked at the house before we bought it; that's when I saw that floor.

The paraffin bath has been living out in the open since I got it for Christmas. Sometimes I dip my hands every day, so I want it to be easily available. This works. The vacuum has always lived in there, but sometimes it was a little challenging to put it away. Ditto with the boots. But there's still open floor space. Whee!

The coats on the right of the empty hangers are what I kept. Not bad.

You never know what you might find when you clean out a closet. Like a whiteboard with chemistry stuff still written on it.

I actually think it's a good thing that I have coats (and gloves) to get rid of, being that it's winter and all. Mom and my sister get first dibs on the coats, but then I'm going to donate them some place. Or just go give them to homeless people. Or something like that. Winter in Colorado (especially right now with the snow) can be tough. Particularly for someone living in too much of the elements. Or just someone without the means to buy a coat or gloves. Anyway, I want them to go to someone who needs them.

So there you have it - a tidy closet (John still has to sort through his coats, but they're tidy and less abundant than mine were). I think the buffet will be next.

Just in Case

I think one of the causes behind all the clutter in my life is the dreaded Just in Case. You know, I'll keep this {insert the thing I'm keeping} just in case I want to {insert activity in which I would use said thing}. It applies to all areas of my life; clothes, art and craft supplies, kitchen utensils, papers, emails, purses,...it never ends!

I need to stop that type of thinking. It should be more along the lines of, "Is this useful to me now?" "Will I need/use/want it in the next month?" Obviously, different rules apply to seasonal items. Just because I won't wear those sandals until next summer doesn't mean they should go. In the case of seasonal items, "Will I need/use/want it the next year?" would be more appropriate.

I am not the storehouse for all things that might be wanted or needed in my lifetime. Why do I live like I am?

I always go through phases of frustration with the clutter and right now I'm a bit maxed. I've lost my Bible study, even though I was sure I had put it in a specific location. I've also lost a certain item of underclothing which probably has my missing Fitbit attached to it. Sigh. I make myself crazy. And yes, all three missing items are useful to me now. Right now. I need and want them here and now and cannot find them. What a waste of my time, looking in the same places over and over again because I don't know where else to look.

I hope to make a dent in this with the new questions. Soon. Very soon.

Why Purging Clothes is so Hard

I'm purging my closet (again) and I think I've figured out why this can be such a challenge. Two reasons, really. For me, anyway, and I imagine a number of other people.

1. Happy Memories - Some clothes remind me of times past when I wore them and the great memories that accompany those particular times. Ergo, wearing them again will bring fun and happy times. Rather a false conclusion, but I found myself reminiscing about a variety of good memories. It's great that I have those memories, but keeping extra clothes in my closet which I no longer wear isn't producing more wonderful life experiences. So they have to go. If I feel that attached, I could always take a picture of the item. But then I'd be cluttering up my hard drive. Just be happy with the memories and photos I already have and move on.

This was one of my favorite shirts for years - warm, cozy, comfortable. With a button-down front, I could wear it alone or as a jacket. Definitely a lot of good memories here. But I haven't worn it in...I don't know, maybe 5-6 years (probably longer). So here's a picture for posterity.


2. Expectations - Then there are those clothes which almost fit and surely they will fit...as soon as I drop a few (or more) pounds. This is just ridiculous. If I am actively losing weight right this moment and may possibly be able to wear an item in the next few months...then maybe they would be worth taking up space. But the reality is that I'm not. I'd like to be. I want to be. But until I actually am? Fuhggetaboutit. Let them go. Buy new clothes if/when I lose the weight. Much better to have the free closet real estate and potential shopping later, anyway.

Having these two explanations helped me. A lot. I will admit that I hung onto a few more items than I probably should, but if I haven't worn them by the end of the season (switched out winter for summer), then they can go to a better home this fall. In the meantime, I have breathing room in both my half closets, which makes me very happy.

The clothes squished on the right hadn't been gone through at this point. Interestingly, they represent how crowded this space was, all mashed and wrinkled together. The clothes on the left are an equal number, but given some space. Much better.

My Desk

I am not one of those super-organized, everything-in-its-place type of people. Actually, I can do a fantastic job of sorting and organizing. Maintenance? Not so much. At least not for very long, if I pull it off at all.

My desk is one place that makes me crazy quite regularly. I clean it up and within a very short amount of time, it's a disaster area again. This has been an ongoing issue for the past four years and I'm rather tired of it.

But sometimes when you have a particular frustration, you have to dig a little deeper and figure out where the real problem lies. That's exactly what I did recently with my desk. When we moved into this house, I had originally intended for this to be a second scrapbooking area in our spare room which could used by my dear friend, Lucy, as we crop together often. It also became a handy place to put my printer and use the laptop. But what never occurred to me was that the desk drawers were all full of scrapbooking and rubber stamping supplies. I mean, I knew they were there, but I didn't consider what was in the drawer space when the top of the desk was a chaotic mess.

It turns out that there has never been any scrapbooking happen at this desk. Instead, it's the place where I work on school plans, pay bills, edit photos, and work on business plans. So whenever I have paperwork, bills, receipts, and other such desk-y things, there is nowhere to put them away, as the drawers are already full of unrelated stuff.

So I emptied out every single drawer (there's a LOT of drawer space here!) and purged quite a bit of the cardstock (I had a LOT). I shared it with other homeschool moms; a total win-win situation. The rest of it has been moved to the other side of the room where the scrapbook bench and supplies live. Naturally, this freed up space for the things I actually DO at this desk! What a concept!

The other thing that has been a huge lifesaver (indirectly) is the pain in my neck, shoulder, arm, and hand. It led me to realize (courtesy of my amazing chiropractor) that working on a laptop is ergonomically horrible. Particularly given my upper right appendage issues. So I bought a wire shelf upon which sits my laptop. And I purchased a wireless keyboard (which I love!) and mouse. These items have significantly improved my ergonomicness and also provide me with more desktop space since the keyboard lives under the shelf. Another win-win!

{Randomness: Now that I'm used to shooting with an 18mp camera, going back to 5mp is incredibly grainy}

My desk has actually remained fairly tidy for the past couple of weeks now! That's a record for me. When I need to put paperwork away, it has a place to go. When I'm in need of something, I can find it without utilizing the Pile System. I really like this being organized stuff.

Less is More: Linens

Once upon a time, John and I had plenty of bath towels, very few sheets, and a reasonable amount of kitchen linens. We received bath towel sets aplenty as wedding gifts. Along the way, the towels decreased, as did the sheets. In fact, we lived with one set of sheets for a number of years. The downside to this is that you have to wash, dry, and get them back on the bed pronto. Either that, or pull out the sleeping bags.

Over the years, we acquired quite a few hand-me-down linens from my parents. Which was great. And then one day, the linen closet(s) said, "We've had enough. We are too full." So purging the linens has been on the proverbial To Do List for some time.

I actually started to the purge some time back, but being the I am the Queen of Unfinished Projects, I didn't follow through. In this case, that turned out to be a good thing. Because when I actually tackled this for the second time, I had a plan. A solid, strategic plan.

Instead of following my normal M.O., I sat down with pen and paper and made a list. I wrote down each type of linen we have; Bath Towels, Hand Towels, Washcloths, Queen Sheets, Twin Sheets, and so on. Then in each category, I thought about the amount we ought to reasonably keep. For example, in the Queen Sheet category, we need two sets - one flannel (cold weather) and one cotton (warm weather). I did this for all the categories.



In the meantime, I washed and folded ALL THE LINENS and piled them on my bed. I also put on a movie, because I couldn't possibly get through all this without some sort of entertainment. It was a big job. And no, I did not get a photo of that pile. I think I was distracted by the movie.

Anyway. Once I had my nice folded piles of linens, I pulled out the list and went to work. Queen Sheets? Two sets. I pulled out my favorite flannel set and my favorite cotton set (well, the flannels are actually ON the bed, so I left them there). All the rest went into a donation bag. Ditto with everything else.

I am happy to say that all the linens now fit in the closet space and we gladly donated two big bags of linens to the thrift store.



I was so proud of myself for coming up with such a terrific strategy. In the past, I just look at everything and keep what I like. Well, that hadn't panned out so well, as it always left me with more than I needed. I'm planning to apply this to other areas of stuff as I continue to purge and pursue my Less is More lifestyle.

My Word

I like the trend of choosing a word as a theme for the year. A focal point can be very helpful in life. In the past, I've done this {sort of}, but this year, I think it will be more official. It's already here in writing, so people might actually hold me to it. My word is

less

I've been pondering the whole idea of Less = More for awhile now.

Less online time = More time for family, projects, art, photography...

Less soda = More water

Less distraction = More focus

Less stuff = More space (mental & physical)

Less eating out = More healthy meals

Less staying up late = More rested & refreshed

Less junk food = More energy

And much, much more (resulting from less).

Do you choose a word for the year? If so, what is it? Do you want to join me in Less is More? We can hold one another accountable, share successes (and failures), and encourage one another. We could even have a linky to keep up with one another if there's a good response

Since I'm participating in 3 in 30, I think I'll use that to further refine my choices for less. All three of my goals for January are covered in the above Less = More list:

{1} Go to bed on time
{2} Drink more water
{3} Plan our meals

Click on the link if you'd like to join the 3 in 30 challenge. Leave a comment here if you want to participate in Less = More.

PS: I've added a tab at the top where I will link to various posts and articles I find that encourage and motivate on this topic.