December 2012, The Strategy Shifts

[Harriet]

The final month of 2012 is before us and our homes are sighing with the relief of declutter strategies put into place up until now. Our creativity has space to bloom, our decorating can be appreciated, our entertaining can be easier.

Shift your strategy - take a new look at your home and pat yourself on the back for the things that have changed, while you look for things that could improve. As you move through your home this month, notice what you could do to make it more efficient. Try to look around with the eyes of a visitor and don't let "clutter blindness" keep you from seeing if stacks or piles make your home look less inviting than it could.

Make some notes - 2013 approaches! 1) Notice the small steps you can take now, but don't be afraid to 2) notice the big project possibilities too, because larger spaces of time will present themselves after this month. Write down reminders to your 2013 self of what you hope could change for the better. How are you going to organize your next year in The Decluttered Home?

[blessedw2]

thank you D harriet!!!

I went to donation spot and got rid of 2 platters as I don't use those as they match nothing.
also tossed garbage bowls that I kept moving

[BookSaver]

Documentation of things leaving the property in the past week:

The last of the boxes from the upstairs storage closet are out. We burned most of them yesterday. To calm my conscience, I set aside the plain brown ones (no labels or color photos, etc.) to bundle for the recycling pick up on Thursday. I'm not really sure if they will take them, they may just throw them in with the trash, but at least I'll have tried.

Styrofoam packing peanuts are out. Also lots of other misc. shipping supplies and bags that we no longer need. So glad to let them go.

Lots of solid styrofoam pieces from computer equipment will need to be added to the trash bin as there is space.

Sewing group archives are now in long-term storage. I'll work on condensing those after the holidays.

This week's dejunking project will be the coat closet. Must sort out old hats, orphan mittens, flotsam & jetsam ...

Just checked the dictionary to be sure I was spelling correctly, and I like one of the definitions of flotsam & jetsam: miscellaneous trifles or worthless things.

[Ivy]

Last night, I laid in bed thinking. I realized that I'm probably not decluttering! I think I'm just moving my clutter around! I'll put things away in baskets, totes, drawers, bins and closets. But when I need them again, such as for crafting or crochet, reading/writing projects, OUT everything comes again and I've got clutter again! When I'm done, I put everything away again, but I don't know what to do. I'm a crocheter, so I suppose I can bring out only ONE project at a time.

I make cards, so having the desk set up to make a few cards, is a given and good idea to me, rather than put away, get out, put away, get out. I do have a room for my crafts, which is where they are, out-of-sight of the main part of the house. So that's good.

I have books here and there, which I'm reading on. I have 1 stack of books on two end tables in the great room, so last night, I put the stack in the bedroom, next to other books between bookends. I keep magazines to read in a basket and also in a silver box on the bottom shelf on an end table. Magazines I'm in from working, I keep in my small office. I have magazine holders for magazines I'm in, for crochet and rubber stamping card magazines.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I think I have "organized clutter". I don't want to get rid of my yarn, books, magazines for work, but I'd like to be more tidy-looking.

So my question is: Can you organize clutter? Or do you have to REALLY purge things out of the house? If it's a monthly woman's magazine, I read them and they go into recycle. Any tips are appreciated.

[Nancy]

Ivy I remember when CEO had a 4 project rule in one of her postings way back when. I'm trying to only have one project out to work on in the living room.

Did some sewing/mending yesterday that felt good to get those things done and out of that zone. Then got the egg cartons off of the top of the fridge dgd helped to bring them down stairs and then we stack them up and put them away.

Not sure if dgson will be her after school in Jan. or not so it's a bit of a challenge to think about my schedule for 2013 now I will ponder it.

Clutter is starting to creep back in so I need to pay attn. to it. Did the kit. counters this morning and that was a relief!

[Ivy]

Nancy, The CEO is a wise woman!

1- cards set up w/card table w/extra supplies, and desk set up for card-making in bunny-craft room.
2- yarns in the living room w/patterns as I crochet baby items.
3- yarns in a basket and in totes in the master bedroom.
4- writing outline and things set up in the office for writing stories, record-keeping things, etc...

I decluttered 15 min. on a box in the bunny-craft room yesterday. I even threw a few items away. Some I put away where they belong.

It's good you sewed/mended.

Clutter's beginning to creep in to our house, too, which is generally my "stuff".

[Ivy]

The great room is full of baby yarn in totes and on the dining room table. As soon as the box is shipped, I'll put the baby patterns and yarn back into the craft room and will get out the dog yarns and make him.

After he's done, I decided to get out only 1 pattern and enough yarn for 1 project, rather than for several patterns at once on the table and yarns, totes, etc...

After the dog's done and I am doing another box of larger baby patterns, I also want to be doing the start of our Christmas cleaning. When that box ships, I'll work on cleaning out my china cabinet and organizing the items in it. I might put the wooden Santa Clauses from another country in the china cabinet so our toddler grsons are not putting them into their mouths.

Once all the baby crochet is done, I'll be fixing a folder for the baby girl-only things, to work on throughout 2013. By using my craft room as a place to store yarn and card-making and scrap booking supplies, it's a very good thing. It keeps the mess out of the great/dining room space.

I'm trying to clean up my act as much as possible prior to 1-2-13 because I'm going to be doing more writing than I did this year. So I want to get my house decluttered by then, more organized, and running smoothly. That's my goal. To be done by 1-2-13.

[blessedw2]

Look at these de cluttering and dejunking wonderful women!!!

I didn't know about flotsam (I had heard that before - funny)

yes CEO is a very wise woman!

tossed 2 large black bags from christmas and storage stuff yesterday

[Nancy]

I got to thinking that I need to "put it away" and while I was in put away mode I realized it was time for some tossing after trash day I had a bunch of plastic container that "I might need someday" so I tossed a tall kitchen sack of them. Yea for that progress! It really helped the counter area. I think that's how hoarder syndrome starts thinking we need to keep the stuff folks set aside to put in the recycle bin.

[Ivy]

I now have 2 pink skeins of yarn and a stack of patterns back onto the dining room table. After the baby crochet box is sent, I'll be doing some Big Time decluttering and cleaning. I'll put the yarns into the craft room, too.

I need to clean the china cabinet and decorate inside it, too.

I decided to not crochet on the dog toy until the 15th, so I have time to declutter and clean.