Conquering Clutter…

Have you ever watched the show Clean Sweep? It often gave me heart palpitations as I watched people have to part with items they treasured. I watched Oprah earlier this week where they were focusing on people who are drowning in clutter. This is a topic close to home (literally), I’m a self confessed “pack rat”. (I used to say it was in the genes. My parents are also "collectors". I can see my Mom smiling as she reads this.) Growing up on a farm, things were reused, refurbished and some ended up saving money down the road. As an art teacher, everything has a second use. With the trend to create recycled art I constantly have a sack of things heading to school to sort of share the wealth of clutter I have. I also love antiques, so they are sprinkled in here and there along with mementos close to my heart. I’ve asked myself if clutter is infringing on other areas of my life? So I took this afternoon to start on my trek to conquer my clutter, one room at a time…
Peter Walsh gave these steps to get started:
1. Get Real – grab a trash bag and do the Trash Bag Tango
2. Realize there are Two Types of Clutter – Memory clutter or I might need it one day clutter and lazy clutter. (I’m working on the lazy clutter first, as an artist and with my love of genealogy and family history the memory clutter will be tough)
3. Think F.A.S.T. – Fix a time, Anything not used in 12 months, Someone elses stuff, Trash.
4. Learn the Rules – Start on time. Don’t argue. Don’t waste time. Make your piles. (I make too many piles, that’s a problem) Don’t stop until you’re done. Evaluate and congratulate.
5. Do It All Over Again
I'm still on #1 and #2. One thing they said on Oprah was people often find money in the cleaning process. I found a $27. check for one of my books I sold to a library in Texas! Off to the bank!
The ATCs are still being made at night while watching TV. Here's my latest, the background was part of a printmaking project I cut up for many of the cards.