Clutter Overload

You may have been wondering where I've been this past week. Well, I've been immersing myself in Zone 1 (the dining room) and it's been hard work. This is a tough zone, a very heavy duty working area of our home, and there is serious Clutter Overload here as you can see. I admit that I've struggled with my newly adopted Home-♥-Loving mantra as it really has felt like a hard slog this week to be honest. I've not exactly been feeling the love. However, although I am nowhere near finishing the job, I've made some good progress.

I had Little Man off school for two days, suffering with vague viral symptoms. Isn't it funny when a child describes their own symptoms? We've been dealing with a "weird tummy", "wibbly legs" and a "heavy head". I know just what he means though, that's exactly how I feel when a virus hits.

He's been unwell with a slight temperature but not dreadfully ill, and actually I've loved having him home. In between extended flat-out bouts of weird-wibbly-heaviness on the sofa, he's been helping me out with Little B, allowing me to crack on and Get Stuff Done. Many piles have been dealt with, and much recycling, sorting, reorgansing and rearranging has taken place. It's taken some doing.

The above photo was taken in the early summer, it's the back end of our dining room. This shelf (along with another small cupboard) holds the Little People's art and craft supplies, and it's always been incredibly hard to keep this area under control. Stuff often spills and tumbles from the shelves onto the floor (often aided by Little B's mischievous hands) and  I've lost count of the many times I've spent scooping up fallen items and shoving them haphazardly back onto the shelves.

Two months ago I purchased this little pine chest of drawers from the second hand shop for £20, and for two months this little chest of drawers sat empty. 

Now it has replaced the open shelving (hooorrrah!) and it's drawers are full of well organised art and craft materials. Gosh it took some sorting!

I went through the huge array of pens, pencils, scissors and brushes and organised them into these jars....

....and Little Man did a great job testing out the colouring pens so we could dispose of the ones that didn't work very well.

Now everything has a logical place to live, and the Little Ones each have a folder to store their art work in.

Much scribbled-on paper was Secretly Recycled.

But some scribbles were just too darn sweet for words and definitely for keeps.

Over on the other side of the room, progress has been slower. The clutter over here is Serious. I've managed to empty, sort, reorganise and repack this one cupboard (gift wrap, greetings cards, ribbon, envelopes, papers, labels, brochures, catalogues), but the other one (which is jammed with yarn and sewing supplies) has yet to be tackled.

And then there's Those Shelves. Man. They send shivers up my spine. Baby steps right?

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ps see you soon with some bright and happy yarn and blanket stuff. Promise x

pps I just remembered these archive entries re The Shelves of Doom...take a look at them way back here and here. Lordy. Where HAS all the stuff come from???!!!!

 

 

Comments

[Dee]

My home looks very much the same, only less colourful - and I don't have kids to help create the chaos, just me and my model making husband. Both of us have more craft stuff than we can possibly use in a lifetime and I personally have enough wool/yarn to yarnbomb the block of flats we live in!

Clutter breeds when you're not looking!

[Sigrún]

I understand you so well. I have an over clutterd home and I need seriously to get going and do some de-cluttering. I started with one bedroom yesterday and hope I can keep on going. And I think you are right, babysteps it is :)

[Lilian]

Argh - ours is the study... and it's going through major de-cluttering right now... lot sf paper shredded and stuff re-organized. The only problem I encounter is the fact that to get to that final organized bliss state, you have to wade past the major mayhem bomb hit the house stage to get there. Baby steps and lots of deep breaths.

[Sandra (Cherry Heart)]

My only consolation for you is to let you know you are not alone! Good luck with your clutter control, it looks like you're doing great things so far. I'm finding this 'Autumn Cleaning' is working well for me so far, and it feels so good once it's done!

[gaia]

I'm de-cluttering too!

[heidi]

good morn to all, 7:03 middle european time with a good ol cuppa visiting the attic once again to read all your comments... a huge HO to tizabell who suggests to move the clutter one step down so it's behind closed doors... now i did get a good chuckle on that one! THAT would be MY spontanious reaction to the problem with unexpected ...hmmmmmmm let's call them 'wide-eyed' company coming but not exactly the answer - what do ya do with what was in the cabinets is DEFINITELY the next question here... my answer is a corner in the bedroom as anyone can see - the scene of crime can be viewed at this very minute... ROOM of doom. yo. cheers to that with a big gulp of brew...
now how's lil man doing? i did want to ask that. lil bugs are circling here as well, ones no one needs but they don't ask us, do they? hope he is back to himself and on his way to school again this morning...
now the question of questions that has been bugging me since the mantle ta-dah with the three lil ladies... how many fireplaces do you have in your home??? seems you MUST have more than one. i see the one with the beautiful picture and another with mirror and the vase of twigs with your lil hearts... is one upstairs as well? i am just being nosy! this old victorian style home has got me curious...
well, i am off to the races... gotta get out of the jammies and polish up the exterior and get dressed before i hit the highway to go to work. booooooo work steals so much precious time you could spend doing more important (FUN) things.... wishing everybody a good day, LUCY especially! xoxox

[angela-southern USA]

Hey Lucy,Know just how you feel.Been in our closet ALL week!Only got three feet cleaned out and now my bedroom looks like a clutter bomb went off!I think the dust bunnies bring it all in while we're sleeping:)Keep at it.We'll get there eventually...I hope;)Hope Little Man is better.
p.s.
maybe with the kids craft supplies you could reward the Little ones if they help keep it clean:)Or make it a game,"cleaning game".Never too young to learn good habits.

[Jacquie]

Hi Lucy , how do you manage to take pretty pictures of clutter ? Seriously though your incentive has inspired me. I've been setting aside Fridays for the last two weeks and spent the whole school day on one room...so far I've hoovered up a ton of dust in the boys rooms and sent loads of out grown clothes and toys to charity. This Friday sees me attempting our dining room and my own shelves of doom....wish me luck. I may post about it if I'm feeling brave !!
Well done on your baby steps...not easy with the other sort of baby steps in situ :0)
Jacquie x

[Taylor]

I know the feeling of overwhelming clutter! It gives me hope (seeing your progress) that I can get through mine when the time comes (we're renovating). Thank you so much for your hopeful, happy words!

[peppergrass]

We had a yard/garage sale today. Didn't make much money, but got rid of a LOT of stuff - and honestly, I think that was the main goal. Donated leftover clothes and books, and put a lot of stuff out on the curb for FREE. Will spend the winter going through the house and finding MORE stuff to get rid of, and have another sale come spring. Will try selling a few of the better things on ebay.

[Christelle]

Isn't it funny, how one creates space, you with a chest of drawers, me with shelves in wardrobe, baskets under the kitchen counter, entire (small) bookshelves being cleared out...and you Don't Put Anything Away In The Space. It remains outside, cluttered and in you way.
So I'm kind of (accidently) (but now deliberately) mirroring what your doing, joined in trying to clear the master bedroom, and this week I'll brave The Study...a horrific nest of piles...and I am the Queen of Procrastination and Piling.

[Jayne]

I think your dining room looks amazing, it shows that creative people live there - don't be too ruthless with the de-cluttering, and I love all the colours, they make me feel cheerful! Flylady can be helpful, but balance is required! x

[Dori]

I find that clutter in a house with kiddies breeds. It's a never ending battle, but your home is looking a lot better! It's nice to know I'm not the only one constantly cleaning house. :)

[Jenny]

http://www.folksy.com/items/2397405-They-Lived-In-A-Paper-Village-art-print?shop=yes

Saw this on Folksy and instantly thought of you/your blog!

Jenny x

[Emma (silverpebble)]

Hello Lucy, I am finding your decluttering posts so helpful and reassuring. I've been trying hard to follow suit. This morning I was tackling the bathroom and my eldest (5) came in and said 'Mummy your jobs are so booooring, come and make things instead!' Ack! It was SO difficult to resist but I soldiered on, now have a shiny bathroom and did some crafting AFTERWARDS rather than instead of the cleaning. I do feel rather virtuous today!

[Extragrunty]

Great job! Must say that art/craft organization is hardest to control in my apartment. Mainly due to lack of storage. I like to check out http://unclutterer.com/ for motivation and useful tips.

So lovely to see your progress on here. Can't wait to see more.

[CrochetBlogger]

It looks like you're making some steady great progress on your way towards a home you can truly truly love!

[Annie]

It always looks worse before it gets better! But you're doing so well with the Home Love - I have Shined My Sink but I stand back and admire it and then find I've run out of steam :) Well done, you!

[tizabell]

You could cheat and shove 90% of that clutter into the closed cupboard area, arrange a few items neatly on the open shelves, and no one would be the wiser. That's what I do when a mother-in-law type's on the way... fly into a panic... shove, shove, shove and pray no one opens a drawer or a door. We're on the verge of atomic clutter meltdown at any given moment, but everything's neat and orderly on the surface!

[Amy @ Our Own Village]

I am currently going through a de-cluttering of our home, too. It's definitely not fun, but oh how wonderful it feels when it's all done :-)

[Margy]

You'll get there. Where-ever "there" is that works best for you!
It's just hard to know what to keep and what to give to another person/place.
You'll love reclaiming your expensive "realestate" space within your home! :)
Brave heart! Be proud of yourself and all you've accomplished and do!
Love your photos!
Thanks for sharing! :)

[Tara]

Mess comes and goes; it's part of life. The only surprising thing I saw in the photos is that your mirror frame over the mantel hasn't been painted a fun turquoise or something. =)

[Jean]

Hi Lucy, Do you think you are taking out too many things at once? I know that if I did that, the resulting mess would cause me to completely seize up, sap my energy, and make me give up. So, after a few such experiences, I do one shelf at a time, one drawer at a time, one surface at a time. This makes it possible to be on top of the clutter you have dragged out and can deal with it without it getting the best of you. For example, this summer I completely uncluttered my bookshelves only one shelf at a time (sometimes 1.5 at a time). It took 4 weeks but not once did I feel overwhelmed by it. Now my bookshelves are perfect and all I need to do is consistently return what I take out to its proper place every evening. (I.e. see Flylady's evening routine). Wishing you the very best of luck!

[Eileen]

Oh I feel your pain. I started tackling my sewing room and I have to do it in stages because of all the overwhelming feelings. Some days I feel as if I am drowning in that room. But as you say baby steps!!

[Bria]

Hi Lucy! I'm a big fan of Flylady too...in fact, I've been thinking about her all day today as I've done a big clean (Arg! Why didn't I just follow my control journal all week??)

Anyway, you're doing a great job!