Friday, October 19, 2012

Declutter Report No. 1

The "Out-the-Door October" decluttering has been going okay.  I am working my way up (or down, as the case may be) to my basement sewing room.  That room intimidates me, frankly, because it's the most cluttered space in the entire house.  Everything that doesn't have another home ends up there.

So far, I have sold 11 items on eBay.  Woo-hoo!

I took photos of some mid-century tables to put on Craigslist, but I haven't gotten around to listing them yet.  One is in need of refinishing, but it is apparently a brand of mid-century Scandinavian furniture that's pretty hot right now, which I did not know until I perused eBay to research the name to get an idea of what to ask.  Doesn't look like much here.

But ho-lee-you-know-what.  Do an eBay search on this name furniture sometime and you will say it too.

Who knew when I basically trash-picked the thing 14 years ago?  I just thought it had good bones.  But after almost a decade and a half, since I've never gotten around to refinishing it (and now I wouldn't dare do it myself), it's probably someone else's chance to have a crack at it.

I went through my kitchen cupboards and refrigerator (tossed a bunch) and pantry.  I have a bag set aside for the Boy Scouts food drive this Saturday.

I unearthed stuff I totally forgot I had, like brand new Pampered Chef grilling utensils.  Might have been good to know a few months ago!

I went through my bedroom today.  I'm trying to motivate myself in baby steps, like seeing if I can get rid of 10 things per room.  It usually leads to more, but 10 seems like a manageable goal without feeling overwhelming.

This is the Goodwill and/or give-away-to-friends/family pile.  Also a few things to take to the local historical museum, if they'll have them.

The museum has a room named after the guy who owned these books, one of which dates back to when the state was still a territory.

Now for some really scary stuff...are you ready?  It's the basement sewing room.

Augh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Terrifying, isn't it?  My great-great grannies peeking over the detritus in the center there would be mortified.

Keeping in real, yo.

I did venture in the other day but promptly sidetracked myself into pulling fabrics for a Christmas table runner.

And so, the saga continues.

Oh, and here's a pretty scary thing that came out of the garden at my uncle's.

That is a ginormous beet!  With a normal-sized apple for comparison.

But, like the decluttering process, it is less intimidating if you cut it into smaller pieces (and roast with a little olive oil, salt & pepper...p.s., it was delicious!).

Have a great weekend, all!
Live A Colorful Life

11 comments:

Karen said...

I was cheering - clapping....then screech, I was like, um....wow - I think P needs an Ikea sewing space makeover, actually I do too I think.

That beet looks comic like - wow!

Rachel said...

Ohhhh, I wish I lived closer! I would love to come play "organize the sewing room"...the other rooms, not so much...LOL...I am strange like that! Thanks for sharing!! I love reality!

GardenOfDaisies said...

Wow! You are doing great!! The Gannies would like to be hung on the wall, where they can see better. :-) Getting rid of big furniture pieces will make a huge difference really quickly. I agree, that's it better to break a big job down into small pieces. Makes one feel like it's all very easy to do. That was the whole point behind my 366 Challenge this year. At the beginning of the year I wasn't sure I could come up with over 300 things, but with 7 things each week, or 31 things each month, I know that I will easily pass the mark, and probably need to keep going next year. Heaven help me, I haven't even touched DH's closet yet.

DeAnna said...

Isn't it amazing how much we accumulate over time. Great idea about breaking down the big job into smaller pieces. I do that a lot but never with cleaning. Thanks for sharing and I look forward to some "after" pics.

Sara said...

You will get there and you have a great start already:)

That beet did look delicious though:)

Dar said...

WOW, you did very good at your decluttering so far. I wish some of your energy would find it's way through the wires to my house. It needs it as badly as you think yours does -- maybe mine is worse! You motivated me "a tiny little bit".
(Right after I finish quilting 3 more customer quilts). lol

Elizabeth said...

I'll bet it feels good to turn all that clutter into cash! Yay for the eBay sales and I hope you get a nice bundle on that table.

I need to declutter too. Finding the time is the problem. Yay for you!

xo -E

Shay said...

You are kicking clutter butt ! I bet it feels really good to divest yourself of some of that stuff.

Your sewing room looks as scary as mine....

Vicki @ DottyJane said...

You are a brave woman for many reasons:)

I love beets...it looks delicious!

Good luck with the table..it looks very promising !$$$$$!

Diane said...

First, the beet... that looks yummy! Good luck on the table, what a hapy suprise. Your doing great with the de-cluttering... my family cringes when I start purging, mainly my husband who is afraid I will toss the beer pint glasses.

MomWaldsPlace said...

Baby steps!