In Praise of Tidying Up
It will likely shock a goodly portion of the readership to learn that I do not, in fact, have a sewing room or studio, and haven’t had for about 15 years. I have a storage area for all of my supplies, and I work portably around our home according to my space needs and the needs of the family (we homeschool this way as well).
(We do have plots in perpetration mode for finishing out the back half of the garage as a studio for me, but that’s a 2021-22 thing.)
My storage spaces were spread out through our “Dungeon”–a partial basement area of our cottage–and that arrangement was making me more and more annoyed daily for the last few months. That sparked, as it is wont to do, Liz Tidy-Up Mode, in which I spent one afternoon and regrouped everything I own, pulling items for donation, sorting tools and supplies into coherent categories, condensing storage, and taking stock in advance of a fresh start for a new year.
If something with extra legs bites me, it’s my own fault. Good gravy, chaos.
Chaos Understair: Can’t find anything without 30 minutes of restacking and peering and generalized Unpleasant Mutterings.
Stuff spread across the whole basement and house.
All my own doing, but with some assorted help from other family members who need to borrow bits now and then.
Fabrics all amok and askew.
Personal wardrobe mixed with family wardrobe.
Accessories strewn flagrantly.
Current and outgrown family wardrobe tossed thither and yon.
Note Water Tumbler: Hydration is Important!
Understair After:
Three bins of family wardrobe, outgrown items removed.
One bin of items for the history site; one bin of works in progress.
One of cotton prints; two of wools, plus a few silks; one of doll cuts; three of doll bits and bodies.
Room for two machines. Nothing on the floor. Two layers deep, but not three.
Three bins of fabric culled for donation. Supplies and tools all sorted and untangled.
And, shocker: CREATIVITY RESTORED.
It’s not a given that creatives dwell in chaos. A great many of us thrive when we have tidy, organized spaces to work with (if not IN, in my case… being portable as I am.)
As we round out the year, are you feeling overwhelmed by your supplies or stash? May I encourage you to consider a good de-stash and tidy up?
1: Gather your hoard from all corners of your dwelling.
2: Sort according to type and use.
3: Consider what you want to carry forward with you; release the rest with gratitude and blessing.
4: Sort it out and see if you need to update your storage options; I freed up a half-dozen storage bins and put it all back into fewer containers, without crammage, and was joyful.
5: Keep a list handy for the creative ideas that will inevitably smack your brain pan in the middle of all of this.
6: Rejoice in the wrapping up of projects, the start of new, and all the possibilities that exist in this wonderful world!
