wow! we had our first 6 hour decluttering/organizing session today with 4 folks helping. My 2 helper and I concentrated on my office and the part of the studio that extends into that space and the attached walk in closet. DH and his two helpers worked on his studio space. I can't believe the amount of stuff that got taken out of our house- either to recycle, trash or donate.

The declutterers took all the stuff out of the spaces and sorted it so that like things were with like things. Then they called us in to make decisions about what we wanted to keep. The rest got carted away immediately and then they put the things away that we had opted to keep. It was very intense, but I am really happy to have the closet space and most surfaces in my office/studio freed up. Next time they come back they will work on finishing up DH's studio and my office and textile studio. We are saving my painting studio for the fall-- it will be even more labor intensive due to the amount of stuff to be dealt with.

We have some homework to do before they come for the second session which is on Aug. 12. I am really glad that we decided against having the two sessions back to back- would have been very overwhelming. As it is, I can now walk into my walk in closet and there is a designated spot for everything that is currently in there. I expect I'll sleep well tonight- as long as I take an Aleve at bedtime LOL!

Rob

Wow Rob, that sounds amazing.

Congratulations, Rob. You guys have really been in beast mode with your decluttering coaches. I applaud all that effort and tenacity. Making decisions, struggling more with some than others, standing, sitting, lifting, bending—it’s a workout!

Good for you!

Congratulations, Rob! I can’t imagine having a 6 hour day that was that intense. Sleep well tonight.

Rob, Thank you for sharing your journey. Congrats on the progress. It sounds like the helpers were the ticket for your situation.

I have cleaned, dusted and re-organized my little bedroom. DGson sleeps in there when we have sleep overs. There are new dino sheets ready for his visit next week. It feels good to walk in there and see everything sparkling clean.

Decluttering is such a chore! Kuddos to you Rob.

I've been working in the farm office, catching up on bookwork...another never ending job. But I also threw lots of paper away. I have to be careful of what I must keep and what can be tossed, so one has to check each paper and file appropriately. It would be so much easier if I do it right away! Not only are there financials, but cow information. Each animal has an ID paper and milk production papers. And because animals are born and sold off it's a constant rotation. I like to keep genealogical files on sold animals because of past production history. We have a lot of "dead" cows in our 50 year history of farming! Next week I'm going to have the Grands help me with those papers to update those files and to weed out the "families" we have no descendants in the herd. Many hands make light work...or so they say.

And for more fun I've been working in the WIC...why oh why did I keep some of this stuff. I have wool squares from skirts I work in the 60's....yikes...they are going into the burn pile. I have retrieved some gray and black and a few other solids that would work for applique, but the majority of it is going going and gone. Washing off shelves now and putting clean fabric on clean shelves. Local donation store and BOL are going to be big benefactors. I shouldn't have sat down...don't want to get up and get going...zozee where's your energy drink from a few days ago?

Way to go oksewglad. Great idea to involve those grandkids in the record keeping. I had a MN map lesson yesterday when I was trying to find the closest BOLC to you. I forgot there were some closer than Rochester until you mentioned it in the Fabric Moratorium. :)

And for more fun I've been working in the WIC...why oh why did I keep some of this stuff. I have wool squares from skirts I work in the 60's....yikes...they are going into the burn pile. I have retrieved some gray and black and a few other solids that would work for applique, but the majority of it is going going and gone. Washing off shelves now and putting clean fabric on clean shelves. Local donation store and BOL are going to be big benefactors. I shouldn't have sat down...don't want to get up and get going...zozee where's your energy drink from a few days ago?[/QUOTE]

Sounds like you took at least a sip of it! I have needed it as I've been busting my buns getting ready for family staying with us. BIL and SIL are coming Weds, having a crab feast at our house along with all our kids and grandbabies (first time the BIL and SIL will be meeting the twins), then their two grown daughters and a son-in-law will descend on Friday. Family reunion Saturday.

Oh, and did I mention I decided to paint the guest bathroom two weekends ago while DH was out of town? Well, DH had to fix some of my woopsies (I'm an imperfectionist who likes change) and then he announced Saturday that it needed a new floor. You know how , once you fix up one thing, the thing next to it looks blah? So he installed a new floor in the bathroom yesterday, and we bought tile for the kitchen backsplash because he is finally (after 5 years) ready to tackle that. Funny how having company coming "lights a fire under your butt"! My sewing room is the queen guest room and it hasn't looked this good in a very long time! Ditto the master BR. We're going to let our niece and her hubby have it this weekend since it's their first vacation without kids in ...maybe ...forever? (They have two teens and a 5 year old.)

The thing that prompted this whole reunion was that his brother (the one coming in on Weds with his wife) just found out his melanoma from 7 years ago, has returned and there is now a spot on his lung. He wants to see everyone now and have a great time as they might not be coming to Baltimore again.

My basement and sewing room has been my summer project. The area is unfinished with clay splatters on the wall from the build. I wasn’t liking my sewing space as it was cluttered, hard to find what I wanted, gloomy, and just not inviting.
I went on a mission and started dining storage units on Facebook Marketplace for cheap. As hubby and I would clean up the pieces I began folding and organizing fabric. I went away for a retreat and when I came back I found a great surprise - Hubby painted walls and adhered insulation to the walls. It brightened up the space. He also added some lighting as well.
Im getting ready to go back to school and I can at least go knowing my sewing Studio is clean, organized and my happy place. I love my new “Sewing Studio”.

It sounds like your hubby is a wonderful man who loves you a lot and wants you to be happy! :o

Thanks y'all. I'm actually starting to enjoy the decluttering. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually having fun letting go of the stuff.

Welcome to the thread, RobinW- sounds like you are well on your way.

Keep up the momentum everyone!

Rob

I have been cleaning off my ironing/cutting tables again! How do those tables collect all the clutter? :)

After a conversation with my sister about where our irons are compared to our machines, it dawned on me that my new arrangement was convenient because I could just turn my chair around and iron from the sitting position but I wasn’t getting the movement like before. I have two banquet tables together so I switched the ironing board to the opposite side of where I sew and put the cutting area behind my sewing chair. Now I will get a few more steps in hopefully because I tend to press often. :)

My organization piece was that I finally went through a small box of mainly scissors of different sizes from my DMIL. I have had them for nearly 9 years and today I tested them all and put the ones that didn’t work back in the box, sealed it with tape, and marked it with sewing-scissors, pins, needles, and rotary blades. It will go out with the garbage tomorrow. I will keep a few of the other scissors and donate the rest to a charity group. There was a very good pinking shears in the box so I switched it out with my old one. Will I ever use a pinking shears again? Maybe, maybe not but it will stay,

It feels good to have that simple job done.

Yes it's so convenient to just turn and press, but the older I get the more i have to get up and moooove! I like your plan, RetiredT.

Rob, do you mind my asking if it is that you're doing a Marie Kondo type of organization? I've watched a few of her shows on Netflix and it has been incredible to put that way of thinking into action in regards to my own space! I've managed to cut back on clothing and articles galore. Though I'm not doing it all at once, but tackling one space at a time -- I am loving the results. :)

hi Miniquilts, not doing Marie Kondo. That’s more extreme than what I’m doing. I’ve been doing some decluttering off and on for the last couple of years just to make it easier to keep the house clean. I’ve managed to do a fair amount in our living spaces on my own, but DH and I are both artists and our studio spaces were terrible and overwhelming. so I hired a declutterer to help. The first day with the declutterers we worked on DH’s studio and my combination office/quilting studio and the walk-in closet off the office part. On Monday we will finish up those spaces. We will work on my painting studio later in the fall.

Rob

Yeah, I can't see just pitching tons of "stuff" like Marie Kondo does -- but her folding methods for clothing and fabric are great. Not to mention it has helped me to let go of some, which is good. Major kudos to you and your DH for taking on that amount of decluttering. I know my art with my dollhouse and miniature making ironically takes up a good bit of space, so I can only imagine with two artists under one roof! ;)

In my quest to organize I have also been going through kids fabrics. My junior sewing posse enjoys sewing kids quilts. With that in mind I have been measuring the wof pieces so that quick quilts can be made. Also have a bunch of juvenile scraps I can cut down; will make 5" charms for use in I Spy quilts. 10 yo has chosen a setting that takes 36 of them for a girl's quilt and another with a farm theme. I have created designs in EQ and have figured out fabric requirements for setting sashes and borders. Then wrote up directions for 3 small and 1 throw size quilts. There will be several quilts for the girls to sew between now and next summer. I want to have kits ready so they can just start cutting and sewing. Time to call it a day.

I see the floor emerging from the abyss...as in....organizing, purging, donating what I don’t need. I have been organizing “kits” of projects since last winter. The clutter discourages sewing. I bought a 5 shelf wire shelving unit on casters and put my storage drawers on it. I have made so much progress in the last 3 weeks since I put this up.

When I read about she-sheds I wonder why someone would want another “house” to care for. Yes, they are cute. Yes, if one long arms...I can understand having a space or the machine. No,..in regard to throwing in my winter clothes and tromping across the yard in bad weather ....Also, more space equals more stuff. I am my worst enemy.

Sandygirl I'm still in the chaos stage..can't wait to get to things on the shelf. What fun it will be to grab a kit and get going!

I totally agree on the sheshed idea...must be our Midwest winters that make us want to stay indoors!

My new home build is coming along and my sewing studio is coming to life. They are texturing the interior walls now so it won't be long before the millworker starts the built-ins... The walk-in closet will have built in shelves measured to accommodate bolts. One wall will have a Murphy bed so I have a second bed for my family when they visit but, when not in use it will be my design wall. I cannot wait!! I stopped at the showroom for the Quilter's Box in Utah last month and, tho it's really pretty and quality built, it won't work for me.

Sew envious, Teen...what a smart idea on the murphy bed/design wall.

I am doing a happy dance...I have now gone through the juvenile fabric scraps and all are cut to various sizes. I'm itching to start sewing so. I have the yardage fabric all sorted and marked by lengths and in bins accordingly. I should be able to grab fabric as I need now and plan quilts by what's in stash. I also have the Bundles of Love fabric gone through and ready to go out the door. Retired T, I made contact with one of the coordinators and we will get together soon and I will have 3 13gallon garbage bags packed full of fabric and a smaller one of ribbings. Will feel grand when it gets delivered.

Teen: I’m so excited for you. I will enjoy seeing the pictures of your house and studio when they both are finished.

oksewglad: You made great progress with your juvenile fabric scraps. Congrats! My heart sings that you were able to connect with a Bundles of Love coordinator to find out what fabric they needed. I know ribbing is always in demand too. Thank you so much!

I'm beginning to organize my entire sewing room after our move. It seems overwhelming but I know the outcome will be much more efficient and attractive. Step by step.....

ok--I've put lots of thought into what needs to stay,what needs to go---and I'm committed to digging in and getting rid of stuff on Labor Day weekend. I've been stalling cause I've been swamped with quilting projects for others--but I'm going to make the time--and putting it here on the Board will make me move along!

Yes...going through things is tedious, quiltingshorttimer. Fortunately mine in downstairs and when I get overwhelmed it's out of sight, out of mind. And once you get started, it's easier to get rid of things, as I try to be realistic in what I can really use. As I fill in the WIC with items I see the space I have and then start eliminating more.

In my sorting yesterday I found a quilt top of 56 squares ready to sew. I haven't sewn much this week so I sat down and have the rows all webbed together, Eleanor Burns style. Now to find a backing when I'm finished and I will have a UFO done.

Yesterday my friend Bill came to visit my newly organized sewing studio. He got some hands on lessons in sewing and FMQ on the atomic era White Selectronic 970 which I have not been using as there was no place to keep it permanently set up. At more than 40 pounds, this machine is just too heavy for me to be willing to set it up and take it down every time I want to use it. Long story short, Bill bonded with it and it now has a new home! Yay! It’s a great mid-century modern machine and he’ll have lots of fun playing with all its features. I can still visit it if nostalgia strikes. Decluttering really does get easier with practice.

Teen, That Murphy bed/design wall setup sounds like the perfect solution!

Rob

Like you rryder...I am decluttering by default...My DIL was over last night and saw the WIP I started and really liked it...when it's finished it will be out the door, too! Win win for all of us!

Excellent oksewglad! Not only finished, but off to a good home so you will have space to make more!

Rob

Great job, oksewglad!! You are moving the stuff out quickly!

Rob...you have really made quite the impact on your decluttering...I bet your space is so nice to work in now. I'm sure there is more to do, like us all, but you've really worked hard..

LavenderBlue...so exciting to organize as you unpack in your new place. I'm so looking forward to that process. Have fun! While my home is being built, I started to make and buy things to help with that. Trying to not overdo, tho...lol!

good luck!! We'll be cheering you on in hopes other things don't crop up and mess up your plans!!

Teen, I'm not moving as fast as I'd like to, but I am making progress. Once I get the bed out of the new space I will feel like I've getting somewhere.

I found some plaid flannel that fits the back of the WIP...seam is sewn and ready for the LA as the flimsy is done! And more stuff gone through as well.

In May, I sold a bunch of books/mags. When the leftovers came home, I didn't want to reshelve things I really don't want, so they've been on the floor of the garage. This week I've been going through 5-10 each day finding things I really like and tossing the books/mags. I've already made a quilt from one of the finds and think I'll make it again.

Just about finished 1 box of 2.

In my sorting found another UFO...I ripped out the big stitch quilting I started (about 1/3 of the quilt..didn't take long), then put LArmed it and sent it home today with my DIL for FarmerSon. Now she doesn't have to share the one I finished last week!

I am making progress in my relocation process. 9yo GS wanted to know why the mattress and spring were in his "play space" yesterday. What that means is the bed is out and I started moving in my fabric shelves. Now filling up the shelves. Once in a while put a piece of fabric in for local donation knowing I won't ever use it. Back to work for another hour or so and then time for bed! Soon I hope to have the one room emptied so the bed can go in there and GS can have his play space back! It all takes time.

It sounds like you are making great progress, oksewglad!

Yesterday, I went into my bedroom to look for my garden gloves that were washed and in the clothes basket. I got sidetracked when I hung some things from the basket up in my closet. The flower pots outside didn't get rinsed out but I finally went through 2 large tubs of my late husband's clothes. Most of them were his denim jeans and shorts along with a few other clothing and miscellaneous things. Some went into the big orange bags from our trash company for recycling. Some will be donated and others will be kept like a few of his Hawaiian shirts. I was always going to make something for family members from the jeans. Oh well. They have sat for almost 9.5 years. Time to let them go.

We do have to make those kind of decisions, don't we, Connie.

Yes we do, oksewglad. It will feel good when the bags are gone.

:thumbup:

Was whipped after work yesterday so no progress last night. As I slowly move forward I stop and analyze my projects...what needs to be done to finish UFO's etc. Found a little scrappy 36" quilt...perfect for a new baby---backing and batting included in the bag. It's on the long arm and I'm going to try a pantograph on it using a pastel varigated thread..will be the 2nd panto I have attempted. Wish me luck.

I have re-organized all my fabric.
I took it all down in colour families, decided what was only useful to be made into 2 1/2" strips or strings, cut those and re-folded the rest.
Took both my scrap drawers, ironed and then cut strings. Strings went into a drawer, strips went into a hanging 8 pocket boot bag that I found at the used store. Perfect for one colour in each long, skinny pocket.
I now have organized fabric, a lot of strips and strings and a couple more UFO's that I discovered as I cleaned up. :shock:
I have almost come to the end of the quilts I "have" to do for assorted shows/babies/classes and will be moving on to something fun, so at least I'll be able to see what I have to work with!

Watson

Watson..nice to see "light" at the end of the tunnel! Great progress.

I've been quiet for a few days... but definitely not idle! I have loads of random and extremely various pieces of wood that I use in my miniature/dollhouse making, and was finding I wanted to make my "designated" sewing area a bit neater. I was able to source a few small dowels and a simple piece of wood from my mini supply stash and made myself a fairly simple spool/bobbin rack to hang on the wall. I'm also able to hang some of my rulers and small plastic bits that I use in my fabric cutting! Silly how much that excites me, but I also went by a dollar store and picked up a cheap vinyl tablecloth and cut that and hung it up underneath. So I can now just stand up from the sewing machine grab bobbins and spools, and hopefully be able to stick up some of my small pieces on the fuzzy back of the tablecloth piece.

Next up, I'm going to try and reorganize my fabric stash which like the sewing machines seems to be growing w/o my realizing how. lol Not certain how I'm going to get it all folded up to fit in it's storage spot, but that's for tomorrow. Hoping to then be able to sit back down and sew up another mini quilt!