| G | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 03:54 AM |
Hi Guys, Thanks so much for all of your support here. As much as I am relatively new to this board and have really only had consitent contacy with Dianne(thank you Diane), am noticing a tremd here with boxes and bags. Just the other week I was perplexed about eh bag/box situation here and while work yet has to be done to work through to a resolution.....know am not alone. Are we all related? 😉 So another question I have that I would really appreciate and LOVE feedback on is pictures and picture frames. Many months ago had started gettting rid of pics and frames untila dear friend informed me about how frames can be repurposed and also, thay some buy old pics just for their frames. They are a great friend and am glad it brought attention to that use. Slowed me down and made me think even to the point of some dreaded regret of pics in frames I had let go of. Now this evening/morning was looking around wondering what I could do, as well as set up mantle in a way I love and noticed many of the several pictures in frames I do not LOVE. Now maybe it is temporary and am just in a mood, although whil I do not want to regret letting go of pics and frames......am having trouble knowing what to do. Part of me thinks oh the ones I do not like frames of, just remove print so it can be used later or even in a cool collage perhaps(like monet prints etc.). Another part of me thinks even if I do not LOVE the frames, keep them and spray paint to then use to decorate with or put something else in. Am once again confused and am feeling blocked by this very large block. Am really wanting to move past it. If I was to only keep what I love regardless of sentimental value, many would go out the door easily. Although that part of me that regretting parting with some already that had craft ideas or thinkgs even if I let go of frams, that some prints could make fun art project etc. Promise to order the books, although does anyone here have any experience with pictures that they did not love, although had much potention in many ways? Any decisions and results a person loved and has no regrets over? Hoping this gets easier with time and really appreciate the support and any ideas and information either based on experience or just an opinion to take into account. COmmited to moving forward and know this is and will be a big snag to leave as the snag I got caught in in the summer, has yet to be resolved and do not want to put head in sand or come back too much later since at this point with challenges feel it would be avoidance and procrastination. Will not be the end of the world either way, although as most of you know or maybe also have experienced....decisions are tough and sometimes when we make ones we regret it makes it harder to let go of similar/same item in the future. Just want a beautifule space in the end and these items have been gathered together for several moths and put aside, although do not want to do so again. Any suggestions, experience and ideas around pictures/picture frames/prints in them would be most appreciated and is desperately needed. Thank you! | |
Replies (15)
| Dianne | Posted: 16 December 2014 - 08:19 AM |
G, I also jump from room to room doing small parts. To face one room is overwhelming. And I would have to trash another area moving things from the first area into the second area until there was a place for them back in the first area. So I do small chunks and move on to another area. Each day one of the goals is to maintain what is already done. Sometimes I can let things go for a couple days if I am really into a project but then it must be back to maintenance. For me it may have been a mistake to do a big clean out. Emotionally I wasn't as ready as I thought. I'm still struggling with that. Chunk work where you have the control of what goes in and out at your pace may work better. | |
| G | Posted: 16 December 2014 - 12:46 AM |
The mirror and lamp has fallen into the wait till later catagory mamy times and it makes me afraid it will never leave at this rate. I know I must face it, although it maybe should go behind things of less importance and then off to thrift at that point unless my needs and wants have changed by then. Will just hope that whoever ends up getting them loves them as they are very nice and not cheap either. I am with you and no you did not give me the wrong idea about the need part. I get the need, love and use as important to keep in mind for all items. As far as how I work, well I try and have focussed on one room making good progress that way...although it seems I am jumping around working some in one room for awhile and then off into part of another room. There is so much to do that I think for me it is best this way and maybe all rooms slowly improve at the same time this way? MW.....that is so awesome and congrats on getting through your clothes. One bag to trash, one gave away and the rest put away! Very inspiring 🙂 I hope one day I can say the same thing here, although for now cannot begin to think about project clothes 🙁 Smart choice going in 30 minute clips, as I find with bigger projects 15 is just not enough as am just starting to get a rhythm or footing at that point or even starting it(sometimes it takes time to just wrap head around what to do and how to tackle or get into a task). Awwww.....you have shoes missing too. Hmmm, I wonder if your socks and shoes are in on it togethe! Funny thing is I have not found myself misplacing socks or shoes for the most part, althoug did find just one really cute shoe the other day and hope to find it's mate....despite it having not been expensive they are cozy and cute. Bravo and thank you ladies 🙂 xxo | |
| Dianne | Posted: 15 December 2014 - 08:15 AM |
Great job on the clothes MW!! Those socks will eventually find their mates. 🙂 | |
| MW | Posted: 13 December 2014 - 09:34 PM |
Well I did get a bag of clothes for give away and a bag of trash and everything else is put away probably better than I have ever had it. So a good day's work. I think if I did around I do have more clothes to go through and I have a bag of mix matched socks waiting a little longer to find a match before they get tossed or worn as is. 🙂 | |
| MW | Posted: 13 December 2014 - 07:27 PM |
My husband doesn't have an issue with his stuff and he offers to get rid of my stuff if I'm not able to. I think you are right about the 30 minutes. I have taken way too many breaks today, but I have gotten more done than usual. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 13 December 2014 - 07:08 PM |
MW, everybody loses socks but how weird is it for shoes to get separated? That happens to me too. I think they come off in the same area but one always scoots away. Sounds like a good plan for the socks using a safety pin. My granddaughter convinced me not to worry about matching socks. The ones I wear are little reebok ones that go with running shoes. They're bright colors and crazy patterns and she says to wear them mismatched like she does on purpose. Since I don't have to look good for a job I took her advice. 🙂 haha I bet your husband was surprised to see those bags of clothes again! I hope the sorting went well for you. If you're really into a project you can make your own schedule, maybe 30 minutes at a time then a break. Is your husband going thru his clothes too? | |
| MW | Posted: 13 December 2014 - 12:22 PM |
I'm working on my clothes, but it's not going as fast and easy as I had hoped. When I first got started I separated things into stacks which works best for me. If I can see that I have 20 pairs (example only) of pants it's easier to let go of some. I did forget to do the 15 minute thing and so I started out great .... then got tired and sat down. So now I'm going back at it with the 15 minute plan. Also my first round I put all my socks in a pile and none of them matched each other, then I found some more stuff and did get three to match. One of my feet is not very good about putting things where they belong because I can remember before finding a bunch of shoes for one foot and the other one had hidden the shoes that go on it. 🙂 My plan for the socks is to put a safety in one and pin them together when I take them off. One funny story in all this, I had gone to a friends house over last weekend and wanted to clean out my car before I went. My husband had taken all the clothes from the bottom of my closet and put them in bags for me to sort through. When I cleaned out my car I put everything in the cleared out bottom of the closet thinking he would not see it until this weekend when I got a chance to work on it. Not the case - he cleaned it out too 🙂 but at least he didn't go through it and that's part of what I'm going through now. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 13 December 2014 - 07:21 AM |
G, never think you are a burden here. Advice and sharing among people facing similar problems is given freely but no one should feel obligated to take it. Use or discard what works for you. 🙂 I'm a very bad one to ask about what should be done with family items like your grandmother's mirror and your mother's lamp. Those kinds of things tug at me the hardest. I would say a lot depends on the space you have and your time frame for dehoarding. If you have the space and time to put something aside for later thought go ahead and do that. But you have to be careful not to let too many items fall into that category. Those situations are what I put into my system of level dejunking. I might have mentioned that ~ pure trash out first, easy items second, harder items on the third go round. It does mean some churning but I have the time and space to do that. For me family items like you mentioned would be some of the last to go. And I would offer them to other family members first. Then when I felt more comfortable (for me I would never feel completely comfortable) I would donate them if I really had no good use for them. Others would tell you only handle an item once, make a decision and move to the next. That can be a good method too, especially if you have to get cleared out quickly for a landlord inspection or people are helping you and they don't want to waste their time just helping you shuffle things from one room to another. I may have given you the wrong impression about loving something as criteria for keeping/tossing. Your decisions will also be based on what you need. I don't love my beat-up work boots at all and rarely use them. But when I have to shovel snow I sure do need them. I did get rid of the ones that squished my toes or had gotten too slick from tread loss. Are you trying to dehoard one room at a time or living spaces to start? Or sort of all over? | |
| G | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 08:35 PM |
Good points ladies. No way, I do not want to be slowed down in my progress or regretting already made decions. Yes, that is weird I promised t buy the book. Guess I felt with all the quesions and posting that maybe it makes me a burden here, so I better smarten up and buy the book? Silly I understand now.. Thinking about past crafts, I do not any longer enjoy looking at them, although I guess attach a memory or experience to them...just as an item I do not love that reminds me of another who has passed or am fond of. When an item feels attached and related to a relationship/person/experience, it is not confusing to see how the association is there and feels like comfort. Likely not a good enough reason to keep or allow something to take up space....unless it is LOVED! There are many things we can do with many materials such as picture frames, jars, old ribbons and wrapping etc. I am very artful and crafty, while feeding that part of myself is seeming not to be the priority and in fact even trying to hold that space may be getting in the way of other more important goals 🙁 Have also noticed that taste and value can both change over time with esthetics and sentiments, although am thinking is time to be ruthless(as ruthless as possible whiel keeping to move forward without any regret). MW--Great and very enthusiastic weekend plan you have ahead. At first I was thinking you were planning to do that with everything you own, although even to do with clothes is far beyond my skills. Thank you so much for sharing your strategy. Appreciate your sharing about your paitings, as it reminded me of one of mine that is not even framed currently....so will see if there is a suitable frame. If you do not love the paintings that is hard as it sounds mean to yourself to destry or doante your own work. Altough maybe it is not? Maybe you can donate what you do not love and someone else will love it...just think long and hard before doing it 😉 Look forward to hearing about how your weekend goes... Courageous woman! Dianne---Thank you for everything you said and most of all, that the priority is to have clean speace! Please keep repeating if you feel ok to do so, as that is probably the most powerful grounding piece of information that some decisions will need to be checked against. So the moral of the story seems to be that anything that gets in the way of the bigger picture and goasl(creating clean space) does not get to play AND whatever not really attached to, donate! One last and final question about a couple items please and thank you. So I have a mirror that was my grandmothers that I do not care for, along with a crystal lamp from my mother. Both of them I was prepared to part with around the picture frame regret time and then a well meaning person shared how beautiful the mirror and lamp was. Now it made me feel I should keep them and still have both. Yes, they are nice and pretty....yet I do NOT love them. So if the whole point is to only keep what is loved and not just becasue of who it is attached to, then they should go. So hard making these decisions... Boxes, bags seem to be so commen among our community. I have put a few items near the door to go to donate, as well as am hoping to part Wonder if all items should be if they are not LOVED they leave? Feedback fellow friends and thank so much for your sharing and insight ladies 🙂 | |
| MW | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 02:49 PM |
I do have a good plan and hope it works out. I love to do crafts, sew and paint but because of too much stuff I have not done any of these in a while. Still I think I may run into material in the throw away pile that would make a good puppet or doll. Now I need to be a little more realistic. I have to be careful about that kind of thinking. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 09:14 AM |
MW, pictures that you have painted are very special. Display and enjoy them! You have a great weekend plan for dealing with your clothes. Sounds like from your kitchen reorganization you are good at that and will be able to handle the clothes effectively too! There isn't a right or wrong place to post. In responding to people we often just tell about how we have a similar situation to theirs and what we plan to do. You're right there is no way to delete posts as far as I know. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 09:04 AM |
G, whatever you're not really attached too whether pictures or frames or both, donate. We all think about the possibilities of crafts we could do with all the wonderful objects we have but really how often do we get those crafts done? And then what do we do with those? Sit and look at them? Unless someone is really into artful projects and actually makes use of what they have for most of us crafting is just a nice dream. Your friend's info for you was well intentioned and true. Frames can be repurposed. So let someone else do that with the frames you donate. Right now you have more important priorities like having clean space. You made an interesting comment, "They are a great friend and am glad it brought attention to that use. Slowed me down and made me think even to the point of some dreaded regret of pics in frames I had let go of." I'm sure your friend cares for you and doesn't want you making rash decisions. But do you really want to be slowed down in your progress? Do you really want to be experiencing regret over a decision you have already made? Listen to others in real life, or on this board, or in books but learn to trust in yourself. That can be hard when we're not used to it but the more you exercise that muscle the stronger it gets. (Don't promise to order the books. Again use your judgment. Maybe you can find them in the library. You are free to accept or reject any advice based on your needs.) | |
| MW | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 06:58 AM |
I think I posted on the wrong message board, but I don't see a way to delete. | |
| MW | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 06:11 AM |
In my comment I said sort my stuff (by that I mean clothes) I will not be sorting all my stuff this weekend. | |
| MW | Posted: 12 December 2014 - 06:08 AM |
G I don't so much have picture frames that I love. I have a lot of pictures that I have painted that I don't love, but have sentimental value to me. You have made me think about what I can do with them. I have bought pictures just for the frames. I have never really made a plan for them. I like your collage idea. I have spent so many years not knowing what I love that seems like a big step in a good direction. My plan for the day/weekend is to go through my closet/floor/etc and sort my stuff into four groups 1. stuff that no one would want or is in bad shape for trash 2. stuff that I don't like or feel I can part with for give away 3. stuff I want to keep for some reason to deal with later (I'm hoping to not make this group too big) 4. stuff I love and do wear or would wear if I was able to find it. These I will put up so I can wear them. | |