Clutter Be Gone!

More and more of the clutter is leaving our house. I'm amazed as how things that used to bring me comfort now bother me. The fiction books I used to almost horde are slowly finding new homes and leaving me with breathing room. I am keeping all of my herbal books, my how to books, and certain fiction books I may actually read again. I used to, as a child, reread books. Now, I only do so with those that are favorites.

I never thought I would see the day when I would be getting rid of books. Yet, here I am, begging the clutter to leave my house. *sigh* I hope hubby is happy when he sees how much cleaner the house has gotten in his absence.

Thoughts on Simplifying

This year Project Purge has been more about getting rid of the big things as opposed to the smaller and less noticeable items. Sure, I've had the large amount of bathroom items (41) or movies (26) that have left in one fell swoop but the majority of items are going one at a time in a bigger way that is causing me to stop and take notice.

On the first Saturday in April, we ripped the carpeting out of our bedroom. This was a spur of the moment thing fueled by an obnoxious odor that only got worse the more I shampooed. We discovered that the previous owners may have used the corners as restrooms while being forcefully evicted from the home. My pet had an accident in that area and as soon as I began to shampoo, the odors started.

Anyway, as we removed the carpeting, we also removed items from our bedroom. I gave a dear friend a huge trunk we were using to store blankets and moved the blankets into a tote that fit under the bed. I removed a lot of miscellaneous clutter from our bedroom as well. The eucalyptus swag above the bed and the basket of fake greenery are both gone. They were dust collectors and we have allergies. They had to go! This led to rearranging wall art and purging a few older framed items there as well.

That night as I climbed into bed in my bedroom that actually had wall space visible, I realized how much I liked things simple. The next morning, I cleared all of the stuff off of my dresser except for one lovely faerie. Everything else was gotten rid of or in the case of my large jewlery/chest, moved to another location. Empty space is making me happy.

A few days later, I removed the huge laundry baskets and got one smaller one. This gave us more space. I looked around and realized how nice my bedroom looked. Even with the paint splattered parquet floors, even with the blase paint color, even with my mismatched furniture, the room is calm. I love it!

The attached bathroom got a makeover on this Saturday. We were given a small rolling cart like one would use in a kitchen. One wheel was gone so we removed all 4 casters and made it into a small cabinet for my bathroom. This allowed me to move the larger unit out of the bathroom (an old entertainment center). I was able to reorganize the stuff and actually ended up with more counter space! It's a wonderful thing!

This means two larger pieces have been removed from my home. Two items. That isn't much really but it is HUGE to me!

This, That, and The Other

Another week has passed and while we did not get rid of many items this week, a few were moved out the door. Our total for the first month of 2009 is 446 items!

Getting rid of things makes our lives more simple. I find that I am finding more time for my creative endeavors. There is nothing in the way of my art now. This is a good thing!

Speaking of art, I've joined up with the iCiNG Transformation Challenge. My goals for the month of February are:

1. Daily Exercise: I'm hoping that physical activity will help me. I have FMS that is pretty bad and I've been told that at least stretching would help. I am willing to take on this experiement for one month just to find out.
   
2. Daily Creativity: This is to be done in any form. I can create a desert or a creative journal page. I can make runes or work on digital photography. Whatever it is, I must be willing to put the creativity first instead of putting it on hold for everything else in my life.
   

Perhaps you'd like to come join in the fun?

Project Purge 2009

We are just 27 days into the new year and already my family has surpassed our Project Purge 2009 goal. We decided on 365 items, figuring 1 item per day for the year was a good number. As of last weekend, we hit 396 items!!! Following is the list of items that made their way to someone else's home:

Qty		Description
21		Movies
5		Movies
2		Laptop Chargers
2		telephone cords
1		4 port USB adapter
1		Motorolla headset (stereo)
1		Zippo Lighter
1		Pink Nintendo headphones
1		Este Lauder Romance
1		Victoria Secret Golden Dreams Lotion
1		Victoria Secret Body Spray
3		Make up bags
1		Exfoliating brush
1		hair clip
1		strand of chunky beads
1		makeup mirror
2		perfumes
2		lotions
2		sheets of stickers
3		Barbie dolls
17		Barbie Accessories
3		Barbie dolls
17		Barbie Accessories
1		Pirate costume
2		small wind chimes
1		large wind chime
6		lace doilies
31		gel pens
20		Sharpies
6		Packages of "eyes"
4		Packages of "noses"
33		gel pens
1		Halloween Flashlight
30		Foam Circles
1		Teen Mug
2		Zenith Remotes
1		Wok
4		scrapart
2		photo albums
1		empty container
1		frog stamp
1		mini box of beads
1		box with clipart
1		stapler
1		bunny statue
12		marbles
1		magazine
2		glue sticks
2		brushes
3		pens
2		pencils
30		Foam Circles
6		place mats
6		cloth napkins
1		table cloth
1		set of henna stencils
1		Remo drum head
1		key lock security chain
12		6x6x8 boxes
1		plaque board
2		Craft books for kids
1		grapevine potted plant holder
1		package of beads
1		stack of cardstock
1		box of paper
1		coloring book
1		notebook
13		candle holders
22		Women's Clothing Items
5		prs of pj pants
1		bag of cat food
1		stick of 256mg DDR ram
3		baggies full of plastic beads
16		Sheets/Pillowcases
3		Purple window curtains with pockets
1		Nice frame
1		Dragon/wizard print

2008 Wrap Up & 2009 Challenge

We managed to get rid of over 4,500 things in our 2008 "55 Week Fling"! I was so proud of our efforts. When we started on December 1, 2007, I thought getting rid of 208 things would be difficult. We just kept going and going. It was amazing to see. Even when I thought there was nothing left to get rid of, I would open a drawer or get a box out and see even more things I did not need.

When we took out the tree and decorations, I ended up getting rid of tons of stuff. We had enough extra stuff to do a second tree easily. Of course, I kept enough ornaments and lights for a six foot tree even though we currently have a four foot one. I figure it is better to keep enough than to have to go out and spend money (gasp!) on more stuff!

This brings me to the 2009 Challenge. This year I encourage all of you to join in on Project Purge! Consider getting rid of just one item per day. that is 365 items in a year! My family is donating most items to our local FreeCycle group. This year, as with last year, we are not counting items thrown away.

If you chose to follow along on Project Purge, let me know. I'd love to cheer you on!