I totally get this. I'm constantly like, "Why do makeup brands keep changing up their best selling products?" I hate finding a new foundation that I like. But I do. I always do. 🤷🏻♀️
I love Dana’s container concept too and it’s one of the top ideas I use with my own clients as a newer organizer. And I’m with you on the rainbow effect 🙄.
I do have empty shelves at the top of all of my to-the-ceiling kitchen cabinets and pantry but it’s also just me in the home now and I did declutter when I recently downsized to a one-bedroom.
But my bedroom and closet are doing double duty until I make some additional biz decisions - I’m also a home stager who does occupied home consultations and light accessorizing for photos so the entire underside of my queen bed is filled with bags of throw pillows and a quarter of my closet stores art and accessories for staging. So my clothes are overfilling the remaining hanging space - I definitely could purge there. Most of my hanging clothes are from when I was teaching and had a different side business. Now that I spend most of my time decluttering and moving clients’ old boxes out of dusty basements, I don’t exactly have much need for all of the silk shirts, tailored dresses and heels! But sometimes I’m not very good at taking my own advice 🙂.
We are in the rural space you note at the end (plus a celiac diagnosis and a generally meat-less diet--just eggs + the occasional fresh fish), so our pantry is not an empty space. I do wish it were more organized, but I haven't wrapped my head around how to manage that just yet.
Our closet, though--OOOOF. We live in a small 1-bedroom apartment with exactly two closet spaces: our pantry by the kitchen (which also houses our grocery bags, our vacuum cleaner, etc.) and our bedroom closet. It has our clothes, 4-season outdoor adventuring gear, luggage, out-of-season shoes, my knitting stash, our old files, yoga mats, and a whole host of other things, probably all of which is in need of a pruning.
While it impressively holds all of that stuff, it is a decidedly NOT relaxing.
I have held onto clothes from our "Before Times" in case we abandon our mountain living and head back to "civilization." But we're nearing the end of Year 3 in Adventureland, so I am probably approaching--if not already IN--the, "unless it's a really solid, timeless piece of clothing, it's probably time to give it away to a new home," period.
I finally got rid of my jewelry insurance policy thanks to one of your recent posts. Perhaps this post will inspire some closet decluttering to find some empty, more relaxing space there, too...
Hooray for one step at a time! And I know what you mean, living in a house with few closets. It's hard to make it feel spacious when it holds all the things.
“Aspire to underutilize” <—💯goals. I cleaned out my downstairs closet, and while I can technically fit more in there, it is so much more useful of a space *because* of the spaciousness
Yes to loving empty space in closets and cupboards! I feel as if there is more daylight and air in the home, even though we are talking closets and drawers.
“We used to let the stores store things.” Yes. Yes. YES!!! Why is everyone running little mini-markets inside their cupboards and pantries?
I do have a bit of a stash issue. My problem is I am picky.
I find the thing I like and works for me. Then suddenly the local yarn store is closing or the market no longer carries the product.
Or a move from a large urban US population center to a much smaller rural area and the closest Trader Joe’s is 2 hours
away.
I totally get this. I'm constantly like, "Why do makeup brands keep changing up their best selling products?" I hate finding a new foundation that I like. But I do. I always do. 🤷🏻♀️
I love Dana’s container concept too and it’s one of the top ideas I use with my own clients as a newer organizer. And I’m with you on the rainbow effect 🙄.
I do have empty shelves at the top of all of my to-the-ceiling kitchen cabinets and pantry but it’s also just me in the home now and I did declutter when I recently downsized to a one-bedroom.
But my bedroom and closet are doing double duty until I make some additional biz decisions - I’m also a home stager who does occupied home consultations and light accessorizing for photos so the entire underside of my queen bed is filled with bags of throw pillows and a quarter of my closet stores art and accessories for staging. So my clothes are overfilling the remaining hanging space - I definitely could purge there. Most of my hanging clothes are from when I was teaching and had a different side business. Now that I spend most of my time decluttering and moving clients’ old boxes out of dusty basements, I don’t exactly have much need for all of the silk shirts, tailored dresses and heels! But sometimes I’m not very good at taking my own advice 🙂.
It took me YEARS after leaving the corporate world and moving to the West Coast where no one wears suits to work to finally let go. All in due time...
Mmm…yes! Empty physical space creates mental space.
We are in the rural space you note at the end (plus a celiac diagnosis and a generally meat-less diet--just eggs + the occasional fresh fish), so our pantry is not an empty space. I do wish it were more organized, but I haven't wrapped my head around how to manage that just yet.
Our closet, though--OOOOF. We live in a small 1-bedroom apartment with exactly two closet spaces: our pantry by the kitchen (which also houses our grocery bags, our vacuum cleaner, etc.) and our bedroom closet. It has our clothes, 4-season outdoor adventuring gear, luggage, out-of-season shoes, my knitting stash, our old files, yoga mats, and a whole host of other things, probably all of which is in need of a pruning.
While it impressively holds all of that stuff, it is a decidedly NOT relaxing.
I have held onto clothes from our "Before Times" in case we abandon our mountain living and head back to "civilization." But we're nearing the end of Year 3 in Adventureland, so I am probably approaching--if not already IN--the, "unless it's a really solid, timeless piece of clothing, it's probably time to give it away to a new home," period.
I finally got rid of my jewelry insurance policy thanks to one of your recent posts. Perhaps this post will inspire some closet decluttering to find some empty, more relaxing space there, too...
Hooray for one step at a time! And I know what you mean, living in a house with few closets. It's hard to make it feel spacious when it holds all the things.
“Aspire to underutilize” <—💯goals. I cleaned out my downstairs closet, and while I can technically fit more in there, it is so much more useful of a space *because* of the spaciousness
I wish i had not seen empty spaces as a ‘fill me’ challenge.
Yes to loving empty space in closets and cupboards! I feel as if there is more daylight and air in the home, even though we are talking closets and drawers.
What's a closet - is it at all like a cupboard o wardrobe?