I’m with Elaina. I felt so validated adding this to my small list of hobbies. Its the one that brings me the greatest joy!
For the first 9 years of our relationship my husband and I moved yearly (each time there was some ‘reason’.) I was always in a state of just moved in and then packing to move out!
We are approaching 2 years in our first home and I’ve been able to truly find homes for everything, organize and re-organize after living and using the space. We’ve becoming minimalists (as one does when you move your crap every year) despite having a 3 year old. So this year my house goals are more about bringing warmth, family photo prints and things that will live with us there for many years to come.
I can’t wait to share this with my SIL. I just arrived at her home in a different city and we haven’t been here for a year - I notice all the things they have floated to other spaces. I just love it and admire her home the whole time I’m here!
THANK YOU and KC Davis, both, for putting this into context. Making your home function for you/your family is something that's worth pursuing IF that interests you. There's a spectrum of "functioning" and it differs from person to person. My spices are not alphabetized. Would it be easier to find them if they were? Maybe, but maybe spinning the lazy susan that they live on to spot the right one works for me in about the same amount of time it would take me to work the alphabet in my head? I don't feel in the least bit down on myself that I don't have matching spice jars, labeled perfectly. I appreciate that other people do and enjoy it like I appreciate that others have collections or hobbies that I don't have.
LOVE this so much. Reframing organizing as a hobby and not a requirement feels so freeing to me! And that laundry quote? spot on.
I too loved rearranging my room - I did it for fun. and as a 10 year old my first experience with Barbies was with a family friend's daughter who was six. She played with the barbies while I was content rearranging the items we used as doll furniture (little containers, matchboxes, etc. were turned into furniture in a cardboard-box-turned-sideways "house" for Barbie.
Yes! The way we language the world around us matters. Because the words we use to describe ourselves and the things we like to do lend themselves to the larger story we tell ourselves about Who We Are. Using the word “hobby” to describe home organization feels so validating.
Also. Organizing my home is definitely a resource I use to soothe my nervous system. I’m reminded of Gretchen Rubin’s book “Outer Order, Inner Calm.”
Thanks for helping me to reframe the way I see home organization! ✨
Omg. There were many mornings my folks would come in to wake me up, only to find my furniture in a completely different place than when they'd tucked me in. But I never really learned how to be organized (to be fair, I don't think it was a strong suit for my parents either), and I am trying to make up for lost ground as I rapidly close in on 40. Really valuable to reframe this as a hobby, rather than beat myself up - and I can admit it's a hobby I'm interested in but may take some time to get good at. ;)
I've been thinking about this for a couple of weeks now, also! For some reason adding organizing to my list of hobbies felt so validating.
My dad is a chronic mover of furniture and all through my childhood I thought it was so interesting how he would spend a day moving furniture around just to try it out and then ultimately move it back. Every now and then something stays. To this day, everytime I visit my parents house their furniture has floated around to a different location, oftentimes up and down stairs (like it's not a super easy task). They have invested in modular lovesac furniture to make this hobby easier for my dad.
I've 100% inherited this rearranging gene. It's more about optimizing space and trying to get it to flow perfectly with a constantly changing lifestyle. But then, I take it a step further and require my bits and bobs (that I feel like I'm also constantly moving around and culling through) to live in their own spaces. Just like how I enjoy eating in a round (one thing at a time- usually by reheat value- aka mashed potatoes always last), I don't want my sharpies mingling with my colored pencils. It feels neurotic but calling it a hobby feels peaceful.
Thanks for writing about this! It prompted me to revisit Burnt Toast, which I love. I always appreciate your candidness in your writing 🥰
This is a hobby.
I’m with Elaina. I felt so validated adding this to my small list of hobbies. Its the one that brings me the greatest joy!
For the first 9 years of our relationship my husband and I moved yearly (each time there was some ‘reason’.) I was always in a state of just moved in and then packing to move out!
We are approaching 2 years in our first home and I’ve been able to truly find homes for everything, organize and re-organize after living and using the space. We’ve becoming minimalists (as one does when you move your crap every year) despite having a 3 year old. So this year my house goals are more about bringing warmth, family photo prints and things that will live with us there for many years to come.
I can’t wait to share this with my SIL. I just arrived at her home in a different city and we haven’t been here for a year - I notice all the things they have floated to other spaces. I just love it and admire her home the whole time I’m here!
love this so much. as usual, you nailed it and brought it in a way i havent thought of before. now i can go free as a chaos lover! LOL
THANK YOU and KC Davis, both, for putting this into context. Making your home function for you/your family is something that's worth pursuing IF that interests you. There's a spectrum of "functioning" and it differs from person to person. My spices are not alphabetized. Would it be easier to find them if they were? Maybe, but maybe spinning the lazy susan that they live on to spot the right one works for me in about the same amount of time it would take me to work the alphabet in my head? I don't feel in the least bit down on myself that I don't have matching spice jars, labeled perfectly. I appreciate that other people do and enjoy it like I appreciate that others have collections or hobbies that I don't have.
LOVE this so much. Reframing organizing as a hobby and not a requirement feels so freeing to me! And that laundry quote? spot on.
I too loved rearranging my room - I did it for fun. and as a 10 year old my first experience with Barbies was with a family friend's daughter who was six. She played with the barbies while I was content rearranging the items we used as doll furniture (little containers, matchboxes, etc. were turned into furniture in a cardboard-box-turned-sideways "house" for Barbie.
Yes! The way we language the world around us matters. Because the words we use to describe ourselves and the things we like to do lend themselves to the larger story we tell ourselves about Who We Are. Using the word “hobby” to describe home organization feels so validating.
Also. Organizing my home is definitely a resource I use to soothe my nervous system. I’m reminded of Gretchen Rubin’s book “Outer Order, Inner Calm.”
Thanks for helping me to reframe the way I see home organization! ✨
Omg. There were many mornings my folks would come in to wake me up, only to find my furniture in a completely different place than when they'd tucked me in. But I never really learned how to be organized (to be fair, I don't think it was a strong suit for my parents either), and I am trying to make up for lost ground as I rapidly close in on 40. Really valuable to reframe this as a hobby, rather than beat myself up - and I can admit it's a hobby I'm interested in but may take some time to get good at. ;)
This is the best essay I have ever read about home organization. IT'S A HOBBY.
I always thought this was mainly a female/homebuilder/guys-don’t-care kind of thing, but after reading a few of these, I find myself thinking….
I've been thinking about this for a couple of weeks now, also! For some reason adding organizing to my list of hobbies felt so validating.
My dad is a chronic mover of furniture and all through my childhood I thought it was so interesting how he would spend a day moving furniture around just to try it out and then ultimately move it back. Every now and then something stays. To this day, everytime I visit my parents house their furniture has floated around to a different location, oftentimes up and down stairs (like it's not a super easy task). They have invested in modular lovesac furniture to make this hobby easier for my dad.
I've 100% inherited this rearranging gene. It's more about optimizing space and trying to get it to flow perfectly with a constantly changing lifestyle. But then, I take it a step further and require my bits and bobs (that I feel like I'm also constantly moving around and culling through) to live in their own spaces. Just like how I enjoy eating in a round (one thing at a time- usually by reheat value- aka mashed potatoes always last), I don't want my sharpies mingling with my colored pencils. It feels neurotic but calling it a hobby feels peaceful.
Thanks for writing about this! It prompted me to revisit Burnt Toast, which I love. I always appreciate your candidness in your writing 🥰