Getting On With It

Brace yourselves.  This is what my workroom looks like right now:

This room is where a lot of my life happens.  It's my sewing / knitting / crafts room.  It's the home office from which I blog, run my home "direct sales" businesses, do all the family banking and bill-paying, and conduct a fair bit of my social life.  It's my library and reading room. It's where I do all my garden planning and stash all my Christmas shopping.  It's where my "work" wardrobe lives, and where  -  when I have a job to go to  -  I get ready in the morning.  It's where my altar (not shown) resides.  And if I'm in here, chances are at least one cat is, too.

It's six feet by nine feet, plus a very small closet.

As you can see, it's gotten a little bit out of control ...

This room is going to be my number one project while Big Guy is off fishing.  I plan to:

1)  Catalogue the library, weed and purge (and donate to the local public library), re-shelve the reference books, and box up all the fiction to go to the attic for now  -  with the exception of the books I've acquired but not had time to read yet.

2)  Sort every piece of paper in the room and file, recycle, or burn (no shredder) as appropriate.

3)  Sort, purge & donate, and properly store what I'll keep of all the office and school supplies.  I have a feeling that even after I'm done I'll have a lifetime supply of pens, pencils, notebooks of all sizes, and file folders and hangers.  Right now a lot of local stores and businesses are collecting donations of school supplies, or I can take them directly to the local elementary school.

4)  Organize all of my home business supplies and stock in one place.

5)  Sort, purge, and organize all of my knitting, sewing, and craft supplies and materials.  And then finish the current pile of mending before I start any new projects!

When I'm done:

1)  I should have a lot more room to work, and a lot more time to work, since I won't be spending so much time looking for what I want and then trying to clear a space to work in.

2)  I'll be donating things that can't always be found in thrift stores, but that a lot of parents, sadly, can't afford to buy new for their back-to-school kids.

3)  I'll be saving money, because I'll no longer be running out to buy something I already have but can't find.

4)  I'll be saving more money, because I'll be making nice new clothes from materials I already have instead of shopping.

5)  I'll be making money, because I'll be able to get a lot more things made in time for the fall / winter craft fairs.

6)  I'll be making more money, because I'll be able to run my home businesses more efficiently.

7)  I'll be taking a lot of donations to the local thrift store, thereby decluttering my home and keeping stuff out of the landfill.

It won't all happen overnight.  But it will happen. 

Just wait till you see the "after" pictures!