I was watching a show about hoarding and the woman with the problem was shopping in a craft store. She gushed about how cute something was and was tempted to buy it. All the while, back at her house, she was dying under the load of crap she had been hoarding for years. She said “it’s not about actually making the craft, it’s about buying the supplies, and I finished the last line with her – it’s about what it could become.” I actually gasped when I heard her echo.
I can never move from where I am. I have an entire bedroom filled with craft supplies. Instead of a bed, it has a dining room table that seats 12. I admit, I might be a few things shy of being that lady on tv. But the difference between her lunacy and mine is that I’m just more organized. I’d prefer to think of my stuff as an investment and my organization as a personal asset.
My bf has realized that my organizational skills can be applied not only to my own crap, but to his crap too! Aw, he noticed. He’s recently moved into an apartment downtown. Too bad all he could afford in his dream location was less than 450 sq feet. Not bad actually, considering the real estate market here.
Anyway, it’s definitely not a hell of a lot of space, but it was a wonderful challenge. I was exhilarated when he gave me free reign of his furniture and space. After ordering him around to move stuff, slowly but surely the place was taking form and becoming a home he can enjoy, and one I don’t feel gross visiting.
The thought of such little space makes me nervous. What would I have to get rid of? Where would I put my shoes? Hell, where would I put my craft investments?? It made me seriously start to think about what I have acquired over the years. I won’t get into my Hello Kitty phase. I have probably bought enough Hello Kitty stuff to buy a car, put a down payment on a house, AND feed a small third world country. I digress.
I’m an emotional hoarder. I remember where, when, how much, what I was wearing, who I was with when I look at all the things I’ve bought over the years. I know it has to stop, and I’ve been very good and not buying things lately. It’s very difficult though. There’s so much cute useless crap out there!! So I'm giving my crap a new life and turning them into cute accessories. It's a slow process with a lot of interruptions (my damn day-job, spending time with a bf, friends, family, exercising, eating, sleeping, my damn day-job...) but I love it when I do get into it.
Lessons learned today - one can actually live quite nicely in less than 450 sq feet. I have a lot of crap.
