Back and Feeling Lighter

I'm posting this to Mombot Companion too. I want some encouragement. Also, I'm thinking more and more about building a homepage, putting my patterns on there as both html and pdf downloads, and combining my blogs. I want to post daily but can't do it with both blogs, you know?

I've gotten really inspired by this flickr set, by a girl who downsized from a 3 bedroom, large house to a one bedroom apartment with her husband and little one. Her name is Sara, her blog is interesting too. I found all this through this thread on MDC.

It's gotten me to think a lot... about all my stuff. How I just purged a shit ton a few months ago, and how I've been working on it, filling my previously bare closet with boxes of the kids' toys and clothes that they'll never play with/wear-- and how I still have all this crap everywhere! I can't even sweep or vacuum! It's complete insanity.

So today, I've worked on purging. I have about 6 garbage bags full so far, of just TRASH. I'm talking about pizza boxes and juice bottles and trampled artwork and random papers that were just laying in the middle of our living spaces. Insanity, I tell you. I cleared off the kitchen counter, mostly, just by throwing stuff away. While Boo Bear was splashing in the bath, I was getting THREE garbage bags full of stuff out of the bathroom. No shit! Three. I went through all my makeup and products. I don't use that shit. Ever. I kept enough makeup to halfway fill up a tiny box. I now do not even own any foundation. I kept some makeup because occasionally I like to pretend I'm not a granola muncher, and wear some. Just sometimes, you know.

I have a plan. A glorious plan, to radically downsize.

--throw out most of my magazines. Except the craft ones.
--make a giant thick bag out of all my crappy scratchy acrylic yarn, slightly smaller than the giant tupperware I have my yarn in now, and store the rest of my yarn in there.
--trade in a lot of my books for fewer ones of better quality.
--I have a lot of old empty ripped up photo albums, for some reason. I'm tossing them.
--I'm throwing out the old journals I've kept that are mind numbingly boring.
--Clothing: purge even more, radically reduce all our clothing, especially shoes, and blankets.
--Donate D's old stroller and carseat.
--Kitchen: clean out cabinets and toss old food and random junk that's in there now. Get rid of extra plates, utensils, and gadgets.
--Bathroom: Already downsized that shit, but do it some more. Am I really going to use a hair iron?

I also have some space saving/decorating projects in mind that don't involve throwing shit away all willy nilly. I've decided that if I'm going to keep my yarn and fabric I'm going to have to start using it like crazy.
--Sew up some hanging shelves for the closet.
--Make a needle roll case.
--Make colorful wall hangings with pockets, and some without.
--Make archive boxes out of paper covered cereal boxes for the few magazines I'm keeping.
--Go through the giant bags from my old car that I have had around for MONTHS.
--Put books I'm keeping on shelves. They're mostly in boxes now.
--USE MY DRAWER SPACE. Clothes everywhere and empty drawers. WTF.
--Make some aprons. I made one last week that I really love and hope to get pictures of it soon. It makes me feel like a homemaking goddess. I'm wearing it now and I feel so strong and awesome.


Becca sent me a big box of yarn the other day and I've got plans for that. I'm making Boo Bear a sweater already. She sent me a lot of Caron Simply Soft, which I adore. Enough to make me and the kids a couple/few sweaters, and stuff. Also some really soft and fuzzy white acrylic which I may make bears or something out of. And some yellow sport weight that I'm thinking of knitting into lacy curtains with big needles. I have always wanted yellow curtains in my kitchen. There's some cotton-like stuff, that I'm thinking of making into baskets. She even tucked in some homemade soap and a little Martha Stewart craft mag for kids (which Rowan is going to spaz over!) So thanks again, Becca! It made me so happy to get that package.

I shall update on my purging/downsizing progress. This week is my Major Purge Week. Anyone want to do it along with me? I figure actually taking stuff to the dump and to be donated all week, and then doing at least 15 mins a day after this week, should get my stuff as radically simplified as I'd like.

Who's with me? It's quite freeing.