From the Weekend: Across the Street

At the house across the street from us, someone left out a bag of garbage.
He pawed at it. Marked it. Then I came out to the front porch to take a photo.
He left, looking at me warily as he did so--quite put out.

We have an Urban Coyote study and tracking program.
I reported it.

I am actually glad we have a neighbourhood Coyote. You should see the rabbits!

Day 11: Declutter Your Dresser Drawers.

Read the previous entry in this series:  Day 10: Go Thru the Clothes Closet or start at the beginning with the Introduction: 5 Ways Clutter Costs.


I tackled my dresser drawers back during the Closet Cure with Apartment Therapy. Their assignment was focused on sweaters: pjs, workout wear and small clothes came later--but you can do those too if there's anything obvious which needs tossing.





By the by, in all this talk of holding something and asking yourself, "Does this bring me joy?" while decluttering (The Life Changing Magic of Tidying by Marie Kondo), one woman in the bogosphere discovered that the clothes she kept under her bed (and hadn't seen in a long time) had been barfed on by her dog. Her question then became--is this worth cleaning off the dog barf?

Whatever works.

Be ruthless.

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians.

Read the next entry in this series Day 12: Declutter Your Handbags and Shoes.
(This one I need to do, too!)

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Day 10: Go Thru the Clothes Closet.

Read the previous entry in this series:  Day 9: Declutter Your Choice. My Choice? My Living Room or start at the beginning with the Introduction: 5 Ways Clutter Costs.


Apartment Therapy sprung a Closet Cure on its readers a few weeks ago. (Click that link for decision tree graphic if nothing else. It's awesome.)  It was a great opportunity to go through all of one's clothes in about ten days (and involved two weekends).

This is not that. (Unless you want it to be and then, hey, go for it.You won't regret it.)

This is fifteen minutes of going through the closet--looking at whatever you have hanging up in there and finally letting go of what you know should go.

Since I did participate in the Closet Cure, I went through everything in the closet. You can read about that here, if you wish.

The reject pile.

Be ruthless.

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians.

Read the next entry in this series Day 11: Declutter Your Dresser Drawers

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Day 9: Declutter Your Choice. My Choice? My Living Room

Read the previous entry in this series:  Day 8: Any Kitchen Cabinet or start at the beginning with the Introduction: 5 Ways Clutter Costs.

Yay! Another "Your Choice" Day. I chose my living room for obvious reasons.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner for us--and I'm hosting this year (my choice.) Obviously, I can't entertain in a space like this.

As I tidied and cleaned up, I realised that I really should have chosen a different topic for this series.

One big dog bed. That's all my couch is! But doesn't he look cosy there in his little nest.

It's true, that compared to some, I don't have a lot of clutter.

Sorry for the blur.

But clutter is completely personal. That's because the level of clutter that each of us is able to tolerate is different. And it can be different for us at different times of our lives, too. The house truly is outside my clutter comfort zone.

But truthfully, my thoughts are totally focused on cleaning.

Slipcover in the wash. Olive green in no longer my colour. I need to scooch the rug over.

I kind of wish I'd done a "Fall Cleaning" series for this 31 day writing challenge. But I didn't for two reasons. 1) I've done it before and 2) I just don't have time.

I've been looking and looking for a suitable tray and I just haven't found one.

 Those orange pillow covers which were over these blue ones read far too pink for my liking. I took them off to exchange for some mustard coloured ones. The cushion has a spring sticking out of it, so I put it up to remember to show my husband and ask him to snip it for me.

This carpet is really getting me down. When I called to have it cleaned, the price was twice what I paid for it in the first place. I choked. Told myself, I'd clean it myself.

Now I wish I'd just shelled out and sent it out.

It'd be back by now and clean.

I hate "wasting"my free choice on what should be a daily habit--I should be doing a ten to fifteen minute pick up and put away every day. Today, I had hoped I would get to one of my many unfinished projects. Those count as clutter too.

But no.

Tomorrow and day after we're focused on clothes. Day 10: The Clothes Closet and Day 11: Dresser Drawers. I did both of these as part of the Closet Cure with Apartment Therapy. If you did too, you get a by--or more free days! As for me and the blog, I'll be totally cheating and posting links to those posts.

And I'll be cleaning, cooking, and maybe, just maybe getting to one or two of those projects.

Read the next entry in this series Day 10: Go Thru the Clothes Closet

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Day 8: Any Kitchen Cabinet

Read the previous entry in this series:  Day 7: Any kitchen drawer,  or start at the beginning with the Introduction: 5 Ways Clutter Costs.


Oh my, you guys, this was a tough one. I could have picked any cabinet--every cabinet--they are such a mess. But this one was bothering me in particular. I wasn't sure what was in here (never a good thing when it comes to food) and I found myself putting away the hot chocolate mix three times a day!

So here is the before:

Well, no this is the "true" before: everything is on the floor where I can see it and deal with it. (yeah, the counter and the table were, ahem, kind of cluttered.)

So, I moved some unopened packages to the basement pantry, consolidated the rice, repackaged (popcorn kernals into a jar and then into the freezer), spooned the hot chocolate in to a glass jar to be left on the counter (why fight it?) and tossed some questionable cereal and a stale sleeve of soda crackers. This Bisquick? Expired in 2013. No, wait, the package didn't say that, it said:

So, not a terribly impressive toss pile, but that's OK. Actually, it's better than OK--but it makes for a boring picture!

Bad blogger: forgot to take a picture before I emptied out the cereal. Oh well.

And here we are, everything back in the cabinet:

That was a fun little project. Tell me, are you having fun?

Read the next entry in this series Day 9: Your Choice. My Choice? My Living Room

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ORC Week 1: Creating a Dressing Room from Chaos

I think I am being too ambitious for my own good.

Out of three past attempts, I've only made it by the deadline once.

But I guess that's why it's called a challenge!

Yes, once again, I am participating as a guest in the One Room Challenge, hosted by Linda at Calling It Home.  It's five weeks from the Before to the Reveal (even though most people say it is six weeks, it is not). Over the course of six posts, I'll take you through the process of converting an awkward space over at my mother's into a glam --but very budget friendly-- dressing room.

For the last couple of years, I have been helping my mother recover from hoarding tendencies which developed over a long period of depression. When we demolished her bedroom closet during her bedroom make-over (ORC Spring 2014), I promised her we would "do something" with the little area she wasusing as a dressing room--an odd shaped space behind the bathroom.

That promise is over-due.

The area really is weird. Here is a floor plan.

Our plan is to take out those walls in green and make it one big area. (The back wall is thirteen feet long and the main area is just short of five feet wide.) The "wall" by the letter B is no wall at all--just railings for the stairs.

The Befores

The first picture is taken standing at "A" with the camera pointed in the direction shown.

I wish we had the budget for a new fan light, but sadly we don't.

I plan to mount drapes from the ceiling where the railings are--and across this bit here (about the middle of the screen) for a "door." A new wall out of drywall and a real door aren't in thetimeline--or the budget!

Beside the shelves we have a window. It faces west and gets lovely light.

This next picture was taken from point "B" looking at the closet at the end of the "hall."

The carpet is coming out.

Those shelves above the desk used to continue all the way down the wall where the desk is now.

It's a really tight squeeze through those bifold doors into that closet. Stuff gets put in there and forgotten.

So it's coming out. Who needs a closet in a closet?


Inspiration

A previous one room challenge!

source

I think our drapes need to be a bit more opaque than these, but this is exquisite.

source

Only thing is, we have more shoes.

source

Mom really likes this idea for bracelets and necklaces. I've never seen double pronged hooks like that. Anyone know what they are and where I can find them?

source (the original seems to have vanished)

Punch List:

Empty out every last little thing

Take down remaining shelving

Tear down closet

Repair dry wall and rebuild closet bit

Prep and paint walls

Tear out carpet

Lay down new flooring

Install new light fixture (in the old closet)

Find a bench/make one

Assemble Pax Wardrobes

Install closet rod(s)

Install shoe shelves

Figure out Jewellery storage/display

Move clothes back in.

But honestly, no matter what we do, we will not get it all back in. 

Yep, that's the room we created during the ORC, Spring 2014.

Here are my previous ORC's:

Spring 2014: Mom's bedroom (over deadline by a week)
Fall 2014: My Living Room (done on time!)
Spring 2015: My Dining Room (Technically still not finished. Just need to finish one last thing.)

Join us all for the fun! I've gotten to know some interesting people from past One Room Challenges. Check them out.

Day 7: Any kitchen drawer

Read the previous entry in this series:  Day 6: The Storage Containers: Don't Declutter Just to Declutter  or start at the beginning with the Introduction: 5 Ways Clutter Costs.


Some of you have mentioned that you are falling behind. Let me say this now, as clearly as I can: there is no behind. There is only forward. We all work at our own pace and as long as you're making progress--even if it is at the pace of the tortoise, you are moving forward. Remember, it all counts. (I mentioned to my mom the other day that I could just do Day 1 and clear the kitchen counters every day of the month--it would just be boring to read!)


Today's declutter mission was really quick. I got it done while dinner cooked!

This drawer holds our different wraps and plastic bags. It's also the place where my husband stashes extra bread bags and cutlery packets and wet-wipes from a local take-out place.

The bread bags are useful. We throw blocks of cheese in them. I put a roast in one today to freeze it. You know, there will never be a shortage of bread bags. So, in order to keep ourselves from being over run, I set a limit on the number we keep (3) --the rest we toss. What that means is, usually I find five or six waded up in the drawer and I go through periodically (usually when I have trouble shutting the drawer!) and get rid of all but three.

But the cutlery and the wet-wipes?
Never use them. Ever. Yes, I've mentioned it. They show up anyway.

So here is the toss pile:

Boom da da boom:

Looking the picture, it looks dirty along the edges there, doesn't it. It isn't. I cleaned the drawer while I had it empty: remember, it is 67 years old. 

Do you ever keep too much of a good thing? Would setting a limit help? Decide how much is enough.

 Read the next entry in this series Day 8: Any kitchen cabinet

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