I am cleaning out some closets and a few storage areas that have not been looked at in years. I got to feeling guilty having too much “stuff” for the girls to go through if I should croak. Visions of “stuff” on a hay wagon in boxes going for little or nothing at an auction sale was dancing through my head or my youngest daughter hiring a dumpster to clean out the house.
I set up a eBay account and will be selling some “stuff” there soon. In the meantime I am getting organized and selling some “stuff” on a Facebook Swap and Shop locally…no shipping involved. What doesn’t sell will be boxed for a garage sale next summer. I have not had a garage sale in four or five years and it sure shows. Some “stuff” will be donated.
I ran across some strange items…some things I forgot all about. Out of sight out of mind. Mainly old crafts.
A box full of felt, another full of supplies to make cute little mice refrigerator magnets on clothespins. Boxes and boxes of ribbon, curly, satin, raffia, cloth…uffda.
And this the epitome of all crafts.
Is that a blast from the past or what? A long, long time ago I was a crafter. I made oodles of these vegetables and fruits..the peas, strawberries and the cherries were hot sellers. One dollar each I think, the strawberries were probably 2 for a dollar. Oh those were the days. ( The white hose was dyed different colors, then the shapes were cut out and stuffed and sewed shut. Smiles and eyes were sewn in place. Felt and magnets went on the back.)
As I wandered down craft memory lane I sorted and sorted and made small bags of “stuff”; T Pins, safety pins, push pins, floral tape…wooden ornaments to be painted… you get the idea.
What a surprise that my set of oil paints were still soft..useable I am not so sure. I couldn’t bring myself to list them for sale or throw them out. They are tucked safely away in an ice cream bucket marked Oil Paints. Maybe someday I could paint again. I would like to try…I just never seem to have the time for all the creative outlets I would like to explore. I am way past the refrigerator magnet era:)
Morning, can you come and clean up my closets please, I need help to declutter.........What one finds, Blessings Francine.
ReplyDeleteAmazing what we have stashed away. I'm working on dumping from closets and the basement again. I can only dump for a month or so. Then I have to stop and relax. I am good at hoarding, bad at dumping. My daughter says she sees a difference so I'm accomplishing something.
ReplyDeleteI am in the process of moving and downsizing at the same time. Boy, the stuff one collects is amazing. Some things haven't seen the light of day for 20 years and it still is hard to throw it out. Goodwill has been seeing a lot of me lately.
ReplyDeleteYes, the magnets are a blast from the past. I was once into making fabric picture frames, trimmed with lace and ribbon. Oh and the tangled mess of embroidery thread I recently tossed! Like you, I have gotten rid of so much but I held on to a few small bottles of craft paint - just in case!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good thing to be doing. I laughed at the image you painted of what your kids would do if you croaked. :-)
ReplyDeleteMust be something in the air as I'm doing exactly the same thing except most of my 'stuff' is being donated to a local hospice shop to boost their funds. I am selling a few bits (via Facebook groups and eBay) but not much. What doesn't sell there after a few tries will also be donated. I've even sold our wooden lounge furniture - oops! We're definitely going minimal - lol!
ReplyDeleteAs many arts and crafts as I have puttered around in, I never knew about the refrigerator magnets. It's probably too late to start now. But you have inspired me to do some decluttering in case of...well, croaking unexpectedly.
ReplyDeleteThe same process goes on here. You sort of priorize things and what's left over goes to the dump. My daughter always jokes about how we will be getting back at her when she has to clean out all our junk. I think she's bang on with the junk definition. the stuff is valuable to me but not anybody else.
ReplyDeleteI really need to go through the closets again. Years ago, I joined several friends in hosting a yard sale every year. That helped keep the "stuff" in the closets trimmed, but we stopped doing the sales for a while. I think it's time to begin again.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about getting my water colors out today. I know some of them are getting grainy. sigh.
ReplyDeleteI was never much of a craft person. Karmyn must have gotten her gene from the other side of the familyi.
Love the old fridge magnets. ViMae and I painted some flower magnets a year or so ago...and our dining room table is about six inches deep in her craft stuff. We are slowly gitting rid of stuff. If we don't, our daughter will be so overwhelmed she'll just about have no choice but to bring in a dumpster. Hopefully we have time to work on it some more. :)
ReplyDeleteI need to do a thorough clean again. I am putting it off till next year though, :-)
ReplyDeleteI totally understand the lack of time thing AND the desire to 'un-nest'! I've been doing some of the same thing.
ReplyDeleteGood for you for sticking to it!
It's always fun to look back and see what crafts were 'in' at some point or other. I'm good at the collecting, not so good at the uncollecting. Last year I gave some bags of cotton fabric scraps and polar fleece scraps away on Craigslist, and I couldn't believe the response I had to that ad. Other stuff I donate to the thrift store. Feels good to clean up and de-clutter though:)
ReplyDeleteI have never seen those little stuffed fruity and vegie things. Sure feels good to clean out. I am boxing stuff for a yard sale too.
ReplyDeleteI, too, have to get rid of most of my crafting/art supplies. I've done some, but I'm not looking forward to hitting two big cabinets filled with my "treasures."
ReplyDeleteI got rid of so much of that kind of stuff when we moved North. Now little nooks and crannies are starting to fill up again. Time to reassess and toss. I'm betting you have a good feeling about your new found space, and some day the girls will appreciate it!!!
ReplyDeleteWe had a clean out not long ago and it is amazing the stuff one collects over the years . Good cloths donated to our Sally Anne ( salvation army ) magazines donated to the Dr's & dentist office , and the rest was put on Kijiji we use here . The fruit and veggie craft looks cute . Hope you get all sold on e-bay . Thanks for sharing . Have a good day !
ReplyDeleteOMG! I think about the same thing especially since my children live so far away. Actually, I'm just getting into the craft phase now as between kids and career I had little time for all that but I am trying to stay with fabric and yarn and not go off on any tangents..Ha! Ha! I felt good because I've got 2 big bags for the thrift store and I took 3 boxes to recycling of magazines. A small dent in a mountain of stuff!
ReplyDeleteThis cleaning out and simplifying for my future heir must be catching. I'm going with Craigs List to help the process along....:)
ReplyDeleteYou were quite the crafty person weren't you?
ReplyDeleteWhen we moved, I gave away my "stash" of fabric, left a note on the board, not 10 minutes later a knock on the door. Someones Mom was very happy to have it all. It went to a good home.
Jen
I thought just yesterday about all of the stuff we have stuffed in the house, in closets and in the garage and in the attic. But I'm just not ready to start getting rid of my treasures. Other stuff I have no trouble taking to Goodwill.
ReplyDeleteGood for you! It's so satisfying to see those empty spaces. And so tempting to fill them up again!
ReplyDeleteThat is a good thing. I need to get to that spot. But my stuff deserves a dumpster.
ReplyDeleteI never seem to have enough time for all the things I was to create, either. You are probably wise to go through all the nooks and crannies now. I went through them several years ago, but could probably do another pass by now--LOL! I have some oils, too, from when I fell in love with Bob Ross--LOL! ;)
ReplyDeleteI am always impressed at your art talents!!
ReplyDeleteLinda
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