2013 Annual DeStash-Along

[Wulf]

I know it seems strange to plan my art room around using it for parties but we have amazing and very respectful friends and we love being able to allow them to have birthday parties at our place, heck we have a fire pit we dug out back and we partly chose this place for that reason.  Also by having events I hope to be motivated to keep my art room organized.

It seems like a very good strategy to keep things from getting out of hand in the future. One of the reasons my work area is so bad is that it's literally in the farthest corner of the house and nobody but I ever, ever goes there. And taking off the closet door is a very good idea. I've done that to both bedroom closets in our house because they take up a lot of space. Yes, they do keep dust out of the closet, but if that's a worry, a curtain will do the same job and take up less room. (A clear shower curtain would be excellent for a closet door.)

The photographing and labelling process has already started to produce returns. As I was identifying things in the workspace photo, I noticed several storage areas where I really couldn't name what was in them. Either it was an unidentifiable mix of stuff (a red flag!) or there really wasn't much in there anyway. I'll try to remember to do before and after photos of some of those as I make progress. Just this morning, for example, doing a 20-minute UFYH session, I emptied a box that contained some blank file cards, a bag of coloured pencils, some crayons and chalk, and one mechanical pencil. That set me to gathering up all the scattered stashes of file cards around the house, and it was enough to almost fill the box back up. When I went to put the crayons and chalk where I used to keep that sort of art supplies, I found there wasn't anything there except some felt markers (mostly dried out), more mechanical pencils and leads, a wallpaper brush, and some quill pens. (This in a very large toolbox.) So I put the brush in the bin of painting equipment (I can almost remember why I once bought a wallpaper brush. It certainly wasn't for hanging wallpaper, I know that!), and started little stashes of mechanical pencils, ink pens, crayons, chalk, etc. in ziplock bags. I know I will find more of each of them as I keep going, and they could easily go into little boxes or bins somewhere. I don't really have a use for the large toolbox any more, so I'll give it away, but the shelf space it occupied is pure gold!

Oh, now I remember what the wallpaper brush was for: painting faux wood grain. I guess I could just get rid of it then, but since I've found a perfectly good place to store it, I probably won't.

One other thing I realized this morning, trying to work on a swap project between destashing sessions, is that I have way too many big boxes of mixed fabric scraps. (There are at least two more not shown in those photos.) I'm going to have to sort them by colour if they're going to be any use to me at all. Maybe that's next. I think just into clear bags for the time being, then into some type of bins when I've found space for them.

Wulf

[gaudiknight]

I'm loving everyone's pictures of their stashes and crafting areas.  My goal for the week is to do the same, but since my supplies are scattered throughout the house, it might take me a while.  But I want to document where I'm at now so I can keep track of my progress (or lack thereof) better.

Haven't managed to get much crafty stuff done at all this week.  Things were just a little bit too busy/stressful.  But I'm keeping up the calendar idea, and trying to do a little each day, even if its just a few rows of knitting, or five minutes of sorting.

[Kookaloo_Starr]

I've been crafting and not cleaning/de-cluttering today although what I've made can't be shared yet and barely used up anything!
I HAVE to make myself a half apron with big pockets for when I'm cleaning,I need pockets to stuff my rags and latex gloves in and loops on the side to hang my spray bottles. Its all in my head, it's just not coming out of my hands yet!   

[lovesclutter]

I so understand. I'm on day 4 of an 8 day work schedule. I did get my pens, crayons, markers and paper sorted.

Wulf, you may want to hang onto the toolbox. I have a lot of old luggage, the small ones, with dividers, and put all jewelry making supplies in there. If I don't make something with jewelry I will have to donate it or sell it.

I am drawn to containers in any form. I have 2 beautiful hat boxes, one holds lace and one holds trim. Any time I pic up something I've already made a place for it goes in its container. Yes, even from picking up one piece of elastic and putting it in its container. May take more than January to get organized, but feeling so optimistic.

Glue sticks organized, glue gun sticks organized, stash for swap i'm working on, all materials present and accounted for.

[ScrappySue]

well have had awesome decluttering day today. My sister came over and made her yearly cards and I destashed.
Quite a few things I had been wavering on went to her, and some to my daughter who called in.
A HUGE bag of fabric scraps for the friend new to sewing.
Two sewing machines to be donated to daughters school.
I posted some pics on face book which freed me of a quilt top to a friend, a giant thing of wool to another and two sets of Indian clothes to another.
I have gone through a stack of containers and emptied 4, which have gone off to other rooms.
A huge bag of rubbish.
And a box for the opshop.
Phew.
And doing while chatting made the whole thing more pleasant 
S

[misskohaku]

After a whole lot of organizing and cleaning this week, my dorm room is finally organized (mostly...)! I usually always have a bunch of junk containers, but I have everything put away except for one basket of stuff and one bag of craft supplies. The only thing I actually destashed so far was a canvas board that I gave to my roommate who paints. Now that my floor is cleared up I can actually lay out and sort my crafting supplies, which I keep in 4 18 gallon bins under my bed and various bags/containers. I've also even managed to reorganize my supplies within the bins so that the yarns are all in individual bags and my other supplies aren't just thrown in.  

I'm hoping to get all my supplies into the 4 bins, if possible 2 or 3, by the end of the semester. I also have several more 18 gallon bins in my family's storage unit... Yeah I really need to use up or destash.

[Ruby Copperhead]

So many people made progress! I felt a bit left out. So I went and inventarized my cotton yarn stash, sorted it, put tags on the boxes and wrote down what I have. Nice result, but ouch, will I end up with a big inventory *nervously eyeing fabric stashes*

[llisaredd]

My stash has been organized over and over...but then I get into it and it gets unorganized. When it's time to put things away I just throw them in the general direction, or stuff them in a bag and throw it in the storage closet. So, yeah, I need to organize my stuff again too. It shouldn't take more than an evening or two I think. The thing I am NOT looking forward to is going through my paper things. When one makes inchies, one saves every tiny scrap of paper or ephemera. I used to think I was pretty good about not buying more stash. I told myself I could only buy something if I had a project in mind for it. Problem is, I have more projects in mind than time! If I didn't volunteer full time and go to school or have children, a husband, a house and pets to take care of, (and spend too much time on Pinterest and Facebook and playing silly iPad games) then maybe I'd get all those projects done. Maybe. Truth is, I really shouldn't buy any more supplies for anything until I've finished up some of those projects I have in mind.

So.....My in-laws gave me a gift card to Micheal's for my birthday. $50. And they were having a sale (they are ALWAYS having a sale). And I had a coupon for 20% off my entire order. Even sales items! What did I do? Well, I had to go on Sunday to get that 20% off. Had to. And I actually did pretty good with spending. I only bought 2 balls of sock yarn, and one skein of yummy wool for a headband. The rest was spent on boxes or jars for storage Tonight, I will begin the organization process. I still have some money left on the card so if I need to get more storage supplies I will. I'll try to post pictures of before and after too.

[lovesclutter]

Scrappy Sue, you made excellent progress. I'm inspired (almost) but I need my coffee. LOL I guess a bunch of us spend way too much time on the computer, me included.

misskoahaku? sp I would try to put as much as possible in clear containers so you can see it.  I have those storage tubs that are opaque and found quickly, they would just sit there.

[alwaysinmyroom]

I feel so normal here...I am going to let go of any negative feelings imposed on me either by others or myself about my stash and my creative process...EMBRACING MY STASH!!  I know where most everything is, even if I have to dig for it...so that is good enough for me...I did throw out about 30 toilet paper rolls because I don't need to collect them now until I am ready for my project...there will be more...just like paperbags, cardboard, etc.

I am turning some of my ugly fabric stash into coiled bowls for the Sweat Shop Swap...