We looked at a house recently.
My main concern was that it had too many rooms.
I know. I can’t believe I said that either. As someone with an unhealthy love of closeable doors, I used to assume that additional rooms would solve ever-so-many of my problems.
The room I had envisioned (from the internet description) as my “Project Room” had two doors and was actually a passageway to the upstairs Bonus Room.
It kind of defeats the Project Room Purpose if you have to keep it neat and orderly so people can pass through.
As I obsessed over the Project Room concept, I realized the main task I envisioned myself doing in this fictional space was the Seasonal Clothing Changeover.
Really . . . that’s not a project. It’s a day’s task that I rarely finish in a day.
That task/project is also a common thread in my Master Bedroom Disaster Dramas. I won’t, but I’m pretty sure I could go through my various posts about that bedroom and find that most of them revolve around me finally putting away the suitcase that is supposed to store out-of-season clothing.
The suitcase that sometimes stays in the middle of the floor until it’s time to change to the next season.
Here’s the thing. What I’ve been thinking of as a Project Room is really a Waiting Room. My ideal home has a Waiting Room. A room with no other purpose than to hold unfinished projects.
A room that no one but me would ever need to enter or walk through or see.
Ever.
Never ever.
Bear with me, because here’s where it gets confusing.
Even though on paper this house was my ideal home because it had the Waiting Room I’ve always dreamed of, when I saw that the waiting room wouldn’t work, I realized I preferred it didn’t have that room at all.
I’d rather have a bigger living room.
LIVING room.
Hmmm. Living . . . vs Waiting.
And then it hit me. I use my master bedroom as a waiting room.
Yesterday I did the Seasonal Clothing Changeover. Because I had recently had this rather profound realization, I consciously made the decision to work inside my closet. From the spot where the suitcase is stored. I did not drag it to the middle of the master bedroom.
And guess what? I’m done. Already! And I really believe that NOT having a good place to leave it until I can get back to it has something to do with that.
After all the work I did on the master bedroom a few weeks ago, I have thoroughly enjoyed being able to LIVE in that room.
Living is so much more fun than waiting.
Really. It is.
Jennie says
I’m glad you came this conclusion on your own. I HATE my “waiting” room. It was supposed to be my craft room. Now it’s my “cr*p” room. I too want a bigger living room. Where I can’t hide my stuff and where people can come in and see where we live instead of where I hide.
Chara says
Yes, I understand exactly. My family of five lives in a two bedroom house. I have three children under the age of five and they will all share a room once we move the baby in there. We are pretty cramped and looking to finish the remodeling that our little house needs so we can put it on the market.
Something I’ve started to realize is that my little house (cramped though it may be at times) has ingrained in me the desire to cull out unnecessary items from my home.
That isn’t to say that I’ve perfected it at all. There are some boxes in my closet that need to be tossed or cleaned out, but for the most part, I have no problem boxing up things and taking them to Goodwill, or the dump. There is too much life in my house to hold lifeless, useless things. It’s such a good thing to keep in mind- that your house is for your life, not to store your boxes of stuff.
Missy says
Ack! A project / waiting room sounds a little scary to me. I think it would turn into more of a black hole of “hmmm, forgot I had this, forgot I had that” space instead (for me). When I look at my closet and realize how quickly things can get out of control (it’s the place I stuff and stash if I need to) I can’t imagine how much damage I would do to an entire room!! Hmm, with that thought I’m off to clean my closet now 🙂
CeCe says
Ack!! A waiting room in my house would be the start of WWIII btwn hubby and me. I already have “waiting corners”. At least twice monthly he gripes, “Why do you have stuff in every corner of this house?” I have empty boxes in my bedroom, and the den for eventually sorting thru kids’ clothing for consignment sale; I have baskets of unfolded laundry in den; I have SEVERAL projects in corner of my bedroom (frame I want to repaint, a wooden box I want to make into a “stove” for my 7 yr old, stack of clothing I want to make sewing adjustments to). I’ve come to the realization in the last month that I’m not a project person. If I can’t buy it already the way I need it, it won’t get done. So I’m not allowing myself any more projects (at least not until I finish the ones listed 🙂
Elizabeth Velderman says
Congrats! What a great accomplishment. I love finishing a task that I dreaded and finding out it really wasn’t so bad. And I love how you said “Living vs. Waiting” – I think I need to start living more and stop waiting so much. Thanks for your encouragement! 🙂
Lisa Hetherington says
What an awesome idea, Nony!!! Stay in the closet and get it done and don’t even take the suitcase out of the closet!!
I agree with you, Living is MUCH better than waiting!
Maura says
I just started reading your blog recently, and I love your honesty and your ideas!
I’m wondering (really, just curious – that’s not code for judgement!) why you have seasonal clothes that need a suitcase? It seems like a lot of work (work I would never get around to, myself!) I just hang the stuff I don’t immediately need at the back and put the current stuff front and center. My closet is pretty small, but I guess my wardrobe is too?
Nony says
That’s what I do for my own clothes, but I store the kids’ clothes partly for space but also so they won’t wear sweaters in summer or bathing suits at Christmas. (Because they totally would!)
Maura says
LOL, that makes sense!
CeCe says
Our kids’s rooms are pretty small but their closets are pretty large (long, rectangular with bi-fold doors), so my husband put in an additional lower rack for hanging the clothes. So in winter the coats, jeans, sweats, and long sleeves are hung on the bottom; now in spring all the short sleeves and spring jackets are on the bottom. They each have 1 dresser: now that it’s spring, I put the sweaters in the top drawer (sorta out of reach; or out of sight out of mind concept); when those things ARE in season, they go in a lower drawer. So basically they only have to go in their underwear/sock drawer (bottom) and the one directly above that (which has whatever is in season (right now it houses the shorts).
Livin In Duckville says
Congratulations on the ‘lightbulb moment’! And good work on your bedroom being ‘livable’ space.
Sara says
Just out of curiosity, why do you have a seasonal clothing changeover? I live in a 1500 square foot home with four family members. We don’t have many or particularly big closets. However, I just keep everything available in those closets year-round. That said, maybe it works for me because I only keep a few things for each of us. I keep 6-8 days total of clothes for son and 3-4 outfits for my daughter (she’s five months old, outgrowing clothes every 4-8 weeks and I’m doing laundry every couple days for her anyway to keep up with bibs and burp rags, so it just seems cheaper/simpler to just have a few things). I have maybe 3 shorts, 3 jeans, 7-10 shirts, 3 hoodies, 3 sweaters, 3 jackets, a couple dresses and way too many shoes and accessories. I just layer as needed in the winter and make more outfits out of my few clothes by using the shoes and accessories. My husband more-or-less has a week to ten day’s worth of clothing plus a few extra things for yard/house projects and working out. Keeping our wardrobes simple keeps life simple for me! It also helps me not procrastinate on laundry. When I used to keep more clothing, I’d put off laundry so long that it was absolutely overwhelming!!
Charlotte says
This was very profound to me. We moved into our home 3 years ago and I am finding that while I wanted more space I simply fill it up. I am working on that, but this makes it make more sense to me. I know you posted about this being a ministry and you have no idea how much both your current content and this old stuff is really is doing just that
Brandee says
From Chara (comment number 2) above, “ There is too much life in my house to hold lifeless, useless things.” YES. Waiting rooms/spaces hold so many lifeless things.
Joy Ann says
Thank you Chara for that keeper remark-“Too much life in this house for lifeless, useless things.” And Dana for the simple yet telling, “Living vs Waiting.” I’m 70. No point in waiting for em all to come back, especially not in these times. Time to put my own life into my home. And it is a process. And thank you so much for helping us all to enjoy the journey.
Deirdre Root says
Feeling this! I was debating whether to take my box of pins up to the sewing box in the attic, since I was probably going to be hemming some pants soon and it would be convenient not to go upstairs again…then I thought “If I PUT THE PINS AWAY I will know exactly where to look for them when I hem the pants sometime in the next 6 weeks or longer….” So now they are where they go and I can get some steps in by getting them when I need them rather than digging under my desk when one of the cats inevitably knocks it to the floor. Small victories are still victories!
Susan McVicker says
Yes!