Hi Dana!
I’ve been following you for years, and I want to thank you so much for all you do. This past weekend I went to visit my 80 year old mom, and I was able to share your message with her. She is beautifully creative, but her art room was too cluttered for her to even find her paints.
My sister has been set on removing everything from the room and starting over. While I know that process works for some people, there’s no way it would work for my mom. She would never have the energy or time to go through all that. Instead, I taught her your brilliant system.
We got started on her studio. First we looked for trash, but she really didn’t have any. It was all STUFF! So we picked up one thing that didn’t belong in the room and removed it. We left the room and put it where it belonged. She asked me, “Can’t I even wait until I have two or three things to take out of the room?” Nope! We walked one thing to it’s proper room. Then we walked one thing to the donate bin. I think we got through about 4 things when my dad popped his head in the room and asked for lunch.
As we left her art room to go fix lunch, I pointed out to my mom that even stopping unexpectedly, we were leaving the room better, less cluttered. There was no pile of things that had to be put away elsewhere. There was no box of items to get shoved under a desk and forgotten.
She was excited, but not quite hooked.
Later that day we started up again. One by one, we threw things away, walked them to another room or walked them to the donate bin. I reminded her that we could get interrupted at any point, and the room would still look better!
After dinner, she couldn’t wait to do it again. We cleaned off an entire table and a packed shelf, one thing by one thing.
I reminded her that if she ever goes in there and removes just one thing, she should CELEBRATE with all her heart! Now she is totally hooked.
You have been such a blessing to me, and now you’ve helped my beautiful, creative mom get closer to painting again. I can’t thank you enough.
Thank you for sharing your message with us! We love you!!
Cathy B.
I’m only 79 and discovered you over a year ago, so maybe the 80 year old artist omment doesn’t fit me. Ha. But taking ONE thing at a time to where it belongs has an amazing side benefit. EXERCISE. STEP COUNT. My “exercise ” is just to get a certain number of steps in daily. Using app which counts and then compares me with everyone and also with people in my age group. Amazing that I am accountable to a watch/phone on my wrist. I have found to my amazement that I can quite easily put in 4-5000 steps a day just picking up and taking one thing at a time home. (Laundry day more because I hang stuff just out of dryer and take each item ONE AT A TIME to nearby closet. I’m nuts–but sooooo much happier with a home being more livable and getting all those extra steps without being bored to tears on a treadmill.) Please keep us on track.
PS My spouse thought this was another passing fad in the beginning, but noticed after six months that the kitchen counter was staying tidy ALL THE TIME (mostly). Now dear spouse is beginning to make progress in decluttering and tidying too.
Stay safe. Wear a mask.
Mostly I follow the ‘one item at a time’ rule but I must confess that because I am prone to falls when going up or down the steps to my den I use a plastic tote from the dollar store to take several small items at a time. Items larger than the tote do go alone.
But in the upper part of the house it’s totally one thing at a time. That’s my exercise plan, along with parking far away from the store, next to the farthest cart corral of course.
In much the same way, I rediscover my card-making/stamping stockpile, and cross-stitching stockpile…two hobbies that I REALLY DO, even though I don’t have much time. But I am always amazed at how quickly the “Craft Room” gets out of control when someone else is in there…do you NOT REMEMBER where you got that?!?!?
Anyways, it is always like a breath of fresh air in there once I have followed your method, which WORKS!!! EVERYWHERE!! You just need to keep the routine!
Thanks, Dana, and everyone else who shares their amazing stories!!
My craft room never stays organized, but it’s because my 4 kids constantly go in there to take what they want to use and never ever put it back where it belongs. I even made a separate area for just their crafts stuff, so they know not to rummage through mine… but they don’t listen! But when it IS nice and neat and organized, I feel so satisfied and relaxed. The act of cleaning and decluttering relieves stress for me.