A few weeks ago I checked out the book Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana K. White, host of the blog A Slob Comes Clean. The book is organized by room like many other organization and cleaning books. However, unlike other books, this book devotes an entire chapter to the craft room. Her book made me realize that I'd never appreciated the special challenges in keeping this particular space neat. Here are some problems I've had with my own craft space:
- Unfinished projects
Half-made items are the bane of my existence! You can't put them back into the places you store your materials, nor in their future finished home (jewelry box, dresser, etc.) Sure, you can set some of them on your worktable ... for awhile, anyway. But then what? What do you do with them? - So many tiny things
It does not feel quite as overwhelming to deal with a pile of old sweaters as it does a thousand tiny buttons. Many years ago I was helped by beader Carol Cypher who mentioned that she kept a container of "bead soup," that is, random beads that were all mixed together. It was a major revelation to think that I did not have to put away individual seed beads leftover from a project. - Out of sight, out of mind
It looks neater to have everything put away in a drawer, but it makes the space less inspiring. I am more likely to use items that I can see. In an ideal world, I would have more open storage such as the peg board I'm using to hang my scissors.
- Harder to find donation sites
Craft materials, especially recycled ones (old magazines, Popsicle sticks), can be trickier to donate than your old clothes and books. Schools, churches, and women's shelters may take some craft items, but it's up to you to contact them and find out the details as most do not have this information online. - Saying good-bye to possibilities
Artists tend to see potential in things which makes it harder to let go. I know that those old plastic ice cream containers could be used for something; a non-artist probably would say that they are trash!
This is also a problem with crafts that I've dabbled in such as polymer clay, but don't do on a regular basis. It's tempting to think that I might someday get back into it, but I know I won't. What I've done so far is get rid of most related items (all clay and some tools), but I'm still hanging onto the bigger items such as the pasta machine. It's hard to close the door completely on even a remote possibility! Wendi in "How to Declutter a Craft Room," understands this. She wrote about keeping some eyelash yarn because she might use it in amigurumi. "The problem with that is that I don't crochet amigurumi," she wrote. "I could learn -- and I'd like to -- but the realistic side of me knows that I probably won't." - Distractions
It's rare that I want to try on my shoes while putting them away. With craft materials, it is much more tempting to immediately use anything that I've unearthed from a pile to be put away. This is why there are usually multiple projects on my table at the same time.
8 Ideas On How To Clear Creative Clutter
Here are the tips that have personally helped me the most:
- Do the easy stuff first
I recently spent a few minutes going through my acrylic paints and seeing which bottles were still usable. Testing out pens, throwing out old paper towels, and hanging tools on a peg board are all easy and quick tasks. - Find a regular place to donate items
I'm lucky that my town has a creative reuse center (Who Gives A SCRAP?), which will take most of my unwanted craft items. It is a lot easier to get rid of things when you can take them to the same place each time. - Use deadlines to motivate yourself
I have a friend who is teaching some craft classes for children this summer. Knowing the dates she is teaching is helpful in motivating me to do some cleaning. Another deadline that has worked for me in the past is our town's annual date where we can get safely get rid of hazardous materials such as old paint or cleaners. - Designate containers, shelves, drawers
When I find things piling up, it's usually because I haven't figured out where they should go. Once I decide on a drawer or container, I try to stick with it and not let my collections expand beyond it. This has been especially useful with my recycled items. I have a good collection of old Altoids tins that I'd like to make into things, but now that the container storing them is full, I no longer save them.
Not sure what type of container would work best? I agree with Lydia Fielder in "How Sorting Your Craft Supplies Creates Less Clutter" that "In order to keep similar items together, we need many small spaces and few large containers. Large storage items, such as crates and bins, tend to gather haphazard collections of things and this leads to crafty chaos!" - Label everything
This is especially important if you make items to sell. It's much easier to see when you're running low on a key component. - Make in-progress storage containers
I have three empty square plastic boxes that I use for in-progress jewelry designs. This lets me clear them from the table, but not forget that I'm working on them. If I need a storage container for something new I'm working on, then I have to finish a project, not buy a new container. - Concentrate on visible areas first
This is tip I picked up from Decluttering at the Speed of Life. Organize counters and flat spaces before tackling drawers and closets. There is something psychologically soothing to see a room that looks clean and organized. It makes me feel like I can keep cleaning, rather than getting discouraged early on. - Prioritize your current passion
Tastes do change. Maybe you used to be into knitting and now you're making jewelry. If you have a limited space, make sure you're giving your current passion enough room. In a post on decluttering and minimalism, Beth recommends choosing one thing to focus on and making tangible goals. For example, rather than saving every skein of yarn, choose one or two of your favorites to use for a pair of mittens or a scarf. I also liked in Jennifer Priest's post "2018 Craft Room Tour" that she mentions the importance of having some empty space. She writes, "When you have a space that is full of so much stuff that you can't hardly move without bumping into something that in itself can stifle your creativity."
Happy Spring (and Summer) Cleaning!