There are just a gazillion tips out there for organizing your scrapbooking supplies. My daughter is an Oprah fan and put me onto this book, It's All Too Much. Peter Walsh is a Professional Organizer from TLC's series Clean Sweep and is apparently in Oprah's good graces. He approaches organization not so much from how to store the things you have, but how to not have so many things.
I'm just in the beginning pages and right in the introductory chapter he rags on the wife of his profile couple for having scrapbooking supplies all over the house, like that's a bad thing. But, he probably has a valid point. When you've collected so much scrapbooking stuff that you spend more time and money organizing it than playing with it and it actually gets in the way of making the memories you're supposed to be scrapbooking, it may be time to rethink. So, I'll let you know if I have any big revelations with this book.
So far, here's one of Peter's recommendations that's kind of intriguing. He's talking about kitchen utensils, but I wonder how I might apply this to my Scrapbooking supplies: If you want to see what utensils you're really using, Peter recommends the cardboard box test. "Take all the utensils out of your drawers, put them in a cardboard box," he says. "For the next month, whenever you use one of these utensils, put it back in the drawer. If after four weeks it's still in the box, you don't need it."
Then what . . . how to get rid of unused/unneeded supplies guilt free? Donate. Here's some suggestions: I give mine to the Heart of Texas charity crops for silent auctions but you can also give to Girl Scout Troops, Nursing Homes, Ronald McDonald House, and hospitals. Women with problem pregnancies are often in hospitals for months with so little entertainment. The web site www.operationscrapbook.org helps gets donated items to Foster Children and Hospice patients. Dang, that feels good.
Okay . . . confession time. I've shown you lovely pictures of my scrapbooking space, but spared you the chaos. Here it is now. We'll see if it changes after reading Peter's books. You'll be my witnesses.
So here's my Tuesday Tip: join me in my quest to declutter. Pick up Peter's book and lets go on this journey together. If you have some suggestions for decluttering, please, leave me a comment. Or, if you're a self-confessed hoarder, leave me a comment, too. We'll form an AA-like group - Clutter Junkies Unite! Let me know if you'd like me to pass along Peter's jewels of wisdom.
Meanwhile, I'm thinking that buying a book about organization ought to at least count as some credit toward cleaning out my garage. Oh . . . if only thinking about it could make it happen.
Okay, off to scrap . . .
Lin
