day 5 - laundry

The good end of the laundry stays like this most of the time. I change the pictures to suit my mood, (very indulgent) but it is my workspace.

I havent said yet, but as I go through each space I take anything leftover to the dining room to rethink it and see if I need it anywhere else before the final ditch out the front door. So the porch is piling up and the dining room has a few piles in it now too, but controlled so far. Ill get boxes today while doing an op-shop drop.

Ive just added the basket for the toilet rolls this week

 I discovered I had a spare perfect sized one. Exciting stuff. I know, I know, im beginning a post discussing toilet roll storage but this is what life has been reduced to! They bugged me and wouldnt fit in the cupboard. Speaking of bugs....

 Im almost at the middle of the house now and I suppose this whole process (for me) is about documenting the details so I can carry any ideas through to the next place.

The thing im finding is im waking up with such a feeling of lightness and I reckon I could give cartwheeling a good crack. I used to be really good and could do them one handed.

Okay, I wont be going that far.

The rest of the room goes through stages of chaos and sorting.

The table works well and is where I iron, of course it is a luxury. One of those easels will go to our kids we dont need two.

There is often overflow when I craft too much or go away for the weekend.

Or when the teenager enters the room. This is my clean washing fallen and left on the floor while looking for a favourite t-shirt. This is the moment when I discovered.....

 there was a bug infestation from the bottom of my basket that got left outside. Ewwwww! Slaters and a slug. Dry reaching (the slug) I hit rock bottom when I saw this! They scattered really fast which is even worse, plus I must be a bit obsessed with photographing weird things (to show the Mr and maybe you all) cos instead of reaching for the vacuum cleaner like a normal person I reached for the camera.

Back to the real reason for this post. Ummmm, I forget whats in here. 

The drawers to the left, just out of shot, are empty and awkward to get to.

I havent really touched most of this since we moved in a year ago. I mainly use the things from under the kitchen sink to clean with???? Need to figure out a better system. 

This room is where my fabric is stored. I used to have my studio in here

and it will be back again in a couple of months,

when our son, his wife and new baby arrive to stay indefinitely. 

I reckon im almost there in the laundry but theres room for improvement.

Im left wondering if ive inspired anyone yet?

 If toilet roll storage is something you need to address at your place then why not start now?

day 4.5 - kitchen

Ive had to rethink this whole room and break it down to bare basics of how we operate during

breakfast,

 lunch and dinner.

I set up stations because being a long narrow kitchen we bump into each other trying to get past.

I was able to simplify it enough to make it work.

I didnt get everything out of the cupboards. It wasnt the stuff that was in the cupboards that bugged me, it was everything that had snuck out, the things that had never had a proper home.

I found this easy to do although I need the Mr to help me with the big throw out as he cooks ALOT and doesnt like his space being touched although is loving the sorting so far.

It'll only take half hour tonight to do

 the excess cutlery drawer,

choose his favourite plastics containers

 (im not a fan of anything plastic and would chuck the lot if he let me),

take his camping extras to the shed that have snuck in after the holidays,

and tweak the space next to the stove.

With the addition of the basket ive been able to raise the height of the fridge visually.

 It needed to be higher in my eye for a more 'fitted' aesthetic. 

 I said I didnt like anything on the fridge but I had to give in to this one as it now holds my filing system and freed up some drawers, plus it really does make the space look better.

 In the two hours I even had time to clean the high parts,

taking an hour yesterday and an hour this morning in total.

I grabbed rustic containers from around the house and brought them in to see if I liked them. The neighbours can see me doing all this racing around and up and down chairs these last few days. Im starting to wonder what they think. I need to make a curtain.

Theres no way im pretending that I usually put the dishes away just to take a nicer photo. I like seeing clean dishes on the sink, after all its a job done, right?

This is the stove nook (forgot to show you yesterday). He likes those glass containers very much and im not allowed to move them.

Im stumped here.

Im moving into the laundry after I cut out some ladies wrap dresses. Did I tell you I found some fabric?

day 4 - kitchen

The kitchen here is the worst room in the house. Oh we love the aged patina of the tiled oven nook and can put up with the disfunctional layout because we dont mind the quirkiness, but the colour is awful.

Its like cooking inside a banana. Early on I had visions of approaching the landlord with my paint can in hand but I wouldnt be able to handle the rejection if I went down that

 dreamy white and charcoal hued track.

One day I may summon up the courage if we decide to stay longer.

I hate yellow (sorry yellow lovers) so I try to refer to it as pumpkin (in my head) and it nearly works most of the time.

So this post looks from one end to the other and in between.

White things dont work although they brighten it up considerably. I know from previous attempts at moving things around that rustic stuff looks the best and offsets the decor enough for me to be 'in the room'. There I go again about how it LOOKS but it must annoy me if this is where im starting.

I keep placing the butter container (funny green thing) at the opposite end to the toaster. Dont know why but we do get lots of exercise every morning looking for it. Will fix this.

I havent even mentioned/admitted that those stupid linen lampshades have been scrunched like they are for so long now I dont even 'see' them how they really look. Sad. For a crafter. Or whatever it is that I will call myself after reflecting on these rooms. 'Hand-stitch them already' I hear you say!

Looking through the eye of the camera is helping me analyze the kitchen for how it really is. I can now see what has been wrong with the proportions of this longish space and I think I know how to tweak it.

Try the camera on your own kitchen! Im amazed!

And then there was the fridge top. I hate things on the fridge. I always have. I thought it would be okay if I liked the things I placed on top immensely. Its not, they will have to go somewhere else.

The absolute only thing that will look okay on the fridge in this room is something that sits at the same height as the pantry cupboard to streamline the space. I may have just the thing.... The camera has helped me see this.

I like this little nook. I remember the first day we moved in I couldnt wait to do the dishes.

Theres something about it that makes me feel right. I have no idea why?

The toaster has to be moved as ive mentioned. The cooking books need to go to a more accessible place. This whole post has been more about how this space looks more than anything else. Maybe thats what bugs me the most? Im happy to start from there and well see what happens, shall we?

day 3.5 - dining room

Lets not count the weekends as days/rooms shall we?

 Glad you are all in agreeance.

Ill fill you in on where im up to, as even though the weekend was full of places to go and people to see

 I still achieved. But it was little odd things, and definitely not on the scale of a room full.

Friday night we stuck to the plan and sorted through our bookshelf and it was super fast doing this together with both of us pretty much saying yes or no to same books. Any we hadnt read and never will.

Saturday saw us in the garden chopping back trees (him, while I directed) and sorting through some furniture (me) which we ended up beginning to strip back (together). Both of these jobs were fun for us and I realise its because of our new feeling of weightlessness due to the clearing out.

Its becoming addictive.

I now have a lovely cascading leafy arch to wander through instead of fighting with branches everytime we come home, plus I couldnt help bringing the greenery indoors.

 I prefer bracken displays to flowers anyday (you may have guessed already) apart from hydrangeas.

It was time for a touch of masculinity in the dining room

 so in order to showcase one of his favourite things 'the horse head' got put on a black background.

I have a thing for skulls too.

The pile of stuff at the front door (so far).

Hmmm... that bag doenst look very full.

Sunday was a strange day cos I found myself at my daughters house reorganising her pantry which

a certain little person can help herself to. 

I dreamt about the kitchen last night and seemed to problem solve some things in my sleep. Where to put the mail when it comes inside, etc.

Thats where im going to go next. Now, in fact. Before everyone gets home.

I have some new samples for ladies wraps I found today. 

Ill post them as soon as I take shots.

day 3 - dining room

This afternoon everything came out of the bottom cupboard so I could see what I was holding on to. Now I have to let you know that this is where all my favourite things are kept so dont expect me to cull too hard.

The things in here are to switch around with the seasons,

dark green for autumn,

blue for summer, cream for winter, green and floral for spring.

Proof of the emptiness for you guys to see. This is odd but cleansing.

I didnt know how to give myself some guidelines yet so tidied up the

 corners of the room instead while I had a think.

These baskets went even though I have been doing some crochet once a fortnight or so. Not often enough to warrant junking up a perfect space.

There is nowhere safe for the art in progress to go so it stays behind the chair for now.

This paint can has been here for a few months now I think. Okay, its now obvious how to do this.

While asking myself whether I 'loved' each piece or could part with it, I put everything back in seasons even the summer (blue) ornaments fit too so I shoved them in.

Two or so here will become gifts to friends when I see them next.

I was able to give a use to a large jar that now holds the tea-lights instead of the ice-cream container,

plus I know the perfect person for that vase.

These need to be painted to match and are now on the list.

More light fittings that dont belong so ill be boxing them up with the lamp from yesterday.

I sneakily updated the stationery again because I realised I could do better

 at matching the containers and now im rapt.

I actually stood there and opened and closed it a couple of times to admire my handiwork.

Tell me you wouldnt do the same....

I dont know how much Ill get done over the weekend but I am hopeful. My head space feels a bit less cluttered already.

day 2.5 - entry and dining room

Its halfway through the day and this is where im at. Im in the dining room and its obvious that this needs to be the next room I tackle.

Since I left the blue vases, etc on the table yesterday that is where they stayed as they are still without a home until I make some room in the cupboard. Which is obvious to me only now.

I didnt put them back on top of the cupboard because ive changed things while im at it.

After going through the back room on day 1 there were some large shells floating around. I thought I would like something natural in each room but they go so well with the ornaments I had on the dining room windowsill that ive decided to group them all together to simplify things.

Im not really a shell person but they are the Mr's pride and joy. I dove for a couple of these on our honeymoon in the Solomon Islands. These were on the deck of a sunken war ship, and I could only just reach them too, my eardrums were at the point of bursting. Thats why he loves them so.

Annoyingly the things from one room are carrying over into others and jobs from one day are blending into the next. Oh yeah. We didnt end up doing the book sorting last night. He just wanted to relax after work but has promised we will tonight.

This morning ive tweaked the drawers into clarity and for the sole purpose of being able to wrap things for etsy customers quickly and readily. You should've seen how disorganised I was being, flitting from one room to the other, it was taking me 15-20 minutes to get one parcel done.

 Now this sounds really silly but I had to concentrate and process in my mind what I needed while packaging something. Lets just say it is the humidity shall we?

Ive been naughty and kept one stapler, staples in a tin, and three notebooks but they now have specific reasons for existing in this drawer. I tossed out half of the contents.

Then I tackled the pens and pencils.

(recently I had gone through our junk drawer and found around fifty???)

I worked out we needed 3 different containers for different purposes, one for coloured and lead pencils, one for pens, and one for highlighters etc. The pens went into a favourite jug as it will be out of the cupboard alot.

Youre going to think im overboard here but I sharpened the pencils.

 The inner child in me just couldnt hold back. It was surprisingly therapeutic. I tested the pens, found half of them were dead. I consider it a basic human right to be able to put your hands

 on a working pen at any time. Dont you?

The entry is darkly overcast today so this is an awful shot of inside the cupboard.

What you cant see is all the behind the scenes movements that occured while doing this little space.

Ive had to alter how the paperwork process was running from three other rooms. 

I have been 'almost there' on a number of occasions in the past only to hold on to too much.

So far so good.

Dining room here I come!

day 2 - entry

I chose to do the entry today being an easy room as I woke up tired.

But if I stop this process ill land in heap, I just know it. So im trying to keep the momentum going.

Navarh and Adelin are not that far off from arriving with their boxes. Just a couple of weeks or so.

Ill apologise now if I document stuff a bit too 'over the toply'. I need to write this in here for my head space and reflection for a later date.

 

I started by taking everything off the cupboard and taking it to another room

 to 'see' it properly for what it is. This surface is the prime spot I put everything that comes into the house that is fragile and it waits for a home in a cupboard somewhere.

Normally light fixtures are perched on top.

Ive been gathering some for one day when we build.

In this process I worked out that Mali's favourite books dont have a home yet, I have no place to put that lamp as where id like it to go in the lounge will see it broken, and I definitely dont want the Mr's grandmother's fur stole (complete with body parts attached) hanging off one end.

Perhaps its time for the keepsakes box?

There are books and a bit of stationery to go through plus some out of date home magazines. I need to wait for the Mr to get home from work to help me with the books. Half of them being his. Meanwhile Ill tear out the magazine pages I dont want to say goodbye to and they go in a design folder to keep, and can go through the stationery drawer contents.

  

To the untrained eye it doesnt look too bad. Thats because ive sorted this recently.

I failed! as there are five notebooks, four staplers (we never staple anything. ever),

staples DUH, and five rolls of sticky tape which I do use but five is crazy. There were a few business cards that went straight into my purse cos I go through it weekly and if I need them, I need them and if I dont theyll get chucked from there. Or maybe typed into my phone.

My other problem is near the front door.

That is the op-shop bag ready but those ornaments are annoying to vacuum around.

They need a better home.

Im only really half way for now but thought id show you what ill be up to tonight

over a nice cold beer. Its hot and where my tiredness is coming from I suspect.

ive gone to the country

Oops! Sorry everyone.  My 'Ill just be a bit absent while I....'  scheduled post never posted ( I think I forgot to press publish after I set the timing option).

 Im so bad with buttons!

Did I mention that maybe, just maybe.... my 11 days may not be totally succinct? Well now they arent.

I was out in the country looking at real estate so day two and three were sidelined until I got back home. 

Im back

and a bit tired

from sorting out at mums too.

Ill be back to my old tricks tomorrow.

day 1 - his room

After announcing last night that I was going on an 11 day mission I did what any self respecting procrastinator would do. I went to a friend's house and drank coffee in her gorgeous garden all morning.

But I had to come back eventually.

Ive started with his room. His studio in our back room. Ive begun here as this will be the hardest for me.

It needs to be tidied up but needs to be just how he likes it.

It hasnt been like this for long but it gets like this very easily. Too easily.

We begin the tour here at a table that is the dumping ground for anything that enters the space. He never sits here to work as the chair is too low and needs to become a stool. There is a spare one in the bathroom. Good. But I dont know where to put the chair? Maybe on the front porch for now. It needs covering if we keep it so that will go on the list im compiling.

 How he likes his paints left? or how he leaves them? im not sure? he can deal with this.

The entire table load of stuff. Time to phone a friend to chat to while I do the sort out for the next half hour, hoping I can do it with one hand. Two out of these four chairs need to be on the list to be painted white.

I had taken it all down from here and have scrubbed the drawers to rid them of old stickers, theyll both be painted soon (put on the list). That pile of canvasses and frames, although it has been rotating, has stayed there for a year. Ive tried to attack it every now and then and failed. I dont know where else to put it? Or do I........

 The brushes are great in old silverware containers and they are easy to access when put on a tray.

So thats easy.

But all the small stuff needs to be put in his top drawer with all the rest. I re-used the box but it went in the drawer too, plus I threw out a few old containers and brushes that were beyond repair, and stored away any art products in the window seat. (Id like to say here that I found one of my best dinner plates and some good glasses and bowls that had become art containers so someone needs to keep a supply of old tins and jars from now on.) I mean me. 

The stool in place of the chair and if you look beyond you can see a wooden box that had been floating around on the floor that fits so perfectly. Maybe he can store his 'in use' paint tray in it? Too good to be true. There is some nice wall space there for art. Perhaps ill hang the 'working on' canvasses up?

In his defense he spent last week downsizing his fishing gear into this practical number. I had to live with hooks all over the place for a week but he nailed it.

A few products at the end of the table left for tonights art production as on monday evenings we have friends round.

Those cushions need to get revised. I dont want colour in here as it would be great to have a blank canvas (no pun intended). Ive always imagined this black and white out here. A masculine aesthetic for the Mr.

Here im really proud of my achievement. Ive fitted canvasses inside others (never thought to store them this way until today) and the pile is stacked to look half the size and off the floor. Big high five.

The cushions will get washed, put in another room once I decide where, and I dont seem to have any subdued colour covers already done for the window seat so ill be making something (but not too many), to go on the list for another day. 

Im loving the blank canvas for now. These are only foam rectangles covered with cream blankets so something's got to happen here too. On the list.

I havent been able to throw out much from his room as its all pretty damn useful, being art gear, but this pile is going to the shed. Not bad for an afternoons work. He'll never know I spent the morning at my girlfriend's!

Yep. He's going to be pleasantly surprised with his 'new' space. I anticipate something wonderful from tonights to-doings.

 I dont have any crafting to stare at tonight but I have an amazingly sorted space.