My recent obsession has been decluttering. The out-of-control nature of raising 3 pre-schoolers tipped me into desperation to have some form of order in my house, as there isn’t much order elsewhere in the life of pre-schooler raising. The designer William Morris said, “Do not keep anything in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful”. Armed with that quote, and a dose of extra inspiration from “Organised Simplicity” by Tsh Oxenreider, (you can buy it here), I literally went through my house room by room ruthlessly getting rid of anything that I did not consider useful or beautiful.
Getting rid of clutter is SO liberating. Stuff really does weigh you down, and getting rid of it is good for the soul. It’s a great exercise in generosity too – thinking of someone who needs that thing more than you do can help you to release your grip on it. And when you do, you both win. I recommend starting in your bathroom – it’s not a large room, and you’re likely to be less sentimental about getting rid of expired medicines & cosmetics. But the kick you’ll get out of a decluttered room may just springboard you on to attacking the rest of the house.
juliemorgenstern.com was such an inspiration to me – helped me work my way systematically through rooms and feel great at the end! Such a good time of the year to set up new ways to control the chaos
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