Freedom from Clutter

"The things you own end up owning you." - Fight Club

I am feeling most triumphant and proud today.  I'm a notorious "pack-rat" (I prefer the term "sentimental saver") so I had tons and tons of things in storage outdoors that I just didn't need.  I wish I had taken before-and-after pictures, but suffice to say before I started working this morning my entire living room was filled with boxes.  In some places, the boxes were stacked four and five deep.  I literally have things I made in first grade, notes from classes in middle and high school, and clothes I will never be able to fit into again.  Oh, and I should also mention that I've been trying to clean up this mess for well over a year now.  The boxes migrated from my floor and laundry room to my dining room to my outside patio (which was completely full when they were out there).  I have such a hard time parting with things that I've carried some items that can only be classified as junk from one house to another to my college dorm to my parents' home to my current apartment.  Luckily my aunt came to the rescue today and put me to work for about 8-9 hours along with a seriously wonderful friend of mine.  I don't know how many pounds of paper, cardboard, and other items were hauled to the dumpster throughout the day but the pain in my lower back seems to suggest it was quite a bit.  I was also able to get quite a few items to donate to charity.  My aunt took them with her to donate so unfortunately I won't get the receipt for tax benefits, but I'm hoping that some of what I gave her will make a child happy this Christmas.  I think we all can benefit by selfless giving and I'm so thrilled to have reduced my clutter by about 30%!  My workspace/dining room is still full of lotions, glass, beads, wire, card stock, paint, and just about any craft item you can think of but I think I like it that way.  I may not have people over for dinner any time soon, but come spring I will be able to entertain company on my patio for the first time since I've moved here.  That's such an empowering feeling!

Now, I'm much too sore and tired to bead tonight, but I did make a bottle cap charm yesterday:

Let me know what you think.  I'm also working on some bottle cap post earrings.  We'll see how those turn out!

Until next time,

Elle