Coming at it From Another Angle

 It's summer! Okay, perhaps not officially, but once spring semester is over, it's summer in my world. And, when the summer classes start only a few days after spring semester ends, I feel justified in my proclamation of the season.

As usual, I started my list of things I want to accomplish this summer even before spring semester ended. Some are directly connected to organizing, but others are a bit more peripheral.

The closet. I made some small changes in my closet on the last day of classes, driven as much by the thought of summer and leisure as the reading I'd been doing about style (in the fashion sense). Returning home after my last class with summer and leisure in mind (and in the air), I pushed my long-sleeved, professional wear off to the side, (but still visible -- my personal style is I need to see it, after all), placing my short-sleeved, casual clothes front-and-center for easy access and review. This summer, I want to go through all of those short-sleeved tops with an eye toward removing anything I don't feel good in, or that no longer fits my style (or perhaps never did). Doing this a few pieces -- or even just one piece -- at a time is the next logical step in the process. Organizing doesn't always have to be a big project. Sometimes, small steps work just as well.

Painting. Though I've finished painting the walls in my dining room, the trim is still crying out for attention. Does beautifying a space count as organizing? Maybe not technically, but the process typically includes reorganizing and often inspires a new perspective on an old space as well, nudging us to upgrade our organizational systems along with the décor. If I'm truthful, finishing this painting project is not a task I'm looking forward to, but it's not (yet) so an onerous task that I'm willing to pay someone else to do it. Adding these finishing touches has something in common with organizing, too -- almost finished is not the same as finished, nor does it give us the same satisfaction. So, final touches, it is.

Creative pursuits. Last spring, I read about trash collages and decided to give one a try. I loved it, so I began devoting some time to collage-making. Unlike the scrapbooks I made when my daughter was small, these latest creations reveal my love of words while also tapping into my creative style. The organization connection? Flexing my creative muscles will, I believe, lead me to be even more likely to explore creative solutions to organizing dilemmas.

So often, we think of organizing as simply de-cluttering and making things look nice. While those skills are definitely important in achieving and restoring order, coming at organizing from another angle can shake things up (in a good way) and inject a little fun into the process as well. 

And I can't think of a better time to add a dash of fun than summertime.

Culling the Closet

 Lately, I've been on a closet kick, re-organizing both the overall set-up and the clothes themselves, which took me back to this post from six years ago.

Last night, I had dinner with friends, all of whom are in the midst of summer vacation. We talked about travel plans and summer projects (among other things) and one of my friends told us about her  recent (ruthless) closet purge. She had two categories: useful and trash. Another had recently changed positions within her organization, and her approach to the transition was similar. Years of materials went directly into the recycling bin.

No one cringed at these stories. In fact, I think most of us were motivated to go home and do the same thing. 

The ruthless closet clean-out is not something all styles manage well. In fact, Let it go! is probably the toughest part of the STYLE process for many of us, even if we don't claim the I love stuff personal style as our own. Maintaining a balance between what comes in and what goes out is, however, a necessary part of the process; without it, we quickly overrun our living space, making organizing far more complicated -- and exhausting -- than it needs to be. And we all fear those times (like this morning, less than 24 hours after my desire to ruthlessly clear out a closet), when we regret our ruthlessness, and long to be able to access something we got rid of in a fit of efficiency. (White pants! Why did I get rid of those comfy white pants?)

Sorting through things and figuring out what to do with them can be overwhelming, but it can also be liberating. Some things are easy to toss. Is it broken? Missing a piece? Hopelessly out of style? A duplicate, triplicate or worse?

Others are more challenging. The dress we paid too much for and wore only once. Clothes we hope to fit into again some day. The makings of a craft or home improvement project we never got around to. Greeting cards, kids' drawings, faded photographs and other similarly sentiment-inducing items.

If you're not the ruthless type, taking small steps to reduce, declutter and recycle can yield the same satisfaction with less (or maybe even no) regret. Restoring order to one space, moving things from an old, too-small container to a new one that's more realistic or starting at the back of a closet or the bottom of a pile (where old and outdated items often lurk) can make weeding a natural part of the process instead of a dreaded task.

Starting with a purpose can help. How many times have you gone looking for something you needed only to come across several things you didn't need in the process? This type of organic cleaning out can be satisfying without being emotionally draining.

You don't need to be ruthless to make progress. Look around. What can you let go of? Start with what's easy and build from there.