An Imperfect Home – peek into a real life closet
An Imperfect Home
I have a special invitation for you. I request the honor of your presence in my closet.
I wouldn’t have invited you last week, quite frankly.
It was, in a word, gross. I was drowning in dirt and luxury. An odd combination.
Yesterday, I just decided to “do it”. I hauled everything out. Every last, dusty item.
Every last, dusty item.
And this is only what I could fit in the lens of my camera…
Oh. my. word.
What doesn’t show up is the years of hair and grime that only a bathroom could contribute.
But it is important in a social media influenced world to portray the “other” us.
The one without nice editing and pretty displays. The one that keeps us from putting each other on pedestals… the one that needs to feel accepted in their honesty.
I have been meaning to organize better. Too much stock, old medicines, the stuff I don’t use upfront but the stuff I do use up high. I kept putting it off, figuring we’d move I guess.
Seven years in? We seem to be staying. So….
Several trips to the recycle bin, full trash can.
It discouraged me to realize we (I) had collected so much stuff…just related to the body or health. Too much stuff.
People live with a LOT less stuff, and I want to join them. To enjoy the freedom of simplicity.
It is handy, to be prepared, but no one needs 6 boxes of band-aids, 4 half bottles of shampoo, 8 face soaps that felt yucky and were delegated to the drawers.
It took all day, but I hope you will join me and choose a spot in your home.
You won’t regret it. I wish I had not waited so long! Drumroll please…
There now, isn’t that better?
(Why yes, I DID get the labeler out after all that work. That was the only fun part)
It is such a satisfying feeling to know where things are. To not have to purchase stuff accidentally we already had, and best of all? To not dread opening the door of our “overflow” areas.
1 Corinthians 14:40 “be sure that everything is done properly in a good and orderly way”
Empty it out, wipe it down, condense and throw it away.
High fives all around!
You might enjoy these resources:
- The Minimal Mom on youtube
- Cluttered Mess to Organized Success Workbook: Declutter and Organize your Home and Life with over 100 Checklists and Worksheets
- The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals
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Great post, Christa! You are very inspiring. I’d love to read a post on why you became a ‘neat freak’. 🙂
It’s amazing how much gets accumulated over time. I’ve been thinking about doing the same. We have duplicates of first aid items. How much do two people need who are rarely sick? Not to mention the expiration dates. If it’s not cleaning out closets, it’s something else. Once I get put back together, around here, I’m going to work on becoming a Neat Freak too.
Our recent garage sale forced me to do some of this and it was both depressing and eye-opening! Feels so good though. Congrats!
Susie
It is precisely because of having garage sales like Susie I think that I was forced to realize we had too much. Moving 6 times in as many years taught us that. I was surprised how many duplicates I had too! Becoming a neat freak was a process to be sure, I went overboard for a period, scaled back to a nicely neurotic (some think) middle ground
Looks beautiful now. Clean and simple and useable. I’m look forward to your neat freak post.
Alright then, I will work on that 🙂
Your closet looks amazing! Also, I would love to read about your neat freakiness. 🙂