Decluttering The Devers - January 2011 (in February)

We are back for round two this year of Decluttering The Devers.  I hope I can make it all twelve months in 2011.  I got slack the last quarter of 2010 and didn't post any decluttering projects, so my main goal is to do a project every month in 2011(of course that was my original goal in 2010 and you see how well that worked out!).  As you can see, I'm not really getting off to a great start as I am just getting around to posting January's project, but better late than never, right??

So, this past Sunday, I spent a good two hours collecting and throwing out most every magazine in my house. As Danny will tell you, they had truly taken over our house.  He actually said I shouldn't post this, because some of my readers might think I'm a hoarder.  Well, for all 20 of my loyal readers, I am not a Hoarder.  I seriously have/had good intentions for these magazines, but time got away from me and I let them collect into piles.  But unlike a hoarder, I actually trashed my magazines and didn't let them pile up to the ceiling (close, but not quite to the ceiling)!!

All the magazines I could find in my house....seriously, this is every magazine I own!!
(Shh, don't tell Danny there are still two drawers upstairs but I will get to those later)

Piles of about 30 magazines per pile, 3 piles deep and 4 piles wide....do the math people!!!

So, I seriously had magazines from 2007, mostly baby mags that I thought I would have time to go through while on maternity leave, yeah right!!  But here's a run down of the different types of magazines and catalogs I had.  I do have subscriptions to US Weekly and Parenting, but everything else is free. Crazy.

Catalogs I receive:
Pottery Barn/ Pottery Barn Kids/ Pottery Barn Teen
Ballard Designs
Personal Creations
Company Kids
Frontgate
Garnet Hill
L.L. Bean/ L.L. Bean Kids
Restoration Hardware
CWD Kids
Lillian Vernon
Home Decorations Collection
Oriental Trading
Kelly's Kids
Brookstone
Sensational Beginnings
Posh Tots
Serena & Lily
Just Ducky
Sweet Tea
One Step Ahead
Creative Playthings
Boden USA
Mini Boden
Chasing Fireflies
Olive Juice
.....and I am sure there are some I am forgetting

Magazines:
Chapel Hill Magazine
Durham Magazine
Southern Living
US Weekly
Real Simple
Martha Stewart Living
Fifteen 501
Parenting
Parents
....and all the ones from 2007 (Mom & Baby, Baby Talk, American Baby, Pregnancy and Fit Pregnancy)

My plan of attack, if it didn't have a date of 2010 or 2011 on it, it went in the recycle pile (except for a few decorating mags that I just couldn't part with).  I still have high hopes of going through some of the magazines and pulling out recipes and house ideas that I love, that's why I kept one pile of mags that were current (2010 date or higher).  I got rid of everything else and here's the proof....

Our recycling bin

After Danny took the trash out on Monday evening, he came in and said, "We're gonna get a fine from the city, because when recycling comes tomorrow, our bin is going to break the automatic lifting arm on the recycling truck!"  He seriously said our bin weighed about 200 lbs.  I was curious, so I made sure Tuesday morning I was at our loft window to watch the recycling, and surprisingly the automatic arm picked up our bin.  So, no fine from the city and I completed a MUCH needed decluttering project...Win, Win!!

Decluttering The Devers- August 2010

Alright, so now that September is almost over (yes, I have completely neglected my precious Dever Dish and only provided Wordless Wednesday posts for the past three weeks), I guess it is time to finally post my August decluttering project, that I must admit, is still a work-in-progress.  August would prove to be a big month for me.  I decided to quit my job at UNC and take a job working from home.  I had worked at UNC for 8 years and had come to mix my personal life with my work life (i.e. - I used my work computer as my personal computer, too - I'll never make that mistake AGAIN).  My email address had been the same for 8 years and switching over to a Gmail account has been a big change. But even more daunting than an email switch, was the process of transferring information from my work computers.

In April, my work computer crashed (kind of!!), it actually got a really bad virus.  I could still get in and get stuff off the computer, but couldn't use it.  My IT guy was nice enough to save it for me, so I could get all my personal information off the hard drive.  It sat at home for the longest time while I used my new work computer but since I was leaving, it had to be dealt with and so I started the process of going through my files.

My new work computer had everything from our server on it, but being the OCD person that I am.  I wanted to go through document-by-document, picture-by-picture and see if they all matched up.  So, I took on the enormous task of making sure 8 years worth of data matched from one computer to the other.  After many late nights, I was successful in transferring/matching data and I could then just deal with my new work computer and hand my old, corrupted computer back into my IT guy at work.

About a week before I was to leave my job, I started dealing with taking my documents and pictures off my new work computer and putting them on a hard drive, along with transferring all my email to a .pst file.  Once I was sure I had everything, I brought it home and began the process of moving everything onto our house desktop.  A big task, yet again!!  The two biggest concerns here were my pictures and my Outlook email files; both transferred/matched successfully!!!  I turned my new work computer in with confidence that I had all my data either on my home computer or on a hard drive.  I'm not going to say it is completely organized, but it's at least in one of two places.

And, because my new motto is not to mix my personal and work computers EVER AGAIN.  Danny surprised me during tax-free weekend in August with a new toy.  I now have my own personal laptop to do my photo editing, emailing, surfing the web, etc.  I must admit, in the thick of changing jobs and starting a new one,  I haven't had much time to play around with my Mac yet.  I need some pointers, but I am slowly learning.  I think once I get the hang of it, I am going to love it (already do).  I also purchased Lightroom, a software for photo editing and organization.  I was able to get a staff discount from UNC and purchase it for 1/3 of the cost from Adobe.  My last perk at UNC before leaving!!  I can't wait to start playing and experimenting. 

The daunting process!!!

So, although some of you might think August's Decluttering wasn't really a declutter, I will certainly say it was.  I have also added my new position's computer to the mix, but I am being very careful not to mix in any personal stuff there.  I am keeping it strictly business!!

Quick side note: Not sure why I called myself Mommy in all these pictures..seems odd that I wouldn't just say Brooke, since the post had nothing to do with Emerson.  I guess I call myself Mommy more than I realize!!

Decluttering The Devers - July 2010

A couple of weeks ago, when I opened the refrigerator to make Emerson's lunch, I was alerted of an exploded soy sauce bottle leaking all over the back of the fridge and all the way down to the bottom.  There was soy sauce everywhere, even in the refrigerator light!  I took everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, out of the fridge so I could clean up the mess.  I took out all the shelves and the drawers and wiped down every inch of that fridge; it was a mess and a big undertaking. It might have been a blessing in disguise, because I can't tell you the last time I cleaned my fridge.  But through it all, I completely ignored the condiments organizers on our fridge door.  I guess I figured since they didn't get the soy sauce soak, so I would tackle it at some other time (not to mention, I had a toddler that was very eager to help but needed a nap BAD and Danny was conveniently playing golf).

So,fast forward to two weeks ago when we brought home the groceries after our normal Sunday morning Target run.  Out of necessity for space, it was finally time to tackle all of our condiments.  We had stuff in their from before Emerson was born...G - ROSS!!  I tried to find a picture of our door before (I didn't decide until the middle of the project that this would be my "declutter" for the month), but I couldn't find one.  Here's a look at all the items we got rid of.  And, since I won't let anything go in the trash if it can be recycled, I owe my husband a big thank you for being the official "pourer outer" and having to see and smell everything (yuck!).  (Remember, he DID get out of cleaning the fridge a few weeks earlier, but this was, by far, worse!!)

And here is the door after we threw away all of our old condiments (again, sorry there is no before picture).  This is so much better!!!  I really can't believe how many condiments we got rid of....what a waste!!  I will certainly label all of my condiments now!

  

Decluttering The Devers - June 2010

PILES, PILES, PILES!!  Everyone has them! Some of you might only have one, others of you us have several laying around our houses. They can lurk anywhere, from the bathroom, to the kitchen counters, to the pesky ones that seem to reappear on my dining room table.  I hate piles, but I’ve noticed that as I’ve grown older, it is harder and harder to keep piles out of my house.  Piles of bills, piles of mail, piles of laundry, piles of dishes, piles of recycling…you get the picture.  I am learning at a rapid pace that I need to start purging items as they come in, so as not to create NEW piles.  This month I was on a mission to get rid of some (not all, that would take days) of the piles in my house and believe me, there are a lot of them.

Our biggest pile felon is the mail.  I have a bit of a magazine and catalog obsession…Frontgate, Ballard Designs, Chasing Fireflies, Pottery Barn and Pottery Barn Kids, US Weekly, Southern Living, and the list goes on.  I tend to keep those around and somehow they always end up in a pile.  It used to be on my dining room table but, you know from last month, we are trying to keep that clean.  So the next stop is usually my kitchen island and counters.  Well I am sick of it, so my solution was to order this adorable bin to keep mail in….when the bin gets full, then I know it is time purge.  The bin isn’t in yet, but I did purge and it already makes me happy!!!

Before/After - Kitchen Counter

The next pile I tackled was in my living room.  I cleaned out my work bag a couple of weeks ago and all my excess work stuff ended up on our living room sideboard, along with several other things.  So, I went through it, purged and now it is nice and neat. 

Before/After - Living Room Sideboard

Next, I moved to our bedroom…this is the one place I would like to keep clutter OUT.  I want this to be a sanctuary for Danny and I to retreat to after our busy days, but lately the only retreating that has been done is by odds and ins that have ended up on our dressers.  UGH!!  So, I decluttered…much better!!!

Before/After - Danny's Dresser

Before/After - Brooke's Dresser

I admit, most of the clutter is mine…maybe that’s a clue that I have a problem.  Could I really have a problem throwing things away?   I surely don’t want to end up on the next episode of Hoarders!!  Maybe I need to get started on all my other piles NOW, so I diagnosis isn't in my future!!

Decluttering The Devers - May 2010

May brought another fairly simple decluttering project.  Actually, this is a project I do about every two months, but I am going to try to keep this one up....we'll see how it goes.  This month, we (yes, Danny helped) decluttered our dining room table.  April and May were super busy for us and our dining room table became a catchall for magazines, junk mail, Easter stuff, Emerson's school art, Beach Ball stuff and a bunch of other crap stuff.  I'm actually pretty embarrassed at how bad it got.  I found things I had forgotten about; my popsicle maker Christmas present from Amy (probably need to get that one in the freezer for the summer) and two gift certificates that I hadn't used.  Amazing the things you find when you take the time to organize.  So, Danny and I spent the majority of today (yes, I waited 'til the last minute to do this project) sorting, recycling, putting up, and throwing away all the stuff that had made it's home on our dining room table since the last time I did this project.  We even moved Emerson's play kitchen upstairs to, what will hopefully become, her play corner in our bonus room.  I've said it before, but this time I am really going to try to not put anything on my dining room table unless it's going to the Herman house in the near future, or going to the mailbox.  I'm probably setting myself up for failure but I am REALLY going to try.  Dinner party anyone??  I can actually host now!!!!

BEFORE

(embarrassing!!!)

AFTER

(Clean!!)

Decluttering The Devers - April 2010

April was a VERY busy month in the Dever household.  VERY BUSY!!!  I think we actually spent more time cluttering up our house, rather than decluttering it.  So, due to our schedules and time, I picked a pretty simple and easy decluttering project for this month.  And, as you can tell by my late night post on the last day of the month, I waited to the very last minute to work on this project. 

See this shelf, these are my recipe books and above that is my recipe PILE!!  Yes, I said it, my Pile O' Recipes.  You know, all the recipes you pull out of Southern Living, get from a friend, print off the internet, jot down at a party...yes, all of those are in that pile.  The funny thing is, those are usually my "go to" recipes; the ones I use more often than the recipes in the books below. 

The Pile O' Recipes out of its hole and ready to be sorted. 

I sorted all the recipes into categories.  The categories I chose to use for my recipe binder were: Appetizers, Bread, Side Dishes, Dips/Marinades, Soup/Salad, Pasta, Chicken, Beef, Main Dishes, Breakfasts, Desserts, and Beverages. 

I used the recipe binder printables from Prudent Baby for my spine label and front cover.  Then for the dividers, I used regular Big Tab dividers.  If I can find cool dividers like Prudent Baby used, then I will replace the Big Tabs, but they'll have to work for now.  Prudent Baby's post for a recipe binder was super helpful and her printables are great...you can find those here and here.

THAT'S IT...short, sweet, simple, and to the point.  I can't wait to keep adding recipes to my new binder and hopefully, start a second one if this one gets too full!!  Now, if I can just find time to start cooking some of those recipes!!! 

Decluttering The Devers - March 2010

JUNK DRAWERS!!!  Every household is guilty of having at least one, usually found in the kitchen (although found in multiple places in our house).  It's the drawer that's a catchall for all kinds of things;  keys, safety pins, pens, garage door openers, chap stick, etc.  We have three in our kitchen alone and we have had them since about a week after moving in, which will be 6 years ago this September.  So, I decided to tackle these three drawers to hopefully reduce, combine, purge, and DECLUTTER!!

Our three junk drawers in the kitchen

I decided to take everything out of them and start from scratch.  It's always best to start with a clean slate.

EMPTY!!!

I threw everything on the island.  Check out the massive pile of stuff that came out of the three drawers....can you believe it??  After seeing the task in front of me, I decided to try and make similar or like piles, which I  am sure shocks all of you (ha!).  I put all the chap sticks together, all of Emerson's stuff, all the stuff to go upstairs in its proper place and so on. 

The Pile

The Organized Piles

Next up....THE TRASH.  You wouldn't believe all the stuff we threw away (and yes, I said WE...Danny helped out with this decluttering project). 

Voila!!!  A super organized "junk" drawer (notice I said drawer)!!  The Devers now have two free drawers in our kitchen.   I'm not quite sure what to do with myself or with the new drawer space.  I'm sure I'll figure it out though, there's got to be something I can put in those drawers to make them half useful.  It sure does feel  great to have these three drawers knocked out and checked off the to-do list!!

ONE very organized "junk" drawer

Decluttering The Devers - February 2010

I'm sure it won't come as a surprise to some of you (okay, all of you) that Emerson has A LOT of clothes.  I think, actually I know, the day I found out I was having a little girl I went shopping right away and bought at least five outfits.  I admit, I have a shopping problem habit, but I am not the only one that has contributed to Emerson's sizeable amount of clothing.  Yes, I have a partner in shopping crime....Mimi!!!  We have been shopping partners since before I can remember and luckily we have the same taste.  Shortly after Emerson was born, I introduced Mimi to Ebay, a source I had quickly grown to love for Emerson clothing.  We both tend to go overboard when it comes to dressing Emerson.  There, Danny I said it, I CAN go overboard, but I AM working on it.  I mean come on, clothes for girls are just SOOO CUTE!!! 

So, if you haven't figured it out yet our February Decluttering The Devers is about my "hobby" (and Danny's nemesis), Emerson's Clothes!!  Needless to say, they have taken over the house, at least 3 rooms of the house; her room, a bit of the bonus room and our guest room.  Even participating in consignment sales like  Upscale Resale (2x) and Kids EveryWear, we were still being engulfed in clothing.  I am embarassed to even show the pictures of these rooms.  If I participated in McMama's "Not Me Mondays", this would surely be a great topic for a post.  So, without further ado....this is what our guest room looked like before the "decluttering".  (In my defense, although it doesn't take away from anything, there was a fresh pile of laundry on top of the already existing pile.)

The Guest Room, Emerson's 2nd Closet

I know, I know...so embarassed right now!!! 

I purchased four plastic storage bins and labeled them.....

Upscale Resale - I can take these clothes next week, YAY!! Guess it's time to start hanging and labeling!

Other Sales - KidsEveryWear, Once Upon a Child, etc.

Does Not Fit (Keep) - those outfits I just can't part with

May Fit Spring/Fall 2010- hopefully Em can wear these, if not, they will find there way into another bin

......and then I started sorting.  In fact, my Other Sales bin got so full, I had to add a second one. 

(Amy get ready, those are both coming to you!!)

Ahh, the final result was worth taking the time to DECLUTTER.  Anyone want to come spend the night?  I can actually have house guests again!!  Danny even said he might just sleep in the room since no one has stayed in there for so long.  I mean how could they sleep there, the bed was drowning in clothing, but not anymore.  Maybe it is a good idea for Danny to sleep in there, then I'd have the king to myself. 

Hmmm, oh honey.....!!!

I'm vowing that our guest bedroom will stay a guest bedroom.  Seriously, anyone want to come visit!!

Check out past decluttering projects by clicking on the links below:

January 2010 - Brooke's Craft Closet

Decluttering The Devers - January 2010

After the New Year, you couldn't open a woman's magazine, read a blog or watch an HGTV show without hearing or reading about clutter and how to get rid of it.  Every blog I subscribe to talked about some form of organization for the New Year. 

Centsational Girl wrote about Kicking Clutter to the Curb and about how to Get Organized.  She even did Five Days to a Fresh Start where she charged her readers with a de-cluttering tasks for five consecutive days at the beginning of January.

Today's Creative Blog hit the nail on the head when she talked about Organizing Your Crafty Self (hello, that is what this post is about).  Her post I Can't Stop, gave great organization tips for common household items.

Miss Mustard Seed's Creative Blog had some great tips in her Organization Inspiration and Tips blog post.

Amy, my neighbor and good friend even started her own way of simplifying with Simplify Sunday.

So, in the spirit of all things New Year, I decided to get myself, my family, and our house RE-organized.  You see, two and half years ago this little angel came into our lives but with it she brought some chaos and organization went out the window.  I once considered myself a pretty organized person.  My house was neat and organized, my life was neat and organized....but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.  Toys have taken over my living room and bonus room, childrens clothes have taken over my guest bedroom, and trikes, wagons, and outdoor toys have taken over my garage.  Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade it for the world but it is time to bring a sense of organization back to the Dever Household.  It is time to make organization a priority again and stop putting it second or third on the list of things to do.  I want everything in our house to have a place, wait, let me rephrase that, I want everything in our house to have a correct place, an easily found place, a PURPOSEFUL place!  I want to get rid of the stacks, the junk, the piles, the bags, the not needed, the unnecessary, the never used.  I want the organization I once had BACK!!

DECLUTTERING THE DEVERS!!!

I decided to do this over the course of 2010; not as a resolution, I HATE resolutions.  (If you want to change, do it today, don't wait for the New Year.)  I decided I would take 12 key areas of our house that are problem areas and I would do one per month, any more than that would be unrealistic with our crazy lives.  Sure, there might be some months that I can get two projects done but anything above 12 will be a bonus.  So, 12 projects in 12 months.  Closets, junk drawers, bookcases, the garage, Emerson's clothes; all of them (and then some) will get an overhaul.  I want to do these right, I want to take time and I really want to make a permanent and lasting change.  I want these changes to make real improvements in our house and in our lives. 

I decided to start with a project that really needed my help; my CRAFT CABINET.  Yes, cabinet!  I am not lucky enough to have an entire room devoted to crafts (not yet at least).  So, right now I have to settle for a cabinet in our laundry room. One day, I hope to have a room in my house solely devoted to the art of CRAFTING. 

I'd take any of these!!!!

Ballard Designs

Better Homes and Garden

Better Homes and Garden

Pottery Barn

Pottery Barn

Martha Stewart

Are you drooling yet?  I certainly am.  Anyways, back to the cabinet at hand.  So my craft cabinet used to be organized but then somehow (not sure how it happened), it got to the point that it looked like this.....

Yes, I am blushing now and totally embarrassed that I even showed that to you, but I have to be honest with everyone and with myself.  Now you know why I decided to do this project first, not to mention that I have a lot of crafty projects coming up soon.  I decided to start from scratch and take everything out of the cabinet and I do mean EVERYTHING...

I bought some IKEA storage boxes during our last trip to IKEA in hopes that this project might one day take place.  I (heart) IKEA KASSETT storage boxes; they make organization so easy!!

                           

AHHHHH, do you hear the angels singing and the harps playing!!!  Look at that cabinet now.  I am so satisfied with the final outcome and I even have room to spare.  Michaels and Hobby Lobby are calling my name!!!  Everything has a place and a label.  Paint, Ribbon, Glue Guns, Supplies, Brushes, Pens, Note cards, and even an Idea Book. All of it has its own place and its own BOX.  These boxes make it easy to just pull out what you need and leave what you don't.  So Easy and soooooo ORGANIZED!!!  One project down, eleven more to go.