How do you get started decluttering craft supplies? Pick a space and clear it out.
Once you’ve made the commitment to become a minimalist crafter, you need to take honest stock of what you have and envision what you would like your crafty spaces to look like.
- What do you want your space to look like when you’re finished?
- Not just your work space, but your storage space?
- What are three words you might use to describe the space you want to have?
For me it might be calm, creative, colorful.
(Sorry, I love alliteration.)
It might be something different for you. But knowing that going in will help you make decisions for decluttering craft supplies and other items.
- How much stuff is enough for you?
- How much is too much?
- What kinds of things do you need to keep and what can you easily get rid of?
It might be completely overwhelming to consider your whole stash of art and craft supplies at once, so baby steps are probably in order. I don’t want you to give up before you get going because it seems too hard.
What is the one place that would make the most impact for you if it were organized?
Mine is – always, perennially, over and over again – my desk.
It’s a big L-shaped glass desk, and I can use it for crafting and writing when it’s cleared off.
It’s a great space.
It’s hardly ever clean.
So I’ll take you through the process of how I might work on it.
What do I want for the space? Clean, open, organized, easy access to materials I use often.
What’s there that shouldn’t be? Supplies left over from long-finished projects, books, mail and other paperwork.
What can I do about it? Clear off dishes, trash and recycling. Find a better place for the books, or possibly get rid of some of them. Put supplies where they go or find them a home if they don’t have one.
How can I keep it in better shape in the future? I like to say I will clear off my desk every day, but I know from experience that’s not practical. But maybe at the end of each week I could clear off projects and other messes, so I start the week with a fresh desk again.
This is a quick and relatively easy way to clear out any space that really needs help. While you’re in the mood for clearing, make sure you don’t put things away that you know you don’t want or need to keep. The goal here is decluttering craft supplies, right?
Evaluating your whole stash or clearing out a closet or bigger space will take a different approach, but a small space is a great place to get started.
An easy win will keep you motivated to continue making progress in other places and give you some much-needed strength and willpower as you move into more difficult areas.
Action item: Pick a place that needs attention and isn’t too big. Your desk or sewing table or a place that catches creative clutter is a great place to start. Evaluate what you want from the space and how to get there. Report back here or on the Facebook page, where you can also share before and after photos.
2 Comments
I’ve been working on slimming down my craft area for the past year. Slowly but surely I seem to be getting there! I have a small room 6 feet by 8 feet of space that I want to walk into and store my crafts. I want to be able to access them easily. I do crocheting, knitting, and small quilt projects. Deciding how to organize the items has been a real challenge! I have finally come to the conclusion that I would have to live to be 200 years old to use all the yarn I’ve bought! Any suggestions or ideas will be greatly appreciated!
Hi Cheryl, thanks for stopping by! I am clearly still working on this, too, but I will be sharing lots of tips that I hope will be helpful. Choosing what/how much to keep and then how to store it is a big issue, and it’s really personal to what you make and how much you feel like you need (and have room to store). But I have faith that we can do it! 😉