Clutter

Momentum

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My focus word for the month of February is : FINISH.  In the past few days I have finished 3 more items on my monthly goal list.

Before

After

#6 Remove five items from the mudroom closet.

Before

After

I started on the shelves on the left removing lampshades and art supplies.  I returned light bulbs and organized other items in a more organized fashion.

Our tiny basement has very little free floor space.

My next task wasn’t large — #8 Remove one item or box from basement.

Before

After

I brought some old paint rollers and pans still covered in aluminum foil up to the dining room where I took everything apart and threw away old roller sleeves.  These tolls can definitely be reused.  And happily I found my paint stirs for which I had been searching.

My jacket is clean again and ready to wear.

#9 Clean down jackets. The dirty cuffs, pockets, and collars on my jackets have been treated with prewash.  Now they’re in the washer.

Three more down, that’s five of twelve items finished. Six if you count FINISH.

Jo

Shelves Get Messy

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We have been working on our bedroom shelves for a couple of years.

Our shelves become a catchall for tools and hardware and papers, etc.

They still need some finishing but we have been using them to house our books, family photos, and travel souvenirs. One of my February goals is to clean and organize one shelf.

The bottom shelf on Charlie’s side became the hardware store.

I had been using the bottom shelf for the tools we need to complete the trim installation in the master closet and on the front of the bookshelves.

I put the tools in the upstairs tool box. Innovative — I know.

We keep a tool box/step stool in the laundry that was almost empty because the tools were scattered on the shelves. Now the tools are in the box.

The shelf is now ready for a proper display.

The shelf is empty and clean and waiting for Charlie to move some of his heavier books down to this bottom position.

On my side of the room I removed curtain hardware and neatened up the display.

On my side I put away baskets of curtain hardware and styled some blue geodes next to an interesting shell. So instead of clearing one shelf I actually finished four.  Does that make me an overachiever?

Jo

One Drawer Plus Five Items

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I had a lazy Saturday but remembered I needed to get busy on my January goal list.

Drawer before

I pulled out one drawer from my tall dresser and completely emptied it.

Drawer after

I only returned socks with mates, t-shirts that fit, pajamas.

These clothes, including 5+ pairs of tights and leotards, are out of the drawer and out of the house.

I did not return leotards and tights from my dancing days, t-shirts that don’t fit, and socks without a matching partner.

Clothes from Talbots and L bean don’t really go out of style.

I also looked in my walk-in closet and easily found 5 outfits — dresses and jackets — that are in very good condition but which I have not worn for years.

A box of donations.

I folded them into a box to contribute to the semi-annual rummage sale at a local church.

Two more items ticked off the January list.

Jo

For Free

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When I least expect it, I find a nice thing for free.

The photos in the ad looked very good.

I’ve been looking at Facebook Marketplace much too often lately when I saw a beautiful, large hanging cabinet.

The cabinet was loaded onto the bed of a large pickup truck.

Sug, Sug’s cousin, and I wrestled it onto the back of the cousin’s pick-up truck with some help from the previous owner who had listed it. It is enormous:  52″ by 54″ by 18″ and weighs about 2 tons.

The cabinet is about the same height as my fireplace mantle.

Before seeing it I planned to use it in my laundry room but I realize it is way too large for any placement in my house so it’s resting on our side porch.

Before I get rid of this piece I’m going to try to think of a creative use for it because it will hold a lot of things.

It’s a beauty but I guess I’ll have to relist it.

Jo

 

Making a Plan for the Laundry Room

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The shore house doesn’t have a basement but it does have a laundry room. Certainly having a dedicated laundry room is a wonderful benefit.

All the water in the house runs through the water softener in the laundry room.

This laundry also houses the well pump, the water softener, and the water heater in addition to the washer and dryer.

The laundry room didn’t look too bad when we first moved into the house but the ceiling was falling in, the electric didn’t work, and the water heater was shot.

Unfortunately the laundry room needs a lot of work to make it a pleasant place to wash clothes.

All the old wet wood and paneling was removed.

The first order of business was to tear out the old roof and rotten wallboard.

The room got worse before it got better.

The entire roof was replaced.

Then the roofer totally rebuilt the structure.

Charlie carefully insulated the wall behind the water heater.

While we had access to the open walls Charlie insulated them.

The new electric outlet for the washing machine has GFCI protection.

Recently we had an electrician rewire the room while he was running new service to the bathroom.

The new light switch has been installed in a very grimy wall.

At her suggestion I’m going to rely on Sug to clean the laundry from top to bottom so we can paint it a cheery color.

The laundry needs more than just some cleaning.

Before we paint we also need to:

  • enclose the ceiling and wall in drywall,
  • snug the washer and dryer back against the wall,
  • make sure the door will close.

I’m going to research cheery (windowless) laundry rooms for inspiration.

Jo

Was the Swap a Good Idea?

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Last Saturday we organized a swap party for holiday items.

I had many items to get the swap going.

The jumble of items were easier to assess by setting up swap tables by theme.

First of all it’s difficult to select a weekend in November or December that isn’t already packed with craft sales, holiday parties, charity fundraisers, etc.  So even though I invited my master guest list we were only about a dozen people who brought swappable items.

Each participant was asked to sign-in and take corresponding stickers to mark the items they wanted.

Because the number of guests was small the swapping was very congenial and fun.  There were no disputes or duplicates and everyone found something she wanted to take home with her. Even our few male participants selected attractive items.

A map of the various theme tables was given to each participant.

The best part for me, though, was that every guest stayed around to have some snacks and enjoy each other’s company.  Some of the guests only know each other from being a part of other get togethers we have hosted at The Glade.  It so rewarding to see our friends building community.

We set up the snack buffet on the kitchen island because the remainder of the house was full of holiday treasures.

While my pile of no-longer-needed decorations dwindled during the party there were still quite a few things remaining at the end. I donated the nicest items to a church that supplies children with a very low-cost gift shopping opportunity so they can surprise their families on Christmas.

I made a tin of mini-caramel balls for my son and his friends to eat while heading back to their headquarters two hours away.

Secondly my son and his (male) friends came by the house to pick up some building materials and each of them selected a few holiday things for their wives.

Every room on our ground floor was set up with tables to display swap items.

There are a couple of larger pieces which I will try to sell on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace with the intention of donating the monetary proceeds to a charity.

Donations to the Church Mouse Thrift Shop in Quantico, Maryland might be on our agenda this weekend.

The remainder of the items will go to a local church-sponsored thrift store that has a special display of ornaments for Christmas.

Was the swap a good idea? Yes, it was well worth the planning and execution to have friends meet friends in addition to reducing some clutter in a positive manner.

Jo

Swap Party Snack Menu

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We’re having a Holiday Decor Swap Party tomorrow afternoon.

Tables for the swap are set up by theme.

I’ve created a simple menu so we can all stay on task while getting a bite to eat.

Meringue kisses are great to have on hand — they say “PARTY”.

I’ve already made meringue kisses from this recipe which are stashed in the freezer.

The  full menu looks like this:

We’ll also make hot spiced cider tea and Glade Fizzes.

Mini caramel popcorn balls are extremely rich and addictive.

Rain is scheduled but we’ll have a jolly time swapping and snacking.

Jo

Weekend Progress in the Bathroom

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While Sug and I worked on next week’s Holiday Decor Swap, more improvements were happening at the shore house.

Each area at our swap meet will be labeled to make “shopping” easier.

I made placards and together we sorted through my holiday goodies and displayed them throughout the house.

A 6-mil moisture barrier was laid under the drainage plumbing.

In the meantime my son and his wife worked on the the area under the (future) floor in the bathroom.    The dirt base has been drying out for a few weeks. The entire area was covered with a 6-mil vapor barrier.

Original duct outlined in yellow.

The old galvanized duct which had holes was detached from the furnace duct connection and removed from the room.

Flexible duct is easy to install.

New insulated flexible duct replaced the old galvanized duct.

Before

After

The new duct will run under the sink vanity and blow out through the kickplate.

I can’t wait to see the progress in person.

Jo

Behind the Kitchen

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Behind the kitchen at the shore house is an empty, now gutted, utility room.

I’m talking about the grey room next to the blue one with cabinet layout.

It’s a good size room, approximately 12′ by 5′, that could be used for storage but might be better put to use as a laundry sorting area and surplus food storage.  It might even house a deep freezer or additional refrigerator.

Originally the utility room had built-in hanging and storage space.

It might be the perfect place to set up an ironing board.

I’m hoping the cabinet is still there.

When the new roof was put on it was determined that this room needed to be gutted due to water and termite damage.

This room has plenty of room for shelves and hanging rods.

Until today it had a lot of trash and debris on the floor which is now being burned.

Everything looks better decluttered and cleaned up.

Now it’s ready for some cleaning and sprucing love.

Jo

Organizing Christmas

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While everyone else is getting ready to celebrate Halloween I’ve pulled down most of my Christmas storage crates to divide and conquer.

2 large bins to repack with new items. I’m hoping to empty a third one as well.

Number 81 of my 101 in 1001 days states: Remove 10 boxes from the attic.  I actually removed about a half dozen boxes and emptied the contents of 4 — 2 cardboard boxes have been thrown away and 2 plastic bins are ready for storing other items that have just been lying around.

Lots of nice holiday items that we don’t use anymore.

The Christmas things that I’m willing to get rid of in the upcoming Holiday Swap are on the table in the dining room awaiting organization.

I decided to stick with a polar bear theme again this year for the winter holidays.

I’m hoping everything goes during the swap.  If not, I’m making a pledge not to re-store things but to get rid of them in a final manner.

Jo