Welcome to From Crap to Clean before Christmas, a challenge I’m throwing at you to clean up your mess before the tree goes up!
All instalments to date are HERE.
See my pretty escape during the first round HERE.
Let us begin this one… with a cleaner linen closet and cleaning tips.
Then it’s your turn!
A decorator blogger’s worst nightmare is to intentionally show ugly pictures.
Welcome to my nightmare. 😀
So please know, I’m biting my lip, and doing this out of the goodness of my heart, because I know a good before and after just may motivate you enough to….
But naturally, I watermarked it in case you were inclined to pin the living daylights out of it. 🙂
Ok… so, I know we were suppose to tackle ‘an escape’ this week. I showed you my pallet sofa escape HERE. My 2nd was to be my bedroom.
But I never got that far. The noise coming from this room was just louder, so it won. So I’ve been using my patio escape LOTS. Has yours helped?
Anyway, this linen closet resides in my son’s bedroom. Lucky guy.
And we really need to tackle the boy’s room next, because it’s just that bad.
But there was heaps of my linen clutter sitting on top of heaps of his anything goes clutter, so I needed to clean my stuff up first.
20 steps back here we go…
My 6 bests best cleaning tips:
1. GUT. Don’t shuffle.
Whenever I don’t gut something I’m cleaning, I end up shuffling what’s there, keeping way more. The reason you have a mess to begin with is because you have too much stuff!
Thing is, gutting is pure magic. You then add back only the things you need / want, then get rid of the rest. WAY more effective!
2. PURGE.
This really is the key to more space. If you put it all back again, you’ll just have a neat mess on your hands.
It’s hard to get rid of stuff you think you may need down the road. But if you haven’t used it in a year, say goodbye. You’ll be opening up more room for the things you need now.
3. BAG IT.
You know the drill… one pile to keep, one pile to give away or sell, one pile for the garbage. I got 4 huge thrift store bags out of this. YES!!!
4. Pretend you’re going to move.
Seriously… pretend you’re going to move. Would you bring this stuff with you to your next home? If no, no point in having it in this home!
All I can say is, I found our pillow cases again! I’ve missed them so.
6. Apply space rules.
So… my deal is, linens must fit in this closet. If they don’t, it has to go. That’s the only way my son can have a chance on getting his room back because there is no other room for this stuff.
Finding my son’s floor again was mind boggling. And while this isn’t a pretty after, it sure was a productive one.
And that’s just the way cleaning goes. It can’t all be beautiful. Beautiful comes later, as a direct result of your hard work.
– – – – –
How to play today and next Monday’s Homework…
Clean anything you wish.
Take a before picture. (or more)
Take an after picture. (or more)
Be ready to share your success today and next Monday with us!
So! Your homework was to create an escape for yourselves. Did you do that, or did you do something else? Tell us in comments how it all went! And any other heartfelt ponderings you have.
And if desired…
Bloggers, please link up below!
Non bloggers,
feel free to share your efforts on my Facebook page HERE, or in the Crap To Clean private Facebook group HERE.
By the way, anyone is welcome to join the private Facebook group, for week long encouragement! Ask to join by clicking HERE.
I can’t wait to see what you did!!
It’s a beautiful after pic – anything organized is beautiful!
It truly is, Jen. It’s so amazing finding the home you had all along… but just wasn’t able to see it!
Oh my gosh…your before picture! Hahahaha! Turned out great though! My husband and I are tackling a project this week so I will be sure to link up once it’s complete!
Go Rose! I can’t wait to see what you do. 🙂 We need some bloggers in the mix on this!
I cleaned our linen closet about 6 weeks ago. We finally went from a double bed to a queen size bed and I needed to sort all the linens. When I had a complete set, it was folded, put inside the pillow case and stored in a box that is labeled – double bed – queen bed – day bed. I have a box with just single sheets, pillow cases, etc. It makes my life so much easier because I don’t have to take time to look. I also just alphabetized my spices – don’t ask I’m retired.
Patty, I bow down to you. I want THAT! I’ll take retirement too! haha
I agree with the first comment here…anything organized is beautiful! Good job! I wish (or not) I had taken a before of my laundry room. I’m just finishing today-painted the walls, added a shelf, cleaned the junk. Love it!
I love the expression on your face in the first photo! Says it all. Congrats on getting that done!
Kathy, that sounds fabulous! I hope you share your progress with us!
Wow! What a wonderful accomplishment! I love the challenge to clean up the messes before the tree goes up. I can barely walk into my guest bedroom with all the junk flowing out of my closet and onto the bed. I’m going to attempt to accept your challenge (heavens knows I need to clean up my mess!). Wish me luck!
AWESOME! I hope you don’t read this message, because you are too busy gutting that bedroom!!!
Linens are one of the things I have a very hard time letting go of! I guess it’s because you can change the look of a room so well just by changing the curtains or bedding. When I’m close to letting go I always think ‘Oh, wouldn’t that fabric look awesome in a quilt?’ Sigh.
You did a great job, I will try to clean out my linens too. ?
I so had the same issues. I always think I’ll sew one day… while my sewing machine sits upside down under a pile of junk under the stairs with a missing cord… riiiiight…. 😀
Oh my goodness… there are 5 pins from this post. What is there to pin?! 😀
Thanks for keeping it real, Donna! I’m glad you found your pillow cases and your “son’s floor!” It looks fantastic … great tips that I’m going to put into practice … thanks for the inspiration! (Love kitty kitty perched in the bookcase, too)!
Happy my mess inspired you Becca! Glad something good came out of my messy habits… LOL
The cat cracked me up. He was all, “DisneyCatLand!”
First let me say, I am very envious of your linen closet. I keep my sheets in a drawer in the closet. I still need to figure out a place to keep the extra blankets. Wow! What a job! Great finish. Your space looks wonderful freshly organized and purged. Another space under control. I have to catch up. Loving this series!
Well Peggy, I was rewarded this closet by letting go of a LOT of extra clothes! My son’s room is really two rooms, so we could spare the space in this case. I don’t know what I’d do without it at this point!
We have a ton of blankets and quilts. Why I do not know! Most are in our travel trailer.
And that’s another purge for another day… haha
Thanks for tuning in!
Here’s another idea I have about closets and shelves – maybe you’ve already discussed this?
If you have to move more than one thing to get to the object you want, you still have too much stuff in that area.
I like that Susan. There is nothing more frustrating than something falling on the floor while you grab something else! On it!
I think your rule of “pretending you’re moving” is a great motivation. I always say, “Do I really want to move this 80 lb pile of stuff? NO, out it goes.” Good luck in your purging.
I just found you throughout HGTV! What a creative lady you are! You have a new follower here.
I am trying to figure out your home’s room layout. Upstairs is your deck, kitchen, living room, bedroom and bath? Downstairs is the entry hall, your office, your photo room and the garage? Your son’s bedroom and bath is probably upstairs with your’s. I’m sure I have it all wrong.
Hi Billie!
Upstairs / blog office with sawhorse desk / kitchen / master bedroom / son’s double big bedroom / salvaged farmhouse bathroom / ensuite
Downstairs / another office with junk storage / photo studio / paint studio / laundroom / small bathroom / garage workshop.
I think I will draw a floorplan so you can figure it out better. Thanks for the blog post idea, it’s on the list!
GUT is a great word to describe purging. The only way I can bear to let go of some things is taking them to a charity thrift shop where the things themselves or $ they make goes to help people with very little in my community. Your cat is like mine – they supervise me all over the house too. Thanks
LOL!!! I’m a new follower so am reading previous posts. This photo is hilarious, looks like you got caught and kitty looking on as if to say “what the…” Too funny! I will need this challenge next year before Christmas. If I start now I may make it! I’m thinking of starting by getting rid of my “leaves a disaster in his wake” husband! LOL. That would give me half a chance.
I wish I read this four days ago (I would have had a great picture to share – if only I had thought to take one). I decided it was time clean out the attic, 25 years worth of “I can’t get rid of that”. I decided to pull out every thing. ” Oh my gosh … how did all of it fit up there …filled up two large rooms in my house. I really thought the house would never be in order again. Four days later ?, a full trash can, a full recycle can and a giant load to the thrift store, I am finally done.My husband shut down after the first day, “he wanted to take out a bit at a time”. Thank goodness I didn’t do that, I would have never continued on past the first stack. It looks so much better and has about half the stuff it did, it would have less if I wasn’t so sentimental.
Thanks for sharing, you make me feel better.