Less

Sadly not my beautiful sewing room.
Photo credit: [ HarlowHeslop.com ] via Source / CC BY-SA

I need to admit something to you, and it makes me very uncomfortable to say it: I have too much.

Too much fabric (a lot of which I will never use but it's pretty so I keep it).  Too many old beads from broken bits of jewellery (because I did a course 4 years ago that required me to have some beads, but of course I have no need of them now).  Too many bits of ribbon and trim (because they are handy for making cards etc, which of course I don't do, or at least not with ribbon).  Too many sewing patterns (given to me, found at car boot sales, most of them not my style or size).  Too many things to mention in a basket marked 'Christmas', fabric and all sorts, which haven't been considered for at least 3 years.

You get the idea.  The problem is, I live in a small house; there are 2 adults and 3 children in our 3 bedroom semi.  I don't have a studio, garden room or even a defined area for making. 

I also think that I'm getting overwhelmed by this huge stash of crafty goodies.  Somewhere under all the stuff I don't use are things I want to use.  I'd like to get started on lino printing, but that would involve moving 3 large baskets, a pile of notebooks (oh, the notebooks and old diaries!  Am I the only one that can't bear to get rid of them?) and a couple of bags of ribbon ends.

 I need to be brutal and dramatically reduce my fabric stash and all the other things that are taking over.

So, first I need to establish some rules about what I can keep.  Logically, I think if I know that I won't use it in the next 6 months (with 1 or 2 exceptions, such as a length of dress fabric that I know I will make up when I find some time, or the little jingly bells that I do use at Christmas) then I should let it go.  That's hard.  I can already hear the voices in my head: but it's so pretty; it would make a lovely bag; oh, but you loved that when you bought it.  You get the picture.  Maybe you even have some of those voices yourself.

I'm going to start today.  I'll let you know how I get on.