To keep or not to keep, that is the question…
Spring is right around the corner and if you’re like me, you’re already dreaming of warmer days and clearing out the clutter. And we’ve all been there… you know that feeling you get when you look at a space within your home that you know you need to clean out? That feeling of being overwhelmed to the point that sometimes it just feels easier to deal with it another day. I can’t be the only one who wants every aspect of my home organized, but instead ends up with piles here and there that need attention. The struggle is real!
When designing our own spaces, it can be difficult to decide what to keep and what to let go of because many of our things have moments, stories, and people attached to them. Despite this, sometimes these special pieces simply don’t flow with our home design, or we have too many sentimental items and not enough space.
We also tend to accumulate new things that were more impulse purchases because they were on sale, or we thought they would work in the space, but don’t.
When I’m feeling overwhelmed with all the piles, my mother’s wise words always settle in:
“Just tackle one thing at a time.”
One pile at a time. One drawer at a time. One closet at a time. If the task looks daunting, one small part of it can be done today, and follow up with another small part of it tomorrow. Just cleaning out that one drawer a day can be so rewarding and feel so good!
My approach to letting items go is to think about the exciting possibility of replacing them with something new. If I clean out the clothes that I don’t really wear, then I can make room for new ones that hopefully I will. For your home, consider each item. Do you really love it? Does that lamp or accessory really bring you joy to look at it? If not, let it go. It will then make room for something you really love to fill its place.
Follow the idea of ‘Keep, Sell, Donate’ piles and actually do it! This process can be freeing and addictive.
The items I find the hardest to let go of are the sentimental ones because I’m a deeply sentimental person. Knowing this about myself and because I can relate to how many of you may feel when it comes to letting go of these items, I’ve come up with the best advice I can give you on how to decide which items to keep and how to display them.
Special pitchers gifted to me by my late father.
Choose just one or two of your favorite keepsakes from each loved one.
If the keepsake works with the design of your home, then you are blessed! Use it, display it, and enjoy. If the keepsake doesn’t work with the style of your home, consider tweaking it a bit. If it’s a piece of furniture, it’s okay to reupholster or sand, stain or paint it. Maybe even just changing the hardware can give it an entirely different look that flows with your home’s design. It will still be that special piece that reminds you of your loved one, but now it works in your home.
Group things together.
My daddy loved to yard sale and often would stop in with his yard sale finds and bring me a gift. Usually the gift was a unique pitcher, so now I have the cutest collection of pitchers that were either my grandmothers, my mothers, or now treasured yard sale gifts from my father. I have them all grouped together above a french country china cabinet in my kitchen. I look at that grouping everyday and enjoy each memory, yet it isn’t clutter spread around my house. It’s intentional and has its place.
Frame or Shadow Box it and Hang it.
It could be tickets to your favorite concert, your grandfather’s cufflinks, your mom’s special recipe, or any special item that doesn’t really work on a table top or shelf. It could be several items that pertain to that one special memory. Group them together in a frame or shadow box and hang it on the wall. Sometimes these things work well in a family room, but if not, there are usually great spots in a hallway or office that will give a place for all to view.
Built-in bookshelves or curio cabinets.
Some sentimental items can easily flow with your design if placed with intentional elements on a bookshelf or in a curio. An old pair of your father’s reading glasses sitting on a family book or bible, or a glass vase filled with seashells from your family trips to the beach
The point is to take those few special keepsakes that you choose to keep on display and truly highlight them and make them special. I believe it’s better to have one really special memory displayed in a very special way than to have hundreds of things laying around that no one can really enjoy and see.
This all holds true for our own lives. We sometimes have clutter in our hearts and our minds that we need to take the time to evaluate and determine what is worth holding onto and what is needed to let go. Those special gifts, highlight them and put them on display. Those unnecessary things that hold us back from being all that we were meant to be, let them go. You will feel so free.
