My apologies if you live in a warm climate as this week’s newsletter will likely not apply to you (lucky duck!) So will see you next week! If this newsletter does apply to you, join me in a fun winter accessory chant “Hats and Mitts (and sometimes scarves) what fun!”
Oh the wonderful world of winter accessories - all over the house, draped on chairs and sofas, and my personal favourite, the floor. Single mitts that have lost their partners, hats jammed into every nook and cranny in our homes - such endless fun! (If you can’t sense the sarcasm in my words, its there - trust me!!) I’m not going to lie, this declutter is tough, mostly because these items are small and just manage to find there way everywhere around our homes, garages, cars - you name it.
Its important to remember that it will be impossible to prevent some clutter of these items, in fact we won’t even try. But what we can do is to help keep this clutter at bay by applying and using the rules we have been working with - garbage, give away, keep. Mitts, hats (and sometimes scarves) need a place to live in your home - a main residence if you will. It will be different for everybody but our job is to find a space and place for all of these winter accessories. This space may be shelves, cubbies (if you have), baskets, cabinets or something else. Once you have found a good place to house these items then the work begins.
Stack the hats together, scarves together and mitts together; like items go together to help stay organized. If hanging scarves as a group makes more sense in your living space, then do that. If you have lots of glorious spaces for this task, you can even organize according to people in your family - Mary’s hats scarves and mitts here, and then on to the next person, etc. As you organize and cull, GET RID of items that nobody is using and wearing. This is important because these things are serving no purpose and are just taking up space - space we all need. Keep your giveaway and garbage bags close for unneeded and unwanted items.
How many single mitts have you found when organizing the mitt section(s)?
A fun thought - see if you can relate. Whenever I find a solo mitt, my inclination is to keep said mitt because I think I will likely find the mate ‘at some point’.
I usually take a look around to see if I can find the other mitt, maybe I check the car or the garage floor or outside walkways. Sometimes I have success and pair up the mitts, but more often than not I don’t have any success in finding the mitt’s mate. I still tell myself “I may find the other mitt so I should probably keep this single mitt for now.” Sure, there is a slight possibility that I MAY find the other mitt, but the chances are slim. Mitts are like socks - they just tend to get lost. So what is the point of this mitt story? Well, the single matt is garbage and needs to be thrown away. We have to let ourselves get rid of things that we can no longer use, unless you intend it for a costume the single lone mitt is ready for the trash.
I hope you winter friends have found this helpful, but I want you to remember - this doesn’t mean that your hard work is going to stay this way - some unassuming house mate will likely deconstruct your piles to get what they are looking for, and thats OK! We are never going to keep things perfect, but the key it to create situations where we can reorganize simply, and more importantly, so that the items can be found and used as they were meant to be! Until next time, stay warm!
