Saturday, February 11, 2012

Upstairs Update

I have been working upstairs almost daily this past week & I've worked especially hard this morning.  I have been sorting things in order to put like items/boxes together, made a pile of boxes that need to be put inside other boxes & brought downstairs, made a mental note of boxes that need to be brought upstairs from downstairs in order to make room for the aforementioned boxes I'll be bringing downstairs, & marveled again at how very much craft stuff one person can accumulate in a couple decades.  It's hard to imagine that there was a time when John & I moved from Florida to Montana & sold just about everything we owned except our clothes & special momentos.  It's also hard to imagine that there were times when I decided "I don't want to do this anymore" & sold more crafting supplies than I can shake a stick at.  How is it that I have so much stuff?!?!?  I got to do a count of my huge Rubbermaid containers packed full of quilting fabric.  There are 13 of them.  There are an additional 5 smaller containers which are holding quilt tops I've finished but have never quilted, quilt blocks I've made but have never sewn into quilt tops, & various fabric pattern pieces cut out & waiting to be made into quilt blocks.  Then there is a huge container filled with quilts that are almost finished ... they only need the binding sewn on.  I'm guessing there's about 10 of those binding-deprived quilts.

I have the 4 huge containers crammed full of wool strips cut & ready to be made in to braided rugs.  I was surprised to find an additional container filled almost to the brim with yards of wool ... some solids, some herringbones, & some plaids.

There are a lot of boxes packed with things I know I'm not going to use but I really don't have the time to go through them all to sort things out right now.  My main focus is to get everything rounded up, looking neat, & out of the way for when prospective buyers come to look at the house.  I'm still flip-flopping on what to do with the yard sale stuff.

I am maybe done upstairs for today.  John is having a lot of pain with his teeth so he wasn't up very long this morning before he went back to bed.  He has been sleeping for about 2 hours now & I don't think there is much more I can do up there without making too much noise & disturbing him.  I'm therefore going to treat myself to some lunch, maybe read a bit, & take it from there.      

16 comments:

Michelle said...

Wow - I agree with do accumulate so much stash. I decided last year to have one major clear out and now I only have what I need and everything is now in two large units - one in Andys office at home and one in the lounge and I love the fact that everything is around me xx

renee said...

It does seem to pile up, I know I am dealing with it myself. I would like to know how you do the braided rugs~ do you literally braid them like you do hair? I am wondering, I always get my curiosity going! I wouldn't make hasty decisions on what to get rid of, because I have done that before, and you just want to kick yourself later!
I hope that you enjoy your weekend.

Nicola said...

It is amazing how quickly we accumulate possessions. It is so difficult to part with things too. Poor John I sympathise.

Kaisievic said...

We have been in this house for 14 years now and I shudder to think how much stuff I am going to have to clean out when we decide to downsize. Aaaaagghhhh! I am so impressed with all of your hardwork.

hugs, Kaye xoxox

~*Sharee*~ said...

I sure feel for John hun; I was like that all week w/my tooth. It's such a pain to pack up; I know I always wonder where the heck I got so much crap!! But I usually just pack it up and take it with me...I may want to buy some of you wool hun; I use it for finishing Christmas Ornaments...Talk to you soon.

Hugs, Shar

Angela said...

Glad you are making progress Shirlee. Makes one feel good to tackle a big project and see results. I wouldn't want to begin a task of packing to move having lived her for 34 years. Nope, I shudder to think of it. Poor John, tooth pain is the pits. Take care and stay warm.
Angela

CJ in OK ;-) said...

Sounds like a big chore, but maybe you will find something you have been looking for forever, always a nice treat for tidying up. Good luck with the sale prep. CJ in OK ;-)

Robin at The Primitive Hutch said...

Sounds like your making some head way and your baby steps turned into giant steps.
It is amazing how much us crafters accumalate!
Prim Blessings
Robin

Carol said...

I'm glad you're making some progress in your upstairs cleanout efforts, Shirlee. That can't be an easy job and one I dread doing some day. We have two attics (one above the garage and one above the house) crammed with stuff and I should really start weeding it out little by little...

Sure hope John feels better soon--poor man!

marly said...

Holy cow. You have a lot of supplies that require decision making. Not an easy task. I would find someone to finish the quilts for you. There's a lot on your plate right now. Maybe they would do it in exchange for your other fabrics. Good luck.

cucki said...

sound like a big job..
i hope john feel better soon..
thinking of you so much..
love cucki xxx

Laura said...

WOW WOW WOW!!! I'm back after several weeks and what do I find? A great blog full of projects and stitches!! Very very nice!
I hope John will feel better soon.
Blessings,
Laura

Diane said...

I have been reading your blogs, but haven't commented because I had misplaced the account password :( Sorry to hear about John's teeth..hope they're better soon.

Was thinking that if you're that energetic to clean ALL those supplies that you have, you can come up north, get some snow therapy and help with mine!!!

Sorry I haven't kept in touch, but think of you guys often.

Diane

Myra said...

It is amazing what one can accumulate in such a short amount of time. I really need to reorganize my "stuff" too. Have a great week!

Trace4J said...

Wow Shirlee you go girlfriend.
I always ask myself..How did I get so much stuff??lol I am cleaning out some fabric too.
Poor John. Saying little prayer for him.
Hugs to you
Trace

TheCrankyCrow said...

Hmmmm....I guess there really is a method to my madness now that I think of it....If I stash stuff all over the place, in different boxes, tubs, and what-not-have-you's, one doesn't really know what one has...until one has to do something like pack up and move. And since that doesn't look like it's happening anytime soon here, I'm good to go??? ;o) Oh...I so feel for you....And poor, poor, John....tooth pain is one of the worst! What a long time to wait....Hugs ~ Robin