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I've been reading several popular threads, and am involved in an organizing challenge, and the word of the day is: PURGE! Everyone seems to think we have so much we need to throw out and that got me to thinking.
Why are we buying things only to throw them away (or in the best case, give away) a year or two later? What is making so many people buy things they end up wanting to throw away? I know that we are a wasteful world, but honestly, why are we throwing away card making supplies? Most supplies are not like food that can "go bad" or reach an expiration date.
I understand the occasional purchase that doesn't live up to our expectations or something we have used so often that we have become tired of it, but I don't think most of the purging that we are doing falls into this catagory. That brings me back to my original question.... why are we doing this?
I'll be interested to see the answers to this one.
My thoughts:
Minimalism is a trend right now. People are writing blogs and books and such about paring down their possessions to the bare essentials. I suspect some people are just caught up in this.
But I think the bigger problem is that we all have a finite space to store our supplies. I think a lot of people bought more than their space can functionally hold. It's hard, when you're in a store or browsing the web, to remember that when the item gets home you need to store it. It's also hard to remember that you may have 10 similar items already. So the new stuff comes home and suddenly our spaces are filled to the brim.
Sure, we may use the stuff someday. But in the meantime, our spaces become non-functional and card making becomes stressful. And suddenly, purging seems like a great idea. And it is, as long as the mindless shopping also stops.
Finally, there may also be an element of "wow, I got a great deal on these items!" without any plan for those items. Years later, we are still looking at said items and realize we may never use them. Even if our space isn't overstuffed, purging items that are no longer desirable seems like a good idea.
Absolutely, also when I first started four years ago, I didn't know about quality cardstock, and was grabbing up anything on sale or with coupons. I am wiser now, and passing on supplies to others.
I must admit to being a "Keeper" and not a purger. On the rare occasions when I have arbitrarily gotten rid of something just because I haven't used it lately, or in the case of clothing, worn it, I have usually regretted it.
I will have a "light bulb" moment, "Oh, I'll use..... oh wait, I gave that away."
So as long as I have room for another storage container, or stack of paper, I tend to hang on to things.
In my defense, I am not much of an impulse shopper in any area of my life, and try to carefully consider all my purchases.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
Location: along the bluffs of the Upper Mississippi River
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I never had the $$$ to overspend, so I have very, very little that I would ever purge. Sometimes less is more! I guess it's a blessing I don't have the money to overspend. That's a good way to look at it. I have plenty of supplies, don't get me wrong but I certainly don't have the problem of owning too much! It's taken me five years to have enough supplies to create easily!
I too am interested in this topic and what everyone has to say!
__________________ All I want is the chance to prove money won't make me happy!
I have been very picky over the last few years on what I buy. My stash compared to most is likely tiny That being said, I am currently going through my stuff for a "garage sale" at my local craft store next month. I can earn store credit to buy anything I feel I need. I find that the majority of stuff I am cleaning out was either GIFTS from friends, stuff I thought I would use but never did, or styles I no longer like. I NEVER throw away anything but scraps of paper! Whatever I cannot sell I give to friends or donate. For me, it is a good way keep my spending in line too. Since I do this twice a year I get reminded of what I have already and force myself to use as much as possible.
I have been looking at every room in our house and getting rid of things that are just taking up space. As for my craftroom, I went through it when we moved a year ago and got rid of/give away alot of DS paper and stamps that I did not like or use any more. I am very selective in the stamps and supplies that I buy now and only buy the stamps if I know that I will use it over and over again. I know my sister who is a professional organizer would love to get into my craft room and get rid of alot of things, but the only thing I have allowed her to organize in there is my stamp index and the binders that all my stamps are in. I think that it is a good thing to get rid of things that are no longer useful to you wether it is in your craftroom or in the rest of your home.
I ended up dontating or giving a lot of stuff to friends for a few reasons. The biggest one was I participate in a lot of SS swaps and honestly a lot of stuff I was getting I would never use. Recenly not only have a cut back on the swaps, but I got rid of stuff that I just knew I wouldn't use. Another reason was I just didn't know what my "style" was, so I would buy stuff that I thought I would use or like to incorporate into my projects. Well I finally figured out what I use and don't use and I got rid of what I don't use.
Lately I have found that I don't spend too much time in places like AcMoore or Michaels because honesthly most of the stuff they sell isn't what I really use. I am pretty clean and simple in my cards and projects so I don't use a lot of embellishments . I have also pretty much ended up buying most of my supplies from one place, PTI. I like their stamps, paper and such and I find it easier to get the bulk of my supplies from one place. Now I do get some stamps from other places and also things like adhesive, but that end up being a very small amount of what I spend.
I think that part of it is the time of year. For some reason, this is the time of year that most of us feel the need to get rid of stuff and organize. Maybe it's all of that new stuff that comes into our homes at Christmas.
I recently sold four storage baskets full of stamps for a tiny fraction of what they were worth, but I came away from the deal with a huge smile on my face and I'll bet the woman who got a great deal did ,too. Why? I have three feet of closet space and that stuff had been in those baskets for a couple of years.
What I wonder is, why it was so hard for me to get rid of that stuff? I buy clothes and shoes and other things for the house and when they have passed out of style or are worn out, I don't hesitate to give them away. As Fly Lady says, bless someone else with your stuff!
I have been purging items from my house steadily for the last few weeks. If you don't do this, stuff will take over your home. Check out Hoarders if you don't believe me!
You are not going to find me throwing away. I love all the sets I have and I use them all on different occasions. I often combine them so it is nice to have a mixture. I am buying less though. I have done more accessories lately.
I am not a pack rat, infact I have a tendency to get rid of things that are not used in this house over time but stamps have not been a problem. If they ever are I have grand daughters and friends who have children that would love them.
I'm trying to substitute the word "USE" for "PURGE" this year. I don't like giving things away...because, of course, I " will probably will use that someday."
(Then again, there are times I don't even like to use stuff...because maybe I'll want to use it for something else later...sheesh, how counter-productive is THAT?!?!) :rolleyes:
__________________ Jansy The one who dies with the most embellishments wins! www.gingersnappedgirl.blogspot.com
We all get caught up with two key words when seeing/buying craft stuff: Possibility and Potential. We see something and immediately think of all the cool things we could make so we buy it. Sometimes, however, we run out of time to do all the projects in our heads and other times the products and/or finished project turn out to be not our style. Some stuff has to go for those reasons. Also, trends change, tastes change, and sometimes we just get bored with a certain product or look. We are all dreamers and will always see the possibilities in each new thing so the cycle of buying and creating will never stop.
Mary Beth
I am too new to card making to be purging, however, I went through this with my Christmas decorations.
For years I was satisfied with just a few Christmas decoration, and a table tree, but I fell into the " I want it all trap" like most people . Each year I bought more new decorations . There was so many lovely things in the stores I couldn't resist. In time I had 4 huge Rubbermaid's fill with Christmas decoration and ornaments , plus the tree , lights and a 4 wreaths. It was a storage nightmare.
Soon I had so much I didn't display everything that I had. I just put out my favorites. But I felt guilty that I had so much and didn't want to put it all out.
Then the 20/80 rule kicked in.
We use 20% of our things 80% of the time.
I asked myself, why am I keeping the things I don't display? My original excuses were I spent money on them and liked them when I bought them.
I am sure card makers/scrapbook makers are the same way. They have so much they will never use that it has become a burden and the clutter deters their desire to create things.
However, when our stuff becomes a burden then we have too much and some of it has to go.
I sorted through all my Christmas decorations and kept my favorites. The rest I sold at a yard sale or gave to the Goodwill.
When I was finished I felt like a weight was lifted from me.
We all get caught up with two key words when seeing/buying craft stuff: Possibility and Potential.
Perfect!
I know I've just recently started reaching capacity on my wood stamp storage, so I went through and pulled a couple of sets I didn't think I wanted. Sure enough, I just had to run into the basement and pull one of them from the "to sell" box because I decided to use it.
When I started stamping, I would shop with a girlfriend and get caught up in her excitement at expos. I can still hear "Isn't this cute???" in my friend's voice. I ended up buying a lot of stuff that was more her style than my eventual style, because her enthusiasm sucked me in. I still have most of it, but someday may decide to purge those stamps in favor of ones that fit my style a little better.
I think I do clean out stuff after a while as my tastes do change. I am also given a lot of things that I just won't use. I also encourage a lot of other people to craft away so I notice I am an "enabler" lol, and seem to support a lot of other people's crafting habits (esp the kids--I want them to all grow up to be crafters). I guess that's also the point for exchange groups and blog candy giveaways too.
Nothing new to add but here are my thoughts anyway.
I get caught up in what I see other people create and decide to buy supplies to CASE it; even if it's not my style. I end up never getting around to using it, forget what I wanted to CASE and decide it's better to sell it ( even at a fraction of the cost ) or give it away to someone who WILL use it.....then I can buy something new!
Specifically in regards to Designer paper; buying whole packs from SU, even if I use about half of it for a specific project or many projects, the rest will just sit taking up space. I get bored with it and rather than just let it continue to take up space I will try to pass it on. Did that last fall with quite a lot of paper. I took a bunch to my SU demo's home and offered for free to the monthly club I was part of at the time. Felt like a huge weight had been lifted when I went home without ANY of what I brought.
I've come to realize I can succumb to the desire to have a large "stash" of stuff, but don't consider how or if I'll use it. Having too much craft stuff around to store was weighing me down and stifling my creativity and very desire to make anything!
"Purging" freed my mind and soul and has made me a more careful purchaser. But even so, I will continue to sell or give away things if I don't use up all of some supplies or if they go unused due to boredom or change of styles.
I periodically go through my stuff and put all things that I haven't used in a while into a box. The boxes mostly contain patterned paper, stickers, rub-ons, and die-cuts. Then I stick the boxes in the closet in the spare room. If I don't get it out within six months, I take the box to the local school, scout troop, hospital and donate it.
Most of the stuff I do give away is old patterned paper that I bought two to four pieces per design because back then, I was scrapping mostly spreads and thought it would be catastrophic if I ran out in the middle of layout.
I'm older, maybe-a-bit wiser, and not scrapping much any more. Plus, my tastes of changed too.
I do need to go through the paper stash again real soon and pre-purge. Anyone want some really old KMA, Chatterbox, Doodlebug, KI Memories, or Flair Designs papers???
When I first started I bought anything and everything that was on sale or I had a coupon for thiniking it was cute and I would use it someday. Then I put it all away fro a few years and when I got it all back out about 7 years ago I started buying like crazy again. Now that I know what my style is and I gave up my craft room when we moved to a small town to get our daughter in a better school system I don't have the space to store everything and I'm tired of having all those boxes taking up space in the garage so I've been going through stuff and anything that has not been used or looked at in the last 6 months has to go, I've been listing and selling a ton of stuff on Craigslist. After going through my entire stash of craft stuff over the weekend I've found the only thing I really need right now is white and ivory cardstock I have less than a full package of the two combined so I will place an order with SU for that and the rest of the money will go into my daughter's savings account.
I think when we first get into a hobby, we get caught up in all the fun of things We also get caught up and being able to do everything and any thing. Next thing you know you are surrounded by stuff and realizing that over half of it is not your thing. As long as what is purged is going to someone who will use I don't see a problem. Over time I think we realize what is in our taste. Once we do that, I think it becomes easier to see something we like and let it go because deep down we know it will sit. THAT is the key to not buying stuff we are just going to give away IMO.
I think Shopping and buying became a form of recreation. People lives became so stressful that having shiny new things made them happy for a short while. But as soon as they got one thing they wanted another. Advertisers convinced people they could " Have it all" so when they saw some thing they didn't have they wanted it. How many people bought every color of ink or paper that SU sells only to find they only use 20% of them? They justified having all of the colors by saying, "Well IF I ever want to use that color I have it" Now they are realizing they never liked those colors and out they go!
After they bought everything they would use some clever marketer devised the idea of buying for your stash !
" Shop Til You Drop" and "You can Never have too many _________" ( fill in the blank) were the Mantas for the past 10-15 years. Now the accumulated stuff is a burden so they want to lighten their load.
I think Shopping and buying became a form of recreation. People lives became so stressful that having shiny new things made them happy for a short while. But as soon as they got one thing they wanted another. Advertisers convinced people they could " Have it all" so when they saw some thing they didn't have they wanted it.
" Shop Til You Drop" and "You can Never have too many _________" ( fill in the blank) were the Mantas for the past 10-15 years. Now the accumulated stuff is a burden so they want to lighten their load.
Interesting question... Here are a few reasons why I "purge" my stash... And just FYI, I sell my stuff/give it away. I NEVER throw it away.
When I first started cardmaking I bought EVERYTHING. Now that I have a "style" and specific preferences I find I don't need EVERYTHING anymore.
I have run out of storage for unused/unwanted things. I would rather not clutter up space with stuff I don't use anymore.
If I can sell unwanted craft items and buy NEW stuff, why not??!!
Exactly! Now that I really know what I like and don't like, I find that I really don't buy a lot of stuff. That being said, I am still feeling the need to purge my craft space. I have hundreds of stamps that I just don't use anymore. I bought all the paper when I first started and have now discovered that I stick to a few basic colors in my scrapbooking and just use 'trendy' colors for embellishments. As we create more, our style evovles and changes as does our preferences for certain items.
I don't purge my stuff. I do give stuff I know I'm not going to use or tools I've upgraded on to my niece. But, I bought all this stuff because I like it, and I still like it, so I'm not going to get rid of it. I have pretty much stopped buying things because I've run out of room, but I know that once I use up some of my stash and room becomes available, I'll be buying more.
I cannot bring myself to "purge" anything. Seems like when I do, I then end up looking for what I no longer have. In the past I have used my "old" paper for Girl Scouts or other organization projects. When I did posters for school, they didn't care if it was done with the "hot" colors or not. Plus, as I have evolved so has my taste in quality vs quantity when buying CS.
__________________ Jac-ee Former FSJ Founding Coach and SU! Demonstrator, now crafting for myself. "There is a fine line between 'HOBBY' and 'MENTAL ILLNESS'"
I am feeling the same need to downsize here. I have so much stuff that it's overwhelming most of the time. Like someone posted, I see someone use something on a card or project, I like what they did with it, and I have to have it. I work part time in my LSS, too, so that doesn't make it any easier to not buy new toys. Fortunately we also have a used stamp sale every May so I can recoup a portion of what I spent, at least. It's about that time, too. I have too many stamps, too much paper and WAY too many punches. I end up using the same 20% of my stuff, 80% of the time :-).
I think I am ready to have a less cluttered, more organized craft room, with things I will use more often. Who needs bins of paper flowers in every color of the rainbow?? Apparently I did, but I rarely remember to use one on a card.
Looking at blogs, both the designers and the stamp companies blogs, doesn't help, either. There is always some new cool thing and next thing you know you are seeing it everywhere. For a few months, anyway, until the next cool thing comes out.
Overwhelmed? Yes, I am. But I intend to do something about it very soon.
I don't throw away, I give to the adult daycare,my granddaughters and my coworkers, then the goodwill. I think for me, I just bought everything when I started. Now, partially due to finances and partially due to finding my own style, I'm fairly picky about what I buy. The tools that I have upgraded from I pass along to new crafters who don't have them. I have found that when my craft room is overstuffed and messy, I just don't want to be in it, no creative mojo, at all.
I think we don't have enough TIME to use all the stuff we collect. I would love to do all the projects that I have collected supplies for. I just don't have enough time to do them all. Then I use my time perusing for MORE ideas...which is counter-productive. And I spend MORE time shopping for more supplies for more ideas.
Sometimes I just have to cut myself off from new ideas. And go create the ones I already have supplies and ideas for.
I think if you saw MY craft room, you would ask the same question: "Why are you doing this?" but it would completely mean the OPPOSITE...I have a hard time getting rid of anything crafty and my room shows it!!! I spend good hard-earned money on this stuff and I can't seem to get rid of a thing-no matter how long I've had it. I really need to though!!!
I have been purging items from my house steadily for the last few weeks. If you don't do this, stuff will take over your home. Check out Hoarders if you don't believe me!
I think the older we get, it can sometimes be harder to "part" with some of the things we buy because we remember how much we spent on them.
Yes, this is certainly true--but so is the reverse! What I mean is that I have always been drawn to "Clearance Sale" areas in stores. It's like a personal siren call....So when I started stamping, I hit the clearance sections and went absolutely NUTS with buying tons of stuff! I thought, well it's on this huge sale, so it's such a HUGE bargain, right? How could I possibly pass up these terrific bargains, right? So, many many times I didn't. So I have all this stuff that I got on discount prices and can't seem to part with it. It was such a great deal and I should really use it...yada...yada...
NOW, a few years later, I've seen my "huge bargains" cluttering up my crafting space and have come to realize these things are ONLY a good deal IF you have a specific purpose in mind and will USE them promptly!
I try to stay clear of clearance areas now as they are a huge weakness of mine...
Why are we doing this???
