Fall Tidy

  This fall marks 3 years since I moved across town to my daughter's, and (the following spring) into my sweet Rose Cottage. It was awesome to have so much help with sorting and downsizing for the move!

That was a marathon - which we often attempt on our own - but without aid, it can be  overwhelming! For day-to-day tending and periodic resets, it's better to tidy in regular, steady increments.

I watched a little clip from an organizer, of a marathon sorting project for a client, and can relate to the stacks and piles and boxes ... during my move, my daughter helped me sort and downsize, while my son-in law was the 'take away guy,' dealing with trash, recycling, donations, things we would bringing here, and storage. 

Along with season's turn, I am preparing for the SoulCollage® Facilitator training in January (squee!) It feels timely to do a fall reset with this in mind, and set the stage for deepening with this creative process! 

I tend to let things pile up around me - and I have a whole lovely room for art, music and the library, so I plan to make space for my 'piles' in the Atelier (& move the nests out of the living room!) 

Tray with collage journals and supplies

I can struggle with executive function, so it helps to make lists, and I have a sweet little chore chart on the side of the fridge, for the daily rota.  

1. Is there a project you have in mind, or are already working on? How can you make time and space for it? Make sure there's room in your plans and schedule for working toward your dream!
2. How can your space best support your project? 
3. How can you best support your space?
4. Identify your own MIA - Most Important Areas - what areas/ tasks are important to you? Keep that in mind as you plot and fine tune your reset, and your own daily task rota. 
5. A creative process is one way to tap your intuition - enter the 'feeling map' from Katy in the February Reset group! Where in your home do you want to shift the energy?
6. Spend some time in one room, and do a basic sketch of what's there. Use color to denote how different areas feel - happy, neutral, sluggish, sad .... jot down some notes on each color and area - and how you'd like that area to feel.

Katy's Feeling Map

From your sketch and notes, write three or four things you can do, to begin the reset. Jot down some goals. I like to set a timer for 20-30 minutes for the first round. 

• Start by gathering obvious trash and recycling
• Have a donatable box for items to give away
• Have some small boxes for items from other areas - ask 'where would I look for it?' • 'Would I even know I have one' & ... 'do I need it?' 
• Choose low hanging fruit - something easy-peasy to accomplish in each round. 
• Take a little break, then do another stint. 
• Factor in 10-15 minutes for disposing of trash & recycling, items to donate, and re-homing other bits at the end of each day.

Jot down the next steps for the space you're dethugging, and pencil in a 'date' to do another 20-30 minute session.

What project or area's calling you?

Do you have a favorite reset tip?