Living In and Loving a De-cluttered House

My dear friends Betsy and Warren Talbot of Married With Luggage have truly inspired me to live in and love a clean house. Let me rephrase that, they inspired me to live in and love a DE-CLUTTERD house. I have always loved a clean house and I have always had a clean house but for some reason I often felt frustrated and I couldn't put my finger on why. After Betsy and Warren took off on their life changing adventure (read about that HERE!) and wrote a couple of books on the subject of paring down your life I got inspired to clean out. I took a hard look at what I had and I went through it asking myself  "If I had to leave for a hurricane what would I take? What do I truly value?"
I have to admit I was shocked because about 95% of what I looked at I truly didn't value! It was just stuff and it was weighing me down. I started to lighten the load and I was astounded at what I got rid of and never thought of again!
Not only am I thousands of pounds lighter in the junk area but my wallet is a little bit fatter because of it (that is another post that is yet to come)!

Here are some of my personal suggestions for de-cluttering while keeping what you love.

1. If you have to move it to live get rid of it!
That huge vase of flowers you have on the table that you have to move EVERY SINGLE TIME you go to set the table? Get rid of it! Opt for items that are lovely but functional like a colorful tray with your napkin holder, the salt and pepper shakers and any other items your family uses during meal times. You will still have decor on your table but it is functional and not frustrating to you on a daily basis! If you love flowers get a very small vase and put a couple of flowers rather than a huge vase with a full bouquet. Even better, use flowers that are growing in your garden to add that personal touch!

This is what sits on my table. 

2. Let go of the idea that you HAVE to keep all the family heirlooms.
This one is by far the hardest for most everyone I know. Guilt about items you inherited is a big problem. People tend to think that if you get rid of the item it doesn't mean you don't love Grandma or that you will forget her!! To that I say poppycock! If you inherited a cup and saucer that was part of Grandma's extensive collection of cups and saucers and you feel guilty about getting rid of it then repurpose it so you are glad you have it.
There are a multitude of ways to re-purpose family heirlooms in a way that are beautiful and functional. Below are a couple of ideas.
~China can be used to make a beautiful serving tray. You get to see the china and actually USE it rather than having it sit in the cabinet.

~Tea cups and saucers make amazing candle holders. Use an epoxy to glue the saucer to the cup, drop in a tea light and VOILA! You have a candle holder. Form and function! (I would strongly suggest using a tea light rather than burning an actual candle in the cup because of the unknown strength of the china. You wouldn't want to wind up with wax everywhere from a broken cup.) If you are the brave sort you can find a million tutorials on making candles in cups. Some are located at Design Sponge, Martha Stewart and Inhabitat.
~Tea cups and saucers also make amazing bird feeders. Again use epoxy to glue the saucer to the cup. Once that is dry glue the saucer to a stand and put it in your garden. Fill it with birdseed and enjoy watching the birds enjoy Grandma's china! : )

This item can be used as a candle holder or bird feeder. You can find it here.

~Silverware can make amazing wind chimes. I looked on the internet for inspiration because I knew what I wanted to do but my execution was poor. The chimes I had died in a hurricane and I haven't made another set. That is on my to do list for the summer. When you are preparing the flatware use a drill to make holes in the handle of the silverware then put a jump ring through the drilled hole and thread with fishing line or wire to your chosen topper. The jump ring keeps the sharp edges of the drilled hole from severing the fishing line. Some ideas are pot lids, serving trays, interesting shaped wood, a colander, a tea pot or a metal serving plate. Garden Drama has a great tutorial and I included a photo of the completed project from their site.

This amazing photo is from the Garden Drama site.

These ideas just barely scratch the surface of what you can do with a little thought and some elbow grease! Watch for future posts on recycling and re-purposing what you have! : )