the future of my collecting (hoarding)

lately i've given thought
to the idea of simplifying;
strange for someone who
has accumulated so many
things, like these antique pins.

i can't bear to throw anything away.


i've managed to gather a gigantic
collection of beads, trims, ribbon,
paper goods, books, and textiles
that would send a minimalist
over the edge. at times it has the
same effect on me.

along with collecting (or hoarding),
comes finding an appropriate way to
catalog. i still struggle with this, and
that is the reason why i rarely find
what i'm looking for.

i'm not saying i'm organizationally
challenged. quite the opposite.
i'm a bit like margaret from little britain.
if you have no idea who
i'm talking about, little britain is a
british comedy that you must see
straight away.

to put it another way, i can tell you
the tube of alizarin crimson oil paint
is upstairs in the metal cabinet,
3rd drawer from the top, on the left-hand side,
next to the tube of williamsburg ultramarine.
all this from the living room downstairs.

if i were to sell some of these things,
i'd never make back what i spent.
but if someone is able to make
something beautiful from it...

why keep things i no longer need?
why hold onto things i've never used?

do you struggle with this? are you a
hoarder turned minimalist? if so, i'd love
to hear how you did it, and whether you'll
ever go back.

2 comments:

**EYE-SNACKS** said...

Oeh, I recognize this.But by me these are periods.When I throw things or give things because I think it's too much,later on I'm searching for it and mostly I forgot that I've givin'it away to someone.

Now I put it in a box,all the things which I think off that I don't need it anymore and put them in a special area ;)

Kerry Pitt-Hart said...

oh, i've done this too. just the other day, we were looking for an old keyboard we hadn't been using. after searching the entire house, we realized we had given it away!

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