Later I will photo my studio. I need to clean it up. I already put lots away the other night. My only mess now is the window I am trying to get up in the dinning room window as decor and some sun block. I will take a photo of that mess as it is a mess.

Shades- That will be perfect! We don't want the 'before' photo to look too good :)

OK Here are my before pictures . This is the dinning room window project in the process of hanging. Who knew it would take me all day to do this. Sheese. Ok pictures are in reverse???

Studio mess. I am not sure when I am going to get this done. I will also add the sewing room tomorrow as I have another pile of sewing to get done and the room is trashed.

I put almost everything away in the sewing room a couple of weeks ago and now I don't want to sew and mess it up again! I need to get back on quilting schedule at the church. It's SO much easier to do all of it there with all the tables and space I need.

I did get my curtains sewed but not the clothing I planned to take in. Ended up sewing a quick bed thing for porch kitties. It is already 2 below zero. Hoping to get into studio to work on clean up in a little while. Waiting on cake to cool so I can frost it for hubby.

Lass, terrific idea. I've lost steam the last couple days and id love to finish the living room and bath before going back to work monday. Short term goal. I'll post longer term goals after that.

Living room, all the unsorted stuff has landed here, and the dust is thick on the instruments.

the bathroom needs a good scrub, and the entry and desk needorganizing.

Lavender Lass posted "...everyone can add a picture or two (or three) of their home and show where we are today and then post another...showing what the same space looks like at the end of January...."

Okay folks; I would love to see photos of really cluttered areas that you plan to "fix" this month.

There's no way I want to shame myself by sharing even a glimpse of any of the clutter mountains I'm dealing with until I have some company!

Stringweaver - your bathroom is charming! Could you put an inset "medicine" cabinet - or a wider shelf - where the poster is hanging to store the small amount of clutter around the charming sink? I love that sink.

Shades - Your craft room is not cluttered; it looks as though you have a project in the works. Okay, the casserole lid, the dust pan, and the crumbled paper towels could go. The kitty stays!

Lavender Lass - I love the blue paint you're using on the cabinets.

Stringweaver. How are you doing over there??? I am still working on the studio I got side tracked on the next project and actually forgot to finish the clean up. I am getting close. Just a few more things to put away. I did some deep cleaning too which is always good.

Paper towels and dust pan live on my bench. It is part of doing glass. There is a bottle of windex there some where too. And YES kitty stays always. This is her room too. She is older and crnky and the other kitties pick on her because she hisses at them. So in the winter this is her room. As much as she thinks she wants to go out side I promise her she would not be happy in 15 degree and less out side.

OK I can do this. One more cup of coffee down. I have about 15 minutes before I have to fix dinner. Her I go. Vroom Vroom. Hoping photos to follow in next post.

DONE although it might not look like it because I already have another project going. I have spent about 5 hours working on this room and everything I am not using is put away and cleaned surfaces. The milk jug is my small work bench garbage bucket. Shredded glass goes in there for special handling when I haul it to the dump. The cutting table is the furthest away in the photo and what is laying on it are rulers I use for cutting. I still have the two small projects on the rack over on the hoosier. I need to grout them but I am out of grout.

Now off to fix a fast dinner.

thanks you guys,

You kept me at it. I am defrosting the fridge now, hopefully it will be done by bedtime, but the food is ok outside in the car.

I got the whole house de-cluttered, organized and at least superficially cleaned before returning to work tomorrow. How fantastic is that!

I have a long list of deep cleaning tasks to continue with, so let's keep this thread going or spawn a new one.

oh Caroline....I've about given up on that corner sink. Mainly because it it high enough there is a not so lovely view of the pipes from the toilet. I have my eye on a little vanity/sink combo at Ikea. The faucet plate doesn't actually fit on the sink, so there is leakage there and the hot water tap leaks, and cleaning around/behind it is a pain, so it seldom gets done. The mirror above the sink is an in-wall storage cabinet, which I'm planning to remove. There's another one over the toilet, so the clutter isn't due to lack of space....

I took a load of stuff to the thrift store yesterday and on the way home stopped off at an old stuff shop....yes, I know.... I found a small table to go under that counter shelf, just the size for my microwave, which I have been keeping nearly out of reach on top of my free-standing pantry cupboards. I also found a lamp I want for the bedroom, but didn't get it. I came home, figured out where it could go that would be useful, so I will stop by and get it tomorrow.

Idaho: a super clean studio is the sign of someone who doesn't actually make art. Yours looks great. Can't wait to see more of your work. Do you ever sell any?

Stringweaver, I love your corner sink. Now you add the issues with it I went back to look. Yes I can see how each one would be a problem. But it is so cute. Do not dump it use it for a yard fountain.

Yah rarely does the studio come to a pristine condition. I am happy with it now or for now. I will mess it up I always do. No I never sell my work. I am done with all of that after years of arts and craft shows. I do not even like to go to them now. I feel for the artists having to sit there smiling when I know some would love to throat chop some customers or should I say non customers. See it would not be good for me to be in the public eye any more. So I spew my insanity all through the house. LOL

Could not help drooling over your darling couch. That would be wonderful in my living room. And I cracked up about your food in the car for over night. I have been known to do that only I just left it on the garage shelf until I made room in the freezer for it. Heck it has not been above freezing here for a couple of weeks. so happy tonight it i still 21 degrees. It was 8 below at this time last night. so relieved and I am sure the porch kitties are too.

Congratulations on your clearing it all up. That was a lot of work. I always find it gets worse before it starts to get better. I am all for keeping this going or starting a new one. I still have the sewing room pile of sewing to do and then a clean up.

ok, most of you are posting 'messy' rooms that look better than my cleaned rooms. Wait a minute... I don't HAVE any cleaned up rooms.

my whole place looks like the lower half of the right side of stringweaver's last pic! yep, as my mind wanders (and boy does it!) thru each room, it's all a blooming mess. boxes everywhere, stuff stacked (still don't have all my furniture here to put things away into). I went thru a bunch of clothes my sister gave me the other day - yep, they're all over the place - to sort some out to send to a friend who needs them more than I do. Got a box full (see, another box) and will easily be able to fill up another box for her to send next month. and today had Jed take down a bin on top shelf in my closet to go thru to see what I can send to my dd. so, there's another bin out of place now to add to my 'household' collection of them.

Steph, I was nearly done when I took that picture....two weeks ago, that pile was double that size and there were similar piles in every room in the house I just didn't take any pictures then.

I was able to get everything back in the fridge before bed time.

Shades I can understand the wanting to not sell you stuff. Just keep showing pictures please. I used to do pysanky eggs and did a few local craft fairs...hated the selling part. My looms will mostly be busy this year working on curtains and coverlet for the bedroom, but I'm going to have to sell socks, I haven't got enough feet to keep up with my crank sock machine output.

One of my projects this year is to recover the cushions on the couch. I have some great fabric I got several years ago when I had the couch rebuilt (it was literally held together with string and baling wire). The fabric has a black background, so I decided to wait until my elderly white cat passed away. Happily, he lasted several years longer than I thought he would. He died in October at the ripe age of 18.

Scone911 I was laughing so hard on your description of your Christmas decor. Your darling little tree in that HUGE stand. I can just hear it saying I think I can I think I can. And the santa hat on the chair. Tooo fun. LOVE IT!!

Your kitchen is Gorgeous. I would have slopped water on those pictures by now. I also like the two tone cabinets.

Stringweaver I am sorry about your losing your old pal. We had a few that lived a little past 18 and one was 20. I am sure he has a good life. I will keep posting my crazy glass stuff. Yah the selling part so sucks.

Steph I can not imagine what yo go through to try to get your two houses combined. Lucky you got a reprieve on having to move the second trailer off the property. I know here it is so hard to hire some one to come in and help. I have a cheep dolly and binder straps have managed to get furniture moved around by myself. I will some day buy a better one. They are only about $69.00 and have air filled wheels. I have moved furniture out to the shop and back more than once as my decor around here changes. BUT today I just bought a package of eight feet to slide furniture around on. I do not want to scratch our floors. This is going to make my life so much easier and the house will never look the same again. LOL

Been gone all day doing a HUGE shopping. UGH Still need to put most of it away. So tired out. Oh and laundry to fold.

^Glad you got a laugh! That little tree came from our property. It grew from a diseased stump, and would not have lived much longer, that's why I cut it. Still, you have to admire it's "never say die" attitude.

I have splashed water on the pics, I am a sloppy cook! But they are covered with glass. Art is so important, and the junktique shops are full of interesting stuff. Must.exercise.discipline.

Still, we had a fairly junk-free Christmas, DH got a bottle of scotch, I got another orchid. And three boxes of cwap are leaving the house today. If I can finish the little projects noted above I'm calling the month a success. Good de-junking to all.

it's Charlie Brown christmas tree. Love it. And I love your term junktique shops. I tend to call them old stuff shops. I love poking around in them.

From this day forward! junktique shops!

shades, I have a dolly (no straps tho) but I still couldn't move things. could maybe stack a few smaller boxes on it. jed has some stretch bands? with hooks on the ends that he uses. I actually have 2 small ones like his. should buy longer ones.

yes, I have different people say they'll come do stuff - but then something happens and they don't show up. I've been trying for over 3 wks to get new front tires. my mechanic said he'd get some for me and put on. then stuff happened at his shop (to do with wind storms here), after that his elderly mother needed help up in phx... I had a test scheduled and had to cxl it! he got here and took wheels off to have tires put on... then many days later on NYE day he made it here and put wheels on front. and left. about 2 hrs later I got in car to go to store and heard horrible noise when backing the car up. couldn't go anywhere. he finally made it back here on sat. Tires were wrong size. too big and were hitting the struts. He put those on the back and my back tires on the front so I could at least go to the store. he's coming back tomorrow to take car to the tire shop to have them changed and rotated back.

good grief! that something so normally simple would be such a bear to get done. this has also had me stranded in my own house for days. I wanted to get out and pick up take out from local Mexican rest. - tired of my own 'cooking' - lol! (finally got my 'dinner' today!)

Then Jed over watered my plants last sunday and ran me out of water - but I didn't know it... had to shut down the pump til more water could be delieved - on Wednesday! (that was today and I now have water again).

just thinking of these things tires me... oh, and in between these things my son landed himself in the hospital in the Midwest with a blood infection. been in there 5 days, has something connected to him/in him by his heart. could have died / or lost his leg. will be able to go home (info from dd) but will need to return to hospital every day for 10 days to have more antibiotics put in whatever that 'thing' is attached to him. he says it's called cellulitis (what he has). I would have guessed that meant he had cellulite - he's way too thin and fit for that!

And with my fibro I've been sleeping a ton again. and cold, damp weather outside here - that doesn't help.

I hope anyone reading this survived...

junktique shops - I like that too! I'd much rather shop in a 2nd hand/antique store than a new furniture store myself!

New furniture shops are depressing. The quality is not there anymore, at any price. A lot of the old guard North Carolina makers went bankrupt in the crash, and the ones that survived are lowering their standards to meet a price point or to compete with China.

But there are certain things that are very hard to find used, like large numbers of identical bookcases. Although I did score a set of solid mahogany pieces recently. The quality is great and they fit perfectly in our small upstairs hall.

It's odd how things in the thrifts are priced up here in New Hampshire. Furniture is relatively expensive, but art goes for a song. All my stuff is original art, paintings, drawings, woodcuts, etchings, etc. and each piece was less than the price of a good haircut. I don't understand it-- either people here don't care about art, or the pickers don't know what they have.

Here's a link to a young designer's work, he's doing an inspiring job using junktiques in his own small apartment: http://markdsikes.com/2016/01/06/change-is-good/