Spring Cleaning in February

Do you ever get to the point in your scrap area when you just feel overloaded with...stuff? I had so much paper overflowing from my cabinet that it was hindering my scrapping mood and it was getting difficult to find things. Sometimes I couldn't even shut the drawers. I didn't want to go fishing in all that paper, hunting for things, so much of it just collected dust. I felt guilty anytime I thought of getting rid of it, though, so it just kept piling up and up since I don't have a ton of scrap time lately. I finally decided I was being ridiculous and got up the nerve to clean it out, even if I just put it in a big box to forget for a while. I was amazed at the paper I had in there from who knows when! Some of it I didn't even like anymore and wondered why I had bothered buying it in the first place. Some were kits that weren't really my style but I had been clinging to them thinking I might just find the perfect picture to go with them. At some point, you have to realize what you really will use and what will probably sit there growing into a larger fire hazard by the day.

Once I had weeded out everything I knew I wouldn't use, I decided I would find someone who would get some use out of it. I might be cleaning things out, but I don't like to be wasteful. A lot of trees died to make my scrap paper and my Environmental Science teacher would be aghast to see me toss it into the landfill. I contacted someone I thought would get use out of it and when she said she'd take it off my hands, I boxed it up and whisked it off to the post office before I could change my mind. I can't believe how relieved I feel! My scrap cabinet no longer overflows with paper I won't use and I have a lot less guilt at the thought of it sitting there, wasting away. I should have done this months ago!

Maybe you're the type of scrapper who only buys what you will use, but if you are like me and amass far more than you will ever need, think about a day of purging and cleaning. There are lots of things you can do with your unwanted stash, too. You can find a fellow scrapper to RAK it to, or we have a forum to trade kits if you have one you don't want but have your eye on another. Many schools and hospitals would love to have your donations as art projects for children. Let your own kids have it to play with or to make cards for grandma. There are plenty of ways to reduce your stash without feeling a pang of guilt. I did figure out the very best reason to clean out my cabinet, though...CHA is coming up and now I have room for more. Oh, the cycle never ends!

Anita, Scrap Collector