I did it. I conquered the bathroom cabinet. While it isn't perfect, I'm not going for perfect. I'm going for that full trash bag out the back door (expired things, broken things, and irrelevant thing - teething oil? My baby is five.) and a full box headed to the thrift store (you know, that extra humidifier, - we needed two because why? - jewelery and hair clip overload, random baskets and bins we don't use.) And the cabinet is now spare and ordered. I think I pulled it off.
It all started on Sunday afternoon when I found myself unexpectedly alone. Pete and the kids had wandered into the basement to playing with an electric guitar, keyboard, microphone, amp, and some pedals so there was little chance of them surfacing. I looked at my knitting. My tea cup. Maybe I'll just knit a few rows...
But then I remembered the check-in comments and emails you've sent in the past few days. Some of you were wondering if there were any simplification updates. And, um, there weren't.
Tragic as it is, last week's going-ons zapped my simplification steam and I didn't progress on purging for days.
So I put aside my knitting and dug in.
All the while I was telling myself that I could stop anytime and pick up my knitting. I could quit after one shelf if I wanted to, and then at least one shelf would be done. And that helped. Because this cabinet is a perpetual stress for me and a difficult space to tackle.
Check out the before and after above. Better? Yes indeed. (Why did we have 10 toothbrushes for four people, I ask myself?) And it feels so amazing to open those doors.
Just a couple of notes:
1) Yes, we brush our teeth with soap. We used my toothpaste recipe for ages but once, when we ran out, we just used our soap. And it was fine. Bubbly. Lovely even. And still is. In fact, I kind of love it. Yes, it's soap. Yes, it tastes soapy. But it's really not that big of a deal if you spit and rinse. It took the kids a few days to adjust but that was over six months ago and they haven't questioned it since. Currently (pictured above with the toothbrushes) we're using Purification, but we also love Sweet Soul Sister and Gitchigumee. And it keeps the swearing at bay for sure.
2) The train case is decopagued with Nikki McClure art. I am secretly in love with her. Or at least her art.
3) The little boats are from Nova Natural. Along with a basket of sea shells they make up or small collection of tub toys. They are delightful.
What simplification spaces have you triumphed in this week, or what's on the docket for the coming days?
