The "Studio" AKA Hoarder Room and The Duo Clean Project

If you've been reading my first few posts, then you'll remember me mentioning the "studio".  The studio is an area in our home that's had many purposes.  Originally we bought our 5,000+ square foot home so that my Grandmother could move in with us.  She lived in the studio for 6 months before she passed away.  One week later my brother in law needed a place to stay.  He lived in the studio for 3 years.  His departure was followed by a live in Nanny who lived there for 6 months which was then followed by my husband's grandmother who lived in the studio for 3 years.  We had owned our home for over 7 years and I had never used an entire 1,000+ square foot area of it.

I decided the studio would make a great girls room and piled Little Biggs 3, 4, and 5 into it.  That only lasted a few months.  The studio is located on a far end of our home, the opposite end as the Master Bedroom.  It really just felt like they were two far away.  So, eventually, the studio became a free space I could use for myself- this is where things get dark and scary.  I began storing my flea market items in the room.  Seemed like a harmless idea.  However, with the number of estate and garage sales I attend, as well as auctions, the room started to fill up.  Finished projects, started project, future projects and everything else you can think of just got stacked higher and higher.  Every 6 months or so I would try to clear things out, but to no avail.  So now the studio is affectionately called the hoarder room.

With my new years goal to get organized I've teamed up with a good friend to "Duo Clean" each week.  Duo clean is where we work together for two hours to tackle a project- one week at my house, the next week at her house.  For my first project I chose the studio!  My main motivation is that my daughter will be returning from an 18 month mission in Chile and the guest room is on the other side of the studio.  (obviously we don't have too many overnight guests)  So today was the big kickoff of the duo clean.  We started at my house with the hoarder room.

WARNING!!!! THE FOLLOWING PICTURES CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES THAT MAY MAKE THE AVERAGE PERSON WANT  TO THROW OUT ANY AND ALL EXTRA ITEMS THEY HAVE IN THEIR HOME!!!!


PLEASE DON'T JUDGE ME!!!!

Here's what you see when you open the door...

and then as you enter...

In my defense, I will say that currently we are redoing flooring in my craft room and the laundry room, so the contents of both of those rooms are being stored in the studio.  After a very productive Duo Clean this is how it looks as you enter...

Not too shabby!  I promise we didn't just shove it all out of the camera view.  This is what we did do:  Grabbed a few empty bins; one for trash, one for garage sale, one for sell at next flea market, one for "it doesn't belong in the studio" and one for arizona room.  (we recently re-did our arizona room and a few items haven't found their way back because I need a huge bookcase to store them in- I've decided to pack them in a plastic bin until I find the perfect bookcase)

I have a few homework assignments before my duo clean buddy comes back to my house in two weeks (one includes putting away all of the items in the "it doesn't belong in the studio" bin.)  Overall, I feel like it's a great start!

Do you have a hoarder room?  Or a hoarder closet?  Grab and friend and try the duo clean method- it really makes it so much more tolerable.  See you next time.

Kelly.