I'm De-cluttering my Life!

My shed actually looked a lot worse than this one!

One of the jobs on the top of my "to do" list these holidays was the tidying up/cleaning out of my shed.  

Now my shed is not overly big,  in fact it is quite small by shed standards.  However it is amazing just how much stuff has been shoved/pushed/crammed into this one tiny space. 

My motivation for the HUGE shed clean out was partly prompted by the fact that I have decided 2011 is going to be the "Year of De-Cluttering".  (Yes, I know I have also decreed that 2011 is going to be the "Year of Positivity" - but I think these two things go hand in hand in a strange sort of way!)

The other reason is that when I was rummaging around in "The Shed" on Christmas morning (the morning we lost our power thanks to Cyclone Tasha!) desperately looking for my Gasmate portable camping stove - I thought? I saw one of these little guys making a hurried departure from under a pile of old paint cans...........

Cue the "Jaws" music.......

YIKES!



I have purposely "shrunk" this photo - don't want to scare everyone away!




Now, at the time I really didn't have time to investigate - I had more important things to do - like cooking up a Christmas morning breakfast banquet for 7 on a one burner Gasmate camping stove. 
However I made a promise to myself - "next fine day I'm going to clean out that shed!" 

Well,  fine days have been few and far between in the Valley of late - but I am happy to report - the shed has finally been cleaned/tidied/de-cluttered and is now neat as a pin.   What a HUGE job!  

In determining what stayed and what went - I used the same philosophy I use when de-cluttering my wardrobe.....  If I haven't used it in 12 months - out it goes! 

I did however manage to stumble across a couple of treasures (which I had long forgotten about) and which I can see have the potential to become something quite special.

First up was this sweet little wall cupboard with the chicken wire front panels.  

For the life of me, I can't remember where/how? I got this from.  I vaguely  remember that it used to hang in my kitchen (many, many years ago) and (I think?) I used it as a sort of a First Aid cupboard.

I think it so cute.  Perhaps with a bit of a sanding and painting it could scrub up quite nicely?  Not sure what I could use it for - but I am determined to breathe new life back into it.

 

Here's another find - a beautiful old rocking chair!  Gosh, I haven't seen this for years.  If my memory serves me correctly, I "rocked" Adam, Matthew and Kendall to sleep many a night in this very same chair!  Ah, the memories of my colicky babies comes flooding back......

Sadly it is looking a little worse for wear and one of the seat panels has become unstuck but I'm sure, with a bit of wood glue and a few screws it will be okay.

Not exactly sure whether I should paint it or what to do with it?   Any advice would be gratefully appreciated! 

I also managed to find an old desk and an assortment of photo frames which I am sure I will be able to put to good use.

It was such a joy to find these forgotten treasures and re-live the memories surrounding them.  I can't wait to start the process of restoring them to their former glory.  

Who would have guessed that I had a "Thrift Shop" in my own backyard all these years (and didn't even know it!);  and

Who would have thought that "De-cluttering" could be such a positive experience!