For the past six years, the motto on my blog has been “Organizing & creativity go hand-in-hand. Organizing creates space for creativity & creativity makes organizing more fun!” I continue to find this to be true, in my own experience as well as with my clients. Every time I declutter and organize my creative supplies, I feel even more inspired and creative. My enthusiasm for creating simply ignites.
If you’re feeling stifled by creative clutter, here are three simple ways to tap into the power of organizing and ignite your creativity:
1. Declutter the easy stuff. So often our creative space becomes the dumping ground for all sorts of stuff—new project supplies, things that don’t have a home elsewhere, half-finished projects, etc. (Have you been there, too?) At best this clutter can leave you feeling uninspired, at worst overwhelmed. But there is a simple fix: Clear out some easy clutter.
Spend 15 minutes letting go of project supplies you no longer love. Put away your new tools and supplies and find homes for anything that doesn’t belong permanently in your space. In the process, you’ll rediscover supplies you love and eliminate some you don’t—a surefire way to get those creative juices flowing.
2. Find your organizing sweet spot. Do you work best in a space that is streamlined and completely clutter-free? Or are you more at home with your tools and supplies out in the open, where you can see them and easily access them? Everyone has a different sweet spot when it comes to organizing. The goal isn’t to get rid of everything, instead, the goal is to find that spot that is organized enough for you. It’s that place where your creative tools and supplies are easy to find, where you have enough stuff to inspire you, but not so much that you’re overwhelmed. When you find your sweet spot, creating is a joyful process. So find your sweet spot, and don’t worry for a minute if it looks different than anyone else’s.
3. Use your creativity to make organizing more fun. Use craft supplies like paint, patterned paper and decoupage medium to create one-of-a-kind storage pieces that inspire your creativity. Or use your craft supplies to create colorful labels that add a pop of color to your space and make it easy to keep track of your tools and supplies. When you infuse your space with personal touches derived from your creativity, your space will inspire you even more.
Happy (creative) organizing!
P.S. I’m super excited to announce Organize Your Creative Space is now available as a self-paced online class. This class shows you how to set up an organized and inspiring craft area that motivates you and supports your creative process. Regardless of where you create—in a shared space, dedicated space or temporary work area—this class will show you how to get organized, so you can enjoy your creative work and crafting even more.
I just sent this post to a bunch of my friends as I agree with most of what you’re saying here and the way you’ve presented it is awesome.
Aby’s, “the goal is to find that spot that is organized enough for you.” is really encouraging and impressive for me…not only organizing my space/place, but also every kind of stuffs I do…
Hey Aby! As a long-time fan of yours from the Organized and Inspired scrapbooker days – and when Wendy taught her class around the topic when you helped answer questions – is this class much different? In other words, besides community involvement, what different from the book and Wendy’s class will I get out of your class?
I’m at the spot where I’ve moved two years ago and my supplies could really use a good purge.
Thanks!
Hi, April,
Thanks so much for your question. This workshop isn’t based on my book. In other words it is a standalone workshop where you wouldn’t need to purchase any other resources to fully participate. However, both the book and this workshop are consistent in terms of my organizing philosophy and approach. So if you feel that what you need to organize your space is a completely new way of thinking about organizing a creative space, then you probably won’t find that in this workshop.
On the other hand, I am very involved in the workshop and would be happy to look at photos of your space and brainstorm solutions above and beyond what is presented in the lesson content. So if you’re feeling stuck or are looking for some extra motivation to declutter and organize your space…it’s a great place to do that. I’m a very hands-on instructor and would love to help you get your space how you want it to be.
Thanks for your question. Let me know if you have others I can answer.
Aby
What a great post, Aby. I completely agree with you that when you organize, release, and clear, creativity gets unleashed. This is something I’ve experienced both for myself and with my clients.
Recently, though I had a similar experience but in an unexpected venue. I’ve been taking a comedy improv class, something I’ve never done before. After the first class, I realized that part of what I needed to do to fully engage in the class, and allow myself to come forth, was to let go. The letting go wasn’t of physical things, but more of a mindset. Once I was able to do that, it unleashed some creative thinking and being. I found the connection between improv and what we experience in our organizing work to be so interesting.
Thanks so much for your comment, Linda. I love your thought about letting go of a mindset. I can see how that would apply to so many areas of our lives. Great food for thought.
Aby