Last year (Spring 2019), my family made the decision to downsize from a 2,000-square-foot, 3-bedroom, 1½-bath house with front and back porch, a back yard, and a garage to a 1,200-square-foot, 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom apartment closer to a train station. I am an organizer; I like everything in its place and a place for everything. Our apartment is by no means small, but the living space is about a third of what we had when in the house. I had to sell, donate, or trash most of our furniture. Furniture that took me years to find. I am not an interior designer by any means, but I love finding the perfect item for a space. Having to say goodbye to my stuff was much harder than I thought it would be.
Yesterday, I worked with a client who had a hard time removing items from her space that no longer suit her lifestyle. She reminded me of my dilemma when deciding what to keep and what to give up from my house. My situation was easier because my space changed. An 8-seater, dark cherry dining room table with matching buffet made sense in a large dining room, but in my new space, the table was too dark and way too big. Her space was the same, but she now had a husband and a child, so what worked for a 20-something wasn’t working for a 30-something with family.
When your life changes, changing your home is not as easy. The items in our house all tell a story about who we were, where we came from, and what we hope to accomplish. But just as you grow in your career, life, and style, you grow in your home. What worked 5 years ago in your living room may not be safe for a toddler learning how to walk. What worked 10 years ago for the bright-eyed college graduate may be too loud for the 30-year-old partner in her firm. When starting to declutter and reorganize your home, be very honest with yourself about your current situation. You cannot be at peace in your home if it doesn’t fit your current life; something will always feel off and you will not be calm in your space because your mind knows it’s not speaking for you.
Your home should be your sanctuary – your escape from the outside world and all it’s crazy. It should be the place you can be 100% yourself, all parts of you. It’s okay for you to look at your surroundings and not be satisfied with it. Start small; go through your bathroom kitchen supplies, getting rid of expired items or items you never used. Then look at your entry closet or space. Does it support you getting out the door in the morning and does it make it easy for you to shed the outside world? From there move on to your living space. Do you feel relaxed on your couch, are the colors on the wall soothing, etc? Last, go to your wardrobe and make sure your clothing speaks to who you are today.
In the end, I was only able to keep a few furniture pieces including my bed and some that I repurposed in new areas (book shelves in the office instead of living room and TV stand in my son’s bedroom). But everything else I had to leave behind. At first it was heartbreaking, but as I visited my new space more often and envisioned my life going forward, I knew my home design had to grow with me. I bought my home in 2006; now 13 years later I am not who I was. And that’s okay.
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