Wednesday Wisdom - On Sacrificing Clutter in Order to Have What We Truly Need

“To receive that which is worth having,
It may be necessary to lose everything else.”

- Helene Bonet

Garage - BEFORE letting go of clutter

Garage - AFTER letting go of the clutter
my client can now have what she truly needed -
her car parked in the garage!

This is some of what my client had to "lose"
in order to park her car in the garage
for the first time in 30 years.
 

RELATED POST: 
This is the same home featured in this post with photos in July:

http://blog.neatandsimple.com/2007/07/organizing-and-.html

"See you" when I return from vacation!

Photo by Ariane Benefit - Copyright - All Rights Reserved.
Do not use without permission.

Comments

[Bev]

WOW!!!! Amazing!

[Erin]

Beautiful work. I'm sure their minds were much clearer too.

After Priscilla Palmer's self development list Jenny and I have decided to try to help build the self development community. So we are holding a little contest. I would like to invite you, and anyone else interested, to find out more details at jenny-and-erin.com/2007/09/win-a-25-gift-certificate

[John Trosko]

Readers may be interested in seeing how long this process took-- at least I do. Not specifically of course, just in general. I noticed you had daylight in the before shot and darkness at the trash shot.

- John

[chelo]

wow! wow! That must of taken lots of energy!

[Ariane Benefit]

Thank you all for your comments! This indeed was a major effort and it's not completely done yet, but we did accomplish the goal. This is actually a two car garage and I'll be posting more details on the whole project eventually.

This job took 2 days with me, on the second day we had an assistant to help with building all the shelves and lugging some things to the basement, to donation, and of course, out to the trash. The trash photo was taken around 7:30 on the second day.

We are going back in a month or so to do so more decluttering and finish the area near the right side by the door. This dear lady had 30 years of acumulation and while I can't discuss the details of her situation, I'm proud to say that she is on her way to overcoming the hoarding and shopping habits that resulted in an extreme clutter situation.

[Las Vegas Guy]

I don't feel so bad about my garage any more!!! Keeping stuff can get out of hand before you know it. I try to clean out the stuff I don't use every six months or so.