Should I Give up the Ribbons?

You would not believe how many ribbons I have. Lucky me.

I'm going through a serious review of stuff. Not just the weekend time-killer of sorting fabric or shuffling pretty paper around. I mean this is an internal calculation involving absolutely no lifting of any kind and boy, it's taking MONTHS! I race through my craft/art room as if it's haunted, on my way to the dark back office where I use my computer and work on email business: MyTeamConnects marketing and customer copy, template design, etc.

This business is what I love to do, and what drives me to do better -- both for myself in creating a successful business and for my customers because they use email marketing to help their businesses succeed too. When others are depending on me, I take that very seriously. When it's just a hobby I enjoy, well, I can let it fall off my radar. That's just how I'm wired. This business is just a natural progression of doing freelance copywriting/emails for other people, so I'm thrilled that I can serve others and connect with other small businesses like mine.

Although email is what I consider my "real" work these days, I'm tempted by some hands-on "play" from time to time, and so I simply cannot dismantle my art room, as much as I know i could beenefit from having a nicer room to do my marketing stuff in.

As long as you own it, your house is there for you to change as you grow and live. When Katie was tired of her pink painted flowery bedroom, we overhauled her room into an elegant teen-aged spa-like retreat, complete with brown walls and bamboo accents and a grown-up looking art print she chose. It's the most peaceful room in the house -- and room to dance, too!

When the kids started using the great room to spread out and play video games, we moved the TV into the smaller and cozier traditional dining room and brought the family dining table into the room off the kitchen so we could lounge and eat meals around the fireplace. Now the TV room is just that: a TV room -- you really don't spend time there unless the TV is on. (Love that.)

I'm a big believer that your house should reflect the way you live and work. That's why I made this room back here into a craft room when I started getting into doll-making, scrapbooking, fiber arts and art-journaling; and all the other fun stuff I used to do. USED TO DO...key point.

This idea of taking apart my art room and spreading my wings with my email business has been pacing around in the corner of my mind for awhile, but I simply cannot make a decision to make the big haul. See, I actually like sewing, and getting paint under my fingernails, and making funny little stuffed things and embroidering words on things, etc. Feeds my soul; always has. But I'm driven to extremes, clean sweeps, new beginnings; and so I'm flirting with having a huge bonfire. Or a van-sized Goodwill dump.

I am beginning to expose this idea to people I care about. I ask, "Should I prove my commitment to my email marketing business by cleaning house and making over my art room into a lovely office? Or will I regret the color, whimsical materials and creative stuff all strewn about; ready for play at any given moment (although those moments are so few and far between anymore...)

Here's a smattering of responses on whether I should dismantle the art room:


Sister: ..."No. Keep it. You never need to go to the store when your kids have to recreate the lost city of Atlantis or build a 1:100 scaled Eiffel Tower for a school project. At least until the kids fly the coop, keep the art supplies and the place to do projects." (Wise mom.)

Husband: Shrug..."If you get rid of it you'll just start buying it all over again." (He knows me so well.)

Biz Partner Sam: "...but I love your creative side. I love art!" (I take that as a no, but then he offers to help re-do the whole room, so you can never tell.)

Kids: ..."if you sell it on Ebay or Etsy, can we help you and then split the profits?"

See? Ambivalence left and right.

The recent fires in Texas started me thinking about all of this in earnest. What if it all went up in flames? Would I even try to save some of my favorite things, or would I grab the kids and the dog, my papers and some pictures; and be out the door?

If given the choice I guess I would like the stuff to go to loving homes. Here are some possibilites:

• There is a group called Austin Creative Reuse which takes art supplies off your hands when you no longer need them.
• I could put the things up on Etsy and have a barn-burner of a sale.
• Photograph stuff I made and keep them in a space-saving digital scrapbook -- then give away or sell most of it.
• Keep one wall of a new office for craft/art supplies and another wall for handmade art -- but only  my favorite things. Make the rest of the space into a functional office.

I am coming closer to making a decision on this; and I realize it's a natural progression from hobby to a business I love that takes increasingly more of my time and energy. It's all good. Maybe if I got rid of just a little bit of stuff I know I'll never use, then I'll be able to concentrate on the projects that I'm certain I want to keep dabbling on...flaxseed neck pillows, soft houses, small quilts, pillows, etc. I could narrow the playing field and still feel like I had some creative options open.

Just yesterday, Katie and her friend Lizzie spent some time at my craft table making pretty ribbon hair clips with my three boxes of ribbons, buttons and silk flowers. I was so happy to see them spend a pleasant hour crafting, talking and giggling about stuff that 13-year-old girls giggle over. They left a delightful mess (and remembered to turn off the glue gun) when they were done. 

Not every house can provide that experience -- a place for teenagers to create and play as if they are little kids again...after all, that's why I like my craft room, too! A predictable home office is just what everyone is expecting. Even though an organized and well-lit desk space is what I need right now, a small part of me needs the creative play too. Maybe if I just tidied up I could have both?

What do you think? Should I make a clean sweep? Start all over? Keep some stuff, but not all of it?