Hoarding UFOs

In the craft world UFO stands for "unfinished object".  My house is Area 51.

Last night I jotted, almost as an after thought, on the bottom of my to-do list: go through craft stuff.  In an effort to simplify and pare down, I've been systematically sorting and evaluating my possessions, donating and selling what I no longer truly need.  I am delighted to report that I spiffed up my residence before drop-off - a cool 5 minutes and the house was neat and tidy (enough).  So this must be what progress feels like.

The seemingly benign task of sorting through my craft stuff has turned out to be a major undertaking.  My plan of attack was to go through the major hubs and write down exactly what project I am saving such and such item for.  If an item isn't attached to a specific project and I'm keeping it "just in case", then it gets the boot.  Sounds easy, right?  Hows that working out for me?

I just finished the smallest basket of fabric, which I consider my 'to-do immediately pile' (for instance, where I put clothes that need small repairs).  Totally overwhelmed.  Needed to take a break and blog about it.  I have filled AN ENTIRE SHEET OF PAPER with proposed projects and I still have like 5 more (much larger) storage areas to go!

It has dawned on me that there is no way on God's green earth that I am going to ever be able to finish all the crafts I have in mind.  I need to start letting some of this go AND I need to stop taking on new ideas before all these old ones are finished.  Until I knock some of these out, I should put a stop on any new project ideas.  This is why some of these UFOs have been sitting around for years.

Furthermore, the overwhelming amount of UFOs makes me feel overwhelmed and stressed out by my crafts.  What is supposed to be my hobby, my source of relaxation, is something of a thorn in my side.  It clutters my space and my mind.  I get totally grumpy just thinking about those quilt pieces stored under Ikaika's bed.  Just sew the damn thing already!

I don't know if I'm at a point yet that I can haul a huge load to the thrift store and be done with it.  The "I might need it one day" mentality is deeply ingrained.  However, I can chip away at this slowly.  I can let go of the things that seriously have no purpose (Mr A's old shirt that has neither sentimental value nor buttons?) and the things that I know aren't worth the effort (seafoam green baby acrylic fingering yarn?)