Confessions Of A {Borderline} Magazine Hoarder
Ok, so I have to admit that my husband HATES the type of headband I'm wearing in the picture above. And by hates, I mean makes fun of them at every chance he gets and has actually asked me to promise to never wear them. BUT since he's gone so much at night I can take the opportunity to sport them behind his back because I personally love them! {insert devilish smile here}.
I think it started somewhere in college. And I like to believe I got it somewhat under control at some point—recycling and letting go (I swear I threw away all the bridal mags after our wedding)—but as I lifted up the bed skirt this evening to grab a pair of slippers to offset today’s blustery temps, I noticed an overwhelming amount of magazines in {somewhat} neat piles under my side of the bed.
This prompted me to walk through the house to locate how many magazines I have “stored” in various places. On the computer table; on the kitchen counter; in the drawer under the entertainment center…and of course in the cabinet with all the miscellaneous “this mail isn’t so important I need to open it now but is important enough that I don’t want to toss it” stuff. It turns out that pile has grown increasingly large with coupons, ads and all the other nonsense I just might need someday.
"Someday" will undoubtedly come when that specific ad or coupon is far past its expiration date.
I originally held on to each magazine with the intention of either going back to finish it or because I saw something in it that I knew I would want to go back and refer to at some point. But really, who am I kidding? When you have this.many.magazines, how could I ever pinpoint which one had that one thing I wanted to remember in it? And really, what would I find? Some outdated fashion inspiration, holiday gift ideas or recipes? It’s not like I follow blogs or go on Pinterest for any of that…(hack hack, cough cough)
So what’s a girl to do?
Step 1: Recognize and acknowledge I have a problem. Stubbornly…Done.
Step 2: Get rid of all the evidence, er, outdated magazines. Hrmph…starting that. Maybe tomorrow.
Step 3: Come up with a plan for future incoming magazines. Done! (and really, give me other ideas if you have them!)
If there are others out there like me, know that you’re not alone. At least I refuse to believe I’m alone in this anyway. So let’s give this a try together! Below I’ve come up with a list of how I’m going to catch up and stay on top of my magazines. Now you have to know that I kind of have a type A personality when it comes to how I organize things, and I love love love it when everything can start and end with a filing system. I also firmly believe that an organized little filing system can be the tiny solution I need to {at least temporarily} remove “hoarder” from my description in the future.
Set aside some time. Depending on your schedule and number of magazines, a half-hour to an hour is a good chunk of time to set aside to go through each one. You might prefer to read each one as it comes in, or save them all to do at once. For me, I think I’m going to use it as that time I force myself to sit down for a half hour on a weekend while my daughter naps.
Look at every page. I tend to find that some of my biggest fashion inspirations come from the ads. Plus, if I know I physically turned every page, I’m less likely to need to hang on to the magazine.
If I see something I like, I’ll tear out the page. To go along with the neatness I require a file to maintain in order to maintain my own sanity, I have to tear out the full page. Some of you might be able to just cut out pieces, and kudos to you for your natural rebellious side!
Once I have all my neatly torn out pages, I’ll divide them into categories. I’ve listed my “starter” categories below, but create as many as you need to make it as easy as possible to find things when you come back to them!
Casual
Dressy
Shoes
Hair
Makeup
Accessories
Workouts
Recipes
For the Home
Mom-tips
Once you have all your tear outs categorized, get up, stretch, and grab yourself a snack and some water…I know this is a pretty intense process.
Now that you’re refreshed, file your findings! I suggest revisiting your files each season (once a quarter) to take out looks that might be out now or to remove anything that doesn’t inspire you anymore.
Am I the only person out there with this issue? PLEASE tell me there are other {borderline} magazine hoarders out there!
