Out of Chaos an organizing newsletter
The Object Can’t Set You Free
Sometimes I am with a client and I think: there is just too much, too much stuff. Stuff is too easy, too cheap. This is the kind of thought that leads me to experiments like the ‘all-made-in-the-USA-holiday’, because I am looking to create an artificial limit to stop the flow of stuff. I think about the homes I know where there is less stuff, and I think about my many artist friends, who have limited resources but always make their homes beautiful. They seem to be able to create beauty in their environment by using their critical eye to help them curate their possessions, to favor placement over abundance.
The word curate is tricky though, because when I think of that word in the context of a home it leads me to think of extremely high-design homes, which leads me to think of a whole other sub-set of my clientele for whom finding the perfect object can be just as debilitating as the clutter in another person’s house.
So the question is: How Much Meaning Should an Object Have? Clearly the answer will be different for different people. For the client whose home suffers from a tidal wave of stuff, attempting to stem the tide by being more discerning in their acquisitions could be useful. Trying to choose carefully in order to end up with something that you will be happy with for a long time is a great strategy. Often when people buy something they don’t love they are reluctant to part with it because they see it as ‘still useful’, which of course it is. So they pine for, and eventually purchase the improved version, without letting go of the first purchase. Sometimes, there is no ‘perfect’, sometimes one kitchen-timer is cute, but inaccurate, while another one is accurate but can’t be heard from the living room. This holds true for a variety of objects from furniture to clothing, and the end result is excess. At the opposite end of the spectrum are the clients for whom perfectionism is the stumbling block. For them, “curating” their objects is the norm, but it hinders them from completing any project because they are still in search of perfect. For example: being unable to file because you haven’t found the perfect file cabinet. It is great to hold out for what you really want, but life has to move forward.
As I write this I see that there is more overlap than is evident at first. On some level many of my clients have an almost magical belief that an object is going to transform them. Whether your modus operandi is to keep buying until you hit upon the perfect pair of jeans, or to deny yourself and live in holey ones until you find perfection, I think you are giving too much power to the object. Objects are useful, they can make our lives better and sometimes they are beautiful. As much as I love a good filing cabinet, the papers won’t file themselves, that is still up to you, and all the pants will look better if you are vigilant about going to the gym. So, ask yourself: how do I see objects? If you over-buy, try to cultivate your critical eye and be picky, if you are a perfectionist: plunge in and just get it done, cultivate ruthlessness. Going against your natural impulse is always an interesting experiment, and who knows what you might learn about yourself!