Recently, I discovered a cool looking bag at my client’s home. She was pretty excited about this bag and told me that though it was really meant to organize scrapbooking materials, she thought it could be a great way to store her cross stitch and small craft supplies. She liked it a lot because several compartments lined the inside of the bag and there was an abundance of pockets on the outside. She could even take it with her while on trips, and it was also in a print that she liked which would likely encourage her to use it. Besides, it was only about $30 at Michaels (and if you have their 40% off coupon, even less).

Here are some pictures of her bag…

I was happy that my client was trying to take control of her hobby. The flip side to this story is that I’ve worked with clients whose hobbies have taken over their lives. One in particular had over 500 rolls of yarn strewn about her home. They could be found everywhere and lined the stairs leading to the upper level of her home. This was a double edged sword. Something she loved and enjoyed very much also caused her great pain (and was unsafe). I was curious to find out if there were folks out there with a love/hate relationship with their hobbies. So, I recently polled a few people, including other professional organizers, on Facebook, Twitter, and from non-internet sources to find out.

Here are the questions I posed:

(1) Has your hobby taken over your life? What is your hobby and what makes it difficult to keep it under control?

(2) If you have your hobby under control, let us know what you do to keep yourself organized.

I received some interesting responses and discovered that people like to do a lot different (and not so different) things. First, the non-organizer responses…

• “Dancing. I have it under control.” (ST from Virginia)

ST didn’t say how the dancing was kept under control, but it could be that it’s a weekend activity. ST did say that dancing in no way interfered with work. That’s good.

• “I used to make remote control cars when I was younger. I built a car every week. It was organized chaos. When I needed parts, I just looked for them wherever. Now that I’m older, my hobby is cooking. I subscribe to two cooking magazines and make weekly trips to the bookstore. All my pots and pans are stored together in the kitchen, but I am a messy cook.” (CH from New York)

• “My hobby is orchids. It controls me most of the time. It’s an obsession, no rhyme or reason for it. It just is. I spend hours on the internet researching different types of orchids. I would spend my last dollar on an orchid. When I was moving, it was so hard to give them away. I do have orchid supplies that I keep together in a container.“ (NL from Florida)

• “Currently, my hobby is my two boys, ages 4 and 1.5 years old. Can that be considered a hobby? I think my time spent doing things for and with them, prevents me from having a traditional-type hobby such as scrapbooking, which I long to get back into someday. Before I had children, I loved to scrapbook, and still have tons of supplies just waiting to be used. I started scrapbooking my oldest son’s first year when he was born, and only got as far as the age of 6 months – he’s 4 now!!!! My biggest struggle is “finding the balance”. During my days when I am not physically engaging my kids, my time is spent doing typical household tasks – cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc. And I keep a handy dandy “to do” list to help me stay in control. I love my lists! Being flexible also helps to stay in control. Unfortunately when all is said and done, that leaves very little time for my other “hobby”. I enjoy keeping in touch with friends online, and in my spare time that is what I do. Providing my family with the best I can is something I pride myself on, so it’s a “hobby” I am happy to put above others! But I would love to pick up a hobby or two, if I only knew how. :)“ (JM from New Jersey)

Would you believe some people don’t have a hobby at all? Take a look at this comment:

• “Deb, I have no time for a hobby. I just work and sleep. I barely have the energy to respond to u here. We’ll talk later.” (MT from Maryland)

Wow! Surely this is a busy person – the message was pretty concise. I’m glad I got a response, but I suspect that a conversation about having more fun and decreasing stress is in order.

Now for the experts, otherwise known as Professional Organizers. Do you think they have hobbies difficult to control? Read on…

Scott Roewer of Solutions by Scott (Washington, DC)
Blog: www.declutteryou.com

“My hobby of Stained Glass has not yet taken over my life, but I can see how I’ll need to stay organized. With all the new tools I have had to buy, glass, pattern pieces, etc – it’s a lot. So far, I’ve bought a nice tool bag which has individual spots for all the cutting accessories, and is also suited to put a soldering iron inside even if it is still warm. I’ve also designated a spot where I can store my glass. I had to clear a spot in my closet where the glass could stand up right without fear of being broken. I hope in my next living space, I’ll have an area or zone dedicated to my craft where I can leave my supplies out. I’ll save time if I don’t have to pick up and put things away each time I work. Great question.”

Jane Campbell of Back in Sorts Organizing Systems
(Rockville, MD)
Blog: www.janeorganizer.livejournal.com

“Talking on line is my hobby. Is it out of control? My husband says yes. I don’t think so, but maybe I should find out how little of it he would consider normal. I’ve wanted to be a writer since 1971, and my life has centered on that ever since. So if this is the shape it’s taking for the time being–communicating with other, real human beings online, as well as other projects–I’m ok with that. I WOULD do it to the exclusion of having a balanced life if I didn’t do reality checks quite often–am I exercising, eating well, worshiping, in tune with my family, bathing regularly, financially sound, etc.? I think my number-one control mechanism is also the chiefest advice I give for managing time: keep track of time. If I know it’s 1 a.m., it means I’m awake, which means I’m not doing the right thing.“

Debbie Jordan Kravitz of D & R Custom Organizers
(York, PA)
Blog: www.mypersonalorganizer.typepad.com

“My hobby is scrapbooking. I started when my now 11-year-old was born as a way to preserve the TONS of pictures I was taking of her. When my second child was born, I of course had to start an album for her, too. Then I realized that I also needed a family album. Oh, and then the girls started school; gotta’ have a separate album for each daughter dedicated just for school pics and memorabilia. Oh, and then my parents had a big wedding anniversary so I made a small gift album for them. Then, 4 years ago when I was battling breast cancer a friend gave me a little pink album to document my experience through words and pics; sort of as a way for me to “vent” and deal with the experience (it actually WAS very helpful). Needless to say, I have LOTS of albums now, with no end in sight, but I have an entire bookshelf dedicated to these treasures of mine. Supplies, on the other hand, CAN get out of control, but I have a file for paper, smaller file boxes for stickers and embellishments, and and a tote for storing tools. Sometimes it’s a hassle to get it all out and work, but I LOVE being able to store it out of sight when I’m not working on albums. Buying new products is my one weakness! As a P.O., I know I should use what I have before I buy new, but they keep coming out with new, cute, products all the time. Sometimes it’s so hard to contain myself, I just have to avoid the scrapbooks stores, aisles, and catalogs completely until I truly NEED to replenish my stock.“

Maria Parkinson of Back on Track Organizing
(Los Angelos, CA)

“I love to garden and I love books. After 9/11, I went from a three bedroom house with a den and garage and a large office filled with antique furniture and collections to a single apartment.

What did I do with all that stuff? I gave away much of it (had to) but I kept all my books which are extensive. I had bookshelves installed and I keep all of them in good order, I have all my reference books for business in one area next to my desk so I can access them immediately. Although my garden is small, I have plants that I care for outside my apartment, and I get comments on how lovely it is from my neighbors, who have been inspired to do the same thing. I live in a landmark building so it matches the landscape and adds to it.”

So, do people tend to have a love/hate relationship with their hobbies? Based on the comments of the people I polled, I’d say the answer is “it depends.” It depends on how we’re feeling and where we are in life. That is, if we even have the time to have a hobby. It also seems that we organizers are pretty similar to non-organizers, though we may have a few more organizing tricks up our sleeves.