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Is this normal, or am I becoming a hoarder?


vbharrington

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As I've stated on here before, I have been obsessed with mini's my whole life, and when I was 12, my mom had a Rutherford built for me, which is still (in my eyes) the most beautiful dollhouse ever.  A while back I bought myself an Orchid kit at Hobby Lobby and started work on it.  The holidays came round and I put the Orchid away, but found a great deal on Craigslist for a San Franciscan kit, so I bought that.  My hubby bought me a Beachside Bungalow kit for Christmas, and yesterday I found a great deal on a NIB travel trailer kit.  So, here I am with one (barely) started Orchid, a San Franciscan, Beach Bungalow, and travel trailer all still in the box. Does anyone else have multiple kits sitting around, or do I have some sort of hoarding issue starting?

It would take a whole different thread to address that why, after almost 27 years, I still can't decorate the inside of my Rutherford, because I'm afraid that I will mess it up or it won't look "right."

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Vickie, 

Yes, it's normal, and yes, you may be becoming a hoarder.  Most of us are.  I have at least 6 kits waiting to be built right now.  It took me six or seven years to finish the inside of one of my houses, because I was afraid of messing up the electricity - then when I finally decided to go ahead and finish it, the wiring wouldn't work anyway. 

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If you mes it up, you can fix it. But hey, decorating may not be your thing, and who cares if it's not? A hobby is meant to be enjoyed by you, and you only, so enjoy how you want to. If you like looking at it empty, that's fine. Or you could find some bit of furniture you love and put them in it. And then when you start getting a feel for things, you may decide on what wall coverings you want. Just let it flow!

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Shannon, my Rutherford is fully furnished, but just bare walls and floors :)  I'm thinking that I'd like a change from the Orchid right now, so I have been looking into pictures of vintage trailers/campers to glean ideas from.  I blame some of it on my ADHD and some of it on my inability/fear to make a decision about decor. 

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Yes, you're showing signs of being a hoarder, but in a good way - as it is miniatures (12x the amount of hoarding can be done at 1:12, right?) and not something like newspapers and cat food cans. So it's all fine and normal for mini-hoarder.

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A pox on those who say you're a hoarder. If you have 19 kids, you're a hoarder. If you have 19 cats, you're a crazy cat lady. If you have 19 dollhouse kits, you're normal.

Only 4 kits stashed in the closet or under the bed? Sorry to say, you're not even in the running yet.:cheezy:

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24 minutes ago, rodentraiser said:

Only 4 kits stashed in the closet or under the bed? Sorry to say, you're not even in the running yet.

I know I have at least 9 kits under my bed....in full scale...I have at least 13 half scale projects and 5 1/144th scale all kits not yet opened or started 

besides the Granville I have 3 houses from storage in build mode....Hording...ME...no way!:bangin:

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I haven't hoarded kits yet, but I do hoard the leftovers.  I rarely build my houses to the original design so I have a lot of leftover pieces which I save.  I also save a lot of the leftover scraps, unused windows, etc.  I have two big containers of miscellaneous pieces under my bed that I'm sure I'll someday use...

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Honestly, I actually did have a bit of a general craft hoarding issue. I sew, paint, some beading, some flowers, any kind of old trim or bit of lace. I restore dolls, so little bits of stuff can never be thrown away or passed up at an estate sale. The room got out of control. Really, really out of control. Then I had an epiphany (after I tripped and fell), and gave most all of it away. What was MOST important to me, was to have a clean, organized, attractive work space that I wouldn't be ashamed for guests to see. And after about a full YEAR of hard work (inside and out) that's what I had. There's still a lot of inventory in that room, but the use of the room over the past two years has just been the most joyful and productive ever. My husband comments that now, it's one of the coolest rooms in the house.

I had to accept the unfinished/unstarted projects as a failure, and let them go. Letting them go meant that I had wasted time, wasted money, and lost interest. I decided that was OK, and that letting things go was far, far better than keeping them piled up as a reminder that I had in some way failed.

It's good to be creative, and it's great to find bargains that you can use, but if the stuff starts to take over the space it's intended for and creates chaos, stress, and unhappiness, then it's time to pare down. Every crafter is different, and you have to decide for yourself how much stuff (especially unfinished stuff) you can tolerate. If you're not certain that you will actually finish any of those projects, then you need to stop buying more. Spend more time doing and less time shopping.

Buying more kits won't help you make a decision how to finish the first one.  

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8 minutes ago, stickyfingers said:

Buying more kits won't help you make a decision how to finish the first one.  

No, but it gives you something to do while you're thinking about it. :)

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You are absolutely normal. You've just listened to conventional wisdom which tells you that you're on the verge of hoarding. Luckily for you, there are those of us here on the forum happy to show you how to embrace yourself and your completely normal tendencies. You're welcome! ;)

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Multiple kits - misc dollhouse furniture for dollhouses - glues - paints - various things needed for decorating as I get to a house - cloth - AND of course, numerous tools and craft knives - and......

The 'mini-stuff' is just too numerous to list, but great to have. I also have my eye on another kit, but that will be a way off - I think.

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