True's room

I've been working on redecorating True's room for some time now. Working all of her collections, furniture and hobbies into something that feels like we tried to do it on purpose, has proven to be quite a feat. It's been a work in progress for about six months, and I've made a resolution to "finish her up" within the first half of this year. She and I went through countless styles, themes and color schemes trying to find the perfect fit for her personality.
See, each one of the girls' rooms reflect their personalities and sense of style. Sage has a sort of Gothic theme going on in her room. Grey walls, black and white furniture and red bedding create the backdrop for a massive drum set and poster covered walls complete with pictures of Johnny Depp, Jack Skellington and various Twilight characters. There is no mistaking where the teenager of the household dwells.

Deni's room is the true definition of "girlie". Shabby chic prints, white furniture and little bits of bling everywhere, hers is a room any princess would envy. Soft pastels of pink, blue and green pop up over a mostly white palette with textiles of lace and satin here and there. Everything has a place and everything is in its place. She tries very hard to keep things organized and neat and claims she can't sleep without all four of her overstuffed pillows.

It took me too long to realize that the mix of bright colors, crazy prints and far too many collectibles was already True's own unique style in the works. So I've decided to go with it and try to meld it all together so it flows a little smoother. So far, it's turning out to be quite a fun project! I'm not finished yet, so I can't show you anything (gotta save it for the big reveal) but I wanted to share with you just exactly what we're dealing with in this room.

The kid is a collector, verging too close to being a hoarder. Everything catches her eye for one reason or another and she's not afraid of oddities big or small.
Now, she's not a real messy kid, everything is picked up, her bed is always made and there is never really anything on the floor that shouldn't be. But her desk remains a catch-all for what doesn't have a home of it's own. Part of the problem is, she likes looking at her "stuff" on a regular basis. She purposely sets them out on her desk so she can admire her collection. I'm thinking she needs a curio cabinet of some sort. I'll be keeping an eye out at yard sales for one, but in the meantime, I've cleaned things up and compromised on what can stay out for now.

While going through it all I had to snap a shot of a few of the stranger things I came across.

Here is a shot of the desk, so you can get the perspective of just how cluttered we're talking about.

Remember these guys? She made them last summer... She has a hard time getting rid of things she makes, especially those with faces.

Uh, I think we found the missing Ken head! She says she didn't do this to him, she just couldn't bring herself to throwing away his poor little head.

I like this guy. I think he's a yard sale find.


These are Pokemon cards and tags off of stuff. Why do we have the tags???

Behind the cool bottle is a broken lotion dispenser with penguins in it. There is also some penguin tissue paper there on the left. This is her idea of "collecting penguins."

Her favorite books. If I remember correctly, she very much resembles Ramona Quimby herself!

Uh oh! Making fake ID's already! That can't be good! (Had to smudge out the last name for safety purposes. Click on the image for the full effect!)

This little nic nac is cute!

Ok, this is just plain scary. Do I have my own Sid (from Toy Story) on my hands?! Poor Polly Pocket!

Why does the dentist offer to let her keep this stuff? It's kinda gross!

This used to be a real life lizard. For reals. It's all hollowed out now and very fragile. I'm not allowed to touch it. (As if I really wanted to.)


All these things are only a few of her treasures. I didn't even take photos of the silk worm cocoons, ant farm, grasshopper skin, rocks, twigs, leafs and oodles of art she's got stashed everywhere else.
I've learned to de-clutter a bit over the years, but it's taken me quite a long time to understand the lack of or very minimal value in such objects, so I understand a bit where she's coming from.

How about you? Do you have any objects you can't bring yourself to part with? Are you a collector of anything? A clutterbug or do I dare say, a hoarder? Do you think I've got a budding hoarder on my hands? Or is this the normal behavior of an eight year old middle child?