So, it's that time of year: End of the School Year De-Clutterin' Season. I thought it might be fun to chat about what items we should save and which we should trash in a lil something I like to call...HOARD IT OR HURL IT?!
Surprisingly, being the well-established hoarder that I am, I'm not opposed to hurling a thing or two. I know I just barely scraped the surface of all the stuff we art teacherin' types acquire. I'd LOVE to hear what you hoard...and what oddities you've been "gifted" that you had to quietly hurl. In fact, just this weekend, an art teacherin' friend told me she was once given styrofoam meat trays for printmaking...that hadn't quite been cleaned completely (that's a LITERAL hurl, y'all). So...what's in your closet?
I admit: my closet is kinda like the George Costanza wallet. It has pretty much everything even a hack MacGyver would need to weasel out of any situation. A box full of baby doll heads? Got it. A sack stuffed with Santa Claus beards? You betcha. I ain't proud. I'm just sayin'.
I try not to open any of my closets in front of my students because it usually just ends up looking like this. It's like I'm opening a portal to Narnia if the Snow Queen was a feature on Hoarders and Narnia was chock full of crap.
I've always thought: I CAN have all of my crap and much, MUCH more if I just have a place for it. So, once every 7 years, I go completely bananaz and organize, label and tidy everything. But then Fur Realz Cassie returns and messes everything back up again. I'll never be the Mary Poppins of Tidy-Town.
For me, I'll either need to get me a smoke screen like that one (um, genius!) or precede to HURL IT! It's on my summery to do. But so is spending countless hours in pajama-land and it looks like I'm pretty booked solid with that. So, whatcha got? And are you gonna Hoard It or Hurl It?
I had to hurl it. I am new to art. I inherited a beautiful room and a closet but I couldn't walk into it because it was messy (I wish I could show you a picture). It took me one whole week to movevtgebjunk off the floor, just do that I could begin yo organize the shelves.Behind the junk were precious treasures awaiting me!
Oh man, THAT is what awaits the person who will replace me when I finally retire. I'm such a pack rat...I can't image what a person coming in after me would think!
Yes, I too am a hoarder of buttons and fabric. I also keep old oil pastels. I've heard you can shake them in a bag of rice and that cleans them (or is that chalk?). Like I got time to do that!
My cousin (who is in the Lions Club in Memphis) MAILED me a sizable box of old eye glass lenses. He even called me first before he coughed up the postage for that bad boy! I thought surely I would do SOMETHING WONDEROUS with those things. But after several years of the custodians moving them out and back in my former Art room (or me getting moved to yet ANOTHER room for Art)--they got hurled...along with any donated bags of yarn that somebody else couldn't untangle (REALLY??). I've gotten a whole box of wooden skewers which I kept for a while, but they made me nervous to think of kids using. Gave them to the Music teacher -so they're close by if I think of something. She's not used them yet. So they're fair game!
My cousin (who is in the Lions Club in Memphis) MAILED me a sizable box of old eye glass lenses. He even called me first before he coughed up the postage for that bad boy! I thought surely I would do SOMETHING WONDEROUS with those things. But after several years of the custodians moving them out and back in my former Art room (or me getting moved to yet ANOTHER room for Art)--they got hurled...along with any donated bags of yarn that somebody else couldn't untangle (REALLY??). I've gotten a whole box of wooden skewers which I kept for a while, but they made me nervous to think of kids using. Gave them to the Music teacher -so they're close by if I think of something. She's not used them yet. So they're fair game!
University of South Alabama in Mobile had several murals created out of Mardi Gras beads back when I was looking at colleges. FYI, Mardi Gras originated in Mobile not New Orleans. As far as questionable donation - award ribbons that reaked of smoke so badly that I almost literally hurled.
Oh, man. MAGAZINES. That is the one thing I DON'T hoard...I've encountered one too many "lady product" ads than I'm proud to admit. Oh! AND the 60's magazines which I thought would be safe but were full of ads for fem hygiene...in the worst possible way.
I love receiving non paper art materials like yarn, beads, and fabric. My students are will hopefully love next year with the idea I have for the use of unusual materials. Thanks for the post.
I do too! I was gifted an enormous amount of yarn last year by a parent who took up knitting and then decided it wasn't for her. I was so thrilled, we've been using it nonstop since! That kind of stuff I'll take over toilet paper tubes ANY day ;)
I have a HUGE bag of wine corks in my closet just waiting for me to take all my free time this summer (yeah, right!) and turn them into stamps!! I also am hording a huge roll of bubble wrap a teacher was kind enough to gift to me!! Kinder printing in the future!
I hoard soo many things! Carpet squares, wooden blocks, milk jugs ( I have them strung from the ceiling to the floor, yikes!),have a fifty pound bag of old crayons, raffia, all kinds of plastic and glass containers, it's truly scary! I use those Mardi Gras beads for when I make gingerbread (cardboard) houses with my 6th graders. We line the edges with them!
Oh, if some generous soul gives you magazines and you want to hurl... look up your local ESL or immigrant english class school. They can totally use them: print accompanied by pictures, but in a format adults aren't humiliated to use. -CSB
Labels: elementary art, vintage clothing
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art teacherin' 101,
cassie stephens,
elementary art room,
hoarder,
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teacher blog,
what the art teacher wore
I had to hurl it. I am new to art. I inherited a beautiful room and a closet but I couldn't walk into it because it was messy (I wish I could show you a picture). It took me one whole week to movevtgebjunk off the floor, just do that I could begin yo organize the shelves.Behind the junk were precious treasures awaiting me!
ReplyDeleteOh man, THAT is what awaits the person who will replace me when I finally retire. I'm such a pack rat...I can't image what a person coming in after me would think!
DeleteI hoard beautiful buttons and fabrics samples. I hurl all the old nasty oil Pastels
ReplyDeleteYes, I too am a hoarder of buttons and fabric. I also keep old oil pastels. I've heard you can shake them in a bag of rice and that cleans them (or is that chalk?). Like I got time to do that!
DeleteMy cousin (who is in the Lions Club in Memphis) MAILED me a sizable box of old eye glass lenses. He even called me first before he coughed up the postage for that bad boy! I thought surely I would do SOMETHING WONDEROUS with those things. But after several years of the custodians moving them out and back in my former Art room (or me getting moved to yet ANOTHER room for Art)--they got hurled...along with any donated bags of yarn that somebody else couldn't untangle (REALLY??). I've gotten a whole box of wooden skewers which I kept for a while, but they made me nervous to think of kids using. Gave them to the Music teacher -so they're close by if I think of something. She's not used them yet. So they're fair game!
ReplyDeleteMy cousin (who is in the Lions Club in Memphis) MAILED me a sizable box of old eye glass lenses. He even called me first before he coughed up the postage for that bad boy! I thought surely I would do SOMETHING WONDEROUS with those things. But after several years of the custodians moving them out and back in my former Art room (or me getting moved to yet ANOTHER room for Art)--they got hurled...along with any donated bags of yarn that somebody else couldn't untangle (REALLY??). I've gotten a whole box of wooden skewers which I kept for a while, but they made me nervous to think of kids using. Gave them to the Music teacher -so they're close by if I think of something. She's not used them yet. So they're fair game!
ReplyDeleteI bet it felt SO STINKIN' GOOD to pitch all that stuff! I know your custodians were happy, mine always are when I finally part with my "junk".
DeleteUniversity of South Alabama in Mobile had several murals created out of Mardi Gras beads back when I was looking at colleges. FYI, Mardi Gras originated in Mobile not New Orleans. As far as questionable donation - award ribbons that reaked of smoke so badly that I almost literally hurled.
ReplyDeleteThere is NOTHING worse than stale cigarette smoke...nothing! Bleech!
DeleteYour post cracked me up! Didn't think I would do it, but I threw out old magazines that had been cut into sooooo much, not a picture was left!
ReplyDeleteYour post cracked me up! Didn't think I would do it, but I threw out old magazines that had been cut into sooooo much, not a picture was left!
ReplyDeleteOh, man. MAGAZINES. That is the one thing I DON'T hoard...I've encountered one too many "lady product" ads than I'm proud to admit. Oh! AND the 60's magazines which I thought would be safe but were full of ads for fem hygiene...in the worst possible way.
DeleteI love receiving non paper art materials like yarn, beads, and fabric. My students are will hopefully love next year with the idea I have for the use of unusual materials. Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeleteI do too! I was gifted an enormous amount of yarn last year by a parent who took up knitting and then decided it wasn't for her. I was so thrilled, we've been using it nonstop since! That kind of stuff I'll take over toilet paper tubes ANY day ;)
DeleteI have a HUGE bag of wine corks in my closet just waiting for me to take all my free time this summer (yeah, right!) and turn them into stamps!! I also am hording a huge roll of bubble wrap a teacher was kind enough to gift to me!! Kinder printing in the future!
ReplyDeleteLove me some bubble wrap. I gotta ask: did a parent gift you those wine corks or did you earn them the fun way? Regardless, sounds like a score to me!
DeleteI hoard soo many things! Carpet squares, wooden blocks, milk jugs ( I have them strung from the ceiling to the floor, yikes!),have a fifty pound bag of old crayons, raffia, all kinds of plastic and glass containers, it's truly scary! I use those Mardi Gras beads for when I make gingerbread (cardboard) houses with my 6th graders. We line the edges with them!
ReplyDeleteUm, okay. Sounds like we could be kinfolk, just sayin'. AND love the idea of the ginger bread houses with the beads, GENIUSSSS!!
DeleteLol,I think we are!-M3
DeleteWhere do you recycle markers? I have been looking into Crayola's Color Cycle.
ReplyDeleteOh, if some generous soul gives you magazines and you want to hurl... look up your local ESL or immigrant english class school. They can totally use them: print accompanied by pictures, but in a format adults aren't humiliated to use.
ReplyDelete-CSB