minimalist porn

When does design become kitschy clutter? This is the question I argue with myself every day when I look at the long list of design (print, packaging, interior, furniture, and ornamental) blogs I look at for the first three hours of my day. I try to limit myself to 30 minutes, but by the end of the day I feel like all I have done is look at blogs of other peoples design and art.
Now getting back to my original issue, some of the design out there is really no more than pretty clutter. People talk about the great little things they make or find and repurpose, but sometimes those purposes just become another thing that collects dust. Keeping this in mind I am trying very hard to not keep things even if I think I can DO SOMETHING with them. I look at a handmade book (not made by me) and thing "I can recover the cover and make it my own and then sell it at a show" or "I will paint this mug and make it look unique and funky so maybe then I will use it." This is how my clutter is born; good intention is the seed of the clutter baby. So while I still create clutter (JJ attests to this all the time) I am trying to be mindful of how long term it clutters my life. If I am selling a book on half.com then I can only keep the book for a limited time before it is decided that it will not sell. Right now I am trying to part with a pair of Diesel jeans I bought on ebay. I have had them for two years now. They do not fit, will never fit, are a bad wash, and the cut is really bad...wanna buy them?! No, but really, I brought them to my local used clothing store and they were not interested. They said the cut and color were not in right now (my seed of hope was left intact...very bad), but I could keep them and see if they would sell later. The problem with this is how long do I keep them before they become just another clutterer in my life? I could make money off of them, but I would be losing money if I were equating space with money. If you are like me most of the things you keep are somehow going to save you money or make you money and have nothing to do with sentimentality. This makes things even harder because one day those jeans might sell and they take up so little space in the mean time. But these things add up and eventually your space is filled with "might" and "could." I am moving to NY where every square foot really is going to cost me money and I hope I can keep that in mind. In fact, one day I hope I have the strength to divest without reservation and live in a space that would make minimalists blush.