Collections

So many people collect so many things for emotional reasons – and a few for value/profit. The size of things collected ranges from postage stamps, to baseball cards, to spoons, to mugs/steins, to jerseys and banners, to plates, to clocks – all the way up to motorcycles and cars.

Some collectors devolve into hoarders and collect rooms/houses full of newspapers and magazines. But, as housecleaners, we are not engaged by hoarders. They don’t want anyone in their houses – either too jealous or too ashamed, I suppose.

So, we are presented with normal collectors. And even the normal collectors span a wide range of devotion.

I’ve seen one collector who had a walk-in closet covered with shelves filled with miniature cars still in their original boxes. It was glorious! What dedication. I was allowed to dust – carefully – and vacuum the floor. No more. I hope that collection is worth as much as his dedication indicates.

Less organized collectors have their premier items displayed on their walls and/or shelves, with the rest boxed up or piled up in various places around the house. Under beds. Stuffed in closets. Maybe even spread out on counters and tables awaiting permanent display – and they have been for months or years. Ha!

Disorganized collections not only collect dust and make it hard to clean around them, they can house insects and other critters.

What is a housecleaner to do?

Well, we can’t disparage the collection or the collector. They have a personal, emotional, historical or family reason for collecting all that stuff. It makes them happy.

We can recommend either better in-place organization or better in-house storage for the collection, or even recommend off-site storage for sizeable collections. Climate controlled storage facilities are available almost everywhere now and they can be set up with shelving to organize and display big collections in ways that might satisfy the collector who has a collection that has outgrown their own home.

Perhaps you have business relationships with storage unit operators or framing/display producers who can help your clients. Even if there are no referral fees involved, there is good karma. And free referrals often come back as future referrals – eventually.

The uncluttered house is more easily cleaned.

Opportunity is everywhere.

Happy cleaning!