Coming back into your studio after the school holidays can feel like walking into a wall. You’re already tired from juggling family life, your energy tank isn’t exactly full, and now your “creative haven” looks like a disaster zone.
There are half-finished projects staring back at you, piles of paperwork, random tools scattered across every surface, and – oh yes, that hoodie someone dumped on your chair weeks ago.
You do need to tidy up. The chaos isn’t just annoying; it’s overwhelming and actively in the way of you getting anything done.
But here’s why you shouldn’t start your time back at work with a tidy-up.
The problem with tidying first is that it tricks you into thinking you’re being productive. But at the end of the day, you’ve got nothing to show for it.
You finally carve out a block of time, determined to make progress – and instead of working on your orders or new designs, you’re knee-deep in piles of paper, half-finished projects, and general office clutter.
Hours disappear into “getting organised,” and when you finally stop, your workspace might look great but you’ve done zero actual work.
That’s why starting with a tidy is so dangerous. It feels urgent. It feels useful. But it steals the very time you’ve been desperate to get back.
And tomorrow? You’ll still have the same creative backlog, only now you’ve got one less day to work on it.
The answer isn’t to ignore the mess. It’s to tackle it in a way that gets you working again today, while setting you up to gradually clear the mess over the coming week(s)
Here’s how to do a speed tidy so you can get on with something more useful
Step 1: Get rid of anything that doesn’t belong in your workspace (2–3 minutes)
Clothes, mugs, school letters, the odd pair of shoes. Anything that clearly doesn’t belong in your studio gets scooped up and put into the house instead of the studio.
Don’t detour around the house putting it away, that can quickly go from a studio today to a house clean. Just get it out of your line of sight and put it wherever you keep household stuff waiting to be put away so you can deal with it later. And the hoodie-owner can help!
If your studio isn’t at home: get this stuff into a bag or box to be taken home at the end of the day.
Step 2: Get your tools to the places they live(2 minutes)
Grab the tools and supplies you know you’ll need again and put them back where they live. Scissors in the pot, pliers in the drawer, brushes in the jar etc.
The aim here is to make sure that you can still find the things you need to do your work, even while it’s all a bit chaotic.
If you don’t have a set place for tools, or it takes you more than 10 seconds to know where to put something, hold on to it for Step 3
Step 3: Contain the chaos (3–5 minutes)
Take two big containers. Baskets, boxes, tubs, whatever you’ve got to hand.
- Container 1 is for paperwork (letters, notebooks, receipts, sketches). If you’ve got a spare container handy you could split this across two containers – one for paperwork you might need right now, and one for all of the places you’ve scribbled future ideas that could wait.
- Container 2 is for general desktop clutter
Sweep everything into one of these containers. Your surfaces are now clear, and you can find things later without hunting through a million hiding spots.
Think of these containers as temporary holding areas for your stuff.
It’s out of sight while you work, but if you need something you can go hunt for it in these containers.
Step 4: End-of-day mini-sorts (10–15 minutes max)
After you’ve done some productive work each day, set a time for 10-15 minutes and tidy as much as you can from one container.
You may not finish in a day, but over time you’ll have got everything put away. And in a week or two, your studio will be genuinely organised again – all without sacrificing your making time.
Step 5: Fallback plan
If you’re absolutely buried and don’t have the bandwidth for even this routine, just clear the one square of space you need today. Your desk, bench, or sewing table.
Sweep everything else into one big basket and move it out of sight. It’s not ideal (and don’t let that basket linger forever), but it’ll give you the clear runway you need to start today.
What to Do Instead on Your First Day Back
Instead of spending your first day back clearing the clutter and starting day two just as disoriented, use this time to get reoriented and moving again.
Once you’ve done a quick speed-tidy, spend the rest of your time on things that will actually get you back into your flow:
- Revisit your goals – Remind yourself what you were aiming for before the holidays.
- Review where you left off – What were you working on? What were your plans?
- Pick one meaningful task to complete – something that gets you feeling productive and moving forward.
This way, your limited time goes into building momentum in your work – not just shuffling piles. The tidy-up will happen, but in the background, without stealing the energy and focus you need right now.
Use This Time to Make Christmas Easier
If you’ve still got a little energy left, the very best thing you can do with your first day back is start preparing for the season that causes makers the most stress: Christmas.
It might feel far away, but using this quieter moment to plan for a smoother, calmer festive season is time well spent. That’s exactly what Burnout Free Christmas is designed to help you do.
Inside you’ll find practical ways to:
- Manage your energy during the busiest months of the year
- Never forget anything – without having to try to remember
- Save time and speed up your everyday tasks
- Make more sales with less effort
- Avoid the post-holiday crash that so many makers experience
So while you’re resetting your studio, why not also reset how you approach the biggest season of the year? Your future self (the one who actually gets to enjoy Christmas instead of dreading it) will thank you.
Click here to find out more about Burnout Free Christmas
