That's Neat! Blog

With Teacher Appreciation Week, graduations, weddings, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day…you may have a long gift list this time of year.

Forget the mugs, ties, and crystal bowls. Give a gift that shows you care AND that doesn’t clutter the kitchen or end up in the attic.

Here are my favorite choices:

Consumables: I’ve written before about the benefits of consumable gifts. This is especially a good idea for teachers, moms and dads. (Of course, always check to be sure the recipient has any food allergies.) Even a wedding gift can include consumables if the couple loves to cook. Check out the Wedding Crate from Penzy’s Spices or the vinegars and oils from Williams Sonoma.

Experiences: Ideas here include theater tickets, movie tickets, day at the spa, hot air balloon ride, cooking class, car detailing (my personal favorite for Mother’s Day), museum pass, or even a walk/hike together.

Hand-made Artwork or other Craft: For teachers, parents or grandparents, a drawing or card from a child can be a keepsake. For wedding gifts, I’ve had friends who painted me a one-of-a-kind picture and made a quilt. These gifts are not only useful but meaningful.

What are you favorite non-clutter gift ideas?

I’m sharing a great post from my friend Casey at loft & cottage interiors about “unnecessary rearranging” projects. It rang true for me, does it for you?

When I have a lot to do, I often do "unnecessary" organizing projects...but it gets me ready for what I really should be doing. And for many of my clients, a bit of quick clutter clearing gets them warmed up to make the tougher decisions.

Thanks Casey!

1. Use your re-usable bags. The ubiquitous re-usable bags are everywhere now, but only keep those that you really use. And as I wrote about in a recent blog post, you can organize and carry bags in The Tote Buddy…and if you have more bags than you need, pass them on (or use them for items you plan to donate, see #3).

2. Set up your recycling center. Do you have an organized area to catch all the recyclables? Set up the bins and bags in a central spot, such as the kitchen or basement. There are also containers made just for recycling, such as these bins from The Container Store or these from Target. I also like this Simplehuman trash and recycling can.

3. Do a sweep of your closets, and donate any unwanted items. This is a great time of year to de-clutter and donate. Schools and non-profits may be looking for items for their tag sales or fundraisers, plan to hold your own tag sale this summer, or donate to organizations that will pick up like Goodwill or Vietnam Veterans of America.

Part 1 of of my favorite finds from the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) Conference focused on keeping paper in order. Now in Part 2, I share cool products for storage and labels.

Storage

My first new find was the Bento Storage collection from Rubbermaid (now available at Target). These boxes come in a variety of sizes and have internal flexible dividers that snap out to create smaller storage within the container. Or push the dividers back against the box wall for an open storage space.

The Tote Buddy offers a stylish way to store and carry all those reusable storage bags that we collect. The Tote Buddy is a sturdy folder; simply stack your bags inside and close it with the strap. Never forget your bags at the grocery store again!

Tired of searching through a tangled mess of cords and headphones in your bag? Use the Gridit to keep it all organized. The Gridit surface is comprised of elastic bands that secure your items. You can see everything and easily find what you need.

New ways to label

3M™ shared lots of fun samples. I really like their new Post-It® Storage Container Labels  - they adhere to all kinds of surfaces but don’t leave any sticky reside behind. With the Post-It® Super Sticky Full labels the entire back surface is sticky and stays put.

The NACKit!™ reusable labeling system includes pre-printed or blank cards and self-adhesive pockets. Printed lines on the back of the card give you a space to inventory what’s inside the container.

It’s spring cleaning time! And time to purge some books you no longer need or want. Donate them to More Than Words for their annual Spring Clean Book Drive between April 27th – 29th. Located in Waltham, More Than Words accepts books, CDs, and DVDs.

Check out their website for more information on the book drive, and how the organization empowers local youth.