That's Neat! Blog

I love finding the perfect gift for someone, but often gifts end up being just more stuff…stuff we may not really need or love. Here are some tips for thinking outside the gift box:

• As I mentioned in my last Neat Sheet newsletter, I’m a big advocate of gifts that are consumables or experiences.
• For consumables, think food! Wines, olives, candies, and cookies are a good start…or how about chocolate (or beer) of the month club?
• If you can make some goodies, think of food that can be made in batches: each year my family makes a secret recipe of sweet + spicy nuts. Other friends have made granola or candies.
• Turn it into a party! Some of my book club gals have started a tradition of Book club Baking Night. We meet at one friend’s house and each make a different treat. By the end of the night, we leave with several gift bags full of goodies. 
• My other favorite gift is something that is an experience – tickets, museum membership, or going out for a special day with the gift giver. Each year my in-laws give us a family membership to a museum that we enjoy all year long.
• Overwhelmed by gifts? See if you can do a gift swap (pick name out of a hat) or get a gift for the whole family like a museum membership.
• If your family is really into gifts, why not ask others what they’d like? Or use online wish lists like amazon. 

It’s time to get together with friends! Here are some tips to organize your summer entertaining:

• If your event is outside, be sure to have a back-up plan in case the weather doesn’t cooperate.
• Make your lists: grocery, other shopping, to do.
• Have your kitchen stocked with a few party favorites for impromptu gatherings. I like to always have olives, crackers and cheese ready to go.
• Also keep your bar stocked for summer drinks. It’s easier to have a party “signature” drink (think gin and tonic or mojito) rather than offering a full bar.
• Check to be sure you have napkins, plates and other supplies for outside entertaining.

And for some fun aprons and linens, check out my cousin Janna’s fabulous designs at Raw Materials Design.

Happy entertaining!

‘Tis the season for tons of catalogs arriving in your mailbox. Here are a few tips for controlling catalog clutter:

• Use the 1 in/1 out rule: when a new catalog comes in, throw the old one out!
• Better yet, recycle the catalogs you know you won’t read as soon as they come in the door.
• Even better still, get yourself off the catalog lists! Call the company who sent the catalog, or check out the Direct Marketing Association to get off multiple lists.

And if you do order gifts from catalogs, think about the recipient and your budget. It’s easy to get excited about the latest cookware, electronic gadget, or new sweater on the glossy pages of a catalog. Is it really something the recipient wants, needs or would love to have?

Just in time for the shopping season: organize those store club cards! It seems like every store gives out a preferred customer card. What to do with them all?

First, pare down the cards. Which ones do you really use when you shop? Keep only the ones you use the most, and lose the rest.

Now you need to find the cards easily. For some people, this means keeping them on their keys. That didn’t work for me, but I found a great product that does: the card wheel by Real Simple.

I’ve been using this little case for months now and it works; it keeps all the cards together and I only have to find the case in my bag. And the best part: the cards can be scanned right through the plastic sleeves so I don’t even have to take them out. The card wheel makes the cards easy to find and easy to use. Try it out, or share your way of clearing the card clutter in our comments.

Like most people I use email and texting for regular daily communications. But I have a love of paper—and enjoy using it for cards, thank you notes, and invitations for special events.

Now a service promises to give you the design and feel of a paper card, with the ease of email. Paperless Post lets you select electronic cards, including photo cards, that get delivered to your recipients by email. They offer a range of great designs, and tout the ease and convenience of using email.

I’m a traditionalist, and will probably still send a paper holiday card this year. But if you are looking for a way to save time and resources, try out Paperless Post.