Sharing solutions to organize and transform your space.
Do you feel like you are in a losing a battle with your papers? You CAN take control and find your desk or countertop again.
Register today for my Papers, Piles, & Projects: Strategies to Clear the Paper Clutter class through Minuteman Community Education. The next class is March 8th in Lexington, MA so sign up today.
While making a quick trip to Staples yesterday to pick up a few supplies for clients, I was pleasantly surprised to find a fun line of organizing products from Martha Stewart. There were journals, labels, binders, desktop accessories and file folders.
My favorites:
No compensation was received for this post.
This week I had a client email me another thank you for helping her find the documents she needed for her taxes. With just a little organizing support she got a huge task done and off her mind!
Yes, it’s almost tax time! Here’s my previous post about how you can get organized before April 15th.
I’m often asked, “so where do you get your containers? Is there a secret store that only Professional Organizers know about?” No, we don’t have an inside deal on containers, and I buy them at the same places you do…Bed Bath & Beyond, Target, and The Container Store.
But when it comes to clear shoe boxes and sweater boxes, I recommend the ones from The Container Store. Why you ask?
1. Clarity: Using a clear container for many things is a given. But The Container Store boxes are much clearer than other brands…and clearer than ones I had from years ago. I noticed this recently as I replaced my older large storage boxes with The Container Store sweater boxes. Using smaller boxes on my high closet shelf now makes it easier for me to bring down just the bin of sweaters I need…instead of pulling down the huge under-the-bed box I had been using.
2. Stackable: The Container Store clear boxes stack easily and kind of snap into place.
3. Sturdy: I like how the box lids snap on tightly, and the plastic is strong and durable.
4. Versatile: While The Container Store boxes are perfect for sweaters, boots and shoes as their names imply…I have also used them at clients homes to organize:
Of course I received no compensation for this post…I just have come to love this product.
Take the first step towards a newly organized 2012. Pick an organizing project and commit to completing it this month.
You know you'll feel better...and you may even find some inspiration and motivation to tackle those other trouble spots in your home.
Organizing Projects to Get You Going
This was originally published in The Neat Sheet January/February 2012.
Today one of my clients said, “Let’s make a to do list. I find if I write it down, I tend to actually do it.”
How true! I’m a big fan of the daily to do list, but it has to be short and sweet. It can be on an index card, a post-it note, or in your smartphone. List no more than 3-5 things to do and see how it works for you!
For more tips on lists, read these blog posts (can you tell that I love lists??):
Do you feel like you are running all over town trying to get things done?
Do you keep thinking of the errands you need to do? Often my list swirls around in my head, or is scribbled on several sticky notes on my desk.
Here’s my simple 3-step system to keep the errand list under control:
Step 1: I get a piece of paper and write down all the places I need to go in the next week or two. I basically empty my brain of all the stores where I need to pick up something or return an item. My initial list looks like this.
Step 2: Then I try to group the errands into trips. For example, one trip might be Target and HomeGoods since they are near each other. So my list looks like this:
Step 3: The last step to really make it happen…schedule time! I get my Google calendar and look at where I have pockets of time, and slot in the trips.
This simple process helps me to get all the nagging to do’s out of my head and on to my calendar. Happy shopping!
Now that you have the gifts, it’s time to wrap ‘em up! But can you find the paper and bows? Get your gift wrapping supplies in order.
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:
Today I was a guest on the Martha Stewart Living Radio show, “Living Today,” and had a great time chatting with the host about getting organized for the holidays.
Since it ‘tis the season, I’ll be posting my favorite holiday tips this month. Today’s tips have to do with keeping those decorations in order:
It’s that time again: time to clean out the closet and donate to the Coats for Kids coat drive.
Between now and January 8, 2012, drop off your unused, good condition coats for babies, kids or adults at any Anton’s Cleaners or Jordan’s Furniture store. They will be distributed to local agencies serving people in need.
Get that unused furniture out of your basement and attic this week! November 7-10, donate good-condition, unwanted furniture to benefit the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless. The furniture drive is sponsored by the Greater Boston Association of Realtors.
Furniture can be picked up at your home! Or drop off at Olympia Moving in Watertown, MA. Contact them today to arrange the pick up or drop off: mahomeless@olympiamoving.com or Mark McEwen at 617-231-1204.
Say the phrase “kitchen tools” and you probably think of a stand mixer, chef knife, or set of measuring cups. But what online tools have you tried?
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As a busy parent, I know that finding the time to plan meals, shop, and cook can be a challenge. Here are a few online tools I've tried to save time:
I have been telling parents about The 6 o’clock Scramble website. Subscribe and you’ll receive weekly meal plans with shopping lists and healthy eating tips! I haven’t tried it yet but it looks like it could be a huge help.
What online tools have you tried to make it easier to get meals on the table?
Our kitchen renovation project is half way done, and I can finally see some light at the end of the tunnel. The plumbing and electrical systems are updated, new walls and trim are up, and the cabinets areinstalled. I’m already dreaming about where I’ll put the cookware and the dishes.
At this half-way point I decided to take stock of the project and how I thought living in a house without a kitchen would play out. Some of the organizing systems we set up were working…and some were not.
What works: school papers. The portable basket for my daughter’s school papers and family information binder easily moved into the dining room and keeps us on track. I go through the paper piles on the corner of the dining room table every day and sort, purge or file.
What hasn’t been working: shoes. Our shoes used to get kicked off and land in the hall closet, which is now being converted into a half bathroom. Without the use of the closet, the shoes have morphed into a mountain by the front door. At first we tried leaving just the pairs we were wearing by the door but that quickly fell apart.
The fix? My husband remembered that we had a shoe/boot shelf in the basement. He brought up the rack, tucked it behind the front door, and voila – instant organization. We each get a shelf: shoes that fit on the shelf can stay, otherwise they need to be put away. It’s not beautiful but highly functional as a temporary solution. (We’ll have a mudroom area once the new kitchen is done.)
My takeaways: 1) simple solutions, like the portable basket, work—and can be flexible in different spaces; 2) losing a closet is a major change and calls for creative thinking for a new system.
Don’t give up if your first organizing attempt doesn’t work as planned. Try, try again!
If you have one of our 12 Months of Organizing calendars, you know that this month the tip is for recipe organization. Given that my kitchen is under construction and my house is in a state of chaos, I decided to gain control over one small area that had been bothering me: my recipes.
Favorite recipes used to be easily contained in the small accordion file my mom gave me for my wedding engagement, but the file was bursting at the seams. I also started to wedge recipes I had printed or pulled from magazines between the cookbooks on my shelf. It was turning into a jumble of papers. And then I had an old-fashioned recipe card file that was stuffed too.
I emptied the accordion file and the recipe card box, and pulled out all the loose recipes. Now what to do? Sort! I spread the recipes all over the floor and started to group them into categories.
Next, I purged recipes that I had in duplicate or that I knew I’d never make. I also found a ton of delicious recipes I had completely forgotten about.
Now for the fun part: I put all the recipes to keep in a binder! Actually, two binders. I had this solution in mind and was ready with tabs and hundreds of plastic sleeves. The plastic sleeves work for small recipe cards and full size printed pages.
The result? Recipes are sorted by categories, and all easily visible in the sleeves. I can also pull out the sleeves for cooking and the recipes won’t get dirty or damp.
Can’t wait to cook again!
When I was getting ready for my kitchen renovation I first started to pack up the decorative items from the kitchen. As I took down everything I had displayed on the top pantry shelf and window sill, I realized how knickknacks have a way of multiplying.
I love the display of glass bottles on the window, but maybe the silver tea bag holder doesn’t need to be there. And it might be time for my beloved ornament from Ratatouille to find its way to the Christmas tree instead of the kitchen.
I looked at the window sill minus the jars, ornament and other things and thought hmm…this is nice.
I was reminded of another time when I put away knickknacks: when my daughter was a toddler. This coincided with the sale of our first house which worked out well; it was much easier to stage and show the condo without too many knickknacks around.
Once we moved to our current home many of the knickknacks stayed away, as I’ve blogged about before. The same thing might happen in the new kitchen. Bottles in, Ratatouille ornament out.
Can you live with more empty space? Is it time for you to take a fresh look at your space and see if you can lighten up? Sometimes taking away (and donating!) a few knickknacks in your room can make a huge difference.
In my last post about how to stay sane during a kitchen renovation, I shared Tip 1: make a list (or two).
Tip 2: get rid of as much excess stuff as possible.
In going through my kitchen to pack it all up, I inevitably found a few more things that we could let go; how many cheese graters and coffee grinders does a family need? As I’ve written before, home improvement projects create the perfect time to pause and purge.
And because I needed to store the kitchen items in the attic and the basement during the renovation, I was forced to confront those spaces as well.
The books and clothes from the attic that I had planned to give away months ago – donated. The box of dishes and vases for the consignment store – taken. The outdated cell phones and electronics from the basement – gone! Some items have been sold, but most have been donated.
How do we get the stuff out? I used Craigslist to sell the exercise equipment we never used, a local parents email list to get rid of finger paints and chalk, and Freecycledother random items from a full roll of shelf liner to an HP printer/fax/scanner/copier that only functions as a printer. And I’ve donated books to More Than Words and clothing and small housewares to Goodwill.
After getting the excess out I felt much better and lighter. I guess that is the upside of a major renovation project. Stay tuned for more kitchen related tips.
I’m thrilled that the day has come for our kitchen remodel, but I alternate between panic, overwhelm and excitement.
How am I keeping my sanity? With two of my favorite strategies.
#1: I have been making a list…or lists in this case. For this project my lists included:
Keeping a list helps me keep it all together. And there is a the feeling of accomplishment when something gets crossed off. How do you use lists?
Stay tuned for #2 later this week.
If you have kids, you know that Fall is a super busy time. Besides school, many sports and classes start up again.
So get that gear in order!
The time has come…we are having our kitchen remodeled!
Well, remodeled isn’t actually the best word since we don’t have much to remodel. I think of it as starting from scratch since we’ll be adding cabinets and counters, and modern conveniences like a dishwasher and disposal.
Since we won’t have use of the kitchen for many weeks, we will set up a temporary kitchen in our dining room with the fridge, microware, and crockpot. Of course, this meant that we’ve had to move things around in the dining room to make it function as a kitchen. We now have metal shelves set up, ready to hold our pantry supplies and some basic dishes. My daughter’s art table has been relocated upstairs, and the sideboard goes into the attic.
Ah, the attic. So to make room in the attic for the sideboard and all the boxes of kitchen things we won’t use during the remodel, we had to put away all those things that hadn’t found their way back to where they belong. Even though I go through things in the attic once or twice a year, they seem to multiply after I shut the door. So my other tactic has been to purge, purge, purge along the way.
And just so no floor in our house goes untouched, the kitchen project of course affects the basement, where the contractors will need to store things and come in and out. My husband has been amazing in this area, leaving no corner untouched. Screens that don’t match any of our windows – gone! Broken wood from our porch repair – gone!
I know firsthand that moving stuff from one room to another inevitably means something else gets moved or turned upside down.
If you are facing a big organization project (home remodel, turning an office into a baby’s room) don’t get discouraged. Make a plan and a list. Keep it in perspective. Work on one area at a time. Get rid of as much stuff you don’t use as you can. And if you need help, call a friend for a few hours, or contact That’s Neat! Organizing.
Look for more tips on how I keep my sanity during the renovation project.
That's Neat! Organizing Elizabeth Goodsell 617.905.7762
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