Even the Organizer Had to Get Organized

A growing business requires new equipment from time to time. Follow along to see how I solved my biggest organizing challenge - my workbag.

Is Your House A Home?

Hello Friends,

When you think of your home, what comes to mind?  

I love this particular 

definition

, "a place where something flourishes."

Unfortunately, in most of the homes I work in, the disorganization has flourished and not much else.

From my experience, there are 3 types of homes. 

The Store  

Your home contains more than adequate storage such as built-in shelves and cabinets, but every nook and cranny is filled with rows upon rows of brand new items that are stockpiled as to never run out. Typically there are cases of paper towel, toilet paper, kleenex, bottled water, multiples of commonly found kitchen tools, duplicates of small appliances but can be racks of clothing with the tags still on, multiple dish sets, even a gift closet gone awry and the list goes on.  Some items are kept in multiple places and some are located behind others.  It's hard to find what is needed so it becomes easier to just buy more and more.  Facing what's behind all this shopping and warehousing may be so painful, that it's easier to just close the doors and continue to be the shopkeeper.

The Storage Facility

This home has spare rooms, a basement and/or garage packed to the brim with everything imaginable.  All items were removed from other parts of the home and placed here to decide on later.  Out of sight, out of mind is the thought.  Some items are broken and some boxes just contain pieces or parts to once useable things. Items could be organized and stored in plastic totes or cardboard boxes but the trouble is, there are random items mixed in and since it is difficult to find a path to walk into the room to find what we need, we just don't.  Everything is usually dusty, there is sometimes evidence of insects, mice and sometimes mold, mildew, pet damage and even water damage that has gone unnoticed.  It feels like a burden to live with all this clutter, but it's easy to distract yourself and forget it's there....that is until company arrives.

The Museum

This home has become an archive for collections. Some belong to you, some to relatives and there may be some that pay homage to a friend's gifts to you or to someone dear who has passed away.  These items are displayed on every available shelf and surface space. They require frequent dusting but some are located on the tops of cabinets and cannot be reached with ease.  These collections may also include memorabilia and photos stored in bins and totes, shoe boxes and envelopes and hidden away in closets, tucked under beds, and located inside drawers.  This is your family history and whether you like it or not, the amount of collected stuff is too great to actually decide to do something about it.  Whether it's guilt about the money spent or the panicked feeling that you are dishonoring a memory if you were to get it out of the house, it feels like you will always be the caretaker of the museum.

Which home resonated with yours?

Isn't it time to do something about it once and for all?

What would you like your home to be like/feel like?

Got Garage Shame?

Hello Friends,

I am back to the land of the living having survived influenza.  The secret to my success was strong lemon-licorice tea which a dear friend brought over in quarts and complete bed rest.  It is at times like these that I am so grateful to live in my community.  Friends brought jars of soup, washed my dishes, even did my laundry.  Everyone should be this lucky and I'll be happiest when I can return all these favors to care for others in their time of need.

Now back to organizing!

I am running a special this month and next as I know we've all been doing the ol' dump and run in our garages.  By dump and run, I mean dumping items wherever they fit and never quite getting the time or energy to put them away properly.

Spring is here, the snow is scheduled to melt away this weekend and I know that your garage door will be open for all the world to see.  Do you ever wonder what your neighbors think when they see into your garage?  I can turn your nightmare into a dream with a 6-hour session.  It is amazing how quickly that mess can be turned into a success!

And if you need storage solutions, I'd be thrilled to research the perfect system for you and your lifestyle.  There are many options and many come with installation too.  No reason to stack your things on the floor or have a jumble of tools in a box.  Garage organization solutions are not as expensive as you may think.

Text or call me today and we'll get your garage on our calendar so you can enjoy clear, uncluttered space!

If you live outside my 50-mile radius, take heart,  I travel!  I also offer virtual organizing as well as creating a personalized plan for you to follow along with coaching.  There are many pathways for us to work together to get you organized.

What is one thing you'd like to be able to find easily in your garage?

When is the last time you cleaned it out?  

Did the neighbors think you were having a yard sale?

One Man's Trash

Hello Friends,

Let's start today with this quote:  

"One man's trash is another man's treasure, what he doesn't appreciate, the next man will." 

                                                                                                                               ~ Unknown

So often, I encounter clients who have not ever donated anything, well other than cash that is.  As far as their personal belongings, donating is unknown territory.

Unless they want to have some sort of garage sale, donating usable discards to a local charitable organization can be a wonderful way of recycling perfectly good items and sharing them with those who really need them.

First we address the usual hurdles:

• Fear of seeing someone they know wearing their clothing.

• Fear of seeing their cast-offs at a friend's home.

• Fear of the unknown, after all, if you've never done it, how do you know?

Once we get everything loaded in the car, the rest is easy.

Here's a

short video

must

have Facebook to see it

  showing how to drop off donations at our local 

Goodwill

.

If you want to know more about donating and how to do it, schedule a coaching session with me.  I even research the best places to donate your collections, clothing, furniture etc. as part of my service and if you like and you live locally, I can drop off your donations for you.

But the point of this story today is to highlight donating as a way of bringing others joy.

Introducing my friend Amy.  She purchased this beautiful linen, embroidered tablecloth at her local thrift store for pennies on the dollar.  She discovered upon unfolding it that it was unfinished.  None of the letters were embroidered.

This is a ceremonial tablecloth to use on Jewish occasions such as

Shabbat

, 

the Jewish day of rest - from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. This tablecloth would be used for Friday night dinner, when saying prayers while lighting candles, over challah, and over wine.

I learned all this because I'd offered to finish it.  You see I'm a professional organizer by day, but a sewist and maker by night.

First, we decided upon a color thread.

Then I embroidered one letter, to try things out.

It came out very well

In Hebrew it says, 

Lechvod Shabbat v'Yom Tov. In honor of Shabbat and Holidays. 

This thrilled my friend as now she can use it for all the Jewish holidays.  

I am picturing many happy meals and memories to last a lifetime.  

All because someone thought to donate it unfinished rather than putting it in the trash.

What is something you "rescued" from the thrift store?

Are you afraid of donating?  What's holding you back?

Your Photos - Have They Seen the Light of Day?

Hello Friends,

This is the best time of year to sort and organize your photos.  Curl up on the couch with a box of pictures, a cup of tea and start sorting.

It really helps if you get them all in one place first.  Don't worry if they aren't organized, just get them all into boxes so you can sort them easily.

And let's back up a step further.  Perhaps you already have them stored in plastic totes like these?  

Take them out and put them into a photo boxes like this 

Legacy Box Collection

.  The large box holds up to 2500 photos and takes up a lot less room.  Plus they are archival safe.

If these are beyond your budget, shop around to find a storage solution that works for you.

Recently I worked with a client who stored her framed photos in totes like these down in the basement storage of her parking garage.  A very hungry mouse, chewed a hole in the plastic, and then proceeded to chew through the picture frames and eat her prized photos!

So if you think you're photos are safely stored, think again.  If they are located in a basement, they could be subject to flooding, mold, mildew, insects and mice.  I've seen it happen in the most beautiful of lower levels.  If they are in the garage, the same thing can happen plus humidity and frigid temperatures.

If you sort with family members, it can be so much fun to reminisce, share family stories and the history of generations passed on.  This time could be recalled later as a favorite memory with your children.

For sure get them off your camera & phone!

I urge you and encourage you to get your photos out of those dark boxes and into the hands, hearts and minds of those who will appreciate knowing that there is more to you than meets the eye.  Photos of us reconnect us with our past selves.  Photos of other people open up new awareness about our family history and give us a sense of belonging.

Good intentions may not serve you when it comes to photos.  Ask for help if it seems too daunting of a project.  

One of my grandmothers meant to label all the cardboard boxes filled with photos she had stored in her attic, but glaucoma took her eyesight way too soon and she never finished.  She was an only child with her parents long gone.  Those unknown, unidentifiable photos ended up in the burn barrel on my

mother's ranch

 when she cleared out her storage trailer.  Those boxes were moved at least 5 times in the last 100 years - and no one thought to ever look at them!

Today, my uncle who is my mother's brother, sent me a very special photo that I have never seen before.  This is my great-grandmother, Anna Cady.  She is my namesake twice as my middle name, Anne is after her and when I divorced, I changed my last name to hers.

I've never met her but all my life my mother has told me that I am a lot like her.  We both loved calico cats, beautiful photography, crafting and sewing. I have an antique writing desk that was hers, her cast iron Dutch oven and 2 quilts that she made by hand.  And now, thanks to my uncle, I have a photo of her too.  

There is some resemblance!

I'm so grateful that my uncle didn't wait to share this with me.  

Where are all your family's photos stored?

What are your intentions?

What's holding you back from getting them into the light of day?

Who do you want to share them with?  Contact me, let's get started.

Where to Start?

Hello Friends,

The longer that I work in this industry, the more information I find about organizing.  There are so many methods to choose from. 

Kon-Mari

,

Hygge

,

Minimalism

each with its own ideas of how to get started.  It seems there is an unlimited number of books to read and even more research being published having to do with the psychology of clutter.

As you survey your own home in all it's chaos, considering where to start can feel overwhelming.

Reading a book can cause the thrill of anticipation, but upon actually facing the mess, many people just close the door and walk back into complacency.  That is until out-of-town guests plan to visit, or hosting a graduation party is on the horizon.

Having a deadline can motivate us to take action.  

Start with a plan.  How many rooms need attention?  How deep does the organization need to go?

How long are we giving ourselves to complete it? 

Add another 3 hours.

What preparation do we need to take, such as gathering boxes, ordering a dumpster, arranging a donation pick-up?  And asking for support - be it a professional organizer, a group of friends or a family member.

Once you have all this in place, you're ready to start.  If you just launch into the process, likely you'll feel overwhelmed at some point and just give up, likely with a bigger mess than when you started.

Pick your happy place.  Start with the place in your home that gives you the most joy.  

Is it your kitchen?  Your home office?  The couch in front of the fireplace?  The comfy chair where the sunlight streams in the window?

Thrifted for $35 from the local second-hand shop.   Joy doesn't have to be expensive.

Start here.  Tidy up everything in sight of your happy place.  Declutter, dust, vacuum etc.  In this way, you have a clean, clear space to relax and feel at peace. 

Then go tackle the big stuff.

Where are you in the process of starting your organizing journey?

Tell me more about your happy place.

*Local readers in the St. Croix Valley. I'll be speaking at the Hammond Community Library on Thursday, February 15, 2018 at 6:30pm.  Spread the word and come join us!

Let's Get Organized!