The Matierals to Work Your Magic With

If you look to the right, I am trying to keep up to date with some of my before and after pictures. Unfortunately, I didn’t think of this before a good number of my jobs. But I will endeavor to do so from here on out so that I may share my ideas with you. 

I promised you tips on the cheaper side of organizing. One thing you need to get past is the word “cheaper”. This word is not instantly synonymous with poorer quality! More expensive doesn’t mean better. There are many things you may already have, or can easily get, that cost little or no money and can help you with your organizing. Let me show you some:

Boxes: Boxes you have bought stuff in, or things shipped to your house. (Those amazon boxes are great to save). You can ask for boxes at a grocery store, or pack your groceries into them, and some drug stores will have extra boxes of all sizes. If you’re local to Cincinnati, try Aldis. They’re always willing to part with boxes. Shoe boxes are great! My van has an old Duracell display box in middle of the seats to keep small things in and prevent them from sliding around. Important: Don’t make the mistake of saving too many of these and becoming a box hoarder!

Plastic Containers: No, not the big ones you have to pay lots of money for. How about the ones you have in the kitchen that you lost the lid for, or the ones they sell at the dollar store, or old baby wipe containers? There are lots of plastic things we could use that we normally just recycle. Recycle them in your drawers and closets instead!

Baskets: The ones people have given you. Ones you have just sitting around. You can even buy several sizes and types at the dollar stores. Another great place to find these are at Goodwill, a thrift store or a garage sale. I got my bread box for a dollar, and it’s a nice one!

Ziploc Bags: They don't have to be Ziploc brand, just any bag you can group stuff in and close. They come in all sizes, they're cheap and great for things big and small; anything from beads, to crayons, to belt buckles.

Milk Crates and other Crates: If you have any of these lying around and want to pretty them up, you can get cheap shelf paper and cover them.

It may take some gathering and some time, but it’s worth it to save you $200 on containers just to organize one closet. Yard sale season is an organizer's smorgasbord!

I will leave you with one last organizational tip. It is a simple one, but one that is oft forgotten: ALWAYS start organizing by removing everything from whatever it is you want to organize.  Common sense, huh? It’s not as common as you think.

Until next time! Send me your ideas and your questions!

The First Steps

Greetings and welcome to my blog. My intent behind this blog is to help people get organized. So, in light of that, I would like to organize these statements about organization for you (say that three times fast!):

Organizing takes money! 

This is false. All those ads and people you see who tell you that in order to get organized you have to go out and spend a ton of money on big, little, and medium plastic containers are wrong. In fact, I aim to prove that what you need can either be found in your home or at a dollar store (and not one of those “we round it up to the nearest dollar” stores. A true dollar store, where everything is a dollar). But I get ahead of myself. More on this later.

Organizing takes SO much time!

This is true and false. Yes, it takes a lot of time, but you don’t have to do it all at once. A friend of mine was complaining about how she needed to organize her closet, but didn't have the six hours needed to do it. My reply was, “Do it in 15 to 20 minute bursts”. Now, for those out there who are completionists, this may drive you mad. You'll feel like you have to schedule six hours to complete that closet. Or, you can do what I do - because I'm a completionist as well -  and break the job up.  

For example: If you are working on your closet, divide each side into fourths. Make each shelf its own task. Make the floor another one entirely. This way you can feel you completed a job without completing the closet. 

I could never organize it so that it looks nice! 

SO untrue! I am here to tell you that organizing things is easy. I can help anyone organize anything with just a few minutes and some dedication on your part.

So, you’re pumped! You’re psyched! You want to organize something!  In order to organize, you need to ask a few questions about yourself and the job. First, ask yourself, “Am I willing to do it?” This is the question that stops most people. If that answer is "no", then hire a professional to do it for you. (If you're in Cincinnati you can even hire me!) If the answer is "yes", here are some other questions you need to ask.  I will start with the second one and continue these in my next post.

Is there too much stuff for this space? 

If the answer is "no", then you are good to proceed. If things are pouring out of the closet and you can’t shut the door or see the floor, you need to go through it all. Going through stuff can be hard. Grab a friend if you have trouble letting go of things; he or she can help you with a more impartial perspective. Look at items and ask, “When did I last use this?” And, “Will I use this again soon?” If you haven’t used something in a long time or if it isn’t useful in the foreseeable future, it's time to get rid of it. Donate it, trash it, give it to the friend who is helping you. (Disclaimer: this does not apply to things like holiday decorations or items you normally only use once a year)

If it is something you do use, how often do you use it? Do you have something else that could take its place? (Example: 4 different types of razors underneath your bathroom sink) if so, time for it to go!

When it comes to clothes, if it is a size too large or too small for you, it can stay. Otherwise, time for it to go. Those jeans from high school aren’t going to fit you if they don’t fit you now.  No, legwarmers AREN’T coming back into style, especially not in neon green. Yes, you could use them for a costume, but will you?

There are good ways to trim down your life and, be honest: If you’re not a monk, who couldn’t use getting rid of some things?

Thank you for stopping by, and I promise more good times to come. If you have something specific you would like to request or a question you desperately need answered, feel free to comment or contact me. Happy Organizing!