Organizing Your Life

Hello Friends! It's nice to see that you survived putting your house on a diet and that you are back for the second part of the process. I'm proud of you. You are taking an important step in getting organized and taking back control of your life.

Before we dive into organizing, one tip to help keep the clutter under control is the "one in, one out" rule. All that really means is that if you get a new book, for example, you should donate one of your old books. This will help keep the organizing systems that you are doing to implement in place and working for you.

Now we can move on to what you really came here to read, the organizing! After clearing away the things that you don't need, don't want, or don't use, organizing will be much easier.

 I will be the first to tell you that you don't have to run out and spend a fortune to get organized. You can do just as good and be thrifty. In fact, many thrift shops have just what you need at a fraction of the price! I often find great deals on many items at local Goodwill stores. Other local thrift stores have low prices on organizing accessories as well.  If you are in a bind, and must buy new, dollar stores are a great place to start. I am lucky enough to have a Dollar Tree that's about five minutes away from my home. They carry storage bins, plastic containers, baskets, and many other products that are useful in getting your belongings in order. You can find many larger storage apparatuses at Walmart or Target as well. On sale items are the best, because the money you save can be used on something that will bring you joy, like a night out with family or friends.

On to organizing your things! Let's start (again) with one room at a time. Narrow it down to one section at a time as well. Clothes are a good place to begin. To maximize the available space that you have, start with storing away clothes and accessories that are out of season. Vacuum storage bags are great for several reasons. First, they take bulky items and when the air is removed from the bag, the items are compressed and take up much less room. Secondly, they protect your clothes from insects, mold, and unpleasant smells. They can also be reused when it's time to switch wardrobes with the changing seasons. They work wonders for tucking away bulky comforters and quilts. I tend to use them over conventional large plastic storage tubs that are difficult to handle when full of heavy items.

It seems easier for me to access my shoes when they are off of the floor. My go-to favorite for organizing shoes is an over-the-door shoe rack. This puts shoes at eye level and keeps them out of the way. They come in many different styles. There are metal ones that allow for heavier, larger shoes and the plastic "pocket" type that are good for smaller, lightweight shoes and sandals. If you are lucky enough to have room for shelves in your closet or room, then you have that option as well. The crates that Walmart offers during their "Back to School" sale are stackable and work well for this too.

Plastic Over the Door Shoe Rack

Metal Over the Door Shoe Rack

Stackable Crates

Organizing accessories, such as scarves and jewelry can be made simple by using wall space and creating a set of hooks to hang them on. I have personally mounted a curtain rod and currently hang my necklaces and bracelets on it. It creates an attractive display and makes choosing a piece and then putting it back almost effortless. You can do this with scarves as well. Just find an empty space on a wall and hang a short curtain rod that is sturdy enough to hold what you put on it. There are tons of ways to organize your accessories. I will do a separate blog on some of the ways that I utilize in my home. 

Books and magazines can get unruly before you know it. I am a collector of books in the most nerdy sense. I don't really collect them for their worth, but more like I get attached to the characters in them and then have anxiety about parting with the book after I'm finished reading it. What if I want to read Harry Potter again? And let's be honest, who doesn't, right? So, I have several bookshelves throughout my house that are full of books. When I buy something new, it usually goes on the shelf that is most easily accessible to everyone that comes into my home. Most of my tried-and-true favorites go on the largest shelf in my hallway. Others, like my Grateful Dead Scrapbook that I was luck enough to find on sale, are kept on one of the shelves I have upstairs with other keepsake books. I have a box for books that need new homes and I most often end up giving them to friends or family members. I don't keep magazines longer than 3 months. If there is an article or a photo in an issue that I want to keep I tear it out and it goes in a folder with the family of mismatched magazine "leavings" that I've kept.

A home office is a very useful thing to have, even if you don't work from home. It's nice to have a space dedicated to it. I have a home office/crafting space, so things can get ugly really quick if I don't keep some system of organization going on. I have too many craft supplies to list here, so that will be another blog in itself. On my desk, I have a shallow, flat-bottomed basket with different containers in it. I have one, three compartment pencil holder, one wire pencil cup and two repurposed coffee mugs (that I thought were nice) to hold various pencils, pens, and other tools. Everything is sorted by what it is (i.e. pens in one cup, pencils in one cup, Sharpies in one section, etc.) and it's all within reach. Small plastic containers work great for corralling office supplies as well. An office tour will have to accompany the "craft supplies" blog, I suppose.

In the kitchen, we don't always have the space we need. I know that I don't. It's easy to designate a cabinet to plastic food containers and just close your eyes and throw it in......... that is, until you need it again and have to dig through all those mismatched lids and bowls that are scattered in there. It's best to get a small plastic stack-bin to stand all of your lids up so that they are easy to get to and easy to find the one you need when you need it. Organizing is about making your life simpler and allowing for better time management. Pots, pans, and even dishes can benefit from adding metal shelf dividers. This stands the item on it's side and makes for easier retrieval and return while utilizing vertical space within cabinets. If stacking is your thing, however, locker shelves let you make use of vertical space for plates, bowls, and the like.

Stack-bins for Plastic Lids

Metal Shelf Dividers

Locker Shelves for Your Plate-Stacking Pleasure

Your laundry room is one of the most versatile rooms of your home. It collects all of your laundry, dirty and clean, and if you are anything like me, it's a catch-all for things that are out of place. It's good to have a sturdy shelf here to stack detergent, fabric softener, and anything else you use to clean your clothes. I love to use smaller laundry baskets on shelves like drawers. It makes it easy to take the whole basket down when I need to get an item and it prevents stray items from falling off of the shelf, keeping everything together. You can find great shelving products and ideas at Lowe's. 

Shelf and Baskets from Lowe's

If you made it this far, thank you so much for reading! I'm cutting this "short" so that you don't fall into a coma (and you have a reason to read my next post). I will go further into detail on a few things as well as go over the rooms that I skipped in the following update. Thanks again for reading and I hope you join me again.

Note: None of the photos above are mine, they all came from google.

How to Take Control of Clutter

Lately, as it often does at this time of year, the "spring cleaning" bug has bitten me. It occurs to me, that like many other Americans, I have too many possessions. This is the root of the problem. Having too many items leads to being disorganized and feeling like your stuff has control over you. I would like to share with you some of the tips that I used to get started on the path to being better organized.

 I start by downsizing what I have by eliminating what I:

• do not use
• do not need
• do not want

These are my top three reasons for something being put on the first train to somewhere else. You may give these items to friends, have a yard/garage sale, or donate them to a charity of your choice. Start slow and appraise the items one at a time. That way, when the item has been deemed ready to leave your home, you won't want to take it back. I like to start with one room at a time and one type of item at a time, this makes it easier to get through the process of discarding the above mentioned item.

The best place for me to start is in my bedroom, and my clothes. I know that it sounds like a bad Clue rip off, but I assure you, it isn't murder. Start with the room that you feel comfortable with or the room that gives you the most trouble. With clothes and accessories, you should get rid of anything that is too big, too small, torn beyond repair, or that simply doesn't fit your life anymore. Enlist a good friend if you are having trouble parting with clothes. I like to take my band t-shirts that fall under these categories and cut the graphic part of the tee out and trash the rest. I'm saving them until I have enough to make a quilt top. This could work for kid's clothes too. Next to accessories. Too many shoes? Toss what has holes, hurts to wear, or simply just is not functional. You get the idea. Move on to belts, scarves, jewelry, etc.  I would only do one room a day unless you are one of those lucky people that don't have to purge your home at one go. If there isn't a lot to go through in one room, pair it with another that is the same amount of work. Don't try to get it all done in one day. 

 I am personally terrible for bringing in things over the course of winter that I will be getting rid of around this time. New craft projects and supplies are my number one thing to look for in the cold months, but with warmer weather, crafting may not be so high on my list, so it's time to go through what I have accumulated.  It is also a good time to go through all of those well-meant presents that you received during the holidays that fit into one or more category above. Take stock of what craft supplies that you have. If there is anything that you do not foresee yourself using for anything, it may need to go the way of the Dodo. You can always donate it. Also, if you are anything like me, you have finished craft projects laying around, you may want to find new homes for those as well. Many make great gifts.

In the kitchen, a big problem for most of us is plastic containers that have been separated from their lids. If you aren't using the container, toss it. Plastic breaks down after a while, and odds are, that lid isn't coming home. Any canned food that you do not see your family eating can be donated to food banks, or given to a neighbor in need. Throw away any spoiled or outdated food. Also, never keep old cleaning supply containers if you don't know what is in them. 

Next, consider entertainment media. Will you watch that dvd again? Will you reread that book? Do you need cd's? The answer is often no. You can save music to your hard drive and put it on any mp3 player or iPod. Your dvd collection is likely full of movies that you will never want to watch again in the near future. There is always Netflix or sites like it. Video games are another item that easily fall into this category. You can trade in recent games to many game stores to receive credit towards new games that you will play. Some offer cash but it's less than the credit you would have gotten. many also take dvd's and mp3 players. You can take cd's to second-hand stores for a few extra bucks. Books can be sold to used bookstores or donated if you are feeling charitable. All items can probably be sold on eBay, but that takes time. You need to get this stuff out of the way so that you can start organizing the things that you want to keep and so that you don't pick up these items and bring them back into the fold. If you are in a rush to get it out and you aren't  worried about money, many Goodwill stores accept on-site donations, and they give you a form to add to your taxes for a charitable donation write-off.

Then, I move on to evaluating what I have left after putting my house on a diet. Are the items that I have left relevant to me? If the answer is yes, then I start organizing. If the answer is no, then re-evaluate what you still have.
 Ask yourself these questions?

• Am I only keeping it because it was a gift?
• Does it give me joy?
• Is it a practical item that could be used (reasonably)?
• Is it difficult to care for?
• Are you keeping a bunch of nick-nacks for sentimental reasons?
• How much does it really mean?

If it gives you joy to look at it, such as a small bobble that you and someone important to you acquired on a special trip, keep it, but only if it is not in your way. If it's obstructing travel through your home, such as uncle Ray's card table (but you don't play cards) you may want to reconsider. I will start with sentimental items, because these are a big part of this last group for many people. All items cannot be sentimental. You must part with items sometimes that are just taking up space. Never keep anything only because someone gifted it to you. Hanging onto something because you will feel guilty for letting it go is only hurting you. Odds are, the gifter is going to ask you where the item is the next time they visit. Keeping some sentimental things, such as great-grandma's antique ring, is understandable.

Free or empty space in your home is okay to have. It may be waiting for the perfect piece. Letting go of items that are not helping you in some way is okay too. Having too much stuff in too little space is not. The popular t.v. show "Hoarders" is a nightmare for me. I want to go through my things again one extra time just thinking about those people. It inspires me to do better with organizing and only keeping what I use, want, and/or need. You will feel better when you have gotten rid of things that you didn't use, didn't want, or didn't need. Your home will feel cleaner and less cluttered instantly when the items are gone.

Join me next time for my advice on organizing the things survived the cut.