Home & Office Organizing Blog

Organizing On A Full Load

2010-03-18T08:55:00.000-07:00

Do you keep trying to organize your closet only to have it fail over and over? Heres a quick tip on organizing your closet. Organize your closet when your closet is the fullest. Make sure all of your clothes for the season are clean and all of your clothes are back from the dry cleaner. No clothes should be in transit. This way when you begin to organize the space you will be working with all of the clothes you own. After your organizing project is complete you should have a place to put the laundry and dry cleaning.

Organizing Photos

2010-03-13T06:09:00.000-08:00

Can't keep up with sending out your holiday cards, birthday cards or sharing photos? Check out Smilebox.com from Hallmark. I think its the best site for creating and sharing your memorable moments. It has templates for every occasion, just upload pics and send. Not finished with your card? Just save it and Hallmark reminds you about your project. So start your Christmas letter now and add throughout the year! Its fun, its easy and a great way to keep your pictures organized. Of course my favorite part about Smilebox...its free!

Organizing Your Finances using Mint!

2010-03-11T09:18:00.000-08:00

Still trying to keep track of your spending but haven't had a moment to spare? Check out Mint from Quicken. Its a online money manager that takes 5 minutes to set up and you can see your account activity in seconds. From Home loans, credit cards, coffee shops and doctor bills. It gives you alerts when something has posted to your account and breaks down your monthly budget.
One of the features I love is being able to split up your ATM withdrawals in order to keep track of that $50 in cash.
The thing I love most about Mint is its free!

Organizing The Baby Bottles and Cups

2010-03-10T06:11:00.000-08:00

Are those sippy cup parts and bottle accessories taking over your drawers? One way to manage all of these items is try to stick with one brand. The reasons is they would all have the same accessories. Some cups and bottles come with inserts that must be attached or they wont work properly and another brand may have another type. So if you can stick the the same brand it will cut down on your kitchen clutter and make your life a little bit easier.

Clean and Organize Each Season

2010-03-09T09:55:00.000-08:00

Warm weather is on its way and although its still cold here is Chicago the heavy down jackets, snowsuits and Uggs may be done for the season.
A little stretch of weather change its a great time to organize and reassess your outerwear. Its not only the perfect time to decide on what to keep and what to get rid of but to also start getting everything cleaned up and ready for next year. Take your heavier coats to the dry cleaner and shoes to the shoes repair. Then start washing some of your delicate items. By the time you get these items cleaned and repaired it might be time to actually store them for next winter.

Organize Old Sports Equipment

2010-03-08T10:52:00.000-08:00

How many sports have you tried over the years? You've got the winter sports, summer sports, indoor sports you name it! You bought all the equipment and now you don't use it. The winter sports are coming to an end so this is a great time to organize your sports equipment. Before you put it all away think about weather you are going to use it next year. After taking a look at the winter sports, move on to the summer sports.
If you end up with items that you are not going to use donate them to Sportsgift. They take your used equipment, refurbish it and give to impoverished children all over the world. Check out the list of excepted items, fill out the collection report, box up your items and mail.

Organizing Your Own Hostess Gifts

2010-03-03T09:00:00.000-08:00

What do you do with the bouquet of flowers hostess gift? You can't leave them wrapped up in plastic they need water...stat! Make sure you have a vase ready for long stems. This way you dont have to leave your guests to scramble in the basement or dig through your cabinets to find the right vase. If you have a moment cut the stems down so they fit the vase. If you dont have a place to display the flowers, put them in the guest bathroom so everyone has a chance to see them.
Heres the bonus tip! If you are going to a dinner party and would like to give flowers. Pick up the flowers ahead of time and arrange them in a vase you no longer use.

Organizing a Group Gift

2010-03-02T18:52:00.000-08:00

Are you spending too much time organizing a group gift for a friend or family member then having to collect all the money for the gift? This can be very difficult! Let Edivvy to it! It is a website that helps you create and event, find gifts, then invite your friends and family to contribute to the gift. The gifts are then shipped from store to the recipient. If contributions are not enough to purchase the gift, Edivvy sends a Visa Gift card instead. Best part about this service is its free.

Organizing Old Computer Equipment

2010-03-01T19:45:00.000-08:00

Need to get organized and rid your home or office of unwanted computer Equipment? Now you can drop off your old computer working or not and just about anything that plugs into your computer like keyboards, monitors, cables and even software to Goodwill! Go to Reconnectpartnership.com to find a location that excepts computer equipment and see which items they accept.

Getting Organized For Houseguests

2010-02-28T09:26:00.000-08:00

After helping your house guests get settled be sure to give them a tour of your home so they know where to find things like extra blankets and towels. Find their favorite T.V programs and show them how to navigate your TV remote controls. Finally give your guests a coffee maker demonstration and show them where you keep the coffee, cream, sugar and cups. This is extremely helpful if they wake before you or you are not home and it will make your guest feel more at home.

Organize Your Online Music

2010-01-27T04:12:00.000-08:00

Spending too much time changing songs on your Ipod or cd's just to hear one musical genre? How about picking one song you like and have an website find similar music for you? Now thats was I call organized listening! Check out the website Pandora.com to stream music to your PC. The best part about Pandora...its free!

Organizing For A Dinner Party

2010-01-26T04:02:00.000-08:00

Have you ever scrambled at the last minute preparing your home for a dinner party? Make sure your table is picture perfect with these simple tips for getting your table ready.
Set your table the night before from the napkins, silver ware, place cards, dishes to the serving pieces and utensils. Add a note to each serving piece with the food going into the dish. You will know exactly what pieces your will be using and gives any helpers easy direction.
If you have a small space, clear out and organize a kitchen cabinet for after dinner items like dessert dishes, serving utensils, coffee cups, tea and sugar. This will make your transition to dessert and coffee much easier. Everything is in one place and you can counter tops will stay clear.
Finally clean out and organize the refrigerator so that at least one shelf is designated for the party. Its easier to see and access everything and if guests brings something that needs to be chilled there is open space.

Organizing Coupons

2010-01-12T20:41:00.000-08:00

Still clipping and organizing those coupons but never use before they expire? Check out Cellfire.com where you can download coupons directly to your store savings card or to your mobile phone. Redeem coupons at the checkout with your card or show mobile coupons to the cashier. No more clipping coupons and keeping track of all those little pieces of paper!

Organized Floor Cleaning

2010-01-11T09:38:00.000-08:00

Are your hardwood floors high maintenance?
Our hardwood floors need to be cleaned constantly because they show every piece of lint and dust. I needed a quicker way to clean those hardwood floors and the mop and bucket was too time consuming.
As an organizer its important that any new tool I purchase meet my requirements if its going to take up space in my home. It would have to solve the problem by being faster, have a place to live and get the job done. I am happy to say after a lot of research I bought a Swiffer Wet Jet and it is amazing! It comes with disposable cleaning pads that attach to the bottom of the mop and a solution that sprays from the mops nozzles. It have been able to cut my cleaning time in half, my floors look great and no more mop and bucket. Out goes the mop and in its place my new Swiffer.

Organize And Send Pictures With Iphone

2010-01-10T10:53:00.000-08:00

Dont have time to organize photos, print and send to friends and family? Check out the new app from iphone called Postage. It allows you to take pictures from your iphon e and send as a postcard!

Organizing for Birthdays 2010

2010-01-07T19:08:00.000-08:00

Need a little help organizing your birthday wishes this year. Enter birthdays in your email account and set reminders to repeat each year so you never miss a birthday. Have the reminder sent to your email or text message to your phone. Another birthday reminder is birthday alarms. This service allows you to email your friends, they fill in the correct day and an email reminder is sent to you. You can also use the service to send greeting cards. No more running to the local card shop for "belated birthday wishes" because you forgot a birthday again!

Organizing Cosmetics

2010-01-06T10:08:00.000-08:00

Not sure when to toss some of your cosmetics? Your not going to find expiration dates on most products so its up to you to keep track of when to let it go. Cosmetics have 2 phases of life, "Shelf life" when it has to be sold in stores and "open date" which is the day you open the product. Mascara is the quickest to expire at 3 months and eyeliners and lipstick just a year. "All natural" products have shorter shelf lives due to little or no preservatives and natural ingredients. Something to think about next time you are loading up on new products. Make sure you actually need the product and that you will be able to use before it expires.
Keep your cosmetics organized by sticking a label on your products the day you open or write the "toss" date in your calender so you will know when to let go.

Organizing Magazine Subscriptions

2010-01-05T09:42:00.000-08:00

Overwhelmed by your magazine subscription renewal? It can be difficult to figure out when they expire and when to renew. Heres the fast and easy way to figure out the expiration date. Check your current magazines address label on the front cover. The label should also include a date next to your name. This date is your subscription expiration date. Hopefully this helps you keep your magazine subscriptions organized!

Organizing Holiday Decorations...After The Holiday

2010-01-02T20:09:00.000-08:00

Are your holiday decorations looking a little dusty and out of place? Tree and wreaths dried out with needles everywhere? Holiday serving pieces stuck in limbo on the dining room table? This is your visual cue that the festivities are coming to an end and maybe its time to start putting away the holiday decorations.
Everyone has their own preference for taking down holiday decorations. The day after Christmas, after New Years, January 6th and even longer.
Whichever date you choose be sure to prepare yourself for the 2010 holidays and decide which items will get packed away for next year and which items get donated.

This year I started organizing and putting away decorations in stages between Christmas and New Years. Dishes, serving pieces and holiday containers were put away after the cookies were eaten and the parties were over. Next I removed and washed all the linens but left the other decorations and tree up until the 1st. This made the the final packing day much easier.
At the beginning of the holiday I had 4 bins full of decorations and after the holidays I had two. I gained 1 small pre lit Christmas tree but managed to cut down 2 entire bins of decorations. 2010 decorating is going to be even easier than 2009!

How do you manage your holiday decorations?

Getting Oganized With Style 2010

2010-01-01T09:22:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone, its January 1, 2010 and I'm excited to start the new year off by organizing! It is one of the top 10 U.S. resolutions every year.
Is there something you can do this year to get a little more organized?
Do you think there is room for improvement in your life? Do you want to make 2010 the year you organize your home, work and personal life? Let's make some changes by getting rid of some things and simplify as much as we possibly can to get organized in 2010!

Under Wraps

2009-12-05T10:32:00.001-08:00

How many half used rolls of wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes and tags do you have in your gift giving supply? Do you buy more every year? This year lets try and use up the remaining supply and not buy more! My tip for future wrapping is to invest in just white butcher paper or brown mailing paper. If you like to add your own personal touch use stamps to decorate, markers or ribbons. This way you can give a gift for any occasion and not be limited by the seasonal decoration.

Toy Organization...Before The Holidays!

2009-12-03T19:58:00.000-08:00

Does your home become overloaded with toys after the holidays? After the gift exchange do the toys get put away or do they hang around in the living room for a few days? Sometimes there just isnt an inch to space in the playroom for a single new toy. This year get organized before the holidays. Make room by getting rid of some of the toys the kids have outgrown before the introduction of new toys. Its a great time to get through those toy boxes, toss the broken, mismatched parts and pieces and part with the toys they are no longer interested in. Donate toys to local hospital, Goodwill, local churches and Daycare centers.

Organizing Your Holiday Decorations

2009-12-02T09:37:00.000-08:00

Could your holiday storage use a little help? Did you unpack delicate ornaments mixed in with heavy metal household decorations? Do your holiday lights resemble a plate of spaghetti? This year make a point to repack your decorations carefully and get rid of any damaged or unused decorations. If your budget allows you to purchase plastic storage containers this year it will help in protecting them if stored in the garage or basement. Store small groups of decorations together in shoe boxes or other boxes. Store lights by wrapping around paper towel holders or cardboard and store in a separate bag or pack in a plastic light storage box. And finally use the leftover tissue paper to protect your breakables and prevent items from shifting around in the box.

Organize Your Gift Cards For This Years Holiday Budget!

2009-12-01T19:46:00.000-08:00

Do you still have a stack of unused gift cards waiting to be used from last year? If they expire soon you might want to organize your holiday shopping around those cards. If you have set your holiday budget for gifts, travel, entertaining or wardrobe see if you can use your cards to cover any of your holiday spending. Before you head out to the stores check to see if you can use your cards for online purchases and save a trip to the store.

Enter To Win An Organization Makeover From Avery!

2009-10-21T19:46:00.000-07:00

Check out Avery Office products and take the "What's Your Label" organizational personality quiz as well as a chance to win a $5000 dream organization makeover by expert, Jodie Watson and other weekly prizes.

Good luck!