Welcome to the first in a series of home organizer case studies I’ll be profiling on my blog!

I’ve been working with clients for over twenty years and have helped each of them find solutions to a variety of their organizing challenges. In this series, I’ll be highlighting some of the more common organizing problems my clients have come to me with and show you what we did to solve them.

Maybe you’ll see yourself in one of these case studies? Perhaps the process will motivate you to take action to achieve a similar goal? I hope you find them helpful as you navigate your own organizing journey.

Case Study: An Overstuffed Clothing Closet

Client Profile:

Mrs. B. called me to inquire about my services and how I could help her organize her overstuffed clothing closet. She informed me upfront that her budget covered three hours of my services. I went to her home for a short Needs Assessment and saw that the closet, although small, was stuffed from top to bottom.

As an experienced home organizer, I knew that we’d be ‘cutting it close’  on completing the task in three hours but if she was able to make decisions quickly, we’d be able to complete her closet organizing project in time. She was very motivated and I had a good feeling she was up for the time-crunched task.

What prompted client to reach out to Organized Artistry?

Mrs. B. was tired of being unable to find the clothes she wanted to wear on a daily basis. She was also planning a future vacation and the thought of looking for the clothes she wanted to wear on her trip was causing her stress.

Goals:

• To organize the overstuffed clothing closet so Client could find the clothes she loved, clothes that fit, and reflected her current lifestyle.
• For Client to have the ability to locate clothes to wear on an upcoming warm weather vacation.

Organizing Challenges:

• Overstuffed closet
• Client can’t find the clothes she needs when she needs them
• Variety of sizes and seasons in one closet
• Client is frustrated
• Client buys more of what she is unable to find
• Only three hours to complete the job

Organizing Process:

You may think that three hours is plenty of time to organize a closet–even a full one. But, in my experience, I have found it can take many more hours than that. Besides the quantity of clothes to process, the speed of that process has to do with how quickly the client can make decisions as to what to keep and what to let go of. With only three hours to accomplish our goal, we said a quick hello to each other, walked upstairs, and got down to work.

My client’s closet was in her bedroom. We used her bed as a large surface to sort and purge on (Tip: If using a bed to sort and purge items, lay a flat sheet on top of the bed first so dust from closet shelves and dirt from shoes doesn’t land where you sleep).

We started pulling clothes out of her closet by category (pants, then dresses, then skirts, etc.) and sorted them on the bed by season. I split the surface of the bed into two sides–one was for Fall/Winter clothes and the other side was for Spring/Summer clothes.

Mrs. B. and I sorted through her clothes piece by piece to determine whether they would ‘stay’ or ‘go.’ She made most decisions quickly. Any item that required extra thought went into a pile that we made decisions on together towards the end of our session.

Discoveries:

You never know what you’ll find when working in a client’s closet. Once, I unearthed a rubber chicken! This time, no chicken–but instead, I discovered that my client had amassed an extensive collection of black pants. Twenty-four pair of black pants to be exact!

To be fair, in the Northeast, the temperature can go from below zero all the way to one hundred degrees in the span of a year. Black pants of different fabric weights and lengths are a wardrobe necessity for most women.

How did I discover my client had twenty four pair of black pants?

While we were removing items from her closet and sorting them on her bed, out of the corner of my eye, I watched Mrs. B. group all of her ‘like’ clothes together by type. The pants pile on each side of her bed resembled a mountain–a dark one. She kept pulling black pants out of her closet and putting them on top of each pile.

I asked for her permission to dig into her pile of pants to start counting them and she gave me the go ahead. In counting black pants on both side of the bed, I added them up and got to twenty-four pair. I told my client the number and she couldn’t believe it. She confessed to me that there had been times when she couldn’t find the black pants she needed so she’d go to the store and buy another pair. I let her know that it was a common occurrence for people with overstuffed closets and that after we organized her closet, she wouldn’t need to do that anymore.

The Result:

After working together for three hours, Mrs. B. and I:

• Purged twelve pair of black pants. Client kept twelve.
• Filled three bags of clothes for donation.
• Relocated summer clothes to under the bed storage bins that client had purchased but had not yet used.
• Placed the remaining clothes back in her closet by category  (grouping ‘like with like’).
• Separated out the summer clothes she wanted to pack for her upcoming vacation and placed them in a storage bag at the bottom of her closet.

I removed a garbage bag filled with wire hangers that Mrs. B said I could bring to my dry cleaner. Boy, was he happy to see me later that day!

Mrs. B. was exhausted and thrilled at the end of our three-hour organizing session. Her overstuffed clothing closet had been purged and re-organized, she put aside the clothes she wanted to bring with her on her vacation, and she now knew where all of her clothes could be found–including her twelve pair of pants.

Happy Client = Happy Organizer!

You can do it, too!

Need help getting started? I offer virtual home organizing services via FaceTime or Zoom to help you reach your organizing goals. Click the link to discover more at the Organized Artistry website.

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It isn’t always easy to make a decision.

It takes time as well as brain power to consider options, weigh pros and cons, and collect information. Decision-making can be stressful–you’re responsible for the outcome and your decision often affects more than just you.

It’s easier to not make a decision. But that doesn’t work in real life–especially when it comes to getting organized. If you want your home to be an organized space, it’s vital to start exercising your decision-making muscles!

Barbara Hemphill, a pioneer in the field of Professional Organizing says…

“Clutter is nothing more than postponed decisions.”

If you take a moment to think about that statement, it makes total sense.

Picture your kitchen countertops, your dining room table, your clothing closet and other areas of your home that may be cluttered. Bills, kid toys, old socks–have you been making decisions on those items or avoiding them in the hope that you’ll wake up one morning and the necessary decisions will have been made for you?

Maybe you’re putting off making decisions on items in your home because…
– you need more information or guidance before deciding.
– you need to ask another person for permission first.
– your decision may hurt someone’s feelings.
– you’re busy, you don’t have time, or it’s too emotionally taxing to think about it clearly.

By not making decisions, your belongings stay where you’ve placed them and will become clutter. They’ll keep your home cluttered and keep you stuck. Making a decision will ‘unstick’ you and move you forward.

The easiest way make a decision about physical items that are cluttering up your home is to make those decisions as easy as possible to make. Keep it simple–especially in the beginning.

How to start simply and easily? Use three words: Keep, Toss, Donate. Pick a category–shoes, books, toiletries, donation requests (or whatever is causing clutter in your home) and apply those three words to making decisions on items in that category.

Don’t think about decluttering a category or a space in your home any more deeply than that at this moment. Don’t think about where an item will live or where it should be donated to. Don’t think about how you’ll get it to the thrift shop or whether or not it will fit in your cabinet, drawer, or closet. Just look at the item you need to make a decision on and ask Keep? Toss? or Donate? Start there.

That’s your first decision–Keep, Toss, or Donate. Making that basic decision is the first step to clearing your clutter and moving you and your home in a less cluttered and more positive direction.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your clutter, take a deep breath and repeat out loud, “Keep, Toss, or Donate.” That’s the only decision you have to make right now–Keep, Toss, or Donate. If it helps, make it your organizing mantra! Write it on a post-it. Make it your laptop’s screen saver–whatever works for you.

To help you visualize those decisions while decluttering and keep your decluttering process organized, I’ve created a free downloadable ‘Keep-Toss-Donate’ printable for you to use. Designate three spaces (or bins/bags/boxes) in the area you’re working in–one will be for the ‘Keep’ items, one for the ‘Donate’ items and one for the ‘Toss’ items. Use the printable ‘Keep’ ‘Toss’ and ‘Donate’ tags to clearly designate your spaces and decisions. You don’t want to accidentally donate your trash or trash your donations!

Start with the easy stuff–junk mail, pens that may/may not work, old clothes and shoes. As you practice using your decision-making muscles, move onto magazines, sheets and towels, and seasonal clothes. Use “Keep, Toss, or Donate” as the first step toward making space in your home for items that you want, use, and love.

Make a decision and watch your clutter disappear…

What decisions have you been postponing?

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What? It’s time to send the kids back to school? Already?

Are you sure? Because I’m still enjoying the warm weather and not having to pack lunch boxes–how about you?

OK. Time for a reality check. School starts this week for my kids. Others across the country began weeks ago and have already submitted their ‘What I Did Over Summer Vacation’ assignment.

As we all know, it’s important to start the school year off on the right foot. Freshly sharpened pencils, a positive mindset, and solid sleep habits are first-rate ways to get the year in motion. An apple for the teacher couldn’t hurt…

If you’re feeling stressed just thinking about everything you need to do to keep you and your kids organized throughout the school year, take a deep breath. There are basic organizing principles that can help you simplify and streamline what needs to get done and help you and your kids get an A+ in ‘Organization’ for the school year.

One of these basic organizing principles is known as ‘Give Everything A Home.’

Everything that comes into your home and already exists in your home needs a place to ‘live.’ The concept may sound overwhelming, but if you think about it–most of what you own already has logical homes. For example, your clothes live in a closet, your toothbrushes live in the bathroom, and your wallet lives in your handbag.

Establishing ‘homes’ for your belongings helps you to easily locate them when you need them. As the back to school season begins and as the school year progresses, you and your kids are going to need to find and access school-related items quickly, efficiently, and sometimes (for the kids) independently.

Here are some tips and solutions for giving everything ‘back to school’ a ‘home’ in your home:

What needs a home: Papers

Create a Home for School-Related Papers

Since my eldest started kindergarten a decade ago, the amount of paper that comes home from school has been drastically reduced. But, even with schools using email, texting, and the Remind app to communicate with parents and reduce paper usage, papers still come home and still have to be read, filled out, and dealt with. Beware! Papers like to multiply like rabbits when left on a kitchen counter or dining room table!

Solutions:
• Designate a ‘home’ for papers that parents need to review and designate a ‘home’ for papers dedicated to each child. This could be a shelf, a set of stacking inbox trays, plastic drawers, or shoeboxes–whatever works for your space and budget.

When they come home from school, have each child place papers to be reviewed in the ‘parent’ spot and when the parent is finished processing the papers (permission slips/book orders/money collection) they are then placed in the ‘child’ spot. The child then takes those completed papers and puts them in their folder/book bag to take back to school.

Bonus tip: For papers that need to be referenced often during the course of a school year (school holiday schedule, class lists, etc.), consider placing them in a binder or folder and designate an easy-to-access ‘home’ for the binder or folder to live in.

What needs a home: Kid’s Artwork

Create a Home for Artwork

First, it’s scribbles on paper. Then, finger paints and leaf rubbings. Soon, the artwork becomes 3-D and it’s living on your dining room table. And in the entrance way. And all over the floor in your kid’s room.

Solutions:
• Determine where your children’s artwork will ‘live’ before it even starts coming through your door. What space works best? Your child’s room? The refrigerator? A mudroom or hallway space? Knowing in advance where the artwork will ‘live,’ makes it less likely for it to take up residence across your dining room table. Decide where the artwork will live and reserve that space for that purpose.

• Create space limits for displaying and keeping artwork. Will it be displayed on the front of the fridge? An eye-level shelf in the family room? Will it be stored in a portfolio folder? A clear bin in your attic? Let the size of the space determine the amount of artwork you can display and store.

Too much artwork and not enough space to put it on display? Have the kids select what they want to keep–this improves decision making skills. Photograph much-loved 2-D and 3-D pieces and create a small printed or digital photo album of their work.

• Create time limits for displaying and keeping artwork. This can be determined by how much artwork is coming through your door multiplied by the number of children you have. Work with your child(ren) to figure out how long they would like their art displayed before giving up the space to another work of art or another person’s work of art. A week? A month? Until the next piece of art comes home?

• Create an ‘exit strategy’ for the art (you parents of preschoolers know what I mean….). Will it be photographed and kept? Mailed to Grandma?  Will it be photographed and tossed? Yes–your trash receptacle may at some point become a permanent ‘home’ for your children’s artwork.

Bonus tip–Don’t throw artwork away in front of your budding artist!

What needs a home: Library Books

Create a Home for Library Books

Raise your hand if you or your kids have accidentally mixed library books in with the books in your home. I’m raising my hand, too! (Yes–it even happens to Professional Organizers).

Solutions:
• Create a specific home just for library books–a simple way to prevent school and town library books from accidentally co-habitating with other ‘like’ books in your home. That ‘home’ may be a shelf, a container, a basket or a designated spot in a closet. Wherever that spot is, put a label on it that says ‘Library Books’ so everyone can see it. When books are brought home from the library, place them here first. After reading them, return them to this spot. When they’re ready to be returned, you’ll know exactly where they are.

Speaking of returning books…

* Bonus tip–Make a note in your calendar of the day books are due back to the library. Make another note one week in advance of that date. Knowing the due date means not having to pay a ‘late book’ fee!

What needs a home: School Supplies

Create a Home for School Supplies

Have you gone shopping for school supplies yet? Not just for the supplies the teacher would like for the classroom–I’m talking about the ones you need in your home. Yes–those purple glue sticks, crayons, packages of loose leaf paper, and poly folders–they will need a ‘home,’ too.

Solutions:
• Designate a space in your home for the storing of basic school and office supplies your kids may need for the year. For quick access, this spot should be close to where they do their homework. The supplies can live in one central location or each child can create a ‘home’ for their personal school supplies in their room or close to where they prefer to do their work.

• For small items like erasers and paper clips or items in multiples such as markers and crayons, use containers that act as smaller ‘homes’ to keep these items grouped together in the space, bin, shelf, or drawer designated for school supplies.

Bonus tip – Take inventory of school supplies at the beginning of every month. You’ll still need glue sticks and sharp pencils in May and June!

Give the ‘Give Everything A Home’ principle a try. Soon you’ll begin to see just how manageable the school year can be when you give everything a home. And if it works well for school, just think how well the ‘Give Everything A Home’ principle would work in other areas of your home and life…Hmmmm…

Wishing you and your kids an organized school year!

What we’re experiencing with the Coronavirus is unprecedented.

Many of us are on lockdown. With children. My kids are 13.5 and almost 10. They’re great kids who play well together (most of the time), take their new online/distance learning education seriously (it’s week 1…), and have a basketball hoop outside to help them shake off some energy. I spend my mornings shuttling between their two bedrooms answering questions, assisting with technology, and I even learned a new skill–how to highlight text in Google Docs.

‘Online school’ in our town will be from 9am-1pm Monday through Friday for at least the next two weeks. After lunch and some ‘chillaxin’ time,’ the plan is to use part of the afternoon for what I call ‘Electives.’ This afternoon my kids will be taking ‘Home Economics’ and helping me make meatballs. Yesterday, my youngest son and I explored watercolors during ‘Art’ and tomorrow he’ll practice his xylophone during ‘Music.’

Besides the basic school electives, I could not call myself a Professional Organizer if I didn’t at least try to engage my kids in a little organizing while we are house-bound. It’s an important life skill and we’ve got the time to practice it!

Life with kids regardless of their age can be hectic. Over the past few months, my husband and I have been juggling our workloads, our two kids on three different basketball teams, volunteer work for religious and professional organizations, family and friends, with little time to tackle some organizing projects that have needed our attention (Familiar with the whole ‘shoemaker has no shoes’ saying?).

You may have experienced a similar weekly/monthly time crunch. As long as no one is ill in your household, this would be a good time to have your kids sharpen their organizing skills after completing their schoolwork. It will teach them a life skill, help keep your home in order, and keep them busy with a productive activity when the day feels like it may never end.

Here are some ideas on where to begin and tips to make it as painless as possible…

Three areas of organizing to focus on with your kids are: organizing time, organizing space, and organizing stuff.

Organizing Time

For many kids, their online schooling will take place in the morning. But afternoons, evenings, and weekends are wide open. Let’s work with them on some time management skills…

Promote the benefits of sticking to a basic schedule – Kids thrive on routine. It gives them a sense of security and predictability. School-aged kids follow a schedule in school–create something similar in your home. During this period of time spent at home, it’s imperative for your child’s well-being for them to know what’s coming next in their world in the days and weeks ahead.

Create a visual schedule of their days
Work with your kids to create a paper-based or digital schedule for weekdays and weekends using the concept of Time Blocking.  From the website Doist.com: “Time blocking is a time management method that asks you to divide your day into blocks of time. Each block is dedicated to accomplishing a specific task, or group of tasks, and only those specific tasks. … With days that are time blocked in advance, you won’t have to constantly make choices about what to focus on.”

Together with your kids, create a list of everyday and weekly tasks, to-do’s, projects, and fun to plug into their daily at-home schedule. Tweak as necessary.

Help them prioritize tasks
Prioritizing is all about figuring out what is most important. Assisting your child with the art of prioritizing gives them a life skill that prepares them for the future. Take that list you made with your kids for Time Blocking purposes and use it help them make decisions as to what’s most important to accomplish during a ‘school’ day and on the weekends while at home. Be flexible–this unusual time isn’t easy for them or us.

For more on the how time management can make your life and your child’s life easier, read…

The Top 10 Life Benefits of Time Management

Organizing Space

An organized space is key to one’s physical and mental well being. Your kids are already being forced to stay indoors for most of their day and may be stressed about the global pandemic. This is the time to help them make sure their personal space is clean and orderly.

Bedroom/Playroom
Stand with your child in the room and together determine the categories of items that need to be organized. Basics are books, toys, clothes, electronics, etc. I don’t recommend purging much more than any trash that might be around the room. This is a challenging time for everyone and keeping the space in order is more important at this point than getting rid of what you think your child doesn’t need anymore.

Online learning workspace
Your child(ren) will be engaging in online/distance learning for at least a few weeks–it’s important that their space be organized. This may include laptops, Chromebooks, scrap paper, pens/pencils/crayons, a spot for a snack, etc. Talk to your child(ren) about their needs and help them set up and organize their temporary school space for success.

Organizing Stuff

Oh, the things that can be organized when you’re at home for weeks on end!

Books, Toys, Art Supplies, School Papers
Like I mentioned above, no need for much purging unless something is broken and beyond repair.  Just keeping each category of items all together in one spot will be sufficient. The phrase, ‘organized enough’ is one to keep in mind as the days turn into weeks.

Clothes
Spring is coming! After we ‘flatten the curve’ and we’re safe to go back to our usual lives it’s going to be too warm (in many parts of the country) to wear the clothes we wore in March. This is the perfect time to try on shorts and bathing suits and take inventory of what clothes your kids will need for the Spring and Summer.
*Tip: I park my kids in front of the TV to try clothes on them. It keeps them occupied, I hear less complaining, and it gets the job done fairly quickly and painlessly! 

Pantry
Do you have a space in your kitchen where your kids can get their own snacks? If not, this is the time to make one. You’re most likely trying to work–the fewer interruptions you have, the better.  Talk to your kids about what snacks they’d like to have accessible in the fridge and pantry/cabinet. Set up a bin, bag, or shoebox (whatever you have handy) and place the snacks where they can reach them themselves.
*Tip: Know your kid–if they can’t be trusted alone with a baggie of Cheerios when you’re not in the same room, stick to something less messy or one or two of something like a Fig Newton or a granola bar.

Helpful Tips

Group Like with Like
Most kids as young as preschoolers can follow this basic organizing principle. Dolls with dolls, all socks in one drawer, all copies of Captain Underpants live together on the shelf, etc.

Break it Down
Keep organizing projects short and sweet. No more than 15 – 30 minutes a day for everyone’s sanity! One shelf. One drawer. One bin of Hot Wheels cars. That’s it. Do more tomorrow. Or wait for the weekend.

Put things back where they belong
This is a basic organizing principle that is used in schools and is beneficial at home, too. Take 10-15 minutes a day to do a sweep of toys, books, school supplies, etc. and put them back where they live. This will make it easier for your kids to find what they need next time they need it–and less likely for them to need to interrupt you while you’re TRYING to work from home.

Plan for tomorrow
Planning is another important life skill. Have your kids think about what they want to eat for lunch tomorrow, what they might want to wear (most likely pajamas), and who they might want to FaceTime with after their schoolwork is done. Planning ahead helps kids to make decisions and focus on their future needs.

Not About Organizing, But Still Helpful Tips

• While you’re cleaning out your drawers/cabinets/shelves if you find something a local friend or neighbor could use, drop it off at their apartment or front stoop (and call/text/email them to let them know it’s there!). Kindness goes along way during a pandemic…

• Organize video playdates for your kids. It’s not really organizing but it does take planning and effort. My youngest son has had two already and it has kept him happy and in touch with his friends.

• Stay as calm as you can with EVERYONE home ALL THE TIME. Here’s a great Youtube channel with relaxing music that I listen to when I’m feeling stressed: OCB Relax Music.

• Engage in some adult and kid coloring for stress relief. It’s a relaxing group activity and goes very well with the relaxing music I just mentioned. If you don’t have any coloring books in the house, type ‘adult coloring book printable free’ into Google–pages of hits appear. Do the same for your kids, print a few pages, and relax a bit while coloring.

• Buy (if you can find any…) these Clorox wipes that smell like a piña colada. Who couldn’t use some of THAT right now? Am I walking around disinfecting my house or am I walking on the beach? (I’ve heard being sequestered can make one delusional…)

Resources

5 Tips for Navigating the Online/Virtual Learning Process
Sample Schedules for Kids Home From School During Coronavirus Outbreak
What If Coronavirus Means Your Kids Are Stuck at Home? 29 Indoor Activities for Kids
How to Prepare for Extended School Closings–And Not Lose Your Mind
Art for Kids Hub
GoNoodle – Get Moving
PBS Kids

We’re living in stressful times but getting your home and kids organized can help reduce that stress. Be safe. Be healthy. Please do your part to ‘flatten the curve.’ Together we can save lives.

Color–it’s not just for those who like rainbows–it’s for organizing, too!

Color coding is a system that organizes information, offers the eye instant recognition, and reduces the time searching for items your need–all useful when organizing a home, home office, or one’s schedule.

But, you don’t have to have a degree in art to organize with color. Here are some items found in the home that can easily be organized using color:

Papers

Are your piles growing as you sleep? Can’t find certain papers when you need them?

Start the color coding process by sorting your papers into different categories (such as finances, school, house, etc). Then, select a different color for each category. Hanging files and manila folders come in a rainbow of colors and can help you reduce the time spent looking for a particular document. If you designate ‘green’ as your color for ‘financial’ papers, you won’t waste time looking through yellow or blue folders for your last 401K statement.

If you’re not interested in spending money on colored folders, Avery makes adhesive colored circles that can be placed on hanging files or folders and have a similar effect.

Clothes Closet

If you look in home stores, you’ll find that hangers come in practically every color imaginable. Use colored hangers to differentiate the various types of clothing in your wardrobe. For example, hang work clothes on white hangers, work out clothes on blue hangers, and cocktail attire on purple hangers. If you keep up the system, you’ll never show up to the office in your yoga pants…

Let’s say you’re like me and you prefer to hang your clothes on crystal hangers. You can either tie a colored ribbon around the hanger or use those Avery colored circle stickers discussed above to differentiate between different clothing types.

Children

If you have more than one child, pick a specific color–that will be the color that will identify them. Some children’s items are easily organized by color: clothes, shoes, puzzles, sports equipment, backpacks, etc.

For example, ever wonder which of your kids left the wet towel on the bathroom floor? Assign each child a different colored towel and you’ll know who the culprit is very quickly…

Are you a busy family trying to keep track of everyone’s schedule? Color coding appointments on a calendar (planner/wall calendar/digital) is a quick visual cue to help you figure out which child has to be where on a particular day.

Computer

Is your desktop a jumble of files? Is your inbox filled with emails? Use color to save time and create consistency.

Color coding files by project enables your eye to focus when juggling multiple projects. For instance, label all files related to ‘The Smith Project’ (as well as it’s folder) a particular color. Time spent looking for documents or emails related to ‘The Smith Project’ will be drastically reduced if they are all the same color.

Color coding email messages can alert you to a message from a particular person (green = your boss, red = your spouse, blue = your kid’s school). Many email programs come with this feature–you just have to create the categories, enter the email addresses,  and choose their corresponding colors.

Holiday Decorations

It is not uncommon for stores to carry plastic bins and tubs that come in colors corresponding to a holiday. Try purchasing orange bins for Halloween decorations and costumes storage. Red and green do the trick for Christmas, blue for Hanukah, and pastel colors for Easter egg painting supplies. It’s SO much easier to find a colored bin in an attic or garage!

Why not bring some color into your life? Using color as a part of your organization plan will save you time, money, and stress in the long run and just think about how colorful (and organized) your life will be!

Tell me–how do you get organized with color in your home?

Do you ever watch TED Talks? I love watching them

If I get to watch at least one a day I’m a happy camper. I watch them while I’m cooking, while I’m on the treadmill, and while I’m eating lunch at my computer. If I don’t have the time, I use one of my favorite apps, Pocket to store them until I have a free 20 minutes to watch.

TED began as a conference in California in 1984–five years before the birth of the World Wide Web. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design.  It’s mission is to spread knowledge and since it’s inception, TED Talks have had attracted over a billion views online–there’s a lot more knowledgeable people in this world thanks to TED!

With all my TED Talk watching, I was curious as to whether there were any talks on the topic of Organizing. Well–there are! No one is sorting through papers or an overstuffed garage on stage, but the talks I’ve selected are based on an ‘organizing’ theme. Carve out time in your day to watch them–you may learn something new just like I did…

Jessi Arrington: Wearing Nothing New

In my opinion, Jessi is one brave woman. She packed seven pair of underwear for her trip to Los Angeles to do her TED Talk. My heart is palpitating just thinking about it. When she got off the plane with her very tiny suitcase, she went shopping for clothes at local thrift stores in order to “reduce the impact of her wardrobe on the environment and her wallet.” I don’t expect you to watch this and then travel light, but listening to what she has to say, might cause you to take a good look at the clothes in your closet.

Laura Vanderkam: How To Gain Control of Your Free Time

Laura Vanderkam writes about Time Management. She says, “Time is highly elastic. We cannot make more time but time will stretch to accommodate what we choose to put into it.” Basically–it’s all about priorities. Your priorities. Your schedule and your choices. Watch and listen to her and think about how you use your time…

Tim Urban: Inside the Mind of a Master Procrastinator

Do you procrastinate often?  Whether you do or not, you’re going to get a good laugh out of this funny TED Talk. You might even see a bit of yourself in Tim Urban. Think about what you might be procrastinating on and watch out for the ‘monkey.’

*BONUS* Yes–I said ‘3’ in the title but this one is short–only around 5 minutes long: Mundano: Pimp My…Trash Cart?.

The unsung heroes of the organizing world are garbage men. They take away what we no longer want in our lives and are not always highly regarded for their work. Watch how one artist in Brazil took the work of Catadores, people who collect recycling, and transformed their work into an art form to be celebrated and appreciated by their communities.

Which Ted Talk resonated with you? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

SaveSave

Stylists recommend matching your shoe and sock color to make you look taller. As a petite woman, I don’t want to appear any shorter than I already am so I try to match my sock color to my pant or shoe color. Sometimes all three are the same color and I’m feelin’ pretty tall!

Then one day, I left the house wearing black pants and navy blue socks.

Some of you might say, ‘So, what?’ Some of you might be shrieking in horror. I was shrieking.

When I got home later that day, I looked closely at my sock drawer. One side was for lighter colored socks and one side was for darker colored socks. The lighting in my bedroom wasn’t that fabulous. I could see that my navy blue and black socks (especially the knee-hi’s) were looking a lot alike. Something had to be done to prevent another fashion faux-pas!

Now, this scenario pre-dates my professional organizing days by about five years, but organizing is in my DNA so I set out to find a solution. I needed an easy, low-to-no-cost product that would separate my socks so I could find the color I needed quickly. I ended up getting a box from my neighborhood liquor store, took careful measurements and cut the cardboard. Twenty minutes later, I had sock drawer dividers!

Almost twenty year old cardboard!

Believe it or not, these pieces of cardboard survived three moves and many sock drawer purges. But after close to twenty years of service, I decided to retire my cardboard drawer dividers. We had recently renovated our home and the built-in dresser in my new closet had different dimensions. It was time to look for an upgrade.

I took to the internet to assist in my search for souped-up drawer dividers. After reviewing sizes, colors, and pricing, it was a no-brainer. It had to be an OXO product–The OXO Expandable Drawer Organizer (set of two).

I love OXO products. To put it bluntly–they’re made well with ergonomics in mind. I love, love, love my OXO POP Containers and other OXO kitchen tools I own. For years. Still working. Still in great condition.

From their website:

“OXO is dedicated to providing innovative consumer products that make everyday living easier. OXO was founded on the philosophy of Universal Design, which means the design of products usable by as many people as possible.”

But, did I really need an OXO product in my sock drawer? Once you install the drawer dividers, they just sit there doing their dividing job–right?

Here’s why I purchased the OXO Expandable Drawer Organizer…

Reputation – OXO has a long-time reputation for creating products with the user in mind. They’ve been around since 1990 and continue to create innovative tools for everyday life.

Design – I liked the way the dividers looked. They’re white and match my drawers. They have rubber ends so they don’t damage the inside of drawers.

Construction – OXO makes their products out of sturdy plastics and these drawer dividers are no different. When I took them out of the box, I felt the expansion mechanism was sturdy and would hold up to repeated changes in size if I needed to use them elsewhere someday. I was willing to spend a little more money on them because I felt they would last.

Reliability –  I’ve had OXO products in my kitchen that were given to me as bridal shower gifts. Sixteen years later, I’m still using many of them. If kitchen tools I use multiple times a week can last almost two decades, so can drawer dividers.

Bonus: I also had a 20% off Bed Bath and Beyond coupon which made the purchase a little easier on the wallet. And it makes me happy to look at them every time I open my sock drawer. There’s something to be said for that, too. I’ve been using them for six months and no complaints from me or my socks. They’re working well, looking great and my black and blue socks live on opposite sides of the divider.

My organized sock drawer!

So, if your socks drawer needs some organization, consider using one or two sets of The OXO Expandable Drawer Organizer. It’s my latest ‘Cool Product’ pick.

What have you done to make your socks easier to find?

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Before I leave my home office to work with a client, I make sure that I have everything I need: label maker, trash/recycle bags, post-its, and a whole host of other tools I keep in my work bag for getting organized. The other thing I make sure I have ‘on’ me: comfortable clothes.

Getting organized is a physical endeavor. Lots of moving, stretching, bending–it’s important to be dressed comfortably. You don’t want tight clothes, itchy tags, or shoes that rub the wrong way to distract you from reaching your organizing goals.

Before we start working together, I advise my clients to dress comfortably for our organizing sessions whether we’re working in a basement, clothes closet, or home office. I let them know that I’ll be ‘dressed to organize,’ too. Comfort is key–this is not the time to try out a new maxi dress and flip flops.

Since starting my organizing business over twelve years ago, I have spent a great deal of time searching stores for clothes and shoes (and maternity clothes for two pregnancies) that work well for my profession. It’s taken me many visits to stores, but I’ve come up with a short list of must-haves in my wardrobe for getting organized.

3 items I wear while organizing clients and my own home are:

Clothes with stretch I move A LOT on the job and my clothes have to move with me. I’m a hoot to watch in a store dressing room. I put on the garment and start pretending I’m helping someone organize a room. I bend over, stretch high, twist my body left to right. I do all of this to make sure tops and bottoms move with me as I move. In fact, most clothes that I wear to organize in are cotton or a cotton blend and have some kind of spandex material in them for that very reason. Like the one below, I’ve started wearing draped cardigans with a tank top underneath for ease of movement. They’re stylish and can be dressed up or down depending upon who and what I’m working with.

Draped front cardigan – Modcloth.com

Wrist watch Time flies when you’re engrossed in an organizing project. It’s wise to wear a wrist watch in order to always be aware of the time. Yes, you can use your phone but maybe you’re not wearing clothes with pockets or maybe your surfaces are filled with stuff and you may not be be able to find it under the piles. Wear a watch. As a Professional Organizer, not only am I helping my client get organized, I’m also managing the time during our sessions. A watch with a large a face that can be seen easily at a glance is a good choice. Fitbits and Apple watches work, too. I don’t own this one, but I thought it would work perfectly…

Geneva Platinum Ladies’ Large Round Face Silicone Watch from Walmart.com

Closed-toe footwear Of the three items I wear while organizing, wearing closed-toe shoes is the most important–not so much for comfort but more for safety. Have you ever noticed that dropping even a light object on your bare foot can hurt? I have made clients change into closed-toe shoes before starting a session in a garage/basement/attic–even a clothing closet! You never know what will fall on your foot. Let’s keep those little piggies safe. I like to wear Skechers–they’re as comfy as a sneaker but have more style.

Skechers Relaxed Fit Breathe Easy Miss Me

I have a Pinterest board on this very topic–check it out for some comfy and stylish ideas…

What is your most comfortable outfit to wear while organizing?

Where I live, it’s kinda cold. And it’s the first day of Spring (insert frowny face here). As much as I’d love to start doing a little spring cleaning in my closet, I still need my polartec tops and flannel lined jeans. May have to start elsewhere this weekend…

But, if you live in a warmer climate or just can’t look at your boots one more day, then by all means start spring cleaning your clothes closet.

Here are the 5 ‘must-haves’ you’ll need for this project:

Garbage bags

Despite their name, these bags won’t all be used for garbage. Grab two colors–black, white, and a third bag can be a reusable tote. Designate black for trash, white for donations, and the tote for repairs. Why use this system? I have heard stories of people accidentally donating their trash and putting their donations to the curb because they used bags of one color.

As you are sorting through and purging clothes from your closet, place them in the correct bag. Clothes with repairable tears and shoes/handbags that need a little TLC from the shoemaker go in your tote bag. When you finish, place the black bags wherever you keep your trash, put the donation and repair bags in your car or at your doorway, and mark off a day on your calendar to drop off them off at their next destinations.

Pad of paper and pen or cell phone

As you go through your clothes, you may find that they have an old stain, they’re too loose or tight, or you just don’t love it anymore. When getting rid of garments, keep a list of items you’d like to replace. That way, when you’re at the mall, you don’t have to think about what clothes you need–just refer to your list and you’ll know exactly what purchases to focus on. Use pen and paper or your cell phone to create the list–whichever works best for you.

Bottle of water/snack

Spring cleaning a clothes closet is a physical activity. Handling some sentimental items and items with ‘bad karma’ attached to them can be emotional as well. Even if you’ve eaten a large meal before starting, I’d recommend having a bottle of water and a snack at arm’s reach. You’ll need a break to clear your head and refuel–how often you do that during this task is up to you and your needs. But, I always advise my clients to bring a snack and drink into the space we’re working on. It means they don’t have to leave the room and lose focus while we’re working.

Large flat or multiple small flat surfaces

When doing a spring cleaning of your clothes closet, it’s important to have a place to put the clothes while sorting them out. If your closet is in your bedroom, use the bed to place the garments down as you make decisions. If your clothes live in a room without a bed, use folding chairs or storage tubs to separate your clothes by category. The floor is NOT a good option unless absolutely necessary. If that’s the case, please open a flat sheet, lay it on the floor and place your piles on top of the sheet.

Time

A basic organizing principle to follow for spring cleaning or any organizing task is. ‘Make an Appointment With Yourself.’ We make appointments to see doctors and to make our hair look fabulous and we wouldn’t consider canceling them except in an emergency. Do the same with Spring Cleaning. Take out your calendar and pick a day to start. Pencil in 15 minutes, a half hour, an hour–whatever amount of time you think you can manage. Keep that appointment. You’ll be glad you did.

Are you ready to spring cleaning your clothes closet? What do you think you’ll find in your closet this Spring?

The last week of November was a busy time in my household. It was Thanksgiving. It was Hanukkah. And it was also my birthday. Lots of food and festivities. Not a lot of downtime.

But, my hubby and I chose to carve out a small amount of time that weekend to make our home more organized. The colder weather was upon us and we had to come up with a solution to a recent organization problem.

We have a front door and an entry-way closet next to that door. Coats, shoes, umbrellas and accessories are kept in that closet.

Problem: My children and I enter and exit our home most days through the garage, not the front door. No mudroom or closet next to that garage entrance door. Instead, we have a tiny laundry room with an even tinier broom closet that we converted to a storage closet years ago. We installed a row of hooks across the top and at the bottom of the closet we store shopping and recycle bags of varying sizes.

This worked well for a while. My children were young and had little coats and my jacket fit just fine next to theirs. Now, my kids are bigger and so are their coats. They have more hats and mittens, too. With all three of our winter coats in there, the closet door no longer stayed closed. And the hooks were so high, I was the person in charge of hanging everyone’s coats.

What to do?

I had suggested a hall tree for the room adjacent to the garage which just so happens to be my home office. It wouldn’t thrill me to have coats and backpacks hanging in my work space but it was better than having them spill out of the storage closet–especially when I was doing the laundry.

My husband did not like the hall tree idea for two reasons:
1) He thought a hall tree would have looked messy. (I agree)
2) The hall tree would have to stand in the space currently occupied by his grandmother’s table which he loves and it would not fit in our attic.

So, for a while we thought about it, spent the summer leaving camp bags in the garage but then Autumn came and the problem was back. Backpacks and diaper bags were dropped as we entered the house and coats were dumped on a couch that sits opposite my desk in this room. (No picture is available–too embarrassing for this Professional Organizer to admit!)

Besides the fact that it looked terrible, it didn’t exactly instill the importance of being organized to our two young children.

Once again we asked ourselves, “What to do?”

Solution: One day, my husband looked at me and said, “What if we move the ironing board and vacuum cleaner out of the laundry room and use that space as a mudroom? I measured the space. It was 24” wide. I was skeptical but I grew up in a 5’x12′ bedroom. I knew I could make this work.

Challenge accepted!

The Closetmaid 24″ Horizontal Stackable Organizer

Measure twice, make hole once!

Mini-mudroom dreams do come true!

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