It’s my 13th ‘blogiversary!’ Lucky number 13!

And on top of that, this summer I celebrated twenty years in business. I’m not sure which milestone is more mind-blowing???

I started this blog the day I dropped my son off at his first day of preschool. Other parents may have driven to work, headed to a supermarket or the gym after drop-off but I hightailed it back to my home office so I could write my first Organized Artistry blog post. When I started my business in 2002, I was writing helpful organizing articles and posting them on my website. A few years in, I discovered the Blogger platform and started blogging my organizing tips and ideas there. Shortly afterward, I went through a total logo/website redesign and merged my Blogger blog with my new WordPress website.

Since writing my first anniversary post, I’ve set goals for my blog and last year was no different.

In 2021-22 I decided that I would set out to…

• Create a round-up blog post
• Create downloadable printables in Canva for my most popular blog posts
• Invite guest bloggers to share their posts

Of the three goals, I only accomplished one this past year. I did not invite any guest bloggers, and I didn’t coordinate a round-up blog post but I did create those printables! As a former graphic designer, I guess of the three goals, this was the one I would have had the most fun executing.

My Tales of a Town-Wide Garage Sale post was blowing up on Pinterest (and continues to do so) so I decided to create a free download/printable to go with it. It’s called, 5 Tips for a Successful Garage Sale and can be found at the end of the post. After creating and uploading the garage sale printable, I gave myself a pat on the back for reaching one of my goals and created a few more downloadable printables for some of my other popular blog posts.

Inviting guest bloggers and curating a round-up post are two ideas that may still happen in my blog’s future. I’m not taking them off the table yet. But for now, I’m having fun designing those downloadable printables…

In earlier anniversary posts, I’ve stated that my goal was to blog 1x a month. It’s not such a far-fetched concept considering in the past I used to blog 2x a month, But, for now and the not-so-distant future, I have given up on the idea of trying to blog 1x a month. It hasn’t happened the past few years and I often remind myself that it’s OK. I have an ongoing list of blog post ideas but lately, not an ongoing amount of time or brain-power. Instead, I’ve been slowly going back to older blog posts, updating the content, and adding a Canva graphic to make them ‘pinnable’ and visually appealing to post and share.

This year, for 2022-23 my blog goals are:

• Create a second Ted Talk blog post
• Continue to create downloadable printables for my popular blog posts
• Only have two goals for my blog this year.

The idea of the second Ted Talk blog post comes from my 2020-2021 goal list.

At a time when Ted Talks were gaining mainstream popularity, I decided to write a blog post featuring organizing-related TedTalks I thought people would find inspiring. Well, it seems that they did find them inspiring because it’s one of my most popular blog posts!

In early 2022, I revisited my goal from 2020-2021 and went looking for more organizing-related Ted Talks. For a variety of reasons, I just didn’t find what I was looking for. My 2022-2023 goal is to identify three to four Ted Talks that focus on organizing and write that second Ted Talk blog post. Could lightning strike twice? Are readers of my blog looking for more organizing-inspired Ted Talks? You’ll have to wait until 2023 to find out!

The child I took to preschool the day I started this blog has just started going on college tours. That, plus work, family life, and anything else I can fit in a day will make for a very busy year ahead. But, my blog goals are set for the year. In order to accomplish my goals, I’m going to give myself the same advice I’d give one of my clients: Take out your calendar and make an appointment with yourself to take the steps necessary to reach your goals!

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I recently entered my eighteenth (!!) year as a Professional Organizer and this year marks eleven years of blogging. Happy blogiversary to me!

I love to write. I love to organize. So starting a blog about organizing was not such a far-fetched idea. In fact, it was a match made in blogging heaven! Back in 2009, I took a workshop at the NAPO Conference in Orlando which gave me the know-how and the push I needed to jumpstart my blogging career.  I started out using the Blogger platform and in 2014, decided to merge the blog with my website which was going through a logo and platform redesign. As much as I enjoy it, it still boggles my mind that I’ve been doing it for eleven years.

As part of celebrating my blogiversary, I set goals for the year ahead and look back to see if I’ve met the goals I set for myself the previous year. I recently read my first blogiversary post–my goals were a bit different then. I was barely using social media and my blog was where I ‘posted’ all information. Creating blog categories and helpful content were my top priorities. Pinterest was barely out of it’s infancy. Canva had not even been launched yet! Blogging has certainly evolved since then. I’ve worked hard to keep up with writing and the tools that make my blog beautiful and in front of more eyes than I ever could have imagined.

Here’s how I did…

Goals for 10/2019-10/2020

Blog 1x a month

I thought for sure I’d be able to make this happen but sometimes life has other ideas for your time and brain space. I came pretty close, though blogging in October and November of 2019 and March, May-October 2020 consecutively.

Tweak and Update Existing Posts

Did it! I created Canva-generated images for many posts that previously had no images and added a new ‘connect with me on social media’ footer to the end of my blog posts (look below!)

Consider using Tailwind Scheduler for Pinterest

I chose to take this task off my plate for 2019-2020. I am still considering it’s usefulness and the monetary commitment but since much of my blog traffic comes from Pinterest, I’ll be keeping it on the back burner until I have the time and brain power to look at the pros and cons for adding it to my marketing plan.

Create new and relevant content

Did it! In 2019, I created my annual Anniversary Post and Container Store Stocking Stuffer Review Post and in 2020 focused my blog posts on helping readers during the time of Coronavirus. I had always considered writing a blog post on getting organized for meal planning and decided that 2020 was the year to do so. I felt it’s relevance was so timely, I wrote five consecutive posts on the topic.

My Most Popular Blog Post on Pinterest: Garage Sale and Ted Talks

My post, 3 Thought-Provoking Ted Talks That Will Inspire You to Get Organized has gotten tens of thousands of impressions on Pinterest. In an interesting twist, a blog post I published over seven years ago about participating in my neighborhood’s town-wide garage sale has rocketed to similar fame and fortune on Pinterest. I guess people across the globe have been purging their homes during the pandemic and are looking for tips on hosting a garage sale. It’s November and it’s still getting pinned like crazy!

And guess what happened this year?

I was presented with the ‘Best Organizing Blog’ Award by Sacred Space Organizing. I felt honored to be recognized for my body of work and I’m thrilled to be in such talented company. To check out the list, click here.

Goals for 10/2020-10/2021

Continue to Blog 1x a month

With 2021 just around the corner, I’ve started thinking about what I’d like to blog about. Even after eleven years of blogging, I haven’t covered every topic related to organizing. If you don’t want to miss a post, subscribe to my blog (enter your email address above the picture of me on the top right of this page).

Consider using Tailwind

I’m going to save this goal for the second half of 2021. I need some time to research it’s ease of use, it’s usefulness to Organized Artistry, and whether it is worth the cost. If anyone has any experience with Tailwind, I’d love to hear about it.

Create Canva images for older blog posts

I have many older blog posts (including the one about my neighborhood’s town-wide garage sale) that still don’t have Pinterest-worthy Canva photos on them. I’ll be revisiting old blog posts that still have relevance and make them Pinterest-ready and Pinterest-worthy for new readers.

Continue to tweak content on older blog posts to make more evergreen

When I started blogging eleven years ago, some of my blog posts were short announcements of events or quick tips. I’m writing blog posts more in long-form now and saving the events and announcements for Organized Artistry’s Facebook Page. If I find making certain blog posts evergreen to be a challenge, I’ll consider eliminating the posts or refreshing them for a new audience.

Create a second blog post showcasing ‘Ted Talks’ on the topic of organizing

The ‘Ted Talk’ blog post I mentioned above blew the roof off of Pinterest. It is definitely my most popular post with a ton of traffic. Not Kardashian Instagram type of traffic but an incredible amount of traffic for my less-famous organizing blog. Everything I’ve read about blogging says that if you have a popular blog post and people are showing interest in that topic, write something very similar. Keep your eyes open in 2021 for Ted Talks That Will Inspire You to Get Organized–Part 2.

Eleven years have gone by quickly–I’m looking forward to writing for the next eleven. Thanks for joining me on my journey as a blogger!

OK–you finally finished your Spring Cleaning. You spent days sorting and purging through your belongings. You threw a few things out and even repaired one or two items. But, what will you do with everything else you uncovered and discovered? If you’re willing to invest some time and energy, why not have a garage sale?

Garage sales are a great way to get rid of things you no longer want, need, or cherish. But, is it as easy as just dumping your stuff on the lawn and waiting for customers to drive by? Not if you want to make any money, it isn’t. Besides having decent-quality merchandise, the key to a successful garage sale is being organized.

Here are 3 steps for making your garage sale organized for happy customers and optimal sales:

Step 1: Pre-Sale Organizing

• Select a weekend for your sale and make no other commitments on those days. You WILL be exhausted. Ask friends and neighbors if they would like to join you. It is a perk to be able to split advertising costs and have someone watch over your area while you’re grabbing a snack or running to the bathroom.

• Have you ever been to a garage sale where the items had no prices on them? One way of making ‘Garage Sale Day‘ organized is to create a pricing system. This makes the selling easy for you and the buying easy for your customers. Purchase colored, circle-shaped labels and designate each color to be a different dollar amount, for example blue = $.50. Use white circle labels to write an amount such as $5.00. Make signs that describe your pricing system and post them around the area of your garage sale so you don’t have a constant stream of customers asking you about prices.

Or, try these pre-printed labels. See the color-coded pricing chart I created for my last garage sale here.

Select one area of your home to be the staging area for pricing items and one area (most often the garage or an underutilized room) for storage of the items once they’ve been tagged. This last space will enable you to see exactly what you have and allow you to group ‘like-with-like’ such as toys, books, kitchenware, etc.

• Start saving grocery bags as well as heavy-duty shopping bags. Your customers will appreciate your preparedness and it will be easier for them to carry their new-found treasures off your property.

• Some of these new-found treasures will be breakable. Start saving newspaper, old wrapping paper, and bubble wrap. These packing materials will help your customers get their breakable purchases home in one piece.

• Borrow and gather folding tables, card tables, crates, workbenches, and other horizontal surfaces for displaying items.

• Check with your town regarding permits for having a garage sale.

• Advertise, make signs and post them on nearby streets facing oncoming traffic.

Step 2: During-the-Sale Organizing

• Post your pricing system signs around the area of your garage sale.

• Wear clothes with pockets. Pockets come in handy for holding some of your garage sale supplies such as pens, markers, and extra price stickers.

• I know they’re not so fashionable but wear a fanny pack! Your money will be close to your body without spilling out of your pockets. Wear a pack with two compartments–one for bills and one for coins.

• Know exactly how much money you started the day with so you’ll be able to calculate exactly what you earned.

• Set up your belongings outside by category–all toys together in one spot, all office supplies together in another area. Group ‘like’ items to the best of your ability. If a customer is looking for baby toys and they’re all in one place, it is very likely that they’ll buy more since everything they’re looking for will be right in front of them.

• Have at least one other person working with you. It is difficult to sell merchandise, wrap breakables and field questions by yourself. Take turns helping customers, straightening up merchandise, and taking breaks.

Step 3: Post-Sale Organizing

• Bring everything that was not sold into the garage or another room to make final decisions on whether or not to keep unsold items.

• Throw out anything that became damaged or broken as a result of being in the garage sale.

• Donate the ‘leftovers’ to a charity of your choice.

• Clean your lawn/driveway of any debris from the garage sale.

• Count your money and determine your profit. $$$

• Create a list of all supplies used for the garage sale and keep it on your phone or in a paper file labeled ‘Garage Sale.’ Order in dinner and put your feet up. Now you’re ready for your next garage sale–job well done!

What the best thing you ever bought at a garage sale? I’d love to hear about it!

In 2000, my husband and I got married and merged two households. Between all the stuff we came with and the beautiful wedding gifts we had received, our home was overflowing with three of this, four of that and too much of a whole lotta stuff. So, we decided to sort through what we owned, purge out what we didn’t need and have a garage sale.

I wish I had pictures to show you but our driveway and lawn were filled with our belongings. People thought we were downsizing and moving! I overheard one woman on her cell phone yelling to a friend, “You gotta come over here–there’s so much great stuff!”

Two days and almost $1000 later, we had done a good job of clearing space in our home. We used the funds to buy a patio set which we still own. At the end of day two, I turned to my husband and said “I never want to have enough stuff in our home to do a garage sale again…”

It’s now 2013. We’ve had two children and our house was feeling full. My husband swore our attic floor would soon buckle and bins of stuff would crash to the floor below. In the Spring we began, Operation ‘Get It Out of the House.’ Big ticket items like our crib and two exersaucers found new homes. Bags upon bags of baby clothing found their way to three different expectant mothers. My husband says he could hear the attic exhale for the first time in years.

Multiply this times three and that’s how many bags of 0-12m baby clothing I gave away!

I kept purging–kiddie toys to the preschool, old pillows to the trash and then it happened…My neighbor tells me our town is having it’s first town-wide garage sale.

I pass the great news about the town-wide garage sale on to my husband. He’s as excited as I am.

I continue purging. I started to collect boxes and plastic bags, and began pricing. I even dug up the Word file for the garage sale sign I had created in 2000 (Hubby says that didn’t surprise him one bit…).

My cousin Dale gave me the ‘Fill a bag for $1’ idea. Brilliant!

After pricing, I sorted our items by category–Baby, Kid Toys, Housewares, Books, etc. counting down the days when I could finally reclaim my garage space again.

My neighbors across the street set up a few tables and my nine year old neighbor decided to try his hand at selling some toys he and his brother didn’t play with anymore. I advised him to lay them out on towels grouping ‘like’ with ‘like’–dinosaurs with other dinos and all vehicles together, too. He sold a few items (including one of the bikes in the background) but at least half of them went to my son’s preschool or to my own kids!

The wares of a budding entrepreneur…

Some funny/unexpected things that happened:

• My neighbors bought some of my stuff!
• A shopper thought a painting marked $3.00 was actually $300. We all had a good chuckle…
• A grandma about six inches shorter than me bought and then picked up a Little Tikes picnic table and walked back to her house with it.
• I sold a NJ Devils giveaway towel to my seven year old for $ .25. I thought it would be a good math lesson…

He said, “Mommy, I can’t believe you were going to sell this!”

Some great things that happened:

• I had fun hanging out with my neighbors and celebrating our selling successes.
• My kids acquired some cool toys and baseball mitts from our neighbors across the street.
• I got to read two magazines during selling ‘downtime.’ Any mom of small kids know that this is quite a feat!
• We made a little extra spending money.
• We purged our home of things we no longer needed.

At the end of the town-wide garage sale, I packed up all unsold goods and split them into three categories. Give to Preschool, Give to Thrift Shop, Bring Back in the Garage. The ‘Give to Thrift Shop’ bags and boxes went from my driveway to my car to a local donation center. My ‘Preschool’ items are enjoying a new home in my son’s classroom and the one (!) bin marked ‘Bring Back in the Garage’ is being dealt with this week.

So, if your town is declaring a town-wide garage sale soon, or you’re looking to make some room in your home and some money for your wallet, it’s time to plan ahead! Click here or click the image below for my *free* download: 5 Tips for a Successful Garage Sale. 

OK–Who is ready to have a garage sale?

It’s Spring! And after weeks of Spring Cleaning, de-cluttering and purging, you may be ready to host a yard sale.

When my husband I got married and joined households years ago, we had a yard sale. It was a fun and exhausting 2-day event that took weeks of preparation. We had a lot of stuff! We made enough money to buy a eight-person patio set for our backyard and anything that didn’t sell was donated to the Vietnam Veterans Association.

A few months ago some of my yard sale tips were featured in an article on SheKnows.com called ‘Tips for Holding a Successful Yard Sale.’ The article offers good advice and ideas on how to price, market, display and negotiate. If you’re thinking of hosting a yard sale, I suggest you take a few moments to read it–you just may pick up a few tips to make your yard sale not just successful–but profitable, too.