A New Challenge for 2022

Over the past several years, I have encouraged us to give away 1 Item each day for 40 Days! Beginning on the first day of Lent and going until Easter, items that you found around your house that were useable but not being used by you, were to go into the bag and after Easter be donated to your local charity of choice.  This year I want to challenge you to consider throwing away 1 item every day for 40 days.  Wednesday, March 2^nd (the first day of Lent in 2022) is our starting day. 

One of the best parts about this challenge is instead of feeling deprived from giving up something you can feel determined to find the item and either donate it or dispose of it. You get to decide. 

Items to be DONATED (items in good repair that you will take to the local thrift store or donation center)

Or

Items to be DISPOSED (old paperwork, mail, old school papers, old magazines)

Remember, all you need is a large black trash bag!  Once an item goes in the bag, it doesn’t get to come back out!!!  Be sure to shred items with personal information or financial information. 

You may be thinking, “I don’t have 40 EXTRA items!”.  Let’s look at some areas that you might find a few, and remember you only need 1 each day. 

Items

Closet:

            Extra Coats:  Winter is almost over, are there any coats you or other family members did not wear this year?  Check the pockets before placing them in the bag (never know there might be a $5 bill that you put in there and forgot!). 

            Boots and Shoes:  I am a fan of all boots so this is hard for me too, but we all have shoes and boots that just don’t fit as well as they should.  Here’s your chance to donate them! 

            Scarfs and Ties:  There aren’t many offices anymore that require a tie (if yours does, I’m sorry).  So how many ties should a man own? 10, that’s all.  Check out this article about different neckties:  https://www.realmenrealstyle.com/9-neckties-to-own/  then pick out the best of yours and donate the rest.  If you find you need more, I am sure you can ask for some at Christmas and you will get plenty! 

And ladies, what about all those different scarves?  I saw an article online that says there are 15 different “styles”.  Scarfs are very versatile and add style, but, if you aren’t in a climate that needs extra layers, they can just sit in a drawer and never be that “cute accessory” you wanted them to be. 

 T-Shirts:  How do we get so many of these?  They are given to us at “walks”, “first 15K people at the baseball game”, “golf tournaments”, “children’s sports teams”, “college orientation”, not to mention the ones we buy!  You know the long sleeve one you bought to put on when the weather turned cold at the beach!  Or the one from the cool bar in Mexico! 

And I know you are holding on to the “old ones” to work in the yard.  But let’s get real here—how many T-shirts do you and every member of your family need?  If you put EVERY T-SHIRT in your house on your bed, how many do you think you have?  You may be able to get most of your 40 items just from T-shirts!  

And that T-Shirt Quilt you keep saying you want to make…Going through the stacks of shirts on the bed may help you pick out the ones for the quilt.  There are lots of online resources if you are considering this for your child or spouse.  The smaller quilts require 12 T-shirts (3 x 4), larger quilts require 30 (5 x 6).

Kitchen Cabinets:

            Plastic Cups and Storage Containers:  I love Dickie’s BBQ and their Big Yellow Cups are awesome, but we don’t need a cabinet full of plastic cups from anywhere.  One tip—these cups make great containers for celery, asparagus, and other herbs that you want to stand up in your refrigerator in a small amount of water.  Plastic storage containers–honestly these may not be “donation worthy”, but while we are looking for items, let’s rid ourselves of these too.  Match your containers with their lids.  Any containers that do not have lids can be re-purposed as I mentioned before or if large enough they can be used to contain snacks in the pantry or smaller ones can be used in drawers to contain pencils, pens, clips, etc.

            Coffee Cups:  Start with ones to put in the trash first—chipped, cracked, or stained ones.  Next, cups with logos that don’t hold any meaning or attachment for you—get rid of these and don’t accept any more.  Pick out your favorites or ones that match your dishes and knowing that you will wash dishes almost daily, the rest can go.  How much space in the cabinet did you just open up?   

 Gadgets You Don’t Use:  This can be as simple as an Avocado Knife or Apple Slicer.  If you tend to forget you have these and just grab a knife—donate them.  It can also be larger items that take up a lot of space like Waffle Makers, Ice Cream Makers, even Crock-Pots.  

            Aprons, Potholders, Decorative Towels:  These can “multiple” over time.  One cute wine towel turns into a whole collection!!  Keep your favorites and share the rest knowing they will make someone else smile too.

Garage:

            Lawn or Yard Equipment:  Any duplicates?  These may not fit in the bag, but you can still donate them! 

            Outgrown Children’s Toys:  If you are about to send them to college and you still have their first bike, and every type of ball, bats, and gloves, you may want to gather these up and donate. 

Office/Arts & Crafts/Hobbies:

Old Files and Piles:  You may think that only throwing 1 piece of paper away each day isn’t going to change much on your desk or in your file cabinet.  You’re Right!  So instead, you can clean out 1 file per day.  That may be multiple sheets of paper, or it may be a whole year of bank statements (you only need to keep them for 1 year—if tax deduction, 3 years).  If you tend to make piles on your desk and or the floor, then tackle 1 pile per day.

Extra Supplies:  Have you noticed all the “adult” coloring books? I’m sure some people enjoy coloring on cold or rainy days.  I’m sure it is very relaxing.  And I’m sure some people were given these books and fancy pencils that have never used them and that’s okay too.  If you have any craft supplies that are unopened and useable, these are always appreciated at donation centers.  Many home care providers (both child and senior caretakers) are looking for these at a discounted price. 

Books, Magazines, School Notebooks: These may not be in your office, and you may not have even thought about them for years, but if you have a box in the attic or the garage with all your old college notebooks it’s time to toss them.  Years of old magazines that you were going to cut the recipes from or catalogs of items you don’t need to buy anyway—just put them in the black bag!  Books can be donated to local libraries or placed in “book exchange boxes”.  There are several in Navarre.   

Where to Donate

I encourage you to find a local charity to work with for your donations.  You can usually find a church-based Thrift/Resale shop for clothing and kitchen items.  Organizations that provide care to children (Child Abuse centers, Low Income After School Care) are always looking for craft and art supplies as well as toys to use with the children.  Animal shelters always need clean towels, and blankets as well as pet kennels and other items from your garage.  

Here are some links to non-profits in Navarre and Santa Rosa County:

Good Neighbor Thrift Store:  https://www.facebook.com/numcthriftstore/

Santa Rosa Kids House:  https://www.santarosakidshouse.com/support-srkh

Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge: http://emeraldcoastwildliferefuge.org/emerald-coast-wildlife-refuge/donate

There is a lot we do not have control over, but as I have said in other articles, we DO have control over what comes into our homes and what stays. Let’s recommit to the idea that This Year we are going to Both Decorate and Purge.

Whether you decorate for Halloween (many spend almost as much to decorate for Halloween as they do for Christmas) or you prefer a more general Fall theme, or you wait until Christmas to decorate, make a promise to yourself that IF there is something that you don’t use this year (decorations, wrapping paper, lights, linens, candles, special socks, holiday sweatshirts/ugly sweaters, baking supplies) then remove it from your home either as you are decorating or after the holidays.  If donating, holiday items are very much needed and appreciated at Children’s Home, Senior Centers, Women’s Shelters even Animal Shelters can use some of the items (blankets, towels, linens for bedding)! 

THIS YEAR—WE KEEP THE BEST AND REMOVE THE REST.

DECORATIONS

Kitchen and Dining Room

Holiday Dishes: (Decorate) Remove items from the storage area (box, or top/back of the cabinet) and inspect for any chips or cracks.  If it is just a small chip and you are not going to serve any liquid items, I wouldn’t worry too much about it (you can always wipe it down with a little isopropyl rubbing alcohol to be extra safe).  If it is a larger chip or a crack and you are planning to serve beverages or even moist items (casserole, gravy, salads) you should be more concerned about bacteria and perhaps need to (Purge) toss it out or use it as a flower vase or candle holder (just don’t eat off of it!). 

Wash all dishes or run through a quick rinse in your dishwasher to remove dust before setting on a table or displaying.

Holiday Patterns?  Do you have Christmas Dishes from Lenox or Nikko?  Here’s a list of the top 25 patterns and links to purchase replacements if needed.  Also check local thrift or second-hand stores for pieces to your pattern.  You’ll be surprised how often you can find a candy dish or an extra serving platter at one of these.

Replacements or additions to a china pattern is a great gift idea too.  If you can’t think of anything to put on your list but you know your family is going to ask for ideas, consider asking for these (if you enjoy using during the holidays—if not donate the ones you have and let someone else enjoy them).     

Pay attention to how often you use these special dishes.  If you have cute Christmas mugs like me and enjoy drinking your morning coffee from them the entire season, then keep them and enjoy them.  But ask yourself, how many do I really need?  What if we break one?  The truth is I will be sad, but the truth is also there are always cute Christmas mugs for sale. 

When you are ready to pack up the Christmas China be sure to store them in quilted fabric cubes or carefully wrap them before putting them in a storage box.  Label the box so you know exactly what you have.

Lennox Christmas pattern:

8 dinner plates

8 salad plates

8 bowls

1 oval serving platter

Items you may not use and want to PURGE include:

• plastic cookie tray (from Walmart, Big Lots or Dollar Tree)
• metal canisters or baskets that you got as a gift a few years back
• ceramic tray that is cute but doesn’t match any of your other holiday decorations
• family items that you don’t use (candy dishes, salt & pepper shakers, small knifes for cheese balls)
• glassware that does not match or you just don’t need

All these items can be donated and will be appreciated. 

Candles: (Decorate) We all love special holiday scents!  But some of us have an issue with headaches if the fragrance is too sweet.  Plus if “too Christmassy” you may have to carefully store and use for several years.  Do not place them in the attic or the garage where it just gets too hot. Be sure to wipe the inside of the jar and inspect the wicks to see if they need trimming before each use.  If the wick is too long a BIG FLAME could easily cause a fire hazard and Windex on a paper towel usually works to remove the soot. 

If you can find locally made candles, I encourage you to SHOP LOCAL.  I recently purchased a couple of candles from Saltwater Cottage in Navarre (you can find them on Facebook) and love them.  Check out this Candle Buying Guide.

Holiday Linens:  Tablecloths, placemats, and napkins: (Decorate) If you are like me and fold to store your linens then we are going to need to iron the tablecloths and napkins before putting them out.  If you have room to store on a roll you may want to get special tissue paper: Acid-Free/Non-Yellowing.  This is not the same tissue paper you buy at the dollar store to stuff in gift bags!  This paper costs about $1 per sheet.  Also, don’t store in dry cleaning bags due to the fumes from the chemicals that can cause the fibers to break down.

(Purge) any linens that you no longer need.  Perhaps you don’t have the same dining set or your entire color scheme is different than when the kids were little, this is the time to decide how many tablecloths do you need (even when the whole family comes over) and remove the rest.  Ones that are too short for my table will be donated with the hope another family can use them.  There are some with stains that I can’t get out and I will call to see if the animal shelter can use for bedding or I will have to toss them. 

Living Room-Family Room

Mantels: (Decorate) Once you have placed your decorations and stockings on the mantel, and you are happy with the way it looks, take a picture!  This way you can re-create it each year or if you have a medical situation as I did in 2015, you can sit on the couch and someone else can create it for you using your picture.

Collectables–Nutcrackers, Lighted Villages, Lego Christmas Set: (Decorate) Remove from their storage containers and inspect.  Does anything need repair (little super glue)? If lighted, are all the bulbs working? If everything is in good working condition, placed these where you like, and take a picture. It is always best to store any extension cords or multi plugs with the lighted villages to avoid the hassle of looking for one while you are decorating.

(Purge) any miscellaneous extras:

• the stocking for the pet (that passed away years ago)
• the old set of stocking hangers
• candlesticks or extra greenery

If you don’t like it this year, the chances of you liking it next year are slim!

Garland for Mantel or Staircase: (Decorate) Many magazines have BEAUTIFUL garland and as much as I have tried, I just cannot make mine look like the pictures.  I’ve used different flowers and ribbons, and even bought the garland ties that look like mini pinecones!  If you want tips on how to hang garland, look online.  There are lots of videos—I have given up, but if you really want to, I’m sure you can find a great tutorial.  Send me pictures! 

Christmas Tree/Ornaments/Tree Skirt: (Decorate) I admit I love ornaments!  I like very traditional red, green, white and gold ornaments and the more the better!  At one time I had over 1000 ornaments on our 12-foot tree.  It was beautiful but it was a project to decorate it each year.  We moved and sold the 12 ft tree and set up a small 6.5 ft tree and pared down to under 200 ornaments.  The ornaments that I kept were the more decorative ones since I didn’t need to fill some many branches. Since I am now in Florida, and my color scheme is different, I may use more of the white and gold going forward and (Purge) the red and green ones.

Any ornaments that we have purchased or have been given that I don’t put on the tree go in a metal sleigh.  Ornaments are very sentimental for most of us!  They remind us of places we have been or special interests or hobbies we enjoy. But just because they were a gift, you don’t have to keep them (if you don’t like them!)

(Purge) Be sure that you do not keep any ornaments made with food or candies—they are bug magnets!  And teachers, please stop having the kids make these for gifts. 

When it comes time to take the tree down at the end of the season, be sure to check out this list from Hayneedle. 

Newer Pre-Lit trees are easier to set up and have some extra features to their lights as well as coming in all different shapes and sizes.  If you haven’t had to replace your artificial tree in the last couple of years, I suggest checking out what is available now so when your tree goes out (they all do!) then you know what to expect as far as cost and what options are now available.  And if you can catch one on clearance-even better!

Wreaths: (Decorate)Just like with trees, newer wreaths have extra features. Many now are LED lights with battery packs that can be hung just about anywhere (no more extension cords hanging down).  The key to keeping your wreath looking good is proper storage.  When you bring it in, but sure to shake it out good to remove any dirt or leaves that may have blown into it. Double-check that the decorative items are still securely fastened and then don’t crush it when you store it.  You can hang it on a wire hanger and place a dry-cleaning bag over them to keep dust-free or in a wreath storage bag.

Lights: (Decorate) Be sure that you label light strands so that you can easily place them where they go and create your winter wonderland quickly.  If you find bulbs that are broken, unplug before attempting to remove the bulb to avoid getting shocked.  If your strand is too long you can either cut it and then cap it with electrical tape or just wrap the extra and place in a ziplock bag, taping the cord and bag closed.  This will prevent any rain or snow (depending on where you live) from getting in the unused sockets and causing a short or blowing your plug. (Purge) Any strands that are not working, of course, need to be thrown away, remove any bulbs if possible (C7, C9) to use as replacements or to fill in the strand you will go buy to replace the broken one.

Gifts and Wrapping Supplies

Wrapping Supplies:  Since holiday paper, bags, and tags are only used once a year, you may want to not keep them with your regular supplies.  Take an inventory and see how much paper, tape, ribbons, tags, tissue paper, and bags you have on hand.  What can you use up this year?  If it looks like you have plenty, plan to use it and replace it after the season to get it on sale.  If you must purchase this year, go with solid colors that will coordinate with what you already have. 

Gifts: Make a list of everyone you will be buying gifts and an estimate of the cost or amount to spend.  There are lots of shopping apps that let you share ideas with family members.  Not only saving you time but also money as you can compare prices easily online.  If you enjoy picking up a few unexpected items for stockings or appreciation gifts from coworkers, church friends, etc., please SHOP LOCAL. 

Consumable Gifts:  Consumable does not just mean food!  Although it may mean a gift card to a favorite but more expensive restaurant or it could be a special bottle of wine or a special whiskey and it could mean tickets to show or concert.  Think of consumables as items that can be enjoyed at a specific place and time.  They are also items that don’t require dusting or maintenance, but could be subscription based (3 times a year or for 6 months or 1 year). If interested in joining a wine club, I recommend the Boisset Collection.   

Regifting:  I am not encouraging that you give worn out things, nobody wants your junk, but think carefully about extras that you already have around your house, and gather them together and make an “emergency gift stash” that you can pull from when an unexpected invitation arrives or a work associate surprises you with a gift. 

Working as an organizer, I have seen sets from Bath and Body Works stored under bathroom cabinets or in the cabinets over the washing machine and I know the family is never going to use all that soap and lotion.  Also, if you have some candles that you have never lit and are still in really good shape, I suggest “re-gifting” them.  This is an excellent way to PURGE extras from your home and give a nice gift to someone else without spending any additional money.   

Purging as we go will make putting the holidays away so much easier after Christmas!  You may even have some extra storage bins! (We will find a use for them in the garage later in the spring).  And the items we donate may be just what that family that was displaced by a fire needed or a Christmas coffee mug might be just what a great-grandchild can take to the senior’s home to spread some cheer. 

I hope this article inspires you and encourages you to KEEP THE BEST and ENJOY IT FULLY!  And I pray that you know God’s love and protection.  He wants only the best for each of us and sometimes He helps us purge to draw us closer to Him. 

Enjoy the Holiday Season (for some that starts with Halloween!)

• UPDATED: AUGUST 30,2021
• ORIGINAL PUBLISH DATE: AUGUST 2020

Unfortunately, the pandemic continues, and the analogy still works, only now, we all realize that our “next normal” will not be the same as our “past normal”. 

As I was researching information for this article, I was trying to think of an analogy that would best describe what we are experiencing.  The idea of Semi-Permanent Hair Dye came to mind! 

Let’s look at the similarities…

Hair Dye:  Color choices range from “normal of brown, black, or red” to “bold colors of green, blue, or purple”.  Covid:  range of symptoms and different experiences.

Hair Dye: Lasts 4 to 8 weeks depending on what color you select and if you take care and use color-enhancing shampoo and conditioner. Covid:  Chances of catching and severity of symptoms depends on if you vaccinate and take other precautions.

Hair Dye:  Claims to be easy to apply, but we all know that our hair never looks as good as when done by a professional.  Covid:  Our healthcare professionals are doing the very best they can under extreme circumstances.

Notice I still think this can be a Semi-Permanent situation.  Unfortunately, we cannot assume that even with a vaccine, we can resume our pre-COVID lifestyles because not everyone will take the vaccine and that will prevent us from defeating it completely. 

Just to give some perspective, the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic lasted for over a year and had several peaks during that time.  Just because our cars are faster, our computers are faster, our flow of information is faster, does not mean we will have a cure to COVID-19 faster.  We need to adjust our expectations. 

Here are some key dates of 2020 I recall: 

Early April talking with a friend, and the thought that schools might not reopen in August seemed “impossible”.  At that point, the school where she taught had extended Spring Break from 1 week to 2 weeks to then the first of May and eventually canceling in school learning for the rest of the year.  Students, teachers, and parents were thrown into the world of virtual learning, and after school, activities stopped.  It was as if everything got dumped on the dining room table and everyone just had to adjust. 

Some adjustments were easier than others!  No one seemed to miss long commutes to work.  No one seemed to miss the alarm going off and everyone rushing around to get baths or showers and put on makeup or shave and get out the door with a Pop-tart in hand. 

But after a couple of weeks, we did realize we were missing some things from before COVID-19.  We missed talking with our child for a few uninterrupted minutes in the car on the way to ball practice.  We missed the feeling of coming home to share news about our day with our spouse because neither of us had left the house.  We missed the excitement of picking out a weeks’ worth of clothes on Sunday night. We missed Sunday feeling any different than Tuesday, or Friday!!! 

We missed transitions!  Going from one place to another.  Seeing different places and people.  Completing one activity and starting another. 

And now it is August 2020 and we don’t know what to expect as the number of cases rises and governments have to decide about reopening schools for classroom learning or continue with virtual learning for the foreseeable future.  August 2021, schools are open and debates continue about mask mandates.

Of course, those decisions affect our daily schedules and how we will work from home.  Changes to bus service, staggering school start times, also affect our schedules and will be part of our adjustments this year.   Many companies have already said their employees can continue to work from home until January and Google just announced it will continue WFH until summer of 2021.  August 2021, companies are struggling with staffing shortages and those that have required staff to return to an office have seen their workforce leave for other companies with WFH policies. 

If COVID-19 did not exist, we would be buying school supplies, getting new school uniforms (if needed) or at least new school clothes, and looking forward to Friday Night lights at high school stadiums.  We would also be looking forward to tailgating at college football games, and planning Sunday night wings and pizza parties to watch the NFL games. 

Unfortunately, COVID-19 does exist, and our world is very different because of it.  I think we need to be planning how we can change our homes for this new Semi-Permanent state of virtual learning, working from home, and greatly restricted social gatherings.

While we may not have control of many things right now, we do have control of our homes. We control what we bring into the house and where we put it.  And we control what happens in the spaces.  According to Better Homes & Garden, there are 7 ways that Corona Virus will change our homes:

https://www.bhg.com/decorating/lessons/expert-advice/coronavirus-interior-design/

Need to re-position some things?   Move some things out of the way that we are not using and make room for the things we NEED to be able to do in our homes!  In other words, we need to do more than just adapt or pivot.  Our new Semi-Permanent Middle of COVID Pandemic world requires us to recreate and redefine our spaces. 

Research shows we need these 4 distinct spaces within our homes for optimal performance and health.

• A place to Exercise
• A place to Sleep
• A place to Create (Work, Study)
• A place for Leisure (TV, Movies, Books, Hobbies, Crafts)

We cannot eat, work, sleep, and entertain ourselves in just one space, like the couch.  I suggest watching this 10 minute YouTube Video to learn more and get a visual of this optimal “home”

Lockdown Productivity:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snAhsXyO3Ck

Our homes have always been a place for us to rest, relax, entertain ourselves and others.  Now we must also find space for things like virtual learning, working from home, home gyms, and entertainment options that we enjoyed going out for but instead we must now stay in and create our own.  I hope that this article will give you some practical tips on how to reorganize your space to meet the current demands for yourself and your family.

Let’s start with what didn’t work so well when everyone and everything was just dumped together; around March 11, 2020…

We didn’t follow a schedule. We lost track of the days of the week.  We didn’t plan “special days or moments in the days”. Every day just felt like Tuesday. 

We lost the sacredness of certain spaces within our home.  Every activity occurred in the same place.  We were eating and working at the kitchen table or working and sleeping in the bedroom, or working, watching TV, and eating on the couch. 

Neither of these situations are sustainable, not for a year or however long our Semi-Permanent new normal requires.  So how can we change?

Steps 1,2,3:

First Step:  Acceptance!  This is not going to last forever, but it is going to be longer than we thought and longer than we wish.  By making physical changes to our homes we can change the way we feel about the situation.  We need to create “transitions” so that every moment of every day doesn’t feel the same.

Second Step:  Identify Needs!  Every family is different—some families had a parent working from home and have a home with a dedicated office space.  Other families have never had to set up “workspace” for both parents and children.  Some families were regularly active and want to continue practicing their favorite sport or dance or music.    

Third Step:  Reduce and Repurpose!  Both your space and your schedule

Reduce:  Identify what you don’t need right now and remove it from your home.  Some suggestions include…

                Work or school clothes (but staying in PJs all day is not okay!!!)-PURGE your closets, and dressers like never before!  Wrong sizes, Uncomfortable, Need Repair, Wrong Climate, any of these are easy indicator that it needs to go.  Evaluate what you are wearing daily now and keep similar items.  If you haven’t worn a pair of slacks since early March, you can probably reduce your pants down to 5 pairs of the best fitting, most flattering.  Same thing with jackets, ties, dress shirts, and dresses-purge and then purge again.  Don’t worry about running out of clean clothes. You are going to be home, you can wash clothes daily if needed. 

                Travel items (extra suitcases, briefcase, computer bags, even travel size toiletries)—if you don’t see yourself getting on an airplane or cruise ship, then why do you have so many suitcases?  Start with the easy ones—really big and really small.  Your pre-teen is not going to want to use the princess suitcase in a couple of years when you finally get to fly again.  And you are not going to need that oversized bag that holds 4 suits, shirts, and ties for a week-long conference.  By the time those start up again, you’ll need new suits anyway so get rid of the suits now too. 

                Commuter Goods like insulated lunch bags, Thermos and cold packs as well as backpacks and computer bags (keep your favorite for when we return to offices and schools, but old, dirty, and worn out ones need to go).  Lunches at home don’t require a bag or cold packs.  If you decide to have a picnic in your backyard, you can always use disposables. 

Extra Items you brought home from office. If you emptied your office cubicle or you aren’t in your car daily for client meetings, PURGE the extra items or at least work them into the family’s normal supply.  Things like office supplies, snacks and treats you may have had in your desk, coffee supplies and any over the counter medications or paper products (tissues).  Put office supplies in one central area that all can access.  

The laptop your company sent you to work from home needs to remain separate from the family pc while both can use the printer. 

                Schedules. Your schedule may have been reduced in some areas for you- no more commutes, no more after school practice, or social commitments.  But also look at reducing time on social media platforms, and news platforms (some people think those are the same thing!) so that you have the time for more cooking, helping with school lessons, anything that is now happening inside the home that didn’t before. 

Once you have emptied spaces, now you can repurpose those spaces.

Repurpose:  A cabinet that once stored thermos bottles, plastic lunch containers, insulated bags can now be repurposed to hold office and school supplies.  Or a closet that has been cleared of extra clothes can be turned into a functional office space or study space. 

Check out YouTube for videos on ideas and inspiration on how to turn a closet into an office.  If all you can do is pull together a folding table, a lamp, and some plastic storage bins then that’s okay—the point isn’t to impress on Pinterest, the point is to create a space that is going to allow you and your family to function better. 

The Better Homes & Garden article mentioned some areas of our homes that will be different in the future.  I want to offer some ideas and suggestions on how you can make these areas possible in your current home.  Please be open to looking at your space differently and realize that your space may not look like what you see on Pinterest.  Again, the point is to make it functional for this Semi-Permanent time without spending a lot of money and with the option of it being changed back at some point when possible. 

Larger Home Office or Study Space:  If your home does not have a separate study you know the challenges of trying to work from the dining room table or your bedroom.  

One solution may be to buy a folding desk and attach it to a wall in your bedroom.  Wayfair and Home Depot both offer desks for under $200. Another option may be to continue to work from the dining room table, and to set up a central supply cabinet (paper, pencils, pens, charging station for computers) and then each member to have a small basket or storage bin where items can be stashed so the family can reclaim the dining room each night for meals.   Storage bins can be found almost anywhere, but colorful and inexpensive ones are easy to find at Dollar Tree and Big Lots.

If you have a home office, you may need to share the space either by designating specific time blocks or by physically sharing the space.  If you are going to be sharing the space, create some “rules” that everyone can live with.  Music allowed?  Eating & Drinking in the space allowed?  Expectations during zoom calls? Just like teachers share Classroom rules with students when they return from summer vacation, your family will need to establish and enforce office rules.

Schedule:

And while we are on the subject of time blocking or scheduling I feel it is important to realize we all have different energy cycles.  Build your schedule around your energy cycles and build breaks into your schedule.  To learn more:  https://blog.trello.com/find-productive-hours

If your best energy is first thing in the morning, maybe you get to be in the office alone while your husband is making breakfast and getting the kids up and settled for their daily lessons.  Then in the afternoon when he is working on a project or deadline, you can check the kid’s lessons, and start making dinner. 

You can find several calendars and schedule templates online that can help you block out your day.  No one can work ALL day EVERY day.  Just like we have different rooms in our house, we need different activities on our schedule, and they need to be defined spaces and times. 

BREAKS:

Breaks you may want to consider building into your schedule –walking and stretching.   Every hour or an hour and a half, get up, stretch your body, and walk around for a few minutes.  Go outside and take a Non Smoking Break.  Refill your water glass. 

If you are concerned about getting “off track”, set a timer for the first couple of weeks.  Your students are familiar with changing rooms between classes and know they only have so many minutes to complete the task.  Build these 5 to 10-minute passing periods into your day. 

MEAL PREP & EATING:

One addition to your schedule may be meal prep and eating time.  Many families ate breakfast in the car on the way to school.  Without the drive to school it can be easy to let breakfast stretch on and on and pretty soon, the kids are hungry again and you’ve lost the entire morning.  I suggest having very easy to prepare items for both breakfast and lunch.  If the preparation takes too long or requires too many dishes or pans, you’ll waste valuable time and lose your focus on work.  Keep lunch hour to an hour total time, just like you did when you went to the office. 

Although I am not a fan of highly processed foods, there are some good frozen options for lunches.  I keep some on hand so that if I don’t have leftovers from dinner, I can quickly have an entrée and add fruit or a salad for a satisfying and fast option.

POWER NAP or QUIET TIME:

Right after lunch can also be a really good time for quiet reading or even a power nap.  If your meal prep is quick, and you eat in 20 to 25 minutes, you will still have time in your lunch break for a quick power nap.  Just like they tell new moms “Nap when the baby naps”, take the advice and find a space for 15-20 minutes of quiet time for yourself.  The extra stress everyone is under right now takes a toll on our immune system and power naps have been shown to help lower our stress hormones and improve our health.  https://www.webmd.com/balance/features/the-secret-and-surprising-power-of-naps#1

Reading Nooks or Private Spaces:

When I saw it mentioned I didn’t understand why but then I started thinking about how common it was to go to Starbucks for coffee and take a book and just read, sip coffee, people watch a little.  I think that is what you can create by setting up a reading nook.  Instead of the open concept where everyone is together all the time, creating spaces where people can go and come back from will help keep us from feeling trapped. 

Move a chair, small table, or bookshelf and lamp to the corner of the room.  Place a tall plant to shield the view.  Now when you need a few minutes to prepare for a conversation or presentation you need to make, you can retreat to this space.

Expanded Outdoor Entertaining Space: 

Of course, there is still a lot we don’t know about COVID-19 but it appears that being outside with sunlight, and more fresh air is better for us than staying inside with the AC going.   Outdoor spaces are not only going to be for dining, but also for limited social interactions.  Maybe you have “driveway happy hour”, or maybe you have a “bring you own box dinner” with friends so no cross-contamination occurs.

And don’t worry about buying new patio furniture, the trend is to use old blankets thrown over chairs or benches, old planters turned upside down for tables, and old wooden pallets either leaning against a tree or house to create a very casual setting.  Add a few strings of lights from the Christmas decorations and you’ve instantly got an inviting patio for conversations and cocktails. 

Garages are becoming Home Gyms:

This isn’t a new use for garages.  Many guys have weight sets and machines in their garage.  A few even have a functioning treadmill.  What is new is that with gyms closed, there is added interest in getting to use the equipment more frequently and even expanding the space for cardio like jump rope, and hula hoops.  You don’t have to park your car outside permanently.  But you will have to organize your garage space and keep it organized.  Just like at the gym, weights must go back on the racks. 

If you want to expand your exercise area so that the entire family can exercise together, then other items may need to be relocated.  But first PURGE all the “extras” that have collected in the garage.  Extra yard tools, tools with batteries that don’t stay charged anymore, toys the kids have outgrown, extra lumber, etc. 

Clutter is just postponed decisions.  Make the decision now-either discard it, donate it, or decide to keep it and place it somewhere that doesn’t interfere with the exercise space.  For more help with your garage, check out my previous post Cycles of Decluttering-B Phase where I give details on how to declutter and organize your garage. 

Mudrooms or Entry Areas: 

Instead of bringing everything into the kitchen and dropping it on the countertop, we are now looking for an “unloading zone”.  In the past, it may have just been a basket for the keys to be dropped into, but now we have masks that need to be washed and hung up so we can use the next time we head out.  We want to have a place to wash our hands, and of course to unpack groceries and recycle packaging from items we order online. 

There may not be a lot you need to do to prepare an area in your home for this besides hanging a few hooks on the wall or placing a bin in the garage for recycling mail and cardboard.  You may need to practice not placing grocery bags or your purse on the kitchen counter and of course, washing your hands each time you return home and when you have put the groceries away or opened delivered packages. If you’re not sure, just wash your hands again! 

Now is not the time to give up on our families or our communities.  Instead, as the video says, it is our opportunity to come back better.  Our homes can be better designed for not only now but the future.  Our schedules can be better without long commutes and wasted hours in traffic.  Our physical health can be better with a focus on exercise and good quality sleep.  This time requires both discipline and grace. 

If you need help PURGING or REDESIGNING SPACE for your family to function better, please let us know.  I am happy to give a free consultation and discuss your goals and then present you with an action plan and cost estimate. GCarter@Organized-Occasions.com or Contact Us

I think it is safe to say, we will never SHOP the same after the 2020 Pandemic.

Many stores that have struggled to survive the past couple of years (Pier 1, JCPenny’s, Neiman Marcus, JCrew) are going to permanently close.  Some have already started clearance sales and store closings.

Items that we previously purchased at a store are now part of a “subscription-based” program and arrive at our front door as scheduled.  Subscriptions include everything from dog food, toothpaste, clothing, shaving cream, and razors.

Grocery stores that had expanded to over 50K items are now reducing products and reallocating space as the supply chain adjusts to the ever-changing consumer.  More families are using home delivery from restaurants, meal kits, and grocery delivery services instead of shopping themselves in a brick and mortar location. (Recent survey said only 65% of food purchases were made at a grocery store.)

The traditional Saturday afternoon trip to the mall to window shop, enjoy a fresh baked cookie from Great American Cookie company, and catch a movie at the cinema  is a thing of the past. 

If we have learned anything over the last 14 months, it is that we can quickly adjust where and how we shop.

I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts that YOU HAVE CONTROL OVER WHAT COMES IN :

Into your house. 

Into your mind.

And Into your mouth. 

And your will power is strongest and most effective at the point of purchase.  If you never buy it, you never have to deal with it in your home!

In terms of purchases for our homes, there are 4 common approaches:

Minimalism, Consumerism, Essentialism, and Reductionism

First, some definitions

Minimalism:  Owning Fewer Possessions—people often think of stark white walls, one chair, one plant.  And yet, it is also the perspective of purchasing less stuff that allows for more freedom to travel or create experiences.  There are several good resources to learn more:  Joshua Becker, Becoming Minimalist, Ryan Nicodemus, and Joshua Fields Millburn The Minimalist

Consumerism: Acquisition of goods in increasing amounts—Black Friday Sales with hundreds of people pushing each other to grab the last TV; shopping at Costco for multiples of everything; Walmart, Target, Amazon.  Consumerism has been a powerful economic force for the past 50 years.  Unfortunately, easy credit has caused people to overextend with credit card debt and the home mortgage crisis of 2007.  This article provides a summary of that crisis:  https://www.thebalance.com/mortgage-crisis-overview-315684

Essentialism:  Determining what is essential to you in terms of items, people, commitments, and maintaining those regardless of age, available space, or resources.  Marie Kondo style of decluttering where you identify the items that you need and everything else is purged. Essentialism can look like a minimalist house or a home can be filled with lots of beautiful accessories and items.  It is completely up to the individual to determine what is essential.

Reductionism:  Working toward a place of balance of what you have and what you need for your current situation and the future.  A place that many people find themselves in now, where what they needed 6 months ago is different from what they need today.  And if their income has changed, then reducing their expenses to meet the new income.  Families are digging in and getting creative with food items already in their pantry instead of going to the store.  Parents are sharing the school supplies with their students as they all work and learn from home.  And as our commutes to work change so does our automobile or public transportation needs. 

I personally believe we all favor a specific approach at specific times in our lives.  In our youth, consumerism is common as we tend to want to buy the next new game, the next Lego set, the popular clothing brand.  Even when we are out on our own, the desire to purchase items for our family increases.  Then at some point, you may find you want to “downsize” or as it is sometimes called “right-size” and you may find yourself in essentialism or even as far as minimalism. 

During the national shelter in place we experienced this spring, we found ourselves stuck inside and looking at our stuff All Day Every Day.  Many people began asking questions about their possessions.  For some, the decluttering and purging started immediately and was only halted by the fact that resale shops were closed so there was no place to take the donations.  Others were able to purchase storage bins and labels and now have organized garages and closets and know what they own and where it is.  It is a natural response that when things outside of our control are increasing, we look for ways to feel in control. 

If you did not spend time decluttering or organizing or doing what I am calling “ The Great American Clean Out”  you may need to take a few minutes to just look at your stuff and get an objective perspective.  And if at any point you feel overwhelmed or confused, you may need to seek assistance from a professional organizer or at least a highly organized friend.  

Ask yourself some questions like: 

How do you feel about the amount of stuff you own? 

How do you feel about how you are caring for the stuff? 

How much time are you spending dealing with it and is that what you want to be doing?

Let’s say you own a BOAT.  

You enjoy taking the boat out every weekend.  You know that you must clean and care for the boat, but you enjoy that as well.  I’d say, KEEP THE BOAT!  It is providing entertainment value, giving you a place of relaxation and good fresh air and sunlight.  All positives.

Let’s say you own 2 bicycles. 

You haven’t moved the bikes in at least a year; both bikes have flat tires and cobwebs in the wheels.  I’d say, SELL or DONATE THE BIKES!  They are not providing an exercise option and the longer they sit unused, the more the tires age and will be useless for someone else. 

See the difference? 

The Rule of Sunk Cost:  What you paid for an item has no bearing on its value to you now.  Keeping it in a closet, storage shed, or garage does not make it more valuable or return money spent.  It is SUNK.

Areas to clean out: 

Attic or Basement (depending on where you live you may have one and not the other or may have both)

Garage (primary use is to protect your car from the elements, but less than 30% of homeowners can park their car in the garage)

Storage Shed or Unit (9.4% of population rent a storage unit.  More stats about storage units)

Closets (see other blog posts)

Cabinets (Kitchen, Bathroom, Laundry Room, office file cabinets)

Pantry and Freezer (One of my favorite areas to organize!  This is your micro grocery store; it should be arranged like one!)

Quick & Easy Steps to Clear Out some of these spaces:

1. Use up what you have.  Be sure you have gathered everything into one place —you don’t want to find a stash of cleaning supplies under the guest room bath.  Do not buy any more food, paper goods, beauty supplies until you have used what you have.  Make it a game.  Everyone writes down when they think you will have to shop to replace it.  This will also help you budget in the future.  If you see that you can go 6 months on 36 rolls of toilet paper, then you will not rush to buy more when a forecast calls for heavy rains, or ice because you know you have 18 rolls in the hall closet and that’s a 3 month supply. 
2. Set deadlines.  If you are wanting to empty the storage unit you pay $110/ month, then set a deadline for when you want to be out of it.  Double-check when they will bill your account for the next month so that you can be sure to be out before that date. 
3. Get uncomfortable for a while.  Instead of “out of sight, out of mind”, put the boxes right on the table or in front of the TV.  If you can’t sit down to eat dinner or you can’t recline back in your chair, you will be motivated to work through the boxes and finally make a decision about the items—continue to store, or remove? 
4. Stay focused on the desired outcome.  Remind yourself why you are cleaning out the garage or the freezer—monthly savings, reduce food waste, repurpose the space for home gym or home office. 

Owning stuff should not fuel our happiness!  The only way to reduce our desire to own more is to start being grateful for what we already have.  This is also true in our relationships.  When we are grateful for the friends, family, neighbors we have, we can enjoy them more and they will enjoy us more too! 

Once you’ve cleaned out these spaces, the best way to maintain them is to STOP SHOPPING. 

• Cut up credit cards from stores (usually have higher interest rates anyway). 
• Follow the 1 in 2 out rule—for every item you bring in, you must donate two. 
• Unsubscribe from emails. You know your favorite stores; you don’t need to be reminded to go to their website when it’s time to purchase again.  And getting emails everyday encourages more and more spending and unplanned purchases. 
• Adjust your subscription plans.  Are you using what you are getting in before the next shipment arrives or are you starting to have a surplus?

I mentioned that you may need to get help with some of these projects.  As a professional organizer, I can help you evaluate your current situation, put together a plan, and estimate time needed to complete the project.  My consultation is FREE.  You can also purchase a gift certificate from me to give to a family member or as a client appreciation gift.

According to a study conducted by the United States Census Bureau, the average person will move their household 11.7 times in their lifetime.  The US Life Expectancy is currently 78.69 years which means we move every 6 years! 

There are many types of moves– Corporate Relocations, Upsizing or Downsizing, First Home Purchase, Going Off to College, Retirement Centers or Assisted Living Facilities and each of these moves require thousands of decisions to be made. 

Unfortunately, all that decision making can make us weary, exhausted, dog-tired, worn out, and fatigued!  And the decisions start long before moving day.  As a Professional Organizer I have helped clients to pack and move but not until my recent move (July 2019) did, I feel the impact of all the decisions and feel the weariness, both physical and mental. 

I am very proud of how well my family has handled this move and how well it went from start to finish. I hope this article helps you to prepare for your next move and makes it as easy as moving can be. (Hint—You are still going to be worn out!) 

Let’s look at a couple of Different Types of Moves and the usual ways they occur:

                Corporate Relocation:  Your employer has asked you to move to a new location and you have a deadline for when you need to be there.  The biggest advantage of a corporate move is that the company picks up the expense for packing and moving your belongings.  Generally, a moving company is selected, and a packing date is set.  Then depending on the distance to the new location the moving truck is loaded and arrives within a few days to begin unloading.  Corporate movers are usually very good about packing your items, so they transport without getting broken.  However, sometimes in the rush to get the packing completed, they will pack unwanted items in a box including dirty clothes and full trash cans! 

If you have a corporate move in your future, I highly recommend that you SORT and PURGE your belongings before packing day.  You will not have time to purge as they are packing, and you can’t be in multiple locations within your home while multiple moving company staff members pack your belongings. 

Once you arrive at your new location the boxes will be placed in the rooms as they are labeled (this can be a disadvantage if you want things to go to a different room). They will unpack the boxes and remove all the packing materials. 

Upsizing or Downsizing: Most of us will change the size of the house we live in a couple of times—we may go bigger when we have children (or when our incomes allow us) and we may go smaller when they move out (or we want to stretch our retirement income).  The rooms will be different sizes and shapes that may require us to replace furnishings.  The key is making sure the furniture fits the new room.  His favorite chair may not fit with the oversized couch in your new living room and you’ll have to decide which to keep and which to replace.   Or you’ll find that you need an additional chair or two by the fireplace.  These moves are generally a DIY project (with help from good friends and neighbors) and have more flexibility on the actual moving day. 

If you know you are going to be moving in the next 6 months, I suggest that you start SORTING, PURGING and PACKING early. 

For my move, I created a Color-Coded Label System (I am happy to send you the template) where each room has a different color label that will be placed on the box and ALL CONTENTS are listed.

In our case, we were setting up a second residence, so I wanted to be sure that any items I had duplicates of were packed for the 2^nd home saving us money to repurchase something we already owned. But I had to be sure I didn’t need that item at our primary residence so by listing the contents on the label I could easily retrieve it if needed.  And the color-coded boxes made unloading and unpacking much faster and easier!!!

We unloaded all the boxes into the garage and then carried in only the room we were working on at that time.  No stepping over boxes to get to the ones we needed.  And the labels helped me find the most important (coffee maker) box the night we arrived for the following morning!

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If you are going from one primary residence to another, start with items that are in storage and used infrequently like craft and holiday items, garden and tools, or appliances that you don’t use every week.  Get these items sorted and purged and then packed with contents on the labels. 

Next on your packing order should be entertaining items like extra glasses, barware, serving pieces—this is a great time to decide how much of these do you need in your new home???!!! Our lifestyles often change when we move and if you are not going to be hosting large parties anymore, now is the time to purge the excess pieces.  Or if you have a partial set of dishes or glasses that you have been holding on to because you had a cabinet for them, go ahead and rid yourself of them now and save the time and effort to pack and unpack. 

Retirement or Assisted Living Facility:  For many families, the decision to move a parent into an assisted living facility comes on suddenly and can be extremely stressful.  We all have a sentimental attachment to our stuff, but we must accept that other family members don’t have the same attachment.  Most kids do not want their parents’ stuff and that goes for Gen Xers to Millennials.

Although items need to be sorted and purged the process may take longer than we would like and I can only say to cherish the time together, ask lots of questions to learn the stories about the “stuff”, take pictures and keep pushing forward to get the items packed and moved to the facility or packed to donate/sell. 

You can surround them with their favorite items but remember that if everything is “the favorite” then really nothing is—because they can’t all be the same value.

Let’s get started making decisions—SORTING, PURGING, PACKING:

SORT:  Gather all like things together.  All the DVDs, all the books, all the glassware, all the tools, all the towels, and sheets, etc.  Gather from multiple locations and put all together.  You must see it all together to really know how much you have!  When the towels are spread between 3 bathrooms it doesn’t look like so much, but when you bring them all together on the kitchen table, you can match up sets, discard any with holes or stains and keep only the very best to use. 

PURGE:  Discard, Donate, and Sell items as you go.  Why pay for the movers to load something that you don’t really want anymore? It is easier to purge when you see how much you are keeping, instead of looking at what you are giving away. This is why bringing like items together to sort; helps you purge and ultimately pack. 

PACK:  Use packing paper to wrap all kitchen items, pictures, and knick-knacks.  Generally, I like to keep like items together, however, if you have a 2-story house you may need some upstairs and some down so you should pack for both locations.  When you are ready to load the truck, move everything into the garage.  Again, it helps you to see how much you really have when it is all together! Load the boxes first and then the furniture.  When you unload you can place the furniture inside the house in the correct room and put the boxes in the garage. 

Supplies to have on hand when packing: 

1.  Boxes: a variety of sizes. It is best if they have not been used for food storage/transportation (you don’t want unwanted oils or fragrances to get into your clothes or books). Check on NextDoor or other social media options for used boxes.  If you are going to buy boxes, I suggest buying wardrobe boxes for your hanging clothes.  They hold a lot of clothes and you can pack large artwork in with the clothes as well.
2. Packing Paper:  Buy at least 2 boxes to start and some bubble wrap as well.  Wrap items to prevent breakage and pack the boxes with extra paper to prevent movement in the box.  Breaks happen when items can shift and move in the box.  No empty space!
3. Packing Tape and Dispensers:  Nothing is more frustrating than trying to find the end of a roll of tape! 
4. Black and Red Sharpies:  Medium point to write on the labels.  Use RED to mark any boxes as FRAGILE. 
5. Pre-Printed Color-Coded Labels:  Write the contents on the label as you wrap, and place in the box.

Supplies to have on hand when loading truck:

1. Work Gloves: this is hard, physical labor. Save your hands from cuts, blisters.
2. 2-wheel Dolly: to move boxes on and off the truck
3. Blankets:  these are available with rental truck companies and are not expensive but prevent damage to furniture
4. Bungee Cords and Straps:  you will need to prevent items from shifting on the truck
5. Water Bottles:  depending on the time of year and climate, but it is hard physical labor so stay hydrated.

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As for the size of the truck—this is a 15-foot truck with space over the cab.  I was only moving the Living Room, Dining Room, and Office Furniture along with lots of boxes (bedrooms furniture came from the store the next day).  You can see we were not full but due to the great packing and strapping everything in.. NOTHING broke!

A few final tips:

And if all this still sounds overwhelming, hire a Professional Organizer (like me!).  We can keep the process moving (pun intended)!!! Helping you sort, and purge at your old house, or helping you unpack and place items in the best location in your new house.  We make it easier for you!

I always work from a checklist and want to share a couple that I found to be very helpful:

The best moving checklist I found is from SMEAD Organomics. It starts 8-12 weeks before the move to give yourself plenty of time to SORT, PURGE and PACK.

Click on the link and then find “Printable Checklists: Moving Checklist”

Bed, Bath, and Beyond has checklists for Apartment and Campus—more for items to buy, but still a good list to review

https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/registry/CollegeChecklistPage

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

– Lao Tzu

Have you ever looked in your closet and said?

• “What a mess!” 
• “Why did I buy this?”
• “What am I going to wear?  I’ve got to be out of the house in 15 minutes”

What feelings does a morning like this bring on?

Frustration, Resentment, Anxiety, even a little Depression. 

I understand and I’ve had those same thoughts and feelings.  Seems that our closet conversations can set the tone for our entire day.  We start our day with negative thoughts and messages and sure enough, we have a really bad day! 

What if instead we looked in our closet and said…

Now, what feelings are you having?

                Happy, Confident, Empowered, maybe even a little Excited.

With these thoughts and messages, how do you think your day will go?  What kind of decisions will you make?  When we start our day with positive thoughts and messages, we usually have positive days and if we have some adversity, we can face it more confidently. 

So how can we change the conversations we have each morning? How can we get our closets and our clothes to talk nice to us again? How can we start our days with positive messages?

We need to fill our closets with clothes we want to wear and get rid of the other stuff!  But before we start cleaning out, we first need to identify our personal style.  Your personal style reflects your uniqueness and tastes and then allows you to express it and present it to the world.  The clothes you own and wear need to align with your style.

Styles

Identifying your personal style will help when you start Sorting and Purging your clothes. 

Fashion blogs and books have identified 5 style types—the names vary a little depending on who wrote the article:

• Feminine or Girly
• Modern or Classic (these are the same, trust me!)
• Casual or Sporty
• Bold or Edgy
• BOHO (everyone agrees on this name!)

Let’s look at each just a bit more and see if you can easily identify which is your style. 
Activities may change but styles tend to remain consistent throughout our lives. 

Feminine or Girly:

Think frilly or flirty.  Soft colors. Lots of florals and prints with details like lace, ribbons, bows.

Modern or Classic:

Think simplicity and elegance over trendy. Little Black Dress (LBD) with pearls. Solids colors.

Casual or Sporty:

Think sports fan or yoga instructor. All about comfort. It can still be fashionable—athleisure wear is very popular with celebrities going from workout to lunch out!

Bold or Edgy:

Think hipster and glam. Bold colors and combinations. Details like zippers, metal snaps, and animal prints.

BOHO:

Think free spirit and nature lover. Vintage, Resale, Repurposed or Handmade. 

If you are not sure which of these you most identify with, look through magazines and see which outfits you are drawn to.  Also, check out a couple of your favorite clothing companies’ blogs to see if they have articles about styles.

Here are a couple I use:

Cabi:  www.cabionline.com/blog

Wardrobe Oxygen:  https://www.wardrobeoxygen.com/about/

Space

Now that you have identified your personal style we can start working with your clothes.  But before we get started on the clothes let’s prep the space.  Remove everything from the closet and give it a good cleaning—dust, vacuum, remove the trash.  Also, repair and improve it.  Fix any rods that may have broken, add a rod if you can up high for out of season items, change light bulbs to more energy-efficient and provide better lighting (LEDs are great!).

Remove any item that does not belong in your closet and take it to the room or space it does belong.  No judgment, I know you just need a place to stash stuff before the in-laws arrived!!!

Now visualize how you want your closet to look.  Where do you want the dresses to go?  Where should the jackets go?  The final arrangement may change, but I hope that by visualizing you are encouraged to really sort and purge items to get to a place where everything in your closet makes you happy, energized, and ready to put your “best self” out into the world.

System

We will use the acronym SPACE:  Sort, Purge, Assign a home spot, Containerize, Evaluate 

Ask yourself some questions:

“Where am I in my career?” “Do I need professional suits & dresses anymore?”

“What are my hobbies or how to I spend my free time?” “Gardening, Painting, Volunteering”

“What is my family situation?”  “On the go Mom? Empty Nester?”

“What is my current fitness level, health, weight?” “Recovering from surgery or just lost weight”

SORT & PURGE:

SORT:  The first thing we need to do is get ALL YOUR CLOTHES together, but, please do not just pile them on the bed (I know you have seen it on Tidying Up—but that is for dramatic TV, not real life!).  Gather everything from under the bed, inside the bins in the guest room, wherever you have put clothes, find them and bring them together.  Now start sorting them into categories—put all the jeans in one pile, put all the dresses in another, and so on.  This way when you start to try on and pick which items are staying you can see exactly how many jeans you’ve picked to stay instead of bouncing back and forth and not knowing how many you are keeping.  And depending on what phase of life you are in you can also decide how many pairs of jeans do you need.  If you are volunteering at the local thrift store you will need more than when you were working at the bank or presenting cases in the courtroom all day.  And you will not need as many dresses or suits now. 

Save any bins you empty and all the best hangers!  Also, save boxes that are clean and in good shape.  These will be used in the containerize step or at least a way to carry items to the donation center.

PURGE:  Let’s make 3 piles:  Yes, No, Maybe. 

The Maybe pile we will come back to after we have put all the Yes items back into the closet and can see if we need to fill in any gaps in our wardrobe. 

Items in the No pile can be donated, sold or disposed of.  Selling used clothing is not always easy if you don’t have a good consignment store nearby.  Sometimes it is just easier to donate it and let someone else worry about selling it. 

Items in the Yes pile go back into the closet on the best hangers.  I like to use the same hangers throughout the closet, and they can be all plastic or all felt, but never metal ones from dry cleaners!  If you don’t have enough good hangers, put on metal temporarily and as a final step count how many you need and purchase matching hangers.  I promise it makes such a difference in how your clothes look in the closet if everything is on the same type of hanger! 

ASSIGN A HOME SPOT: 

Let’s set an expectation here.  Your closet is NOT going to look like the photo in The Container Store sale catalog.  First you have more than 6 items and second, your clothes are not all white or beige!  But uniformity will help. 

Start by putting all your YES items back into the closet.  A few people like their closets to be color-coded, but most want theirs arranged by category.  Be sure when you are returning items to the closet that you hang everything uniformly—collars facing the same direction, hang pants so the pockets are facing out (helps identify which pants/jeans), dresses and skirts hung facing same way. 

Immediately get rid of the NO items—trash bin or donate.  This is their new home spot!

Place the MAYBE items in a storage bin for now. 

CONTAINERIZE: 

Typically, we are talking about shoes but this can also refer to bulky sweaters, scarfs, even jewelry.  Use the containers we saved to at least give yourself some temporary storage solutions.

EVALUATE:

Pick 10 combos from the clothes you have kept.  Lay them out together and take a picture (then return to the closet).  Wear these out and see how you feel and if you get any feedback on how you look.  I bet it will be positive.

If you feel like you need help with combinations, check out different Capsule Wardrobes online.  Allison on Wardrobe Oxygen does capsule wardrobes every season.  They are designed to show a few items used in multiple combinations. 

As you wear the 10 combos you picked, start thinking of your next 10 and see if you have enough in your closet or if you need to add some items back from the Maybe bin.  Give yourself the first month to see if you need to pull items out and add them to your closet, if not, take anything that remains in the Maybe bin to a donation center.  You should now have at least 4 weeks of clothes that you can wear any day and feel good about yourself. 

Also use this guide for help with different style charts:  https://www.buzzfeed.com/juliegerstein/girl-you-look-good

It was written in 2015 but has some good information. 

(PS—there is also one for men that I think every guy needs to read  https://www.buzzfeed.com/juliegerstein/31-simple-style-cheat-sheets-for-guys-who-dont-know-wtf?bfsource=relatedauto)

Now can you hear it?  It’s your closet saying

                You Go Girl

                You Got This!

                Be the Winner God created you to be!

There is no one like you!

Original Blog Post written in 2020 during Covid-19 shut downs and stay at home mandates.

When I wrote my post “Cycles of Decluttering, Organizing, and Cleaning” (original post-Dec 2019) I mentioned there is an A Phase (late Dec through Jan and into May) and a B Phase (June through December) during the year and that when we got to the B Phase I would write a follow-up post. 

WOW—I don’t think any of us knew how different 2020 would be at that point.  And yet it seems the cycles are continuing right on schedule as they always do.  Here’s what the typical cycles look like:

 A Phase and B Phase:

Months that these Phases typically occur:

Decluttering:

A Phase: Late Dec, Jan & Feb

B Phase:  June, July

Organizing:

A Phase:  March

B Phase:  Aug, Sept

Cleaning:

A Phase: April, May

B Phase: Oct, Nov

This year, 2020, as we were entering the organizing phase in March Covid-19 put us all in lockdown where we stayed through April and May which are usually the months for the cleaning phase.  I know I personally deep cleaned every room during April and May! 

And now here we are in June, and back to the Decluttering phase.  I’m sure there are things that you have dealt with the past couple of months that you would LOVE to THROW AWAY (husbands and kids may even be on your list!) And there are things you may wish to hold onto and treasure as reminders of this time as well. 

I hope that we can use some of our decluttering energy in our garages, storage sheds, and attics.  For many families, the garage is the MOST DISORGANIZED space in their home.  Everybody uses it but no one really claims it as their responsibility.  The attic is the place stuff gets put when we don’t want to make a decision—it is purgatory for our stuff—not used or valued but still around.  And any extra storage space, a shed, or a stall at one of the storage facilities, is also like purgatory but with a price tag (purchase price for the shed and monthly fee for a stall).  At some point someone is going to have to deal with the stuff and the space—take the time NOW to do it and you’ll feel so proud when you finish.  Additional Resource:  Article from This Old House–

We will continue to use the SPACE system—

Sort, Purge, Assign a home, Containerize, Evaluate.

An estimate of the time this could take is easily 20 to 30 hours depending on how long it has been since you last worked in the space, and how much stuff you have.  The majority will be cleaning out the space and sorting through the items.  You will need to move everything out, thoroughly clean (sweep, hose out, blow off, throw away trash), make repairs as needed, and add or improve lighting before putting things back in.  The reason you want to move everything is that often this step quickly identifies items that are broken and can go directly into the trash. 

TIP: Have lots of heavy-duty trash bags and don’t overfill them so they rip or can’t be lifted and moved to the curb or trash bin. Toss anything that is mildewed, moth-eaten, broken, or dried out, as well as old newspapers, magazines, college notebooks and textbooks, pet bedding, and cardboard boxes (bugs love to hide and reproduce in these).

SORT: 

What is actually in your garage?  Sort it by categories (think of the signs you see at the home improvement store—Plumbing, Lawn & Garden, Lumber) and look for any broken items to throw out.

Typical Categories—may vary based on location and weather

• Gardening/Yard Work Tools
• Bug Spray, Weed Spray, other chemicals
• Sports Equipment, Bikes, Camping Equipment
• Paint, and painting supplies
• Auto repair items
• Toolbox
• Storage boxes
• Halloween and Christmas outdoor decorations
• Extra Refrigerator or Freezer
• Trash Cans and Recycle Can or Bin

PURGE:

Once you have items SORTED and grouped, now you can PURGE. 

Open all the boxes to see what is inside and if you need to toss the contents.  If the bin or container is still in good shape, hold on to it and it will either be used to carry items to be donated or may be reused as a container for something else.  If it is a cardboard box or a plastic bin that is broken, take to the trash.

Questions to ask yourself while purging????

• If you pay for your lawn to be mowed, why do you have a mower, weedeater, and edger? 
• How many years of office files do you need to keep?  Check with IRS, or any other government or regulatory agency to confirm the number of years and statute of limitations.
• Paint and Chemicals—are they still usable?  Be very careful with chemicals—no mixing or combining to save space.  If you have paint that you want to throw away, be sure the paint in the can is dry or you will need to find an appropriate disposal site.
• Any duplicates of tools or equipment, if yes, see if the young family that just moved in could use the extra rake and shovel or put them on the curb with a FREE sign.  Keep the best ones for yourself of course!
• Call your grown kids and tell them to come get their bikes, and other sports equipment or you will be donating these items. 

Let’s talk about the extra freezer or refrigerator.  I know during the lockdown many people stocked up and needed the extra storage.  If you have an extra refrigerator in your garage, be sure there is space around it for airflow and consider plugging into a surge protector in case power is interrupted.  Also, the heat from the garage will put more strain on it to keep the desired temperature.  Tell the kids, and grandkids to not leave the door open too long when they are grabbing drinks or other items from it.  And be sure to practice FIFO—First In, First Out (rotate your stock so the oldest is in front and will be used first).

ASSIGN a home spot:

At this point, you should have only the items you are keeping and using.  And can tell about how much space you need for those items.  You may want to sketch out a floor plan of your garage and even take a few measurements to see if you can move existing shelves or stackable bins around to get more floor space.

What are the categories you have?  Each category needs a “home spot”.  Exactly where the home spot is in the garage is determined by several factors. 

Freezers and Refrigerators need electricity (not recommended to use extension cords) so they have to be set up near an electrical outlet. 

Kids Bikes need to be where they are not going to be accidentally run over when you back the car out or knock over lawn tools when the kids want to go ride them. 

Just like in a closet or pantry, the more frequently used items, need to be easy to get to and then easy to put back in place. Seasonal items can be stored up high or behind other items.  Be sure to not place heavy items on top of lighter weight items that could be crushed or could fall and crush you! 

CONTAINERIZE:

Anything can be a container.  And ultimately the garage itself is the container.  It all has to fit in the garage—PLUS YOUR CAR/TRUCK/SUV (only 30% of Americans can put their cars in the garage—but your car costs more than everything in your garage!). 

If you need shelving or storage bins, I recommend checking out Shelving.com In addition to metal shelving, they have fun and colorful lockers that you could use in a kid’s bedroom, playroom, or even laundry room.  Check out their entire product line. 

EVALUATE: 

It is best to do a daily evaluation or review of all spaces.  Take a few minutes to put the tools away or to hang the bike on the hooks. 

You have just spent HOURS getting this space organized but until you use it and see what is working and what is not, you can’t tell if everyone is going to be able to help maintain the space.  And if it cannot be maintained, then you’ll most likely need to spend HOURS again next year Sorting, Purging, etc.  Daily or at least weekly spot checks to see if where you placed items is working out for everyone or if you need to make a few adjustments.

Hire a Professional: 

Anywhere in the process, you may feel you need assistance completing the steps.  As a Professional Organizer I can help you with the SORTING, PURGING, ASSIGNING a Home, and CONTAINERIZING.  Notice I said I can HELP you—because it is your stuff and your family, you will have to be involved in the process.  Sure, I can come and find the easy stuff to purge—but if you keep things that you don’t use, you won’t get the full use of the space.  And instead of just a little bit better, let’s really get it decluttered, organized, and cleaned out this time. 

You may also feel you need to add shelving or need to add electrical outlets, a fan, or other light fixtures added, and I encourage you to hire professionals to help with these tasks as well.  Check references on anyone you hire to work on your home. 

For every minute spent organizing, an hour is earned.

-Benjamin Franklin

Original Blog Article written 2019.

A funny thing starts to happen around the end of December and carries into January and Feb.  A cycle or wave of restless energy starts to pull us toward Decluttering projects.  And then as spring breaks thru in March we start to want to Organize things and as the weather warms up we start to want to Clean things.  This cycle repeats during the year giving us an A Phase and B Phase.

Months that these Phases typically occur:

Decluttering:

A Phase: Late Dec, Jan & Feb

B Phase:  June, July

Organizing:

A Phase:  March

B Phase:  Aug, Sept

Cleaning:

A Phase: April, May

B Phase: Oct, Nov

For example, as you sit here in late December and start looking around your house you may start to notice some future Decluttering projects.  Maybe you see a whole cabinet full of movie DVDs and realize you never use your DVD player anymore because of Netflix or other streaming services.  And then you see all the music CDs (lots of money spent on those in the past) and again realize that with Pandora, Google Music, Spotify, etc. you never pop in one of those anymore either.  And of course, all the books!  Are the books just something to cover the shelves or something to dust since you read off a Kindle or listen to audiobooks in the car?  All these items are becoming obsolete due to technology.  And the question we all must ask is, “What do I do with these items now?” 

If you have a “cabin in the woods/lake house/beach cottage” where you don’t pay for high-speed internet and you could take these items there and actually enjoy and use them, then get a box, load it up and plan to take it the next time you go.  Easy Solution!  If you don’t have a second home the next best thing you can do is donate them.  The reality is that you will not go back in technology—they are not going to come back into use.  So just like clothes that no longer fit, these items have lost their usefulness and need to be removed from your space. 

Items to focus on Decluttering in A Phase:  DVD, CD, Books as well as Paper Files, Computer Files, and Photos.  These are all items you can do while inside during the long cold winter (Decluttering A Phase is late Dec – Feb). 

***Keep utility bills, pay stubs, and bank statements for 1 year.  Keep tax returns and documents for 3 years (more in some cases).  Everything else can be shredded or deleted. 

Also, consider unsubscribing to Catalogs and Emails.  Catalogs are bad for the environment, take up space, and encourage you to buy things you don’t need.  Call and ask to be removed from their list.  The daily emails waste your time and energy to read or delete and they also encourage you to buy things you don’t need.  It seems like there is a sale or a promotion EVERY SINGLE DAY.  If you really do need something, search online for the item and you may find you get a better deal or at least have saved 15% of the purchase price by not spending unnecessarily.

Other items to Declutter include Over the Counter Medicines (check expiration dates), Lotions, Soaps, Cosmetics.  Use them up and start 2020 with fresh new ones.  And stop buying so much at one time!  Costco has trained us all to have closets full of paper supplies, vitamins, shampoo, body wash.  Most of us don’t live in Antarctica and if you start to run low, you can get more.  If you really love certain items from Costco, share with family or neighbors or donate half to local charities that can use them. 

While you are sorting papers and photos (online or prints) burn some of the “almost used up but still a little in the jar” candles that are sitting around.  This will make the task seem more festive and you won’t have to clean/dust the jars once they are used up and thrown out. 

Phase B items will be sports equipment, gardening, outdoor items, and school supplies/projects.  I will do another Blog Post about these items when we get to that time of the year!

This may be a lesson that you have to tell yourself over and over when decluttering: “What you paid for an item has absolutely no bearing on whether it has a place in your life.  Think only about whether you like having it around.  It is the rule of sunk cost.”  Barbara Reich, AARP Magazine article Declutter Your Life-Now. 

A great example of this is an expensive engagement/wedding ring.  If the marriage is unhappy and ends in divorce most women do NOT keep wearing the ring just because it cost a lot of money.  All the money in DVDs, CDs, and various players are sunk cost.  Clear the space these occupy and just enjoy your streaming sources and know that even newer technology is coming. 

When you have removed items (Decluttered) then you can spend March Organizing.  Putting items in new bins, labeling the bins, creating new files folders, etc.  Anything can be a container so as you are decluttering, save bins, good quality boxes, even zippered clear bags that sheets, bedding come in.  When you are ready to Organize having multiple size containers will help you fit your reduced, decluttered items, into the perfect sized container. 

And when the weather warms up (April & May) you will be ready for a good Spring Cleaning of your home.  And with less clutter, and nicely organized spaces you can clean faster and will see the results clearer. 

You may want to check out some of my other Blog posts for more tips and resources.

B Phase of this repetitive cycle starts around June—it seems we want everything Decluttered. We want to wear fewer clothes, we want lighter meals, and as the school year ends, we want to put an end to those projects, classes, and schedules.  We can then enjoy a summer of organized and planned trips, vacations, and outings.  Even mowing the lawn with the straight lines and trimmed edges are in alignment with our Organized energy.  And as we move into the fall season and holiday events we get back to Cleaning.  

Depending on the size of your home and how much stuff you have accumulated, Decluttering can take 20 to 30 hours.  It is best to block off 2 to 3 hrs of time for “sessions”.  Put these sessions on your calendar just like any other important meeting or appointment.  And imagine how great it will be when you can easily find a photo you want to share or find an article that you want to review.  Getting rid of the unnecessary and unwanted helps us to find the items we do value sooner and with fewer frustrations.

And what were you going to do on that cold drizzly day in late January anyway? I’m guessing it wasn’t watching one of those DVDs!

If you need help getting started or want extra support, contact me at GCarter@Organized-Occasions.com, and let’s schedule a free consultation. 

Books I have read and suggest to help with Decluttering and Cleaning:

                Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana K White

                Clutter-Free by Kathi Lipp

                How to Clean Practically Anything, Consumer Reports Books

Final Word—”Life will throw you enough messes, you don’t need to come home to one!” Barbara Reich, AARP magazine