organizing tips – SimpleSolutionsDiva.com

Clear The Clutter, Part 4 – Putting It All Back Together!

August 1, 2015 / Clear The Clutter, Simple Cleaning Tips, Simple Video / 0 comment

With this video, the Clear The Clutter Challenge is coming to a close! Chris Stone of NeatlyDesigned.com and I have brought you through the whole process: where to start, how to let go of things, and how to prep the space for the new, organized closet. Now we put things back together!

Let me refresh your memory of what we started with – a very disorganized, cluttered craft closet!

This process has been tough on me – I had to learn to let go of some things, not just because they made things messy, but because they were making me feel overwhelmed! Letting go really made me feel lighter, less stressed and ready to take on new challenges!

I now take pleasure in opening the doors and seeing this:

Boxes closeup 2 (1) — All neat and tidy! I feel less stressed already!

Take The Challenge!

It was our hope we could motivate you to take on the challenge of clearing the clutter in your home – whether it is a big or small project! If you need help, don’t be afraid (or embarrassed!) to contact a professional organizer to help you.

The reality is, if you aren’t on a episode of Hoarders, you are probably normal and just need a little help letting go!

And if you live in Northeast Florida, I highly recommend contacting Chris Stone to help you through the process! Here’s how to reach her:

Christine Stone, Owner, Neatly Designed

Professional Organizer, Member of NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers)

Phone: 904.536.9306
Email: CHRISTINESTONE@NEATLYDESIGNED.COM
Website: NeatlyDesigned.com

Closeup of the storage containers we found at The Container Store!

To find the Iris containers we used, you can visit The Container Store, or you can click the following links:

Look for future Clear The Clutter videos down the road – we had a ball working on these!

A Simple Challenge: Clear The Clutter – Part 1

July 11, 2015 / Clear The Clutter, Simple Cleaning Tips, Simple Video / 0 comment

Welcome to the first in the video series, A Simple Challenge: Clear The Clutter. I’ve teamed up this month with professional organizer Chris Stone of Neatly Designed to give you a helping hand in getting started in your decluttering process. In today’s video, Chris and I begin the process to tackle the hidden clutter in my media cabinet/craft closet – AKA My Anxiety Closet!

BTW – I highly recommend subscribing to Chris’ blog for great tips & little nuggets of motivation! They really do help keep you going!

My Personal Clutter Journey

For years, I was really good at a mass purge every six months or so – I was forced to when the kids were little to go through their stuff because they were outgrowing everything so fast! But as time sped up (parents of teens and pre-teens will understand this concept of time flying!), I seemed to have less and less time to get things done!

Now, I believe most people have clutter, whether hidden or in plain site. Many will go along and live in their clutter, either unaware or unwilling to deal with it. Avoiding, putting it off, waiting until they have a quiet day, etc. That is, until something happens and they force themselves — or are forced — to deal with it! My moment of truth came when my oldest left for college. I have, for at least the last year or so, been ignoring the piles of junk accumulating in and around my house!

My Media Cabinet/Craft Closet/Junk Hideaway! AKA, My Anxiety Closet!

Between doing projects for SimpleSolutionsDiva.com, family activities, sports, and just wanting to eek out those last few moments with my “baby’ before she left for college, etc., I found myself throwing things in a closet saying, “I’ll get to it soon!” Well, I think I reached that point of being just grossed out by it all!

And the subtle (and not so subtle) requests from my patient husband just got to be too much to ignore. . .

So join Chris Stone and I, as she shepherds me through the process of clearing out my clutter! I hope it will help motivate you to take care of some of the piles in and around your home!

P.S.: I have to say, I find this has helped me feel lighter, more organized, and I actually have more time and energy to do the things I want to do. I think I was being paralyzed by the piles!

Celebrate The First Day Of Spring With Spring Cleaning Tips!

March 20, 2014 / Simple Cleaning Tips, Simple Ideas, Simple Project / 0 comment

Thursday, March 20 is the First Day Of Spring! I always get itchy to clean up my home around this time of year (yes, just slightly crazy, but true!). Here are some simple tips for tackling those spring cleaning projects in your home:

Think About Strategy:

Do you choose to clean a room or do a project? It really is a personal choice, because it comes down to your personal preferences. I love to attack projects, one at a time. When I step back and look at what I’ve done, I feel accomplished.

If You Pick A Room:

Think 360 Degrees

Pick a spot in the room and move left to right around (in a 360 degree circle) the room to clean. You know you’re finished when you reach the start location.

If You Pick A Project, Simple Things Make A Big Impact:

Turn To Professionals: Hire professionals to clean your carpet and most used upholstered chairs/couches. The professionals know what they are doing and the drying times are faster because they have the equipment that can really get the water out of carpets better than those rental units you can rent. Tip: Turn your air down in your home until carpets dry out; it creates lower humidity, making drying time faster.

Use the 3 Box Rule:

Declutter, one room at a time, using three boxes. If you don’t use an item, place it into the “toss it” bin, “donate it”, or if it is sentimental, place it into the “ sentimental bin”, where items in this box can be displayed on a rotation schedule. Rotating sentimental items for display quarterly or every six months lets you appreciate the items more.

Clean Out Your Closet: Having a clean closet sets the tone for everything else in your house. It makes you feel good. Tip: If you are a shoe lover, try using clear plastic shoe boxes to organize your shoes. They allow you to easily see the shoes, keep them neat and dust free. The Container Store offers a kit of 20 clear shoe boxes on sale for $33.80 (usually $37.80).

The Container Store Clear Plastic Shoe Box.

Organize Your Pantry: We all have items in the pantry we bought because we were going to use it for a recipe that never happened. It is time to clean those out! Look for items that have sat in pantry too long. Check expiration dates and toss; have too many of one thing that you will never use before expiration date? Donate it. One great way to manage your smaller pantry items so you can see them is by using an over the door shoe bag. Clear pockets allow you to see the little items that may get lost on your pantry shelves.

Reorganize Your Bookshelves:

A surefire way to make an impact in a room is to reorganize the bookshelves. Donate books you are not interested in anymore. Dust all remaining books, then sort by size and subject. Line books, some vertically, some horizontally to give some visual interest. Add some of those sentimental items, but not too many. For some great ideas on how to arrange your shelves, check out this wonderful pictorial from Real Simple Magazine.

Just to illustrate how great a bookshelf can look, check out these before and after shots of one bookshelf (photos from GothamOrganizers.com):