How to Organize Your House

Thank you JEN WALLACE for today’s organization tips..

Believe it or not, organizing your home isn’t rocket science. The basics of learning how to organizeyour space are actually pretty simple; the difficult parts are taking the first step and staying committed.

Living Room

• Form and Function Storage Options – Solutions like storage ottomans and coffee tables with hidden storage are ideal for the living room.
• Everything Has a Home – One of the key principles of organization is “everything has its place” and that’s never more true than in the living room–the one room that is the public face of your home.
• Have a Catchall Option – When company arrives unexpectedly it is handy to have a basket or a trunk that can be used for temporary storage of games, books, and more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kitchen

• Banish Junk Drawers – One of the most important ways to organize your kitchen is to banish the junk drawer.
• Label – Labeling everything from food storage jars to shelves is ideal in the kitchen. There’s little doubt about where things go when there is a label.
• Must Haves Only – Pare down those kitchen multitaskers and only keep what you truly need to get dinner on the table.
• Create Stations – From a coffee and tea station to a food prep station setting your kitchen up smartly is key.

 

Bedrooms

• Under the Bed Storage – Don’t forget about adding drawers, boxes or bins under the bed for added organization spaces.
• Organize Your Closet – While it may seem like a herculean task, make sure to tackle your closet. Make the room that when you add a new item, you need to get rid of one in its place.
• Jewelry and Accessory Storage Solutions – Spend time organizing your jewelry and other accessories to they are easier to find.

Entryway

• Shoe Storage is a Must – Some kind of shoe storage is a necessity to keep your entryway from being cluttered–and so you can find your other shoe.
• Pare Down the Coat Closet – Get rid of those old coats that don’t fit anymore and donate them to charity.
• Add Lockers, Cubbies to Avoid the “Drop Zone” – To keep the entrance to your home clutter-free, add cubbies, lockers, a coat rack, hook rail or some other solution for the coats and bags that always accumulate there.

Home Office

• Control Wires – Add wire storage to keep help your office feel neater.
• Schedule Filing Time – If your desk is always at risk of triggering a paper avalanche, schedule filing time every week to keep on top of things.
• Keep Your Workstation Clear – Store aware unnecessary office accessories
• Cut Down on Paper – One way to cut down on paper records is with recordkeeping apps like Shoeboxed and Evernote.

Bathroom

• Essentials Only – If you are wondering how to organize in the bathroom one way is to rid the bathroom of everything but only the essentials.
• Add Back of Door Storage – Adding hanging rods or some other hanging storage is a trick to add more storage space to the bathroom.
• Vertical Storage – Make the most of the bathroom space by adding vertical organizational space with shelves or a countertop vertical storage unit.

What is YOUR best tip for keeping your home organized?  Share it with us.

Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!

Unique Gift Ideas

Happy Saturday! I along with LOTS of other people are at the Seaside Boardwalk – Walking for a CURE for MS.  I am blessed to have my good friend, Karen Peet walking with me.  I’m praying that the predicted rain holds off…

I love finding new uses for products.  Thirty One’s Fold and File teamed with a Zip Top Organizing Tote as a mobile office, right?  Business owners everywhere use it to ensure that they have everything they need at a moment’s notice when they are out and about.  It has saved many a direct seller from a business disaster.

Did you ever think of using it for a baby shower gift?  The Zip Top Organizing Tote is the perfect diaper bag

BUT who would have thought of adding a fold and file to it for a baby shower gift?  Why, you ask?  Fill it with file folders and label them with things like:

• doctor visits,
• warranty papers (swing, crib, etc.),
• important hospital papers,
• and the list goes on.

This way the parents have everything in one place. New parents love it.

Why we are on the subject of NEW parents, Mother’s Day is May 8th and Father’s Day is June 19th.

What about as a house warming gift?

REALTOR PICTURE

June is the time for weddings so bridal showers are happening in the Spring.

How about filling a Catch-All Bin with a personsonalized pillow for the happy couple?  Maybe a bottle of their favorite wine.  Maybe a personalized cutting board.  Be creative.  You don’t even have to wrap the gift – just a cello bag from the dollar store with a pretty bow.

This AWESOME gift set is on special for the month of April…

Wouldn’t it be fun to have a personal shopper?  Someone who you just call (or text) and they do all of your gift shopping – what do you think?  Let me help you avoid the “gift faux pas” this busy gift giving season.

What special occasion do you have coming up that you need help with? Share and let’s see if we can help you find some unique gift giving ideas.

Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!

Let’s Organize Your Photos

Do you have stacks of photos crammed in a closet? Is your digital camera overloaded with images you’ve yet to print? Do you have a “junk drawer” full of pictures?  Do you wish you could remember dates, places and who are in some of those pictures?

I am old school so I have LOTS of pictures floating around.  Since we moved (8 years ago) some are in those dreaded rubbermaid containers, some are in boxes while others are just scattered in drawers.  These tips will get you started – remember baby steps

Are you like me with print pictures, try this:

• As soon as your photos are developed, sort them.  Toss out duplicates or bad shots.
• Place photos in envelopes labeled with the month, year and the event.  This is easy peasy.  You can even put little notes on the back to help you remember things that you might otherwise forget.

• Store by the year or by event in a safe dry place.  Moisture, humidity or extreme temperature will most likely ruin photos over time

Are you a digital person?  Do you only print pictures when you need them or want to share them with someone else?  Honestly, do you know where they are on your computer hard drive? Here are some tips for you:

• Put all of your pictures on a CD or flash drive so that you can save it.
• Label photo cd’s or create separate files on your computer that are labeled. It makes hunting for things so much easier.
• For the techies, there are photo websites that you can use that have unlimited storage as long as you keep your account active (usually with purchases).  Sites include Kodakgallery, Shutterfly and Snapfish

Don’t try to conquer years worth of pictures in one shot.  It can be overwhelming and you may find that it consumes your whole day especially when you start going down the memory trail.  You now have a system in place so  you can keep on track as new photos come in.

Now that you know where to find your pictures, you can share them with family and friends.  Wasn’t that the original plan?  Choose some favorites and use mini albums with sleeves or paper corners to show off a special event or trip. Digital photos can be emailed to family and friends. Or shared on social media.  It is a great way to keep grandparents, relatives and friends in the loop.

Once you have a system in place; you are ready to go back in time and begin the process for years past. Remember it is much easier to deal with a season (or a pile) at a time rather then the entire year.

What is your best tip for organizing photos?  Are you a digital person or a print person?  Love to hear your feedback.

Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!