Get Organized Pittsburgh

GETTING STARTED
Think of the feeling you get when you walk into a hotel room. You have only what is needed for the trip, and everything has a home. There is peace in the simplicity. Perfection seems so possible! Let’s bring a little of that “hotel feeling” into your own bedroom.

TODAY’S TASKS
* Start with your night stand. First, resist the urge to point to your partner’s night stand. You can tidy up your nightstand and inspire him or her to do the same via example.
* Clear everything off the top, empty the drawers, and move everything that is stacked beside or under.
* Return only items that bring you peace and replenishment. Ask yourself this: What would be on a bedside table at a hotel?

A NEW WAY TO THINK ABOUT IT
What just landed on your nightstand as a catch-all, and what was truly meant to be there? Avoid placing to-do type things on your nightstand. They are energy zappers. What would you like to be on
there? Do you really want that pile of work to be sitting next to you each night? Consider replacing it with just one, current book or your iPod. Take away the pile of books collecting dust and making you feel guilty because you can’t get to read them as you seek rest from a hard day. Remove unnecessary medical items. Think of what you want to look at as you wake up. A picture of a loved one? A single flower from your garden? Yes, pampering yourself is OK!

If racing thoughts keep you awake, consider putting a little notepad there with a pencil. If you think of something at night or in the morning that you need to do, you can easily write it down for later and move on to enjoy relaxing and a good night’s sleep.

Here’s to creating restful spaces in your room!

Continuing to the final post of our three-part series on working with couples, please see part one Organizing With Couples and part two about Organizing New Parents.

The “Odd Couple”:
This is a couple who wants to work on some common issues together. This usually means detail work is very different for each of them. I encourage each of them to both define spaces where they can be themselves in but they also must define common spaces where there are different rules. These rules are for spaces where everyone needs to coexist and be happy. It’s interesting to see what people are asking for in this sort of setting because if they are asking for organized common space, they are usually doing so for the good of the family verses if they are looking for personal space they are usually doing so for themselves.

A Couple and Their 2nd Marriage:
In most cases there is double the stuff. Two coffee pots, two sets of living room furniture, two sets dishes and so on. This couple is either moving into a new house or one of their existing homes. Typically, there is a lot of hope with this couple because it’s a new situation for both of them and they are looking forward to a new life. Their big issue is to really just week out their stuff and they usually need help working through it.

The Aging Couple:
This situation can be difficult on the couple, usually they need to make adjustments in their home for medical equipment and sometimes even re-purpose rooms so that they are easier to access. Usually emotions are running high but at the same time the able spouse wants to make things easy for the spouse in need they also are upset and worried about the health of their spouse. Helping them think about alternative ways to use the space they have is my main goal along with making sure pathways and room access are clear and easy to maintain. My main rule of thumb here is safety first. If an item is blocking room access or isn’t structurally safe then a decision needs to be made for the sake of safety.

It’s Valentine’s day and we thought we would share this quote from a recent article in ClosetsDaily.com. Writer Denise Butchko states, “A recent poll featured on The Nate Berkus Show said that when people were asked which they like more – cleaning their closet or having sex – 31% said they preferred cleaning their closet.”

My reaction? WOW! I guess I’m in the right business! As an organizer and closet designer I see the “happiness” a clutter free space can bring clients. I am often surprised at the way clients work very hard for several hours while we are there and seem to always have more energy at the end of a session then when they started. But I have yet to have a client light up a cigarette when they leave!

Follow this link to find the full article titled Clean Your Closet or have Sex? via ClosetsDaily.com.

So what would YOU rather do?

(Photo credit: ClosetsDaily.com)

Add a little clean up time before meals instead of before bed. It’s almost time for dinner, your children are smelling your meal and it’s the perfect time to get them to think about cleaning up before they eat. I’ve found that waiting to clean up at bedtime usually means they want to take their time because they don’t want to go to bed. But EVERYONE wants to eat right? And they usually want that right now (at least I know my kids do)!

Give it time, 15 minutes before dinner is served, direct a quick clean up of a certain area, toys, entry, laundry. Suggestions like “Let’s just take care of this and when you’re finished dinner will be ready.” Remember to let them do it. As soon as they finish, it’s time to set the table and sit down. Everyone is ready to eat and you’ve got a mostly tidy home. Can’t beat that!

We love this product the Lay-n-Go product for easy LEGO clean up. For more toy storage ideas check out our collection of Play Area ideas on Pinterest and be sure to give us a follow there too!

Congratulations you have made it to our last segment of our holiday prep plan! The last step is to take a look at your dinning room and all of the special things that make a beautifully set table.

We can begin with the china closet. First, if you have several sets what do you really love and use? Are there legacy pieces that have been passed down to you that you DON’T love but you keep because you feel it is a way to respect the person that gave them to you? Are there items that you are not using you are holding on to them for your children? If you can let go, do it! But if you don’t like them, it is likely your kids wont like them either. Think about the items you use often and put the items you are saving for your kids in a less active place!

China is usually best sold on eBay. It is fairly easy to ship and more importantly it has great identifying marks that make it easy to buy. Many people have guilt about selling something that was given to them by a loved one. I try to get them over that hurdle by suggesting they would be giving it to someone who can use and love it. Listing it on eBay is a great way to feel like you are respecting the item. The proceeds from the sale can then be donated in the name of loved ones to their favorite charity. If you need help with eBay, contact Joan Sakai, eBay Trading Assistant at joansakai@hotmail.com or call her at 412-771-9593 http://myworld.ebay.com/2000joni/

How about those linens? Which ones are your favorites? What about that one with the stains from Uncle Moe knocking over the wine glass that one Thanksgiving? Keep the ones that you really love. Make sure they are not stained and if they have napkins make sure there are enough. I mark the edge of mine with little dots that tell me the size. Zero dots means zero table leaves, one dot is one leaf, two dots is two leaves and three dots is three leaves. If your dining room storage is limited you can also hang up the larger linens and keep the smaller more frequently used linens in the drawer.

Remember that keeping an item does not show love to a person and when it comes right down to it you will never set a table with your second or third best linens!

It is one thing to organize the pantry, and cabinets and to keep the sink and counters clean, it is another to be organized about shopping and meal prep. These things go hand in hand because knowing what you have will help you get on track to making something with it! I read that most home makers have about 21 recipes that they draw on for the majority of what they prepare in the kitchen. A great first step is to write down your 21. I wrote mine on index cards and I actually asked my family members what meals they liked the most. This was actually really surprising and nice to hear. On Sunday nights I try to pull those out and shuffle through to get inspired and produce a shopping list from there. I have found that if I at least know the protein we will be having for 5 evenings out of 7 I actually seem to be able to put the rest together more easily. I also try to look at the week ahead and match the easy meals to the busy days.

As for cookbooks. I personally have one small shelf for them in my kitchen. I keep this lean and mean because too many choices creates stress. There are tons of ways to get recipes so why use valuable space with cookbook when magazines can generate new ideas to keep things fresh. Magazines have a 6 month expiration date in my house and i scan or clip what i want from there. The internet is my biggest friend in the kitchen now. I just google the ingredients I have on hand and I instantly have a recipe to try. If I like it I save it in my recipe file on my computer. Searching through there is easier than paging through books for me.

I also get help. One day while we were having a discussion about family chores I mentioned that shopping and cooking were a few of the many things that occupy my time. My kids commented that they could cook one day a week if I took over a dish night for them. That became a Wednesday night routine for years. It gave them a new respect for cooking, they learned a few simple dishes and when I helped or took their cooking night I got a great big “thank you” for my effort. (TIP: I tried to never complain about what is served and it was fun to have them self critique because ultimately they had to eat what they prepared and after lots of taco nights they tried some new things.)

Need help storing those loose recipes you’ve collected from your favorite magazines?

We suggest, if you are looking for a way to contain your loose recipes we have found the Recipe Relish to be a fantastic product that offers way more function than a office store binder. Head to their site to learn more about the Recipe Relish and how it might help you to keep your recipes in order.

Here’s to knowing what is for dinner!

Leslie