Where's the tape?

The smallest storage area in the house but often the most used, most stressful and most OFFENSIVE!

THE JUNK DRAWER!!!!

I call BULL---- if you claim to not have one!  I have never met a house that didn't!  Don't be ashamed, embarrassed or defensive about your junk drawer.  The amazing part of it is that this drawer of so called Junk is usually summoned upon in a moment of pure desperation and at that moment the world feels as though it could explode if you don't find what you are looking for.....Scissors, pen, tape, eraser, cake candles, flashlight, safety pin, pad of paper, that little thingie you need to hold the shelf up that you put in there so you wouldn't lose it.... these things are needed quickly and at a moments notice so why do we degrade them by calling them junk.  They are nothing shy of NECESSITIES and we treat them horribly.  That is all going to change right now!!!


It isn't the items that are supposed to be or that we intend to keep in that space that are the problem it is the rest of the crap we throw in there.....pile of papers when somebody is stopping by, change from the counter, random screws and tools, pieces of toys we find, well you know what you throw in there that causes issues!!!  So what SHOULD be in there, well I have the necessities listed below and you may need to add or subtract but what ever you end up with NEEDING in there we can make it work:
1. Tape
2. Stapler
3. pens and pencils
4. pad of paper
5. gum (best place to hide it for me)
6. scissors
7. measuring tape
8. lighter or matches
9. Extra keys
10. cake candles
11. marking pens (Sharpie)
12.letter opener
13. stamps?
14. Flash light
14. OTHER


Ok so we have some basics and if you go and buy a "junk" drawer organizer like I did ($7) it comes with little stickers that you place in the respective spots.  This will not only remind you and anyone else in the house where to put something back but it might give you and idea or other items that might be good to keep in that drawer.  The drawer organizer I purchased was a two tier slider for a small drawer.  I used the top tier for office type supplies and the bottom for the bulkier and less used items!


SO the sort process is a lot of work for this little drawer and a bit messy too!  Start by removing the drawer and pouring it out either on the counter or the kitchen table.  Wipe out the drawer so it can dry while we are sorting....
NOW this is like a mini episode of Hoarders, there is true garbage in every one of these drawers I have found but don't worry about picking that out instead start pulling together piles of like items.  The garbage will be left, crumbs and all, when you are done and you can sweep it all right into the garbage! Pens are the worst, you know there are 50 or so in there, how many hands do you have to write with anyway?  Make sure to keep a few in there, but test all pens and throw away those that do not work!!!!  The others that do can be sorted to eliminate some, like pens that belong to your kids and can be kept in their desks.  Then the ones you hate, you know the ones, they write sporadically, or are bumpy when they write, or maybe even a terrible color that you will never use but was free at the last convention or meeting you went to, PITCH them or donate to your kids school!  Next worst is the random screws and Allen wrenches that come with those put them together items, grab a baggie and place all of these together in it....you know if you throw those out you will immediately find the one thing that needs a screw that was thrown in that drawer.  This baggie is kept in my "junk" drawer for easy retrieval, but you can also keep it in your tool box so you know where to go when you need one!  Loose change is the third worst culprit of clutter, gather it and put it into a child's piggy bank or if you have a family piggy bank put it there....neither of these, put it in you wallet, after all do you buy a lot of stuff with change standing in your kitchen?????  I thought not!
As for the rest of the items it is almost always a matter of paring down, how many scissors do you really need in there, pads of paper for phone messages, one is good, I mean are you running an office or something.... rolls of tape....I think one of each type used often is good enough!
OK the drawer is dry, you have your piles of keep, trash has been thrown out and the random has been put where it belongs.  Lets start building, place items of most use on the top or in the front for easy access and easy replacement.  Then fill in the rest and beam with pride as the drawer slides shut with no resistance and nothing hanging out!!!!  You did it, and trust me you will have to do it again, keep on top of this little black hole and you will have less stress in your time of need!

UP Next.....the bathroom Vanity Nightmare!!!!

Organized livin'

Rarely organized, often dreaded, and always embarrassing....

THE DREADED LINEN CLOSET!!!!!

I assume we don't pay much mind to this area because is isn't exactly a show piece of the home and unless a visitor is staying over there would really be no need for them to open this dreaded and sometimes dangerous closet; So we let it go, often to the point where we don't even want to put the towels away!

Well like  Kenny Rogers said "you gotta know when to fold 'em,... know when to walk away, know when to run".  Now I am not delusional I know he was speaking of cards/relationships and not linen closets but come on you know it applies, "Folding", that is a battle ground in this house, but I promise it isn't HOW the towels and sheets are folded but the place you are going to put them, after, that matters!!!  "Knowing when to walk away or Run"  have you ever tried to get that pillow case out of the large stack and had it come toppling down, that is the walk away, or tried to get a roll of toilet paper down only to have 5 bottles of shampoo come firing out like cannon balls, that is the RUN!!!!!

Well don't be nervous we can fix this!  Here is a photo of my linen closet:

It is VERY small but holds everything our 4 bedroom, 3 full bath house needs for our family of 5!  With those stats I will admit there is not only the need to have a well organized linen closet but the use of organizational techniques to help have the linen crisis controlled with help throughout the house!  You can see that there is nothing pretty or "Martha Stewart" about this functional closet but again it isn't a show piece, however I am proud of it and actually have heard an audible sweet sigh come out of me when I open it to put something away or grab something out!  
This area like all others needs to be sorted and paired down because lets face it we all have WAY too much in there!!!!!!  Start by sorting like items, some people and organizers do this differently, like keeping sheet sets together, towel sets together or some other fancy way.  I however think simple is better, and lets face it I use more fitted sheets and bath towels than wash clothes and flat sheets (we have the occasional issue when there are 3 kids under 10!) so why would I want to have to reorganize the closet every time I have a few items to put away so they are with their mates....now if you have a HUGE linen closet and each stack has its own space then by all means pretty it up!  OK so piles.... pillow cases, flat sheets, fitted sheets, blankets, misc bedding (bed skirts, mattress pads etc.) wash cloths, hand towels, bath towels, decorative holiday towels.

FIRST take the decorative hand towels that are for specific holidays and put them in the bins with those decorations, no sense in having pumpkin, Christmas tree, and Easter egg towels in the way all year and come on be honest how many of you have these and realize it after the holiday is over because it is buried in the linen closet!  Ok, with those out of the way lets start to sort using those favorite questions:

1. Do we use it regularly and do we still have that size bed?  ( I found full size sheets and we haven't had that bed in 4 years)
      a. yes and yes, Keep Pile
      c. no and no, Sell or donate pile
2. Don't need or want it? Is it torn, ripped, broken or damaged in any way?
      a. Yes, toss pile
      b. No, Sell or donate pile
3. Do we have more than one?
     If yes how many do you logically need?  Any extras go to #2
     Washcloths: min- one for each person in the house and two extra for visitors; MAX 3 per person and 4 for visitors. 
     Towels: 2 sets per bathroom in your house and up to two extra sets for guests.
     Sheets: 2 Sets per adult bed and 3 per child bed
     Pillow cases: the mates for the sets and up to 2 extra per bedroom
     Blankets: 1- 2 for each bed in the house
     Mattress pads: 1 for each adult bed and at least 2 for each child bed
Some of you may be thinking this is too little and some might be thinking this is never all going to fit in my linen closet....well it is not all going to be in there, remember one of everything for each bedroom and bath will be currently in that room being used. Later I will give you some time saving and space saving tips for this closet that will have it pared down even more!       
4. Does it belong to someone else?  Yes, Return to owner box
    Contact those people and let them know you will be dropping it by.  If they no longer want the item offer to donate it for them!


Well now we all know there are more than just linens in that linen closet!!!!  So pull it all out now that you have your piles sorted and pared down and lets get down to brass tacks!
1. Sort by type, oral care, men's care, women's care, first aid, adult medicine, children's medicine, home fragrance (some of you might have this in the laundry room or cleaning closet if you have one and that is great!!!), tissues, toilet paper, and shampoo, conditioner and styling aids together....well and then miscellaneous (not sure what you might have in there but heck make a pile)
2. Expiration dates: They are on everything, if it is expired pitch it!  Items that have an expiration may be less effective after that date and some have preservatives that will go bad so be mindful of these!  If it is an old prescription medication after you check the date make sure you still actively use it and if not pitch it!  Prescription medication is just that and you should not try and self diagnose later and use an old one that was prescribed for a different ailment!
3. Ok now the misc pile you created....Does it belong here?  NO, Move it where it belongs.  Yes, Put it into one of the categories above or if it doesn't mesh with one start another category.


I said in my last blog I didn't like see-thru containers and you see I have in fact used them here, WHY?  Because this area is not seen regularly by anyone and these container were around.  They are $1 plastic shoe boxes and they work well for keeping me in check!  If it doesn't fit in the bin I probably have too much of it.  This also helps keep me realistic on my free items from couponing.  If the oral care bin can not fit anymore items then we are set for several months and there is no need to get more, if it is free then get it and donate immediately! No one needs 20 tubes of tooth paste or 25 deodorants, remember if you are a couponer it will go on sale again every 6 weeks or so, your supply WILL hold out!
So now I fill my little bins, put the lid on and label it accordingly.....these stack beautifully and slide out easily if I need something out of a lower bin!  These bins go on the top shelf, one because they need to be out of reach of my kids and they really don't need to be accessed often.  Along with these I neatly stack extra boxes of tissues and toilet paper up there as well.  Shelf one done and now we can deal with the true linens!

The remaining shelves are smallest items to largest working downward as they are used in that order in terms of frequency.  Hand towels, washcloths and pillow cases, neatly folded go on shelf two.  These items on shelf two are not deep so I line up Shampoo, Conditioner and styling products along the wall behind them.  Shelf three is towels, smaller on the left larger on the right for me, but you don't need to be that anal it just looks better for me for them to be segregated by size! Shelf four is sheets, all flat together and all fitted together, largest (Queen for me) on the bottom and smallest (twin) on the top.  Again seems that it works out that the smaller ones get changed more i.e. pukes, wetting accidents ect. in the younger kids rooms!!!! Then on Five is Blankets and special items like mattress protectors.  Finally the bottom ground level is large items like extra comforter and bath rugs.

NOW  I know you are thinking no way that all fits there based on the number I gave you earlier on what to keep and here are some little tricks and tips to make the quantity go down and your life get a little easier!


1.  Double make all childrens beds.  One mattress protector, then a sheet, then a mattress protector, and finally another fitted sheet....this works from cribs to full grown kids.  THEN when there is an issue, bed wetting, accidental spill, vomit or whatever else, you can simply peel off one set and put your child back to bed. This takes one hand and no lights so if you are holding your baby or just don't want to turn on a light waking them further than you have to TA-DA!!!!  In the morning you can assess the situation and add the fresh sheet right over that or change it all together if it was a particularly messy night! EWWWWWW
2. Keep an extra pillow or two with a pillow case on it in the closet, helps with the nights we just spoke about to not have to fight with changing a pillow case or finding a new pillow if need be.  These also come in handy for sleep overs, no need to search around it is ready for you!  This also keeps bulky pillows out of the linen closet!
3. Now towels, if you have a vanity in the bathroom keep at least a set of towels in there, great for when you forget so you don't have to scream for someone to bring you one and extra great if a guest needs an additional towel!  ALSO keeps the quantity down in the closet, can you hear the broken record!!!! If you think you don't have room in your vanity it is probably time to tackle under there in your quest for organization!
4. Items for the kitchen, GO in the kitchen, table linens, in the china cabinet, nuff said on that!!!!


One last item you might be thinking about ad that is pool/beach towels.  If you have a pool, you probably have a separate space for them like we do by the pool, perhaps you go to a neighborhood pool often, or the beach less often!  I would keep those in a plastic tote, with a nice fabric softener sheet in it, in the garage.  You can throw some towels right in the car and be off!!!!!
 
So there you have it!  YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!!Next we are going to tackle the junk drawer!!!!!!  ARE you Ready????


Peace and Love,
Becca

Clutter Free Livin'

TOYS TOYS TOYS....

One of the most disorganized areas in a house.....from stepping on them, to having them fall on you out of the closet when you open it, to finding small presumably important pieces.  Toys are a headache, a hazard and risky business!  Here is a Picture of my toy closet:

A place for Everything and Everything in its place!  Well getting to this level of organization takes a little time, and determination but once it is in place, and the routine of keeping it there is mastered, it can make having toys a stress free beautiful thing.  Expensive NO, especially when you consider how many times you have seen a rather expensive toy sitting at the bottom of a disorganized stack getting ruined or most importantly not used because it can't be accessed. Out of Pocket the costs were pretty minimal; Wire cube racks run $12-$19 (the one on the left was free when a friend didn't want it!), White storage cubes are $7.99 at Target, Green Fabric bins (come in many colors) are $5.99, Large Blue bin $4.88 at Walmart, and small clear bin was free because it was in my house not being used!


So now you have seen the money spent lets talk about the money saved.  Items purged = no value, guess again....items that are not useful because of damage or being trash, like the box the toy came in that your child just had to keep, are costly on many levels, let me explain.  The average cost per square foot of a private detached home in America is between $74 and $112 so if you plan to keep everything you ever possess think about the square footage your next house will have to be to accommodate all that.  You don't need more space you NEED less stuff!  It is costing you almost $100 per square foot to store junk!  On another measure of cost of junk or garbage you are holding on to is your health, junk and clutter = STRESS and Stress = health issues.  Look it up on your own, the scientific link between stress and many disorders and diseases is alarming.  Don't believe me?  Open another internet browsing window and search for "Diseases caused or linked to stress", go ahead, I'll wait!!!!!   See, not so great huh!  So let me help cut your stress and hopefully cut some future doctor bills.  (DISCLAIMER:  I am not a doctor or dispensing any medical advice or suggesting my organizing will prevent any disease! hehehe)  SO throw out that garbage and NO not everything is garbage.


So how does purging happen. First set up a few stations/boxes and label them TRASH, DONATE, SELL, and RETURN TO OWNER.  Now return to the pile of stuff and look at each of the  items and answer these questions:


1. Do we use it regularly and is it still age appropriate?
      a. yes and yes, Keep Pile
      b. yes and no, go to #2
      c. no and no, Sell or donate pile
2. Is it torn, ripped broken or damaged in any way?
      a. Yes, toss pile
      b. No, Sell or donate pile
3. Do we have more than one?
     If yes how many do you logically need?  Any extras go to #2
4. Does it belong to someone else?  Yes, Return to owner box
    Toys are notoriously left behind by visitors.  Contact those people and let them know you will be dropping it by.  If they no longer want the item offer to donate it for them!


This process can take some time and for the most part the area will look worse during this process than before you started, this is normal and trust me the Toss, Donate and Return to owner boxes will be filled and out of the house that day!  Right into the car is where those boxes should go as they are filled!!!!!!!!!    


Lets take a look at things that will make you money!!!!


To Sell or to Donate, that is the question and the answer is IT DEPENDS!  Don't plan on becoming rich off selling items you have decided are no longer needed or useful to your family.  Similarly don't plan on being honored Saint status because of your quantity of donations but here are the ways both of these options can be weighed out:


1. Does the item have TRUE value.  Look the item up on ebay or craigslist to see what that item or similar items are selling for?  Is it significant?  If so and you feel you can get a buyer quickly list the item.  Take a picture of it and then place the item in the garage or storage area out of your living space.  One rule if it does not sell in a few days you may want to donate....read on to find out the benefits of donation!


2. What is the fair market value of the item?  This information can be obtained by the IRS guidelines and was offered to me when I used Turbo Tax.  This tells you the amount that you can write off of your itemized taxes for a particular item.  You will need to keep a log (a simple spiral notebook will work) of the items donated and the receipt that the organization will give you that a donation was made!  I will dedicate an entire entry to this topic soon!  Sometimes the value donated is actually higher that you will realistically be able to sell an item for at a garage sale etc.  So take advantage of this deduction, it is free money from the government and your reward for being charitable.


You have purged the garbage, sold or donated the items not needed, now what?  Take a close look at what is left and make another quick sweep to make sure all of the items are truly KEEP items.  If so it is now time to evaluate the space available and the "keep items" to devise a plan of action.  The first step in your plan is to sort like items, fun for the kids to help too!!!!  Plus they can tell at a glance if it is a Littlest Pet shop accessory or Barbie one faster than you!  NOW see those piles for what they are, possibly HUGE and make note of the volume because once you have the containers and they are in place we need a tiny bit of room for more stuff that will come in; this is by far the most challenging part!  Some of you will find out quickly that what your given space can hold will be different +/- what you have.  If the load is too much for your closet to handle time to reevaluate the need in the items.  My closet is comprised of only my children's joint toys, meaning, they each have an organizer in their room with toys that are theirs specifically and the toys in the common area of the house, this closet, are the toys they all play with.  This eliminated quite a bit of volume and gave the kids ownership and the responsibility to take care of their personal possessions.  If your child is a toddler the toys kept in their rooms need only be the ones they play with in there.


OK so now you have the revised items and we are ready to shop!!!!!  I like containers that match or coordinate and are NOT clear.  I use a label maker to make nice neat labels and not see the millions of tiny pieces staring at me through the clear bins when I open the doors!!!!  The label machine only cost $15 and is WELL worth it for the look around my house!  I used a modular removable system but you can go from this simple to built in shelves and custom cabinetry.  I however am cheap and once my kids don't have these toys I would like to make this closet something else, like a craft center, so no expensive shelving for me!!!!  So lets fill up those bins and remember to leave one spot empty, Shhhhhh it's a secret....


Place the bins in a logical order after all organizing isn't just making something clean and pretty it has to be functional and the art of function is the logical placement of like items so they can easily be found!  I find that heavy items on the bottom are best for safety sake and items that are not preferably played will without your approval like coloring or in my case the dang Legos that take over the room, are best out of reach.  Probably seems obvious but want to make sure I said it!  Now for the secret mystery space left, this bin is my favorite and will help you tremendously to keep everything in order.  Label this bin LOST and FOUND.  This bin will be used for rouge items found in the wrong place while playing or perhaps in the couch, under the couch, in the dogs bed, or behind the tv.  Place items in this bin that you find and once a week sort the items into the appropriate containers.  It is also useful when my kids say MOMMY we are missing one of the pieces to the Sorry game....they can go right in there and look for it because that is where it was put when I found it on the stairs and had no clue what game it went to!!!!

 

So there you have it, the above was the explanation of a toy closet but really all the same principles apply to all areas of the house so whatever you choose to tackle will be just as simple!  The only things that will vary is the amount of items to keep based on need.  I will cover other areas of the house to show you that don't worry!


Are you scared?  Overwhelmed?  Need a cheerleader to help you sort?  Call me I can help you!!!!


Up Next The dreaded Linen Closet!






Peace and Love


Becca