Friday Favorite Bulletin Board Idea

by Monica on May 17, 2013

in Friday Favorites

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Here’s a cool idea from Martha Stewart. If you have a bulletin board and it’s filled with clutter (but important clutter that the family needs for current activities), pull down a roller shade and cover it up! Now that’s not a green light to add more junk to the bulletin board. It’s a good idea to occasionally pull everything off and tack it back up to keep it tidy. As you can see in the photo, this board happens to be divided into sections with a ribbon. That’s a great concept for families and kids, dividing up their different activities, parties, etc…  You can even cover the shade with a nice fabric that matches the decor of the room. Here’s a tutorial for making your own shade. The shelf on top of the bulletin board also serves a purpose. It adds storage above as well as a place to house the shade. Nice, organized space!

How To Organize or Unpack your Kitchen

by Monica on May 13, 2013

in Tip of the Day,Uncategorized

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The kitchen is the most important area of the home when it comes to organization and efficiency. Think about the amount of time spent in the kitchen. Unloading groceries, food preparation, snacks, drinks and clean-up, the kitchen is 

such a heavily used area that proper organization is critical. When Chaos To Order organizers unpack a kitchen, we think not only about being able to find what you need quickly, but also about making the most out of every inch of space. Here are some things to consider when you are organizing or unpacking your kitchen:

First, make sure all cabinets and storage areas are wiped down and clean before you start putting things in them. If you’re not unpacking but only organizing, you don’t want to pull everything out. Work on one cabinet at a time. 

Next, if you want to put shelf liner down, now is the time. Shelf liner is a good option if the inside of your cabinets are wood. If the cabinets have a laminated surface, shelf liner is not necessary. Consider the purpose of the shelf liner as there are many different types to choose from. You can find everything from a super sticky contact paper to a light non-stick paper covering. We suggest a shelf liner with a light tackiness.

Unpacking boxes. When you are moving in, it’s always a good idea to ask the movers to load the kitchen boxes on to the truck last so that they are the first ones delivered into the home. We usually spend more time unpacking a kitchen than any other room, so getting a head start is a benefit. Proper packing and labeling is a huge help on the front end  and will help to keep things organized at the destination. Weeding out prior to packing up is essential, of course our organizers are pros at coaching you through this process. Having like items packed together eliminates that overwhelming feeling of, “where do I put this” on the landing side. When movers come to pack, they don’t sort and organize, they 

take the drawer and wrap all the contents up with packing paper. If your movers are helping you pack up, make sure things are placed together and organized similarly to how you want them in your new space. The more planning you can do prior to the move, the smoother the unpack will be. 

When the kitchen boxes are delivered, they can either all be unpacked at once or unpacked by zone. If the boxes are packed properly and you know that you’re not going to find dish towels with the pots and pans.  Unpack one area at a time. It can be overwhelming to have all of the boxes unpacked at once, not to mention you will run out of counter space to on which place things. 

 Dishes. Our organizers will need to know which dishes are used for every day and what is used only for special occasion. We will make everyday dishes most accessible and find more out of the way places for infrequently used pieces. 

Glasses. How long has it been since you’ve weeded out your glasses cabinet? Have you noticed strange cups from movie theater promotions or restaurants make their way into your collection? Moving is the best time to clear out. You’re forced to make decisions about what stays and what goes, so take advantage of that process and edit everywhere you can. Do you like your glasses facing up or down? I like to recommend glasses facing up so the part you drink out of isn’t 

always resting on the bottom of the cabinet, but it is really just a preference. 

Pantry/Food Storage. Dry Goods. Having good pantry space is definitely a bonus, but we also love to find creative ways to maximize space. There are so many great custom cabinet options as well as terrific organizing gadgets that can help you make the most out of every corner and crevice of your kitchen. No matter how big or small your kitchen is, maximizing the space and optimizing it’s efficiency will help you save time on a daily basis. In your pantry, think not only about the space on the shelves, but every area. Vertical space on the wall and on the door can offer a great deal of bonus storage. Our organizers have a keen eye for maximizing the space to it’s potential.

Baking. Keep all of your baking goods together so you know exactly what you have. It’s best to separate baking items from the other food storage so you’ll be able to grab what you need quickly. 

Spices. Of course a nice custom spice drawer with alphabetized spices is ideal, but the best tip for organizing your spices is to know what you have and what you use. We see many spice cabinets that are filled with ancient spices, long past their expiration date. If your not sure how long to keep foods before they expire, check out this post on Still Tasty.

Pots & Pans. A lovely drawer below your cooktop is most advantageous, but other options include a hanging rack or in the smallest of kitchens, you can even use the oven to store some pots and pans.

Cookware. How many casserole dishes does a kitchen need? Treat your bakeware like your clothes, if you haven’t worn it in the past season, it’s time to move on. If you keep some pans for special occasion use only, store them high up to make what you use often more accessible.

Plasticware. Tupperware and the like are usually the hardest items in the kitchen to keep organized. My son has tried (unsuccessfully) to refuse putting it away when he empties the dishwasher. Getting all like items together and lids stacked properly takes more than the 5 seconds he allows to empty the dishwasher. Keep only matching pieces. If you’ve lost a lid or a container is without one, it’s time to eliminate it. Be ruthless with your plastic ware, especially the “disposable” ones that tend to linger on way beyond their disposable time.

Utensils. Separate utensils used every day with ones used infrequently. Those escargot tongs don’t have to be accessible if you only use them once a year.  The drawer you designate for flatware for should have appropriate dividers based on how many pieces you have. Use custom dividers if you have more than 10 pieces of each. Do you like to keep everyday cooking utensils in a container on the counter? If so, don’t let it fill up with extras, keep it specific to what you’re using most. 

Of course as organizers we always suggest keeping like things together. However, if your kitchen space is overflowing, consider thinking outside the kitchen into other rooms for storage. The nearby dining room is always a good option. Each and every space is different and how it is best used depends on your lifestyle. that’s why your best bet is to always get the professional advice of a professional organizer if you are overwhelmed in your kitchen.

 

Happy Mother’s Day!

by Monica on May 12, 2013

in Tip of the Day

Take the day off Moms!

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Organize Your Gym Bag

by Monica on May 10, 2013

in Tip of the Day,Uncategorized

977bec9bdcbde3717887b096b4ce3250Keeping your gym bag properly organized can be a challenge. Emptying it out each day and clearing through it all can seem like more effort that it’s worth, and it is. Here are a few simple steps to keep your gym bag organized:

Keep it Simple. Keep only what you need in the bag. Don’t let kids squirrel odds and ends into the bag “just in case” they may need it. Go lean and keep it clean.

Know what goes. Of course dirty clothes and towels need to be removed immediately, but that doesn’t mean you have to pull everything out. Keep other items such as toiletries in separate bags within the bag so they aren’t all mixed together (also easier when you shower to have exactly what you need in a separate bag).

Have a place. When you walk in the door, have a convenient spot for the bag to hang. A simple routine of putting the bag away and pulling out laundry each day will go a long way to help keep things organized.

 Regularly empty. On a weekly basis, depending on how often you’re using the bag, go through the and eliminate anything that doesn’t belong. Make sure to be mindful of the season and take along only what you’ll be using.

 Put Kids in Control when Possible. Age appropriately allow your kids to be in control of what they have. If parents are overly participate in filling the bag and keeping it replenished, kids will not take on the responsibility and may even blame their parents when they are not prepared for their activity–yikes!

Not having your gym bag prepared and organized can hinder the ability to be successful in your workout/sport. You can lose precious practice time by not having the items you need or being late because your searching for things. Make having an organized gym bag a part of your workout routine.

 

Friday Favorite: Wire Door Racks

by Monica on May 3, 2013

in Friday Favorites

www.chaostoorder.comWire door racks are one of my favorite organizing products of all time. The back of a door is sometimes the last place people think of for storage, but with a large open area of vertical space, a door is the perfect place to store smaller items while keeping them handy and within reach. These Adjustable door racks from Closet Maid are terrific for use on any closet door. They can also be used on open wall space inside of a pantry or closet (as shown below). they are especially nice if you don’t have quite enough depth for shelving because they’re only about 4-5 inches deep. They can even be used in many closets that already have shelves because they only come out about as far as the door knob. 

www.chaostoorder.com

They do have to be installed onto the door (hardware is included), so you need to check that the type of door you have is sturdy enough to install a rack. You can purchase this particular ClosetMaid Door Rack at Target, but variations of it are available in many home and hardware stores.

Spring Cleaning: How To Toss Those Old Magazines

by Monica on May 2, 2013

in Tip of the Day

iStock_000015144086SmallDo you have beautiful magazines like National Geographic or Architectural Digest that you’ve been hanging on to for years? Are they worth the real estate that they’re taking up? Think about the cost of storing them. Having piles of magazines can ruin a lovely corner of your home or office. Consider paring down or eliminating–here’s how:

Take a look at your subscriptions and cancel what you can. Do you even remember all the magazines and periodicals you subscribe to? Make a list of what you have and when the subscriptions end. Take a good look at that list and determine how you can simplify. Are there any that you can cancel? Which ones can you bear to let expire? The more you can stop from arriving, the less you’ll have to sort through.

Organize. Organizing is about putting like things together. When you do this with your magazines, you may see that you’re holding on to more than you can realistically read. Purchase magazine containers and store them chronologically to organize what you have. You may find quite a few that you’ll be willing to toss or recycle.

Set boundaries on each and every magazine you receive. How long do you like to save them? When the new issue arrives, do you toss the previous month? That’s a good rule of thumb. If you just can’t bear to toss it that quickly, set boundaries that will work for you. 3 months, 6 months, 1 year… Write down the list of magazines and periodicals you subscribe to and put a time limit on each one. Those National Geographic’s are only going to become valuable when people start to get rid of them! Set some boundaries on your reading/visual consumption and you’ll notice the clutter will lessen.

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Share. Consider passing them on to a doctors office or retirement home. Let someone else enjoy the magazines while you pare down.

 

 

 

Friday Favorite: Handbag Hangup

by Monica on April 26, 2013

in Friday Favorites

deluxe_bigshotnovideoLast month we had the pleasure of visiting the International Home and Housewares show. Of course there were tons of containers and organizing gadgets in every size, color and shape, but here’s one product we thought was unique that you might find useful: the Handbag Hangup. It’s great for keeping purses and bags visible and tidy. Handbags are always a challenge to organize because of the wide variety of sizes and shapes. Even when clients have custom shelving or cubbies designed, they still can look unkempt. Of course every closet and storage space is different, but if you have extra long hang space available, this might be a great solution. You can purchase the product single sided or double sided depending on how much you have to hang. The single sided version is perfect if you have open wall space available in your closet. Just put a nail in the wall and hang it (and your handbags) up!

Another Raving Fan…

by Monica on April 24, 2013

in Tip of the Day

We love to hear feedback from every client. Karen, our office manager, always says making organizing session follow up calls is one of her favorite things to do each day because she loves the joy people express. Here’s an email she received yesterday. I happen to love them even more when they write them down because I can enjoy them and share them with you!

images“You are amazing.  Thanks so much for your great organizational sense and for your positive attitude and for your patience and for all your hard work!  We got a lot done today and, thanks to your suggestions, I think the rest will go pretty smoothly. Thanks also for your good humor and empathy. I feel so lucky to have found you in the luck of the draw. I’ll be in touch again–there’s still the office and–OMG: the laundry room. 
Meanwhile, be well. And know your work is truly appreciated.” 
 

 

 

 

Celebrate Earth Day by Getting Organized

by Monica on April 22, 2013

in Tip of the Day

Eco Friendly House

We all need to do our part to help keep the earth clean and green now and for the future. Each and every one of us can do our share to help the environment. Something as simple as having good organizational systems in place can help sprout eco-friendliness. Here are some ways you can get organized and do your part to help mother earth:

  • Reduce consumption. Good organization allows you to know what you have and keep a mental inventory. This will help you avoid unnecessary purchases and duplicates.
  • Helping others AND the earth. Rather than having perfectly good things that you no longer want taking up storage space, donate or sell them online. Here is a list of Chicago area organizations accepting donations. 
  • Recycle with ease. When your space is organized, you can be more diligent about recycling and re-use. Check out this post on earth911 for local information on recycling anything. But beware of letting your home turn into a recycling center. Pending recyclables constitute clutter, so get them out quickly!
  • Save paper. When your office space is orderly and efficient, you print less, duplicate less, use fewer supplies and reduce paper waste.

So if you want to make some headway in your green initiative and do your part to keep planet earth sustainable, start by getting organized today!

 

Friday Favorite: Sterilite Storage Boxes

by Monica on April 19, 2013

in Friday Favorites,Tip of the Day

10066867The rain has hit my neighborhood hard. The drain under our hot water heater backed up and there’s a squishy mess in my basement–YUK! The one thing I’m thankful for is that I store (and organize) most of the stuff in the basement with plastic boxes. Today’s Friday Favorite has to be storage containers from Sterilite. They are a terrific size for so many storage needs and you can find them in big box stores like Target or Home Depot. Anything from off season clothing to kids toys, keepsakes, and holiday storage are all perfect in these nice clear plastic containers with white tops and of course adding labels to the front of each box is the finishing touch. They are a staple for so many organizing jobs including my own. When the water creeped in, I was happy that it couldn’t get to anything stored in those terrific containers! 

Basement Flooded? Get Organized!

by Monica on April 18, 2013

in Tip of the Day

basement-floodThe recent flooding caused many basements to flood with water backup, including mine–ugh! For those of you who have been putting off getting that basement storage area organized, now you have no choice, you have to go through it all. Here are some tips to get it organized quickly:

  • Be Ruthless. If something has been water damaged, toss it if at all possible. It will not only make the whole job easier because you’ll have less stuff to organize, it will also make the basement more clutter free. Take advantage of the opportunity to do some major purging.
  • Don’t try to weed out someone else’s stuff. If your husband’s tools and collections need an overhaul, don’t take this as your opportunity to get rid of his stuff, it will only cause more problems. Talk with him and set some time aside for him to make those decisions.
  • Avoid overwhelm. Don’t look at the area as one big mess (even if it is). Look at each item and make decisions. It’s a waste of time to worry about it, just dig in.
  • Create Zones. If you have a basement full of all kinds of different clutter, create zones of like items so you can start to create some semblance of order.
  • Contain. After you’ve sorted like items together, determine what containers are best and begin organizing items into the proper containers. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s Friday Favorite and see what container I recommend for basement storage.
  • Label. It’s great to have items sorted into containers, but before long you’re going to forget what’s in them. Clearly label and even post a list on the outside of the container so you know exactly what’s inside.
  • Smile! Getting a daunting project tackled is a great feeling.

Although you may have been forced to clean out your basement, the silver lining might be that the clutter is finally cleaned up!

Organize Your Files

by Monica on April 16, 2013

in Tip of the Day

files afterFiling is a task that is often thought of as drudgery. Taking the time to put papers away can be a hassle—but there’s no denying, it’s time well spent. Have you ever put off filing only to have piles start stacking up around you? Here are some tips to keep your files what they should be—an ongoing flexible resource for papers you will need future access to.

  • Keep it simple. A basic filing system of manilla files and hanging folders work for great for most file drawers. It’s always easy to find replacement parts and as your files grow and change, the system remains flexible.
  • Label to locate. Having your files labeled properly is the key to being able to retrieve documents quickly. Keep a labeler handy at your desk. It’s great for making quick file labels, not to mention many other types of labels at your fingertips. They’re inexpensive and worth the investment if you want to be organized.
  • File according to use. If a frequently used file name starts with a Z, don’t alphabetize and put it at the back of the drawer. Place files used often in the most accessible place.
  • Know what you have. It’s best to give your files a good once over one to two times per year. Pull out each file, look through the contents, toss what you can and move on. When your files are current, the drawer isn’t over stuffed and filing is easier.
  • Keep files current. The file drawer at your desk should be for current file use only. Any long term files such as tax documents should be boxed, labeled and stored elsewhere. Check out our Records Retention Document for guidelines on how long to keep specific documents.

Remember, the reason it’s important to file is because it’s easier to find papers in a file than in a pile. Sifting through piles is time consuming and inefficient. Although it initially seems like more work, it actually takes more time to find something that hasn’t been filed.

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Friday Favorite: Digital Timers—Get Things Done Using Small Bits Of Time

by Monica on April 12, 2013

in Friday Favorites,Tip of the Day

If time seems to constantly get away from you, keeping track of it is a good idea. I love this handy little digital timer, but there are many other timers that you probably have on hand. Most cell/smart phones have alarms and timers built into them. There are timers in your kitchen, on your microwave, oven or stove. Here are some ways I like to use timers:

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  • Deadline timing: If I’m on a tight deadline for something, I’ll set the timer and designate a certain amount of time to each item or part of a project. Sometimes working under pressure helps to push me along and the timer keeps me from allowing distractions.
  • Time the kids: The best use of a timer in my household is with the kids. We can agree on an amount of time that they can be gaming, computing or watching TV and set the timer. If I don’t set a timer, I often forget and they can be entranced for hours!
  • Beat the clock: You can also use the timer to play beat the clock. If you want to get something done, but you have limited time, keep that timer out with a digital countdown.
  • 30 Minute Fix: If you have a big project looming that’s wasting more energy in thought than action, set the timer for 30 minutes and take the first chunk out of it. Getting started can often get you moving in the right direction and it certainly helps to eliminate the overwhelm.
  • 10 Minute Tidy: Carve out ten minutes, set the timer and do a ten minute tidy. I’m sure there are many times that you should be giving it a lot more than the ten minutes, but if it’s a busy day, ten minutes is better than no minutes!

It’s great to have a digital timer thats out and available for all to see. There are so many other ways to use a timer to make best use of your time, whether it’s pending projects, organizing a space or managing the kids, always be aware of the time, after all it is our most valuable and limited resource. What are some ways you use timers to get things done?

Is Your Email Efficient?

by Monica on April 10, 2013

in Tip of the Day

Screen Shot 2013-04-10 at 11.03.31 AMHere’s a post I wrote for NBC Chicago’s Inkwell Blog:

We’ve told you how to deal with cleaning out email in Detox your Inbox, but what about the email that you want to keep and refer to in the future? If you need to respond, save or act on an email, do you let it just linger aimlessly in your inbox? Here are some tips to keep those important emails organized so you can access and act upon them quickly and efficiently.

Set boundaries: Set a maximum number of emails that you’ll allow in your inbox at the end of the day. It will help you to force out some extra emails that are only wasting your time sitting there.

File, file, file: Keeping files of current projects and important tasks is a must do for an organized inbox. You will be much more efficient when all related emails are dragged over and tucked into neatly organized files on the left side of your email program.

Copy, paste and save: Go to your email, copy out the content you want, paste it in a document and save it to your computer. Having a good digital filing system to access important information is key to staying organized.

Move them: Do you use a task management program? If so, cut and copy what you need out of the email and create tasks with the information. Schedule the tasks on your calendar to ensure they will get done.

Create rules: With many mail programs you can establish criteria for emails as they are received so they will go directly into a file. This is especially helpful when you’re working on a project and you want all related emails together.

Unsubscribe: Of course, not getting unimportant emails in the first place is the best line of defense. Get in the habit of hitting the unsubscribe button before you delete so you won’t continue to receive emails you don’t want to waste time looking at.

Keeping up with email, whether it be filing, deleting or processing, is required to avoid drowning in digital disorganization. Remember that keeping it all organized is your key to finding it in the future!

 Source: http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/inc-well/Is-Your-Email-Efficient-201969241.html#ixzz2Q4mcc7oo

Friday Favorite: Get Rid of Clutter & Help Someone in Need

by Monica on April 5, 2013

in Friday Favorites

Guest Blog post by Brittany Graunke, the founder of Zealous Good, an in-kind donation marketplace in Chicago. You can connect with Brittany and Zealous Good on  Facebook and Twitter.

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We all have clutter that we’d like to get rid of, but we can’t just throw out perfectly good items. Who needs them and how do we find them?  Across your community, there are tons of people who can benefit from your no longer needed items. Here are a few examples…

 Baby/kids items

Do you have old baby items sitting in a box somewhere? If you’re not using a baby monitor, for example, consider donating it to a teen moms program in. In a recent donation, a teen mom received a baby monitor and said the following:

 “Thank you so much for the baby monitor. It’s a big help! I am able to get a lot more accomplished. I am able to watch her while doing my homework, cleaning, etc…”

 iPods

Thanks to Steve Jobs and the team at Apple, we all have more iPods, iPads, iPhones and iEverything than we need! If you have an extra iSomething laying around, consider clearing it’s content and donating it to an after school or music program. These programs can provide your unwanted electronics as incentives for kids performing well in school or as a tool to help them study and learn about music.

Towels/Linens

Is your towel closet overflowing? Do you have 3 extra bed sheets still left from your first apartment? If the towels or linens are in great condition, a local shelter can use them. If the items have seen better days, consider donating them to an animal shelter where they’ll be used in kennels.

I hope this small list gives you some great ideas of where to donate your clutter and how it makes an impact. Next time you see unused items in your home, remember to get rid of the clutter and also make a difference! If you’re in the Chicago area, let Zealous Good help you find someone who will truly appreciate that stuff you’re no longer using.

 

 

 

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