Organizing Tools and Answers All in a Day

The Los Angeles Organizing Expo is the only expo in Los Angeles dedicated to the productivity industry happens this Monday, September 21.  The fifth annual NAPO-LA event will showcase time saving products, organizing solutions, tools and services held at the Olympic Collection in West Los Angeles from 5:30-8:30 pm.

We invite you to come and visit our booth at the expo which will showcase our closet, office and garage design services.  We will also share information on our Residential Inventory and Home Procedures Manual, Clutter Control and Relocation Services.

Before the Expo at 4 pm…
Organziing secrets will be revealed at the annual “Ask the Organizer” Panel, which will precede The Organizing Expo.  The 90 minute interactive discussion is open tot the public and will feature accomplished professional organizers from NAPO-LA’s Golden Circle.  These are experts in the field of personal productivity, office systems, relocations, storage design, special needs training, media and coaching.

This year’s panel will feature Chris McKenry of Get It Together LA!, Dolores Kaytes, of Highly Organized, Donna McMillan of McMillan & Company, and Barbara Ricketts , aka The Mess Doctor.  The Panel will be facilitated by Lynne Gilberg of Lynne Gilberg Organizing.

For Ask the Organizer Panel and Los Angeles Organizing Expo ticket information visit www.napola.org. 

Remember, stop by the Get It Together LA! booth and say “Bye to Clutter”!

Book Bags and School Lockers

Products from The Container Store

How organized were you as the new school year was approaching?  When you were getting ready for the new school year did you think about the principles of organization?

Besides learning geography, mathmatices and other subjects to prepare your children for life, don’t forget to give these future doctors, politicians, policemen and and even professional organizers the tools needed for filing and finding their school work.  Start out by making organizing seem fun by asking your kids if they would like to have more time with their favorite activities.  Begin by organizing toys, sports equipments, even electronic games.  As items are reviewed help your kids make decisions what is not used and just in the way.  Explaining all the time that once these obstacles are out of the way, it will take less time to find what is wanted allowing more time for play.

Now you can help them go from papers stuffed into a backpack to notebooks with categories that make sense to your students.    Once one area is mastered, it will be easy to keep other areas organzied.  School lockers, tests, assignments, special projects and even packed lunches have best results when they are organzied. 

When you go shopping for “back to school” let the students make lists of needed items before heading to the store.  There are always find great tools at The Container Store.  But remember, if purchases are really not needed – and end up not being used - they will add to your clutter.

Make this year the first year of a productive lifetime where goals are achieved for your students.

Multitasking Is Not the Best Use of Time

This weekend I enjoyed going to the movies and seeing Star Trek.  It seems others thought it would be a good place to send text messages and check e-mails.  Even the week before the person next to me was continually using his Blackberry during the first act of a play.

During the ”Time Management at the Age of Speed” session at the NAPO Conference in Orlando last month, Harlod Taylor shared that the fast devours the slow.  Think about it, we have more information to manage than ever before.  Not so long ago, we became overwhelmed by the fax machine.  Now we are averaging over 190 message a day because of the phone, email, Facebook, Twitter and more.

Need to See Time?

Time is essential to staying organized.  Do you find it is difficult to see time as it passes each hour?  Are you constantly running in circles to meet deadlines?

Visit TimeTimer.com and check out their products available to actually show time as it passes.  This especially helpful to those with ADD.

If we don’t respond to an inquiry quickly we stand the chance of loosing an opportunity.  But how is clutter effecting your schedule by multitasking throughout the day?  As the saying goes, “stop and smell the roses”.  The same can be said for enjoying the movie or texting your friends.  Don’t dilute your activies and productivity by not focusing on one project at a time.

Check out our latest “O-Tips” for more information to make your life easy. 

Help for Soon-to-be Parents

Newborn babies bring joy, but with the joy comes stroller, cribs, toys, diapers, gifts, changing tables, more diapers and clothes, car seats, more gifts…well you get the idea.  Recognizing new parents need to be organized as they prepare for their family addition, Kijiji.com has partnered with us to help educate parents on the best ways to organize and maximize space for their “Baby On Board” campaign.

Kijiji.com is a free, family friendly site that is easy to navigate and a great place to buy and sell items for the home and find necessary services.  The name Kijiji is Swahili for village.  This is really a community to share information and resouce to get rid of unwanted clutter.  In their online survey, it was discovered that only 7% of parents resale baby items once they are no longer used.   So 93% of families have the opportunity to gain more space and raise some money by selling these unused items.

Check out our tips and let your baby develop organizing principles that will last a lifetime.

The Easter Bunny, Clutter and Organizers

Easter Sewing Basket

I barely remember waking up on Easter morning and rushing to see the great basket of treats left by that annual unseen rabbit.  It would be filled with yummy chocolate bunnies, Malamar Bars, marshmallow treats, and jelly beans.  Not a thing was wasted.

This week a friend said he had a craving for a Easter basket.  So yesterday while walking home from The Grove I stopped in K-Mart to up pick one.  I know it has been…well lots of years since I have been on the receiving end from the Easter Bunny but of all the hundreds of baskets the store had were definitely different from what I remembered.  Instead of sweet treats and yummy candy every basket had plastic toys that would certainly become clutter and unwanted by later in the day.  

For about the same amount of money of the pre-packaged baskets I purchased quality candies, colored grass stuffing, baskets and stuffed rabbits were available to create a custom basket.   For a hostess gift I even filled grass stuffing and chocolates in a sewing basket to take to a dinner party this evening.

The commentary to all this is any event, holiday, or gift is what you make it.  As an organizing expert helping my clients keep clutter at bay it is evident that habits start at an early age.  So even those gifts your children receive can start traits that are not seen for years to come.  Don’t just spend to buy something.  Have a clear goal when you go shopping.  If something doesn’t look like what you are looking for, don’t settle.  Keep looking or make the gift yourself.  And by the way, my friend loved what the Easter Bunny brought him!

West Week Shares Business Principles for All Industries

The interior design industry desended upon the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood last week for West Week - an annual gathering to examine the latest products, styles, and trends for home decor.  Kicking off West Week was an elite panel of experts discussing The Business of Design, sponsored by Architectural Digest.

Donna Livingston, Martyn Lawrence-Bullard, Mimi London, and Stephen Shadley shared their beginnings in the design industry and answered questions on how to succeed during the current economic conditions.  All are at the top of their field and recognized as Architectural Digest’s AD100 list.

When asked how to thrive during this economy, all emphasized that they are focused on the future.  All but one offers product lines.  Stephen Shadley principal works out of a live/work space in New York where he enjoys working late if necessary.  Martyn Lawrence-Bullard stressed his products are highest in style and quality but price for a broader market.  Commenting on his new candle line he shared “you may not spend thousands on furnishings, but almost everyone can afford a $30 candle”.

Donna Livingston shared “difficult times define who we are.”  She went on to emphasis the importance of on-line networking and the power of blogs.  Ms. Livingston’s portfolio has appeared in numerous international publications.  Though she does not advertise she likes to feature “rooms of the month” for direct marketing pieces to clients. 

Mimi London, like the rest of the panel emphasized the importance of  learning the “business” in design.  It’s not enough to be creative, you have to invoice, market, and make your business work.  Those new to the industry were encouraged to began their careers working and learning in established firms before branching out on their own. 

The organizing industry shares the same business principles as the design industry.  Both industries work to make homes a place for enjoyment.  The ability to work closely with clients and understand how they live is something both groups share. 

The entire panel was optimistic for the coming year.  While spending may not be as it was a year ago we all agree having a beautiful and organized space gives comfort and enriches everyones life.

Friday Night Dine with the Famous and Organized

If you are in Los Angeles this Friday, January 30, why don’t you join Hal Sparks of “Queer As Folk” and Christopher Knight of “The Brady Bunch” and “My Fair Brady”  at the 2009 Los Angeles Organizing Awards?  Also appearing will be organizing celebrities Sam Saboura, Gia Russo, and Jodie Watson all of “Real Simple. Real Life”, Dorothy Breininger of “Dr. Phil Show”, Linda Koopersmith of “Clean House” and Monica Ricci of “Mission: Organization”.

The entertainment industry is not the only group walking down the red carpet during the Hollywood Awards’ season.  You are invited to join professional organizers from across the county at the gala that “made organizing sheek” according to Oprah’s Peter Walsh. 

Chris McKenry, Immediate Past President of NAPO-LA will also be on the program that evening and  Get It Togethter LA! is a finalist in the Best Closet Design category.  In 2007, Get It Together LA! took home that honor.

The Office Depot, Presenting Sponsor of the event, will have a drawing for a $500 shopping spree.  The event is produced by the National Association of Professional Organizers, Los Angeles chapter and with production support by the Dave Linden Group. 

Share the glamor of Hollywood, the culinary delights of the Luxe Hotelin Bel Air, and excitement of the 4th Annual Los Angeles Organizing Awards.  REGISTER NOW at napola.org.

Organize Your Home Office for the New Year

It’s a new year and time for a fresh start.  Before the 2009 clutter begins piling up get your expense files set up.  This is the perfect time to start an organized system for your paper so filing taxes at the end of the year will be easy.

For the typical home, keep categories broad and only keep the receipts for items to be deducted.  “Credit Cards 09″, “Medical 09″, “Mortgage/Rent 09″ , and “Utilities 09″ are possibly needed files.  Use MS Word to create labels for files and save the document.  Then next year all that is necessary is reprinting and changing the year.  Also create files for bank reconciliations.

Remove all of the 2008 expenses from your desk, prepare your taxes, then move records to your archive storage.  This may be your basement, garage, or back of closet.  Check with your tax preparer to see how long you need to keep your tax records.  Typically, seven years is all that is required by the IRS.  Now your “prime real estate” is available and clutter free.

Instead of the overstuffed shoe box, use small-13 compartment-check wallets for keeping your receipts for credit cards or petty cash.  These come with labels for alphabetical or monthly divisions.  Again only keep the receipts that you will deduct from your taxes.

Get out NOW to The Container Store or your favorite office supply store and you will be ready for filing your 2009 taxes this time next year.

SpaceMakers Gets Knoxville Organized

Knoxville does not have a Container Store, but that does not mean the city lacks the hottest organizing products.  Robin and Travis Carbaugh have owned SpaceMakers The Get Organzied Store since 1997.  Located in the shopping meca of West Knoxville’s Turkey Creek, SpaceMakers is across from Walmart.   

On my visit this week, Robin and Travis walked me through the newly remodeled showroom.  Besides featuring numerous organizing products for all areas of the home and office, SpaceMakers offers custom design services for closets, garages, office, and pantries.  They offer both custom melamine and wood veneer systems from basic to designs featuring crown molding and unique drawer inserts.  They also offer Do-It-Yourself products for those inspired by HGTV, also located in Knoxville.

Their website is expanding and online shopping is available for many items.  If you are in East Tennessee, SpaceMakers a must stop for your holiday organizing needs and Get Organized Month projects in January.  Besides, organizing a garage is much more fun with snow falling than during hot and humid days of summer!

Fires, Theft, Earthquakes Make Household Inventories Invaluable

What if you heard fire trucks on your street?  Do you have an accurate inventory of what you have insured should there be a loss due to natural disasters or even theft?  State Farm Insurance suggests that providing the most information possible at the time of a loss is crucial to speedy and accurate claims.

 

Last week another fire brought fear to Los Angeles’s home owners.  Just after midnight a brush fire broke out near the Getty Museum on October 23.  Due to the quick response of the Fire Department and an aerial attack of the flames, there was no damage to homes amd most important no loss of life.  Would you be prepaired if you had a loss?

 

Household Inventory’s should include every item of value in your home.  Going room by room and make a list and photograph furniture, art work, window treatments, collections, etc.  This inventory should include the purchase price and the location of were items were purchased.

 

Keep an extra copy of the inventory away from the home so you are always repaired for quick claims.