But Dust Bunnies are sooo Cute!

It's just a mess.
Hopeless.
I don't even no where to begin.
Look, I know I have a problem.
This is so embarassing.
I have heard all kinds of lines from clients.

"I am proud of 'Marty' for taking this step to call you,"
stated the wife of Marty to me.

Marty and his wife run a couple businesses out of their home. Needless to say, it becomes a bit tricky keeping the office organized. Throw in a move a couple years ago, business doesn't stop, and the place gets out of control quickly.



Stacks of papers on the floor, covering the desk, piles on the chairs. Leaving no place to work. It was getting quite frustrating for Marty. And he was starting to get depressed about the mess because he felt terrible about their office area.

When I started working with Marty, I noticed he knew where everything was. There was some order to the mess. He was able to put away many of the needed papers and receipts quickly. Two large bags were taken to the dumpster. And, another 4-5 large plastic containers of papers were ready to be taken to a local shredding company, probably close to 200 lbs (91 kg).








6.5 hours later ... A clean desk top, no more dust bunnies!

Marty felt better about the office area.
He had a desk again and a plan to keep it organized.

Like Marty's wife, I am proud of him for tackling this project.
I am confident he WILL keep it organized.

When helping your clients,
what statements have they made to you?

Drawer Magic with Rocket Organizing

Drawers.

We all have them. Many times STUFFED to the brim with pencils, screws, papers, power cords and other odds & ends. If you have your drawers organized, bonus to you.

In this video from Rocket Organizing (a new division of Organized Solutions), we take a look at an organizing magic trick to keep your drawers organized and in check:




What is your favorite drawer in your home?

Don't be a Squirrel, Get Organized

Now is a great time to get your pantry organized AND help those in need.  Most schools are collecting pantry items for holiday food drives, so donating is as easy as stopping by your local school.

Time to take a look through your collection of can goods and pantry items.
Anything dusty?
Label faded?
Stuff you don't even like?
Do you REALLY need 12 cans of green beans?

Set these items aside for donation.

Now, take a look and make sure cookies and peanut butter jars are not hiding in your plates or glasses. Bring all your pantry items into one area of your kitchen. This not only makes it easy to see all the food you have available, it will also save you from buying more of what you already have in your home.

Finally, set up your own family grocery store. There is a reason stores are set up this way, it's practically been perfected. All you have to do is duplicate it in your own home. Use your grocery store to reorganize your pantry items: Canned goods, pasta, snacks, condiments, etc.

Take your faded, unopened items to your local school to be used by so many other families in need.

Now, don't forget to reward yourself for your job well done.

What was the oldest pantry item found?

Organized Solutions Helps Overwhelmed Professionals

Holiday gift giving can be challenging, especially if the someone has everything.  But what if they have too much of everything?  The Toledo Free Press interviewed yours truly as part of their gift giving guide for this holiday season: 

Yes, the gift of getting organized is becoming more and more popular.  You can even purchase professional organizing certificates in the right column of this blog.  Look for the blue "Add to Cart" button. You can save some $$ with your larger projects AND a $10 bonus discount when you use Google Checkout.

Thank you Toledo Free Press for the great article ... You ROCK!!

What is your favorite gift  you are giving this season?

Perhaps We're All a Tinge OCD

OK, I'm going to jump right in an say I have a routine I must do or my day just feels weird.

One of my things:
I must put on my right sock,
then left sock,
then put on my right shoe and tie it,
then put on my left shoe and tie it.

If this sequence is jumbled up,
I will start over to bare feet and begin again
(I'll feel like I'm walking in circles all day if I don't).

Many of us have these little "routines" we do everyday. Perhaps we are aware, maybe we are oblivious though others around you are totally laughing inside at your antics. That's OK, you're happy right? Nothing wrong with having an OCD tendency here and there.

Think about this:
Being TOO organized with everything in its place. Nothing ever so slightly crooked on your walls. Perhaps to the point of shelves and bins labeled. No dust on any of your flat surfaces (Oh, I have excepted dust into my household as my friend). You may be a bit OCD.

On the other hand, you have stacks of clothes, papers, newspapers, egg crates and such everywhere. You love collections. There is a bit of order to the chaos in your home, though its just a lot of stuff. Keeping you from enjoying your home as you wish you could. This may be a bit OCD, too.

See we all, likely, at some level have OCD.
Again I believe whole-heartedly in:

"Everything in moderation is good."
Take a moment and think about what's going on in your life and home. Perhaps there is an area that has gotten a bit out of control. Lasso that bad boy and take charge.

You'll feel better.

What is your daily OCD routine?

What Value Do You Put on Being Organized?

Today's world seems to function as such a crazy, fast pace. It is very easy to lose track of time and things. Just as a little snow ball rolling down Mt. Everest, it slowly builds and builds, and builds ... into this monstrosity of a beast barreling down the slope out of control.

Lack of organization in your home or office begins very small. Maybe its just setting down the mail on the counter as you walk in the door. Perhaps you go change your clothes, start watching TV, or check on your 257 Facebook friends while the mail pile waits. Then you get hungry, make some dinner, get the kids to work on homework, check on Facebook again and get ready for bed.

Waking up in the morning you rush to get everyone out the door on time, grab your keys nearly knocking all of the mail on the floor (geez, that would have been a mess) and dash out to your car.

After a day at work, you nearly get hit by a teenager swerving while texting, you make it safely home. Grab the mail and as you walk into your home ... well, mine as well set it on the counter with the other mail.  You'll get to it later. BAM! Your little organizing snow ball has just begun.

Repeat this cycle a few days and you certainly have an organizing nightmare staring at you every time you get home.  Making feel overwhelmed, stressed and not the happy person you deserve to be.

My fellow professional organizer, John Trosko, who is the founder of OrganizingLA a premier Southern California organizing firm beautifully stated the value of our services:

"Some people wonder why organizers charge so much. Well, our fees are an amazingly value when you compare it to the time, effort & worry you encounter searching for something, not to mention the cost of having to replace an item you can't locate and the discouraging disappointment that comes from this circle. A professional organizer can help you get organized faster and more thorough than doing it yourself."

Being organized is an investment in yourself.

Sure you can focus and bring organization to your home, office and life all on your own.  Though if you are struggling, frustrated and ready to wave a big white flag, find a local professional organizer. We are here to help you love your home and office, again.  Get you out enjoying the fun in life.

What value do you put on enjoying yourself?

Woo Hoo! Get Organized for the Holidays!!

Getting organized has just become a little bit easier.  Organized Solutions is now accepting your favorite credit card for payments on all your organizing projects and organizing gift certificate purchases.  Google Checkout is a fantastic new element and we are very excited to offer this feature to you (See the right side bar on this blog.  Website access coming soon.)

As a kick-off celebration, from now until  December 25th, you can save $10 on your first purchase of $60 or more.  You can use this saving toward your projects before the holidays or purchasing organizing gift certificates to be used later.  The choice is up to you.

If you are thinking of purchasing a gift certificate, I encourage you to contact me to make sure your gift will be happily received. Nothing worse than getting a gift like that ugly sweater your Aunt Bonnie gave you when you were 16 year old.

What was the worst gift you ever received?