Organizing Projects

Quick and Easy Living room Re-design

April 22, 2013 by Heather Filed Under: Art & Design, Home, Organize, Organizing Projects

Last week I had a fun and quick re-design job for an open living room dining room area. My client had recently inherited quite a few new pieces of furniture from a relative and had purchased a new sectional sofa. She was left with a mix of furniture in her open space that wasn’t functional and didn’t flow. I quickly assessed her needs as follows:

more living room seating for guests
a more functional and useable dining room area-for entertaining and daily use
integrate new furnishings with existing eclectic style
more seating for outdoor patio
too cluttered/crowded feeling

BeforeKW BeforeKW-1

Before the dining table was under the windows and when being used it obstructed the flow of the room. The chair next to the china hutch rarely got used and two additional chairs in the living room were pushed up against the wall across from the sofa and therefore felt quite separate from the living room space.

We relocated those chairs to the screened porch to make more room and give the outdoor space additional seating. The two large pieces of furniture on both ends of the rooms created a heavy feeling and on one end partially blocked light from a window. First, we moved the TV cabinet over to fill the large wall across from the sectional. This allowed more light in through the previously blocked window and made room for two additional seating areas on both sides of the tv cabinet using a couple of chairs and occasional tables already in the space. We also moved the sofa a bit to create space for the china cabinet on the wall behind it. By moving both the chair and the china cabinet we opened up the entire back wall (closest to the kitchen) for a clearly defined dining space that has ample room for entertaining.

The newly arranged living space has more seating but also feels intimate and cozy.

After-1 After

The room now feels more open and less cluttered and there are still two distinct spaces for living and dining.

Whenever I do a space re-design I advise clients to live with it for at least a week before deciding if there are things they really don’t like. As creatures of habit we get use to our things in a certain arrangement and it might feel awkward at first having things moved around within the space. Luckily in this case the client worked with me to move things and she seemed really happy with the results immediately. The following day she responded to an email I sent with this response; “I love it so much! The room feels bigger and I like my “things” more now too in the new arrangement.” This was a two hour project and the only expense for the client was my consulting/space planning fee. We did not buy one single thing!

Use what you have in new ways, move things around and create a totally new space!

Sunday Savings::7 Ways Organizing Saves

March 10, 2013 by Heather Filed Under: Organize, Organizing Projects, Paper management, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

I’m shifting gears this week to share 7 Ways Organizing Saves you big $$!

I’ve often had clients comment to me that they are ashamed of spending so much money to hire an organizer and they wonder if something is wrong with them. No way! Anyone who cares enough to invest their time and money will potentially be saving hundreds if not thousands of dollars. Really…I’ll share some statistics and examples.

Source: moneysmartfamily.com via HKpowerStudio on Pinterest

7 Ways you can Save by getting more organized:

Money-both cash and checks. I have found either cash or checks with almost all of my clients when we dig in and start sorting. Sometimes it’s just a few dollars and sometimes I’ve found hundreds! I know other organizers who have found thousands if not HUNDREDS of thousands with clients!
Space-by clearing out old clutter and not PAYING to store it in storage bins or rooms in your house! EX…do you store your junk in your garage and your second most valuable asset-your car-out in the elements? If you have storage bin or room in your house you are throwing hundreds out the window every month. According to the storage industry 10% of Americana households have storage!! Why would you pay to store stuff you don’t need or use? Short term storage can have a purpose if you are moving but otherwise it’s probably a waste.
Calories! Yes by saving time and being more productive you can prepare healthier meals for yourself and family. Not to mention the act of organizing can be quite physical and you will burn calories while your at it.
Relationships…many relationships are put under tremendous stress when one partner is utterly unorganized. The conflicts that can arise from one partners responsibilities not being met again and again can lead to devastating consequences!
Taxes-found receipts, deductibles and preventing expensive audits or late fees.
Time-when you know where to find what you need you will save time on a daily basis. [time=productivity=money]
Fees-you can eliminate late fees on bills and credit cards if you have an organized system for bill paying in place.

Rather than asking yourself if you can afford to hire an organizer or spend the time working through it on your own shouldn’t you ask yourself how you can afford NOT to be organized?

What value do you think being organized has in your life?

Where can you find ways to save?

Mend It Monday

March 4, 2013 by Heather Filed Under: Organize, Organizing Projects, Systems & Techniques

Last Monday I spent some time working through a stack of mending that I had been holding off on. It was finally time. I had my sewing machine out and a great book from the library to assist me; Mend it Better. I must have lived a previous life in more frugal times because I can not part with things that just need a little TLC to make them as good as new again.

In my stack of mending I had several tank tops that were too long (I am vertically challenged so this is often the case), a couple of sweaters that had been visited by a moth or two in storage) and a pair of my husband’s jeans that had several tears.

I had patched his jeans once before but there were additional tears so I both patched and added some decorative top stitching.

After years of owning and never using a walking foot for my sewing machine I finally gave it a try too and fell in LOVE with it! I hear some people say they don’t really think it makes much difference but with my machine and fine/knit fabrics it made for a fantastic modification! I breezed through he knits without any stretching or shifting of fabrics.

Finally I tried my hand at darning on the fine moth holes on the 2 sweaters and found the process quite easy and a handy skill to know. I wouldn’t want to do a lot of this but the process involves a type of needle weaving through the knit structure and having a good working knowledge of both types of textiles I found pretty easy to understand how to stabilize the fabric around/over the holes. It doesn’t necessarily make the holes invisible, just keeps them from spreading further.

There are certainly times that tossing or donating is more appropriate but I’m working on improving my mending habits by adding a few new skills as I go. Do you mend things regularly, pay someone else to do it or just get rid of things that need a bit of TLC?

Your Desk Assignment

January 14, 2013 by Heather Filed Under: Organize, Organizing Projects, Paper management, Productivity, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

Since January was GO Month, I’m continuing to bring you Get Organized tips. Today, here’s your Desk assignment if you choose to tackle it! Because, you know…it might be a mess regularly, or you may need to start getting tax papers together.

You know your why, I’ll show you how.

Spend the thirty minutes to hour of your day at work keeping your desk organized for a more productive week, month & year!

Really! If you spend 30-60 min’s today and clean up your desk, it will make you feel so much better, more productive, more effective and less stressed when you sit down (or stand) to get back to work.

Here’s a quick breakdown with a few tips to keep in mind as you are tackling this little (or maybe not so little?) task:

If you already have a good filing system in place, sort & file or toss/shred the rest. IF NOT…
Decide if you are A filer or A piler (more here ). If you are a ‘filer’ proceed to the next step using a vertical file sorter. If you are a ‘piler’ then proceed but modify this system using a horizontal filing baskets, bins or small drawers.
Create a ‘Tickler or Action file system’ for the items that need to remain nearby. There are several types like 43 Folders or a more action-based system. Sort items & file or toss/shred the rest. Action files may include: To Do, Pay, Contact, Research or Decisions, Complete, Pending, Read, Delegate, Upcoming events, File, Current projects (by name) and more.
Clear supplies off surfaces. Put them in drawers or bins/boxes/baskets and label as needed. Keep only what you use regularly on the desk. One pen/pencil and one notepad and the electronic paraphernalia.
Utilize vertical space. Hang a cork, whiteboard, calendar, or action file sorter (not where things should live permanently!). Consider anything else that you can remove from your desk to better use vertical space.
Remove anything unrelated to work or home office (toys, mail that hasn’t been sorted, tools, knickknacks, etc.)
Optimize your workspace ergonomics. Check the height of your chair, monitor, and desk. Add good lighting and consider using or adjusting arm rests, using a riser for your monitor, a wedge for your wrists etc.
Include something beautiful (not a bunch of things!). One or two beautiful objects like a plant, a crystal, a photo, candle etc. that give you a place for you to rest your eyes. Cast your gaze on these when you are taking recommended 3-min breaks from your monitor.

IF this doesn’t seem like a task you can tackle in 30-60 min’s and you can’t do it all at once then tackle the tasks above that seem easy and check them off the list. When it comes to the BIG piles, can you do a quick sort and keep only the things you really need on/near your desk in a desktop sorter of some type? The rest can go into a box for you to label “SORT” and work on a little at at time (30 min’s a day) for the rest of the week or until it’s done.

Coming to work tomorrow will be that much more joyful with a neat an tidy desk!

Brought to you by National Clean off your desk day! Who thinks of these things? Hallmark? Is there a card for it?

Now, I’m off to take my own medicine! Happy Clean Desk Day!

SpaceCraft Studio Makeover

December 3, 2012 by Heather Filed Under: In the Studio, Organize, Organizing Projects Leave a Comment

This week’s makeover features a retail shop I worked with back in October. This was a very fun job for me because it brings together my passions for organizing and crafting! SpaceCraft Studios is a new craft shop and studio where locals can meet other creative people and make stuff! The owner, Allison is already very organized but as you can imagine with any new business she was a little overwhelmed and re-organizing the supplies and storage in the back rooms were just not at the top of her priorities! That’s when she enlisted me to help because she realized that things could quickly get out of hand and starting a new business with good systems in place sets the stage for future success!

As both a craft store and a studio that offers classes there have been (and will continue to be) many donations of materials and supplies. As these came in they began to pile up in the storage room. Creating a system for this area was one of the biggest priorities so that future donations didn’t become overwhelming and un-useful. Without getting rid of anything (because there was an upcoming craft supply swap!) I sorted materials and supplies by category and re-organized how they were grouped and arranged in the space. Adjacent to this space was a smaller area that was storage for tools and additional supplies. Some items in this space were moved out and other tools (from other areas of the shop) were move into this area and re-organized.

[Even the tool boxes got a little makeover!]

The kitchen had become a catch all for a few categories that didn’t necessarily make sense there (tools). These items were relocated to make more efficient use of the kitchen for entertaining supplies, food and storage related items like bags, jars and soap making supplies etc used for some classes.

Most of the organizing I did was “back of house” but I re-arranged/re-organized the resource library (available for students and customers to browse) to make room for a new shipment of product. In this case I sorted books by craft category (sewing, knitting, paper crafting etc). I also worked on labeling some of the smaller already organized supplies in the studio space so that both customers and teachers can easily identify (and return) supplies as needed.

If you find it challenging to organize your craft stash maybe you will get a few inspiring ideas from this post and SpaceCraft Studios!

How do you like to organize your craft/art supplies? If you have any tips or brilliant ideas to share please let me know. For more craft supply organizing ideas I’ve got a great Pinterest Board!